IWRIT-05

Chapter 5 – Recruiting Companions

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The Adventurers’ Guild, located at the heart of the cursed city of Needstar, was always bustling.

People looking for companions.

People checking requests.

People bringing back items obtained from the Tower for appraisal.

It was a place visited by every kind of person.

Even now, with monsters pouring out after the Tower’s seal had broken, it remained just as crowded.

“When are they going to take down that barrier?! My party’s still trapped inside!”

“Damn it… Rena… Please be safe…”

Some anxiously worried about companions trapped in the Tower because of the barrier.

“Healers! Anyone who can cast healing magic?! Anyone have potions?!”

Others tended to the wounded.

“What exactly is the Guild Master doing? Shouldn’t he be talking to the Lord about this?”

“That monster never hesitates to squeeze us dry with taxes, but when something actually happens, she disappears!”

Others swallowed their anger while cursing both the Lord—the Tower’s administrator—and the Guild Master.

Every one of them had gathered inside the Adventurers’ Guild.

Just as the crowd was on the verge of losing its collective patience…

A jet-black carriage pulled by four horses came to a halt before the guild.

“Isn’t that the Lord’s carriage?”

“The Lord came here?”

Why would that monster, who practically never left the Lord’s Manor, come all the way here?

The news spread instantly.

Adventurers jumped to their feet one after another.

A few of the bolder ones even walked outside with weapons at their hips.

All eyes turned toward the carriage.

The door opened.

The first to emerge was a silver-haired knight clad in light armor.

Then…

A woman draped in a hooded robe took his offered hand and stepped down.

The moment everyone saw her…

They collectively held their breath.

Because the woman who had emerged from the carriage was…

Simply…

Unbelievably beautiful.

They had come prepared to demand answers.

But the instant they saw her face…

Every thought vanished from their minds.

After sweeping her gaze across the dumbstruck adventurers, she spoke.

“Why are you all standing there with such vacant expressions?”

Only then did one adventurer finally come back to his senses.

“Uh… who are you?”

“The ruler of this domain.”

The adventurer’s eyes widened.

The Lord?

She’s really the Lord?

Wasn’t she supposed to be some shriveled monster who’s lived for over a thousand years?

So the rumors about changing bodies through reincarnation were true…?

Still frozen in shock, he couldn’t even form proper words.

The Lord spoke again.

“Ken.”

“Go fetch the Guild Master.”

“Y-Yes? H-How do you even know my na—”

For an instant…

Her gaze turned icy.

As though silently rebuking him.

Do you intend to make this one repeat herself?

“…I’ll bring the Guild Master immediately!”

Unable to withstand the pressure, Ken bolted upstairs.

The adventurers left behind exchanged irritated glances.

That idiot Ken.

How could he fold so easily?

Treating a veteran adventurer like some servant? Just because she’s the Lord?

Calling the Guild Master downstairs instead of going up herself? Is she trying to put adventurers in their place even now?

Ignoring every hostile stare directed her way…

Camellia entered the guild hall.

She calmly occupied the nearest table.

No matter how everyone looked at her…

She remained completely unfazed.

Because there was a very good reason she’d done this.

An extremely important one.

My butt hurts too much to climb five flights of stairs!

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In Dark Tower, every stat started at 10.

Anything below that incurred penalties.

At Vitality 6, the penalty was Frail.

It periodically inflicted physical status ailments.

Some of them were even guaranteed.

Ride in a carriage?

Guaranteed motion sickness.

Guaranteed burning tailbone.

Seriously… this body is unbelievable.

She desperately needed a healer.

Someone to fix the body that had been utterly exhausted by nothing more than a carriage ride.

She also desperately needed a support character with a +2 Vitality buff.

One capable of upgrading her from a deathly frail Lord into merely a delicate Lord.

That’s why I came looking for someone who can do both.

She discreetly checked whether her target was present.

She wanted to recruit them immediately…

But she had to resist.

Meeting the recruitment conditions came first.

And for that…

She needed the Guild Master.

Come on… hurry up already…

Fortunately…

Before her tailbone officially declared a strike…

The Guild Master finally appeared.

