Living as an Unemployed in Another World

24 – 2. The Path of the Dagger (5)

5.

Contrary to Gerald and Hilda’s concerns, Alicia, the first aristocrat they met in their lives, was surprisingly friendly to adventurers.

If you ask me where I had such confidence, it was mainly that I enjoyed Gerald’s bluffing saga to the point where it was not enough to clap my hands. Especially in the part where she cut off the giant serpent’s throat, she had to worry about not letting the noble lady’s eyeballs pop out, even though her eyes were shining so brightly.

However, after the story reached its climax, he was somewhat obstinate about how he got his hands on the artifact, and he struggled to gloss over it, but even taking that into consideration, the conversation could be said to have been successful. Where did Gerald look like he was nervous about losing the , And when Gerald saw Alicia off, he had a face full of ambition, almost as if he had become a dragon slayer.

“So, nice to meet you guys! I’m sorry for taking up too much of your time, so I’ve told the guild separately.”

“No, the lady herself…… ? It is an honour! Enter carefully!”

All four of them bowed their heads, and Alicia lifted the hem of her dress just as she did when they first met, and she opened the door with her hand and walked out. With the door closed, the voices of the four leaked through the cracks in the grating.

──Whoa. Sweated out

──It must have been the sweat shed from opening her mouth. It was very liquid water.

──Shh. Maybe you’re still listening.

── Anyway, since the aristocratic lady told her directly, will you lend me a special carriage for the next request? Even walking every time hurts my feet.

Smiling Alicia. At that time, someone beside her deliberately made a sign. The butler, who had been waiting outside the door all along, lowered his head.

“Oh, butler!”

“Did you finish the conversation?”

“Yes!”

Alicia replied with a look of satisfaction on her face. After slightly overhearing the voices coming from inside her, it seemed that he quite liked the way the man named Gerald talked nonstop. When the head of the house held out her hand, she was escorted down her steps, then out of her guild and into a waiting wagon. Tapping her on his knee, she let out a deep breath and expressed her admiration.

“As expected, meeting adventurers is fun. You live a completely different life than me!”

“…… Is that so.”

The man who worked for the family even before Alicia was born couldn’t agree with her words. Because I know how many adversities I have overcome to get to where I am now. There was so much power in her words.

“If the young lady was happy, the lord will like it too.”

“…… Henry, did your father make you follow him? It’s rare for you to come along on an outing like this.”

“I won’t deny it.”

“Hmm, that’s right. Why?”

When Alicia is feeling a bit upset, she rather tends to call people by their first names. However, the head of the butler did not hesitate and told her about her situation plainly.

“The lord is keeping an eye on the adventurers the lady met. Right now, it’s ‘blue’, but the adventurer industry is a place where you can always look up if you’re making an achievement. If there are promising people, he told me to consider in the direction of recruiting them to have a good relationship in advance.”

“Ah…… Is that why you deliberately asked to come near the territory? I want to keep it by my side and see my skills.”

“Yes. So I’m just asking…… Did the young lady see a future?”

The owner of the house, Henry, asked the girl who had lived about a third of his life with her awe. Even though she had rarely left her mansion in her entire life, her insight into the nature of her human nature was frightening. Even the Countess, who loved her dearly, was well aware of this fact, and always asked her opinion through her insinuatingly about important matters in her family.

“Hmm, I think it will last a long time.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. However…… I don’t think my father cares about it.”

Alicia said, recalling those bright sides of her. She’s not an adventurer, so she doesn’t really know what level of skill they are. However, from her tone of voice, attitude, gaze, and behavior, you can roughly know how she lives her life.

In that sense, the gloomy sorceress must be the one who can rise to the highest place. Monk got the impression that he was already complete externally, and Gerald, the leader, was a man who was not yet fit for weapons, and the thief also did not have high self-esteem.

A party that can grow further if there is an element that complements each other’s weaknesses externally. However, there is no such existence now, so they were those who stayed at my level. There was something lacking in looking at ‘green’ or ‘enemy’ in the future. Furthermore……

“Then, I will report that to the lord… ….”

“And, he has something to hide.”

“Yes?”

When asked again about the owner of the house, she put her hand on her chin and put on a look that seemed to be pondering something.

There were a total of three areas where she definitely felt a sense of deja vu. The first is when you ask how the dungeon was destroyed.

