Chapter 167 - Chapter 166: The Fake "Dispeller" Incident 1
The 2nd day of the Month of Fire, Week 5.
"It's hot... ."
Mika walked slowly toward his house along the edge of the high-class residential district.
Today, there was a large-scale exercise during the academy's classes, so he had been running around the training ground all day.
During the exercise, using [Physical Enhancement] would make it easier, and in fact, mages other than Mika were using it.
But in an exercise that is easily won even in his base state, using [Physical Enhancement] would make it completely uninteresting.
So, he deliberately set rules for himself, such as letting mages other than himself destroy the enemy base's crystals, to adjust the difficulty.
Thanks to that, he ended up running over ten kilometers today without [Physical Enhancement].
He recovered his stamina with [Heal] after the exercise, but mentally, or rather, in terms of willpower, he was completely drained... that was the situation.
"I'm home... ."
When Mika opened the front door, Fee rushed straight into his face.
Normally he would dodge it, but today he didn't even have the energy for that.
Since Mika didn't dodge, Fee kept ramming into his face over and over again.
To be honest, it was annoying, but chasing her away was also a hassle.
"Oh, welcome back, Mika-sama."
"Welcome back, Mika-kun. ...You look tired?"
Kistil asked with a wry smile as Mika didn't try to shake off Fee who was clinging to him.
"Today I'm just... completely exhausted... . I'm going to the bath."
"Oh, Mika-sama. A letter came from the Adventurer's Guild, so I left it on the desk."
"Oh... thanks. I'll look at it later."
Saying that, while looking completely drained, Mika went to his room to prepare a change of clothes.
He glanced at the letter from the guild with the corner of his eye, then headed straight for the bath.
Coming out of the bath, he vigorously dried his hair with a towel.
"Haa... . Once I've sweated, I'm getting sleepy."
Until just now, it was sticky and gross, but once it was clean, sleepiness attacked him.
Today, even if I read Paraleira's materials, it doesn't seem like it will go into my head.
(Should I just sleep until dinner?)
Thinking such things, he suddenly saw something in his field of vision.
The letter from the guild.
"Well, how many cursed objects have arrived? ...I don't really want to do the Magic Bag thing, it requires too much nerve."
Regarding the "removal of curses" within the capital, acceptance has currently been suspended, and they are reducing the number they are holding.
At one point it exceeded thirty cases, but finally, they managed to reduce it to about ten.
When only two or three cases remain, they can ask the guild to resume acceptance again.
"Auto-Dispel <[Auto-Dispel]>" which automatically removes curses has also taken quite a shape.
Magic power to suppress the curse's waves, magic power to interfere with the curse, and "Auto-Dispel <[Auto-Dispel]>" to control that interference.
The amount of magic power used has increased significantly, but it is quite a convenient spell.
Moreover, this spell has a specification where increasing the injected magic power increases the operation speed.
It is equipped with a function just like overclocking.
Currently, it still stops occasionally due to errors, but this is the stage of making fine adjustments to those parts.
If I were to raise a problem on purpose, it would be that it consumes too much magic power.
It reminded him of the power consumption issues of CPUs and GPUs.
"'Absorb <[Absorb]>' alone is becoming insufficient in more and more situations."
The stronger the curse, the more magic power is consumed than expected.
If it's just cursed objects held by the guild, there's no problem, but for curses found in mansions during "curse removal," sometimes "Auto-Dispel <[Auto-Dispel]>" cannot be used without using "Absorb Wing <[Absorb Wing]>".
Since it's in a place where people won't see, it's fine for now, but when removing a strong curse in front of people, a situation where I want to use it but can't seems likely to occur.
Even though it's precisely because of strong curses that I want to use "Auto-Dispel <[Auto-Dispel]>".
"Well, it's better than solving everything myself."
Rather, it might be okay to make it semi-automatic <[Semi-Auto]> instead of fully automatic.
Since I created the Search <[Search]> task and Unlock <[Unlock]> task, if I switch between them myself, I think I can suppress the magic power consumption to some extent.
Surprisingly, fine functions consume a lot of magic power.
