Chapter 11: Fool’s errand

Chapter 11: Chapter 11: Fool’s errand

Three days passed. Now Allan, armed with a sword at his hip and with two women following him, stood before the Adventurer’s Guild.

Instead of the impoverished noble that had first appeared in the streets, Allan looked like a completely different person.

Instead of wearing expensive clothes and carrying expensive weapons, he was wearing the simple clothes that he had been wearing for the last year, and he was carrying a practical sword for close combat.

However, there was a huge difference in the way he carried himself; instead of looking like he was hoping to survive his next expedition, he looked like he was deciding where the next one would take place.

Lira had to readjust the strap of her sword. "Master."

"Hm?"

"Master. You’ve been staring at the guild entrance for almost a minute."

"No, I’m just aura farming a bit."

"Huh? What’s that?"

Seris folded her arms. "Lira, it’s just men stuff, no need to get into it too much."

Allan glanced back at her. "You’ve become very disrespectful lately. You know that, right?"

"You’ve become very reckless lately as well, Master."

"Hmmm... I guess yesterday’s hug was not enough for my cute Seris."

Slap!

Seris slapped his back.

Lira covered her smile as the three of them walked through the doors.

It was clear that many of the adventurers in the room recognized the three of them, as well as the Oakwood crest on Allan’s chest. And no doubt many of the others in the room had heard the rumors by now:

the three who had entered the Hollow Root, the noble who had supposedly killed a hobgoblin with a cheap sword, the man who had returned alive from a dungeon that had swallowed parties for years.

Allan ignored the stares and walked straight to the reception counter.

"I’d like to register for a dungeon expedition."

The receptionist looked up, then froze. "Which dungeon, sir?"

"Back to the Hollow Root again."

Her face changed at once. "Absolutely not."

Allan blinked. "That was fast."

"Lord Oakwood, the dungeon has been temporarily restricted."

"Restricted?"

"After the reports of unusual monster activity your party faced, the guild sent scouts, and they haven’t returned."

Seris stepped forward, her expression grave. "How long has it been?" she asked, her voice steady.

"Two days, apparently."

Lira’s hand drifted to the hilt of her sword. Two days. The Hollow Root was behaving in ways it wasn’t supposed to. Allan’s knowledge of the game was becoming less reliable by the week.

Then the System window appeared in front of him.

[Investment Opportunity Detected.]

[Target: Hollow Root.]

[Potential Return: ???]

Allan stared at the System window for a second before he started to smile. "Interesting."

Seris immediately grabbed his sleeve. "No."

"I didn’t say anything."

"You were about to."

"I was merely thinking."

"That is even worse."

Lira nodded. "It usually is."

"Master, when two beautiful women tell you not to walk into a death trap, it would be wise to listen to them on occasion."

Allan sighed. "Fine. We’ll wait."

Both women stared at him in surprise. Seris looked as though she had been surprised against her will. "You’re actually listening, for once?" she said.

Lira’s face suddenly turned red. Seris looked down, her hand grasping the shoulder of her shirt tightly. "Master..."

"Hm?"

"Don’t say things like that in public."

"Why?"

She hesitated. Lira whispered, "She’s embarrassed."

"No, I am not."

"You are."

"I am not."

While they were busy discussing it, he checked his status and found that he had been elevated to Level 53. For a moment, the wonder of three levels ago was forgotten as he calculated the distribution of the 5,100 or so stat points.

After rearranging all his stats, he turned back to the receptionist.

"Do we have something else, the next open dungeon?"

"We do have another one, but sir Allan," she called.

"Yes?"

"If the rumors are true, that you slew a hobgoblin, a test to check your rank would be better. And if you are C-rank or above, you’ll be permitted to enter the Hollow Root, if you want."

"...Oh." Allan had thought of that, of increasing his rank, since his stats were piling up nicely with his level. But his level, it had been recorded as level 1 before.

Now, if they see my level, a lot of questions might arise.

"I would like to speak with the guild master about this. Can I have a private meeting with her?"

"Sorry, sir Allan, she is busy for the moment, but we will contact you when she is free."

Allan nodded, then tore one of the missions off the mission board.

"Ladies, let’s go, we need to gain some experience here."

***

At the next dungeon.

