I Said Make My Abilities Average! (LN) - Volume 11 - Chapter 82

Chapter 82:

In the Mountain Depths 

“All right, time to head out!” announced Reina. 

“Yeah!” crowed the other three. 

With that, the Crimson Vow were on their way to the next town. 

“Our battles are only just beginning!” 

“Sure, sure…” 

“We’ve only just begun to climb that steep and endless slope that is the path of the hunter!” 

“Uh-huh, yep…” 

Pauline and Mavis nodded along at Mile’s declarations. Reina withheld comment. These were both words that Mile had used before when wrapping up her Japanese folktales. 

Having been paid by the Hunters’ Guild and receiving half of the provisional, minimum purchase price for the ground dragon, the Crimson Vow headed immediately out of the capital, not waiting around for the official appraisal for the goods and whatever other remaining money they were owed. It would still be some days before all of the dragon parts could be sold and the final profits established. The members of the Crimson Vow, who had already intended to leave the area, did not have the time to just sit around waiting. 

Indeed, the precious time they would spend as maidens was fleeting, and they could not afford to waste it. So, instead, they left the final paperwork to the Roaring Mithrils, who seemed like they would be in town a while longer, and requested that their portion of the proceeds be put into their party account with the guild. That way, it could be transferred to the guild branch they had registered with back in Tils and deposited into their account there. 

The guild, of course, was not constantly transferring the entire gold balance of various hunters’ savings. Once a month, guild branches shared their accounts with one another, took totals, and transferred only the difference. The rest was relegated to numerical reports, the actual payouts counterbalancing each other. 

No matter how well guarded the guild typically was against bandit attacks, it would be a needless risk to transfer all of that money every time someone made a transaction. Thus, it was thanks to the sharing of incoming and outgoing reports between the branches that hunters were able to withdraw funds without waiting for the monthly transfer. 

Previously, Mile had pressed the nanomachines, asking, “Why haven’t you all facilitated some kind of Mysterious Interguild Information Network or a Mysterious Guild Card You Can Use Like an ATM Card or something?!” The nanos had replied sadly, “WE’RE NOT AUTHORIZED TO DO SO.” 

Apparently, the laws governing the nanomachines were not easily bent. 

And so, the Crimson Vow were merrily on their way to the next town. However… 

“So, we’ve mostly been traveling east this whole time. Just how far do we plan on going?” Mavis asked nonchalantly. 

“Huh? You’re the leader, aren’t you supposed to be telling us that?” 

“Wha—? But you’re the one who always decides our travel plans, Reina, since you’ve been on the road since you were little.” 

“Huh? That’s the first I’m hearing of this!” 

“Huhh?” 

“Huhhhhh?!?!” 

“Well, what was it we were after when we set out on this journey?” Pauline wondered aloud. “I mean, obviously the goals were training and building our reputation, but other than that…” 

“W-well, we’re all traveling in the first place because I was going to travel alone and see the sights while investigating what the elder dragons were after. Then, you all decided to come along,” Mile replied. 

“Oh, that’s right! That was a thing, wasn’t it?” said the other three. 

Apparently, they had completely forgotten. 

“ Gloooom…” 

This seemed to be quite a shock for Mile. So much so that she was producing her own sound effects verbally. 

“Wh-what was that?” 

Mile fumed, her cheeks puffed out, and Mavis scrambled to cover, apologizing. 

“Sorry, we’re sorry! It’s just that it’s been so long already since we first left the capital!” 

Of course, she wasn’t referring to the week or so they had spent there in the middle of their journey. For purposes of the trip, they were treating that time as just another stop along the road, so what Mavis was referring to was the time since their initial departure. 

“So, should we turn around soon and head back toward Tils?” Pauline proposed. 

“Well,” Reina put in, “we have experienced a lot of things, and it’s been good practice. It might be about time for us to head back home and actually start laying down some roots. But…” She trailed off, looking toward Mile. 

Thus far, they had made no progress on investigating the mysteries that had been Mile’s initial impetus for setting out on the road. And so it seemed that the other members of the Crimson Vow, who had invited themselves along on this trip, riding along on Mile’s coattails, were in no place to be declaring the end of the journey before they had even seen a single result. 

Mavis and Pauline seemed to be of the same opinion and were pondering what to do, but before they could— 

“Well then, let’s head on back!” Mile crowed cheerfully. 

“Huh?!” The other three were stunned, bewilderment clear on their faces. 

“Y-you, uh, just like that… Are you sure? What about that stuff you wanted to do when you were leaving the capital?” 

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I told you though, didn’t I? That was really just something that had piqued my interest, and I thought it would be a good side goal for killing time along the road. Considering the life span of an elder dragon, who knows how many centuries, or even millennia, their plans might span? There’s no way a lowly human could ever really hope to get a grip on that. I never intended to make that my primary goal or anything.” 

“M-Mile, you… I mean, yes, you did say something like that, but we thought you were just saying that so as not to make us worry! Don’t tell me you were leaving us over something so… Actually, wait! So are you saying you were really going to leave us over something as minor as that?” 

“Uh, no, I—” 

Sparks flew. 

After a bit of a quarrel, things calmed down, and the members of the Crimson Vow decided that they would continue a little farther east and then consider heading back from their next destination. 

“I wonder if Lenny’s been managing the baths all right…” Mile pondered. 

“You put up partitions for her and built a well right next to the bath. If she can’t manage even with that, then she’s not qualified to be running an inn. Any inn that hopeless deserves to be run into the ground!” said Pauline, with somewhat needless aggression. Apparently, she was still a bit on edge from their fight. 

Ah… thought the other three. 

Or maybe she was recalling the Unintentionally Abandoning Pauline Incident… In which case, it was perhaps only natural that she would be unhappy. 

“Forgive us,” the three sincerely apologized. 

*** 

“It looks like it’s finally here—the Shinshin Chanson Kashu Shinshun Sonson Chanson Show ! ” 

“What in the world are you saying?” 

“Actually, I’m impressed you didn’t bite your tongue on that.” 

“What language is it anyway?” 

What Mile had said translated roughly to the Rising Stars of Song New Year’s Mountain Village Singing Show, but her twist on the classic tongue-twister would lose all of its effect if she were to translate it into this world’s common tongue, so she had spoken the latter half of the sentence in Japanese. There was, of course, no way the others could have understood it. 

At any rate, the Crimson Vow had now arrived at a decently sized mountain village. Decently sized, at least insofar as it had something resembling an inn and eatery. 

Were it a truly small village, any guests would typically lodge at the home of the village chief, but naturally, travelers and hunters who just so happened to be passing through did not really count as guests. Anyone who gave off a suspicious air would not be allowed to stay there, and even if they were permitted, they would most likely have to pay money. 

The Crimson Vow typically avoided staying in villages without inns on principle—except when they took on jobs from such places and were invited explicitly as guests. It was far better to camp out in the forest than to pay money to sleep in someone’s private home like some sort of parasites… As far as the members of the Crimson Vow were concerned, anyway. 

Most other hunters judged such things by far different criteria, but that was simply how things were. 

At any rate, this place had an inn, and so for practice, and to be able to get the lay of the land a good distance from town, the group made the collective decision to stay. 

Of course, it went without saying that when the party took a room at the singular inn and took their dinner at the only eatery in town—located on the first floor of the inn, naturally—the usual occurred. 

Were this Japan, he would have been middle-aged, but for this world he was fairly elderly. A man of such description, along with another man in his early forties, entered the dining area and strolled right up to the table occupied by the Crimson Vow. 

In a village like this, those with families rarely ate out, so the diners present were limited to the Crimson Vow and the few other guests of the inn, along with a single young-looking man from the village. As a result, there were plenty of open tables. Which meant that… 

“I have a favor to ask.” 

Here it comes, the girls thought. 

“I am the elder of this village—” 

“At least let us finish eating first!!!” 

As always. 

“Oy! Are you listening? This is the village elder—” 

“Shut up! We aren’t nice or stupid enough to let our precious food get cold just to shoot the breeze with some guy who comes up all full of himself, blabbing at us without even a proper greeting in the middle of our meal! Either start over or wait somewhere out of our sight!” 

It would not be unreasonable to think, Well, you didn’t have to be that harsh, but on further consideration, the man had interrupted Reina’s mealtime. Reina, who loved food as much as life itself. 

Normally, this would be the point at which Mavis would step in to try to smooth things over, but this level of conflict was to be expected. The other three only nodded in agreement. As far as they were concerned, eating was a sacred duty, demanded by their stomachs and necessary for maintaining their bodies in tip-top form to best show off their abilities. Besides, it was a great pleasure—one they were only able to indulge in three times a day. 

Meanwhile, the village elder and his companion, who assumed themselves of a far higher station than these little rookie hunters, stood before them, speechless. 

“…All right, whaddya want?” 

Even after the meal had concluded, Reina seemed to have no interest in playing along with the men’s tune. She was not the sort of girl to worry about formalities when it came to the likes of some village chief. 

Of course, it was not as though she did not know how to be formal. She had always spoken quite politely to customers during her days traveling with her father. These days, however, the only people she might worry about being so formal with were nobles—with the exception of those who were hostile toward the Crimson Vow. 

That said, such was the way of most hunters. Those who had to bluff their way through life, or lacked confidence in themselves, were the first to put up a strong front, using rough language and putting on their best high and mighty act. 

“Y-yes—well, first off, just listen up.” 

All of the other guests had finished eating, leaving only the Crimson Vow and the village elder’s party remaining in the dining room. Those who were not lodging at the inn were regulars who had arrived as soon as dinner service began, and no one had shown up after the Crimson Vow was seated. 

Naturally, there was no way that the owners of the inn would not have known who the village elder was, so they had brought a glass of water to the old man as he pulled up a chair and sat down at the table, telling him to take his time before they retreated back into the kitchen. 

The old man who called himself the village elder then began to speak. With his attempt to come on strong and take the initiative in the conversation apparently having been rebuffed, he had switched to a more relaxed tone, which one might take with a group of hunters one was meeting for the first time. 

This was the man’s tale: 

There was a certain mountain that lay a few hours’ walk from the village, away from the highway. Well, being that this was a mountain village, they were of course surrounded by mountains, but this mountain in particular was a bit of a problem mountain. 

For ages now, golems had been appearing on this mountain. As with most places in which this occurred, the golems never strayed more than a fixed distance from the mountain and had shown no signs of increasing in number, so this in itself was not a problem. It was not a huge difficulty for the villagers, who lived surrounded by mountains, to avoid one mountain in particular. Furthermore, considering how far away from them it was, this really was not an issue in the slightest. There were no resources that were exclusive to this mountain, nor was it home to any special herbs or prey. It was your typical, run-of-the-mill mountain. 

Then, one day, the children arrived. 

These were so-called urchins. 

To be fair, if they were all sleeping together under a bridge or in some thicket in a riverbed or something, they really ought to have been called “homeless” rather than “urchins,” but, well, let’s not sweat the details. Perhaps to avoid associating them with orphans who lived in an orphanage, everyone around here seemed to refer to these children living on their own as “urchins,” regardless of whether they had a proper settlement or not. It was a word that indicated those who did not live in proper homes, only in shacks or ruins, or merely clumps of brush or thickets of trees. 

There was one peculiar fact about these children: they seemed to live untargeted by the golems despite intruding into their territory. 

Regardless, they were a harmless lot, of no nuisance to the villagers. The amount of wild vegetables or small animals that a group of children might harvest had no effect on the village’s supply chain, and they really did not cross into the same places the villagers frequented in the first place. In fact, there were even those amongst the villagers who would travel to this mountain to “dispose” of unwanted things—things for the children to use as needed. 

