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Although not comparable to the commercial city in Marquis Fides’ territory they had visited earlier, the village where they were now was still impressively large.
The difference from that city was that farmland occupied about one-third of the total area here, so there weren’t as many people. Even so, the task wasn’t going smoothly. Finding traces of someone who might not even exist was that difficult.
“I think we just need to check this last place,” Rohan said as he slowly looked around. In his hand, he tightly held the map Dein had given him that morning before they left the mercenary guild.
It seemed true that mercenaries had been investigating this area for the past few days, as there weren’t many places left for Rohan and Arpel to examine.
There were five spots marked in red on the map. Most were places with suspicious corners or areas that hadn’t been thoroughly checked, but unfortunately, they hadn’t found any significant traces. And now, the two had arrived at the location of the last mark.
“…There are even fewer people than I expected,” Arpel muttered softly.
The places they had visited so far didn’t give the impression of being constantly bustling with people, but there were still quite a few busy individuals moving about. However, even such people were nowhere to be seen here.
Strangely, hardly anyone lived in this area. There were houses, but they were enveloped in a deathly silence. Most were empty houses without a single sign of life or warmth.
“Something…”
Rohan’s expression became peculiar as he examined each house. The more he looked at the abandoned houses, the more an inexplicable sense of unease grated on his nerves.
“Doesn’t something seem odd?” he asked.
His gaze slowly lowered to the clean yard where not a single weed had grown. It was a sight that didn’t match the interior of the house, which was filled with scattered footprints and disheveled objects.
Arpel approached and lightly touched the outer wall of the house.
“It seems they haven’t been gone for long.”
The exterior of the house was neat. Although the inside was messy, it was merely traces left behind by the owners hastily packing their belongings.
The dust wasn’t very thick either, suggesting that these people had suddenly packed up and left the area for some reason not too long ago.
“I think so too. But that house… seems a bit different,” Rohan agreed with a nod, but that wasn’t all. He added more words and pointed somewhere with his hand.
Arpel’s gaze naturally followed where Rohan was pointing, and thanks to that, he easily spotted a small house across from them.
“This one… is more serious,” Arpel coldly assessed after quietly examining the place.
Cracked outer walls, burn marks, broken windows, and the surrounding ground thoroughly churned up. The inside, carefully inspected, was even worse than the outside, if that was possible.
The entire house was in shambles, as if burglars had ransacked it. There were even dried stains of what looked like blood clearly visible in patches on the floor. …There was no need to investigate what might have happened to the homeowners.
Despite being at a scene that showed part of a tragic past, Arpel’s expression didn’t change one bit. His eyes, staring at the bloodstains, were as cold as if looking at something worthless. There was no more information to be gleaned from this now.
“Have you looked around everything?” he asked.
“Yes. There’s nothing particularly noteworthy. I’m not even sure if this place is related to the missing mercenaries…”
The absence of residents in this area was likely connected to the incident that occurred in this house. But whether that incident would provide a clue to finding the disappeared mercenaries was… uncertain. Objectively speaking, it was probably a very low probability.
Rohan, momentarily lost in thought, turned his head at the touch of a hand gently tapping his shoulder. Having just stepped outside, he could see the mountain path behind the ruined house.
“This might be related,” Arpel said.
“Beware of bandits…?”
What Arpel pointed to was a large wooden sign in front of them.
The wooden sign was painted in garish colors, as if to ensure no one could miss it. Below the large phrase “Beware of bandits” was a paper listing detailed precautions.
To summarize, it warned that the person who lived in the house they had just visited had fallen victim to bandits, so everyone should fortify their homes inside and out. It started with the story of hiring mercenaries to eliminate the bandits and ended with a strong caution not to use the mountain path, as the bandits’ base seemed to be halfway up the mountain.
“…It seems people have all moved to the inner part of the village because of the bandits. But if they recruited mercenaries, the bandits should have been eliminated quickly.”
If they had been successfully eliminated, the news would have been received, and those who had left their homes would have returned. The lack of such signs suggested that the commissioned task had not yet been completed.
Rohan slightly furrowed his brow.
“There are too many unsettling aspects,” he said.
“Are you worried about the bandits?”
“It’s rare for bandits to directly attack a village, even in remote areas.”
Usually, bandits sustain themselves by robbing travelers using mountain paths or attacking merchant groups.
