Chapter 157 - A Treasure Alongside the Commission

“Monsters, you say? You said your dream was to become a knight, right? Then we have to go. Of course we do. Isn’t slaying monsters what knights do?” Krais thought slaying monsters was precisely what made someone a knight. Though the others heard something rather different in his words. Wasn’t that outright belittling knights? He was treating a one-man weapon capable of turning the tide of a battlefield as a mere monster hunter. “And a village of innocent people, at that? Shouldn’t we save them? My sense of justice is burning.” That tone should have held concern, but wasn’t it brimming with greed instead? His eyeballs practically looked like gold coins. Everyone watched him with much the same thought. Krais paid their looks no mind, focusing solely on Encrid. The decision-maker was what mattered. Who cared what anyone else thought? “What’s this about?” Encrid asked, arms folded. “You Big-eyes bastard. Keep trying to drag us off somewhere, do you?” Rem said, watching from where he lay half-reclined on his bed. Sharp as the devil, that one. Thinking this, Krais turned his secret weapon on his captain: his bright, sparkling eyes.

See how big my eyes are? Look into them. Now, you’re beginning to want this mission. Faced with eyes so large and clear they almost seemed capable of hypnosis, Encrid worked his lips before speaking.

“Want me to spit in them?” ‘Don’t you give me those eyes.’

Krais read the words in Encrid’s gaze.

‘Ah. Not this, then. It isn’t working.’ What next, then? Krais set his mind to work as usual, then soon gave up. He was clever, quick-witted and perceptive. He credited it to all the hardships of his childhood. And it was thanks to those hardships that he realized:

‘Tactics like this don’t work on the captain.’ He could feel it. This wouldn’t do. What did that leave? A direct approach. Always straight and to the point. That was how his captain always treated him and the others, so he could simply do the same. His perceptiveness was remarkable. He changed tack with astonishing speed, as swift as a falling meteor. “About a hundred years ago, there was a merchant named Dolph, one of the foremost on the continent.” The story began in the past. First, he had to catch their interest. Was it an odd hobby of a wealthy man? Or perhaps an eccentric obsession? One of the merchant Dolph’s hobbies was hiding portions of his fortune and making treasure maps. It was an unofficial tale one came across while leafing through history books. “But did it end as just an old tale? Of course not. Why else would I bring it up?” Krais put emphasis into his voice at intervals. A persuasive storyteller, one might call him. His words were full of enthusiasm. Dolph was said to have owned a once-renowned trading company. Yet just before his death, he spirited away his entire fortune and hid it all. Naturally, those who should have inherited it must have gone mad. All six of his wives spat fire together. [“Why would you do that!”]

Dolph reportedly gave no answer, silently enduring their accusations. All he said, according to the tale, was:

[“If you want my fortune, find the maps.”] The account’s final entry described a question its compiler had asked Dolph before his death.

[“Why did you make those maps?”]

Dolph’s answer was a masterpiece.

[“It’s fun.”] There were more than twenty maps, all riddled with codes. The man who cracked the first one found treasure. He had been Dolph’s coachman. After becoming fabulously rich, he reportedly founded a trading company and lost every penny. The first wife deciphered the second map. A greedy woman, she concealed it even from her son and went alone to the place her husband had built, where she died in a trap. Yes, the coachman had been bait. He was Dolph’s final carefully laid arrangement. Contrary to the unofficial account, Dolph hated the idea of his wealth passing to anyone else. In particular, giving anything to his family filled him with utter revulsion. “The truth is, he was a seedless fruit. A bee that couldn’t sip nectar.” By now, everyone was listening to Krais. His storytelling could put most Bards to shame. Indeed, Dolph had been incapable of fathering children, yet had six wives and more than twenty children. It made no sense. So he planned his revenge, hiding his entire fortune in scattered locations. Some had already been uncovered by a fellow named Kirgon, said to be the continent’s greatest treasure hunter. Treasure hunter Kirgon had already proved it.