──Yes? Ah, dungeons. I’ll slit his throat and bleed the knife! As soon as it is sprayed, the cave vibrates and shrinks in an instant. hahahaha. I immediately cut off the tongue and kept it. Anyway, I have to report it to the guild.

Secondly, when people asked what was the reason why they had amnesia.

──Amnesia? Ah, it is said that it was the effect of the artifact. As soon as I cleared the dungeon, Tak, wouldn’t all of this go back to where it was?

The third…… When asked where they found the artifact.

──…… After cutting down the Giant Serpent! Isn’t there a small room in the back? It was placed openly in the treasure chest there. I imagined something like a legendary longsword because it was an artifact, but I was somewhat disappointed when the earrings came out.

“At least the rest didn’t seem to be lying. However, there seems to be a contradiction in the answers to the questions asked at different times.”

I don’t know if the person who told the story was deceived well, but the part that the dungeon disappeared as soon as the serpent’s head was cut off, and the statement that he found a small room and opened a treasure chest ‘after cutting it down’ are contradictory. Even if not, there are some awkward parts. Especially in the part of calmly examining and opening the box in such an urgent situation.

“So, are you saying they lied about their performance? It’s in the guild…….”

“Ummm, no. Head butler. Listening to the story, it’s unmistakably true that those people actually attacked the dungeon. But…… You are one step away from the truth.”

“That means…… ?”

“Is that there? Party. At least one more.”

Carl felt a drop of sweat run down his sleeve toward the back of his hand and carefully covered it with the palm of his hand. This girl, beyond being cunning as her master said, has the power to peer into people like turning the pages of a book. She thought that even herself could become a target at any time, so she felt like she didn’t want her body’s reaction to be discovered.

“So…… Are you the fifth member? Wouldn’t it be better to call it that? Oh my goodness! Doesn’t this passage look like the end of a mystery novel? I feel like I’m almost there until the epilogue!”

When she admired her with an innocent smile suitable for her age, the butler had no choice but to nod her head quietly. Eventually, the carriage moved smoothly toward the manor, and after a considerable amount of time had passed, Alicia received an escort from an attendant, got off first, and spoke to the butler who followed.

“Tell your father that you don’t have to worry about it. Oh, I’ll leave it up to the butler’s freedom to report even my ‘guess’.”

“…… I understand, lady.”

The butler bowed her head, Alicia first headed for the annex in the direction she was staying, and then hurried across her garden to find her true nature. She walked so fast, carrying her senile body, that it took her breath away more than a light run.

As soon as he entered the mansion, he hurriedly headed for the housekeeper’s office. However…… There was something strange about the atmosphere in the mansion. Was it because she had witnessed Alicia’s extraordinary side right in front of her? No, no. The expressions on the faces of the attendants and maids who greeted him were strangely subdued. I can assure you that he never made them tremble in fear by wielding power, but the look on their faces as they looked at him was one of fear of the punishment that would befall them in the future.

He took a quick look at the faces, then remembered that meeting the Count had a higher priority than calling them into the private room and questioning them, and headed back to the office. It is his only job to report the day on behalf of his poor father who does not show his face.

As soon as he opened the door to his office and entered, the count, who looked more haggard than his age, greeted him. When the head butler lowered his head, the Count skipped the introduction and asked directly.

“So, did Alicia enjoy it?”

“Yes, very much.”

“…… Good luck.”

And then, silence passed. No matter how much time had passed, the face of the lamenting count came into view in the eyes of the butler, who straightened his back. He soon delivered the devastating news.

“The artifact was stolen.”

“…… Yes?”

“I bit the attendants so that I wouldn’t ask about the facts until you came back. I don’t even know when he was stolen. …… It’s careless.”

Butler Jang felt his rusty heart thump down to his ribs. It’s a mistake, it’s ugly. He is in charge of managing everything in the mansion, and he himself is more responsible than anyone else. However, as if he had no regrets about the theft of an artifact worth hundreds of gold coins, the Count sighed bitterly, swearing at those earrings.

“If they knew the artifacts were gone, they would come back.”

“Lord…… Master.”

“They will come, Henry!!”

As soon as he heard the Count’s angry voice, the butler immediately ran out of the office. He hurriedly called all the attendants to the center of the mansion, forgetting to bow to the lord and even close the door.

On that day, a huge bounty was placed on the entire Louvre estate.