Chapter 55: Red Rena
『Red Lightning Bolt』was a party of four men.
Swordsman Brown 38 years old.
Swordsman August 27 years old.
Spearman Gordon 22 years old.
And 『poor dexterity』Magician Eric 28 years old.
Eric doesn’t have much magic power, but he can use simple magic without with short chant, he also use bow to conserve magic power. But his aim is bad that’s why he has『poor dexterity』in his name.
They felt a little responsible, thought that one of the reasons why Rena’s father get killed was their careless approach.
Even a ten years old child like Rena can understand that everyone just come to help. They don’t need to feel responsibility, but everyone was good hunters.
When they learned that Rena has no family other than her father who just died. After consulting for a while, they told Rena.
“Do you want to come with us?” (Brown)
“Huh...?” (Rena)
This world was harsh for a ten years old girl to live by herself.
She can stay in an orphanage, but that is a story if she have a good fortune or a connection.
Will she be handled somewhere as worker, and will be expelled if she gets sick, or will she live as an orphan in slum from the beginning?
Even more, a good looking girl has the potential to be kidnaped by slave hunting, and there are many other dangers.
In that case, it would be better for her to act together with the hunters.
Although ten years old, she is a child of a peddler.
She saw and heard various things during the trip, she knew about it.
Rena responded after thinking for a while.
“...Please” (Rena)
Everyone in 『Red Lightning Bolt』 dug a hole and buried the body of Rena’s father.
After that they loaded the dead body of the defeated bandit to Rena’s father’s horse-drawn carriage.
If the carriage was not there, it was okay with just their head, but if you can carry it, the person who brought the whole corpse will be easier to pass the inspection when receiving the reward.
Carriage and goods were to be sold in the city with the approval of Rena.
If there is a carriage, it is convenient for moving the highway, but it can not be used for moving in forest and mountain areas, maintenance cost are also serious problem.
For hunters under C rank, the carriage is just a luggage for gold eating.
Of course, the money that sold the horse-drawn carriage will be personal given to Rena.
In this way, Rena, a ten year old, decided to act with 『Red Lightning Bolt』
Rena practicing on self-study with magic that is useful for a journey with her father, mainly water magic that puts out water for the horse and ourselves.
She can also use soil magic that keeps the wheels of the horse-drawn carriage in the muddy road. And lastly, she can only use a small fire magic to ignite firewood.
And the『poor dexterity』magician Eric also teach Rena various magci.
Rena as a magician has less magic power Eric, Eric teach her to use bow but her aim was worse than him, soon she become 『poor dexterity 2』magician.
Her body is small, magic power also low, she has neither power nor battle skill.
Because of that, the members of the 『Red Lightning Bolt』 didn’t try to register Rena as a hunter even though she was ten years old.
Rena was insufficient to be a single hunter, and if she was an adult, she would have thought about getting into ordinary work in some city.
For that reason, they have Eric teach her magic that can be used with less magic power and useful in the future, they also teach her how to handle staff for self-defense.
Rena, on the other hand, practiced desperately enough to be useful for everyone. Magic, staffing techniques, and even hunters’ knowledge training.
There is only one ten years old girl who isn’t registering as a hunter among adult men from 20 to 40 years old.
『Red Lightning Bolt』 was ridiculed variously by hunter friends.
But other hunters also know about the circumstances that 『Red Lightning Bolt』 protected a girl who became an orphan. All they can see is a cute little girl that respect and try her best for 『Red Lightning Bolt』
And the time passed, one day when Rena was thirteen years old, 『Red Lightning Bolt』 had an escort quest.
For two carriages, the escort is 『Red Lightning Bolt』 4 people. It was a reasonable number.
Although Rena already remembered attack magic, she was responsible for water supply to preserve the Eric magic power.
Her healing and recovery magic effect is really weak, and she isn’t counted in the fighting force.
Besides the 『Red Lightning Bolt』, there are one merchant and one man on each carriage.
From the existence of the escorts, that’s mean the carriages carrying some kind of goods to trade from the city to the city, not a peddler’s horse carriage loaded with miscellaneous goods.
It is a delicious prey, so the merchant must hire the escort hunters.
Will they attack even if the merchant have escorts? It depends on the number of the bandits.
And on that day, the balance of bandits’s judgment tilted towards “attack”.
“There’re bandits from the front! Their number about ten!” (probably Brown)
“From the back, six! Too many!” (probably August)
Even if there are some escorts, they can still win as ease.
As long as there are sixteen people, no matter how many escort hunters there are, seven to eight people, no match will be achieved.
