The Government Can’t be Trusted

「…If there’s really an Emperor Ogre in the forest, an artificial monster called a Demon Venom might be involved.」

「Demon Venom? That sounds familiar.」the manager said, tilting his head, puzzled.

Huh. So even in a world with underdeveloped magical craft, they know the name of an artificial monster. I sense some curious circumstances.

「You’ve heard of the Demon Venom?」

「Yes. Once when we destroyed a base of this dangerous criminal organization – rules bar me from mentioning their name – we found the term Demon Venom in their documents. Though we never knew what it meant.」

I see. A criminal organization. Just like in the game, this world’s criminal organization is more technologically advanced than the guild. Wait a sec…

「By criminal organization, do you mean the Garden of Despair?」

「Wha-」

The manager froze in astonishment. It seems I hit the mark.

「Where’d you hear that name?」

「I ran into them one time. I did take them out, though. It was then that I got the name.」

「You took out the Garden of Despair…? Were you in a party with high-ranking adventurers then?」

「Nope. I was alone. I did lose most of my pursuers and actually only fought one of their guys.」

I recalled the time I fought the Garden of Despair’s assassin. If more members as strong as that guy grouped up to take me out, it would’ve been a gruelling battle.

「So you gave your pursuers the slip, fought one-on-one and won? That explains why you’re strong.」

His tone suggested the Garden of Despair’s assassins were awfully feared. I couldn’t blame them. If they got hit by that surprise attack (a poisoned knife, in my case), I don’t think even high-ranked adventurers have a way out of the situation. If there were several adventurers, even if one got hit by the knife, the rest can still deal with it somehow.

「How does the guild view the Garden of Despair?」

「A criminal organization with incredibly strong fighters and unknown technology. We don’t know any specifics. We acquired significant information about them when we seized one of their bases. Or at least we would have. Due to a guild staff’s incompetence, most of the materials were lost in a fire. We ended up with only little info.」

「Lost in a fire, huh… That sounds suspicious.」

If they screwed up and the materials caught fire, they could’ve put it out right away and save most of them. But if most of the materials were lost in the fire, that means either no one was guarding them or the guard just watched as they burned.

「Yeah. That staff was accused of being a spy and was executed. There could be others as well so even when talking with a guild personnel, it’s better to be careful in mentioning anything related to the Garden of Despair.」

「Got it. In any case, you can verify that the term Demon Venom was indeed found in the Garden of Despair’s documents, correct?」

「Yes. There’s no doubt about that.」

Things are getting interesting. Maybe Cardinal Georgis and the Garden of Despair have a connection. If a key figure of the kingdom is working with the Garden of Despair, we can’t trust the government itself.

「I have a general grasp of the situation now. Anyway, if I killed the Emperor Ogre, that will stop the evacuation, right?」

「Yeah. Can you do it?」

「If the Demon Venom is really the one behind the monsters’ sudden violence, I have a chance. But I hope you don’t hold it against me if I don’t kill it.」

Normally an Emperor Ogre is not a monster I can kill with my current level. If I used the Demon Venom’s effect to my advantage, I have a chance of success, but even then it’s still pretty low. If it looks like I can’t win, I’ll just retreat.

「If you have a chance, then please. I’ll do anything I can to help. Though the power of a guild branch manager in the sticks doesn’t amount to much.」

「I’ll do what I can.」

「Thank you. But know that if you killed the Emperor Ogre, Cardinal Georgis might have his eyes on you. I’m really grateful you want to take on the case, but are you sure about this?」

I see. True, if I directly opposed the Cardinals plans, I might draw his attention. He might send a few assassins after me.

Right now I have two choices: First is I stay low and live my life quietly so I don’t draw the Cardinal’s attention. This one’s probably the easiest and most comfortable. Second is I pick a fight with him and take him out. This one sounds fun but dangerous.

So I only have to choose between the two… but I actually already made up my mind.