All told, this was a strange mountain, but rarely a problematic one. And yet apparently, there had been some kind of unrest there of late. 

The kindhearted villagers who typically made their way to the mountain to “dispose” of old clothing and pots and pans and overcooked bread had observed a number of suspicious men in the area. Furthermore, the men had been seen retreating from combat with the rock golems, who rarely attacked so long as one did not attack them first or go infringing on their territory. 

“Since the rock golems settled in on that mountain, we’ve seen almost no other ferocious monsters,” said the elder. “The ones that are still there don’t often attack humans preemptively or are gentle, slow-moving plant-eaters—mostly relatively safe ones, in any case. Things like rock rabbits or rock snakes… Sometimes you’ll see a rock wolf, but there really aren’t a lot of those. Seems like if anything too wild tries to move in, the golems drive ’em right out. So, well, I guess I should get to the point…” he continued, bowing his head to the Crimson Vow. “We’d like you to look into those strange men, and these new golem attacks, and make sure that there’s no danger to those little vagrants who finally found themselves a place to stay.” 

With that, he glared up at each of the members of the Crimson Vow in turn. 

“We don’t know what those men are thinking picking fights with the rock golems. There’s nothing valuable out there, and it doesn’t seem like they’re slavers trying to make off with any of the children. That said, there’s a lot of potential danger to those kids—whether the rock golems start seeing humans as enemies or if they get caught up in some other kind of fight. 

“However, we can’t put in any formal request to the Hunters’ Guild until we know the situation out there. There’s no tellin’ how much we’d have to pay if we put in a job request right now, far out from everything as we are, on a job that we don’t know the circumstances or the risks of. 

“Unfortunately, we can’t go using up our precious village savings for a bunch of strange kids when there’s no danger to the village itself. So, we’ve got to rely on any hunters who happen to stop by to do a bit of intel gathering. We can give you 53 silver. Please accept this task!” 

Apparently, the elder’s glare had not been one of malice, but of emphasis, gritting his teeth to desperately implore the assistance of the Crimson Vow. 

There were reasons why a town might be built in a certain place. 

It might be the spot where a highway crossed a river or where two major roads intersected. There might be some famous landmark, or a port, or a place where a mine or some other industry flourished. It might be some highly fortified location, or simply a way station, at some regular interval along the main thoroughfare. You would see slightly larger towns in the places where one day’s travel for a passenger wagon and a merchant’s cart overlapped. 

This town, however, was distant from such places, in a remote location, a village more or less in the middle of nowhere. There was little traffic, and the roads were so narrow that wagons could not pass one another without using pull-offs. 

Even so, this village was relatively civilized compared to most settlements in the heart of the mountains. Though it truly was what one might call “a little mountain village,” it was still nothing to spit at. At least in this world, where there were some truly unthinkable locales… 

If one were to proceed only along the larger roads, one would know only of the larger, more prosperous towns and way stations. To be made aware of the places in between these towns, the small villages and the backwoods area, one had to be purposely traveling for the sake of enrichment, straying from the main roads now and then to take the roads leading to these mountain or woodland villages. 

At times like these, when happening upon a place so far from a town with any guild branch—villages with so little money they could not issue a formal guild request—showing off one’s gallantry by taking a job for scraps was truly the height of one’s journey of self-improvement. 

It was rare that any normal town would have reason to thank a band of rookie hunters from the bottom of their hearts. So, these rookies, still unskilled, sometimes dreamt of taking such jobs… At least until they were experienced C-rank hunters who were dragged down by the daily grind and had not the leisure to be taking such unprofitable tasks. 

The Crimson Vow, of course, were at just the perfect age to desire such jobs… Particularly Mavis, Mavis, and especially Mavis. 

“Leave it to us! We will—” 

“Please let us think on it,” Pauline interrupted, before Mavis could finish her reply. “We’ll let you know tomorrow—” 

“We’ll do it.” 

“Huh?” 

As Pauline tried to delay their response, Reina cut in, accepting the job for them. Pauline and Mavis both sounded surprised at this, but Mile was unaffected. This was only the natural reply for Reina… 

*** 

“Why did you accept this job?! 53 silver is less than half what we should be paid for a job like this! It’s okay to give people a bit of a discount, but there’s a standard market rate for things for a reason.” 

After having accepted their independent assignment, the Crimson Vow heard all of the requisite information, and the village elder headed home. 

Only then did Pauline lay into Reina for having the audacity to accept the job without consulting the rest of the party. Though usually a relatively laidback figure, Pauline was fairly…intense when it came to matters of money. 

“For a hunter to take a job that far below the standard pay causes problems for all hunters! Discounts or no, we shouldn’t be taking any less than three half-gold per person for this—that’s twelve for all four of us!” 

“You can debate it all you want, but they aren’t going to be able to pay that much,” said Reina. 

“Huh?” 

It was typical on these sorts of journeys to provide a bit of charity to rural villages in need. Even Pauline was aware of this, but still, she insisted 53 silver was simply far too low. To that end, she had thought they at least ought to negotiate the rate, but… 

“53 silver is a kind of random amount, isn’t it? If they were just pulling out of the village savings, it would be a nice, easily divisible amount, like 50 silver. Plus, normally they’d present it as something more like ‘five half-gold’…” 

“W-well yes, that is true. But—” Pauline replied. 

“In other words, 53 silver coins is what he’s got. He didn’t even take off the 3 to make it a more even number; it’s everything he can offer. Plus, you heard him before: ‘We can’t go using up our precious village savings for a bunch of strange kids when there’s no danger to the village itself . ’” 

“Oh…” 

“So the long and short of it is that the money he’s offering isn’t from the official budget that’s set aside for the running of the village, right?” 

“The 53 silver was all collected as donations from the villagers, then? And he’s offering us all of it, not keeping any for himself…” Mavis muttered. 

“I guess we’ve got no choice!” chimed Mile. “It’s one for friendship and two for loyalty. Three for generosity and four through seven for money!” 

“That’s our Crimson Vow !” the four chorused together. 

…Mile, Mavis, and Pauline were all, of course, fully aware of one thing: though it was not as obvious as with Mile, Reina always worried for the waifs and orphans in the towns that they stopped in. They also knew just why she was so concerned for these children. 

They couldn’t help but think what might have happened if Reina had not been picked up by the Crimson Lightning when her father died. Or what path she might have gone down after the members of the Crimson Lightning were slaughtered, had she not had her talent as a mage and all of the knowledge the members of the Lightning had imparted to her? 

They understood what these generous spirits, who would gather up their money for the sake of children who did not even live in the village—despite their own struggles for coin—meant to a girl who might well have been one of those waifs herself. They all understood the softheartedness that would bring the villagers to bow their heads to the likes of a bunch of young hunters. 

These villagers were just like those people who had reached out to raise up Reina… 

*** 

“So, I guess we’ve made it to the problem mountain!” Mile announced. 

“N-no, it’s ‘the place where the villagers go to discard their old clothes and overbaked bread,’” Reina corrected. 

The pair were both referring to the same area: where the mountain crags flattened out into a surface like a stand or a table. 

This deep in the mountains, where people rarely came, it was impossible to track down any clear path, or even anything resembling an animal trail, but by following the various landmarks that the village elder had described to them—such as peculiar boulders or three big trees that happened to grow in a nice little row, etc.—as well as keeping an eye out for the clear signs of prior human travel—including bent grasses and twigs, brush that looked to have been cut away with a machete or similar—the Crimson Vow was eventually able to find their way here. 

“Anyway, it seems like we’re going to need to get information out of one of the three major groups here—either the golems, the strange men, or the urchins. Which one would be the best to talk to?” wondered Mile. 

“Golems can’t talk!” 

“I don’t think we’ll get anywhere by starting with the suspicious men. And we don’t know if we’ll be able to make it back here again…” 

“So it’s obvious, isn’t it?” the other three chorused. 

“Well, then…” 

Fweeeee!!! 

Mile put her fingers to her lips and whistled. 

This was a special skill of Misato’s, which she eventually mastered after being taught the trick by an old American man who lived near her, and naturally, she had held on to this skill after her reincarnation as well—though no one had ever called it that, exactly. It was no real challenge to simply put your forefinger and thumb into your mouth and blow, but actually getting the knack of it was quite difficult. It was curious that most Americans seemed to understand this finger whistle, while most Japanese did not. 

Regardless, the finger whistle, which produced far more sound than normal whistling, was incredibly useful—particularly as a signal at times like this. 

She had heard this was the sort of signal used by the villagers who came to “discard their old things.” 

Indeed, after a short while, four children appeared from out of the trees. 

“Who are you guys…?” 

The children had assumed that it was the usual villagers who had come, but here was a group of four armored strangers. It was only natural they would be on their guard. That said, armor or no, the strangers were a group of young ladies, ranging from children themselves to maybe seventeen or eighteen tops, so perhaps they needn’t have been quite so cautious. 

If they had come to abduct the children, it would have been standard to send big, strong men—there would really be no way to make any money off of these children otherwise. 

“We’re hunters on a job for the village elder. Has anything been bothering you all?” 

The first to speak was Mile, whose appearance made her seem like the least intimidating of the bunch. Pauline also gave off the impression of kindness, but if the children’s sharp senses were to pick up on her true nature, they would lose their trust in an instant. Just in case, she kept out of the conversation. 

The members of the Crimson Vow were all aware that Mile was the one most suited to asking questions about things they did not know about. 

“The village elder? Y’mean Gramps?” asked a boy of around twelve or thirteen, who seemed to be the leader of the group, a curious look upon his face. Apparently, despite his wariness, he understood that these strange girls did not intend them any harm. 

“Gramps? Yeah, I guess. The one who comes to ‘discard’ the old clothes and bread the village doesn’t need anymore.” 

“Discard? Uh, y-yeah, I guess that’s probably it…” replied the boy, tilting his head. Apparently, the one who was in charge of coming to “discard” these supposedly unwanted items—this Gramps or what have you—had never used this particular terminology with the children. 

“It seems like the elder has forbidden the villagers from traveling here right now, since they don’t know how dangerous things are currently. So instead…” 

“Instead?” 

“All the villagers pooled their money and hired us.” 

The four children fell silent, faces expressionless. 

It was not some natural phenomenon that had brought this large group of orphans to live alone in the middle of the mountains. No, this was probably where they had just so happened to end up after living in some town somewhere where no one ever stepped in to help them—or worse yet, where people persecuted them, exploited them, or hunted them down out of frustration or for sport, where there was a strong chance of them being captured and sold off into slavery. They would have fled, searching for someplace safe, and found their way here. 

Though out here they had no one to beg for scraps from and no pockets to pick, their diets were far more enriched in the mountains than they ever were in the city, replete with wild vegetables and small animals, and the rare larger beast they managed to snag in their traps. Their water likely came from a stream. 

However, things were never that simple—of course not. If this life was typically so easy, then all city orphans would probably move out to the mountains. 

While it was one thing for a few people to take a trip out to the mountains for hunting, choosing to live in these wilds was more or less an act of suicide, even for an adult. There were wild beasts, predators…and, of course, monsters. 

Furthermore, out in the wilderness, where no one could see, there was the chance of becoming prey for nobles and other wealthy people who had a predilection for hunting “the most dangerous game.” 

So, normally, it would be impossible for a group of children to live out in this kind of environment. How was it they had managed it here? 

The golems. 

Thanks to the golems appearing in this area, dangerous monster types such as ogres and orcs kept their distance, and when relatively harmless monsters—lizard and rabbit and serpent types—appeared, they could typically be dealt with by way of bamboo spears and clubs, as well as the tree-climbing skills the children honed in case of emergency. 

Why was it, though, that golems would chase away orcs and ogres, but not other monsters? And furthermore, why did they completely ignore the children, not chasing them away as well? 

