Chapter 63 – v2c24 The Worst Kind of Abnormalities

「Those fucker! What the fuck is the guild thinking!」

I spat out in frustration after I heard about the general outline of Raust-san’s labyrinth ban from Salams.
I knew there was a feud between the guild, who wanted to increase the number of exclusive adventurers, and Raust-san, who turned the offer down and became the Guild Agent’s party member.
For a guild that was making light of its adventurers, it must felt aggravating for a single adventurer to defy them.

「Those people in the guild don’t even know what they’re supposed to do and are supposed to not do!」

Even considering that feud, this’s clearly not the right thing to do.
As far as I can tell, that was obviously the fault of those people from War God’s Greatsword who picked a fight with Raust-san.
It’s not just the adventurer guild, it’s just a common sense that even adventurers like us agree.
And yet, the guild that supposedly prioritizes in protecting this common sense instead ignored this.
That’s something that must never be pardoned.

Pushed with that thought, I opened my mouth.

「Hey guys, get ready! We’re going protest to the guild!」

「Alright! Don’t forget to go fetch your armor first!」

「Ooooohh!」

Gozzu was the first one who answered my words, following him, the other adventurers raised a shout and ran to the warehouse where they stored their armor.
I could feel their eagerness from their reaction, I smiled from their reliability.
If there are this many adventurers taking arms and barged into the guild, even the guild would have no choice but to lift Raust-san’s labyrinth ban.

「I can pay him back a little with this.」

I muttered what I thought out loud.
I finally can return Raust-san kindness, was the thought I had in my mind.

「…Will the guild actually take the brunt of our protest?」

「……Hmm?」

…That thought disappeared from the words Salams said.

His sudden words made me wonder for a bit that maybe he was scared.
But his serious expression denied that thought.

「…Hey, do you remember? When we thought we would be killed by Raust-san in the labyrinth.」

「Umm, yeah?」

Despite still confused, I nodded at the words Salams said with a serious tone.
Currently, I knew that was impossible, but when we were prostrating in front of Raust-san, we seriously believed that Raust-san would kill us.
While recalling that time, I opened my mouth.

「Now that you mention it, at that time, we were warned by the guild staffs that Raust-san was likely to murder us in the labyrinth.」

Right, the cause of our belief at that time was the information from the guild staffs.
After tracing my memories, I remembered that and muttered it.
In hindsight, the warning they repeatedly said to us back then was probably the reason we feared Raust-san.

「I… saw it. Just like when they convinced us that Raust-san was the culprit, they fueled the animosity of War God’s Greatsword against Raust-san.」

「What?」

It was when I recalled that that Salams revealed a shocking revelation to us.
I was dumbfounded, I couldn’t understand the guild’s intention, pitting high-ranking adventurers which should be their most important assets against each other like that.
Other adventurers couldn’t hide their agitation from Salams’ words either.
However, unaware of our reaction, he continued.

「Now that I think about it, I can’t help but feel the guild is trying to make us have a bad impression about Raust-san. ……Maybe, the guild is trying to isolate Raust-san in this Labyrinth City.」

When I heard that, that’s impossible was what immediately came to my mind.
But I never put that thought into words.

……Looking back again, I realized the guild staffs had an attitude that supported Salams’ claim.

One of the guild staffs, the one that was called Hanzam, didn’t even try to hide his hostility to Raust-san when he told us about how Raust-san was the adventurers murderer. He also told the story in a way that would incite our hatred against Raust-san.
If we hadn’t seen Raust-san defeating the mutated hydra, we, no doubt, would be holding a grudge against Raust-san too.
That was definitely an attempt to turn us against Raust-san.

「Why are they so hostile to Raust-san…?」

Despite understanding all that, no, precisely because I understood all that I couldn’t hide my confusion.
Isolating Raust-san would only make it more likely that Raust-san would leave the Labyrinth City.
However, it would only be a loss for Labyrinth City’s Guild if someone on Raust-san’s caliber left the Labyrinth City.
In other words, the guild should have another reason for wanting to isolate Raust-san, something I couldn’t understand as I tilted my head.

「M-Marnell! L-Look at that!」

But, I couldn’t continue thinking about it anymore.
My line of thought interrupted by Gozzu sudden scream as he pointed at the small window in the warehouse.

「Hmm?」

Something that makes a courageous warrior like Gozzu screams like that?
As I wondered about that, I raised my face and look toward the window.

「EVERYONE, KILL.」

「…!」

It was at that time I noticed a group of armed hobgoblins walking through the city.

「No way, right…」

A group of monsters that should only exist in the labyrinth.
With that in front of me, I couldn’t hide how panicked I was.
The chill that ran down my spine made me realize that there was something unusual going on that I couldn’t even begin to fathom.

「Why are there goblins here!」

「—!」

It was the voice from the townfolks outside the warehouse that let me knew this was not the time to be stunned.

「The one already in armor, quick, get out! Buy time for us to get ready!」

The moment I realized the townfolks could be attacked by the hobgoblins, I raised my voice.
Hearing my order, the other adventurers returned to their senses.

「Ou! We’ll get rid of them hobgoblins!」

The next moment, the adventurers that entered the warehouse first and already wore their armor, raised their battle cry and ran to the entrance of the warehouse.

「Please do…」

After seeing them off, I said that to their back and sped up my hand to put on my armor.

If they just need to fight, they shouldn’t have any problem.
No matter how many hobgoblins there are.
They’re not an opponent for us, adventurers that capture the middle layer of the labyrinth.

But this time, our objective is not only just annihilating the hobgoblins.
We have to protect the townfolks.
The people who are just civilians and not adventurers.

「Shit! Why is this happening…」

Thinking about it again, I spat that out in annoyance.
Being in Labyrinth City, the populaces are more accustomed to the emergency than one might think.
If it’s just a monster, we can deal with it with only our power.

……However, although our current opponents are not one that came out from the Lower-Layer, there are still plenty of them.

With such a small number of adventurers, there is a possibility that something happens to the townfolks.

「Kh!」

The idea caused me to feel impatient, I dropped the arm part of my armor.
At times like this, I hurriedly tried to pick up my armor while holding off the urge to scream.

「Kyaaaaaaaaaa!」

「Oi, there is no way right!?」

「There is still time! Quick, call a healer!」

It was then I could hear the screams and cries of my comrade from outside the warehouse.

The moment I heard that voice, I stopped picking up my armor and ran toward the warehouse door.
The worst possibilities flashed in my mind.
Namely, it may have been too late for the townfolks.

「………………Huh?」

———And yet, the reality was far beyond my imagination.

「Gahacc-」

Opening the door, I jumped out from the warehouse only to be greeted by the sight of my seriously injured comrade, dying as he vomited blood, while the other adventurers had their hands full fighting the hobgoblins they couldn’t approach him.
I couldn’t accept that scene for a moment.

The hobgoblins were, to us, only small fries.
That was the common sense of us, middle-layer adventurers.

……Then, why are my comrades struggling so much against hobgoblins?

「SOME HIDING STILL, ADVENTURERS.」

「───!」

It was a hobgoblin who answered that question.
The hobgoblin ignored the dying adventurers and told me so.
As if it was trying to say it found a new toy.

It was then that I realized that the monsters that showed up in the city weren’t simple hobgoblins.

「You! All of you, what the fuck are you!」

I was screaming in front of that hobgoblin that exuding pressure that felt more like Middle-Layer monsters instead.

The hobgoblin in front of me laughed without answering my question.
The cruel glint in its eyes made it felt like the monsters had intelligence that they shouldn’t have.

「HUMAN, ALL, ANNIHILATE.」

That was when we realized this situation was worse than we expected.