He was a balding, pot-bellied middle-aged man.

He looked less like an adventurer…

And more like a rather shady slave trader.

“My, my!”

“I had no idea such an honored guest had arrived!”

Practically rolling down the stairs, he immediately began shouting at the young errand boy cleaning the hall.

“How could you leave the Lord unattended?”

“You! Hurry and bring some tea!”

While the flustered boy hurried off to fetch it…

The Guild Master rubbed his hands together and chattered away.

“I’m relieved to see you’re in good health.”

“And what a splendid body you’ve reincarnated into this time!”

Whether that was praise or a backhanded insult was hard to tell.

Camellia chose not to point it out.

She hadn’t come here to play mind games.

“I’m hiring everyone.”

“There isn’t time to draw up individual contracts.”

“So you’ll handle everything for me.”

The Guild Master’s eyes nearly popped out.

“…Everyone?”

Calmly…

She nodded.

“Everyone in this hall.”

Hiring adventurers had always existed as a game mechanic.

Originally, it served as a support feature for gathering crafting materials.

Even after fully upgrading it…

Players could hire only five teams.

But this isn’t a game anymore.

There was no reason to obey the system’s arbitrary limitations.

She intended to hire as many adventurers as she pleased.

And fulfill her recruitment conditions while she was at it.

“I’ll pay ten platinum coins in advance.”

“When the job is finished…”

“I’ll reward everyone generously according to their contributions.”

The moment she finished speaking…

The guild erupted into chatter.

“Ten platinum coins?”

“That’s a thousand gold!”

“If she’s hiring all of us…”

“Does that mean we’re going into the Tower to repair the seal?”

“Everyone’s in, right?”

“We have to save the people trapped inside!”

The gloomy atmosphere gradually began to brighten.

Even the adventurers who had been glaring at Camellia moments ago softened their expressions.

Only one person looked even more troubled than before.

Rohengrin.

The silver-haired knight repeatedly rested his hand on his sword.

Which made sense.

At the beginning of the game…

—or rather, at the moment—

The Lord had only twenty platinum coins available.

Right…

The Previous Lord had nearly emptied the treasury funding magical research.

Spending half of what little remained just to hire adventurers…

Then promising additional rewards…

No wonder Rohengrin looked worried about bankruptcy.

Relax, Rohengrin.

Money’s the easiest thing in this game to duplicate once the time comes.

Even so…

Everything depended on convincing the Guild Master.

Camellia maintained a calm expression.

“Will you accept?”

The Guild Master hesitated for a long time before answering.

“…If it’s for conquering the Tower…”

“Then yes.”

“I accept.”

“Good.”

“Then we have a contract.”

At last…

She had fulfilled the recruitment condition.

Turning toward the young errand boy who had been hovering nearby to collect the empty teacup, she asked,

“I’ve hired everyone present.”

“That naturally includes you as well, doesn’t it?”

“…Pardon?”

“You want to hire… an errand boy?”

“Did you not hear me?”

“I said I would contract everyone present.”

“And you agreed.”

“W-Wait…”

Instead of looking at the Guild Master…

Camellia fixed her gaze on the boy.

“You have an employment contract with this guild.”

“I’ve lawfully purchased that contract by compensating its owner.”

“So naturally…”

“It now belongs to me.”

“M-My Lady…”

The Guild Master tried to interrupt again.

Ignoring him completely, Camellia drove the final nail into the coffin.

“Surely…”

“As an Apostle of the Scales…”

“You aren’t planning to violate a contract?”

The Guild Master froze.

An Apostle of the Scales?

As in… a High Priest serving the Golden Scales, the god who oversees merchants and contracts?

Why would someone like that be here?

Impossible.

Just two days ago, the kid had gotten smacked for breaking a cup.

There was no way he could be someone so important.

Just as the Guild Master was about to explain that the Lord had clearly mistaken him for someone else…

“Hah…”

The boy who had looked completely flustered only moments ago…

Slowly smiled.

A sly smile.

One that looked thoroughly amused.

“So…”

“You figured it out?”