第７８９堀：穏やかなお仕事 (Part1)
Chapter 789: A Peaceful Job
Side: Steve
“...And that’s the gist of it. Haiden is in more disarray than I expected.”
“I mean, that sounds like a given, doesn’t it?”
I’m currently in the middle of the grasslands at night, getting a report from the Boss while being soaked by the night dew.
According to him, it’s not exactly that they’re just "country bumpkins," but the nobles called in for defense don’t fully grasp the current state of Haiden. They’re operating with an outdated mindset, which is causing all sorts of problems.
Well, if you came home and found your room had vanished, you’d be surprised, too.
And getting angry is a natural reaction.
“So, how are you going to solve that problem?”
“Since they dragged us into this and picked a fight, I conspired with Princess Seraria to trap them. I told them if they wanted to do things their way so badly, they could handle the logistics and setup. Then, I showed them some combat training right in front of them. I doubt they’ll have any complaints now.”
“What kind of scale was this training?”
“Well, Kagura and the others were there, too. When they were involved, we scaled it down properly. But during the one-on-one training between Deryu and Milly, the terrain changed a bit. The grassland turned into a wasteland.”
“...That would definitely break their spirits.”
They did training meant for the specialized floors in Weed out in the open, didn’t they?
Of course, they wouldn’t have any room to complain after that.
I wouldn’t go so far as to say it was like a martial arts manga, but it was a battle that literally altered the landscape.
There’s no way ordinary people wouldn’t be terrified after seeing that.
“So, as a result of you guys going on a rampage, things have quieted down inside Haiden?”
“For the time being, after we showed them the training, their leader came to bow his head. They shouldn’t be picking fights with Weed or the Intercontinental Alliance openly anymore.”
“That’s the best news. As for the rest, let them pull each other’s legs behind the scenes as long as they don’t cause us trouble.”
“Agreed. That helps us out. Now, how are things on your end?”
“Let’s see. Over here...”
I say that and turn my gaze toward the Sea-Cypho Kingdom army visible in the distance...
“Nothing out of the ordinary today. The day passed peacefully, and now that it’s night, they’re leisurely having dinner.”
The Sea-Cypho Kingdom’s reconstruction support army is, as always, moving methodically and resting for the night.
There haven’t been any strange movements, which makes it easy for us on surveillance duty, but still.
“What about the situation inside or any documents?”
“No reports from the guys who infiltrated. It’s just the usual talk about helping Haiden. As for the documents, we haven’t been able to examine them yet. They’re basically just rolled-up parchment.”
“Is it difficult to investigate them?”
“Yeah. Even though it’s just a makeshift command tent—or rather, *because* it’s a tent—there are soldiers stationed there, and even a slight noise would give us away immediately. We can’t act carelessly. It would be a different story if we could use magic or drugs.”
“That’s a no-go. We’re already inside Haiden’s territory. If a commander were to suddenly fall asleep or lose consciousness unnaturally, they’d be on high alert for an attack. And then...”
“That would give them a reason to declare war on Haiden, right?”
“Exactly. So, aggressive reconnaissance is prohibited.”
So, we can’t just put them to sleep with magic and do as we please.
Besides, they have proper magical weapons, so there’s a chance they could counter it.
If that happens, it’s a full-blown war.
That would be counterproductive and would render all our efforts to keep things peaceful meaningless.
“...Maybe it’s better to gather more detailed information after they arrive.”
“Well, if we’ve looked this much and found nothing, even if they have a plan, it’ll happen after we reach the Haiden royal capital. I didn’t think they’d be this thorough.”
I thought they might let something slip while they were on the road and no one else was around, but nothing.
At this point, I can only assume something will happen once we get to the Haiden royal capital.
“But at this point, it really does look like they’re just here for reconstruction support. If they suddenly shouted ‘War!’ the moment they arrived in Haiden, the soldiers wouldn’t follow them, right?”
“Probably. Still, we can’t afford to let our guard down. The purpose of this deployment, disguised as reconstruction support, is unclear. Now that the Intercontinental Alliance has finally been formed, if a member nation suddenly goes to war, other continents will either hesitate to interact with Haiden to avoid being caught in the crossfire, or they’ll actively intervene to gain influence over Haiden or its enemy.”
“Especially Zilba.”
“That old man is hot-blooded. He’s finally calmed down recently. I don’t want any more problems. To that end, we’ll proceed as peacefully as possible.”
It would be nice if this only affected Haiden or the New Continent, but that’s not going to happen.
It’s bound to spread.
We could just stay silent, but since we’ve already declared that the Boss and the others are in the New Continent, that’s impossible.
“Well, I’ll pray that it really is just reconstruction support.”
“Praying to the gods?”
“Just a joke. I’ll leave it to my own luck.”
“That’s better. There’s no divine favor for us, no matter how you look at it.”
If anything, we’re cursed because we’re always at odds with someone.
And Sister Luna basically stays out of our business.
Well, we might drink together, but she keeps work talk separate, so she’s professional in that sense.
“Oh, speaking of gods, does the Sea-Cypho Kingdom’s movement have anything to do with Aquenoki?”
“Aquenoki is in another country and hasn’t shown much movement. I haven’t investigated thoroughly, so I can’t say for sure, but the possibility is low.”
“Then that means the Sea-Cypho Kingdom obtained information from somewhere else and moved their army, right?”
“Well, that’s the logical conclusion. In that sense, it’s easier to deal with. It’s unlikely we’ll have to deal with annoying ‘paper power’ tricks. Though, of course, we can’t let our guard down.”
“That’s true.”
“Anyway, keep up the surveillance.”
“Roger.”
And so, my report ended...
“Captain. It’s ramen.”
“Thanks. This is the only joy of the job.”
“It really is. And this surveillance duty is easy, too.”
“True. Oh, it’s soy sauce flavor today.”
I take off the lid, grab my chopsticks, and bring it to my mouth.
*Slurp...*
Yeah. It’s delicious.
“Ah, so good. It feels like we’re out camping.”
“We can’t turn on any lights, but it does feel like that.”
““Ah.””
As we both looked up at the sky, a shooting star suddenly crossed the night sky.
I missed my chance to make a wish.
With that, we continued our surveillance of the Sea-Cypho Kingdom...
“Will we arrive tomorrow?”
“Yeah. You can see them from your side too, right?”
“I can. Princess Seraria and the others are a bit tense.”
“After all, we still don’t know anything.”
“It really is impossible to tell what their goal is.”
That’s right. Even with our information-gathering capabilities, we couldn’t uncover the Sea-Cypho Kingdom’s true purpose.
No malice, no known objective—only the answer we heard from the start: that they came for reconstruction support.