He had heard that when they were so unsuccessful that they couldn’t even feed themselves, they might attack nearby villages to steal. But even then, targeting just one house and disappearing didn’t make sense.
The bandits’ actions, the village’s response, and the slow progress of the task assigned to the mercenary guild were all equally incomprehensible. Or was it even the work of bandits to begin with?
“Let’s head back for now. If we go to the mercenary guild, we can also check if they’re really handling the request,” Arpel said, choosing to slowly calm Rohan, who seemed bothered by many aspects of the situation. It was time to return now. The sky was already showing deep red hues, suggesting night would soon fall.
Rohan, also looking up at the sky, nodded with a sheepish smile, realizing that poking around various parts of the village had taken quite a bit of time.
“Shall we stop by the guild briefly today and then return to the inn? You didn’t sleep well yesterday either.”
“I’m fine, though…”
“No, you can’t. You look tired.”
Faced with such a firm response, Rohan could only blink his eyes blankly. He had thought it was a question asking for his opinion.
But then he couldn’t help but smile. Although it was decided they would forcibly return to the inn, he felt quite pleased to be worried about by Arpel. He also found it lovely that Arpel was carefully observing his condition even while they were looking around various places.
“Alright. But before we go, let’s buy some food from that tavern we went to yesterday. We should be able to order now if we go back, right?”
“Probably.”
“Then—”
Just as Rohan was about to say “let’s go” with a bright smile, taking Arpel’s hand, someone flashed by in the corner of his vision.
It was only a side profile, but he could easily grasp the overall features. Ash-gray hair, bronze skin, and even a glimpse of a scar on the corner of the mouth. His head turned to follow the person who quickly disappeared, as if in a hurry.
“…Arpel.”
Rohan wasn’t the only one who had noticed him. At the low call, Arpel nodded. As if to say he too had seen the man who had just passed by.
The impression was too familiar. Having examined the materials Dein had given them several times, they could immediately realize.
He was one of the “missing mercenaries” who had last been seen in this village.
***
There were footsteps traversing the complex mountain path.
The steps moved forward without a hint of hesitation, as if having explored the area countless times. After moving like this for a few minutes, the narrow forest path opened up widely, revealing a hidden temporary shelter inside.
Jeringer, the owner of the steps that had passed through the forest without getting lost even once, quickly slipped into the shelter. Inside, numerous people seemed to have been waiting for him, holding their breath and keeping their positions.
“The task?”
“Completed safely. They’ll soon fall into the trap, so we just need to prepare according to the plan.”
At those words, a grave expression settled on everyone’s faces. There were one or two who still showed faint traces of hesitation. The way they kept gripping and releasing the sword hilt at their waist revealed their uneasy state of mind.
“H-hey, is it really okay to do this? What if we end up dying for nothing…!”
One of them, unable to hide his frightened appearance, asked in a trembling voice. Perhaps even uttering these words required tremendous courage from him.
“Are you still spouting such nonsense?”
The one who responded was a woman sitting opposite him. The man who had asked the question shuddered at her voice, which didn’t even try to hide its contempt.
Jeringer was the same. His emotionless gaze fell on the man.
“Do you think you can go back to being an ordinary mercenary if you quit here?”
“…!”
“From the moment we used the bandits in this village, you, we, crossed a river of no return. The kind elderly couple living on the outskirts of the village. Who do you think killed them? The one bandit we left alive?”
Jeringer, who had been speaking in a low voice, added firmly.
“No. We killed them. And that includes you.”
The man who had been trembling with hesitation froze at those words. The others were the same. As the atmosphere became solemn as if cold water had been poured over them, Jeringer just snorted.
“Did you think you’d become heroes for eliminating the bandits stationed here? Far from it. We left one bandit alive and blackmailed him into killing villagers. Even though we knew it would come to this… we accepted the man’s proposal.”
Therefore, they were no different from murderers. For the sake of becoming stronger, earning more money, for advancement… They might have their own reasons, but the fact that they accepted the proposal for their own benefit was the same for all.
It was too late to turn back. Moreover, Jeringer instinctively knew. Now that they were deeply involved in this affair, if they tried to leave this game on their own…
“If you still want to quit, I won’t stop you. Just remember that choices come with consequences.”
Implying that they might have to stake their lives on it.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
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