The Guild Master of Demon Hunters that the Empire is Obsessed With

28 – Tower owner dreaming of the beyond (4)

“Hello. What business are you here for?”

As I got closer, the border guards greeted me.

“What will happen to the guild? I have come to entrust you with a request.”

“Request?”

It’s unlikely that the border guards will entrust the guild with a request.

Because almost all the functions to respond to crime, including the investigation department, are organized within the garrison, so they can solve quite a few things on their own.

It’s because its personality and mission are completely different from those of the inland guards.

For those border guards, entrusting requests to guilds is all or nothing.

Either it’s a trivial thing that they don’t even need to intervene in, or a huge thing that can’t be solved with the garrison’s capabilities.

If it’s the former, it’s a small errand, so there’s nothing left from the guild’s point of view, but if it’s the latter, the story is different.

The request fee is high, and since it is government-level, there is no need to take money away, and later it will be easy to deal with the border guards again.

Anyway, it’s because the requests that receive money from the state are more attractive than individuals.

What kind of request is it?

“Please come in first. Let’s sit down and have a cup of tea and talk.”

I went into the guild with the border guards.

“Oh, look at that.”

The crew admired the two devil head trophies hanging above the fireplace wall.

“It’s really huge… How big is the body if the head is that big?”

“That’s a medium-sized demon about five meters tall.”

“Oh, you mean five meters?!”

The crew looked at each other in amazement.

“Five meters is the size of a decent building. How did you hold it?”

“There are various know-how. This way.”

We sat facing each other at a table in the counseling room.

There were all three members of the guild, and looking at the rank insignia, the person sitting in the middle was an officer.

A woman with sword-like bobbed hair and rare green and gold eyes.

Looking at the rank of captain, it seems to be a company commander or section chief.

Seeing that he was wearing a uniform and not armor, it seems that he is not a company commander, but a section manager.

Because actual combatants wear leather armor even when they have civilian business like this.

The officer smiled and held out his hand.

“My name is Captain Vivian, chief of the Investigation Division of the Schlesi Border Guard.”

“I’m Leonard. I’m the guild manager.”

As we shook hands, Captain Vivian studied my face carefully.

“Is that right? A demon hunter. A steed from Rejovoir Reservoir.”

“That’s right.”

“It’s nice to meet you. You have a very good reputation within the Border Guard.”

“Is that so? I’m not sure.”

“Of course you don’t know. But it’s true. That’s why I didn’t dare come here after playing with all the other guilds.”

“What kind of request did the border guard come all the way here?”

Then Leanna walked into her office with four cups of her tea.

Leanna sat down next to me as we set the car down in front of each other.

Since you’re the guild leader and came directly from the border guards, it’s only right that you’re seated.

“Mmm, this is really nice.”

Captain Vivian sipped and savored the tea.

Looking at his words and actions, he seems to be a learned person as well.

So you must be the head of the investigative department.

You can’t be the head of the investigative department with a decent head.

After drinking the tea, Captain Vivian immediately opened his mouth.

“An incident presumed to be the work of the devil has occurred.”

“The Devil? What the hell is going on?”

Captain Vivian took another sip of the tea without answering immediately.

“Do you two know about Elodie Village?”

This is Elodie Village.

As a result of going through my head knowledge, I found out that it is a small village located not far from Schlesi.

“I know.”

“Our Sule border guards are patrolling even there. And we recently received a strange report from a patrol team that went out there.”

“What is it?”

When I asked, Captain Vivian spoke earnestly as if it were something very important.

“The villagers died alive.”

At first glance, it was an oxymoron, but I immediately knew what it meant.

And smart Leana seemed to understand what I meant.

“Have you become a zombie or lost consciousness?”

Captain Vivian nodded his head at Leana’s question.

“I’m guessing that way.”

“Please tell me exactly.”

“So what happened?”

About a week ago, the patrol team entered the village of Elodie and saw a strange sight.

Elodie, a small village where people live by cultivating vineyards, is an extremely monotonous place with no fun and no danger like other rural villages.

So there was no trouble every time I stopped by, but for some reason, on that day, I felt a strange feeling that was difficult to describe in words.

It was people.

They looked like normal people on the outside, but they had a distinctly different impression from the last patrol.

Patrolmen who wondered what the problem was, said that the sudden realization sent chills down their spines.

“Everybody was sitting or lying down?”