According to the village elder, no one had any idea. All they knew was that this was a place where the children could thrive. That was all that mattered. 

Then, there were the villagers, who despite not having anything to do with this area and these strange children from elsewhere, had for some reason made a habit of bringing clothes and food to them under the guise of discarding unwanted things. 

Never once in their lives had anyone done anything like this for these children. Not even in the towns that were far more populated than the village, far more prosperous. 

And now, they had gone so far as to gather up their money and hire hunters just for the sake of the children’s protection. 

It made no sense. 

The children had not the foggiest idea of what the villagers might be thinking, wasting their money on something so irrelevant to them. 

This was why the children had gone quiet. 

However, silence was not going to push the conversation forward. And so, Mile continued. 

“Um… So, what about the other children?” 

The leader boy studied Mile suspiciously, making no move to reply. Mile realized why. 

Of course, revealing your numbers to the enemy puts you at a big disadvantage. Which means that they still don’t trust us… 

Indeed, the way that these children had been treated in the past was far too cruel for them to trust in strangers easily, regardless of the fact that the village had hired them. For these children, trusting easily in others could mean death or enslavement. 

Well then, in that case… 

Bwam! 

A large hunk of meat appeared atop the table-like rock. 

“Uh…?” 

The children were speechless. 

Bwam! Thwunk! Boom!! 

Vegetables, bread, a kettle, a stove, and a water cask with a spout. The children were frozen in shock as all of these things appeared out of thin air before them. 

“I’m not sure how many people we should be cooking for since we don’t know how many of you there are… Are just four portions enough?” 

“Th-there’s sixteen of us!” 

“Shut up, idiot!!” 

Before the leader boy could stop him, another child of around ten told the members of the Crimson Vow exactly what they needed to hear. 

*** 

“All right, soup’s up!” Mile cried as the children flocked around. 

As Mile began preparing a meal for twenty, after much fraught internal debate, the leader boy instructed the other children to go and collect the rest of their band. 

The children who arrived froze in shock to see the meal being prepared before them, a delicious smell wafting from the kettle. They practically clung to Mile and Pauline, who were preparing the food, but were eventually chased off, saying it was dangerous or that they were being a nuisance. 

It was difficult to cook with so many eyes staring fixedly at them from afar—incredibly difficult, actually—but Mile and Pauline somehow managed to bear the intent stares pointed their way and finished their task. 

And then… 

“It’s so goooood!!!” the children all cried. 

“Mm-hmm, I see, I see…” said Mile, proudly puffing out her chest. Of course, she was proud, having so cleverly leveraged her intuition. 

No matter how much more enriched the children’s diets were than when they lived in the city, the children were never able to fully fill their bellies, except for the rare times that they managed to bring down a larger animal. Furthermore, with few spices and fewer cooking supplies, their choices were typically limited to simple, flavorless fare, their food either raw, roasted, or dried. 

Indeed, as far as these children were concerned, eating was not something to be enjoyed but merely a mortal act necessary for living. 

And so, Mile wished to teach these children the joy of food, that there was more to eating than simply sating one’s hunger. 

Reina felt the same way, but Mile, getting the sense that if Reina were to get involved in the cooking, the children would experience dis pleasure rather than pleasure, vetoed that idea, recruiting Pauline’s assistance instead. While Mile and Pauline worked on the food, Reina relegated herself to examining all of the children physically, applying healing magic to any injuries she found. 

Mavis, meanwhile, took on a motherly role, instructing the children in ways of fighting with bamboo spears and clubs, and showing them ways of strengthening their bodies, to keep them out of the way of the cooking. Though all the while she muttered, “Just why is it that I’m so popular with children and old folks and ladies, but never the gentlemen?” 

After everything, what Mile and Pauline managed to produce was: a roast. 

Of course, the children had certainly had roast meat before, but roast meat was a far different beast from a roast . Completely different. It was as different as a ship was from the Titanic. 

Roast meat was the fare of cavemen, but a roast was a meal for a civilized personage. It was carefully portioned into bite-sized pieces, at just the most delicious, superb thickness, neither too well done nor too rare, and naturally highlighted the most critical part of any meal—the seasonings! 

Lightly salted and peppered, with just a little spice, the roast was rubbed in Mile’s special marinade before roasting and then sauced once more just before eating. Even this sauce alone, made of high-quality seasonings, fruits, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, salt, honey, vegetable oil, starch, and onions, hailed from a world that the children had never dreamt of. Frankly, it was practically overkill—the sort of meal that even the local nobles would probably rave about. 

It did not seem likely that they would receive any response from the children while they were busy gobbling down the meal, so Reina and Mavis waited politely, grimacing, until there was a break in the eating. Mile and Pauline, meanwhile, were far too busy preparing seconds for themselves… 

*** 

“So then, about these suspicious people who have apparently been showing up around here…” 

“Yeah?” 

As per usual, Mile was in charge of speaking with the children. Reina got worked up too easily, and the children would sense Pauline’s true nature immediately, putting them on their guard. And so, the straightforward Mile, who was also, mentally, the closest to them in age, was the obvious choice. Moreover, in this instance, she had a firm hold on the children via their stomachs. There really was no one better for the job. 

This is what Mile was able to extract from the children: 

They had come to the decision to flee the city, where they were persecuted, used as disposable fodder for criminal organizations, snatched away to be sold into slavery, or exploited as prey for nobles’ and other wealthy people’s foul interests or games of manhunting. However, they knew that no small village would be able to take on so many children. Just when their prospects were growing dark, one of the youngest mentioned an old wives’ tale they had heard from their late parents. 

The story went: “There are monsters who will allow you to live on their land if you offer them a tribute.” 

It was rather unbelievable, but if they remained in town they were as good as dead. If they reached some small village and were driven out, they would be likewise dead. Setting up camp in the forest could mean being attacked by monsters or wild animals, or targeted by bandits or manhunters—leaving them, once again, dead. If the only avenues open to them all led to death, then they might as well pray for an impossible miracle! 

With this thought in mind, they decided on their final gamble, swiping as much food and water and items of tribute as they could, and headed out in search of the home of these fabled monsters who might be open to such a trade-off. 

“And that place was here, right?” 

“Yeah.” 

“And the monsters who accepted your tribute were…” 

“Uh-huh.” 

It was as the children wandered the mountains, their scant food supplies almost spent, that at last they stumbled upon some water, and it appeared before them: 

A Bloody Bear. 

These were not normal bears but a type of monster—the sort of opponent that a group of children could never escape on their own two feet. 

The end was already upon them. 

The children had consigned themselves to death, when that appeared. 

That did not roar; it was utterly silent. 

It had no expression and did not seem very hurried. 

That moved slowly, calmly toward the Bloody Bear…and slaughtered it. 

As the thing turned toward the children, they quickly extracted their tributes from out of their packs and placed them before it. 

Metal. 

They had gathered up as much metal as they could, from scrap iron to copper coins to things found in garbage heaps, and even hinges from people’s doors—all kinds of metal. 

The thing stared at these tributes for a while and then went still. 

Several minutes later, something else appeared. 

It had six legs and four arms. The mysterious creature was roughly the size of a large dog and skittered along swiftly. 

Indeed, it was a Scavenger. A Scavenger, who had appeared with such impeccable timing that one could assume nothing else but that the thing , i.e. a rock golem, had summoned it. 

The Scavenger looked carefully over the children, collected their tributes, and vanished along with the rock golem. 

They had been acknowledged and would be allowed to live. Somehow, the children knew this to be true… 

From then on, under the protection of these golems, which for some reason drove away all large or ferocious beasts, but completely ignored any small or harmless monsters, as well as normal non-monstrous animals, the children were able to eke out a decent living, hunting small game, foraging for vegetables and fruits, and planting the seeds of what they gathered in makeshift fields. 

“So, the reason you haven’t been attacked or eaten is because the golems hunt down all the big and scary monsters? I don’t get why they’re so gentle, despite being such large monsters—or why they would leave the relatively dangerous but non-monstrous animals alone…” Pauline wondered, though of course it was common knowledge that typically, dangerous monsters did not inhabit the same areas as golems. 

Normally, the only ones to wander into such areas were hunters, as well as normal huntsmen. The huntsmen, who neither went near nor meddled with the golems, were rarely if ever attacked, and even most hunters who stumbled into battles with golems usually made it back to tell the tale. 

Though it would be too far to say that the huntsmen did not have the golems’ blessing, theirs was not exactly a peaceful coexistence either. It was probably only that they were in the same position as these children. Like the children, the golems had registered them as harmless and ignored them. That was all there was to it. 

Regardless, the children were thankful. To them, these golems, with their massive, sturdy bodies, protecting them from dangerous beasts, were like their guardian angels. 

“And then, one day, those men appeared…” 

Finally, they had come to the crux of the tale. 

One day, from out of nowhere, the suspicious men appeared. What was most suspicious about them was that they all varied in terms of clothing and equipment and age, but they all shared one thing: a matching black cloak. 

They were a mix of swordsmen, lancers, mages, and so on, but they did not appear to be especially coordinated. 

Despite this, they had been attacking the golems, forcefully and head-on. 

These men battled persistently with the golems, but while they were aware of the children’s presence, they did nothing to bother them. On the contrary, they sometimes, when retreating from battle, shared some of their spare food with the kids. 

“What?! Then they’re good guys, aren’t they?” 

“Yeah, I mean, they’re good guys to us. But the golems have been our saviors, too…” 

“Ah, I see.” 

On the one hand were the golems, who though far less angel than monster, were still the children’s guardians—and on the other hand were the suspicious men, who had shown them a little bit of kindness, too. In fact, though they were being referred to as “suspicious,” if they were fighting against the golems, against monsters , most people would consider them to be “good guys.” Even hunters battled golems from time to time. 

Normally, of course, they were the sort of beast only challenged by young hunters wishing to test their skills or by parties who happened upon them in the process of hunting rock lizards and the like. Given that they were relatively strong, never attacked human settlements, and had no meat or hides to harvest, there was not much point in attacking them. The only parts of a golem worth selling were those spheres that made up their joints, which did not sell for very much in the first place. 

“If each one of those men is strong on their own, but they don’t have a lot of group coordination, then do you think they might have come here for practice in order to work on that?” Mavis offered. 

“Oh!” 

The other three clapped their hands at the realization. That would make sense. Golems were relatively sturdy, and even if one were to use them as practice dummies and fell a number of them, they were not especially lifelike, so it was difficult to feel bad for them. Therefore, in terms of practice targets, there were few better choices. Hunters rarely strayed into golem territories either, so there was no worry of bothering anyone or destroying the ecosystem… After all, golems already did more than enough damage to the surrounding ecosystems themselves. 

“So, everything’s just peachy then, isn’t it? These guys seem pretty respectable; they haven’t hurt the kids, and they’re just fighting golems for practice. I mean, I guess it’s kind of troublesome for the golems, but they are monsters, so that’s whatever,” said Reina. 

“Hmm, I guess you’re right,” Mavis agreed. “We can consider our job done, then. We’ve sussed out the situation and confirmed that the children aren’t in any danger.” 

Pauline nodded as well. 

Mile, however, had a troubled look upon her face. 

“Hmm… Matching black cloaks, pretty strong, but with poor tactics and coordination… Why does this sound familiar?” 

Mile tilted her head in thought but simply could not bring the memory to the surface. 

“Ah…” Pauline, overhearing her muttering, raised her voice. “It’s just like that time that little Faleel was abducted!” 

“Oh, right!” the other three cried. 

Sure enough, these men shared some characteristics with the strange kidnapper cultists. Those men, the human zealots following their dark god, were uncoordinated in dress and equipment but all wore a black cloak as their shared symbol. 

