My name is Michael.
I am the Chairman of the Goroun Company.
I hold the highest position in the organization, but lately, I’ve had so many experiences that reminded me of my own inadequacy that I can’t bring myself to act important.
Well, I have to maintain a certain level of dignity for the sake of my subordinates, but still...
At any rate, I am simply glad that business at Big Roof Shashato seems to be going well.
As for my own work... things are proving to be a bit difficult.
I thought there would be fewer complications since the Commerce Guild owns most of the buildings in that area, but one particular landowner is resisting stubbornly.
The owner is a merchant here in Shashato City.
I am certain he sensed that I was buying up the surrounding land and snatched this piece up first.
I don't know if he simply wants to get in my way or if he’s holding out for a higher price, but...
It is truly a pity that he isn't in a position to hear the warnings issued by the Demon King and the Four Heavenly Kings.
Normally, I would employ various strategies, but...
If I were to acquire land through underhanded methods, it might offend the Village Head.
I must obtain it through legitimate means.
...
Perhaps showing him a mountain of gold coins would be the fastest way.
If he continues to be excessively greedy, I shall eventually have to inform him about those warnings.
There was a knock on the door.
That was rare.
Most matters are handled by my secretary, and I am usually given a summary report when I leave my office.
Did this mean there was something the secretary judged I needed to know immediately?
"Excuse me. Chairman, I was a bit hesitant about how to handle this... but I thought it would be safer to inform you."
I have been saved many times by the judgment of my secretary, who is about ten years my senior.
If he says I should hear it, I will listen.
"A guest came to our company's head office just a moment ago, looking for someone named Michael."
"Hmm? Was he not looking for me?"
"That may be so, but he reportedly asked for 'Michael-san'."
"I see. Was he not a noble?"
"No. His clothes were made of fine fabric, but they weren't the style preferred by the nobility. He was accompanied by a single person who appeared to be an adventurer. His face wasn't one our staff recognized, and since there was no prior appointment, they judged him not to be a noble."
That made sense. A noble would have sent a messenger before visiting.
"And so, what happened?"
"The staff member who handled the visit searched to see if there was an employee named Michael in the company, but since there wasn't, the guest was asked to leave."
"I see."
...
Wait.
I had a terrible feeling about this.
"A-And then, what happened?"
"The guest reportedly left a letter with the staff, asking for it to be delivered to 'Michael-san'."
The secretary produced the letter.
"He seemed quite certain that there was someone named Michael in our company. A little while later, the staff member realized that the Chairman's name was indeed Michael, and considering the possibility of a mistake, they informed me."
"I-I see..."
I didn't want to look at it. I felt like I shouldn't.
But I had a feeling I needed to see it immediately.
I took a deep breath and steeled my resolve.
"By the way, the guest gave his name as Hiraku."
"Why didn't you lead with that!?"
I snatched the letter from my secretary and read it.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
To Michael-san of the Goroun Company.
Greetings from the Village of the Great Tree.
The Village Head will be visiting Shashato City, so please look after him.
That is all.
P.S.
Look up.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Waaaaaaaagh!
The Village Head was in the city!
How could I be so careless! Of course he would come to see how things were after we opened the shop! Why didn't I realize it!
No, no, regrets can come later.
The current situation... was that I had essentially turned him away at the door! It looked like I was pretending to be out!
This was bad, bad, bad.
The Village Head himself might not mind, but there were plenty of people around him who would.
For example, Lady Lu, Lady Tia, Lady Frau, and Lady Hakuren.
...I was dead. I was a dead man.
The excuse that I didn't know because I hadn't seen the letter yet... that wasn't going to fly.
Ah...
No, I could still fix this.
I had to meet up with the Village Head immediately and act as if this incident never happened. That was my only choice.
"Get a description of the Village Head—of Hiraku-sama's clothes from the staff who saw him. Also, call Marlon and Milford. At once!"
I shouted orders to my secretary and prepared to head out myself.
...
Hmm?
Wait, that postscript.
"Look up"?
Was it some kind of code? Surely I wasn't supposed to actually look up?
I looked at the ceiling of the office.
...
Lady Lu was there.
"Hello."
Our eyes met, and Lady Lu waved her hand in a friendly greeting.
