第５６掘：酷い違和感 (Part1)
**Dig 56: Terrible Discomfort**
Terrible Discomfort
Side: Rurua
Am I managing to keep a smile on my face right now?
Is my expression twitching?
That is the biggest concern.
Eh? What am I talking about, you ask?
"Thank you so much!! To think I would be saved by a Saint! So, you weren't actually deceased after all!! Please, allow me to repay this debt!! If it’s alright with you, please use me as your escort until you return to Litea!!"
"We are overwhelmed with gratitude for you saving our clumsy disciple. It would be worrisome for a disciple to be alone. In that case, please add us to your escort as well. We beg of you. Even we are well-known adventurers. From what I hear, the situation is quite complicated. If you need even a few more hands, please make use of us."
With those words, Yuki-san and Curse-san bowed their heads exactly as planned.
Mauve-san and Raiya-san simply knelt in silence, heads bowed low.
It’s nothing but a sense of discomfort. It’s nothing *but* discomfort, I tell you!?
But, of course, this discomfort is something only we are aware of...
"Rurua-sama, in a sense, these people have absolutely no connection to this current matter. Therefore, given the fact that you are short on manpower, wouldn't it be best to leave your escort to these individuals?"
The current Saint, Alstaire, pushes Yuki-san and the others as an escort, as if it were a brilliant idea.
Yes, Alstaire-sama. As you say, in this current situation where we don't know who is friend or foe, taking these adventurers—who we know are uninvolved—as our pawns is indeed a masterstroke.
Thankfully, Alstaire-sama noticed this fact on her own without me having to suggest it, and offered to add Yuki-san and the others to our ranks.
...It’s all going according to plan, Alstaire-sama.
Exactly as Yuki-san and Curse-san predicted...
"Yes, that is true. As Alstaire-sama says. If you don't mind, rather than just for the journey, I would like to hire you as my escort until things have settled to a certain extent. How about it?"
"To be hired, such a thing..."
"Wait, we don't have much in the way of savings either. Why don't we accept Rurua-sama's kindness?"
"But..."
"Don't you think it's more of a problem if we are too hungry to perform our duties as escorts?"
"..."
...Ah, please, stop the act.
What on earth could have happened to make Yuki-san fall silent like that!?
That man is reckless and arrogant. He doesn't read the room. He simply walks his own path.
"Current Saint of Litea. I, Alstaire, shall hire you all as escorts. As Curse-dono there says, if you cannot move when the time comes, there is no point in having an escort. You said your name was Yuki, right? Your resolve is very comforting, and in our current situation, that is very reassuring. If you truly wish to repay this debt, then please accept this offer."
"Yes, if the current Saint herself says so, I have no objections!! I will gladly accept the duty of escort as my job!!"
Yuki-san thanks Alstaire-sama, looking genuinely happy.
...Ah, I think I’m going to faint.
"Rurua-sama, I understand your heart aches at the thought of dragging them into this, but to break through this situation, we need many hands. Please, try to understand..."
"...No, you are right, Alstaire-sama. Having come this far, I don't expect to get through this without bloodshed anymore. In a sense, they are trustworthy. They will make for excellent cards to play."
"Yes, it is fortunate that they are adventurers. There is no reason for them to be connected to the hardliners, and there is the fact that they did not attack you, Rurua-sama. Depending on how we use them, we will be able to move to our advantage. As you said, Rurua-sama, they are good cards."
Alstaire-sama, they are far more than just "good cards"... I believe Yuki-san is the final blow.
As I finalized the upcoming schedule with her, I recalled what happened before this situation began...
"Yo. We're back."
"We have returned."
Mauve-san and Kiyu-san returned to the inn we are currently renting.
"It's been a day since we got here, but the quest is finished as planned."
"How was it, Kiyu? Did you figure out the whole 'holding back' thing?"
"Yeah, I think I managed it. What do you think? Do I look like a rookie?"
Kiyu-san said this while holding his sword unnaturally.
It was a grip different from when he held it with confidence—a clumsy, inexperienced way of holding it.
"Hmm, it feels a bit off, but given your build, Kiyu, you might pass as a rookie."
"I suppose so. Though, in reality, you're the most dangerous one here."
"Still, it's pretty strange that we're training not for rookie combat, but for *looking* like a rookie."
That’s right. We had been training to make Kiyu look like a rookie.
And in the process, we managed to clear the quest.
I’m sure the monsters we hunted were quite annoyed by that.
"Kiyu-san, what about Yuki-san and the others?"
"Apparently, a problem occurred at the dungeon, and it's taking some time to deal with."
"A problem, you say..."
"You don't need to worry too much. Even if they call it a problem, it just means some intruders showed up, they caught them, and the training schedule got pushed back. They'll be coming here tomorrow to finalize the details. Still, we arrived much faster than expected."
"It's a four-day trip by horse, but we did it in half a day. Thanks to that, we can set up a performance rather than just improvising. And thanks to Kiyu, we know exactly where the enemy is."
"At that speed, they'll arrive by noon the day after tomorrow at the earliest. When it comes to a group, their travel speed will drop significantly, and unlike us, they don't have a carriage."
Thanks to the carriage, we arrived at this village earlier than anticipated, giving us the leeway to finalize details and take action.
Truly, Yuki-san is a person who seems to walk on a completely different path from everyone else...
"Curse-san, how do you intend to handle that 'performance'?"
"Let's see. I need to talk it over with Yuki, but the general plan hasn't changed, so let's explain it to everyone."
At Curse-san's words, we all gathered together.