The Invaders of the Great Tomb

by Kugane Maruyama

  If they were underestimated, he wouldn’t go as far as to say their careers were over, but people would definitely think less of them. That was something workers, with one foot in the underworld, had to avoid.

  When he silently nodded with a hard glint in his eye, a creak echoed through the pub. Two figures entered through the wide-open door.

  “Hey.”

  “We’re back.”

  A woman’s faint voice. And a moment later, so as not to talk over her, the voice of a well-mannered man came as well.

  The first to enter was a skinny woman for whom the word girl might still be more appropriate.

  She was probably in her mid to late teens. Her glossy hair was cropped shoulder length, and she had an extremely pretty face. She was less of a bombshell and more of an elegant beauty. There was something almost inorganic about her, doll-like.

  She carried an iron rod longer than she was tall. There were numerous letters or symbols—something like that—inscribed on it. She wore a loose-fitting robe. Beneath that, she had thick clothes that gave her some degree of protection. It was a look that made it clear she was a caster.

  The man was clad in full plate armor, although he didn’t go so far as to wear a close helmet. Over it, he wore a surcoat decorated with a sigil. A morning star was slung from his hip, and from his neck hung the same sigil featured on his surcoat.

  The outline of his face was rugged, but his short hair and bit of a well-trimmed beard gave him a clean-cut appearance. He looked to be around thirty.

  These were Hekkeran’s other teammates, Arché Eeb Rile Furt and Roberdyck Goltron.

  “Oh, welcome back,” Hekkeran replied stiffly. Is this good timing or horrible?

  “Is something the matter, you two?” Roberdyck spoke in a politer tone than would be expected of the oldest member of the group. This stemmed from his personality but also because they were equals as workers.

  “N-no, nothing.”

  “Th-that’s right. Like he said.”

  Arché and Roberdyck squinted at Hekkeran and Imina flapping their hands.

  “Uh, well, it’s awkward to talk here. How about we go over there?”

  Cutting to the chase with an earnest expression, Hekkeran pointed at a round table in the back of the pub. “Before that: drinks. Hey, Imina. Where’s the innkeeper?”

  Imina’s expression seemed to say, You’re finally asking? “Shopping. So I’m watching the place for him.”

  “Seriously? Then what should we do? Just drink?”

  “I’m fine without.”

  “Yeah, me too.”

  “…Okay… Then…well, uh, shall we start our meeting, Foresight?”

  With that, everyone erased all traces of their previous expressions. They leaned in around the table, bringing their faces closer together. Talking in this conspiratorial manner even when no one else was around was like an occupational disease.

  “First, let’s review the content of the request.”

  Hekkeran continued after confirming all eyes were on him. His tone was completely different from the one he’d used up until this moment. When it was time to get down to it, he got serious—as was only natural for a leader.

  “The requester this time is Count Vemeer. The request is to survey some ruins in kingdom territory, a large building—possibly a tomb—that extends underground. The reward is two hundred in advance, a hundred and fifty after. It’s rare for a contract to have such a large advance, and the amount overall is pretty big, too. There could also be additional compensation depending on the outcome of the survey; however, all magic items discovered go to the count. He’ll allow the ones who found them to sell to him at half off the market rate. Jewels, precious metals, and works of art will be split fifty-fifty after determining their worth. He’s been talking to other teams as well and may hire more than one—this we’ve confirmed.”

  Hekkeran filled Arché and Roberdyck in on what he’d heard and then returned to reviewing the content of the request.

  “The survey will be three days at the longest. The assignment is to examine the ruins from various angles. The most important thing is that he thinks there are monsters there and wants to know what types and so on. Well, I guess it’s a fairly standard ruins investigation…”

  It was quite common for monsters to nest in deserted cities and ruins. For that reason, worker team surveys were usually more like reconnaissance-in-force missions.

  “…except for one major thing. Supposedly this tomb has yet to be discovered.”

  The moment he said it, the atmosphere changed.

  A number of countries were destroyed two hundred years previously when the evil spirits went on a rampage—not only human countries but subhuman and grotesque nations as well. Sometimes there were extraordinary treasures—usually magic items—sleeping in their ruins. Discovering these treasures was the dream of any adventurer or worker.

  That’s why they all sought ruins that no one had ever looted. Foresight’s chance was right in front of them.

  “Also, the count will provide transportation for the way there and back, as well as food for the duration. I think that’s it. Arché, Roberdyck, let’s hear your report.” Noting the gleams in his teammates’ eyes, he passed the ball to the two who had been out gathering intelligence, starting with Arché.

  “Then I’ll go first. Count Vemeer’s position at court isn’t so great. There was a rumor that the Fresh Blood Emperor treats him coldly. I also heard that he’s not hard up for money.”

  “We’re supposed to survey these ruins in kingdom territory, but Arché and I both looked and couldn’t find any rumors of ruins in that area or any indication that there was a city there in the past. If there really is a tomb there, it wouldn’t be strange for some information to have been left behind, but…honestly, it doesn’t even make sense for it to exist. Geographically, all that’s over there is a little village. If we ask around the village, we might be able to learn something, but…”

  “We can’t do that. We’re supposed to keep this under wraps as much as possible, although he did say we don’t need to do anything to anyone who sees us and that he’d rather we didn’t.”