However, I could do nothing. I remained frozen, staring straight up at the ceiling.
My name is Milford.
In my younger days, I was a reckless adventurer. Thanks to that recklessness, I gained enough of a reputation to be hired as a guard for the nobility. In a sense, it was the pinnacle of an adventurer's career.
However, while the pay for a noble's guard was excellent, the job was boring. After all, very few people are foolish enough to oppose a noble. The nobles of the Demon Kingdom, in particular, possess some form of combat power themselves. Whether it’s physical strength or magic, they can protect themselves even without guards. The nobles were satisfied just using me as a decoration rather than for my actual martial prowess.
I suppose I lacked the patience for it. I left the service of the nobility and went looking for a new place to work.
That was the Goroun Company.
At first, I intended it to be a temporary stop to earn some travel money, but my mind changed after just one job. After all, the carriages of this company cut straight through the Iron Forest. Moreover, the destination was the Gate Guardian Dragon's Nest.
It was a level of eccentricity that even I wouldn't have attempted during my adventurer days. I couldn't help but laugh.
But it was fun. Also, the job of guarding the company’s executives in the city was surprisingly demanding. One way or another, there were always people targeting them. Honest assassins are easy to deal with; they’re easy to understand.
The most difficult ones are the women. They pretend to make advances... fortunately, for men of high status, the company bigwigs are surprisingly chaste.
Well, in any case, I am an employee of the company. I will repel whoever comes.
By the way.
This woman who has been standing behind me before I even noticed her... who is she? An acquaintance of the Chairman?
She looks like she belongs to the Angel Race, but her atmosphere is entirely different from any Angel I know.
For a while now, I've been remembering an Angel I was told never to oppose back in my adventurer days.
The Annihilation Angel... Tia?
No way. There's no way, right? Hahaha.
So, um, excuse me. This is an important question, but...
You're an ally, right? Please say you are!
Wait... when did I fall asleep?
Um... my name is... what was it again?
Think. It’s my name. There's no way I'd forget it... let's see.
That's right. It's fine. I remembered it.
But I'm not supposed to say it out loud. Instead, I am called Eight.
I am a guard. Not an overt one. I am a guard who protects the target from the shadows. Therefore, I do not reveal my name. If my name were known, various information could leak. That might have a negative impact on the target I am guarding. That's why I hide my name completely.
Despite being such a professional... why was I sleeping in a place like this?
I was on a roof beam of a ridiculously huge building called Big Roof Shashato. I must have climbed up here myself to keep watch...
Did I fall asleep on the job? Me?
Looking around, my partner was also asleep. Other comrades, too? Why? Was a magic spell cast on us?
I checked my belongings, but nothing was stolen. Which meant...
I hurriedly checked the guard targets below. Our targets were two people named Marcos and Paula, who had been dispatched from a certain village. And, if possible, the people and facilities around them.
I thought I had failed my mission, but the shop was bustling as usual. Marcos and Paula were moving about busily. There seemed to be no problem.
Hmm... then what happened?
Below, besides us, there were other guards dispatched from elsewhere. We had confirmed each other's presence, but since our goals were the same, we maintained a cooperative relationship.
One group watched from the street outside without entering the shop. Another group pretended to be customers, taking turns watching while eating curry. Another group kept watch while enjoying Mini Bowling.
...
The other day, all the guards gathered and had a Mini Bowling tournament. We came in second. Damn it. That guy on Lane 7 was unusually good. I’ll have to practice more next time.
Anyway, I should wake my partner. He might know something.
"Hieeeee!"
The partner I woke up was in a total panic.
Hey, hey. Don't wild out in a place like this. You'll fall. Seriously, what's wrong?
"S-Spider! It was a spider!"
"A spider?"
"Yeah, a Death Spider!"
...
What was my partner talking about? A Death Spider? If something like that appeared here, the city wouldn't be standing. And we certainly wouldn't be having this conversation. Encountering a Death Spider usually means you're dead.
...Wait, it's not like... we're already dead, right?
The cheek I pinched hurt. This was reality. In other words, the Death Spider was just a dream my partner had.
"I didn't know you were that afraid of spiders."
