Chapter 590: The Modoki’s Target

After Sierra left, we were finally able to come in contact with Lovren.

We had been so focused on Sierra that we hadn’t noticed that we were already in the harbor.

「I’d be grateful if you could be a little calmer around the town, you know?」

Lovren, of course, must have seen our encounter with Sierra earlier. He was complaining to us right now.

Especially regarding Urushi. A big wolf that had suddenly appeared and growled ferociously while radiating intimidation in the town.

Fortunately, there were no people in the harbor, but it could have caused a huge commotion. It would have been no surprise if Adventurers and guards had been dispatched to check the situation.

『Fran, Urushi. You should apologize. It’s definitely our fault』

「I’m sorry」

「Woof」

「As long as you understand, just be careful next time, okay?」

Huh? Was that all? I think a little more scolding would have been in order.

Well, even though he was a high-ranking adventurer, he was a very meek man after all.

「Hey, the sword Sierra was holding. What’s that?」

「Are you curious?」

「He was dipping it in the lake before」

「Eh? He did that?」

「Nn」

「Hmm, Sierra already had it when he first became an Adventurer, maybe around six or seven years ago」

What? Six or seven years ago? Sierra was just a kid, right?

「In this country, can a child that age became an adventurer?」

「Well, he could only register, he wouldn’t be able to move up from G rank until he was 12 years old, so he could only do chores」

I see. There was no way a child who wanted to be an adventurer had a decent background. Even if they turned him away, he would probably end up committing a crime or dying in the wild. So, it would be better for the child if they gave them a job.

「That sword… We called it the Cursed Magic Sword around here. It’s because every Adventurer who had tried to steal it always ended up with bad luck 」

「…Did they die?」

「No, no, no, at most they would be badly injured. At first, they thought that Sierra might have done something, but he had an alibi for everything. However, I don’t think that Sierra had anything to do with it. Hence, it must have been a curse」

「I see」

Could it be related to its Evil Spirit? There was no sign of a curse being placed on it, and curses should be prevented by our resistance to abnormal conditions, so Fran should be fine.

Well, let’s get our focus back on the anomaly pertaining to the lake for now.

「I knew Sierra was looking into the Modoki, but… I wonder if he’s onto something? Maybe I’ll ask him next time I see him」

「Let me know when you do」

「Hmm? Could it be that Fran is also investigating the anomaly?」

「Nn」

Apparently, Lovren had already gotten the information that Fran had become an instructor at the Academy of Magic.

Then it would be quick. Read only at travis translations.

We explained why we were looking for Lovren and asked if he had any information for us. Of course, we made sure to use Weena Rhyn’s name. It was the quickest way to get the information out.

Then Lovren nodded his head in agreement.

「I see. So Weena Rhyn-sama has started to act too」

「Nn」

「Actually, I was just about to go to the merchant association and get some documents?」

「Documents?」

「Aah, why don’t you come with me, if you don’t mind? I’d really appreciate it if you could help me there」

It would be faster to get the information and we would like to hear more about the story. It would be better for us to help him.

「Okay」

「Ooh, thanks. Then, let’s go」

When they saw Fran back at the merchant association again, they must have thought she had come to complain about the lack of information. The same person in charge as before had turned pale, but when he found out that was not the case, he became very polite.

「I don’t know what’s going on, but you are really helpful. I didn’t expect they’d let me get the documents so easily」

Some of the information about the cargo may violate the confidentiality of the merchant association. Even though Lovren was a B-ranked adventurer, it was rare for him to be shown such information so easily.

But this time, when he asked, he was immediately taken to the reference room. He seemed to be really surprised by that.

「Usually, we have to ask what kind of documents we want, and they’d bring it to us later」

In addition, it was forbidden to take them out of the country, and even making copies of them was not looked upon favorably.

If someone were to look at the documents, they would be able to find out all about the inner workings of the Merchant Association and the status of its purchases. That was why they usually didn’t disclose all of their information to adventurers.

「I mentioned Weena Rhyn’s name when I came here earlier」

「Aah, that’s certainly quite frightening. If they go against her, they won’t be able to survive in this country」

In the meantime, we arrived at the archive room. There were already several documents on the desk.

They also served tea for us, along with some snacks beside it.

This was already more than satisfactory. It seemed that they were really afraid of Weena Rhyn, as they were trying to make things as convenient as possible for Fran, who seemed to be her subordinate.

「What are you looking for?」

「The cargo of the boat that was attacked」

To my surprise, Lovren said that he was going around the town to investigate the cargo of the boat that was attacked by the Modoki.

In some cases, he even talked to the captain of the boat.

「I was trying to figure out if people were being attacked for their Magic Power or if a specific cargo was being targeted. Fran, please check the documents over here」

「…Okay」

For a moment, Fran looked really uncomfortable.

But she couldn’t say no after coming all the way here.

『Fran, do your best』

「…Nn」

So, the two of them read the documents and made a list of the ship’s cargo. It was a task that required a lot of patience, but Fran still managed to do it.

She almost dozed off a few times, but as soon as I called out to her, she got right back up and got back to work. Well done, Fran!

It was an hour later when they finished checking all the documents.

After comparing it with the list of other merchant cargo that Lovren had already gone through, he came to one conclusion.

「Did you find out anything?」

「Yeah. Every boat that was attacked always had a certain cargo on board」

「What is it?」

「The Scarlet Waterweed Potion, or the Scarlet Waterweed from which it is made」

Indeed, all the boats were loaded with Scarlet Waterweed Potion or Scarlet Waterweed. The rest were foodstuffs, but it was unlikely that the modoki would target bread and wheat.

「I’m not completely convinced that they’re targeting people’s Magic power…」

「They could target the Magic Beasts instead. It’s weird that they only attack people」

「I know, right?」

If they wanted to get magic power, there would be more appropriate prey. A magic beast like the Lake Murderer would have more magic power than a human. And if it was the Modoki, they wouldn’t have any problem preying on them.

「…Let’s go to the Atelier」

「Atelier?」

「The Atelier where the Scarlet Waterweed Potion is made」

「Where it is?」

「It’s in the Commercial Fleet」