  “That makes sense. The area is directly under kingdom jurisdiction. One wrong step and we could make enemies of the Vaiself family and the whole country.”

  It was practically a crime to survey ruins in another country’s territory, which was why this request had come to workers, not adventurers.

  “So it’s just a typical dirty job?”

  “Yeah, but there is that one little problem,” said Roberdyck.

  “Well, yeah. If workers from the empire got rowdy in the kingdom, there would be all kinds of issues. If we’re not careful, an incident might be possible to trace back to the count.”

  “In that case, there’s one question.”

  “You mean where the tip about the ruins came from?”

  “Yeah. It’s weird no matter how you look at it.”

  “Really? It’s near the Tove Woodlands, right? Couldn’t it have just been discovered while clearing the forest?”

  “Nah, that doesn’t make sense. Look at this.” Arché spread out a map and drew a circle around one location. “I don’t know the details, but supposedly it’s around here.” She moved her small finger and tapped. “And here, there’s a village, but it’s pretty small. More like a hamlet. I highly doubt the people in that village have the wherewithal to clear the forest.”

  “Hmm, you’re right. Clearing the dangerous woodlands would be nearly impossible for a tiny village like that… It could be that the kingdom undertook clearing the forest as a state project, but location-wise I can’t imagine there’s a reason they’d be so interested. And in the first place, there’s no information floating around about a project like that.”

  The four of them racked their brains. Should we really take this job?

  Because they didn’t have the support of an organization like the Adventurers Guild, they needed to scrutinize th
e details of each job. First, they looked into the background of the requester; then they researched the location. Only upon then examining the content of the request would they finally take the job. Even after being so thorough, they often ran into trouble.

  Workers risked their lives on their work. No matter how much they investigated it would never feel like enough, but they couldn’t stay in the business unless they were thorough. If a job seemed too dangerous for them to handle, they had to leave the offer on the table no matter how good the terms were.

  “…When I confirmed about the payment, he gave me the advance…” Hekkeran set a gold plate on the table. It was inscribed with lots of little letters. If they refused the job, they had to give it back. “I checked the gold ticket at the bank, and the full amount has been paid. We can cash it at any time.”

  Gold tickets, managed by the empire and guaranteed by the bank, were like checks.

  The downsides were that to make them hard to counterfeit they were quite elaborate and took time to prepare and that there was a fee involved, but the benefits were innumerable.

  In nearby countries, it was usually the Adventurers Guild that did this work, but in the empire, the tickets were backed by the state.

  “So it’s not a trap… Well, I figure we can assume they’re serious if they’ve given us a gold ticket.”

  If it was a trap, there would have been no need to pay such a high advance. Of course, it could have been a ploy to make them think that and lower their guard, but Hekkeran couldn’t think of a reason a noble he’d never even met would have something against him.

  “I think—”

  “Wait. Imina, I’m not finished. I want you to keep your mind a little more open.”

  “Sure. Then tell me: There are a few things I don’t understand, even for a rush job. For example, hiring multiple teams. Why is he doing that?”

  It was just as Imina said. Considering the time it would take to contact everyone, it was strange to hire multiple teams if he was in a hurry.

  “Not sure. I don’t know why it’s a rush job in the first place. I haven’t heard anything about any of his associates having some sort of emergency, and it’s not like there’s a ceremony or anything coming up in a few days. If anything, I imagine it’s because he’s worried the kingdom will discover the ruins? And hiring more teams yields a better chance of success?”

  “Hey, Hekkeran. Did Gringham’s team have any ideas?”

  “You think he would tell me if they did? Plus, I had my hands full trying not to leak any of the information we’d acquired while asking him if he’d been contacted.” Hekkeran shrugged as if saying he didn’t know what else he could have done.

  “It could be that the count has a rival.”

  “That is a possibility. That would explain the rush and the large number of workers. Oh, right. Something big happened in the kingdom recently. Not that it seems to have anything to do with these ruins in the E-Rantel area…”

  “Tell us anyhow, Rober…”

  After prefacing his report with “I didn’t really get much on it” and “It’s basically a rumor,” Roberdyck gave an uncertain description of the huge incident that had occurred in the royal capital. He said he would need more time to be able to say anything further, but sure enough, as it stood it was a rather unreliable, fractured account.

  “Hmm. It might be related, but it might not be. For the time being, Arché’s idea seems the most plausible. And you agreed, too, Rober.”

  “If we make that assumption, then…considering the multiple teams and the fact that it’s a job in kingdom territory, it’s possible that we’ll be up against kingdom adventurers there by official request. We wouldn’t be able to find that out just by asking around in the empire.”

  “The other thing we have to watch out for is a team requested by someone else—a hidden threat. No way I am getting my head cut off in my sleep right when we think we’ve accomplished our goal.”

  “Are adventurers a threat? They’re better than the alternative. At least with adventurers, you can negotiate and it won’t get ugly.”

