Maruyama Kugane - The Invaders of the Large Tomb

"Regarding the ruins discovered within the territory of the Kingdom, both Arche-san and I have tried researching the past history of recorded civilizations. So far, we are unable to find any records of ancient cities being built near the site of the ruins. If it indeed is a tomb, we should have been able to find clues left behind in books... Truthfully speaking, I can't figure out why there would be a tomb built at that location. Only a few small villages exist near the area, perhaps it would be better to search for information there?"

"It can't be helped. We've been ordered to keep this operation has secret as possible. The client wishes for as few witnesses as possible, in other words, we shouldn't be making any unnecessary movements."

"—Of course, that region belongs to the Kingdom. If things gets exposed, we might end up becoming enemies of the Kingdom and the Vaiself family."

Exploring the ruins discovered in a different country, this kind of borderline illegal work was the reason why workers were selected instead of adventurers.

"So in other words, what we're doing is just plain old dirty work?"

"Although it can be seen that way, there's still a slight delicate issue."

"That's right. If the Empire's workers are caught inside the Kingdom, the Earl will definitely get dragged down along with us."

"Which brings us to the main question."

"Where did this information on the discovery of the ruin come from?"

"Yeah. No matter how I think about it, it's strange."

"Is that so? Isn't it fairly close to the Great Forest of Tob? Perhaps it was discovered during logging."

"—Weird. Take a look at this." Arche opened up the map and pointed towards a circular spot.

"Although the details aren't very clear, but spots like this..." Sweeping her tiny finger along the map, Arche indicated their objective.

"—There's also a village here. However its size is really small. Perhaps it's better to describe it as a hamlet. I don't believe a village like that is capable of creating such large clearings within the forest."

"That's correct. The chances of these clearings being excavated by such a small village is highly unlikely. Especially if the forest is inhabited by many dangerous monsters... It's much more likely to think that it was done as a government project, but I can't see any reason why the Kingdom would want to excavate that part of the forest. In the end, we're still lacking information.”

The four of them became more troubled after this. Should they accept the request or not?

Unlike adventurers, who had the backing of an entire guild, it was absolutely necessary for workers to properly investigate all details regarding the offered work before deciding. First, they had to thoroughly investigate the client's background and his connections, then the work location. Finally, based on the details gathered from the description of the job, a decision is made on whether or not to accept it.

Even after having done all of that, sometimes it still wasn't enough. If one wasn't capable of doing this, then they should quit being a worker. No matter how good the payment for the job might be, it would be better to reject it if you couldn't wash away the dirt that ended up staining your hands.

"...I've confirmed the payment already, this was given for the initial deposit—"

Hekkeran placed a metallic plate on top of the table. The surface of the plate was inscribed with countless different small glyphs and runes. Although he was given the plate, he would have to return it if they decided to reject the commission.

"I've already checked it with the Imperial Bank. The sum has already been credited to my account, it can be converted into cash any time."

The metallic plate was a type of guarantee that was used by banks within the Empire, in a similar role as a cheque.

In order to prevent counterfeits, the plates were made with great care and delicacy. Although it the creation process was extremely long, and would definitely incur additional fees for people to use, the advantages still far outweighed the drawbacks.

In other countries, this sort of thing was usually handled by the Adventurer's Guild; however the metallic plates used in the Empire were guaranteed by the government itself.

"From the looks of things, it doesn't seem like a trap... well, I knew they were dead serious the moment they paid the deposit."

If it was a trap, there shouldn't have been a need to pay such large deposit. However, it might just have been made to let people think this way, although Hekkeran didn't believe that he had somehow offended the nobleman enough to merit a trap specifically to target him.

"I—"

"Stop. Imina, I haven't finished yet. Please, keep your thoughts a little more flexible."

"Yes, yes. Let's hear them then. About this job that's offered to us... it seems that they're quite pressed for time, however, there are still points I don't agree with. For example, hiring multiple worker teams, what do you make of this?"

Just as Imina pointed out, considering the amount of time it took to contact multiple teams, it would have made more sense to pick the first team that agreed and rush to the tomb’s location, considering that jobs like this required great haste.

"—I'm not sure either. To begin with, I don't understand why they're trying to rush this. I also didn't receive any information on any emergency situations happening to the Earl. It's not as if there are any events or ceremonies coming up in the next few days. The only thing I can think of is that they're afraid the ruins might get discovered by the Kingdom. Hiring multiple teams might just be to raise the success rate?"

"About that, Hekkeran. Did you hear anything from Greenham?"

"There's not much to be said. I only went and asked if they were also contacted, but it seems that they were also coveting for information regarding this commission. It was hard enough not to reveal anything to them."

Hekkeran shrugged helplessly.

"—If that's the case, then perhaps there's a third party who’s also aiming for the ruins?"

"That's definitely a possibility. If that's true then it would explain why so many workers are being hired. Oh that's right, it seems that something big happened recently in the Kingdom. However, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the area close to E-Rantel..."

"Let's hear more of this, Rob."

Due to the lack of accurate information, Roberdyck could only explain what he heard in bits and pieces. Since most of the details relating to the incident were pieced together from rumors, the overall picture that was painted at the end wasn't very clear or reliable.

"Hmm, we can't say for sure if the incident is related in any ways. However, I still think what Arche said is the most likely situation. Rob also agrees."

"If that's the case then… hiring multiple worker teams, and considering that the job location is within the territory of the Kingdom, is it possible that we're likely to end up clashing with Kingdom adventurers that were sent to explore the ruins? If it's like that then there's no point in collecting further information inside the Empire."

"The other thing to watch out for is an ambush made by the teams of other hired workers. I definitely don't want to lose my life just as we reach our goal."

"We also need to watch out for ambush made by adventurers. Although speaking of this, I'd much more prefer it if it was done by adventurers. At least we can try to negotiate with them and it wouldn't be as treacherous as one set by other workers."

"If it's done by workers, then things will most likely end in blood."

"—What should we do, leader?"

The overall issues had been raised and discussed, and each member's opinions had also been voiced.

What was left were a few remaining speculations before coming to a conclusion.