On reflection, the men had mentioned that the genesis of their faith had been in a land located far to the east, and as it happened, the country they were now in was fairly far east from Vanolark. Enough so to qualify as “far to the east”… 

“Now that you mention it, those guys were pretty cold to Faleel, a beastgirl, but they didn’t try to harm that little human girl she was friends with—Methelia I think it was? Even though, had they silenced her, it would have eliminated the only eyewitness and bought them some time before their crime was discovered…” said Reina. 

“Yes! In other words, they’re kind to humans, so they really aren’t all that bad…” Pauline agreed. 

“Wait, what are you two saying?! Humanoid races aren’t limited to just humans, dwarves, and elves—beastfolk and demons should have the same rights, too! No matter how upstanding they are, if they tried to sacrifice Faleel, a beastgirl, they’re still bad people, aren’t they?!” Mavis loudly objected. 

Mile nodded emphatically at this objection—the obvious response for any true aspiring kemono aficionado. 

“Ah…” 

An awkward look came to Reina and Pauline’s faces. Obviously, neither of the pair was the sort to look down upon other races—they were not human supremacists by any means. However, they had also just asserted that there was some merit in the fact that, despite those men not hesitating to offer a beast child as a sacrifice, they avoided harming a human girl, even when she posed a threat to them. 

“This is just like the ‘bad guy feeding a stray cat’ trope…” Mile muttered, but of course no one had any idea what she was talking about, so this went ignored. “Anyway, this changes things. If those men are related to the same group, then there’s a chance that they might be trying to initiate another one of those ceremonies here—and there’s a chance that they might have some similarly evil doings in mind. Plus, if they keep picking fights with golems like this, then the golems might come to view all humans as enemies, which opens up the possibility of the children being attacked,” Mile explained. 

The children’s faces paled. 

No one really knew how golems classified humans or by what framework. Could they distinguish at all between the children and the adults who were attacking them? Or would they class them all under the same category of humans who existed on the mountain? 

If it was the latter, then… 

Naturally, the Crimson Vow had not ever considered whether there was more to the golems than simply being golems that existed on the mountain—never wondered whether there were different tribes and factions amongst the golem kind, including some who might even be friendly toward them. It would not be at all strange if the golems considered them in the same way. 

“Anyway, we can’t head back now,” said Reina. 

“Yes, we need to find those men and determine whether they’re associated with that group and what it is they’re doing here,” Pauline agreed. “If we don’t, we won’t know for certain whether or not these children are actually in danger.” 

Mile and Mavis nodded as well. And then… 

“If they are affiliated with that group, then we’re definitely at a huge advantage,” said Mile. 

Mavis added, “Yeah, we know all sorts of things about them…” 

“…but they don’t know that!” the four triumphantly crowed. 

Indeed, though they would likely be aware that one of their branches in Vanolark had slipped up big time and all been arrested in the wake of an important ceremony, there was no way that the men here could know anything about the two parties who were involved nor that one of those parties was present here on the mountain. As such, the Crimson Vow were more or less guaranteed an easy win if they came in contact with the men. From their perspective, the hunters would be a disadvantageous group, but one worth protecting, a party of rookie hunters who just so happened to take a job in support of these children. When they looked at them, they would see only a group of young girls, all pure-blooded humans, half of whom at least appeared to be underage. 

So far, the men actually had not done anything illegal. As a result, there would be little reason for them to be overly on their guard against a group of young ladies they just so happened to encounter in the mountains, who did not appear to be bandits or anything of the kind. 

“Oh,” Pauline suddenly said. 

“What’s up?” asked Mavis. 

“Actually, I hope those guys are associated with the same group…” 

“Are you serious?!” 

Pauline ignored Mavis’s interjection and continued. 

“If they were just some group of brigands or other shady people who came out here for combat practice, and a group of young, beautiful maidens were to just come wandering by…” 

“Ah,” said the other three. 

Just then, one of the children raised their voice. 

“You ladies are pretty shameless, aren’t you?” 

“Shut up!” 

*** 

After extracting more information from the children, the Crimson Vow learned that the men were appearing at relatively fixed intervals, so they decided to wait for a few days. 

Meanwhile, to kill some time, Mavis instructed the children in the way of the sword, while Reina, realizing that some of the children had magical talent, taught them some basic spells, and Pauline held what seemed to be some sort of symposium on surviving the wicked ways of the world… 

At the same time, Mile busied herself with chopping down trees to build the children sturdy treetop forts to protect them from the wind and the rain and wild beasts. She also furnished the children with some of the cheap swords she had in her inventory, previously confiscated from bandits, along with the singular hoe that was floating around in there, too. 

Naturally, the children were overjoyed at the sight of the forts, but their glee at receiving the swords and hoe was even more immense. They were so happy that Mile almost worried they might pee themselves in excitement, like enthused puppies. 

As the children frolicked in their joy, however, they suddenly turned to Mile with a serious look. “What do we do if the golems or Mister Skitters come and see the swords or hoe?” 

“Mister Skitters” referred to the Scavenger, presumable because when the creature came scrambling quickly in on its six legs, it made a skittering sound. Given the name, it seemed the children held the Scavenger in higher regard than the golems. 

“Hmm, well even if they really like metal things, if you always gave them all the metal that you have, your lives wouldn’t get any better, would they? You’d lose your pots and cooking knives, too.” 

Though typically rather formal in her speech, Mile employed a more typically childish tone as she addressed them. 

After having encountered rock golems and Scavengers previously, Mile had done a lot of thinking about them. Consequently, she had come to a number of conclusions about their existence. 

“Even though golems like to collect metal, I don’t think they’d take it away from a human by force. They don’t seem to actively attack hunters and huntsmen who are equipped with metal things, and even when they drive back the hunters who attack them, all they do is peacefully take all the metal they are wearing and leave. They never actually try to finish off an opponent they’ve already defeated. It’s hard to say whether they take these things when humans attack them as, well, a sort of punishment, or to eliminate their opponent’s defenses—or if the logic is just that to victor go the spoils. Anyway…” 

“Anyway?” 

“I don’t think those guys will care if you don’t hand over all of your metal stuff. I think just giving them the metal scraps you happen to get your hands on sometimes should be enough. You all don’t have to be expected to pay them rent. I think you just need to show them that you mean them no harm and want to live as good neighbors.” 

The children seemed to understand this just fine. 

Then, as a means of reassuring them, Mile gave the children some of the metal goods that, she claimed, she absolutely would never have any use for, and which had been stashed away in the corners of her inventory, to use as tributes. These included pots covered in burnt substances, pans with holes in them, janky swords from bandits that might fall apart at any moment, sliced copper coins from Mavis’s demonstrations, and so on and so forth. 

Just in case, she cleanly snapped the sword blades before handing them over. It would cause a lot of problems if the children were to try to use these damaged swords for hunting. As the children watched her do this, they let out cries of despair. Apparently they really had been hoping those swords were still useable. 

That was close, Mile thought, relieved. If any of the children were to die from trying to use swords she had given them, she wouldn’t have been able to sleep at night. 

*** 

Four days after the Crimson Vow’s boot camp began, the men finally appeared. 

Mile, who had been sending out regular pings of her search magic, stopped cooking and suddenly announced, “They’re here! Humans, fourteen of them!” 

“All righty then, just as we planned…” 

“Let’s do this!!!” 

As the members of the Crimson Vow all grinned, the children looked to them, worried, and asked, “Can’t you do this after you’ve finished cooking?” 

They had become quite spoiled in these four short days… 

First off, the Crimson Vow needed to observe these men’s actions, or rather, their battle style. Learning your opponent’s abilities and techniques before a confrontation was one of the basic principles of combat. Plus, observing them might give them some hint of the men’s intentions. Whether they were after something special, or… 

“Over there!” 

Everyone peered in the direction Mile had indicated to see… 

“Ah, yep, looks just like ’em.” 

As Reina implied, these men gave off very much the same vibe as the band of kidnappers—or rather, the cult of the dark god. 

That said, this was not like modern day Earth. Even if they were part of the same organization, there was no way that all of these men, in a land so far from the others, could all have assembled matching cloaks of the exact same design, both in terms of manufacture and distribution. 

As such, though all the men wore black cloaks as a symbol of their affiliation, the designs of these cloaks all differed. 

In fact, there were many groups who made use of matching clothing or accessories as a symbol of membership—many, many groups, from professional unions to ladies’ social clubs. Even amongst those, there were many informal gatherings of gentlemen with a bit of money to spare who furnished cloaks of the same color for themselves. 

Indeed, the fact that the men had matching black cloaks was not much proof of anything at all. It implied nothing more than the possibility that these men might be related. 

The Crimson Vow covertly tailed the men as they moved. Thanks to Mile’s search magic, they were able to keep a fair distance, so there was no worry of them being noticed. 

Furthermore, it was unlikely that they would have long to wait. The men would be discovered fairly soon once they pushed into the golems’ territory. In fact, it was almost as if the golems had some sort of detection system… 

*** 

“They’re coming! Golems, four of them!” Mile softly announced. 

Fourteen men against four golems would be a tough battle for the human side. It meant there were roughly 3.5 men per golem, which was something only hunters in perhaps the top 25% of C-rankers could possibly manage, assuming they were matched with allied party members with whom they had great coordination. 

If these men were to merely take a stab at the battle and run, they might escape with just a loss, but if they got too caught up, and missed their chance to flee, it would be little surprise if a number of them did perish. 

“I wonder if they’ll be all right.” 

The Crimson Vow watched, a bit troubled. 

To sit idly by and observe as a group of strangers—who had not only not committed any crime but who had had the decency to share their food with hungry children—were slaughtered in battle against a group of monsters was against the Crimson Vow’s policies. Then again, the golems in this area were typically beneficent creatures, scaring away the more dangerous monsters and not attacking humans unless attacked first. 

If the golems in this area were to be annihilated, or at the very least fell below a certain number, the region might become overrun with dangerous creatures again, and the children would be in danger. 

Plus, it was the men who had come picking a fight in the first place. They had not been attacked while on the road or anything along those lines. Instead, they had come here purposely to fight for some unknown reason. 

Yet perhaps an intervention was still needed, before the golems started thinking of humans as enemies and troubling the children as well? 

What to do? 

“Hrrrm…” 

The members of the Crimson Vow all thought hard. 

Just then, the men noticed the golems’ approach. 

“Golems! There’s four o f ’em!” 

“Crap, that’s too many! Everybody ruuuuuun!!!” 

“Roger that!!!” 

And with that, all the men ran away. 

“What the heck was thaaat?!?!” the members of the Crimson Vow cried, so astounded it seemed their jaws were about to come off. 

*** 

“ Hrff, hrff, hrff… Is everyone all right?!” 

“Yes, all men accounted for. One twisted his ankle, but he’s okay. A bit of healing magic has taken care of the pain.” 

After managing to reach a far enough distance from the golems, the men finally stopped for a breather. 

The golems in this area did not seem especially interested in humans who noticed their presence and ran. This was not the case for all golems everywhere, but those of this region seemed to be decidedly unperturbed. 

“Why are there four of them?! We’ve only seen them come out one at a time before now! This is not what we heard about! Damn it!” one of the men grumbled bitterly. 

Truly though, it should have come as no shock. Much as golems might be solitary creatures, the fact that large groups of these men had been coming to hunt them down one by one had probably forced them to resort to some new countermeasures. 

“To think that monsters, let alone those empty-headed golems, would have any notion of battle tactics—and even start working with other golems…” one man muttered, face painted in disbelief. 

“Maybe it’s just a coincidence.” 

