| <<<<— | Table of Contents | —>>>> |
Chapter 22 – Map and Magic Contract
“I see…”
After hearing what Clare and Selena had to say, Rona nodded with a serious look on her face.
“It wasn’t planned, but let’s get an inn. We can talk there.”
“Okay.”
The three of them traveled together through the city, got to an inn they had used before, and headed to their rooms to start talking.
“I’ve been talking to informants to find out about the state of the world. I’ll pass on the information I got to you guys.”
“Informant–”
“It’s a place I told you not to go near. It’s fine if you don’t want to get involved.”
In other words, it means an area where bad people gather. It’s not a place where children or noble ladies wander around.
“It seems like the Empire’s intelligence activities are getting more active in the Kingdom. It’s related to the North and the Great Sea of Trees, so if it’s the Kingdom’s reaction to that, they might be trying to find out what their goals are, who the spies are, or maybe they’re trying to shrink the intelligence activities themselves.”
“Vulgark Empire, huh… I get the impression that it’s a country you don’t want to get too involved with if possible.”
“What a coincidence. Me too.”
“Me too. Historically, we didn’t get along well with the Kingdom.”
It’s a military nation that has annexed the surrounding areas by force. It’s rumored that the Kingdom is secretly operating intelligence activities. There have been skirmishes and the arrest of spies several times in the past.
It’s unclear whether the Adventurer’s Guild’s request this time has an ulterior motive of probing or restraining the Empire’s intelligence activities, but Rona decided that it was information that everyone should keep in the back of their minds as a shared understanding.
“So, should we provide the information about the Great Sea of Trees to the guild while considering that possibility? I wonder… I’ll hear your thoughts.”
When asked by Rona, the two of them thought for a moment before answering.
“If we can grasp the situation and respond to it to some extent… it might be better to be involved to some extent.”
“I agree with Clare-sama’s opinion. There is also the matter of our relationship after that, and we can choose the information we give to them.”
After hearing their thoughts, Rona also thought deeply.
“If there is something that could work in a bad direction… it would be if the kingdom or the margrave had something against us. And if an Imperial spy has infiltrated the investigation team. Either way, we won’t be able to understand the situation if we don’t provide information.”
What are the kingdom and the margrave thinking? What are the Empire’s movements? The three nodded in agreement that it would be better to be involved to know the situation and respond before it is too late if something happens.
“If we assume that there is a danger like that… we could provide them information to prevent them from getting too close to the hermitage.”
“That’s no problem. You can enter and leave the hermitage because I allow you to. If someone tries to go through the Great Sea of Trees uninvited, they won’t see the hermitage and their senses will be confused along the way, so they won’t be able to reach it.”
“I see…”
Selena thought that with a compass or detection magic, they could easily travel back and forth, but it appears that this is because of the magic that Rona had installed in the hermitage.
“So it would be better to provide them with information about a wide area so that they can’t narrow down the location of our hermitage. It’s a bit of work, but… I’ll prepare a map.”
Rona took out the paper, quill, and ink she had bought for the scroll from her bag, and drew the capital city and the road that stretched from there to the Great Sea of Trees on the edge of the map.
The rough outline of the Great Sea of Trees. She put circles around the locations of some of the territories and wrote down the distribution of monsters that claim the area.
“There are many places I don’t know, so this will be helpful.”
“As I’ve been saying, you can’t generalize about the domain lord. Some don’t care what’s going on around them as long as it’s outside their domain, while others act like the boss of the monsters in the area. For example, the domain lord here is the latter. You shouldn’t get close.”
Clare and Selena looked closely at the domain lord and the surrounding monsters that Rona pointed out on the map, trying to remember their locations.
Since we know that there are territories, it’s risky to go out of your way to touch the lord. The most common ones were unknown, and Rona wrote down notes for each one.
“The base of the Sky King is quite deep inside.”
The Sky King. A nickname for the domain lord who hunts those who fly in the sky of the Great Sea of Trees.
“Its range of activity is too wide. From what I’ve observed, I guess it’s probably making a den around here. And then… to give the map to the guild, we’ll use a magical contract. I’ll teach Selena how to make a contract, so remember that.”
“Magical contract…”
“A contract is made and a promise is made so that the map cannot be misused later. If the other party breaks the terms of the contract, the phenomenon written in it will occur.”
Clare explains magical contracts to Selena.
“This time, if it is lost or misused, the map will burn, and we will be able to detect that we have broken the contract. Just to be on the safe side, I think we should set a deadline for when the map can be used.”
“That sounds convenient.”
“However, there are some points to be careful of. If someone finds a loophole in the contract or if we lose the contract, it will not be effective.”
“…So that’s the same as a normal contract.”
“Ah. Well then, Clare, make a contract.”
“Understood.”
Rona took out another scroll, and Clare nodded, thinking about the wording of the contract.
“Oh, you’re here. You’re the same as the old woman.”
“It would be less trouble if I showed up too.”
The next day, the three showed up at the guild and were ushered into a room in the back, where they were greeted by the guild leader, Gwaine.
“I’ve made a map of the distribution of monsters and domain lords. However, it can be misused, so can you promise me that you will only use it within the scope of the investigation?”
“Read the contract, and if you agree to the contents, put a blood seal on it. If you violate the terms, the map will burn, so think about how to store it.”
“Oh… I see. If you have the map information, you can provoke the domain lord and cause chaos.”
Gwaine receives the contract from Clare and reads through the contents.
“–The contents of the map will not be used for purposes other than the guild’s investigation, and if it is lost, the map will burn. If a part of the map is to be copied and used, will the contractor be allowed to leave it with a trusted person? However, the copy power of attorney must be signed in blood… I see. So then we can increase the number of targets that can affect the magic contract later if necessary.”
By using the power of attorney, we can copy part of the map and leave it with the investigation team, making it easier to use in the field. The contract and power of attorney were written by Clare, but Rona and Selena had also looked at them and discussed whether there were any holes before bringing them.
“How do you think the map is?”
“I promise it will be useful for avoiding and not irritating the lord of the domain.”
Rona then roughly explains what is written on the map and negotiates the reward.
“Well… that’s fine. I just need to put my blood seal on the contract and power of attorney here, right?”
“Yes.”
After a while, they agreed on the amount, and Gwaine agreed to the contract. When he put his blood seal on the contract and power of attorney, the map, contract, and power of attorney were enveloped in a faint light for a moment.
After watching this, Rona handed over the map, and Gwaine spread it out on the desk.
“I see. It’s true that we have to manage this thing carefully. If someone with bad intentions finds out that this is a place that should be left alone, it could cause big trouble.”
“That’s right. So… you can use the contents of the map depending on the place you’re investigating, right?”
“Yeah. It’s definitely worth more than what I paid for it.”
Gwaine looked at the map and grinned confidently.
| <<<<— | Table of Contents | —>>>> |