If this is done, hunters will surrender without fighting, and the bandits side also will not suffer.
Bandits normally also don’t want to kill hunters, if they can earn without fighting it has never been better. Kill hunters that already surrender will just be asking for the guild to gather more hunters to hunt them later.
“Well, we have no choice but to surrender ...” (Brown)
“No, you all will fight” (Merchant A)
“Huh?” (4 of RLB)
Reply to the『Red Lightning Bolt』’s leader surrender suggestion, the merchant who is the employer ordered a battle.
“But, there will be no way to win with sixteen vs four!” (Brown)
“It is a job of escorts! Being robbed of money and goods, can you pay the fee of the escort that abandoned the work? Fight and drive them away!” (Merchant)
“...” (4 of RLB)
After a while in silence, Brown declared.
“Surrender” (Brown)
“Roger that!” (3 of RLB)
“How dare you go against the employer’s command! It is a breach of contract!” (Merchant)
Brown reply to the complaining merchant.
“It’s so obvious that you will surrender after all the escorts has been killed so you don’t have to pay the request fee?” (Brown)
In preparation for such a malicious client, “Surrender is an acknowledgment of the client or a decision of the escort leader. In the situation that the hunter can’t win, even surrender still deem to have fulfilled his obligation, and the compensation will be paid.”
Well, since the investigation to confirm will be done by the guild, it is not possible to mis-use the rule, and this difference in strength can be recognized without problems.
“What!?” (Merchant)
Ignoring the merchant shouting, Brown-san cried out to surrender loudly and the bandits got in a relieved atmosphere, they got closer with a comfortable feeling.
Even if the escorts is small, if a battle with hunters stronger than them, some of their companion will be hurt or die.
If battle can be avoided and steal goods safely, it will be the best.
In the first place, this bandits group gather as many people as possible is aiming for that.
“We’re surrender, please don’t kill anyone, as for gold and goods, consult with the employer over there.” (Brown)
“I understand, as usual, I will not kill anyone. But I will have your weapons, we also have to eat ... Weapons can be sold with good values, weapons will sell easy because it have a lot of demand, we can also use them ourself.” (Bandit leader)
“... can’t we keep some weapons, we don’t have enough money to repurchase all” (Brown)
“Don’t talk back to me! And I will take armor as well.” (Bandit leader)
“It can not be helped ... I understand.” (Brown)
Armor has problems of size, even if they take it away, it wasn’t easy to find people same size to use it, it is considerably cheaper than weapons.
Still the bandits will want to take away all the weapons and armors from those who surrendered.
The bandit after finished negotiations with the escort hunters, ordered the underlings to confiscate weapons and armors from Hunters. And then they moved on to negotiations with merchants.
“What is in carriage?” (Bandit leader)
“... salt and dried meat, salted meat, wheat and other food items and a barrel” (Merchant)
“Hi ~yahho~!” (All the bandits)
The cheers rose from the bandits
“Alright! All of you, take everything” (Bandit leader)
“Please wait! I want to negotiate!” (Merchant)
“What do you want to negotiate?”
To the merchant’s words, his head was a dubious face.
It is natural. For negotiators and anything, what can we say to negotiate against bandits who gonna take away all of the goods in the carriage.
“If you have anything, just say it” (Bandit leader)
The merchant reply to the bandit leader who seems will be in bad mood anytime soon.
“I want you to return one carriage and half of the salt. And the price is a convenient and variously use-able girl that can bring out a lot of water and can lit fire, so she can be used a lot ...” (Merchant)
With that word, Rena froze.
“Stop joking or I’m gonna kill you!” (Brown)
“That is a breach of the agreement!” (Merchant)
The anger rises from the people of 『Red Lightning Bolt』.
“Ho ho ...” (Bandit leader)
The bandit leader get interested in it for a moment, and it was a negative word that came out of his mouth.
“This guy says an interesting thing ... Do you sell the escorts you hired?”
But if the bandit leader take Rena, he will break the promise that is the condition of surrender.
Normally, if bandit break the promise even hunters surrendered. Hunters will fight back, and the damage of the bandits will become bigger.
But, it isn’t just a problem for them this time. The bandits already take all the armors and weapons.
“Well then, how do you think about this?” (Merchant)
The merchant has an evil smile in his face try talking with both Brown and bandit leader.
“You told the employer to surrender. Now your weapons and armors were robbed
Even a foolish hunter should know his place and abandoned the knocked down party member. Or do you want to be killed by the bandits.
She is just a small girl you guys take along to replace a water barrel.