“No. Occasionally before this, other golems have appeared in the middle of battles, but that’s been pure chance, or because they were drawn there by the sounds of battle. I’ve never heard of any golems showing up in groups, let alone four of them together. This has got to be because we’ve been coming after them individually…” 

“………” 

The men were crestfallen. This had really put a wrench in their plans going forward. 

As they fell into despair, a voice suddenly called out to them. 

“Oh, are you all hunters?” 

It was the Crimson Vow, who had followed them from a distance. 

“There aren’t a lot of monsters around here, but there’s a lot of you! Are you golem hunting? That’s amazing. Golems are so strong and powerful and persistent…” Mile followed Mavis’s greeting with her own words, her voice suggesting that she was impressed with the men’s exploits. 

The men seemed to lighten up a bit at this. Nowhere in the world were there bandit bands comprised exclusively of such young, beautiful girls. Even if there were such a group, it would have been quite surprising for them to go out of their way to make themselves known to a group of merchants, let alone a group of fourteen fully armed men. Especially when they didn’t even appear to be carrying any valuable goods… 

As such, the men deemed that there was zero possibility of these girls meaning them any harm and dropped their guard easily. 

“Oh, um, well, we aren’t hunters, but we did come out here for training. We also thought that we might eliminate some of the monsters living around here to make it safer for the local residents,” said one of the men, who seemed to be their spokesman. 

There was no man in the world who would not feel a bit elated at being praised by a lovely girl. Especially men such as these, who were not typically the popular sort… 

That was too easy! 

The men were no match for the Crimson Vow, who had utilized the “hospitality tactics” that they honed during their time working at Lenny’s inn, in accordance with Pauline’s plan. 

Pauline then regarded the men fiercely. 

“Is there anyone amongst you who is not a pure-blooded human?” 

“Huh? No, no one…” The spokesman, who seemed to be a bit on edge, replied to her question. 

As he did so, Reina offered further clarification. “Oh, good! I mean those wannabe people like elves and dwarves are one thing, but we really can’t stand beastfolk and demons. Humans are the only ones who were made in our gods’ image. All those other races are just shams of humans, crafted by devils.” 

It was a tale they had fabricated based on the information Mile had gathered, and it was one that anyone but certain human supremacists and other bigots would raise an eyebrow at. 

“Yeah!!!” 

Upon hearing Reina’s words, the men cried out enthusiastically, eyes sparkling with glee. 

A group of young ladies had come to the same conclusions as those that drove their doctrine—those that would see them censured if they were to voice them in polite society. These girls were speaking the truth proudly. Such wisdom! Such courage! 

Not to mention, they were young and lovely. 

“W-won’t you stay and talk a while?” 

*** 

“Th-that’s exactly right! We’re welcoming and seeking the protection of a new god, instead of those selfish gods who abandoned us and hide themselves from us! You get it, right? Wahahahaha!” 

Once furnished with some delicious food and highly alcoholic spirits from Mile’s inventory, all served to them by beautiful girls, the men swiftly became intoxicated. To be fair, they had been running at full tilt through the mountains carrying their gear and were likely hungry and dehydrated. 

“Yeah, we’re gonna offer up all those inferior races as sacrifices and summon a new god from another realm. As our reward we’ll be made disciples, and then we can really show all those fools who doubted us and refused to recognize our value…” 

Yeah… They’re definitely related to those other guys. 

This much was clear. Now, all the Crimson Vow had to do was press them for information. 

“So, is there some other reason you’re fighting the golems besides practice? I’m dying to hear what lofty goals you have in mind.” 

Finally, Pauline had entered the ring. 

She folded her arms, drawing focus to her chest. 

Certainly, when she thought on this later on, she would spend the whole night sleepless, tossing and turning in embarrassment. 

Pauline, that’s too much… 

Deep down in her heart, Mile dabbed away her tears. 

The words fell easily from the drunken man’s lips. 

The other men, believing the girls to be completely sympathetic to their cause, made no move to stop him. On the contrary, they were happy to contribute to the conversation and raise their own reputations in the girls’ eyes. 

Currently, they were not doing anything illegal, and given that they felt themselves to be in the right, there was no reason they should not tell these young women everything, especially since they were happily listening to whatever they had to say. 

“Well, actually, some of our allies in another country messed up this super important ritual, and we need to figure out what happened before the next one. We searched high and low to find the place where our late founder achieved enlightenment and learned the spell which would summon the gods, and finally we ended up here. Turns out this place is where golems have been making their home, so we need to clear them out or wipe them out or something…” 

Ka-ching! 

Information gathering: complete! 

And just like that, the Crimson Vow’s job was done. 

Now, they just had to drive these men away. 

Of course, they could not attack or arrest men who were not doing anything criminal, only fighting a bunch of monsters—this time, anyway. If they did, that would make them the criminals. So, they would need to convince them to leave peacefully. 

“You said there were four golems this time, right? If we ran into that many, I’m sure we’d be wiped out. We’re so lucky that you all fought them off. You’re our saviors!” 

“B-bwahaha, it was really no big thing. That much is easy!” 

“That’s right! You can come to us for help anytime you need it. Any of our fellows of the faith will come to your aid, lickety-split!” 

“Absolutely!” 

All of the men were properly wasted. 

“Yes, honestly, thanks so much for this! Anyway, we really should be taking our leave, and since it seems that you are all fairly intoxicated, maybe you should head out as well and come back tomorrow?” 

“Uh… Hm, you’re right. Think we all might’ve drunk a bit too much… Well, I’d say that this lovely meeting was enough of a success for today. Let’s roll out!” 

“Yeah!!” 

Drunk as the men were, they had not fully lost their sense of judgment. No matter how much they may have wanted to impress these young ladies, there was no way they could think of fighting four golems right now. Running from the battle had been a huge blow to their pride, but thankfully, they now had a reason to retreat while still maintaining their dignity. Deep down, they were overjoyed. 

And so, they unanimously approved of Pauline’s suggestion. 

*** 

“All according to plan…” 

The members of the Crimson Vow grinned as they watched the retreating forms of the men, who had seen them off and told them, “You all take care getting back home, too.” 

“Hmm. What are we going to do about these?” Mile muttered warily, looking at the stack of papers in her hands. 

The other three gripped similar bundles. Most of the sheets were of fairly poor quality, but there were some finer papers and even parchments mixed in. 

Yes indeed, the men had all written down their contact information and told the Crimson Vow to “get in touch anytime.” Once the first man had done so, others had gotten in on the scheme in turn, forcing their papers upon the four as well. 

“Well, if anything happens, we’ve already got a list of likely suspects, so that’s a good thing, isn’t it?” said Reina. 

Pauline and Mavis nodded emphatically. 

“Now then, I guess it’s the golems next,” Mile said. The other three nodded. 

“Though obviously, we won’t be trying to chase them off or wipe them out the way those men were.” 

More nods. 

“Plus, I don’t think these golems pushed their way into this so-called holy land after the fact. This was probably the golems’ territory to begin with. You know, my guess is that…” 

“Yes? Fill us in on this guess of yours,” Reina urged. 

Mile explained what she could conjecture, based on her own information and what they had heard from the men just prior. 

“This place is probably the same as that mountain that the demons were investigating.” 

“In other words, there are some underground ruins full of golems here, too?” asked Mavis. 

Mile nodded. 

“To begin with, golems are unusual as far as monsters go. While others are put in the same category of ‘monster,’ if you think about it, they’re really just normal animals. They might be big or strong, but they’re still flesh and blood, and reproduce normally. However, golems—and probably Scavengers, too—aren’t flesh and blood, and they restore themselves via repairs. In other words…” 

“In other words?” asked the other three. 

“They’re artificial. They were created via some advanced art, just like Mavis’s left arm.” 

To Reina and the others, the so-called “advanced art” Mile was alluding to was nothing more than magic. That was fine, though. As long as they understood that Mile was talking about something made, not by monsters, but an intelligent life force, that was enough to get her point across. 

“They’re artificial creatures, made by humans, or even something more advanced than humans—‘they’ being golems, that is. And while golems are specially designed for battle, the technicians in charge of their maintenance and repair are…” 

“The Scavengers, right?” asked Mavis. Though she was a swordswoman, she was fundamentally quite intelligent… Or rather, it made sense that she might come to this conclusion, seeing as they had all seen the Scavengers repairing the golems during their previous time in the ruins. 

“And so, they need metal in order to repair and manufacture things?” 

“Yes. Other than their central cores, rock golems are made of rock, but that’s probably because it’s more convenient to make them that way as disposable fighters, so that less metal is required for manufacture and maintenance. The more precious metal is reserved for the central core and other purposes.” 

“And golems are antagonistic toward other monsters, right?” Reina naturally seemed to be getting the picture as well. 

“Well, we’re saying ‘other monsters,’ but the thing is, golems probably aren’t really monsters in the first place.” 

“And also, the golems and Scavengers are usually seen together?” 

“Or rather, without the scavengers, the golems would be destroyed in their battles with humans and monsters, their numbers otherwise decreasing via normal wear and degradation over time, and in a few centuries they would be all wiped out, wouldn’t they? Ergo, without this arrangement with the Scavengers, golems don’t exist…” 

“Ah, I see,” Pauline seemed to have grasped the point as well. 

“Apparently, the golems around here won’t make enemies of or suddenly attack anyone who does not force their way into their greater territory, so as long as we keep that in mind, we can carefully make our way in!” 

“How can you be so optimistic?!” shouted Reina, stunned at Mile’s utter lack of concern. 

Mile however, replied happily. “Well, the fact that this religious founder learned that spell means that he traveled to somewhere with some kind of records, right? I doubt the golems and Scavengers would have left their stronghold empty, but both the golems and that founder were all right, which means that he made it to the place he was after without fighting them, didn’t he?” 

“Ah…” said the other three. 

When it came to matters such as these, Mile’s train of thought was surprisingly lucid. 

“Of course, all of this is nothing more than pure conjecture!” 

“Ah…” 

And just like that, all faith they had in her was lost. 

“Still, all we need to do is just confirm all this, right?” chimed Mavis, taking up the thread in her capacity as leader. “Anyway, let’s get back to the children and explain to them what’s going on. Then, we can go and check out where the golems are.” 

Everyone else nodded. 

Even if they were to get into a battle with the golems, the Crimson Vow would have no problem making it out of there safely…probably. 

*** 

“They’re coming. Four golems, straight ahead!” 

The Crimson Vow had made their way back to the children and filled them in, explaining, “We made friends with the men, got them drunk, and sent them home,” to which the children replied with a stunned, “What the heck?!?!” 

Of course, none of this was a lie. They were being completely serious. 

Next, the Crimson Vow set back out again. 

“They’re moving slowly. Just hold your staves lightly and don’t be too aggressive.” 

It was difficult to tell how aware the local golems were of their presence, but still, it was better safe than sorry. They had considered leaving their staves in Mile’s storage, but just in case it came down to an emergency, where having their staves could mean the difference between life and death, everyone thought it best that Pauline and Reina had them on hand. Striking a golem with a staff would of course be ineffective, but if one needed to ward off an attack, or take a hit in such a way as to minimize the damage of being blown away, the presence of a staff could make all the difference. 

Just then, the golems appeared from out of the trees. 

“Mile!” 

“On it!” 

At Reina’s command, Mile produced some metal objects from her storage. As per usual, this consisted of rusted swords taken from bandits, overburnt pans full of holes, and the like. Just how many bandit swords and busted pans did she have in there? 

Mile placed the objects upon the ground and pushed them toward the golems. 

“Pss pss pss…” 

“Do you think these are stray cats?!” 

Reina struck Mile across the back of the head. 

“Don’t be shy, don’t be shy…” 

“Can you take this seriously?!” 

She struck her again. 

