Though the villagers had been bewildered by our hospitality at first, they were now thoroughly enjoying themselves. I had expected them to settle down once their stomachs were full, but instead, the gathering had evolved into a full-blown festival of singing and dancing. It wasn't that I minded the celebration, but I couldn't help but wonder if they were neglecting their chores. It made me a little uneasy.
"Oh, what's this? Things sure are lively. Is there a festival going on?"
Just as the rush of serving food began to taper off and I was relaxedly observing the crowd, a new voice reached my ears. I turned toward the sound to find several men with mohawks entering the plaza.
Wait...
On closer inspection, those men looked familiar. If I remembered correctly, they were the mohawk-sporting adventurers who had challenged Tiraza only to be sent packing.
"Young Master, you have returned. We have guests from the outside who are currently serving a meal," Dende-san explained the situation to the mohawk leader in a polite, respectful tone.
I was well aware that it was rude to think it, but given the man’s rough appearance, he didn't exactly look the part of a "Young Master." However, he seemed quite accustomed to the title and didn't appear to mind.
"Outsiders? Well, that's rare. I should at least give them a word of—"
The mohawk leader’s gaze swept across the area until his eyes met mine. He froze, seemingly losing his words from the sheer surprise of seeing us. But when I offered a small bow, he seemed to snap out of it like a machine rebooting.
"Oh, it's you guys! I heard you've been treating the whole village to a feast. Thanks a lot!"
He wore the same refreshing smile as before. While Dende-san had been rather cold toward outsiders, the Young Master clearly didn't share that sentiment.
It was an unexpected—well, perhaps not that unexpected—coincidence. I decided to pause the cooking for a moment so I could speak with them properly.
"It has been a long time. We didn't see you in Welno, so I wondered if you had moved on to this area."
"Hm? Yeah, we've been making the rounds through the villages nearby. This whole region was originally our home turf, after all."
Apparently, he had ties to this entire vicinity rather than just this specific village. Given that everyone called him "Young Master," I supposed that made sense.
We introduced ourselves properly this time. The mohawk leader, whose name was Badis-san, was the son of the Molybdenum Group's leader and their designated heir candidate. Some time ago, a major conflict had broken out between the Molybdenum Group and the Bandelt Group, resulting in their headquarters being occupied. While the Molybdenum Group hadn't officially disbanded, maintaining the organization had become nearly impossible. Because of that, Badis-san had been working as an adventurer while leading a group of close associates who were roughly his age.
"To be honest, I'll never forgive those Bandelt bastards. But it’s a fact that some of these villages have actually become more prosperous under their rule," Badis-san admitted with a look of regret.
While he was furious that their long-time rivals had seized their home base in a surprise attack, it seemed the residents weren't exactly suffering under the new regime. On the contrary, in many towns and villages, people were delighted that their lives had become easier.
The catalyst for this change was the dungeons. The Eld Caldia Order, which maintained a cooperative relationship with the bandits, was creating dungeons through methods even Garna could not grasp. By selling the materials and items obtained from these sites, they generated massive profits. While the Bandelt Group took the lion's share, the wealth trickled down into the villages, and food-related items were distributed to the locals. Consequently, the quality of life in the occupied territories had actually improved.
"I have my own feelings about it, of course, but if it stops the plundering, then maybe it isn't entirely a bad thing," Badis-san concluded.
It was true that if they became wealthy enough through dungeons to stop raiding, it might be a net positive for the surrounding nations. However, if that were the case, there would be no need for them to keep clashing with the Molybdenum Group. From everything I had heard, the Bandelt Group didn't seem like the type to simply retire from a life of crime.
"Trust me, those guys won't be satisfied with just dungeon profits. They’re undoubtedly plotting an invasion."
I asked Jester, the former member of the Bandelt Group, for his take on the situation, and those were the first words out of his mouth. He based his assessment on their ties to the Eld Caldia Order. That cult upheld a doctrine of destroying the current world to create a new one. I didn't know exactly what "destruction and creation" entailed in their eyes, but the cult and the Bandelt Group had clearly joined forces to facilitate invasion for the sake of that destruction. Even if the bandits wanted to settle down and enjoy their riches, the cult would never allow it.
"I see. No, that makes sense. There's no way those guys would ever just behave themselves..." Badis-san muttered.
Though his words sounded disappointed, a bellicose smile spread across his face. It looked as though he was actually relieved to have a reason to fight. Even if he considered the Bandelt Group's rule a necessary evil if it brought peace, it didn't mean he actually wanted to live with it.
"Heh, well then, we’d better start getting ready for a war."
"Let's show those bastards what we're made of!"
The other mohawk adventurers shouted in agreement with Badis-san. Usually, they seemed like good-natured people despite their rough looks, but they were clearly hot-blooded at heart. They seemed almost gleeful as they began discussing preparations for a conflict.
"Hey now, do you even have a plan? You were hit by a surprise attack, sure, but you still lost even when your forces were at their peak. You can't just charge in without a strategy and expect to win," Beere-san interrupted, dousing their excitement with a bucket of cold reality.
His assessment was spot on. I didn't see any way they could win a direct confrontation under the current circumstances either.
"He's right," I added, chiming in to support Beere-san's attempt at persuasion. "The Bandelt Group is gaining strength through those dungeons. We have to do something about the source of their power first. It would be best if we could infiltrate the Eld Caldia Order or one of their dungeons..."
Our goal was to investigate the dungeons that Garna didn't know about, but beyond that, I felt we had to uncover the secrets of these dungeons if we wanted to stop the Bandelt Group's atrocities.
Badis-san and his men seemed to cool their heads a bit after our lecture. At the very least, they settled down from the state where they looked ready to launch a raid at any second. Just as I started to feel relieved, Badis-san muttered something unexpected.
"A dungeon, huh? I actually found something that looked like one on our way here... Do you think that’s related to them, too?"
Wait...
"You actually found one!?"