Suddenly a large, horned beast appeared in the darkness, its thick hide glistening in the dim light of the tunnel.

Allan drove his sword deep into the creature’s shoulder, the impact cracking through the tunnel as the creature let out a mighty roar and then slammed into the wall opposite.

Lira looked stunned. Seris looked at the monster, then back at Allan. "Master. How strong are you?"

Allan considered the question. "Much, much stronger, maybe at the level of C or B rank."

"Wow... so you were a genius all along."

Allan smiled. "Indeed, your master is a genius among geniuses."

He strode ahead, stepping on the monster’s chest, and looked up at the two girls. "You two finish this off."

Lira quickly charged at the powerful monster and was followed by Seris after a half-step of time. Their blades clashed against it together.

[Experience Acquired.]

[Level Up.]

Lira’s eyes widened. "Again!"

Seris finally cracked a smile. "I suppose we’re getting used to this."

Allan took a step back to watch Lira and Seris in action. They weren’t servants or people that he had to look out for; they were adventurers, and he could finally see them in that light.

He watched them fight, the way that they moved in unison, their movements slick and smooth as they cut down monsters left and right. He had to admit, it was pretty cool to watch.

The thought made him smile. Seris noticed. "What?"

"Nothing."

"You have that look again."

"What look?"

"’Another ridiculous way to make money’ — that creepy, greedy smile."

"Oh, come on. Not money," Allan said. He looked at both of them. "Power."

As for their guild, the three adventurers of the Oakwood guild added another story to their already very full list of adventures, during which time they managed to clear a whole dungeon in just under a day, while at the same time killing off dozens of monsters that stood in their way, and also managed to recover all sorts of very rare and very useful materials from the various monsters and traps that they had encountered.

These various materials, when collected up and sorted out, filled up no less than several crates that were used for carrying the various cores produced as a result of their adventures, cores that would go on to be used in all sorts of other endeavors.

Lira’s face had a huge grin plastered across it when they returned to the mansion in the evening. It was not a nervous or a polite smile. She was actually smiling.

"Master."

"Hm?"

"Tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow what?"

"Another expedition!"

Allan smiled. "Of course."

"You’re both crazy," Seris said as they passed by on their way in. "But don’t leave without me, though."

Allan laughed. "Wouldn’t dream of it, Seris."

At dinner that night, Oakwood Manor finally seemed to be alive. The silence of earlier times was gone. Servants and workers came and went through the halls.

The sound of tools and materials being moved came from the warehouses. Bela’s workshop stayed lit late into the night. For the first time since arriving in this world, Allan felt that something good was happening at Oakwood.

Lira sat beside him and Seris sat opposite. Halfway through the meal, Lira suddenly reached under the table with her hand and found Allan’s. He glanced down at her hand holding his and started to pull his hand back.

Seris noticed. Her eyes narrowed. "Lira."

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing."

"You are holding Master’s hand."

Lira’s face turned red. "I..."

Allan smiled. "She can hold my hand, Seris. So can you, if you want."

Seris turned and reached across the table for his other hand. "It’s only because Lira started," she said, her face reddening.

"Of course, dear, whatever you say."

"It’s only because Lira started!" she said again.

"Naturally."

Neither woman let go. For several minutes no one spoke.

Then the System appeared again.

[Emotional Bond Detected.]

[Investment Network: Stable.]

Allan did not react, just gave a tight squeeze of the three hands joined together.

The next morning a black envelope arrived with a silver wax seal bearing the crest of House Arclight.

"Oh, they’re finally contacting me."

Allan opened it right away.

Lord Allan Oakwood,

Lady Amelia Arclight requests your presence to discuss a potential business arrangement.

Tomorrow. Noon. Arclight Estate.

Seris read it over his shoulder. "Amelia Arclight?"

"Yes."

"The future Dark Saint. Lol."

Lira looked between them. "Is she really that important?"

Allan nodded. "Of course, dear. She’s a Viscount."

"But... but you’re also a noble, Master."

"I’m only a baron, Lira. Nothing special."

The System flickered.

[Investment Opportunity Detected.]

[Target: Amelia Arclight.]

[Initial Investment: 100 Gold.]

[Potential Return: ???]

Allan smiled. "Well. About goddamn time. Seris, do you remember when I asked you to set aside a hundred gold coins?"