"I guess I'll get used to those things little by little."
Muttering that, he picked up the letter from the guild and opened it.
However, what was written there was not the usual "With Name Request".
'Report immediately.'
Mika tilted his head.
The handwriting written there also didn't seem to be Yunressa's usual handwriting.
"Report... ?"
In a way, the image received from the wording is the worst.
Simply put, the literal meaning is just "to go to a place," but the usage examples are...
(It's often used in the news, so I inevitably get the image of 'reporting to the police'.)
Honestly, I'm not in the mood.
Should I bail out and just go to sleep right now?
(Can I get away with saying, 'I fell asleep right after coming home, so I didn't see it'~?)
He thought up such an excuse beforehand.
That's how much he didn't want to move today.
"Ah... Tak, already..."
Mika lifted his heavy body, manifesting "Limiter Off <[Limiter Off]>", "Absorb <[Absorb]>", and [Physical Enhancement] in order.
"If this is a trivial matter, even I, a gentle boy, will get angry, you know?"
He felt like he couldn't go on unless he said something like that nonsense.
Thus, heading toward the guild, he walked a bit faster along the Southeast Main Street.
"Oh? Mika-kun?"
When Mika turned around, a man he had seen came out of a shop he had just passed.
"Chirensta-san!"
"Hi, long time no see. Are you doing well?"
Chirensta smiled pleasantly, his mustache looking cool as always.
"I'm doing well. Chirensta-san... seems well, though..."
Chirensta was quite thin.
Not to the point of being sickly, but he had lost enough weight that you could tell he was "thin" at a glance.
"Is work tough?"
"Hahaha... well, there's no such thing as an easy job."
They lightly exchanged updates on their current situations.
"The advice you gave me, Mika-kun. Thanks to that, I was saved. Without that, I would have quit long ago."
Chirensta said with a wry smile.
As expected, regarding the reform within the guild, the problem seemed to lie not with the front line <[Shita]> but with the upper echelons <[Ue]>.
"Eliminating useless work on the front line was already being done at the Second Branch. Expanding that wasn't much of a problem."
Since transferring in the spring, they had officially introduced these to various branches.
However, thanks to visiting the headquarters before the transfer to prepare and give instructions, it seems that part proceeded smoothly.
But the problem wasn't the useless work on the front line, but the uselessness infesting the organization itself called the Guild.
"By leaving my resignation letter with the Guild Master, I was freed from being bound by my position and status. It was very helpful to be able to say I am just performing the assigned duty."
It seems there were people who disliked Chirensta for some kind of vested interest.
However, even against threats from such people, it seems he is throwing everything onto the Guild Master by saying, "I am just performing my duties."
"I was prepared for a certain amount of factional struggle. It seems I am the vanguard of that."
Currently, it seems two factions are competing within the Guild.
The Guild Master faction and the Vice Guild Master faction.
Chirensta was called to the headquarters by the Guild Master, but unfortunately, it seems the Vice Guild Master faction has the momentum.
It seems the Guild Master called Chirensta as a pawn to attack the Vice Guild Master faction.
"Weren't you originally not part of any faction, Chirensta-san?"
"There were factions even in regional branches, but usually, you make your colors clear after becoming a Branch Manager. I often heard stories like, 'The Branch Manager of such-and-such branch climbed up by rubbing shoulders with a faction.'"
It seems that even if the world changes, these things don't change.
Well, once three people gather, a faction is formed.
Two against one.
"But thanks to you, Mika-kun, at least my core part hasn't been swayed. Thank you."
"I'm sorry I could only think of such a thing."
"No, it's fine. Thanks to that, I realized anew the precariousness of the place I am about to step into. I thought I understood it in my head, but I was looking at it too lightly."
Smiling with a hint of hardship, he said that.
"Please don't overdo it. If it's really tough, you can quit on your own, you know?"
"Yes, I'm not pushing myself that far. I'm just busy and about to collapse."
Hearing Chirensta's words, Mika casually cast [Heal].
Surprised by the sudden [Heal], Chirensta's eyes widened.
"M, Mika-kun!?"