I will tell the guild that I order the surrender instructions and so you don’t need to pay the escort violation of contract fee.” (Merchant talk with Brown)
“And if you accept the deal, you only lose one carriage and one half of salt
You didn’t break a promise, you can get a useful slave
Aren’t both of you will benefit from it. It isn’t a bad deal” (Merchant talk with bandit leader)
“You, bas****, I’m gonna kill you” (4 of RLB)
The『Red Lightning Bolt』angry with the merchant’s words. Rena did not make a voice either.
“Waahahahaha, you are a terrible fellow! ... No, that is really a merchant!” (Bandit leader)
After paying close attention to Rena with his eyes, he thought a little and ordered instructions to his underlings.
“... Kill them” (Bandit leader)
Somehow Rena get what the bandit leader thinking. Because Brown just talked with the merchant about this before. If all the hunters was killed and Rena was take away by the bandits, the only one left to report is the merchant. He can say all the hunters refuse to surrender and was killed by the bandits, the merchant surrender and was take away half of his goods. The bandits also won’t get chased by the guild for break the surrender deal.
She has to do something or the four of them will be killed. But no matter how hard she try, she can’t think of anything.
“Stop...” (Rena) (TN: raw only have Ya... I guess it was Ya(mete)...)
And even before she can think of anything, many swords and spears were struck to the body of the four people of『Red Lightning Bolt』
Four people who were taken away all weapons and surrounded by bandits had no mean to resist. And Brown, August, Gordon, and Eric collapsed on the ground.
“Aaa...” (Rena)
And Rena knees on the ground.
“Aaaaaahhhhhhhh ...” (Rena)
“Then, let’s unload the carriage, transfer the salt ...” (bandit leader)
Dorori (SFX inside Rena mind)
“You are a bad guy too!” (Merchant)
“Haha, aren’t we mutual?” (Bandit leader)
Pu~pu~ (SFX inside Rena mind)
Boko boko (SFX inside Rena mind)
There isn’t enough magical power to do as a magician.
She isn’t a hunter but a non-combatant who can only make water.
Merchant has told that to the bandit leader.
Actually, Rena could use the attack magic slightly, but everyone in the 『Red Lightning Bolt』 told the employer that she can only make water.
It wasn’t true, she can attack magic even poorly, it seems that 『Red Lightning Bolt』worried about Rena being used as a fighting force, or in the unlikely event like this, she may be restrained or killed by the bandits ...
However, Rena’s good magic is water magic. There was not much attack power in Rena with weak magical power. It should have been like that.
“But if we don’t have to worry about water, we will be able to broaden our range of activity, this is lucky ...” (Bandit leader)
Gu~gu~ (Rena’s body is shivering)
“What on earth is this hot and stupid thing in my heart from right now ...?
Sorrow? Despair? Anger? Or Hatred ...?” (Rena)
Rena murmuring with both knees and hands on the ground and mumbling with a low voice, the bandits looked at with a nuisance gaze.
“Well, immediately load the goods ...” (Bandit leader)
At that time, the hot wind blew to the bandit leader who was talking. The merchant and the bandit leader looked back at what was ...
“Gyaaaaaa~!” (about 5-7 bandits)
Approximately half of his underlings became a torch wrapped in lame that has form of red rose.
“What ... !?” (Merchant + bandit leader)
The merchant and the bandit leader are surprised with the scene in front of them.
The remaining half of the bandits were only watching their friends in frightened.
And a small figure emerging from the flame.
“This is stupid (Sona bakana)! You should only able to use water magic” (Merchant)
“Oh, that girl, she’s already dead” (Rena)
“Huh...?” (Merchant)
Rena kept on talking to the merchant who was unable to understand the meaning of her words.
“The daughter of a peddler who is named Rena, who can only use shabby water magic, she died a while ago with my colleagues.
Now I am the one who succeeds the will of everyone in 『Red Lightning Bolt』. I『Red Rena』will kill all the bandits!” (Rena)
“Kill ... kill her!” (Bandit leader)
The leader order with a loud voice like the throat was tearing as well.
However, all the bandits didn’t pull out the sword and there was some distance to Rena. They don’t have enough time to slash her before chanting.
And Rena speak the words. That word that springs up from the bottom of her mind that filled with hatred.
“Burning, the flame of hell! Burn everything to nothingness!” (Rena)
Later, a large scale merchant with a large number of escorts, consisting of thirty carriages.
The things they saw were the burned fields and the 17 burning fires. The four body of hunters, the two carriages and the two people trembling in it.
And it was the appearance of a single girl standing without expression.