Volume 1
Chapter 28
I was Asked to
be an Escort
Translator : PolterGlast
[Runa's POV]
"Please, would
you be my escort?"
With a solemn
expression, the noble lady in front of me—Akana-san—turned to me and made such
a request.
……
An escort, huh...
I observed Akana-san
once more.
There was a sense of
desperation, a lack of composure—I could feel it just by looking at her.
Although she was trying to appear as if nothing was wrong on the surface, she
couldn't hide her emotions at all.
She's someone who
can't lie when it really matters—at least, she doesn't seem to be rotten.
Next, let's consider
her family background—the current state of the Gilmurg family.
A hated noble whose
subjects had lost all trust in them. It's not common for an entire populace to
hate a noble, but... in the case of her family, it can be said that such an
attitude is justified.
About ten years ago, a
great famine struck this town. It's unclear why it happened, but most of the
crops grown in the territory withered, and even if they tried to bring in supplies
from other towns, the rapid rise in prices made it impossible to do so. As a
result, most of the territory ended up starving to death, a terrible outcome.
During this great
famine, the Gilmurg family did nothing. Despite it being the territory they ruled,
they neither spent their own wealth nor suffered from hunger like the people of
their territory. They simply did nothing—they maintained a no-action stance.
I don't know the exact
details because I only read about it, but as a noble—as someone who rules over
people—this is unacceptable. It's no wonder they were hated and ostracized.
Now, the daughter of
such a family, Akana-san, is asking us to be her escorts so she can leave this
town.
……
"Akana-san,"
"Y-Yes!!"
"Do you fully
understand your current situation?"
"───!"
"Currently,
you—your family is very much hated by the people you rule over—you're aware of
that, aren't you?"
"………Yes..."
"Very well. Then
what about this? The recent bandit incident, this was an incident that was set
up by someone."
"………I
understand."
"Oh, I didn't
expect you to understand that much. Then I should ask you even more."
"……?"
Akana-san tilted her
head, not quite understanding what I was trying to say.
"Then, why did
you ask us to be your escorts? Didn't you ever consider the possibility that we
might have been behind all of this?"
"………───!?"
For a moment, she
looked dazed, but Akana-san seemed to understand what I had said immediately.
I asked her again.
"From your
reaction, it seems you didn't consider it at all. So? Now that you know that
possibility exists, I'll ask you again. Do you understand your situation?"
"………"
Akana-san made a face
as if she had bitten into a bitter bug. I said it indirectly, meaning, 'Aren't
you foolish to trust people so easily?' It's no wonder she made such a face.
Well, I've understood
that from her previous responses and behavior. It's more like a confirmation.
Let's get to the
point, Akana-san.
I deliberately sighed.
"………Sigh, you
understand that you are hated, and yet—even after almost experiencing a
life-threatening situation—you are still in such an immature state.
Hey, Akana-san, let me
ask you again, I am an adventurer—someone who seeks profit. And now you have
made a request of me. But can you pay me enough to commensurate us escorting
you? Can you offer a reward that will outweigh the disadvantage of being
disliked by the people of this town for helping you?"
"………T-That's why, I can
give you any amount of money or ore that my family can afford───"
"I'm saying
that's not enough. Don't you understand even after I've said so?"
"───!"
At my words that
interrupted her, Akana-san's expression turned into one of shock and
disappointment.
I sighed again.
"………Sigh, the
daughter of a noble who is so hated by her people. I didn't expect you to be so
immature, but you're even more immature than I thought. It's beyond the point
of listening to what I have to say. The Gilmurg family—the daughter is an immature
young girl who can't think ahead, and the head of the family is such a bad lord
that he is so hated by his people. There are no other noble families as bad as
you. The epitome of a wicked noble, huh?"
"………!!"
From the moment I
started insulting her family, Akana-san began to gnash her teeth strongly.
"You can insult
me however you want. But insulting my father───"
"I'm just stating
an objective fact. If you can't accept it, then quit being a noble."
"───!!!?"
My words must have
touched Akana-san's heartstrings. She
opened her mouth to retort—at that point, I changed from a mocking tone to a
stronger one, interrupting her retort.
Surprised by the
change in my tone and my unexpected statement, she had an expression of sadness
and shock.
A strange silence fell
over the room.
However, I broke the
silence with a sigh.
"……Sigh. It's
true, I don't know anything about your family or your father. Even the incident
ten years ago, we're outsiders—we don't know the details.
But I know what a
person in a position of power should be. From my perspective, both you and your
father are unfit to be nobles. I honestly think you should just quit, give up
your noble status."
"…………B-But at that time───"
"Well, I'm sure
you had your reasons. But, you see, it doesn't matter. The commoners don't care
about your circumstances. If you do something beneficial for the people, your
reputation will rise, but if you do something detrimental, your reputation will
fall. The actions of those above can easily change the opinions of those below
simply by those actions. And once you've completely lost their trust, you can
never regain it. No matter how hard you try to do good for the people after
losing it, the people won't accept it straightforwardly. They will always
interpret it with distorted thinking.
Those in positions of
power must always keep these things in mind. Therefore, you must always be
prepared, even to an excessive degree, for anything that might happen.
Moreover, people are greedy creatures. The higher you go, the more you will try
to scheme to go even higher. Therefore, the upper world is filled with nothing
but human desires and ill will. That's why you must always maintain a state of
more than perfect preparedness. Were you able to do that?"
Due to my excessively
strong statement, Akana-san was dumbfounded and couldn't say anything.
……I got a little carried
away. A barrage of words in a strong tone—looking back, it's a bit
embarrassing.
But...
"I'm sorry, but I
can't lend a hand to a noble who might go under at any moment. Sorry, but we
won't help you. We'll take our leave now."
I waved my left hand
and stood up. Then, I walked towards the exit door.
Kushina, who hadn't
said anything, followed behind me.
………However,
"………?"
For some reason,
Kushina stopped before leaving the room and said,
"Good luck."
Then, he left the room
with a smile.
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