Black Iron Magician

「You stripped off the monsters’ materials on the way, right? How about you sell them at the Adventurer Guild in this town now? Ah, that’s right. We still have some time, so it might be a good idea for you to pick a suitable monster subjugation request.」

Following Deris’s words, Haruna and Chinatsu decided to go to the Adventurer Guild. They invited Touko, but she refused, saying that she has to take care of Lilyvia as her disciple. Other than that, she also has her training, so she’s busy.

「Touko-chan’s cheeks were a little red, right? Did she catch a cold?」

「Y-Yes. It’s pretty cold in this country, so she probably caught a cold! Let’s let her relax until the day the ship is scheduled to depart!」

Haruna was genuinely concerned about Touko’s health, but Chinatsu was a little different. She has a slight idea of what Touko’s training is. However, she couldn’t explain it to Haruna, and she was desperately trying to deceive Haruna. She was so desperate, thinking that it’s too early for Haruna to know. Even Chinatsu, who can’t tolerate the disorder of morals, can’t interfere with other people’s private lives.

「Let’s see…. Yep, this is the Adventurer Guild! The building is a little smaller than the one in Adelheit, isn’t it?」

「Diana is the capital of Adelheit. The bigger the town, the bigger the guild. I heard that Snowtail’s capital is further north, so maybe it’s even bigger there.」

「Ah, I see!」

Probably satisfied with Chinatsu’s explanation, Haruna clapped her hands. Then, the two began to walk toward the guild building. Snow is piled up all over the city, and if you step on the place without footprints, you will hear a nice squeaking sound. Haruna is somehow doing it happily. Looking at her, Chinatsu enjoyed that moment while resting her heart for the first time in a long time.

「Yo, delicate girls, what are you doing in a place like this? This is not a playground for children, you know?」

「Kekeke! Come on, don’t bully children. They are shaking like puppies!」

However, that good mood was shattered the moment they entered the guild. They entered the guild and checked the layout inside. Just as they were about to line up at the reception counter to sell the materials, they got entangled with big men who look like thugs from their appearances. Chinatsu’s rare stress-free moment disappeared immediately, and she’s fed up already.

「Ah, you are Snowtail’s adventurers, right? We are also adventurers! We came from Adelheit by climbing the mountains!」

「O-Oh!?」

Of course, there’s no way that Haruna, who once crushed an underworld organization, would be intimidated by them. She greeted them with the usual manner and the usual smile. Because of Haruna’s attitude, the thug-like adventurers were confused instead.

In the meanwhile, Chinatsu observes the surroundings, thinking that maybe the public order is bad in this guild. The guild is smaller than the one in Adelheid, but it still has a tavern. Most of the customers are men who are probably adventurers, and there are only a few women. It seems that the guild staff and the other adventurers are not going to move, despite the fact that they would have attracted attention because of the loud voice.

(Still, I can feel their gazes. It seems like they are observing us. Could it be that these people are top rankers, so they can’t stop it? Or maybe they are of the same group? No, it doesn’t seem like that. Holding them down with force is easy, but then it would be the same as Nell-shishō. Hmm….)

When Chinatsu was wondering what to do, the thugs came back to their senses a few seconds after Haruna’s greeting.

「Y-You climbed the mountains…? Good grief, you should know the limit if you want to brag! If that story is true, then you must be very famous adventurers! Hey, what’s your party name!?」

「Our party name? It’s 『Shiba Inu』!」

「Shiba Inu? Never heard of it! I mean, even your party name is a dog’s name, eh!?」

「This is the best! I’m sure that’s the name of a cute pet dog!」

「That’s right, it’s cute and the best!」

「「O-Oh….」」

It’s not surprising that the name of Haruna and Chinatsu’s party is not well known. The party was formed in the guild of Adelheit, and they haven’t done any adventurer-like work since then. They participated in the battle against Hund as heroes representing their classmates, but they didn’t announce their names as adventurers. After all, it wasn’t necessary. But now that it led to something like this, Chinatsu regrets that they should have spread their names a little.

「This is not a place for weaklings like you. Just turn tail and go home like a dog! Gyahaha!」

「Oh, well said! That’s right!」

In the end, they took that attitude. It would be troublesome if Chinatsu uses the name of the knight order, so she begins to consider blowing them away just like Nell, her master. …… However.

「Um…. Could it be that you’re picking a fight?」

「Haa? What else is there? Kukuku, is your head full of peace or something?」

「I see, okay.」

「Ha?」

「Okay, I will accept it. I’ll accept it right away. So, which one should I crush first?」

「Haa? What the hell are you――」

The man didn’t continue his words. As for Haruna, she’s still smiling. However, she’s giving off a bloodlust that seems to crush everything. Receiving it directly, the men lost their words, unable to stand, and wet their pants. On the guild’s floor, the evidence is spreading.

「A-Aga, agagagagaga….」

「Eeeeeek!?」

‘Ah, they’ve done it,’ Chinatsu sighed secretly. Due to her personality, Haruna usually won’t make a move. She was acting friendly toward them a while ago because of her gentle personality. However, even Haruna has a line that shouldn’t be crossed. It’s a different story if the other party shows clear hostility. If the opponent is weakling, she will warn them like this first. It’s to make them understand instinctively before the fight. ‘But in this case, maybe it will be less traumatic if they got hurt a little,’ Chinatsu pitied the men even though they deserved it.

「What’s wrong? Are you not coming? Then, I’ll go first, okay? Is that okay? If you don’t object to it, I will take it as a yes, okay?」

Haruna began to make a fist while still smiling. If Haruna decides to do it, she will break the heart of her enemy thoroughly. The more vicious the enemy is, the more she will crush it to pieces. Chinatsu thinks that it’s about time to stop her, thinking that the men will be broken for real. However, there were other people who started to move even before that. It was the other adventurers who were just watching them.

「Y-Young ladies, I’m sorry, but can you stop it at that? I beg you.」

「We’ll apologize for their rudeness. No, we are also guilty for not seeing through your true strength. We are really sorry.」

They said so, bowed their heads, and apologized to Haruna and Chinatsu. Not sure about this situation, Haruna and Chinatsu looked at each other and tilted their heads at the same time.

「―― Ha!? W-What the hell am I doing…?

As Haruna’s bloodlust stopped, the man who wasn’t blowing bubbles from his mouth returned to his sanity. Even so, he’s still trembling, and immediately after regaining his consciousness, he begins to look around.

「You should wash and change your pants and underwear first. You look disgraceful, you know? Also, bring something to wipe the floor.」

「Eh? Ah….」

A few moments later, the floor of the guild was swept clean.