Chapter 5

As instructed, the wall was covered with many request letters. The parchment pinned to the wooden wall was arranged haphazardly, overlapping in some places and leaving large empty spaces in others, which was quite peculiar. I wondered why they weren’t posted more neatly.

Feeling a bit sorry for the wall, which was riddled with pinholes, I decided to read one of the request letters at my eye level as a test.

"Elimination... I guess that means extermination. Hmm, something about a monster snake in a cave? They want it eliminated, I suppose."

The writing was legible, but I couldn’t quite grasp the full meaning. I had no idea how big the snake was, and the place name was unfamiliar, so I couldn’t tell where it was.

However, I noticed something. The top of each request letter had a larger heading. I looked up at the wall and read the headings within my line of sight.

Elimination. Elimination. Escort. Investigation. Search for a person. Mining. Elimination. Unloading cargo. Guarding. Transporting stone. Investigation. Escort. Delivery.

There were some jobs that seemed like just physical labor, but they all seemed to be tasks for adventurers. It really was a jack-of-all-trades kind of place.

Struggling with the difficult words, I read each one carefully.

Elimination, escort, and guarding are not something I can do. I’ve never won a fight with kids my age. Physical labor also seems impossible. I thought about investigation, but the content mentioned the distribution of rare monsters, which seemed too difficult. Searching for people or delivering items wouldn’t work because I don’t know the town’s streets at all.

I was in a bind. I couldn’t find any jobs I could do.

To begin with, I wondered if there were any jobs that a child could do. Despite this uncertainty, I continued to search for something I could manage. Helping with farm work, for example, was something I often did at home.

"Hey, kid. Are you new? Can you read?"

I was startled by the sudden voice from behind.

I jumped and turned around to see a man standing there. He had dark brown hair with a single strand of white, and he was tall and slender. He wore a metal armor covered in scars and had a long sword hanging from his waist, so he must be an adventurer. ...But.

...What’s with this guy?

When I saw his face, I was surprised.

The sun was high, but it was probably still morning, yet he smelled strongly of alcohol. His face was red, probably from being drunk, and he was holding the back of his head with his right hand, which I assumed was because he had a headache from a bad hangover. I remembered how my neighbor two doors down would get like that after just a little drink.

However, why were his eyes so red and swollen? It looked like he had been crying, which was strangely frightening.

"Um, well... I just joined the guild. I can read, at least."

I answered the question as asked, and the man grimaced from his headache but smiled slyly. It was scary.

"Wow, that’s impressive. Being able to read at your age is quite something. What does this say?"

The man staggered over to stand next to me and pointed to one of the request letters.

The one he pointed to had a picture of a lizard-like monster. The heading read "Investigation."

...It seemed he was really doubting whether I could read.

"It says 'Investigation of the giant lizards in the swamp...'. It asks to estimate how many there are, where they build their nests, what they eat, and to collect their droppings. It also says to be careful because they can attack people."

I read it correctly, but this job was beyond me. The last part was too dangerous.

"Hmm... How about this one?"

"It’s about guarding a field. Bears and boars are coming out, so they want someone to protect it. It says for twenty days."

This was easy to read, but I couldn’t do anything about bears or boars.

"That’s a long time. How about this one?"

The one he pointed to next was a bit more difficult. I could read the words, but I couldn’t quite imagine it.

"Clearing large rats from the underground waterways... I’m not sure about this..."

"Ah, that’s clearing the big rats from the sewers. They’re about twice the size of a cat."

"What’s a sewer...?"

"Huh? It’s an underground water channel. It’s under the town and carries waste to the sea."

...There’s such a thing? The town is amazing. Even under the ground, it’s amazing.

"Well, it only runs through the center of the town. What does the rest of it say?"

"The rest... It says 'permanent'. The rats’ tails are to be cut off as proof of elimination. The reward is in copper coins per rat..."

"Cutting off tails, huh. Ah, I see. Not bad."

Something felt off, but before I could figure out what, the man pulled a pin from one of the request letters on the wall and thrust it at me.

"This one’s for you."

"Huh...?"

"See ya, kid. Don’t go too far from town."

I was taken aback as I accepted it, and the man grinned and turned away, heading towards the reception. He waved with his right hand over his shoulder and held a different piece of parchment in his left hand.

What just happened...

"...You were used, weren’t you?"

"Ah!"

A voice came from right behind me, almost in my ear, and I jumped again. I don’t like being spoken to from behind.

When I turned around, a woman in a pointed hat was crouching down to meet my eye level. She was pulling the hem of her dark blue robe up onto her knees, which seemed like something a townsperson would do.

She had beautiful silver hair with a bluish tint. Her skin was pale, and her face was well-featured, with eyes as clear as gemstones that were following the man’s back.

"Wayne can’t read."

"Is that so?"

The man’s name was Wayne. I wondered if that was true, and when I looked at the wall, the rat request letter was gone.

Wayne must have taken it to the reception.

"If he can’t read, he should just say so..."

If he had said so, I would have read it for him, and I wouldn’t have been so scared.

I thought I was being tested and needlessly frightened.

"He’s embarrassed."

"...Embarrassed? About not being able to read?"

Hearing this unexpected answer, I blinked.

In the village, I had been mocked for being able to read and write, but maybe it’s different in the town. Maybe they don’t say things like, "It’s more important to make a stone skip three times on the river than to practice writing."

"Reading isn’t the issue. The problem is that he doesn’t remember the jobs."

Ah, that’s right. Wayne had nodded in agreement.

"He’s been pushing the work onto his companions."

...This woman seems to speak in short, concise sentences. It would be easier to understand if she explained things in more detail.

But if I think about it, I can kind of understand. Wayne has done this job a few times but didn’t remember the details. Since he can’t read, he would have to ask someone else about the job content, which he found embarrassing. Yes, that would be embarrassing.

But... What about his companions? Are they not around anymore?

"Here, take this."

She handed me something, and I took it without thinking. It was a small, solid, stick-like object.

When I looked at it, I was startled. It was a knife in a sheath.

A weapon. I’ve touched them before, but at home, I was kept away from them because they were dangerous.

To be given one so easily...

"Reading fee. It will be useful for this job."

She said this with little emotion, then stood up, pushing her hands against her knees. She turned her back to me and walked to a table in the dining area.

I was left alone, and it took me a moment to realize the conversation was over. Does she just leave like that?

"Um... Should I take this to the reception?"

I looked around, confirming that no one was behind me, and then read the request letter I was holding. It had many pictures, making it easy to understand. ...And I thought, maybe I can do this.

I returned to the reception, where the scary-faced man was still struggling with some documents. When I placed the request letter on the counter, he frowned.

The content was... "Herb Gathering." It had pictures of several types of herbs and the task was to collect them.

Compared to the others, this job didn’t seem too difficult, and the location was near the town. The pay was less, but I was grateful to have a job I could do.

"Understood. I’ll process it."

The scary-faced man sighed and picked up the request letter, placing it on a shelf behind him before returning to his documents.

...Um.

"Um, can’t I take the request letter with me?"

When I asked, the scary-faced man turned to me, looking annoyed.

"This request is permanent. It can be taken by anyone at any time, so the request letter will be returned to the wall later. ...It’s a hassle, so next time, just tell me verbally."

Permanent, like it was written on the rat request. So, it’s a request that’s always available... and it goes back on the wall.

What should I do? I was planning to search while looking at the pictures on the request letter.

"...Sorry. Can I see the pictures on the request letter one more time?"

The scary-faced man sighed again and showed me the request letter once more.