novelraw Chapter 42 : Why Did He Suddenly Become So Nice?
Chapter 42 : Why Did He Suddenly Become So Nice?
Why Did He Suddenly Become So Nice?
The knights, mercilessly trampled under the onslaught of the barbarians.
As those gathered under the name of the "Barbarian Respect Association" saw the state of the knights, they began to roar.
"President Grunt! For what purpose have you summoned us?"
"As the representative of the Black Skull Tribe, I will listen to your words!"
To the questions from the hulking warriors, Grunt pointed at me with a displeased expression.
"First, you are in the presence of the honorary president! Show your manners!"
Honorary president?
Who, me?
As Grunt pointed at me, the brutes were startled.
"Sage, you were here!"
"Grant us your teachings...!"
"Your wisdom lights our path!"
Those who reacted first were the ones I remembered seeing at the "auction."
As one of them knelt respectfully, the rest of the barbarians followed suit.
"Do you see those who have fallen?"
Grunt pointed disparagingly at the knights who were still unable to recover their senses.
"These people tried to kidnap the sage!"
Kidnap?
Weren't they just here to fetch me because they had something to say?
In fact, at first, it seemed like they'd shown more manners than usual for dealing with barbarians.
"How dare they target the Great Sage...?"
"They deserve to die!"
"Belvar, my god! They are sacrifices offered to you!"
"Wait!"
Suddenly, the barbarians drew their weapons all at once. At that, I shouted at everyone.
Why are you all drawing your weapons? Don't tell me you're actually going to finish them off? Are you guys sane?
"They tried to bring you harm!"
"That's not it. They came to talk!"
At my words, the barbarians hesitated, unsure whether to lower their raised weapons.
Aren't you all always insisting that barbarians deserve respect? If you draw your weapons so easily, how will anyone respect you?
"If you want respect, you must choose wisely when to draw your weapon!"
"We draw them when we are angry! Is that not enough, O Sage?"
So you draw them when you're angry, huh. That does make sense.
But you're angry all the time, aren't you?
If left as is, I fear they'll really cause serious trouble one day. So, I decided to establish a 'line' for the barbarians.
A 'line' so they can judge when it's acceptable to draw their weapons.
"Grunt, lend me your weapon."
When I asked Grunt, he nodded without hesitation and handed me his spear.
Then, after receiving a pen from the guild attendant, I inscribed several marks on Grunt's spear.
Five marks in total, with the last one near the blade.
"If you ever feel you are not being respected, that is when you draw your weapons!"
"That is true!"
"Respect comes from the weapon!"
"But if you draw your weapon whenever you want, you will never earn respect!"
The barbarians tilted their heads, as if not understanding what I meant.
"But likewise, if you do not draw your weapons when necessary, it's also pointless!"
I showed the spear with the markings to everyone.
"This is an anger gauge!"
Anger gauge?
The barbarians murmured and examined the marks.
"When anger seethes and you want to draw your weapon, look at these marks!"
All eyes focused on me.
"Then, depending on where your weapon is stopped, look at the gauge and measure your anger!"
I pointed to each mark, moving from bottom to top.
One mark means minimal anger.
Two is small anger.
Three is medium anger.
Four is great anger.
And the last, five marks, is maximum anger.
"If it's at the fifth stage, 'maximum anger,' then you may truly use your weapons!"
"Ooooh..."
"Wise words!"
The barbarians exchanged admiration at my words.
"To grade anger in stages—a thought we never had!"
"That's right! We only thought to wield them unconditionally!"
"From now on, we'll only draw weapons at 'maximum anger!'"
The barbarians nodded, as if deeply realizing something important.
Hopefully, now the "Barbarian Respect Association" will cross the line less often. They may be foolish, but since it's a group led by Grunt, maybe this will help.
"Respect us! We respect you!"
Once the discussion closed, Grunt began to shout at the other barbarians.
"Respect us! We respect you!"
"Respect us! We respect you!"
The other barbarians began to chant along. It must be the association's slogan.
"Truly, your wisdom is deeper than a bottomless well!"
"I still have many shortcomings."
"No! You are a sage!"
Grunt grinned, then started laughing with everyone.
Wahahahaha!
Even Barkal joined in, and their laughter became a tremendous roar that swept over the Adventurer's Guild.
"B-brothers? What is all this commotion?"
Startled by the thunderous uproar, Serena hurried over to us.
She looked at the chaos at the guild entrance and frowned.
"Wasn't that a bit too much? I don't know what happened, but they look like knights... To put them down like this..."
A completely reasonable statement.
Hey Barkal, you should listen to Serena. Didn't you once say she's as crazy as you?
It's a situation that even Serena, with all her boldness, finds troubling.
"What happened with your business?"
I asked the returning Serena.
This time, there are several reasons I took the underground waterway dungeon request, but one reason is to repay a debt to Serena.
"It might take a bit of time, but it shouldn't be hard to find the person, he said!"
"Hmm."
I nodded.
"I hope you find what you're searching for."
