第４２４堀：お掃除の成果 (Part2)
Hiiro trotted off, returning to her duties.
"We should probably get serious too," I said.
"...I suppose so."
Even Dressa seemed to realize it wouldn't look good if Hiiro was the only one working hard. She stopped arguing and began cleaning in earnest. With all of us focused, the work went by quickly. Before we knew it, the alley we had been assigned was spotless.
"Oh? Is that it?"
"Seems so."
"But we still have extra trash bags~"
"True. And it's still a bit early to call it a day. Let's find another alley to clean."
"Good idea."
As we searched for a new spot...
"Ah, big sisters! There's trash here!"
Following Hiiro’s voice, we looked into an alley and saw litter scattered about. It wasn't a huge amount, so it looked like we could finish it in the time we had left.
"This looks perfect," I said, stepping forward. But Dressa called out to stop me.
"Wait a minute. Didn't we clean this place on the first day?"
"Now that you mention it, you're right."
"Yup! This is where Hiiro and the others cleaned~"
"How did it get this messy in just a few days...?" Dressa muttered.
It was definitely the same alley from the first day. Yet, for some reason, it was a total wreck again.
"...There's no point overthinking it. Let's just clean it up. We can report it later."
"...Fair enough."
"Cleaning time~!"
It was irritating to see our hard work undone, but we couldn't just leave it like that. We set to work once more. Since it had been cleaned recently, there wasn't a massive buildup, and we finished in no time.
"Phew. That's that."
"Yes. It's about time, so shall we head back?"
As Dressa and I were gathering the trash bags to tidy up, Hiiro stood there, staring blankly.
"What's wrong, Hiiro?"
"Hmm. I feel like I'm forgetting something."
"Forgetting something?"
"Oh, was it that? Remember how a stupid adventurer threw trash out of that window over there?"
"I remember that," I said. I had been furious because he had been violent toward Hiiro.
"Ah, that's it!! Um, that adventurer guy..."
Hiiro didn't get to finish her sentence. Because...
"Please, calm down!"
"Silence! I’ve had enough! I’ll ask Lady Nonoa to help us seize the Roschur capital! Once we have that momentum, we can just march in and take Weed as well!"
A ridiculous, booming voice cut her off. We looked at each other and silently crept toward the window where the voice was coming from. Of course, I didn't forget to start recording.
"The other nations won't just stand by, you know?"
"That won't be an issue once I have Roschur under my thumb. It will simply be a change of monarchs. They can't interfere in a domestic coup. As for attacking Weed, it doesn't have to be direct. We just need to send our people inside. Before they know it, the city will be ours."
"I see. So instead of hitting Weed first, we take one of the three great powers and then openly send in our agents?"
"Exactly. No matter how much that Seraria brat tries to refuse, she won't be able to go against national policy. If she tries to reject us, the other nations will grow suspicious of Weed. Everything will fall right into our hands."
"And what about our operations within Weed?"
"Hmph. Suspend them for now. Honestly, this city is nothing but a headache..."
Immediately after those words, the window swung wide open.
"That damn brat!"
An old man dressed in extravagant clothes shouted as he hurled trash down at us.
*Thwack.*
"Ow."
The trash hit Hiiro right on the forehead. Fortunately, it was just a wad of paper, so she wasn't hurt. But that wasn't the problem.
"What? Just kids...?"
"Ah! It's them!"
"Why are you so panicked? They're just scavengers."
"They might look like that, but they're adventurers! If they report this, we're finished!"
"What?! You lot, seize those brats!"
At the old man's command, several men who looked like guards came rushing out from the back of the room toward us. We had been frozen by the sudden turn of events, but we finally snapped out of it.
"Run!"
"I know!"
"Y-Yeah!"
And so, we were forced to flee.