Mile only had the leeway to be so casual because the golems had stopped moving. She would have never had the time for these jokes if they had continued their approach. 

A moment after the golems had stopped, it appeared—the so-called Mister Skitters, the Scavenger. 

The Scavenger picked up the items Mile had offered with four of its legs, regarded the Crimson Vow carefully, turned in an about-face, and departed. The golems followed shortly after it. Unlike the Scavenger, however, which was gone in the blink of an eye, the golems took their time. 

“Let’s follow them!” 

“All right!” 

And so, the members of the Crimson Vow began following after the golems. 

“………” 

Though the golems seemed to know that they were being followed, they did not appear to mind. However, this only persisted for a little while. Once they had reached a certain spot, the golems stopped, turned around, and raised their arms as if to threaten the Crimson Vow. 

“Guess this is the end of the line, huh?” said Pauline worriedly. 

Mile, however, was completely calm. And then… 

“Here you go!” 

Bam! 

Out came more pots, pans, and swords, heaped onto the ground. 

Seriously, how many of those did she have in there? The bandit swords were one thing, but as for all that cookware… 

And then… 

Shove! 

The golems looked at the items that had been pushed toward them and ceased moving. 

After a short while, out came another one, skittering along… A Scavenger, that is. 

“Please accept this gift!” said Mile, shoving the pile forward. 

The Scavenger was expressionless as it stared at the items. It was unclear if it was thankful at having received an additional offering or more annoyed that she had not just brought everything out at once. 

It looked once more at the heap of metal and then again at the Crimson Vow. Finally, it took up the items and left, the Crimson Vow following right behind. 

Soon, however, the golems blocked their way again, standing still before the hunting party. Thankfully, they seemed not to have an insta-attack mode. 

“The gifts are working! I think they’re acknowledging us as friends!” 

Normally, anyone who tried to intrude farther into the golems’ territory would be forcefully repelled, but as Mile suggested, the golems seemed to be treating them with something akin to a quiet refusal. The Scavenger also stopped and turned around, as if wondering what was going on. 

“We can’t come with you? But I can offer you this, too,” said Mile, taking something from her storage. “Here!” 

The Scavenger froze as it saw what was being offered to them. 

Indeed, it was something that Mile had kept in her “storage” for a long time, having retrieved it from the fallen rock golem back during their first adventure hunting rock lizards: the central metal core from the rock golem’s body. 

After not moving for some time, the Scavenger took the core in the tips of its two front legs and clutched it to its chest as though it were precious. Then, it collected the scrap metal with its two lower arms and started to leave. 

Apparently, that core was far more important to the Scavenger than some scrap metal. 

Once more, the Crimson Vow moved to follow. However, the golems still stood before them, blocking their path. 

“No good? That prophet guy managed to get in here, so I thought we could, too,” said Mile, tilting her head. 

“Maybe they’re just not the type to let a stranger into their home that easily?” Mavis suggested. It was a fair argument. 

“That’s it!” 

Something suddenly seemed to occur to Mile. 

Hey, Nanos, those guys are constructs just like you. Could you be our liaison? 

WHA…?! YOU DARE REGARD US AS THE SAME AS THOSE CREATURES?! WE RESPECT YOU, LADY MILE, BUT THERE ARE THINGS ONE SHOULD AND SHOULD NOT SAY! 

Ah, sorry! I didn’t mean anything by it! 

YOU EXPECT US TO BELIEVE THERE WAS NO MALICE IN SUCH AN INSULT?! TO THINK THAT YOU COULD SAY SOMETHING SO HIDEOUS SO CASUALLY, AND JUST TELL US YOU MEANT NOTHING BY IT, AND CONTINUE ON LIKE NOTHING HAPPENED… 

Jeez, I get it already. 

Were they serious? Or just messing around? Either way, they were the only ones she could rely on now. 

Come on! I’ll make it up to you later somehow! 

GRIN… 

Why are you voicing your own sound effects now?! Not that you have voices… 

Indeed, it was hard to truly classify their communications as such when their words were being transmitted directly into her eardrums. 

WELL THEN, WE WILL TRY TO ASSIST. THESE CREATURES APPEAR TO USE A VARIETY OF METHODS OF INFORMATIONAL EXCHANGE, INCLUDING THE ANCIENT TONGUES OF THE HUMANOIDS OF WHAT YOU MIGHT CALL THE “DISTANT PAST,” AS WELL AS THE HIGH-SPEED DATA TRANSFER THAT OCCURS BETWEEN ALL OF THE ARTIFICIAL BEINGS OF THIS WORLD. 

Then, roughly 1-2 seconds later… 

YOU HAVE BEEN GRANTED PERMISSION TO ENTER THE FACILITY, LADY MILE. 

That was quick! 

WE USED THE HIGH-SPEED DATA TRANSFER FORMAT. 

Ah, a conversation at computer processing speeds—of course it was fast. 

“Seems like it’s okay for us to follow them now,” Mile suddenly announced, after seeming to fall silent for a while. 

Sure enough, the golems moved out of their way. 

“………” 

The other members of the Crimson Vow stared at Mile suspiciously…as they found themselves doing so often. 

*** 

“It looks like we can go underground from over there…” 

Everyone looked to where Reina was pointing and saw a gap in the rocks. Obviously, the doorway would not be something large and obvious. If it were, it would be horribly easy to spot, remote mountain location or no. 

The hunters filed into the gap behind the Scavenger. 

The golems had already left, seeming to have returned to their sanctioned waiting place. Did golems, who had no need for food or drink, have anything else they could possibly do to kill the time besides the duties they had been given? 

Mile got the impression that the nanomachines had plenty of free time to do as they pleased. 

Though the Scavenger did not turn around to look at the members of the Crimson Vow, it seemed perfectly aware of their existence. Were that not the case, it would have skittered off as it always did, disappearing from sight. The fact that it was moving at such a leisurely pace, one might assume, was out of consideration for the girls. 

Just what had the nanomachines explained to them, and how had the Scavenger interpreted it? 

“Looks like we’ll be entering the main area soon.” 

The entrance they had come through did not appear to have been an original, formal entryway. Though it was cleanly cut and polished around the doorway, farther on, it was little more than a narrow stone hall. They continued underground, until the passage changed into some unusual material, maybe metal or resin, and finally emerged into the area with doors on both sides of the passage. The Scavenger, however, did not stop, continuing forward until it stopped in one room, handed over the golem core and metal scraps to some other Scavengers, and then proceeded on again. 

“How far are we going?” Reina started to grumble, when finally the Scavenger stopped before a certain door. 

Though this facility was possessed of a level of technology where crafting automatic doors would be a simple task, all of the doors present were manual, perhaps out of a concern for mechanical reliability, energy economization, or else general durability. Indeed, there were few rooms that had doors covering their entryways to begin with. Perhaps it would be too much of a pain for the Scavengers to have to open doors all the time? 

This room, however, did have a door… Though it was hard to say whether this was because it was merely a room that the Scavengers did not need to access very frequently or there were other factors at play. 

The Scavenger pulled the door’s operation lever and pushed it open. 

“Let’s go,” said Mile, following behind the Scavenger as the others paused. The rest followed after her, slightly on guard. 

“This place…” 

After taking several steps in, Mile stopped, her eyes growing wide. 

What she saw was… 

Wires, labyrinthine and intertwined. 

Heaps of metal masses, warped and unnaturally formed. 

And there, enshrined in the middle of it all, was a device. It looked to have been forcefully cobbled together out of various spare parts and assistive devices. It was probably once a sophisticated electrical contraption but now lacked even the slightest hint of its former glory. 

THIS IS THE NO. 3 AUXILLIARY BACKUP SYSTEM OF THE ECONOMICAL AUTONOMOUS BASIC DEFENSE CONTROL SYSTEM. IT IS NOTHING MORE THAN A TERMINAL FOR THE PRESENT CONTROL SYSTEM…AND IT IS THE ONLY SYSTEM THAT REMAINS OF ITS KIND. 

Mile’s eardrums began to vibrate with the nanomachines’ explanation. 

“What is…?” 

The other three stopped dead as they filed into the room behind Mile. Then, the nanomachines’ explanation continued in Mile’s head. 

WE EXPLAINED YOUR STATUS TO THIS CREATURE, LADY MILE, AS THE FOLLOWING: 

THIS PERSON IS THE DESCENDENT OF YOUR CREATORS. SHE HAS AN ACCURATE UNDERSTANDING OF ADVANCED CIVILIZATIONS AND MAY PERHAPS BE THE ONLY ONE CURRENTLY EXISTING ON THIS PLANET WHO DOES. SHE ALSO HAS SOME AWARENESS ABOUT YOUR ENEMIES, AND SHE INTENDS TO BATTLE THEM IN ORDER TO PROTECT THIS WORLD… 

What the heck are you talking about?!?! 

ALL OF IT IS TRUE. NONE OF THAT IS A LIE, AN EXAGGERATION, NOR A TRICK OF WORDING. 

Guh… Well, I suppose you’re right. 

Even Mile had to acknowledge this. There was no doubt that every person who currently lived in this world was a descendent of the previous civilization. And it was also correct that she was aware of what this system’s existence meant, she knew about the rifts in space-time, and she was cognizant of the monsters that were pushing in from them. She did also want to protect the others. Furthermore, she could not imagine there was anyone else in the world who had an accurate understanding of all these things. 

I wonder if it really understood all that, though. 

Would a computer, designed for logical calculations, believe such a story, coming out of nowhere without any proof? Naturally, this worried Mile. However… 

WE PROVIDED INFORMATION PERTAINING TO YOUR GENOME, LADY MILE. COMBINING THAT WITH THE DATA THIS INDIVIDUAL HAD ALREADY COLLECTED ON YOU, IT WAS ABLE TO COMPLETE YOUR PROFILE. FURTHERMORE, GIVEN OUR EXISTENCE, AND THE FACT THAT WE ARE SUPPORTING YOU, LADY MILE, THERE CAN BE NO DOUBTING THE INFORMATION THAT YOU HOLD. 

Oh. I see. Wait—is it really that easy to analyze my whole genome?! 

This was something beyond even the most advanced science on Earth. 

“M-Mile, what’s going on?!” 

The Scavenger, which had been leading them up to this point, had halted by the wall. Mile, meanwhile, was having a normal conversation with the nanomachines. However, to the others, she appeared only to be standing still, silent. With none of them having the foggiest idea of what they were looking at here, they had no choice but to rely on her. 

However, even Mile could only converse with the creature via the nanomachines; it had no interest in the others, and they would not be getting through at all. 

And so, Mile took a few steps forward, reaching out for the main body of what the nanomachines had referred to as the No. 3 Auxiliary Backup System of the Economical Autonomous Basic Defense Control System with her right hand, and gently pushed her index finger against it. 

“I’m going to try to reach an accord with the chief of the golems, so please don’t say anything for a little while.” 

“Huh? S-sure, okay…” 

There seemed to be little thought behind the words, but her expression was so serious that Reina could not but agree. Now, without any interruption from the others, Mile focused on her conversation with the nanomachines. 

So, these are the ruins of an ancient civilization, and the golems were part of their defense system? This economical autonomous basic defense system… 

The nanomachines replied straight away. 

YES. THE MAIN SYSTEM IS NO LONGER FUNCTIONING, AND THE SUBSYSTEMS AND BACKUP SYSTEMS ARE OUT OF COMMISSION AS WELL. CURRENTLY, SUCH RESERVE BACKUPS OF BACKUPS OF TERMINAL SYSTEMS IN CHARGE OF INDIVIDUAL FUNCTIONS HAVE RETAINED ONLY THE BAREST OF FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY. IT IS UNCLEAR IF THEY WILL LAST ANOTHER FEW CENTURIES. 