"You said you were about to collapse, you know? Well, it's just a comfort measure."
When Mika said that, Chirensta was momentarily stunned.
But soon, he smiled wryly.
"That's right. Sorry. Well, I think I can be cut off at any time, so I'm doing as I please, so mentally it's easy."
"Listening to that, it sounds like you're pushing yourself incredibly hard."
"It's not like that. At least not as much as you, Mika-kun."
"Guh..."
When Mika was at a loss for words, Chirensta laughed out loud.
"I was happy to see you, Mika-kun, for the first time in a while."
"Likewise. If you get tired of the guild, just tell me. I'll prepare a job for you."
"Prepare a job? Are you going to introduce something?"
Chirensta asked with a laugh.
He probably thought half of it was a joke.
"That's fine, but starting something new might be good too."
Mika as the owner, Chirensta as the hired president.
A style where he provides the mouth and money, but hands over all actual work to Chirensta.
"You really seem like you'd do it, Mika-kun. Well, please take care of me then. Although, I don't have any intention of quitting on my own."
Chirensta seems to have a great pride in the job of the Adventurer's Guild.
If possible, he wants him to somehow ride out the difficult work of reform as it is.
They exchanged contact information, made a loose promise to go out for a meal next time, and parted ways with Chirensta.
"Good grief, how long do you intend to keep me waiting? Do you know the meaning of the word 'immediately'?"
When Mika parted ways with Chirensta and went to the guild, he was immediately led to the reception room.
And what appeared was the neurotic man who had previously complained about Mika's "curse removal".
Yunressa was also present, but her expression was dark.
It seems, as the image of the word "report" suggested, it is not a pleasant conversation.
"Even if you say that, I also attend the academy."
It's ridiculous to call someone suddenly and then complain about being late.
"If you have complaints, please feel free to protest at the Magic Academy or the Ministry of Military Affairs as much as you like."
Yes, he suggested with a smile.
Try it if you can.
Seeing through Mika's inner thoughts, the neurotic man glared.
But soon, he smiled with a nasty expression.
"Well, never mind. Then, let's hear your explanation."
"......?"
Explanation?
Mika made a suspicious face, but the neurotic man snorted.
"Complaints regarding the 'Dispeller <[Dispeller]>' have been coming up occasionally for a while, but they have surged suddenly this month and last month. Don't you know the Adventurer's Guild regulations?"
"......Complaints?"
No, I certainly don't know the guild regulations.
"Deputy Manager, this must be some mistake. Mika-kun is——"
"Yunressa-kun. Are you still saying such things?"
Yunressa tried to defend Mika, but the neurotic man cut her off.
By the way, is this guy the Deputy Manager?
Around thirty years old, being the Deputy Manager of a huge organization like the Adventurer's Guild is actually quite an elite track, isn't it?
Being the Deputy Manager at the capital branch means he could be a Department Manager at other branches, or even a Branch Manager at smaller places.
"Until now, we overlooked it because you brought many name-requested commissions to the guild, but we cannot overlook this any further. If an adventurer recognized by the guild up to two titles is doing such things, it will become a trust issue for the guild. Prepare for disciplinary action."
The neurotic man said with a triumphant face.
But Mika had no idea what was going on.
Mika ignored the idiot who was advancing the conversation on his own and looked at Yunressa.
"I have no idea what's going on. Complaints? Can you explain?"
"Hey! Stop acting like you don't know!"
When Mika spoke to Yunressa, the neurotic man interrupted.
"Nearly thirty complaints regarding the 'Dispeller <[Dispeller]>' have come in! I was stopping them on my end until now, but I can't cover for them anymore! Admit it!"
The neurotic man said with a twisted face.
It seems he thinks he is intimidating, but honestly, the Marquis <[Ossan]> and Yaroibarov's laughing faces are far scarier.
"Admit what? There's no explanation."
"Don't act ignorant! You must have some idea!"
The neurotic man seemed to be focused only on intimidation and had no intention of explaining properly.
Mika sent a look to Yunressa asking for an explanation, but the neurotic man interrupted again.
"Yunressa-kun. You may leave."
