The Druid Who Swallowed Mother Nature - Chapter 26



Only Noblemtl

Episode 26. Clue

Swish!

Warm water washed down my back.

I liked the fact that I could take a hot shower anytime, anywhere, and that it was a world where magical engineering was developed.

If it were truly medieval, you would have had to boil the water yourself or pay the innkeeper to do it for you.

It’s a horrible life to even imagine.

“… … It didn’t even sting, and there wasn’t even a single scar.”

The most seriously injured part of the body while fighting Malay was the back.

One, my lower back, reflected in the mirror, was clean without a single scratch.

On the first day, just having it rub against my clothes made me feel chilly.

After just three days of rest, the bruises and lacerations completely healed.

The physical abilities that improved as he underwent a complete transformation seemed to even include resilience.

“Are you healthy too?”

Purur!

“The world tree shrugs its shoulders, saying it is healthy.”

The World Tree responded by shaking off the water vigorously.

After confirming his usefulness through woodworking, he acted cheerfully as if he had never felt like the grass had died.

“Come to think of it, you can withstand hot water well.”

“The World Tree is shaking its branches, saying it doesn’t understand what’s going on.”

In fact, hot water is extremely toxic to plants.

It could easily damage tissue cells and lead to death, but since it was a world tree, it seemed unaffected.

“You guys… … Calm down a bit.”

The spirit became completely arrogant after his actions.

He seemed to be having fun causing a ruckus, casting wood chips here and there and flying around as if shaking, bursting into laughter.

They say fairies are originally very playful, but it feels like she’s taking care of a child.

I changed my clothes, pushing away the guy blocking my view.

The condition is perfect.

It was time to slowly go find Hartig.

I left the hotel and headed to Brotherhood Branch 102.

The morning club was quiet and pleasant, without any of the night’s hustle and bustle.

Even the members of the organization that had been guarding the door were nowhere to be seen.

I went inside without a second thought.

As before, as we went up to the 4th floor, one of the VIP rooms was brightly lit.

As expected, Hartig was inside.

“Welcome. Thank you for your hard work.”

Hartig greeted me as if he had been waiting for me.

He welcomed me with open arms, and the members of the organization lining both sides of the room stared blankly at me.

I answered, pretending to be calm.

“… … The welcome is excessive.”

“This is our sincerity. Don’t you like this kind of thing?”

“It’s not a matter of my taste.”

I watched their movements.

This is a situation where all members of the organization have been mobilized.

I had to make sure they weren’t hiding their malicious intentions under the pretext of celebration.

It was said to be ubiquitous.

In that sense, it didn’t come right away, but had a period of recovery.

Trusting a criminal and showing weakness was just asking for someone to eat me.

“Heh heh, your movements are unnatural. Are you nervous? Or is your injury not fully healed? Judging from the few days you rested, you probably aren’t in great shape.”

“No, I waited for you to find the information. I took care of things early.”

“okay?”

Hartig clapped his hands in uninterested applause.

Then, the members of the organization felt their bodies flinching.

“… … If it comes out like this, it won’t be fun.”

It seemed like this too.

The way you feel when you enter the bathroom and the way you feel when you come out are different.

“The World Tree is nervous.”

I unclenched my fingers and snatched the gun away.

I intended to fire the moment I sensed something suspicious.

At that time, I was nervous.

Hartig’s snap of his fingers was the signal.

“Thank you for your effort!!”

The gang members bent down without drawing their weapons.

A voice that rings loudly.

Dozens of people greeted him like that, so there was no need for a minister.

Before I knew it, the strength in my fingers had left me.

“… … What are you doing?”

“It’s a surprise gift.”

“That crazy guy.”

I sat there doing something that looked like something out of a gangster movie.

It was fortunate that it wasn’t something sinister, but it was still embarrassing.

“You don’t like it?”

“It’s not a matter of my taste.”

“Well, these guys do look scary.”

The corner of the mouth of the member of the organization that Hartig tapped on the shoulder was strange.

I just noticed that everyone looked a bit shaky.

So that’s why you flinched at first.

It seemed like it was something done entirely according to Hartig’s taste.

