Chapter 212
“…Huh . The air here has kind of changed…”
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Ryouma took a carriage from Fatma Territory and safely arrived at Gimuru .
It’s been roughly a month since he was last here, but it felt less nostalgic and more different .
There were more people passing to and fro, but it felt desolate .
“Wait!” [Guard 1]
“!!” [Ryouma]
As he was walking toward his store, a voice suddenly resounded, and he turned to it . There, he saw three guards chasing after a man .
Was the man so brazen as to snatch a purse in broad daylight?
“Got him!” [Guard 1]
“Damn it! Let go!” [Thief]
One of the guards was really fast and was able to catch up to the criminal immediately .
But…
“Watch out!” [Guard 2]
“Uwaah!?” [Guard 1]
“Heh! You donkey!” [Thief]
“Don’t let him go!” [Guard 2]
“Yeah!!” [Guard 3]
The first guard was able to catch up to the criminal, but his pin was too weak, and the criminal was able to take out his knife .
Because of that the criminal was able to hurt his face and loosen his hold on him .
Fortunately, the other guards were able to secure him .
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“Are you okay!?” [Guard 2]
“U, uu…” [Guard 1]
His life doesn’t seem to be in danger . There’s just a lot of blood because he got wounded on the face .
Maybe I can use my healing magic on him .
“Excuse me . ” [Ryouma]
“What!? Can’t you see we’re busy arresting someone!?” [Guard 2]
“I can use healing magic . If you want I can treat him . ” [Ryouma]
“Healing? Sorry! That would be a huge help!” [Guard 2]
The guard gave permission, so after examining the wound, I cast the intermediate spell, High Heal .
The wound wasn’t that deep despite the bleeding, so just casting the spell once was enough .
“How are you feeling? Feel anything off?” [Ryouma]
“Yeah, I’m fine now . There’s no pain . ” [Guard 1]
“That’s great . ” [Ryouma]
After confirming that the guard has recovered, this time the other guard called out .
“Thanks for the help, Kid . And sorry about earlier . ” [Guard 2]
“Your coworker was hurt, so it can’t be helped . ” [Ryouma]
“Nah, getting hurt is normal for us, so that’s no reason to treat a citizen we’re meant to protect so roughly . Especially, someone who would offer to help treat our wounds . This sounds like I’m making excuses, but I’ve been in a really bad mood today . ” [Guard 2]
This guard seems really honest .
“In that case, can I ask you something?” [Ryouma]
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Ryouma spoke about how he was away from town for a while, and now that he’s back, the air about it seems to have changed .
“Have you seen the new town built by the south?” [Guard 2]
“Yes . It’s just the outer walls for now, but it seems construction has been progressing quite well . ” [Ryouma]
“Yeah . Well, it’s good and all that the construction is progressing, but the town has been overflowing with laborers looking for work… Look, over there, and there too . ” [Guard 2]
The places he pointed at were all narrow alleys . The laborers there were either seated by the wayside or sleeping altogether . Some of them were scavenging for leftovers from the restaurants and were chased away .
“Just a street off the main road, and it’s that bad?” [Ryouma]
“There were more people last month, but it wasn’t this bad, right? Apparently, way more laborers came than expected . Because of that there’s been a rapid increase in fights and problems . We’ve also hired more people to try and deal with them all, but even with the fresh recruits that know nothing, we’re still packed with work from morning to evening . ” [Guard 2]
I bowed to the guards as one of the people they were serving to protect .
“I see… Thank you for answering my questions despite your busy schedule . Good luck out there . ” [Ryouma]
“Thank you . You take care too . Make sure you get back before it gets dark . ” [Guard 2]
Like that I parted with the guards and headed for the store .
When I got to the store . I entered through the employee only door, but…
“Who are you? Only related personnel may enter through that . ” [???]
A man I didn’t know called out to me .
I would like to ask him that same question, but I didn’t and just told him that I was in fact related personnel, and explained my circumstances and asked to see Carm-san .
He seemed to have an inkling what I was talking about, so he peacefully allowed me in .
“Welcome back, Boss!” [Carm]
And I was able to safely prove that I was the boss .
And then…
“Sorry about earlier . I’d heard that the boss was a child, but I thought they were joking . And even if they were telling the truth, I thought it would be someone a little bigger and more adult-like . ” [???]
