How to Survive in a Good Small Guild - Chapter 41

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Survive in a Small-Scale Guild
Chapter 41
“Is there any other information besides this?”
When I posed the question, Bain let out a sigh.
“A few weeks ago, hoping to let her go completely, I burned all the letters we’d exchanged during her lifetime—the ones her family had kept. But among the burning letters, I found this one and recovered it immediately.”
“It wasn’t a letter addressed to you?”
“Exactly. People seemed to assume it was meant for me, but I’ve never received a letter like this one.”
“Is that all the information you have?”
“For now, yes.”
“There must be a reason you sought out this mercenary corps to question us.”
“Well…”
Bain hesitated before continuing.
“Look carefully at the end of the letter. She drew a picture there herself.”
“Ah, I see.”
It was a shield-shaped drawing. But what does this have to do with the Platinum Mercenary Corps?
The moment I tilted my head in confusion, Sedric interjected.
“Looking closely, it does seem to resemble the emblem of the Platinum Mercenary Corps.”
“That’s precisely it. That’s why I believe my beloved had some connection to the Platinum Mercenary Corps through whoever she was trying to write to.”
“But if that was over a decade ago… the Platinum Mercenary Corps only appeared four years ago and has grown at an incredible pace, as I understand it. The timing doesn’t match. Wouldn’t this simply be coincidence?”
“Well, don’t you think the emblem is far too similar to be mere coincidence?”
“True, not just the shield itself but even the patterns drawn within it match the Platinum Mercenary Corps’s emblem almost exactly.”
As I listened to Bain and Sedric’s conversation, I organized my thoughts.
Hmm, it’s still hard to deduce much from romance fantasy tropes alone.
In any case, Bain’s beloved sent a letter to someone over a decade ago, spoke of strange things like keeping secrets, and the Platinum Mercenary Corps’s emblem was on it.
“All right, I think it would help if you told us more about your beloved. Why don’t you make this an official request to us?”
“Can I really trust you?”
Looking at Bain, who still seemed skeptical, I decided to make a bold move.
“Full refund of commission fees if we fail.”
It was the kind of declaration only someone truly confident could make.
But I genuinely wanted to succeed in this request. That way, I could forge a connection with Bain—the man who would one day become the owner of the Platinum Mercenary Corps.
Startled by my confidence, Bain finally nodded.
“That’s something only someone truly assured would say. All right, I accept.”
***
The next day, we formally received from Bain, who came to the Akright Guild, detailed information about his beloved.
“Maria Anže—they were friends since childhood, but she suffered from an illness. As she grew older, the condition worsened, and…”
“Guild Master, how in the world did you manage to bring such a major request?”
“I have tremendous respect for you.”
Susanna and Morian, who had pressed close to my side, also examined the information with keen interest.
We reviewed the information about Maria Anže together, but we couldn’t determine where she’d sent the letter.
“Isn’t this interesting?”
Just then, Susanna pointed to something and spoke up.
“She made huge donations every month! It’s impressive, even for a noble!”
“Can’t a noble make donations if she wishes?”
“Even if I were a noble, I wouldn’t donate such a large sum.”
When Susanna answered Sedric’s question that way, his expression turned peculiar.
“Well, I’ve never experienced it myself… judging by my own standards would certainly be elitist of me…”
“What are you talking about, Sedric?”
“Nothing at all.”
At Susanna’s words, I too turned my attention to Maria Anže’s donation history. While the recipients’ names weren’t all listed, she’d donated to various places, and as for taxes…
“Here—she received a tax deduction on charitable contributions in her year-end tax settlement.”
“Oh, even a noble manages her finances meticulously.”
Morian said something completely off the mark. I, who had been scrutinizing with fierce concentration to find something suspicious, let out a sigh.
“No, what good does it do to look at someone else’s tax deductions… I suppose we need to think more carefully about this for now.”
Saying that, I stood up to have lunch when Susanna waved her hand.
“I’m going to skip lunch today. I’m on a diet.”
“Ah, all right.”
I didn’t stop Susanna.