“It’s almost closing time. Everyone is wrapping up their business, so please understand that I can’t serve you.”

As Hartig waved his hand, the gang members rushed out.

My boss is a very strange guy, so I have a hard time.

I pulled up a chair and sat down in the same spot as before.

“I confirmed that I dealt with Malay. To be honest, I didn’t expect much, and I really didn’t think it would work. Because of that, I had a hard time quickly resolving the situation.”

Despite his grumbling, Hartig laughed heartily.

Of course, the hard work will be enjoyable because it will return to the growth of the branch.

So now it was time for me to share in the joy.

“Since it was a deal with those conditions, I had to finish what I was given cleanly. Right?”

“Of course. It is a man’s duty to keep his word.”

“The others couldn’t keep it.”

“hmm?”

Before that, there was something that had to be calculated first.

I confessed the truth calmly.

“I dealt with Malay alone. The rest ran away.”

“Tsk, why haven’t I heard from you at all?”

Hartig frowned and clicked his tongue.

“They may not come looking for you, but if you show up and demand your share, I’ll catch you right away.”

If you start a fight, you have to deal with the consequences.

I had no intention of letting it slide, saying that it was good.

“I’ll check it out. But I think you’re probably right.”

“Oh, leave out the wizard. I sent you because I thought you would only be a nuisance at the end.”

“If you catch him, I will be lenient.”

“And I don’t know what they wanted, but just give me some money for it and give it to them.”

I argued as a side note.

He shouldered the burden of work for four people all by himself.

It wasn’t an unreasonable request, since the person who requested it also said he didn’t think it would succeed.

“I’ll do that. It’s a success bonus that’s going to go to the other three anyway, so I don’t mind paying it.”

“Even if it’s not like that, I shouldn’t feel bad about the money you helped me earn.”

It may seem like a lot of money now, but it was just pocket change in the future.

That’s what it meant to take over the entire distribution network of one branch.

Since the robbery was carried out earlier than planned, it was like receiving additional income unexpectedly.

“The most important thing remains at last.”

The main topic starts now.

“I trust you won’t say that you gave us three more days and still couldn’t get any information.”

I have done my duty.

Now it was Hartig’s turn.

Hartig sank deeper into the sofa, clinking his glass.

“It was close.”

“What does that mean?”

“The end of the third day was crucial. You didn’t get the information you wanted in Darkest Chase.”

“… … Wasn’t Dalton Sunderland part of the Darkest Chase?”

“That’s not it. It’s just that they didn’t give out the information easily.”

Hartig’s eyes, staring straight into space as if recalling hardships, were fierce.

“Dalton Sunderland may not have been that great of a man.”

The wizard proves his usefulness with magical abilities.

If he had been that influential, it would have been me who suffered.

“You’re right. That means we’re involved with a really great company.”

“So what’s the conclusion? You can’t figure it out?”

The private message is long.

It was hard for me too.

If you just brush it off as being difficult and saying you only found out the clues, I had a lot to say.

“I am not a philanthropist.”

If you force volunteer work, you’ll have to exact a higher price.

Can you afford the demands that will arise during the process?

Hartig waved his hand as if to tell me not to worry too much.

“I figured it out eventually without you having to nag me. I gently teased the guy who was under me and then left to get the information.”

Hartig was talking like a drunkard about all the efforts I had put in.

It may have been an exaggeration, but it was a process that was worthy of a joke.

Although his tastes and speech were strange, Hartig’s abilities were outstanding.

So, it will cause a stir in the huge organization called Future Brotherhood.

When things started to get boring, Hartig read the mood and came to a conclusion.

“There wasn’t enough information to make me want to talk so much. There was just one thing.”

I listened.

“An agent named Alfonso contacted me.”

“Alfonso?”

“He is a veteran who is considered a goldmine in the industry.”

Hartig handed me a photo of Alfonso.

A solid body without an ounce of fat, a meaningful impression, a sharp suit that is worn without any casual clothes wherever you go.

“He is famous as an errand boy who monopolizes the agendas of major corporations, especially the strict Centrim.”

The impression resembled that of an unidentified agent who had made contact with Malay.

***

“Here it is.”

I received the items from the locksmith.