“The treasure exists.” It was a hidden chapter of history. Krais knew quite a bit about such things. Why wouldn’t he? It involved Krona. Rumors abounded that finding and deciphering these maps led to real treasure, and treasure hunter Kirgon had proved them true. But really. Could anyone be this lucky? The goddess of luck must have kissed his cheek while he slept. While combing through the enemy position during the previous battle, Krais had managed to pocket a few things. This had been among the items he pulled out from beneath a tree. [“Hmm.”]

The map reeked, as though someone had kept it between their legs. He wanted to throw it away the instant he picked it up, but instinct told him it was no ordinary object, so he kept it. Treasure maps were common enough. There were also countless fakes. Someone in the Gilfin Guild had an eye for such things. An appraiser, to put it politely. A fence, in back-alley slang. You needed an eye for treasure to sell it, after all. [“This looks genuine.”]

That one remark was enough. It was a full century old. The language was different, leaving words the appraiser couldn’t recognize. Krais couldn’t read the old writing either. He had racked his brains trying to decipher it, only to find an unexpected solution in the Frog. Luagarne had described herself thus:

[“I’m a scholar.”]

A Frog? Despite his private thoughts, Krais showed no disrespect in his gaze. Instead, he asked her to decipher a random selection of characters, then pieced the results together to find his answer.

Dolph’s sixth map. “There’ll be treasure. An enormous amount.”

Krais delivered his impassioned speech from the center of the quarters. His face was red from talking without pause despite running short of breath. “It’s so old that none of the traps will work properly anymore. This is like picking up a jewel lying in the road. Someone’s smeared dirt on it? All we have to do is brush it off and take it.” The story was interesting enough, but Encrid wasn’t swept up in Krais’s enthusiasm. Nor did he commit to visiting the place marked on the treasure map. He merely thought:

‘I’m heading out anyway.’ Monsters, demonic beasts, war, whatever it might be, his hands itched for action. Did what he had learned work? Was he on the right path? Had everything he gained from training, sparring, and lessons with those around him been steps toward that signpost? Wanting to test one’s abilities was human instinct. “We’ll take the commission.”

Krais was overjoyed at Encrid’s words.

“Whether we stop there is still undecided.”

At what followed, he looked utterly disappointed. His eyes stretched wide as though they might split, and he muttered, “No, how could you?” Rem snickered beside him. Encrid didn’t know it, but from the moment Krais learned the map was genuine, he had been scheming to cash in on it. Go treasure hunting alone? That was as good as inviting monsters to dine on his flesh and blood as bread and wine. With the guild members, then? That would simply make it a feast of his flesh and blood and theirs. He needed a highly skilled group that could shrug off threats from monsters, demonic beasts, and bandits. Hire mercenaries? He would need at least a squad’s worth. The cost would outweigh the gain. His first target had been Rem.

[“How about taking a commission?”]

[“I only take assassination jobs. And only for three targets: the sly wildcat, the picky layabout, and the god-obsessed lump.”] Rem wasn’t even willing to listen. Would Ragna or Jaxon be any different? He hadn’t even tried Audin. The man rarely went onto a battlefield in the first place. What hope was there of a treasure hunt? “If you swear to offer it all to the Lord, my large-eyed brother.”

He would only say something like that. As for asking the Platoon Commander, hadn’t he spent almost three months swinging his swords like a madman? It was hard even to approach him for a word. [“I’d even take a hand from you.”]

He said it to Esther for no particular reason.

HISS! Esther expressed her displeasure with her whole body, poised to claw him again if he came any closer. Ever since the day he first met her, when he had furtively touched her to determine her sex, she had intensely disliked him. No, loathed him. Spiritual creature or not, how could a mere panther express emotion like that? That, too, was a marvel. He had been halfway to giving up. No matter how much he loved Krona, he wouldn’t risk his life for it. That was Krais’s creed. Wasn’t that why his dream was to open a salon and spend his life without worrying about Krona? To live in the safe heart of a city and enjoy its nightlife in moderation. Of course, a salon wasn’t without risks, but that was just enough excitement to make life enjoyable. Anyway, he had half given up on the idea. But if the Platoon Commander went? Just how good was Encrid these days? [“No chance. Even I can’t beat him.”]