"What!? Why!?"
"It seems you don't understand the seriousness of the matter. Just now, you made remarks that seemed to cover for him. You lack neutrality significantly. Leave. This is an order."
Yunressa raised her eyebrows, slammed the table with a bang, and stood up.
Then, she glared at the neurotic man with a fierce expression.
"Yunressa-san."
Mika called out, but Yunressa continued to glare.
"Yunressa-san, it's fine. It's okay."
When Mika said that, she finally turned to face him.
Her expression was completely different from before, and Yunressa looked extremely anxious.
"I have no idea what's going on, and I have absolutely no idea, so it's fine."
There are many things you can't say to others, and many things you do, but at least there's nothing regarding the name "Dispeller <[Dispeller]>". ...Right, I think?
If so, there shouldn't be a problem... I think.
When Mika smiled brightly, Yunressa twisted her face in pain and lowered her head.
But after a while, she walked to the door with her head down and left the room with a pained expression.
Well, now Mika has no allies.
But that's fine.
Mika doesn't want anyone watching him anyway.
Mika's terrible attitude.
(I don't have confidence I can endure this. Whether I can stay as the elegant Mika-kun while dealing with this guy...)
Well, leaving aside dignity for now.
Mika lay down on the sofa.
"......Are you joking? What is that attitude?"
The neurotic man plastered clear anger on his face.
"Joking? You're the one joking. You demand 'admit it' without any explanation. So, from now on, no matter what you say, I will not admit anything."
Saying that, he let out a yawn.
"Faaaa... . Wake me up when you feel like explaining. Until then, I'm sleeping. I ran all day today and I'm tired, tired..."
Mika closed his eyes for real while lying down.
Although he closed his eyes, he had expanded his magic power range and grasped the inside of the room.
So, he was aware that the hand of the neurotic man in front of him was trembling.
Whether it was anger or a neurological disorder, he didn't know.
Well, should he attack in anger, or leave the room? He waited to see how it would turn out.
Mika didn't care either way.
If this man cannot advance the conversation, he can just cause a commotion or whatever and talk to someone else.
Even if disciplinary procedures are advanced on their own, can they punish without admitting it or showing evidence?
If it's a complaint, they should at least show the content of that complaint.
If they unilaterally punish without even doing that, Mika has his own thoughts.
I'll use my real power and act !
"If you're going to act ignorant that much, fine. I'll explain."
But contrary to Mika's ex pec ta tion, the neurotic man's hateful voice reached his ears.
Mika let out a fake sigh, fuu..., and got up with slow movements.
If he just got angry and hit me, it would be an excuse to knock him out.
It would also be an excuse to have the staff replaced.
Mika truly felt "oh my..."
Thus, the reason for today's summons was revealed.
(The fake "Dispeller <[Dispeller]>".)
It seems a person appeared who pretended to be the "Dispeller <[Dispeller]>" title and took on the job of removing curses from mansions.
Currently, Mika has suspended acceptance of "curse removal".
It seems to be a tactic taking advantage of that.
The culprit is at least two people.
One is the intermediary.
The other is the fake "Dispeller <[Dispeller]>".
They go to the house of a person troubled by a curse and say, "I know the 'Dispeller <[Dispeller]>' well. I'll ask him to do it for you."
The great thing about these guys is that they don't take the so-called intermediary commission here.
Anyone wouldn't jump at such a suspicious story.
So, the intermediary pretends to be a benevolent third party.
Then, they bring the fake "Dispeller <[Dispeller]>".
"You can't refuse an introduction from the intermediary. I'm not accepting requests now, but this is special."
They agree to do it, saying, "By the way, don't tell anyone."
Moreover, surprisingly, it seems they even discount the reward, which costs at least one gold coin for a name-requested commission.
How kind.
If it were the real thing.
But, unfortunately, it is a fake.
They claim it was caused by something random, lie that they removed the curse, take the promised reward, and run away.
To summarize simply, that's the story.
I wonder if there are people who fall for this? But they probably handle it skillfully.
Complaints that had been coming in sporadically for a few months have reached twenty cases just this month and last month.
