After meeting the self-proclaimed adventurer, Mira, I led her to the restaurant I'd been at before entering the entertainment district. It's the only place I have a slight knowledge of being "safe", but it's better than nothing. Argh, I wish I could just laze around and experience all the different specialties this pillar city has to offer. Specialties that do NOT involve running for my life!

"*Pwah*! I live for a cold drink!" - Mira

"That's good." - Garami

I used the opportunity to order some strong stuff for this spirit-woman with the funds I'd collected today. That should keep her lips going...

Meanwhile, I asked Bloom to use her charms to try to gather some more information from the other guests. At least the guys who're not drooling over my heap of coins. Though the knight in front of me is doing the same, so it may not make that much difference...

"Alright, boss! Where should we go after this-" - Mira

"The drink is on me, but I've not said yes to hiring you yet." - Garami

"WHAAAAT!? ...actually, that sounds about right. So, what is needed for me to get the job then?" - Mira

After the initial shock, she calmed down before going straight onto the subject. I guess she's more level-headed when not facing the slots.

"Then tell me this: why should I need help to take this heap of cash to the bank?" - Garami

According to Bloom, there's a place called the Merchants' Union in this city, which doubles as a bank for common people. Obviously, I don't have an account there, but I'm going to stick to my fabricated backstory of being a "local girl who's never gone out much before tonight".

"Are you stupid? Don't you know that multiple people have gone missing, or worse, lately? A frail girl like you is a perfect mark for those kinds of scoundrels!" - Mira

Sweet! Those rumors may be connected to the card guards and the mysterious assailant from that night! Let's try digging some more.

"I am? Are the victims that similar to me?" - Garami

"Huh? Where did that come from? ...I'm not sure, now that you mention it. I have heard that it's been only foreigners who have gone MIA after the lake water returned... Maybe there are multiple perpetrators? An even more solid reason why you should hire me!" - Mira

That's a new piece of info that I'm not sure if it's welcomed or not.

"No, it isn't. It's too doubtful to believe. And if such people were on the loose, the city guards could take care of it." - Garami

"The thing is, they can't. Or rather, nobody, not even the guards themselves, are sure if they are taking care of it or not." - Mira

"...a riddle?" - Garami

"I wish it was. Sometimes, when there's a crime going on, a group of guards charges in as if they were waiting in the shadows. They then throw out the whole "law and order"-thing they should run and attack the supposed culprit with everything in their arsenal, forcing the suspect to flee for their lives." - Mira

"...are you joking with me?" - Garami

"Wish I could. Seriously! I was once on the scene of one of those chases, and a stray shot crushed my quota of monster materials! Those jerks made me fail the quest from the Adventurers' Union!" - Mira

That sounds too much like what I experienced.

"Then what happened?" - Garami

"Nobody saw those guards or the suspect ever again. Nobody is certain if the latter had done a crime at all. There was obvious evidence that a third party had been responsible for whatever happened, but those outlaw guards ignored any of that and went trigger-happy." - Mira

"Are no one making a complaint or something to the mayor or whoever's in charge of the guards?" - Garami

"Of course they are! Even I went to the city hall to do exactly that! But the thing is, there are no such guards registered as part of the city's police force." - Mira

"??? So somebody's cosplaying as the long arm of the law to do the opposite?" - Garami

"That's the common idea people have." - Mira

And I bet that it's the correct one. Those guards are most likely the same kind of card troopers that got fed to the nightmare spider down in the sewers. Though, it doesn't qualify as evidence that says that the real guards aren't part of this kidnapping scheme.

"Wonder why this is happening." - Garami

"That's what I want to know! I need to give those guys some payback for the fine I had to pay because I failed the quest! Also, there's a bounty on their heads. People are looking for them now as we speak." - Mira

Oh? In that case, maybe I don't need to look for them myself. I could just leave that mess to whatever bounty hunter that's lurking in the city streets while I'm laying it low to not get caught up in it all.

"You got good skills at gathering information." - Garami

"Huh? ...oh, right! Of course, I have that! I am an honest-to-goodness Silver-rank adventurer of the highest tier! So, about that job offer..." - Mira

"Give me some time to think about it. Return after half an hour." - Garami

"Alright. As you wish." - Mira

Mira left the table and left me behind. Soon, I could hear a loud "YES!!" from outside the store.

After that, Bloom returned to me and started to lay out everything she had discovered.

"So, there's nothing wrong with her statements..." - Garami

Everything Mira had told me matched what Bloom had learned from the other customers and the people passing by outside.

"Which makes the odds of her being responsible for this..." - Garami

"Extremely low. Close to non-existing. None of her classes seem to allow her to use those card soldiers we saw in the sewers." - Bloom

"You're talking about that "Squire" class, right?" - Garami

"That too, but I did Identify her status page without letting her notice." - Bloom

Oh, right. Bloom's linked to all my Perception-type skills, which includes [Identification]. I didn't know she could use it as her own ability without warning me.

"You already know about her Squire class. It is special in that it HAS to be set as the main class and grants 0 new skills." - Bloom

"For real!?" - Garami

"In return, the class unlocks the powerful Knight-type classes after it evolves. Seeing as she also owns the Breaker Swordsman class, I would say she is planning on obtaining the Dark Knight class, which focuses on attack power." - Bloom

Yikes. Dark Knight and Breaker Swordsman? She sounds viler than she seems.