Seris immediately frowned. "Yeah...?"

"I haven’t said anything, and you’re already frowning."

"Again, you don’t need to," she said, taking out a pouch already full of gold, a hundred gold exactly.

"Here."

And in time, he arrived before the mansion. Allan took a long breath in and out.

They aren’t NPCs. Don’t mess this up, he told himself.

The mansion belonging to Amelia’s family was a lot bigger than Oakwood, but Allan wasn’t intimidated.

He followed the maid leading them through the corridors of the estate, his party of Lira and Seris behind him, and eventually arrived at a set of double doors that the maid opened for them.

Amelia Arclight was standing by a large window in the Arclight estate, looking younger than Allan had seen her before. She had dark hair, clear eyes, and was elegantly dressed. She looked distrustful of everyone around her, and Allan could see why she would be. She was very young.

She turned. "Lord Oakwood."

"Allan is fine."

Her eyebrow lifted. "You’re rather informal, huh."

"And you — amazingly, for someone your age, you’re going to become a very important person."

Seris closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Lira looked appalled. Allan could tell right away that he had made a mistake with the wording of that last sentence.

"That came out wrong."

"Very wrong," Seris whispered.

Amelia slowly smiled. "I see." She gestured toward the chairs, her eyes twitching but hidden by her small smile. "Please."

They sat, and Amelia did not waste time, not one bit.

"I’ve heard you’ve recently returned to business, and it’s blooming, bringing back the family name."

"I have, my lady. Thank the gods—"

"With your warehouses," she interjected.

"Hmm... yes."

"Even transportation."

"Indeed."

"I also heard you started dabbling in alchemy."

"Yes, that as well..."

"Even adventuring supplies. Supplying tools and mana crystals right when they’re needed."

"Yes, yes, yes... and yes."

Amelia leaned back in her chair. "You’ve rebuilt an abandoned noble house in less than two weeks. Very, very remarkable, if I have to say."

Allan smiled. "I had help."

"Your servants?"

"My... partners," he replied, ever so sternly.

Her eyes flicked up to look at Lira and Seris for a moment, and seemed to hold interest in the word. "Partners... hmmm."

"Yes."

"Interesting," she said, laying out a single sheet of paper on the table in front of her. "I think you’ll find this offer of interest as well."

The document spread out before him, numbers on page after page detailing labor, transportation, and personnel acquisition.

He recognized the roots of it, the money that Oakwood had once made from the trade in slaves. He looked up at Amelia, her eyes still holding his.

"Then perhaps you’ll understand what I’m offering," she said. It was a business proposal designed to make money, to be legal, to be protected by those in power. A new system of labor contracts, of debt-servitude, of indentured workers, of purchased contracts from estates on the decline.

"You want me to return to trading labor via contractual means, similar to what was conducted by my family, under the auspices of Oakwood, as an investment in this Arclight venture."

"Hmmm, even though you lack the manners of a noble, you’re endowed with a noble’s wisdom, Sir Allan."

Seris looked horrified, having realized right away what the papers meant. Lira was silent, but that was more than usual. Amelia, though, looked perfectly calm.

"The market is already there, Sir Allan. The demand is enormous. Your family had set up all the necessary infrastructure before the family business went into decline.

Today, you have the warehouses, the stables of carriages, the connections, and the money."

"And you?"

"I... I have political protection."

Allan leaned back. The System appeared again.

[Investment Opportunity Detected.]

[Target: Arclight Business Venture.]

[Initial Capital Required: 100 Gold.]

[Potential Return: 5093+ Gold]

He stared at the notification for a moment, then shifted his gaze to Amelia. "So, in simplest terms, you want me to go back to slavery."

Amelia only nodded.

Allan didn’t hesitate. "No." He tapped the System window to close it.

Amelia’s expression shifted slightly. "Hmm? I don’t understand."

Allan smiled. "Neither do I." He closed the document. "Tell me something, Amelia. Why me?" His voice had now lost all the respect he’d once shown the noble lady.

The butler at her side stepped closer.

"Have some manners. Do you know who you’re speaking to, boy?"

Amelia waved her hand, and the butler backed away again, eyes still angry.

She seemed to consider the question for a moment, then replied, "Because you, Sir Allan, are a fool."