Whether it's the barbarian from the Crimson Wolf Tribe,
Barkal, or Serena,
they're all precious connections rarely found.
Though they're all a bit accident-prone.
"U-ugh..."
As I tried to speak with Serena, a groan came from beneath my feet.
It was a knight crushed by the barbarian brutes a moment ago.
"Have you come to your senses? Shall we make you lose them again?"
"Barkal, wait."
I approached the groaning knight.
He said he was from the Steldian family. He also said they couldn't properly explain why they came.
"I would like to meet your master."
It's funny to say this after beating them so soundly, but there must be a reason why they came.
"Dmihtan, my brother! These people tried to kidnap you!"
"W-we... I said we came to talk!"
Yeah, I said that many times.
But since they understood through a 'physical conversation', things went astray.
"Where are you from?"
"Steldian something! Looks like he's a subordinate of the one who went down from my punch earlier!"
"If it's Steldian, I know them!"
Suddenly, Grunt shouted loudly, pulling a white slip out from his clothes.
It was a check issued by the 'Barbarian Respect Association'.
"This is from the Steldian family!"
I see.
Well, the "auction" is run by Iushil. The Steldian family is the noble managing Iushil, so they must have compensated for the barbarian exploitation incident.
"Brother, do you plan to meet with the Steldian family?"
Grunt asked, and I nodded. I was certain it wasn't just a simple "let's have a talk because of the beating."
Moreover, if it was really because of a grudge, they would have called Barkal.
"I understand."
Hmm?
I tilted my head.
What exactly do you understand?
* * *
"Make way, everyone! The great sage of the Barbarian Respect Association, Dmihtan Elvar is passing!"
What on earth is going on?
I looked around at the barbarians marching ahead, shouting as they went.
My perspective was higher than usual. The barbarians had somehow found a palanquin and were carrying me inside.
"We are going to meet Iushil's representative! Our representative must not appear humble!"
Why do these absurd words keep pouring out of their mouths? Maybe these guys are actually smart?
Also, where did they get this palanquin?
"We're here. This is the place!"
After walking for quite a while, we arrived at a mansion beyond the central hill of Iushil.
A mansion of tremendous size and a beautifully maintained garden.
Seeing this was impressive, but more than that, I wondered, "How much would it cost to buy a house like this?"
"W-what is this commotion!"
When more than ten barbarians reached the front of the mansion, an elderly man who seemed to be the butler rushed out in shock.
"The owner of this house wanted to see our sage, so we have come!"
"Your rudeness is unforgivable, but I will let it pass! Thank our sage's mercy!"
Why am I the one feeling embarrassed? As I was thinking that, a man who seemed to be a noble strode out of the mansion.
His face was so swollen it was hard to recognize, and a maid followed him, nursing his face with an ice pack.
Is it Edmund?
His face is so swollen, I barely recognized him.
No wonder—it was Barkal's punch, after all.
"Edmund, I will not apologize for the offense my brother caused previously."
As I dismounted from the palanquin, I spoke to Edmund.
"It doesn't matter."
"It doesn't matter?"
Even though your face is so swollen?
"Barbarian from the Dungeon God Adventurer Party, Dmihtan. May I speak with you inside?"
His tone was strikingly polite.
Wasn't he the one talking next to Blaz? At that time, he was definitely arrogant.
"We can talk here."
I refused. Edmund's face twisted as if in displeasure.
I thought it was a look of contempt toward the barbarians,
but through his scrunched-up face I could see tears welling up.
"S-sorry... but the wind hurts my face too much. Please, may we not?"
Ah.
I nodded before I realized.
Barkal's punch must have landed too well.
"Alright."
He wasn't plotting anything, just genuinely in pain. That sincerity came across, so I nodded.
"We will go in as well!"
"You all remain here."
Only I, Barkal, and Serena entered.
Though Grunt and the rest of the "Barbarian Respect Association" howled behind us, I drew a clear line and headed inside, unconcerned.
The mansion was grand even from the outside. Within, it dwarfed even my expectations.
Moreover, true to my image of a "noble's mansion," portraits of people hung all over.
"Who is this?"
Barkal pointed at a man in a painting. Edmund, pressing ice to his face, answered:
"My father, the former head of house, Lormond Steldian."
"Ah, Lord Lormond!"
Serena seemed to recognize the name.
As I gave her a questioning look, she cleared her throat and explained.
"He's the one who made many changes for the convenience of adventurers in Iushil."
"It's only natural. To close dungeons, the nation needs adventurers, so it must devote its all to aiding them."
As Edmund answered Serena, I looked at him.
"And yet, someone who says such things would tell others to keep quiet so as not to besmirch honor?"
At Barkal's pointed question, Edmund, perhaps reminded of the earlier beating, was visibly nervous.
"Please forgive the rudeness of that day! I never intended that!"
"Then why did you say such things?"
"It was merely to create an excuse to meet you, the Dungeon God Adventurer Party, quietly!"
Was it really to meet us?
I paid careful attention to Edmund's words.