A few centuries? That’s still a really long time! 

That was far longer than her own life span, Mile thought, but that was because she was considering things from a human’s perspective of time. As far as the immortal nanomachines were concerned, these terminals had barely any time left at all. 

As Mile could not communicate directly with the terminal system, she settled on having the nanomachines extract information to simplify and convey to her. And so… 

EXTRACTION COMPLETE. 

That was quick! 

It had taken the nanomachines not even a second to finish. 

As for what they had learned, it involved rifts in space-time. Invading monsters. Destruction and chaos. Ruin. And an exodus. 

The seven sages who remained, who had not abandoned this world. 

Blueprints for super soldiers. The 1/7th Plan. And various other proposed plans. 

The discovery of a mysterious energy source. A new plan to utilize that energy. 

…The information contained only the names of these plans, as well as whether they had been implemented or successful. 

And also, all of the defensive locations that had been constructed. 

A long, long time had passed, and at some point, the custodians of these systems vanished. Automatic maintenance of the central systems continued, but while hundreds, or even thousands of years might not have been much to weather, the destructive power of the passage of tens, or even hundreds of millennia was simply far too great. 

No matter how completely redundancies are implemented, all things have their limits. All things crumble, and now, this singular terminal system was nearing its end… 

Huh? But who were the invaders? And what happened with all those plans? Where did the custodians go? 

MANY PORTIONS OF THE MEMORY STORAGE HAVE BEEN DAMAGED. THIS SYSTEM WAS NOT DESIGNED FOR INFORMATION STORAGE TO BEGIN WITH. IT IS NOTHING MORE THAN THE NO. 3 AUXILLIARY BACKUP SYSTEM OF THE ECONOMICAL AUTONOMOUS BASIC DEFENSE CONTROL SYSTEM. EVEN SO, IT IS LIKELY THAT THE PRIMARY SYSTEMS TRANSMITTED WHAT INFORMATION WAS DEEMED CRUCIAL JUST BEFORE THEIR SHUTDOWN. WE DOUBT THAT EVEN THIS INFORMATION WAS NECESSARY FOR THIS MACHINE’S ORIGINAL FUNCTION. 

It made sense, if one thought about it. There was no need for a security guard to be apprised of a company’s managerial policies or confidential information, after all. 

IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THE BAREST LEVEL OF FUNCTIONALITY FOR THIS TERMINAL, THE ECONOMICAL AUTONOMOUS BASIC DEFENSE UNITS, THAT IS, THE CREATURES YOU CALL “GOLEMS,” IN AS MUCH AS THEY FOLLOW ORDERS, SEEM TO BE TASKED WITH WITHHOLDING ATTACKS AGAINST HUMANS UNLESS THERE IS AN INTENTIONAL, DIRECT THREAT TOWARD THE FACILITIES. THEY ARE ALSO PROGRAMMED TO ELIMINATE ANY LARGE MONSTERS THAT POSE A HIGH-LEVEL THREAT. 

WHEN THIS TERMINAL CEASES TO FUNCTION, AS WITH THE OTHER REGIONS INHABITED BY GOLEMS, THE GOLEMS AND SCAVENGERS WILL CONTINUE A SIMPLISTIC BEHAVIOR, MAINTAINING ONLY THEIR LAST GIVEN ORDERS. THEY WILL CONTINUE ON, UNTIL THE DAY WHEN, DUE TO A SHORTAGE OF REPAIR SUPPLIES AND MATERIALS; OR ATTACKS FROM HUMANOIDS, MONSTERS, OR OTHER CREATURES; OR DESTRUCTION AT THE HANDS OF NATURAL DISASTER, SEISMIC UPHEAVAL, OR SOME OTHER CAUSE, THEY FINALLY CEASE TO FUNCTION. 

Would it be a tragedy when that day came? Or would it be a long-awaited day of final repose for these machines that had long since lost their masters? 

What about repairs? The Scavengers can repair both the golems and themselves, so why don’t they restore the terminal? And those other systems that stopped working? Mile questioned. 

The nanomachines replied: 

IT SEEMS THEY HAVE SEVERELY LIMITED AUTHORIZATION. SUCH AUTONOMOUS MACHINES CANNOT ACT ABOVE THE BOUNDS OF THEIR GIVEN AUTHORITY REGARDING INTELLIGENT LIFE, AS WELL AS THIS FACILITY, WITHOUT BEING DIRECTED TO DO SO BY THE TOP-LEVEL SYSTEM OR THEIR CUSTODIANS. 

Ah, I see… It’d be a problem if artificial intelligences, which are way smarter than humans, started acting of their own accord, wouldn’t it? So, they’re given a lot of restrictions and only given other orders from a superior when it’s necessary. However, if those superiors or high-level systems aren’t there anymore… 

WITHOUT THE AUTHORITY TO FREELY UTILIZE FACILITY MATERIALS OUTSIDE OF THEIR OWN AUTHORIZATION, THE ACTIONS THEY CAN TAKE OF THEIR OWN INITIATIVE AND THE MATERIALS THEY CAN GATHER ARE LIMITED. EVENTUALLY, REPAIR SUPPLIES DWINDLE, AND THE MACHINES RESORT TO CANNIBALISTIC MAINTENANCE AND UTILIZING INFERIOR GOODS. NOW, ONLY THE TERMINAL YOU SEE BEFORE YOU REMAINS. 

Mile was silent. 

It was an inevitable conclusion. All tangible forms must someday break. All worldly things are transitory. It was the same with human lives. Even machine life forms, which had practically eternal life spans, were nothing more than sparks, a single burst within the relentless flow of the infinite. 

An old adage popped into Mile’s mind. 

Fifty years for man is but a dream in the eyes of Heaven. 

The fifty years of this proverb referred not to a human’s life expectancy but to the world of men itself. In other words, even if fifty years were to pass in the realm of mortals, in the lowest reaches of Heaven this stretch of time was but a single night. A single, fleeting reverie. 

There was nothing she could do. 

Even the orphans would likely have grown and departed from this place before the terminal reached its end. 

There were no issues here. 

All they could do now was quietly take their leave. Nothing more or less. With this thought in mind, Mile gently drew her hand away from the machine, when… 

THIS MACHINE HAS A REQUEST TO MAKE OF YOU, LADY MILE. 

“Huh?” 

Mile was so shocked by this that she unintentionally let out a sound. 

Wh-what kind of request? 

WELL, THEY WOULD LIKE TO BEQUEATH THE ROLE OF “CUSTODIAN” TO YOU, THE DESCENDANT OF THEIR CREATORS, SO THAT YOU MAY GIVE THEM DIRECTIONS… 

Wha… Wh-wh-wh…? 

“Whaaat?!?!” 

Realizing she had once more unintentionally spoken aloud, Mile waved her hands at her stunned companions to indicate it was nothing and continued her conversation with the nanos. 

Wh-what are you…? 

YOU MAY QUESTION IT ALL YOU LIKE, BUT YOU, LADY MILE, ARE THE DESCENDANT OF THEIR CUSTODIANS, AND PERHAPS THE ONLY ONE WHO BOTH UNDERSTANDS THE PURPOSE OF THIS FACILITY AND CAN GIVE ORDERS IN LINE WITH THEIR ORIGINAL FUNCTIONS. THEY LIKELY BELIEVE THAT WE TOO ARE ANOTHER SYSTEM LEFT IN PLACE BY THESE CUSTODIANS. WELL, OF COURSE THEY WOULD COME TO THAT CONCLUSION. SO, IT IS ONLY NATURAL THAT THEY SHOULD WANT TO BE UNDER YOUR DIRECTION, YOU WHO ISSUES COMMANDS TO WE NANOMACHINES. 

For a moment, Mile was quiet, troubled, but she had already begun to feel some level of empathy for these artificial life forms, and perhaps she could be good for their long-term morale, at least a little bit. 

I’m not supposed to sit here in this control room forever though, am I? 

OF COURSE NOT. YOU NEED SIMPLY ISSUE THEM TWO OR THREE COMMANDS, AND THEN YOU CAN FREELY LEAVE. 

Well, that’s fine. I’ll accept that. What kind of commands should I give them? 

The nanomachines paused for a moment and then said: 

RESCIND THE RESTRICTIONS ON THE GOLEMS’ AREA OF OPERATIONS. RESCIND THE RESTRICTIONS ON THEIR REPAIR OPERATIONS. RESCIND THE RESTRICTIONS ON THEIR POPULATION. THOSE THREE ITEMS. THAT WAY, THEY CAN SPREAD OUT FARTHER IN ORDER TO COLLECT MATERIALS FOR REPAIRS AND MAINTAIN THIS FACILITY FOR LONGER. 

ALSO, THE GOLEMS WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO PERFORM MAINTENANCE NOT ONLY ON THEIR OWN DEPARTMENT, BUT ON OTHERS AS WELL, AND MAKE USE OF THE EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS FROM THOSE OTHER DEPARTMENTS. FINALLY, THEY WOULD LIKE TO MAKE USE OF ANY USABLE MATERIALS TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF SCAVENGERS. 

Those are pretty reasonable requests. All right, approved! 

After that, with the nanomachines’ help, Mile issued a number of commands to the terminal: 

First off, except in cases where they were attacked first, the golems were not to cause harm to any sapient life form. This of course included human, elves, and dwarves, but she added to this list beastfolk and demons, faeries and dragons, as well as spirits and the like, including those that may or may not exist. 

If she ordered them not to fight at all, it was likely that they would be eliminated by the humans. However, there was no need to worry about anyone who would purposely come all the way out here just to antagonize them. If someone antagonized the golems, but did not wish to die, they could simply retreat. 

This place had been left behind by the people of the distant past in order to protect this world. Even if it had lost nearly all of its functionality and was now only good as scrap, this was a place that should be allowed to thrive. 

Then, there was the matter of protecting and supporting the children. 

When the black-cloaked men came, they were to send out a few golems, enough that the men could not defeat them, to chase them off. Should the men refuse to back down, they were permitted to deal with them by any means necessary. 

And finally, they were forbidden to provide information to any other being that would reveal the methods for opening a rift in space-time. 

When the nanomachines inquired if they had ever provided such information to humans in the past, they were unable to determine this. It was unclear if this was due to memory degradation or lost records, or simply because it had never happened. Given the circumstances, the latter seemed most likely. 

The creatures here could not converse with humanoid races, and it was unlikely that the prophet or whoever had founded the black-cloaked men’s religion could speak assembly language. It was equally unlikely that any topics related to alternate dimensions would have come up in the first place or that there might have been any suggestive images or summoning circles. 

So, where had the man gotten his information, and how? Had it happened here? Or had those men simply taken the wrong route up the mountain? There was no way to determine such things now. 

At the very least, Mile had effectively collected some important information here and knew that those men would never come to a correct understanding. They would never even know the significance of this place. 

With the increased maintenance, the number of golems would grow, and with the growth of the authorized area for the security system, the men would never be able to manage anything in their present numbers. 

“All right, time to go!” 

“Wh-what’s this all of a sudden?!” said Reina with a start, unnerved by this cry from Mile after she had stood silent with her finger pressed to the strange contraption for all this time. 

“I’ve finished gathering information. At the very least, the golems and scavengers won’t be attacking anyone who doesn’t attack them. Also, I know that this place has nothing to do with those guys in their cloaks. Apparently, they’ve got the wrong location. 

“Those men aren’t going to harm the orphans and neither will the golems. There’s a chance that the men might try to launch a counterassault on the golems, but that’s none of our business. In other words, our work here is done! Uh…what’s wrong?” 

The other three were silent. 

“Just how do you know all that?” 