"N-No! It was really there! Everyone who saw it fainted one after another... you fainted too!"
"Hmm? Well, I was certainly sleeping... but I don't remember any of that. Let's see... urgh, my head... my head hurts, as if it’s rejecting a memory."
It felt as if my mind were telling me not to remember. Seriously? Was there really a Death Spider?
I searched the area. Nothing.
...Nothing at all.
Phew. It was a dream after all. Hahaha.
Oops. The guards dispatched from elsewhere just signaled for me to stop standing out so much.
Sorry about that. A dream, a dream. Let's get back to guarding properly.
My name is Goro.
I am a Magic Dog who found a rather good master. I am treated like a common dog, but I am a Magic Beast. I consider myself reasonably ferocious. Well, I'm not so far gone as to bare my fangs at the little ones who take care of me.
The ones I bare my fangs at are... those who try to harm my master or the children who look after me.
Hehehe. Today is the usual walking route. Lately, my master has been working in a big house, so I wait in a designated spot until it's time to go home. For a beast of my caliber, I don't need to intimidate every dog that passes by. Even if I don't do anything, they run away on their own.
Whoops, I have to be careful with the man living in this big house. He reeks of danger. And the woman next to him, too. Well, maybe that smell was just the curry? It's been thinned out by a stimulating scent, though. My master eats it with gusto, but I don't think it's for me. I prefer my seasoning light.
...
Huh?
Wait... what?
My body won't move. Sweat is pouring out of me.
Eh? What? What's happening?
My tail is curled between my legs? My legs are shaking...
This is bad. I have to protect my master.
...
"Oh, he fainted."
"Well, of course that would happen if Hakuren-san releases her aura like that."
"Eh? Is it my fault?"
"N-No, not at all... but for not running away, I’d say he’s a pretty loyal dog."
"I suppose. How is it inside the shop?"
"No problems. Although things got a bit hectic yesterday."
"I see. I'm sure you understand, but..."
"Leave it to me. This Galf will give it his all."
"Please do. ...By the way, that man over there. Does he worry you?"
"Eh? He looks like small fry to me..."
"My intuition is usually right. Keep an eye on him."
"Understood."
"Also, that dog... please wake him up."
"Yes."
I am a member of Master Kuro's pack living in the Village of the Great Tree. A normal Inferno Wolf. I do not have a name yet.
The village has been in an uproar because the Boss was going to the city. I am envious of those who got to accompany him. I wanted to go too, but apparently, Inferno Wolves are feared in places like cities, so it is not good for us to show ourselves. It is a shame.
After the Boss left, the man he calls Progenitor-san returned immediately. This time, he seemed to be taking several of the Boss's women. Could it be... no, it seems the women were the ones in charge. That must be tough.
Hmm? Master Zabuton's children are going too? Make sure you don't get caught.
...
He came back again. He's gathering more people... and leaving again? Thank you for your hard work.
...
When night fell... the women returned first... and then the Boss and the others followed. I wonder if they met up over there?
The next day... they moved separately again. I do not know what they are doing, but... that man called Progenitor-san is certainly working hard.
"Today's report."
"The Village Head hasn't left the shop much. When he does move, Galf is by his side, so there are no issues."
"Some of the customers were making advances on the Village Head, so I made sure to intimidate them."
"It seems the people inside the shop are guards dispatched by the Demon King. There were several of them, so I was briefly misled."
"The sea side is safe as well. There were a few settlements of aquatic races nearby, but they were friendly."
"In any case, it seems the situation we were worried about has not occurred."
"That's a relief."
"Yes. Though I believed in him all along."
"Ah, hey! Are you trying to act innocent now? We all doubted him together, didn't we?"
"That's true, but... you all believed in him too, didn't you? That the Village Head wouldn't visit establishments with other women."
"Naturally."
"Of course."
"And so... the fact that we followed him secretly remains top secret."
"Yes."
Hmm... I wonder what’s going on. Lately, has everyone started getting along better?
"Eh? Is that so? We've been on good terms for a long time. Right?"
"Right."
...Well, I've lived with them for a long time now. I could tell they were hiding something.
...Alright, I'll just pretend I didn't notice.
The Village of the Great Tree was peaceful today.