"But the fact that she owns Squire is alarming." - Bloom

"In what fashion?" - Garami

"Squire can only be obtained by clearing a special quest that only royals can give. Which means..." - Bloom

"She's connected to some "his highness" fellow?" - Garami

That sounds...strange. If she's got a connection to some high-and-mighty guy, why is she so desperate for cash? Couldn't she ask for a loan?

...unless she's already cut off ties with that person?

"I have also obtained some more information about Mira Aureola herself." - Bloom

"Fire away." - Garami

"According to the adventurer-looking people I asked, Mira seems to be a huge money sink." - Bloom

"Huh?" - Garami

"In the way that she clears all the high-difficulty quests she's allowed to take, then she burns up that money within a week." - Bloom

"How much time is she spending here in this district!?" - Garami

"Actually, she is also visiting local blacksmiths where she buys all the fancy swords she can find." - Bloom

She has a sword fetish!? Or is that "Breaker Swordsman" class a twin-edged blade here? Pun not intended.

"Another source says that she often goes to establishments where she can flirt with cute girls." - Bloom

"She swings that way too!?" - Garami

"Finally, many reports say that she simply loves money on its own." - Bloom

"Sh-she's an A-rank hedonist..." - Garami

I couldn't believe my ears. Not only because of the bad rumors around Mira, but also how much info Bloom had managed to gather in the short time while I talked with Mira.

"The good thing with all this is that she can't be the culprit. She has too much of a presence to disappear and start doing shady business in the shadows. Not to mention she's a foreigner who came to this town as early as three years ago." - Bloom

"So she has no backing that could make her responsible for the attacks. What if she's simply a grunt?" - Garami

"I doubt anyone would hire her. Remember what we talked about regarding the Squire class? I think it's not likely for a shadow organization to hire someone with connections to royalty." - Bloom

Though, it doesn't make it impossible for that royal guy to be the leader of the card troopers...argh! Now I'm just acting all paranoid! That's it! I'll just hire her! Her resume (aka her adventurers' card) seemed legit, and if she's a Silver-rank adventurer, she should be...

"Is being a Silver-rank adventurer anything great?" - Garami

"Of course it is! That rank is only granted to respectable members of a Union! Other places may have a different ranking system, but Silver for the Adventurers' Union is the same as having veteran status in the organization! If there is someone who is trying to break the law while also being a Silver-ranker, the Union would be forced to send all the manpower available to stop the lawbreaker!" - Bloom

"Tell me that a little sooner!" - Garami

Damn, this means I could rely on the Union to make sure Mira wouldn't double-cross me! Why did I go through all that brooding before...?

"Hello, I'm back...what's going on?" - Mira

And she had to return while I was holding my head in frustration. Damn, she got worse timing than the ghost knight...*idea*!

"Mira, you like swords?" - Garami

---

"Uuuuuhh..." - Thug #9

"Geez, shouldn't they learn by now? All is clear, mistress~~." - Mira

"Good. But stop calling me that." - Garami

"Yes, sweetie~~." - Mira

"Stick to my name, or else, no sword." - Garami

"YES, MA'AM! GARAMI, SIR!!" - Mira

"Which one is it...?" - Bloom

After I managed to buy Mira's loyalty thanks to a certain cursed(?) greatsword, we walked through the less-populated streets to reach the entrance to the sewers. It's a little impossible to go down a manhole with the luggage I'm carrying, so we're gonna use an official, yet abandoned, entrance to the sewers instead.

Mira's not saying anything as I direct where we're going. I think she doesn't care. She's all hung up on the giant sword that's currently resting on her back.

While we walked through the sewer tunnels, I noticed that someone was tailing us. More thugs? ...no. If I could notice them, then it's more likely to be monsters.

"Huh, so you noticed them." - Mira

"Didn't you?" - Garami

"Not really. I don't own any abilities that let me notice people stalking me. Striking them down even if they're planning a sneak attack is more my style." - Mira

"Then how did..." - Garami

"It would be more strange if nobody didn't go after us. A trio of pretty girls, dragging on a whole wheelbarrow with cash, down in an empty tunnel... Why are we here in the first place?" - Mira

"Now you noticed... Take care of those guys first, then I'll explain." - Garami

"You got it~." - Mira

Mira then pulled out the sword on her hip from its sheath, as opposed to how she used it while in the sheat to whack the daylight out of the thugs from before. Then she leaped at the place where the stalkers were hiding and slammed her sword to the ground. The impact created a burst of light that lit up the tunnel, revealing the enemies, as well as...damaging them?

The ground slam move seems to have been some sorta attack skill. Pretty nice. Too rough for me to think about learning it for myself though.

The damaged enemies, people dressed like the city guards, stood there in the light. Despite getting the full front of that "light slam", which should have severely blinded them along with the pain from the burning wounds on their bodies, they still looked at Mira with listless eyes.

"Hah! So the true identity of the brute guards is that of puppets! Time to vent my frustration of failing my quest!" - Mira

If anyone's gonna ask who's the bad guy here...I'm not answering.

*SLASH!*

...huh?

"Tch. Over already? What a bunch of losers." - Mira

Hold-hold-hold-HOLD ON! What was that!? It only took a moment and a sword slash to make four card trooper heads roll across the tunnel!

...holy. I think I've hired the best bodyguard there is in this city.