Chapter 2-6 : Keemariq Bandit Group (part 1)
「Wh, Whaaatt!? Stolen!? ーNo, it must be you! There’s no thief! You hid them somewhere! Tell me, where did you hide them!?」(Sheila)
「Tsk! I told you I didn’t hide shit! They were stolen! Don’t get cocky just because you made better equipment than me!」(senior A)
The senior persistently said the products were stolen, but Sheila still didn’t seem to believe it.
He grabbed Sheila’s collar and glared at her when she yelled at him.
「M, My weapons are gone!」
「Where is my armor!?」
「Who the hell took my shields!?」(apprentices)
While the two were glaring at each other, people’s panicked voices were heard.
It seemed that it wasn’t just the products from Sheila and her seniors’ stall, but the products from some other stalls were also stolen.
「See?」(senior A)
「Ugh…」(Sheila)
The senior then pushed Sheila away as he let go of her collar and clicked his tongue.
Sheila’s seniors are bullies, but I don’t think they would steal other apprentices’ products just to prove themselves.
Is it really a thievery going on here?
「Find them! Find those thieves!」
「I’m sure they haven’t gone far from here! 」
「How dare they steal my masterpiece!」(apprentices)
The surrounding people started making a fuss and the entire village square was in an uproar.
They started suspecting others, especially the visitors from outside the village.
「What in the world is going on here?」(macho old man)
While people were panicking, an old man with a well-built body and a few familiar faces who seemed to be Sheila’s other seniors approached us.
「Master!」(Sheila)
「Welcome back, Master.」(senior A)
The macho old man seemed to be their master.
Certainly, he looked like a typical blacksmith in a video game.
「Master, some of the apprentices’ creations in this area have been stolen.」(senior A)
「Stolen!? I left to discuss this exam with the other blacksmiths for half an hour and this happened!?」(Master)
「I, I’m sorry, Master. I went to the workshop to bring some tools. I told this brat to stay but she went somewhere!」(senior A)
「Huh!? Don’t lie to Master! I know you left to buy food!」(Sheila)
「Tsk! And what were you doing!? You left the stall too, didn’t you!?」(senior A)
「I… Ugh…」(Sheila)
Aa… Sheila left the stall to see me.
That means… They lost their equipment because of… me?
「Sheila, is that so?」(Master)
「Master, I…」(Sheila)
「Umm, Master-san, please don’t blame Sheila. She went to see me, so…」(Kako)
「Hm? You are…」(Master)
「M, Master, she is my friend, Kako. She is the rumored girl. You know, the Scrap Iron Lady, but people call her Scrap Iron Goddess now.」(Sheila)
「Ah, I see. So you are the weird girl who always asks people for some scrap iron. Nice to meet you, young lady. My name is Madoc, a blacksmith and Sheila’s master.」(Madoc)
「Nice to meet you, Madoc-san. My name is Kako. Umm… Sheila left the stall to see me, so… It was my fault. I’m very sorry.」(Kako)
「What? No, Kako, it wasn’t your fault!」(Sheila)
「She’s right. Kako ojou-chan, you didn’t do anything wrong, so please raise your head.」(Madoc)
I bowed deeply toward him but then he stopped me.
「Don’t worry. I’m not blaming Sheila or her idiot senior.」(Madoc)
「I… Idiot…?」(senior A)
「It’s not the time to blame each other. We have to find the culprit as soon as possible.」(Madoc)
「Master’s right! How dare they steal my ultimate creations! I wanted to show them to Kako, but… Dammit! I’ll teach them lessons when we find them!」(Sheila)
「Huh? How could a small brat like you teach thieves a lesson?」(senior B)
「Don’t get too cocky. You’re just a weak little girl.」(senior C)
「What did you say!?」(Sheila)
「That’s enough! For god sake… You guys should stop bullying Sheila already! And Sheila, you should show some respect to your seniors! Alright, enough with this. We should start by looking for some strangers around the square.」(Madoc)
「Master, I think it would be faster if we catch all the visitors and gather them here.」(senior A)
「It might be faster, butー」(Madoc)
「Gentlemen, that’s not necessary.」(??)
While they were discussing about how they would find the culprits, suddenly, I heard a familiar voice.
I know this voice.
When I looked in the direction where the voice came from, I saw a familiar figure.
「Ma, Maitena-san!?」(Kako)
「Kako, it’s been a while.」(Maitena)
「Un! It’s been a while! Why are you here?」(Kako)
「To work, of course. By the way, I’m not alone.」(Maitena)
As she said that, more familiar figures appeared from the crowd.
「Yo, Kako ojou-chan. Have you been doing well?」(Izack)
「Yahoo, Kako-chan~!」(Palfi)
「I’m glad to see you again.」(Martz)
「Izack-san, Palfi-san, Martz-san!」(Kako)
I never thought I would meet them again here.
I’m so happy, but not with the people around us. They were looking at Maitena-san and the others with suspicion.
They are visitors, so it’s not weird that the people here are suspecting them, but good people like them are definitely not the culprits.
「Who are those people?」
「Dunno. Some adventurers from another town, perhaps?」
「Do you think they’re the culprit?」
「Could be.」(apprentices)
This is bad! I need to do something to clear their names!
「Everyone, please calm down! They are my friends. I can guarantee you they’re not the culprits. They are good adventurers!」(Kako)
Even though I had stayed for a while in this village, I was still a visitor too, so I wasn’t sure if they would trust my words, but they unexpectedly believed me right away.
「Ah, so they’re our goddess’ friends.」
「If the Scrap Iron Goddess says so.」
「Then there’s no way they were the thieves.」(apprentices)
I never thought I would say this, but… I’m glad I’m the Scrap Iron Goddess…
「Scrap Iron Goddess…?」(Maitena)
Maitena-san, tilted her head and glanced at me.
「Uhh… It’s a long story…」(Kako)
「Fufu. Seems like you are popular among the villagers here.」(Maitena)
「Well, it’s not weird for a girl as kind-hearted as Kako ojou-chan to become so popular.」(Izack)
「You’re right.」(Maitena)
「Ahaha…」(Kako)
I looked away and scratched my cheek with my index finger.
Uhh… This is kinda awkward…
「Anyway, we have proof that we’re not the culprit. Instead, we are the adventurers who are requested to catch them. Pardon me, are you a blacksmith here?」(Izack)
Izack-san approached Madoc-san and greeted him.
「I am. The name’s Madoc.」(Madoc)
「I’m the party leader, Izack. This is the request form from the Adventurer Guild of Tranto Town.」(Izack)
Saying that, Izack-san took a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Madoc-san.
Madoc-san then read it carefully.
「Hmm… I see… So you were requested by the Merchant Guild to investigate a series of thefts and capture the culprits.」(Madoc)
「That’s right. Many merchants had become the victims of these thefts, so the Merchant Guild issued this request.」(Izack)
「I see… Do you think the disappearance of the apprentices’ products here has something to do with this series of thefts?」(Madoc)
「Yes, and actually, we have done an investigation and found out about the culprits. The people who are responsible for all this are the bandit group called Keemariq.」(Izack)
「A bandit group, huh…?」(Madoc)
Keemariq…?
To be honest, I have no idea who they are, but… The name sounds kinda familiar for some reason…
Seeing me wondering, Maitena-san talked to me.
「Kako, do you remember Keema the adventurer shop?」(Maitena)
「Ugh… Of course. How can I forget about it?」(Kako)
「It seemed that this Keemariq bandit group once had a connection with Keema Shop.」(Maitena)
「Eeehhh…?」(Kako)
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