“That’s right. Isn’t it the peak of grape harvest right now? But everyone in the village is doing it at home or on the roadside.”

“Hmm. What is it? A plague or something.”

“Is there such a plague? I’ve never heard of such a plague as being lazy.”

“That’s right. So?”

“I wanted to know what was going on, so the investigators and the city hall jointly went out to investigate. It didn’t seem like a normal thing.”

As a result of the investigation, surprisingly, the villagers did not become lazy, but were completely stunned.

“It seemed that he couldn’t hear, see, or speak. He stayed like a corpse with blank eyes, neither drinking nor eating.”

“Hmm… I don’t really understand that…”

“Some of them were dead as they were. It’s only natural that they had starved for over a week.”

“The cause could not be revealed, right?”

“Yes. No matter how much I think about it, this is not a common sense phenomenon.”

“That’s why you think it’s the work of the devil?”

“That’s right, that’s why I’m here.”

As I listened to the story, I guessed that I was roughly like that.

In the case of Higher Demons, they have a monstrous skill called Soul Exploitation.

The act of plucking out human souls and using them as material for evil deeds.

A human whose soul has been pulled out becomes a living corpse, as the chief investigator now describes.

A light of concern flashed on the face of the head of the investigation who heard my explanation.

“In that case, the secretary has to step in even more. The Border Guard’s capabilities cannot deal with the devil.”

“Okay. We’ll accept that request.”

It’s not even a job to deal with one high devil.

It’s annoying to find out what’s hiding in human form, but if you can clearly identify the whereabouts, coat it with elixir and special oil and hunt.

After that, Leanna discussed the details, such as the commission fee.

Captain Vivien put on a slightly puzzled expression at the sight of the roles of the guild leader and the office manager having changed.

However, as soon as Leanna started the discussion in earnest, Captain Vivian soon had to be very nervous.

This is because Leana, who was convinced that the hilt had been handed over to us from the moment the border guards suspected the devil, offered a huge amount of commission money.

I’m not actually trying to get the amount as it is, but once I sing it high, I can get the price I want by cutting it down little by little.

Captain Vivien started bouncing the portable abacus while sweating profusely at Leana’s skillful speech.

Then I’ll leave this to Leana and prepare for the request.

“Celestine.”

I called as I left the counseling room, and Celestine, who had been sweeping the floor from the other side, ran over.

“Yes, sir.”

“This is a request. It will take a day or two. Prepare it.”

“Yes, I understand. Are you and I going alone?”

“Of course. There’s someone else besides you and me.”

“Umm, yes. I see… I’ll prepare…”

Celestine showed a rather passive attitude.

Do you hate going with me?

Actually, I can go alone, but I really need Celestine this time.

He received buffs and gained experience in combat.

“Go ahead and get ready. Bring a change of clothes and buy some snacks on the way.”

“Huh?! Got it!”

At the mention of snacks, Celestine scrambled up her stairs.

Your appetite explodes after you take off your priestly uniform.

* * * * *

Celestine went upstairs to her room and stood there scratching her head.

You’re going far away with the secretary again.

Then I need to pack the things I need quickly.

He said to buy snacks on the way out, so I think I just need to bring some clothes.

Celestine, who was putting her clothes in her bag, opened the drawer next to her bed and took out all her condoms from there and stuffed them into her bag.

Because I don’t know what will happen.

You said the other day you saw me, tasted me, and made me a slave.

Of course, the manager is handsome, kind, and friendly, so I don’t hate him.

But you have to be careful.

I’m in a position to live here without being able to officially register, and if I get pregnant, I’ll become a really useless human being.

Then the guild leader will kick me out right away.

Since the secretary is a demon hunter, he is irreplaceable.

It’s a terrible thing to think about.

Be careful, be careful again.

“Celestine! Come down when you’re done!”

“Oh, yes! Go now!”

Packing her bag and putting on her cloak, she went down to the first floor, where Leonard was already armed and waiting for Celestine.

“Is that a healer?”

“That’s right.”

Captain Vivian, who was standing next to Leonard, greeted me.

“Hello. I am Captain Vivian, head of the Investigation Division of the Sule Border Guard.”

“Hello, this is Celestine.”

After talking to each other, they left the guild and mounted their horses.

“Welcome!”

With Leana sending them off, Leonard, Celestine, Captain Vivien, and two guards set out for the village of Elody.