Chapter 157

Translator: Lizz

Proofreader: Xemul

In conclusion, interrogating an underling is not that worthwhile .

Loren washed his blood-stained hands at a well by the road, dried them with a piece of cloth torn off from the bandits clothes, and said . Gula frowned at him a little .

They had successfully intercepted the raid, but since the bandits were too efficient, it didnt make much of a difference . Half of the stolen goods were left behind, and Gula killing off tens-odd bandits by herself were the only successes they could claim if they had to .

As for the bandit Loren had captured, he was handed to the town officials while still breathing . He was made to talk, of course, but after getting the information he thought he needed from him, Loren could only let out a hollow laugh . Loren didnt think the surviving soldiers and town officials would be able to get anything out of him, but he didnt know of the bandits ultimate fate .

He did have some useful information though . Well, if he didnt lie .

Id be impressed if he had balls to bullshit us after all that .

Gula, who had been present at the scene, said with a shudder . Loren wondered why an Evil God like her would say that, but there was fear in her eyes when she looked at him, and her body did tremble . He couldnt tell if she was serious or not .

Was it really that nasty?

It was Tizona who asked that question .

They were at a dining hall in the northern area of the town, which wasnt damaged by the raid . They were staying at a different inn this time, since they got evicted from the previous one even after explaining about their circumstances .

Lapis had left to talk with the surviving town guards and officials, as Gula hated troublesome things and Loren and Tizona werent confident about being able to provide a good explanation . They were currently waiting for her to come back .

I dont think of it as something nasty anymore .

Isnt it a common practice on the battlefield? Its just a mean to extract intel from captured enemies .

Hearing Loren saying so, Gula turned her attention to Tizona, who was also a mercenary . Tizona became flustered and waved her hand .

I, that

Is it not a common practice?

Im basically just in charge of fighting . Dealing with prisoners is someone elses responsibility I dont know what they do .

Well, its surely not something for <Hellfire Sword> to do .

That said, Tizona also wondered why the hell would they leave interrogations to <Decapitating Wind>, but since she knew Loren would deny being that person if she asked him, she only smiled vaguely at his remark .

So, whatd you get from him?

Gula seemed to be watching Tizonas reactions still, but she changed the topic nevertheless . Loren also found the topic of prisoner treatment annoying, so he jumped at the chance .

Its not very useful .

Thats fine too . Just tell me .

First of all, the one I caught was on the lowest level of their gang, so he didnt know anything about their HQ .

This was a common thing in large organizations . It was also an evidence of how big this gang of bandits was .

The ones attacking this time are based in one of the depots scattering in this area . All the loot they get will be gathered there, and only the valuable ones are sent to HQ .

Ive never heard of something like that before .

Loren agreed with Tizona . Even though it was also a rather strange practice in itself, the bandits in this world usually brought all their loot to their HQ . To have designated depots for loot would require them to break up their force and base accordingly .

And isnt it strange to transport only valuable items to HQ? Bandits normally take all they can, dont they?

I think so too, but it seems credible since that guy did confess so . There will be people coming from the HQ to appraise the loot and take some of the valuable ones back to HQ . The rest will be left as the depot for those based there to do as they like .

Thats quite fair .

Are bandits supposed to be fair though?

As Gula and Loren argued with each other, Tizona sat in silence with her head tilted in puzzle .

Lapis returned just then . She seemed tired, so after spotting the group, she ordered some drinks and joined them .

Youve worked hard . How was it?

Loren asked, but Lapis raised her hand to signal him to stop and wait until their drinks arrived . Tizona and Gula thought the report should come first, but since Loren left all the troublesome decision-making to Lapis, he didnt rush her .

Before long, the owner came carrying their drinks . Lapis drained her glass in one gulp, exhaled heavily, turned toward the other waiting members, and finally started speaking .

Well, I was helped by understanding people .

According to Lapis, handing over the captured bandit was also considered a big deal . The town officials and guards believed that their party had repelled the bandits more readily than expected, and so they thanked them, and easily accepted their demand for reward .