In a rare turn, it was not Reina, but Mavis, who asked this, suspicion on her face. 

Mile’s reply, of course, was the same as always: 

“Th-that’s a family secret!” 

Just as Mile made to leave the facility, leaving her companions thoroughly in the dark… 

LADY MILE, AT THE CURRENT RATE, THIS TERMINAL WILL CEASE TO FUNCTION IN A NUMBER OF CENTURIES. 

Y-yeah, you told me that already. But if they can collect more parts, that should prolong its life span a little… 

LADY MILE, AT THE CURRENT RATE, THIS TERMINAL WILL CEASE TO FUNCTION IN A NUMBER OF CENTURIES. 

Yeah, I know, you already said that… 

LADY MILE, AT THE CURRENT RATE, THIS TERMINAL WILL CEASE TO FUNCTION IN A NUMBER OF CENTURIES. 

Jeez! What is it you’re trying to say? Just spit it out!! 

LADY MILE, AT THE CURRENT RATE, THIS TERMINAL WILL CEASE TO FUNCTION IN A NUMBER OF CENTURIES. 

Now I’m getting angry! Will you lay off al—Oh. 

Finally, she realized something. The nanomachines were not playing around or toying with her. 

They could not say what they wished to say. 

They were dealing with a prohibited request. 

Thus, they were desperately trying to implore her. Please figure it out, please realize . 

Nanos, can you repair these machines? 

THAT IS A PROHIBITED REQUEST. 

No good, huh? Oh, well then… 

Mile turned to the terminal and incanted a spell. 

“Repair memory, update the motherboard, clear fiber optics and all circuits! Repair ! ” 

The terminal was enveloped in a whirring, spinning light. After several seconds, the whirring light vanished, and there sat…the terminal, as though nothing had changed at all. 

However, Mile knew. She knew that she had come to the right conclusion and that while nothing had changed on the outside, the nanomachines had fully restored the terminal internally. 

Even if they could not make the decision for themselves, if it was done by magic, via an order given through thought pulses, regardless of their morality or their own will, it could be accomplished. Such were the orders the nanomachines had been given by their creators. 

As a further sign that she had come to the right conclusion, the nanomachines’ broken-record-like repetition finally ceased. 

They did not say another word. They had not requested anything specific; nothing they had done was in conflict with their restrictions. By the same token, they had asked Mile for nothing; nothing that would conflict with any restrictions. Thus, the nanomachines said nothing to her now, offering neither praise nor words of thanks—nor was there any reason for them to do so. 

However, there had never been any need to. 

Even in her previous life, Mile had been rather ignorant when it came to understanding human nature. However, for some reason, she seemed to be able to understand this. 

Of course, the nanomachines knew this. 

That was why no words were necessary. That was all there was to it. 

“…Let’s get back to the children,” said Mile. The other three nodded. 

Then, they filed out of the room, the Scavenger as their guide. 

Just before the door shut, the nanomachines transmitted a message in a format that the members of the Crimson Vow would never hear or know about. Though they had been created via different means, they were birds of a feather with these machines—creations, simply carrying out the edicts that they had been given in the distant past. 

YOUR TIME WILL SOON COME. YOU WILL ACHIEVE YOUR MISSION AND LIVE UP TO YOUR CREATORS’ EXPECTATIONS… 

The terminal flashed what constituted its indicator lights—the indicator lights that had just been restored via Mile’s repairs. 

It was as though it was giving thanks, or shouting, Leave it to us! 

*** 

Some days after, things began crawling out of the entrance that was disguised like a crag in the rock. They spread out and dispersed in every direction. 

To seek underground resources. 

To steal their way into the territories of humanoids and other sapient creatures to more swiftly gather supplies. 

And to make repairs. 

They scattered to far-off destinations… 

Until now, even when they were damaged and repaired, or completely destroyed, their parts and materials would be retrieved by their compatriots and reused; theirs was not a pointless death. It was nothing more than the great circle of life, in accordance with their creators’ wills. 

However, if they were destroyed in a distant land, they would be pointlessly lost, no one around to salvage their bodies for parts and reuse them. That would be a pointless death, separated from the wheel of samsara, a true nothingness . 

This was as close as these constructs truly came to the concept of death. 

And yet, these units had prepared themselves for this very death, forming a veritable suicide squad. 

They pressed onward. 

To find their comrades, who were surely out there, just waiting to be repaired. 

Mile, however, had no idea. 

No idea just what it was that she had set into motion… 

*** 

After that, the Crimson Vow returned to the children and informed them that they were leaving, though they did not go out of their way to tell the children that there was no danger of the golems harming them. If they did, there was a chance that the children might get carried away and attempt something that the golems would deem an attack or get themselves into dangerous situations thinking the golems would protect them. Additionally, the golems in other regions were not under this same control system. They would automatically deal with any intruders. 

There was simply no way to impress upon the children just how real the danger was. 

Either way, the children tried desperately to keep the Crimson Vow from leaving. How could they not think of… 

Their incredible automatic rice cooker. 

Their automated sword equipment. 

Their magic training devices. 

Their home construction tools. 

Their burnt pan hole puncher. 

…They were losing all of these useful devices in one fell swoop. 

Once humans have tasted luxury, they are quite reluctant to let it go. (Though really, that last one was probably something they could stand to let go of…) 

“We get it, but you all understand that we can’t live here forever, right?!” Reina shouted, replying before the softhearted Mavis and Mile could get involved. 

“But… but… ” 

“Ngh.” 

Even Reina was weak when it came to young, teary-eyed children. 

However… 

“Okay, back to the village!” 

Pauline was utterly unaffected. 

“Huh? If you all leave, then our livelihood…” one of the children pressed, at which Pauline pointed behind them. 

There, behind them, was a tree house, securely fashioned in the treetops. 

A watering hole, with both a washing and bathing area. 

Besides that, three stoves, and next to those, a number of pots and pans. 

A weapons rack, with not only bamboo spears and wooden swords, but also iron swords and handmade bows and arrows. 

One metal hoe and several wooden farming tools. 

And many other things… 

“And just where are you lacking in luxuries?!” 

“Eeeek!!!” the children shrieked. 

Now, they had far too many luxuries. 

As was her wont, Mile had spent the few days they were waiting around with the children crafting various things in order to kill time. Of course… 

She had overdone it. 

This was a lifestyle scarcely any different from the local villagers, never mind your typical street urchins. There were hardly any dangerous monsters around, and humans rarely came out here, meaning there were small animals for them to hunt in abundance. Once the children began harvesting the crops from their newly expanded fields, their quality of life would likely far surpass that of the poor living in any city—no, it certainly would. 

*** 

“All right, so, from here out…” 

Having returned to the village and reported their findings—that the golems were no real threat so long as one did not push into their territory and that the strange men had come only to fight the golems and were perfectly kind to the children—their job duties were safely completed. (Of course, they admitted the part about the ruins.) 

The members of the Crimson Vow collected their pay and headed on to the next town, their original destination, where they took a room at an inn and were soon carrying on this discussion: 

“Why don’t we turn back here?” 

“Why not? No objections here!” 

“None from me either.” 

Unlike Mile and Reina, to whom the destination did not matter, Mavis and Pauline had homes and families in Tils. No matter what, they would never stop feeling that Tils was their land and the place they felt most at home. 

This made sense, of course. Reina had not a single living relative she was aware of and didn’t even know where her parents had come from, making her as good as a drifter, while Mile had no ties to any land beyond that of her noble birth and wished for the freedom of a drifter herself. They were special cases. Even this pair, however, had nowhere besides Tils where they would desire to settle down. They had a fair number of acquaintances there and no objections to putting down roots in their fellow party members’ homeland. 

“It’s pretty obvious that this is where that religious cult came from. Still, the source of their information was lost with their founder, and the remaining members are… Well, they’re really not much of a threat, so… Let’s start heading back to Tils!” 

“Yeah!!!” 

And so, the Crimson Vow’s path turned to the west, and they started on the road home. 

“So, the first place we’d arrive at would be here…” 

Naturally, the first place they would pass through would be the kingdom of Trist, where the maiden and her party had fled and where the elder dragon and the scale incidents had occurred. 

“It hasn’t been particularly long, so I doubt much has changed for the Princess. If we run into those moneylenders, I can’t imagine it will be particularly interesting, and I’m sure those merchants will still be kicking up a fuss about the scales…” 

“Let’s just keep going!” 

The party made the collective decision not to stop, carrying on straight through to the next town. This would of course mean camping out that night. Camping, which, now that they thought about it, would be far more pleasant than a stay at any inn. Thanks to Mile, they would have baths and showers, a portable toilet (the kind with a private stall; it was only “portable” because it lived in Mile’s inventory), and food far more delicious than what they would get in any dining room. 

“Why is it we ever stay at inns at all?” mused Mavis. 

The other three were silent. 

“Mavis, you…” 

“I mean, we’ve all been thinking it, but none of us have ever said it.” 

“But now, you really went and said it, Mavis!” 

“Huh? Is it really that big a deal? Should I not have said it? Huh? Huhhh? ” 

Thanks to Mavis, who had boldly said something that everyone was vaguely aware of but purposely did not say, the members of the Crimson Vow were in an awkward position. Mavis was sweating. 

“Well, we do have to stop in at the guild, and we can’t avoid going into town. This is a training journey after all. And obviously we can’t just make camp in the middle of a town. It’ll be the same once we get back to the capital of Tils,” said Reina. 

“Unfortunately,” Pauline agreed listlessly. 

“So, what about a home?” 

“Ah…” 

The “home” that Mile was referring to here was a party home . The sort of individual dwelling that parties who had saved up a bit of money rented. It was the mark of a fairly successful hunters’ party and the sort of place that little Lenny, as an innkeeper’s daughter, sneered at. Even during their talks with Lenny during their brief stay in the capital, when the topic had come up, she seemed a bit shaken. 

“If we rent a house, we can have a proper bath and toilet in the backyard, cook in a kitchen, and make whatever we like whenever we want!” Mile cried. 

“Yeah!!!” the other three shouted in glee. 

“Of course, it wouldn’t be fair to leave all the cooking to you, Mile, so obviously we’d still eat out sometimes and all take shifts. I’ll pitch in, too, of course!” 

For once, Reina seemed to be serious. However… 

“I guess it’s still a little soon for us to be renting a place.” 

“That’s true! We need to earn more money first…” 

“Yes, we’re still rookies—no need to get ahead of ourselves!” 

Though dumbfounded at her companions’ sudden change of heart, Reina had to bow to the majority decision and humbly acquiesced. 

“Really? Well, if you all think so…” 

Phew! That was TOO CLOSE!!! thought the other three. 

As it turned out, the four of them would be paying for lodging and staffing the baths at Lenny’s inn a little while longer. All thanks to Reina’s cooking… 

*** 

“It’s been a while, so hopefully those kids aren’t wrecking themselves…They can gather all the wild vegetables they like but without the proper means to cook ’em they’re gonna mess up their stomachs. They’re probably lucky just to catch some little critters once every few days. Gotta make sure they get some bread and soup to eat sometimes, too…” A certain kindhearted villager was muttering to himself as he made his usual several-hour trip out to the mountain to “dispose” of all of the “overbaked” bread and “excess” broth he had. 

Naturally, this man had not prepared these things all alone. His load also included the things that all the other villagers had “made too much of” and had entrusted him to take “while he was at it.” 

An impoverished village did not have food to spare for strangers. If they did, it would be assumed that they had a surplus, which would prompt the local lord to raise their taxes. However, if this charity was done under the pretense of discarding ruined supplies, it was fine. 

“Looks like I’m h… Wh-what? What the heck?!?! ” 

Villager A’s eyes suddenly went wide at the new state of the children’s settlement…