kscans

Chapter 133 - A New Quest and Trouble at the Settlement

We, the members of Levante, were walking south from the city of Heilon. The wheat fields near the city soon gave way to a forest. It was filled with low, broad-leaved trees, and as long as we stuck to the small path, it was bright and didn't feel oppressive. The sun was getting stronger, but it was cool and pleasant in the shade, with little humidity. The route wasn't along the main road, and there were several forks we had to navigate carefully to reach our destination. Famu repeatedly checked the simple map she'd received from the Chairman as we went. At first, whenever we reached a fork, I would pull out the map and we'd all discuss it, but before I knew it, Famu had taken the map from me and made it her responsibility. Occasionally, she'd point a finger with a distinct lack of confidence, filling us all with anxiety, but only Cecily ever complained.

"This group of six really is the most comfortable."

"What are you, an old man?!"

Cecily retorted when I spoke with a deep sense of contentment. Having officially become C-rank adventurers, we had accepted a request from the Chairman on Longhorn Street. The job was to subjugate monsters that were ravaging a farm he owned, located about a day's journey from Heilon. We hadn't been told the type of monster; only that we should go to the settlement and ask a man named Cyril for the details.

"A farm... a settlement... ugh, my head is starting to hurt..."

"It's alright, Master. We've grown a lot since then,"

Famu replied. She was right; compared to back then, she had grown tremendously. But what about me? I felt like I hadn't changed much at all.

"But this time, we don't have the reliable Aidan with us."

"If you're going to be so pessimistic, why did you even take a quest like this? Do you want to do lewd things with that girl Shizuka that badly?"

I was just grumbling a little, but Cecily's merciless verbal assault came swiftly.

"If that was my goal, I could have it with her anytime if I paid, and I've already paid for that much."

"You're the worst! But if that's not it, then why?"

"That's because..."

"Because?"

I wrapped my arms around Cecily.

"Because I wanted to go on an adventure with you!"

"Gah!"

She struggled and broke free.

"Liar! Stop hugging me to change the subject whenever things get inconvenient!"

Cecily yelled. Now that she mentioned it, I did seem to do that a lot.

"Alright. I'll stop hugging you."

"Huh? Why?"

She tells me to stop, but when I say I will, she asks why. I wish she'd make up her mind. I steered the conversation back to why I took the Chairman's request.

"Even if you say that, the truth is, I don't really know either..."

This was my true feeling. Looking back now, it seemed unnecessary to risk my life fighting an Area Guardian and raising my rank just to help her. Besides, she was content with her current situation. But she did say she wanted to come with us to Miglutt. And those summoned by the five goddesses were comrades. I did want to give her options. And I also felt I had to find this 'Ko-kun'. But I wasn't confident that was a clear motive. I was stuck in a fog, given a time limit and made to do things I didn't understand in places I didn't know. I just wanted to figure out this whole situation together.

"Haaah... get a grip! Still, we're heading out to the middle of nowhere. I wonder what they're even growing..."

she sighed.

"Good point. The Chairman is like some kind of underworld boss. If he's growing suspicious plants like poppies, let's just pretend we saw nothing and turn back."

I was considering the possibility that he was secretly producing narcotics. The request was about monsters ravaging a farm, but I wouldn't put it past him to make us fight his rivals or the city's knights.

"By the way, do you know what poppies are?"

"Are you making fun of me? They're the source of opium, right? Poppy fruits are grown in regions south of here, so I doubt we'd see them around here,"

Cecily replied, looking miffed.

"So you know their effects too?"

"I've never seen it in person, but I remember what was written in the pharmacology texts. It's a painkiller, a sleeping aid, and a digestive aid. But if you take too much, it makes people violent, lethargic, and can even lead to death..."

"I see. So it's treated as a medicinal substance here."

Cecily tilted her head slightly at my words.

"That's true, but it's expensive, and church healing or recovery potions are much quicker, so I don't think many people use it."

True, since high-quality healing potions could be made from common herbs, it was unlikely to become popular even among the wealthy nobles in this world. Thinking about it, there might be even more dangerous drugs in this world.

"Opium gives you a sense of euphoria, but with regular use, it becomes addictive and can cause psychosis. In my world, it was a banned substance."

"So that's why you were asking all those weird questions. You think the Chairman is secretly growing poppies for euphoria and pleasure?"

"Not exactly... well, I guess so. I can't imagine him being a decent man, so when you hear that someone like that is running a farm, that's the image that comes to mind."

However, from what Cecily said, it seemed narcotics weren't widespread in this world. Come to think of it, I hadn't seen anyone smoking cigarettes or cigars either. The Chairman, in particular, seemed like the type who would look good smoking a cigar. This meant there was no need to grow poppies in secret, and he probably wouldn't be targeted by the city knights for it.

"So, if we do have to turn back, what will you do about Shizuka?"

"I have no ideas, so I'll give up. Life is precious. If Shizuka insists, I'll leave it to Laciel."

"...Honestly, you should just summon Lady Laciel from the start and entrust everything to her,"

Cecily said, cutting right to the heart of the matter.