“True . There aren’t any age restrictions in having businesses, but anyone would be hesitant to believe a child is the boss . ” [Ryouma]
After confirming each other’s identity, we were kind of able to reconcile . We weren’t particularly quarreling, so it was a bit weird, but anyway, this person talking to me as if we’re really close is Yurdum .
He’s a 20 year-old human with blond hair and a light-hearted personality . He claims to be a martial artist and appear to have a trained body . He’s less muscular and more lean, however, as if all the unnecessary parts have been whittled away, kind of like a boxer’s body .
Apparently, he’s been traveling around the country to test his skills, and found himself in Gimuru along the way . It was then that he happened to see our chef, Shelmsan . She’d gone out to buy some ingredients, but unfortunately got caught in some trouble .
He helped her and she brought him to the store, where she then explained the situation to Carm-san and the others . Carm-san wanted to increase security just in case since the public order was worsening, so after discussing the matter with Ox-san and Fei-san, he called out to Yurdum-san .
“Thank you for always protecting the store, Carm-san . Yurdum-san too, thank you for helping out . ” [Ryouma]
“Well, it is my job, after all . ” [Carm]
“In my case, I ran out of money, so this was perfect timing . The treatment is great too, the atmosphere in the store is great, and I have someone I can spar with too . It’s the perfect environment as far as I’m concerned . ” [Yurdum]
“I’m glad to hear that . ” [Ryouma]
“Speaking of which, I hear you’re pretty strong, Boss… And from the looks of things, it seems the rumors weren’t exaggerated . How about one round?” [Yurdum]
Oh?
“What’s the matter?” [Yurdum]
“No, I look weak, so I was surprised that someone would actually ask for a fight . ” [Ryouma]
“Yeah, given your age and your body, you might look weak a first glance, but I was watching you earlier when I was at my post . As a martial artist who’s crushed many dojos, I can more or less tell someone’s ability from the way they move . ” [Yurdum]
Oh, that sounds reassuring!
“The air about the town was weird when I got back, so I was a little worried… Carm-san, how is everyone doing?” [Ryouma]
“Fei-san and Yurdum-san are around, so there’s nothing to complain about regarding the store’s security . Everyone’s full of energy . But of course, they do have to go out when buying stuff, so they do get anxious then because of the worsening public order . The number of incidents have also increased, and there was even an arson case a few days ago at the Morgan Company . ” [Carm]
“Huh!? Serge-san’s place?” [Ryouma]
I asked, surprised, and Carm-san solemnly nodded .
Carm-san and Carlsan, who’s in charge of the second of the store, were both from the Morgan Company and were introduced to me thanks to Serge-san . Having his old nest set on fire must have rattled him .
“The Morgan Company has also prepared security in the evening, so the fires were quickly dealt with, but it was a really brazen crime . Apparently, several people filled a jar with oil and threw it and lit it with a fire spell . The criminals escaped during the chaos and haven’t been caught yet . The Morgan Company was by no means lacking in security, so it’s suspected that this might be the work of professionals with a very detailed plan… Because of that there’s a lot of unrest in the city right now . ” [Carm]
“But of course . ” [Ryouma]”
The Morgan Company is a very famous store .
It has a trustworthy name, it has a brand, and its store in Gimuru is the main store .
A lot of people use their services, and even if that wasn’t the case, it’s still a store that’s well known . And yet someone tried to burn that very store .
If this were my previous life, the media would have surely flooded the place .
“How is Serge-san?” [Ryouma]
“He’s safe . He ordered the security to prioritize people over goods, so none of the employees have been hurt either . ” [Carm]
“I see . That’s good then . ” [Ryouma]
Still, it’s concerning . The town’s circumstances have changed quite a bit, so I’d like to get some advice .
“Carm-san . Are there any urgent jobs?” [Ryouma]
“There are some documents I need you to check, but I’m sure you must be tired from the long trip, so they can wait until tomorrow . ” [Carm]
“I see! In that case, I’ll excuse myself today . I got some things from Fatma, so I’ll be dropping by Serge-san’s . ” [Ryouma]
“I see . Please send him my regards . ” [Carm]
“Sure thing . By the way, I brought souvenirs for everyone . I’ll bring them tomorrow once I’ve organized them .
Good bye!” [Ryouma]
I left the store and hurried to the Morgan Company .