That was the official statement of the border defense captain. [“Give me five sharpshooters and two mages, and I could give it a try.”]

Those were Platoon Commander Torres’s words. With five sharpshooters and two mages, even Krais could have a go at taking Encrid down. Wouldn’t the others be enough without him? [“It’s starting to get fun.”]

Even Rem had acknowledged him. [“I want him.”]

The Fairy Company Commander said that constantly. What did all this mean? Surely that no ordinary pack of Ghouls could so much as touch his captain’s collar. Was their Platoon Commander actually a real genius? There was no doubt. He had already seen him fight a Frog with his own eyes. And so: “Oh, why not? Let’s go. Come on, please.”

Krais wheedled. Encrid ignored him. “I’ll come along too.”

Meanwhile, the Frog joined in.

“Wonderful. Wonderful!”

Krais beamed. “Shall I come too?”

Pin raised her hand as well. She was a ranger, and a very good one. She wasn’t at the level of a pathfinder, those so-called walking mapmakers, but she was good at finding her way and fighting. “Wooonderful!”

Krais spoke up again, and Encrid couldn’t help chuckling. There was no need to stop either of them. If the commission had come to him in his current position, and the Battalion Commander had singled it out to mention personally...

‘It’s dangerous.’

That was what had made his heart race and prompted him to accept. Still, minimizing the danger was the right approach, so more people would be better. Monsters forming a colony, protecting a Pioneer Village, temporary command, and a Frog among his companions. What if he took Rem or one of the other platoon members as well? “Want to come?”

Encrid asked without thinking. No, truthfully, he had expected Rem might come, at least to some extent. “What, don’t you know I’m busy?”

Rem had already crawled into bed and wrapped himself in a blanket to laze about. His answer reminded Encrid just how very like Rem he was. Busy, indeed. Busy lounging around with nothing to do. Thinking he might take Ragna instead, he asked him.

“I don’t feel like it.”

Didn’t feel like it? Wanted to be lazy? Hadn’t he had enough laziness lately? Ragna was just as firmly attached to his bed. He hadn’t even turned his head to answer. “The Lord offers me no guidance on this.”

Audin refused as well. Jaxon was nowhere to be seen. Encrid had heard he was standing his duties properly, but apparently he had no time to stop by the quarters. In the end, he couldn’t take any of them. Encrid accepted that. If the threat were truly enormous, they would send a military unit. They wouldn’t single him out to go. That was his thinking. Investigate the monsters that had formed a colony near the Pioneer Village, and eliminate them if the opportunity arose. The orders stated that he would command the village’s forces.

‘If there’s a village militia...’

They wouldn’t be too short on numbers. Then all he had to do was prepare thoroughly for departure. This world was no easy place for travelers. Without considerable preparation, one rightly wouldn’t dare set out. Ordinarily, four people simply heading off together would raise eyebrows. But their party included a ranger and a Frog. What was more, their commander was a swordsman equal to a special-grade soldier under Naurilia’s soldier grading system. This was no group that would fall to an ordinary threat. Bandits and monsters might run rampant in the world, but this was more than enough strength. So it didn’t matter that none of his platoon members were coming along. “We leave in fifteen days.”

Encrid spoke, and Krais, still watching his mood, asked:

“Are you really saying no?”

“We’ll see.” Encrid always meant what he said. He didn’t know how the assignment would go, so he would have to judge the situation on the journey there and back. Krais could only hope desperately. The treasure cave he had located happened to be in that direction, just a day from the Pioneer Village. “All right. All right.”

Krais knew further pestering would be pointless. And so the party began preparing. Travel in this world really was no simple matter. Martial strength was a minimum requirement for those called peddlers. Even merchants traveling from city to city banded together in groups of at least ten to maintain their fighting strength. That was why mercenaries and Naurilia’s soldier-for-hire system were so welcome. Into such a world, just four of them would set out. There was no cause for concern, but no reason to skimp on preparations either. Encrid decided to head into town for the first time in a while. There were a few things he needed to buy at the market.