LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 258.2
Chapter 258.2. The Line
Inside the Adventurer’s Guild, many people are lined up at the reception. Everyone is here to register as adventurers. Looking around at the people in line, many seem to be soldiers, dressed in combat uniforms. I stand at the back of the line, while Karinsan and the others wait by the wall.
“Damn it, as soon as the monster threat’s gone, we’re fired. That city chief’s a bastard.”
“Seriously. What the hell? We risked our lives, and this is the thanks we get?”
The thin men grumble, expressing their frustration. Unlike the line in the Amatsugahara Special District, there’s hardly anyone with shining eyes full of hope. Instead, many tired faces and people look angry. I’ve heard the reason. Apparently, they’ve moved a lot of soldiers into the reserves.
It seems they can’t afford to keep so many soldiers to secure funds for reconstruction. It’s a harsh story, but… when I think about the future, I can understand the decision, so I let out a sigh, feeling uneasy.
With the salary for one soldier, you could feed ten people for a month with crops, Amatsugahara Corporation president once said. If those ten work in agriculture, that’s a hundred, and if those hundred work in agriculture too… Using magical crops and magical tools, they say food shortages would soon be a thing of the past.
The soldiers who were laid off are being taken in as adventurers by the Adventurer’s Guild. This way, the soldiers won’t turn into thieves or organize an underworld group.
That’s the plan, at least. But the reality is tough, so I remember how Amatsugahara Corporation president’s eyes briefly turned serious. He was joking, but I could imagine what would happen if things went wrong, so I just nodded silently.
So, I understand the reasoning, but the soldiers won’t be satisfied with the misfortune that has befallen them. That’s why they’re all angry as they stand in line. This situation will likely continue until they have a steady source of income.
While thinking about all that, I quietly wait my turn in the slow-moving line.
I let out a yawn and think about what I should have for dinner—something Pure-chan likes. I wonder how Hina and the others are doing. Maybe the little girl can connect the dormitory and my house with her mysterious door… As I think about these things, there’s suddenly a commotion up ahead. I hear shouting. What’s going on?
“Thanks for standing in line for me.”
“We, we’re… standing in line to become adventurers…”
Three burly men dressed in shabby combat uniforms sneer at us, probably throwing out the kids who were in line before me, the ones who look about my age or younger. The kids protest, nervously, against the men who are taller than them, but the men show no signs of listening. They wave their hands dismissively and glare at the onlookers, their faces growing even more intimidating. The people who had been criticizing the men quickly looked away, not wanting to get involved in trouble.
It seems like the men get even more cocky at this, as they sneer and laugh.
“We’ve been waiting in line for hours. This is unfair.”
“Ahh? It’s forbidden for the people from the abandoned town to come into the outer town, you know? What the hell are you doing here?”
The men deliberately tilt their heads and mock the protesting children with wicked grins.
“That, that’s from years ago! We were told we could live here now!”
“You don’t get it, huh? You were allowed to live in the outer town only because the monsters were gone. Soon enough, they’ll make you go back outside, just like before.”
“Yeah, yeah. And the reason you were allowed to live in the outer town was to vent our frustrations. Oh, and also so you could do the jobs we don’t want to do, like bringing dead giant rats from the sewer.”
The men speak in unison, ridiculing the kids. The children’s faces turn pale, nearly on the verge of tears, but no one steps in to help.
Seeing this, I take a step forward and shout.
“Cut it out! Aren’t you ashamed of yourself, for mocking these kids like that?! It’s disgraceful to steal their spot in line just because they don’t want to stand next to you!”
A boy steps out of the line and yells angrily at the men. He’s wearing combat gear, so he’s probably an ex-soldier. He looks around fifteen years old, still with a childish face.
“Tachibana, huh? Are you siding with the ghosts? These kids are from the abandoned town, you know?”
“That’s ancient history! That was three years ago!”
“You little bastard!”
The man, embarrassed at being scolded by a child, turns red in the face, radiating anger, and throws a punch.
Tachibana, the boy, seems to misjudge the reach and is immediately hit in the face. He falls down with a “Guh!” The children he was trying to help rush to his side, worried.
The men, looking down at them, sneer in amusement.
“You’re weak, so don’t try to fight back. What a dumb kid.”
“Look, it’s a show! You want to make money off this, huh?”
The onlookers look away or start talking amongst themselves, not wanting to get involved in the growing conflict.
“To be honest, you’re terrible actors for a show. Can I ask you to leave?”
“Huh? What’s this, another kid from the abandoned town?”
“As an adventurer, I can’t overlook this kind of behavior.”
I smile back at the men, showing no sign of fear. I, the Golden Adventurer, must step in here.
It’s my duty, after all. If I put it in the way Amatsugahara Corporation president would say it, that’s how it would go.
So, Hana decides to step in and take action. She’s going to punish them.