Home/How to Survive in a Good Small Guild/ch 47

Chapter 47

"For now, understood."

Hiding my suspicions about Viscount Hartfield, I decided to take on Rakal's commission.

Now that we knew the situation, what we had to do was clear.

"Alright, let's go track down the last traces of Mr. Orion."

At that, Rakal looked worried.

"I tried tracking him too, but couldn't find any traces. I can't risk revealing a failed commission to a noble family, so I couldn't mobilize other corps members."

"Hmm, I think we can work together on this."

Rakal said it wasn't possible, but somehow I felt that a joint investigation wasn't impossible. I signaled to Cedric to get ready.

"Assistant Manager Susanna, Assistant Manager Morian, you're coming too. We'll all need to pitch in. Looks like we'll be working a bit late today."

---

"......"

"This is where Orion started tracking."

We'd arrived at District 17, on the outskirts of the capital. According to Rakal, Orion had been told by Viscount Hartfield that the traitor had fled to District 17.

"Heeing, fieldwork..."

"I'm okay with it since later hours mean more money. Besides, going home just means serious noise from my neighbors."

"......"

While Susanna and Morian reacted differently, I surveyed District 17. As an undeveloped outskirts area of the capital, it could fairly be called a slum.

"So, did you hear anything about why they're looking for that music box?"

"I don't know that far..."

"Viscount Hartfield seems to be hiding something."

As expected, Cedric seemed to have the same thought as me.

"It's unusual to commission a mercenary corps just to retrieve a single music box. There must be something behind it."

I always felt that Cedric had good judgment—except for the fact that he'd joined our guild.

The problem was that his judgment only failed when it came to guild-related matters.

"I agree. There's a secret to that music box. But for now, finding Orion is the priority. Hmm, should we start by asking around..."

Wearing relatively decent clothes, we stood out among the residents of District 17. How could we conduct a natural investigation like this?

Just as I was worrying, Susanna spoke up.

"Alright, I want to go home quickly, so let's cooperate! Guild Master, we'll look like a suspicious group, right? I know a way to look natural!"

"What is it?"

"If we want to look natural despite being different genders and ages... we should pretend to be a fan group!"

"A f-fan?"

"I happen to know a musical that features District 17!"

With that, Susanna looked around District 17 as if she were a tourist at a landmark.

"Wow, this looks exactly like the setting from the musical <Aria's Song>!"

At that, the suspicious glances from the locals instantly disappeared.

"Oh, another pilgrimage."

"There's nothing to see here, why do they keep showing up?"

"Sigh, middle-class people."

Surprisingly, Susanna's method worked. We exchanged bewildered looks, but followed her lead and pretended to be fans.

"What an amazing sight."

"It's nice to experience it firsthand."

As we walked along, Susanna tapped my arm.

"Guild Master, give me some company budget."

"Excuse me?"

"Hurry up!"

Overwhelmed by her momentum, I handed her my coin purse without thinking. She took it naturally and approached two children playing with dirt and stones on the roadside.

"Kids, isn't there anything interesting to see here? I can't find the places from the musical..."

"If you pay us, we'll be your guides."

"Wow, great!"

After handing over a few coins, the children led us to what they claimed were the musical's scenic spots. Behind them, Susanna chattered on.

"But isn't this place usually empty of tourists? Our musical can't be that unpopular!"

"To be honest, that musical flopped..."

"Shh, everyone got angry when they said that!"

"...So, has there been anyone from other areas coming here lately?"

"Ah, there was that大叔. A suspicious大叔."

"He was obviously here for work, not as a fan."

"Great. I'm bored, so tell me more. Who was that大叔?"

Using casual speech like a young person, Susanna asked, and one of the children answered nonchalantly.

"Just some knight or mercenary guy who came by a while ago, poking around everywhere. Said he was looking for someone."

"Then he disappeared. Probably left on his own?"

"Really? What was he looking for? Wait, was he a knight chasing a wanted criminal?"

"Nah, probably not. He just seemed like someone who heard a rumor and came to the wrong place."

"Hmm? Why?"

Noticing something odd in the children's answers, Susanna asked again. The child shrugged.

"That大叔 went around asking if anyone had been hiding in this village lately. But there's no way anyone could hide in this village!"

"Why not?"

"Look at the condition of our village! Only poor people live here—the construction is a total disaster."

"Huh?"

"The walls are paper-thin. You can hear when the neighbor wakes up, when they brush their teeth, how many times they go to the bathroom, and even the sound of their yawns!"

"What do you call this... Right, privacy! There's absolutely no privacy in this village! The construction is so shoddy!"

"The walls are so thin that houses sometimes collapse. Hehe."

"There's no framework at all—we call them boneless houses!"

"......"

"How can there be such an unjust construction company?"

I silently agreed with Cedric. The construction industry in this world had problems too.

As I was thinking that, I suddenly realized something.

"So District 17 has a structure where absolutely no one can hide..."

"That's right."

Rakal also seemed to realize something.

"The claim that the traitor fled to District 17 must have been a lie from the start."

"Then..."

"The culprit is likely Viscount Hartfield."

After briefly touring the village's "landmarks" with the children, we left District 17 and returned to the guild office.

"Orion probably came to District 17, realized that no one could hide here, and then either fell into Viscount Hartfield's trap or went to confront him directly and got caught."

Cedric said, and we all agreed with his assessment.

"We need to visit Viscount Hartfield directly."

When I concluded that, Morian looked a bit uneasy.

"We might have to fight a noble family. Are you sure you can handle that?"

"Even if we don't fight directly, we need to find out Orion's whereabouts from Viscount Hartfield. He's our client's commission, after all."

Rakal looked at me with a moved expression.

Hmm, but how were we going to get into Viscount Hartfield's residence? It wasn't like they'd just let us in.

"Don't information guilds usually disguise themselves as deliverymen or maids in situations like this? I think I read that in a book!"

"That's true, but infiltrating alone could backfire."

After thinking for a moment, I decided on a frontal approach.

"It's too risky to send just one of us. Let's choose a method that lets us all go in together."

"How?"

"I told you before—I'm a lower priest at the Temple now."

I smiled confidently at my guild members.

"Claiming to be on a missionary visit would look natural."

"......"

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