Susanna had skipped lunch saying she was on a diet three times so far, only to eat spicy chicken cream rose pasta the very next day.
Just then, Morian suddenly exclaimed in an unusually cheerful voice:
“Oh, today I’ll be eating lunch on my own!”
“Pardon?”
“It seems he intends to eat alone.”
At Sedric’s words, Morian winked and spoke up.
“Exactly. I’m a very perceptive person, you see. I read situations well, and I know precisely when to make my exit.”
What on earth was he talking about? I must have looked utterly bewildered, because Sedric heaved a long sigh.
“No, that’s really a misunderstanding—or rather, never mind.”
“So… shall we go grab lunch, just the two of us?”
“Yes.”
Sedric and I headed out for lunch together.
We sat down at the pasta restaurant we frequented and ordered our usual dishes.
Still, it felt a bit awkward with just the two of us. Normally Susanna would be firing off topics left and right.
“Come to think of it, where do you live, Sedric?”
I asked the question first to break the tension.
“I… live in District 1.”
“What? Isn’t that where all the nobles’ estates are—an expensive neighborhood?”
“I’m renting a spare room quite cheaply, actually…”
I thought of Morian’s place and nodded. Right—there’s no reason District 1 wouldn’t have those kinds of arrangements too.
Susanna lives in an illegally expanded house, and both Sedric and Morian are early-career professionals like me, so it makes sense we’d all struggle with housing.
“Finding a place really is tough. Though I shouldn’t complain since I have a roof over my head, but I’ve heard other guild members struggling with housing too.”
“It’s certainly a problem that needs addressing.”
“What about your parents—do they live separately?”
“Yes, my parents… they live far away…”
“Oh, did you come to the Capital from the provinces like Morian?”
“Actually, I was born in the Capital, but my parents moved away… and we don’t have a good relationship…”
“I see—some people do spend their retirement in the provinces. In any case, it must feel lonely being apart from family. I don’t have much to do on weekends either, so let’s stay close and support each other from now on.”
“Yes, thank you…”
It was then that I realized I’d been interrogating Sedric like some kind of detective.
“This is probably boring, isn’t it? Hmm, do I have any interesting stories…?”
“Not at all. I wanted to hear these things.”
“Really?”
“That is… stories about the Guild Master, I mean—no, never mind.”
The moment I stopped managing my expression and narrowed my eyes at him, he seemed to realize how odd his words sounded and hastily added to clarify.
“Because, well, I want to get promoted too.”
“Ah, I see…”
How honest of him. At least with that straightforward mindset of getting close to the boss for a promotion, there won’t be any misunderstandings.
Our food arrived, and we ate in silence.
On our way back to the guild, I noticed booths had been set up in the Square in an unusual arrangement.
“What’s that?”
“From what I hear, it’s a Government Subsidy Center.”
“A Government Subsidy Center?”
“Yes, this quarter’s newly opened Government Subsidy Center analyzes each person’s income and circumstances comprehensively and tells them what subsidies they’re eligible for.”
What’s with that spokesperson-like tone?
…Wait a minute.
“Tax deduction!”
“Excuse me?”
“That tax deduction from before! The rate varies depending on where you donate, right?”
“Ah yes! There aren’t many places where donations qualify for tax deductions.”
“It means the government officially recognizes the facility.”
“That would be…”
Sedric’s eyes widened as something dawned on him.
“The tax deduction rate for this… it has to be an orphanage! It can’t be anything else!”
“An orphanage?”
“I’ve memorized all the tax deduction rates!”
“But why on earth…?”
“I… learned it at my previous company.”
“Ah, I see…”
It must have been that kind of place. It seemed Sedric had to handle HR, administration, general affairs, customer relations, sales, and even design all at once.
‘An orphanage…’
Could Maria Anže’s donation to an orphanage be connected to that letter somehow…?
In that moment, a story came to mind.
It’s a novel that even gets the occasional homage in Romance Fantasy, so maybe it could be….
‘Daddy Long Legs!’
What if Maria Anže had sent that letter to a child from the orphanage?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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