第１１８掘：状況把握 (Part1)
**Dig 118: Situational Awareness**
**Side: Yuki**
"Cough, hack! The tea went down the wrong pipe."
What was that? Is it a recent trend in fantasy stories for Heroes to be sold as slaves? Is this some kind of "Success Story from Slave to Hero"?
"A-are you alright!? Staff Officer Yuki!?"
"Ah, I'm fine. I just choked on my drink."
As I was responding, the door swung open with a bang.
"You!! What did you do to Yuki!!"
"Yuki-san, are you okay!!"
"...Poison!? Pull yourself together!!"
Deryu, Eris, and Kaya rushed in, surrounding me as if to protect me, and glared at the slave merchant, Asu.
"It's a misunderstanding. I just choked on my tea. My apologies. My wives are making a scene."
"But!!"
"I said I'm fine. Asu-san didn't do anything."
"...Yes."
With that, the three of them stepped back. I wouldn't have minded if they sat down with us, though.
"I apologize again. My wives reacted a bit excessively."
"O-oh, no. I think that’s only natural. I haven't suffered any harm."
After that, we chatted briefly, promised to have a more detailed discussion and planning session tomorrow, and parted ways with Asu-san.
"Um, Master. What should we do?"
The four left in the room asked me, looking uneasy. Ah, right, that’s the issue.
"For now, let’s all sit on that sofa."
"N-no!? Such an honor is too much for us!?"
Everyone, including the Hero-in-the-making, shook their heads vigorously.
"It’s fine. Just because you’re slaves doesn't mean I’ll mistreat you. I treat everyone as a person."
"...So, you don't need to worry."
"There isn't a whip in this place for punishing slaves. I might scold you, though."
Perhaps reassured by the words of another woman, they finally sat on the sofa. Now, I should prepare for a little mischief.
"Well, since our numbers have increased, I'll go prepare some tea. Also, Eris, I heard these girls have skills like arithmetic. Instead of sending them to the training grounds, I think it would be more efficient to instruct them directly. Please hear them out for now."
"I see. If they have already acquired arithmetic, we might be able to skip the training grounds."
As we exchanged words, I signaled that I had already confirmed their skills via Appraisal. I had decided beforehand that if my Appraisal confirmed their words were true, I would use "likely," and if it were a lie, I would change the ending of my sentences to "supposedly." The rest was a matter of personality, so I’d have to leave the judgment to Eris after she interviewed them.
Well, there’s no need to decide in a rush today. It would be better to let them relax in Weed for a week or so to get used to the city first.
"Here, sorry it’s just tea for everyone. And have some snacks."
Naturally, I’m not superhuman enough to make coffee or black tea in a place that only has a teapot. The four of them were extremely nervous about me pouring the tea myself, but once my wives started drinking, they finally began to sip theirs as well.
"Listen while you drink. I’ll probably have to explain this again later, but since this concerns your future, hearing it once now might ease your anxiety. Alright, here..."
I explained that the slave system here is treated merely as labor to buy back their own freedom, and once the payment is finished, they are free to leave the city or continue living here if they wish. I gave them a simple overview of Weed.
"So, you see, there’s no need to be that nervous."
"Yes."
"That’s amazing."
"I’ll work hard!!"
"...Yes."
Only Ria, the Hero-in-the-making, had a weak reaction. Did she get dropped into slavery in some twisted way? She didn't seem to believe even half of what I said. No, it looked more like she was in despair. She reminded me a little of Kaya.
I decided to shift the flow of the conversation.
"Eris, lend me your ear for a second. It’s a simple matter, so you can keep drinking your tea."
"What is it?"
I whispered to her that Ria was an unawakened Hero.
"Pfft!! *Cough, hack!*"
As expected, she spat out her drink. The other two reacted the same way. Deryu, in particular, flipped backward. She’s quite agile.
After that, we chatted lightly, promised to show them around tomorrow, and parted ways.
"It seems Eris guided them to an empty inn. It would have been difficult to shove them into the training grounds anyway, since that’s not until next week."
"...But, that girl being a Hero..."
"Well, she’s only level 4. We’re still stronger than her."
"You’re mean, Yuki. I was so surprised I flipped over."
"My bad, my bad. But we need to be very careful in how we handle Ria."
"...That girl. She’s definitely a victim of that conflict. I can tell. Those eyes—she lost her family right in front of her. I think that’s why the whole world feels uncertain and untrustworthy to her."
"A Hero, huh... Is the world truly that harsh?"
Kaya and Deryu stared in the direction where Ria and the others had left.
***
Time passed, and it was after dinner, during a break.
"Big Brother, you met a Hero!!"
"Big Brother, wasn't the Hero a man?"
"Hmm, hmm, I see. A beautiful girl who looks like me, huh? Her chest isn't as big as Eris or Milly's, but it’s still substantial."
"Labyris-chan, that’s unfair!! I want to see her too!!"
"I want to see her too!! Show us, Labyris-chan!!"
"Wait, both of you, that’s impossible!? Hey, kyaaah!?"
Labyris flipped over as they crowded her. Her skirt flipped up, and—what kind of underwear is she wearing? Ever since I started producing clothes with DP, I’ve given them plenty of catalogs and told them they could manifest whatever they wanted, but Labyris almost exclusively wears sheer lingerie.
"Is it okay?"
"It is not. Go play with the other two."
"Che."
With that, the three of them began chatting and laughing together.
"My, so that’s what you like."
"Stay away from that topic."
"Well, it’s fine. I can just use it later and see how you react. Still, a Hero, huh..."
"An incredible one has arrived, hasn't she?"
"But she’s only level 4, right? And unawakened. Can’t we just treat her normally?"
Ratz agreed with Seraria’s words, and Milly offered an opinion.
"Well, as Milly says, if she lives her whole life as a normal person, it wouldn't be a problem."
"But if she awakens clumsily and her identity as a Hero is revealed, it would mean Weed took a Hero as a slave and forced her to do menial labor."
"Whoa, even I can tell that’s bad."
Riel grimaced at the future Seraria described. As Seraria said, if that happened, it wouldn't just be a matter of failing to protect a Hero; the fact that we accepted her as a slave would be a massive blunder. It would be the perfect bait for those who see Weed as a nuisance.
"Come to think of it, Yuki-san. Is that Hero from the same other world as you and Taiki-Hero?"
Shera asked, as if she had just remembered.