Past noon, we arrived at a farm where a vast field was enclosed by a wooden fence. Similar to the goblin-occupied village we'd seen before, the center rose up like a hill, where we could see a settlement surrounded by a wooden wall. A watchtower was visible beyond the wall.

"This time... they're people,"

Famu said, squinting at the figure standing on the watchtower. She must have been imagining the same dangerous scenarios as I was. But it seemed the place wasn't occupied by goblins like last time. I looked out over the farm. Waist-high grasses were planted at regular intervals. It was a plant I had never seen before. They weren't grown densely like wheat, but they were flourishing.

"...Medicinal herbs, maybe?"

Cecily said. Right, she also had the Pharmacist profession.

"Poppies?"

I had just been talking big with Cecily about opium, but I'd never actually seen a poppy flower or fruit. I had no idea what they were like. She shook her head in response to my question.

"I think... they're probably growing herbs for contraceptives and medicine for venereal diseases..."

Cecily said, sounding unsure.

"Master, may I borrow the herb encyclopedia?"

I took the encyclopedia out of my storage and handed it to her. It was the one we used for the herb-gathering quest around the time I met Famu. She had been more efficient at gathering herbs than I was, comparing the scent of the pressed flowers in the book to the plants growing in the wild. She sniffed the plants on the farm, then sniffed the book.

"Achoo!"

She must have gotten too close, because she sneezed. I couldn't help but smile at the cute way she sniffled her nose.

"Muu, what's so funny?"

"I'm not laughing!"

"Yes, you were!"

As Famu and I bickered, the settlement gate opened. A short but muscular young man emerged, leading several demonic-looking men toward us. The young man had pointed beast ears. His hair was cut short, with shaved lines in it. His eyebrows were also short, thin, and seemed to be well-groomed. He had a handsome face overall, but his sharp, sanpaku eyes gave him a ferocious look. He seemed to be in his mid-twenties. The men behind him had slave marks on their arms. They were probably being used as serfs.

"The one in front is of the cat-eared race..."

"Probably,"

Famu answered my mutter. She was no longer looking at the plant encyclopedia. I stopped her as she tried to step in front of me. We waited for the men to approach.

"What do you want?"

the man asked, glaring at me.

"My name is Mash. I've been sent by the Chairman to handle a monster subjugation request. I have a letter from him for a man named Cyril."

"I'm Cyril."

He took the letter, opened it, and began to read.

"I don't get it..."

After finishing, he looked me up and down, sizing me up. Then his gaze fell on the memo Famu was holding, the one with directions to the settlement.

"Let me see that memo."

Famu handed it to him. He stared at it intently.

"It's a wonder you made it here with this. And this messy handwriting is definitely the Chairman's. Does this mean you received the request directly from him?"

"That's right,"

I said, nodding to Cyril.

"My apologies for doubting you. Welcome. For now, please come inside the settlement."


We were led into the settlement.

"What are you growing on this farm?"

"Ah, plants that are the source for things like contraceptives and medicine for venereal diseases,"

Cyril answered my question. It seemed Cecily was right.
The settlement's layout was similar to the one we visited for Aidan's quest. There was one building that was likely Cyril's residence, one for the laborers, a warehouse, and one building that served as both a stable and housing for the slaves.

"Up the watchtower."

At his instruction, I followed Cyril up the ladder. Looking out, I saw that the entire surrounding area was an herb field. It was quite a spectacular sight. However, a closer look at the farm revealed that about a third of it was in a state of disarray—dug up, withered, or pocked with large holes.

"It's an Earth Dragon monster. The damage started a few months ago."

An Earth Dragon, so a mole. But since it's a monster, it could have special abilities. I was about to ask Myra for an explanation, but I realized only Famu had climbed the tower with me. Mizuki, Myra, Cecily, and Aira were looking up at us from below. I gestured for her to come up, but she held down the hem of her priestess robes and shook her head. I thought if she didn't want her underwear seen, she should just wear culottes, but then I wouldn't have a chance to see them either, so I kept my mouth shut.

"How many?"

"I don't know. We've killed three."

"The bodies?"

"None left. They vanished."

Three monsters in several months seemed like a small number, but they weren't a group of professional fighters, so I suppose it couldn't be helped.

"Is it just the fields being ravaged? They don't attack people?"

"They don't attack people directly unless we make the first move. No one's died, but some have been injured."

I'd heard that real moles are carnivores and don't eat plants, but monsters live on mana, so who knows. Still, how were we supposed to get rid of them? Should we just play whack-a-mole, hammering them as they pop out of their holes? The problem was how to lure out and defeat an enemy that could appear and disappear at will. I glanced at Myra, but she wasn't coming up. I decided we'd form a plan after we got down.

"So, the quest objective is to wipe out all the Earth Dragons?"

Cyril stared at me blankly at my question.

"You came all this way without being told the quest objective by the Chairman?"

"I asked for confirmation, but he just said I'd understand when I got here."

"I see, so you have no choice but to obey. You're being tested."

Cyril grinned and nodded in satisfaction. His attitude irked me a little.

"Tested for what?"

"You fell for one of the prostitutes on Longhorn Street, didn't you?"