So far, the known victims are twenty-seven cases, and the total damage amount is said to exceed twenty million Rats.
(...Only idiots.)
There was a movie with the catchphrase that all the characters appearing were bad people, but has there ever been a movie where all the characters appearing were idiots?
Mika was just dumbfounded, but it was annoying to be thought of as one of those idiots.
He would check a bit more thoroughly.
Even if it's stupid.
"Why did you stop it when the first complaint arrived?"
Mika asked the neurotic man.
"The guild values adventurers who bring name-requested commissions. It could be a mistake. It is natural for the guild to cover for them."
"Who actually made that judgment?"
"Me."
This guy was an idiot too.
Well, I knew that.
(By the way, did he say 'stopped' and 'covered for' just now?)
Mika sighed.
He didn't intend to show it off this time.
But it came out anyway.
Dumbfounded to the core.
"Hiding complaints is a bad strategy, one of the most improper responses. If they had handled it properly there, all subsequent damage could have been stopped."
"What!?"
Hearing Mika's words, the neurotic man's face turned red.
If he turned red from shame rather than anger, there would still be hope.
"Right now, I have ten name-requested commissions. There are also cursed objects and Magic Bags in custody. Why do I need to do other work?"
"You were probably asked by an acquaintance."
Well, if asked by an acquaintance, he would certainly lend a hand.
But—
"I don't fail. Have there been any failures? In 'curse removal', cursed object dispelling, or Magic Bags? Even one failure?"
"That doesn't prove you didn't take requests outside. Didn't you do sloppy work because the guild didn't check?"
No matter what Mika said, the neurotic man refuted.
It was ultimately a water-sprinkling argument.
(Proof of the devil. It's useless to say anything here.)
It is impossible to prove that Mika didn't do it.
Except for one thing.
(But saying that here carries high risk...)
If the swindler is just doing it for money, that level of caution isn't necessary.
But if we don't assume the worst-case scenario, it seems to be a very bad situation.
Mika stood up silently and headed for the room's door.
"Hey, where are you going!"
"Where? I'm going home. I've heard the explanation."
"Don't j-joke! Then admit that you did it!"
Mika made a dumbfounded face at the neurotic man's words.
"Did you forget already?"
"W-what!?"
Mika muttered while opening the room's door.
"I said it just now, didn't I? 'No matter what you say, I will not admit anything.' I won't admit to doing something I didn't do."
"N-n-n-n... You bastard!"
The neurotic man's shouting echoed through the guild lobby.
Mika left the reception room with his back to the shouting that he no longer understood what was being said.
The neurotic man might proceed with disciplinary procedures on his own, but he couldn't worry about that now.
Since talking to this man would be useless anyway.
"Mika-kun..."
In the lobby, Yunressa was waiting with an anxious face.
"I understand the situation. Please don't worry so much."
Mika spoke with a smile.
"It's not me. So, it's fine."
"Yeah... . I'm sorry, I couldn't help."
Yunressa was probably worried that Mika would be subjected to disciplinary action.
"Please don't worry. It's really fine."
Speaking brightly like that, Mika left the guild building.
The quickest way to prove Mika's innocence in the current situation.
Just have the victims testify.
Since they haven't met, it would be enough to have the deceived victims say that the "Dispeller <[Dispeller]>".
They met was not Mika.
However, there is one risk, a fatal one, with this.
That is if the victims are in st all led .
If it's just a fraud case, a swindler doing it to make money, the victims' testimony can clear Mika's wrongful accusation.
But if the purpose was to trap Mika, victims can be planted however many times needed.
If the victims come and say, "Indeed, this guy did it," then it's all over.
Because the structure of victims testifying and perpetrators denying is a very ordinary situation.
And as the worst situation, there is even a possibility that this fraud case itself is a play, and all victims are in on it.
Since he knew that, Mika couldn't say "call the victims" at that place.
"...Is this the famous tax?"
A bad thought, but it seems this comes with fame.
Mika glared into the void.
"Fine. I'll pay it, won't I?"
Muttering to himself, Mika walked into the crowd.