It was a hard case that Malay had received from his agent during the transaction.

When I returned home and tried to open the hard case, it was locked.

Since I don’t know what’s inside, I can’t just break it.

I had no choice but to hand it over to a skilled locksmith who had a history of being wanted by the police.

“Don’t bring things like this in the future. It has some kind of magical device in it, so it’s fucking hard to open.”

The locksmith with a dirty look reacted by making a noise as if he had taken the crane away.

If there had been a magical device, it would have been possible.

The locksmith who unlocked it is amazing.

I paid the balance, more than I had agreed to, and headed to the hotel.

It’s not mine, it’s something intercepted.

I didn’t know who would catch me if I took it out in front of the public and confirmed it.

I pulled the curtains up to the window and flicked the latch on the hard case.

Click!

Thanks to the locksmith’s hard work, the hard case opened smoothly.

“… … They really stick to the concept thoroughly.”

I laughed as soon as I saw it.

The object stored inside was a prosthetic hand extending from the wrist to the elbow.

It was a status that machine-lovers could trade on.

“Is it ambiguous for me to write this?”

If it was just a mechanical device, I would have used it, but since it was a prosthetic hand, it was a hindrance.

“how is it?”

Just in case, I asked the World Tree.

The world tree, which seemed curious, pulled out a stem and touched it, and soon knocked the prosthetic hand away.

It was impossible to use it because the person living with me said he didn’t like it.

“I guess it would be better to sell it.”

Since it is an item that was handed over through a business transaction, it must have many great mechanical devices built into it.

If you properly appraise and sell it, you might be able to make a profit.

Of course, it wasn’t something that could be dealt with in a flash like frying beans in a flash.

Before selling an item, there were preliminary preparations that had to be made.

The machines are stamped with a mark indicating the manufacturer.

A representative example is the engraved serial number.

It was important to remove this because if left behind, the company might try to retrieve it.

“It was like this.”

I unscrewed the prosthetic arm and disassembled the joint.

Most modern people have a basic understanding of how to operate machines.

Even if that’s not the case, the knowledge is accumulated through multiple rounds of gameplay experience.

Fortunately, as far as dismantling is concerned, it wasn’t much different from the minigame system within the game.

It took only a moment for it to disintegrate.

“Why are there so many?”

The interior was packed to the brim with all sorts of devices, not wasting even a single bit of space.

From their sophisticated technological capabilities, you could tell that they were not just any ordinary company.

It was on the inside of one of the hex nuts that I discovered the manufacturer’s mark.

“Delipersira.”

It’s a company name I’ve never heard of.

The number of companies established in Gellag City is not in the dozens, but well into the hundreds.

Even civil servants had difficulty keeping track of all the companies that had advanced into other cities.

“I thought you were a professional agent for a large corporation, but was I mistaken?”

It seems like he was just a look-alike.

If there was no anticipation, it would be an illusion.

There was a moment when I thought I needed to gather information separately.

[Dear Foolish Citizens! Here’s the next news! You know a few companies, right? Centrim, Sylvester, Militechnica… … This time, it’s news from Centrim, the pillar of Galaga City, the city that accompanies your every move!]

The host’s voice suddenly became louder on the radio, which had been playing white noise.

[Sentrim! Recently, they have started to expand aggressively. Experts are analyzing that they are trying to completely overtake the perennial second-place company, Sylvester, and seize hegemony!]

Centrim and Sylvester.

The city of Galaga is an age-old rival of the city.

Their competition did not rest for even a second.

If you delve deep into the business of a company, you will inevitably get caught up in the struggle between them in one way or another.

Even without the black humor that says even a speck of dust in the house is a mountain of large corporations, it was bound to be memorable.

[So here’s more news! Centrim has signed an agreement to support several companies that have been verified today! It’s an annual event where we select companies that will become our future hands and feet!]

As you can see, it’s not special news.

The moment I was about to lose interest.

[That’s the list of four! Electronics, Multi-Combat, Robotics… … and finally, Deliphersy! Congratulations on your good fortune in grabbing the money from the Golden Mountain!]

“… …Delipercy?”

I heard a name that had been on my mind just a moment ago.