  “If it’s workers, people will die.”

  “What do you think, boss?”

  Nothing had been left unsaid. All they could do now was speculate and make predictions.

  “Before we decide, there’s one thing I need to say…well, ask, I guess.”

  Hekkeran heaved a sigh, and Imina quietly held her breath.

  “Arché, there was a weird guy here to see you.”

  Arché’s almost artificial-looking expression contained barely any emotion, but now her eyebrows twitched. From that reaction, Hekkeran gathered that she knew who it was.

  “When he left, he said… Er, what did he say?”

  When he turned to Imina, he was met with a What are you talking about? look, but then she realized he really couldn’t remember and said in an exhausted voice, “He said, ‘Tell the Furt girl that her time is up.’”

  “Yeah, that’s it.”

  Everyone’s eyes turned to Arché. She took a breath and spoke reluctantly. “I’m in debt.”

  “In debt?!” Hekkeran yelped in spite of himself. Naturally, he wasn’t the only one in shock. Imina and Roberdyck also looked surprised. They all knew how much each member made as workers because they split their rewards evenly. With that much going into their pockets, debt was inconceivable.

  “How much?!”

  “Three hundred gold…”

  The others exchanged glances again.

  In terms of an ordinary salary, it was an outrageous amount. Even as workers of their caliber, it was impossible to earn that in one job. Yes, the total for this job would come out to three hundred and fifty, but that was the reward for the entire team. From there, necessary expenses such as communally used consumables plus other team-based spending would be deducted. In the end they would each get about sixty.

  Their team was fairly elite as worker teams went. In adventurer terms, they had ability equal to a mythril-rank team. How had she managed to go so far into debt that even at their class she couldn’t pay it off in one job?

  Arché probably sensed all their puzzled eyes. Her face was gloomy.

  Of course, she didn’t want to talk about it. But she couldn’t not. If she cut off the conversation here, it wouldn’t be surprising for her to be kicked off the team.

  Perhaps realizing that, she finally spoke again. “I couldn’t tell you because it’s humiliating for my family. We were stripped of our noble status by the Fresh Blood Emperor.”

  The Fresh Blood Emperor—Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix.

  As the sobriquet implied, he was an emperor whose hands were stained with blood.

  He’d assumed the throne directly after mourning his father, the previous emperor, who died in a freak accident. Immediately following the emperor’s death, he broke off relations with one of the five great noble families—his mother’s family—based on the suspicion that they assassinated the emperor. He then consigned each of his siblings one by one to oblivion. As if carried away on the winds of death that raged across the land, his mother also died in an accident around that time.

  Of course, there was an opposition. But they were no match for the then crown prince, who had the force of the knights at his disposal. With that overwhelming military power behind him, he cleaned up the nobles as if he were reaping ears of wheat until only the ones who—whether sincerely or not—swore loyalty to the emperor remained, and his assumption of absolute centralized rule was complete.

  But the Fresh Blood Emperor didn’t stop there. He stripped many nobles of their status on the grounds of “We don’t need any useless people,” and instead, he promoted anyone with ability, including commoners, further solidifying his authority.

  There were two things about this that astounded everyone. One was that the cleanup of opposing nobles, carried out on an impossible scale, was done with such inspired efficiency that it didn’t decrease the nation’s power. The second was that the emper
or who had achieved it was still a young teenager.

  Nobles who had been ruined by this man weren’t hard to find, but—

  “The thing is, my parents are still living as if they’re nobles. Of course, they don’t have the money for that. So they’re borrowing from this sort of nasty guy to make up the difference.”

  The other three looked at one another.

  They were doing a good job hiding it, but it was still possible to detect their irritation, displeasure, and anger.

  I’m a good caster. I want to join you, a skinny kid holding a staff taller than she was had said. It seemed like Hekkeran wasn’t the only one recalling how stunned they’d been back then—and how dumbfounded when they found out what she could do.

  Since then, over two years of adventure after adventure, where one wrong step would have meant death, no matter how much money they made, it seemed like her gear had barely changed at all.

  Now they finally knew why.

  “Are you serious?! Want me to give them a real talking-to?”

  “We should teach them the words of the gods. Or perhaps fists first.”

  “Maybe their ears don’t have any holes, and we need to start by making some!”

  “Please wait. Since I’ve said this much, let me also say…depending on what happens, I might take my little sisters and leave.”

  “You have little sisters?”

  Arché nodded, and the other three looked at one another again. They couldn’t say it, but they all felt that maybe they should force her to quit this line of work.

  Certainly, workers made more money than adventurers, but the catch was that the jobs could be extremely dangerous. Foresight meant choosing jobs only after making sure they were safe, but unforeseen issues cropped up all the time.

  If things went poorly, it was entirely possible Arché could die and leave her sisters behind. But everyone felt they shouldn’t poke their noses any further into her business.

  “I see… Well, for now at least we understand your issue. We’ll leave you to solve that, but as far as whether or not to accept this job…” Having said that much, he cast a cold look at Arché. “Arché, sorry, but you don’t get to vote this time.”