Loren found their response a bit too lighthearted and got suspicious, but Lapis had a different opinion:

I think its better to just accept their gratitude quietly and get their cooperation, instead of going against them and losing their goodwill .

Even if were asked to work with them on the town defense, we cant . Were in the middle of a job ourselves .

Tizonas quest for the ruin expedition must take priority, thus repelling bandits was just a side job . From Lorens point of view, even if they were asked to work with the town, they must reject it .

Thats true . So, I think we should let Tizona make the decision .

Me?

Tizona pointed at herself, and Lapis nodded .

Yes . Youre currently our client, so no one, but you should decide our course of actions .

What decision should I make?

Tizona seemed to think that what Lapis said was not incorrect, so she calmly turned towards Lapis and asked .

Lapis held the cup with both hands, raised it as if she was praying, and looked at Tizona:

The town officials request, or rather expressed their wish, that we somehow deal with the bandits attacking them this time .

What do you mean by deal with?

It means deal with . Obliterate them if possible . If not, deal enough damages to them so that they cannot attack the town again .

Hm

Tizona folded her arms and considered this . The other three watched her, Loren with an unchanged expression, Lapis with a frown, and Gula with a bit of astonishment on her face .

A quick question: its not like we cant do it, right?

Were still not sure about their force, but no, its not like we cant .

From Tizonas question, Gula wondered if she had known about her own and Lapis true power . But a short while later, Gula remembered that just Tizonas power alone would be enough to deal with the bandits .

Loren and Gula have killed a number of them already, and we know about their depots location from the captured bandit .

Ah, thats right .

Ill be troubled if were asked to tackle their HQ . But just a depot wont take us much time, will it?

Tizona, youre amazing!

Lapis said with no hint of exaggeration, and Loren choked a little hearing her exclaim . Lapis and Gula turned to look at him as if asking what was wrong, but he waved his hands at them to indicate that he was alright .

The truth was, he was surprised to hear the word amazing coming from Lapis, but it was difficult to explain that to them . The two girls didnt seem to notice his predicament, and didnt ask more questions .

But I think you also know that Im not in a position to waste time here .

Then, let me tell you one good thing .

Putting her glass down on the table and raising one finger, Lapis told them another piece of

information:

If we can complete their request, aside from the reward, the town will let us do what we like with the loot found at the depot .

Thats very generous of them .

If it wasnt related to a specific job, the goods found at a bandits place would belong to whoever attacked them . However, if the attack was done due to a request from a client, the client normally claimed the stolen goods .

Since the town offered to reward them for dealing with the bandits depot, it would be normal for them to claim the goods found there . But the town proposed to waive their claim this time, meaning their party could take whatever they wanted once the job is done .

If one didnt consider the risk of dealing with an overwhelming number of bandits, then this was an extremely good job . The biggest problem was getting rid of the bandits .

If I say I want to take on their request, what will your answer be?

That depends on your remuneration, of course .

Client decided the course of actions, but the contractor had the right to accept or refuse it . Tizona also agreed with this point .

One more gold coin for each then . How is it?

Tizona asked Lapis, but she didnt answer, instead she looked at Loren . She considered him their partys leader, and thus he should be the one to decide what to do .

Do we have time for this?

Itll be a problem if it takes seven or eight days .

It probably wont take that long .

Then theres no problem . So, do we accept this job?

Well, what should we do, I wonder?

Lapis had already left the decision to him . As for Gula, when he glanced at her to check her reaction, he saw her yawning . Apparently she wasnt interested in the discussion at all .

After a while, Gula finally finished yawning and noticed that Loren was staring at her . She jumped in surprise, but immediately realized he was asking for her opinion and nodded twice . It seemed like Gula had also left the decision-making to him .

Loren turned back to Tizona and answered:

Alright . Well attack the bandits depot .

Good . We need a map of the place and its surroundings . Then we need to come up with a plan .

At Tizonas words, Lapis started unfolding a map of the area around the post-town she had procured somewhere on the table they were sitting at .