The Guild Master Whose Hobby Was Helping People Found Himself Surrounded by the Strongest, Overly Attached Members - 50-51

Chapter 50: The Back Alley

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Ragnar’s voice was still echoing behind me as I slipped quietly out of the crowd, grilled chicken skewer in hand.

If I don’t move at times like this, I’ll definitely get caught by someone..

I had a proper excuse ready. I had to buy a souvenir for Lisette. I always left her in charge of the house, and if I didn’t bring back something tangible, I’d be in trouble later. If I wasn’t careful, she might even say something like, “In that case, I’ll take Shin-sama himself as a souvenir,” and actually mean it.

Avoiding the bustle of the main street, I slipped into a quiet back alley. Just being free of the crowd made my chest feel a little lighter.

The shops lining the alley were all small general stores. Wooden shelves and ropes displayed handmade goods for tourists, giving the place a calmer atmosphere than the main street. Basketry, little lamps, charms that claimed to ward off evil. Rings and pendants of metalwork bore the crooked marks of being handmade, which only added to their charm.

My eyes stopped at—a hair ornament woven with fine silver threads. A clear blue glass bead was set at its center, catching the remnants of the sinking sun and glowing faintly like a droplet of crystal.

I couldn’t picture Lisette actually wearing it. But I could easily imagine her keeping it carefully in her desk drawer, taking it out now and then just to gaze at it. That image came to mind far too naturally.

“Customer, you’ve got a good eye,”

The old woman at the shop grinned and spoke up.

“This one’s perfect as a gift for a sweetheart. They say it’s the color that brings happiness.”

“No, it’s not like she’s my lover or anything…”

I hurriedly denied it—but…

“How about it, shall I wrap it up?”

“…Please.”

The old woman deftly placed the ornament into a small box and wrapped it with soft cloth. I accepted it, tucked it into the inside pocket of my jacket, and made a small fist pump in my heart.

All right, that clears the souvenir problem…!

All that was left was to slip back unnoticed, and it would be perfect—or so I thought, until—

“…Stop! Somebody help—!”

A ragged cry echoed from deeper in the alley. Nine times out of ten, it had to be thieves. I didn’t want to get involved in local trouble, but ignoring it would leave a bad taste in my mouth.

“…Haa.”

I let out a sigh of resignation. Stuffing the little box with the ornament into my inner pocket, I rolled my shoulders. I hadn’t come prepared to fight, but my body had already switched into combat mode on its own.

Stepping toward the source of the sound, I saw blades glinting in the dimness. Two thieves had cornered what looked like a tourist against a wall. One pinned the man by the shoulder, while the other brandished a dagger and tried to rip away his wallet.

“Let go! Help—!”

The man struggled desperately. But when the blade grazed his throat, fear choked his voice. At this rate, they might take not just his wallet, but his life as well.

Without stopping my steps, I called out to them.

“—Hey.”

The thieves’ shoulders twitched. When they turned, their faces were twisted with the irritation of beasts whose hunt had been interrupted.

“What the hell are you?”

“A tourist? Pretend you didn’t see and walk away.”

The dagger wielder’s arm was trembling slightly. He was trying to intimidate me, but with that stance he was basically a novice.

“I’m not a tourist. I’m here on guild business.”

I told them and drew the wooden sword I carried at my waist just in case. It wasn’t metal, so they might underestimate me—but I didn’t care.

“Sorry, but you’ll be leaving that wallet.”

At my quiet words, the thieves’ faces flushed red. 

“Don’t mess with us!”

One roared and leapt at me in a rush of anger.

The dagger slashed down—but his step-in was shallow. He’d roared to cover his fear, and his force was wasted. I shifted my body half a step and drove the butt of my wooden sword into his solar plexus. With a groan, he collapsed.

Seeing that, the other thief panicked and thrust his dagger reflexively. But his aim was sloppy. Twisting past the thrusting arm, I swung the wooden sword in a sideways arc into his exposed torso. With a dull thud, he crashed against the wall and crumpled.

“…Glad they were weak ones.”

I couldn’t help a sigh of relief. This level—they were nothing more than common street thugs. I readied my wooden sword again and reached out toward the tourist man, when suddenly…

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Chapter 51: Transfer

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“―Good grief. This is why small fry are such a nuisance.”

The sound of boots striking the cobblestones echoed. From the depths of the alley, a shadow emerged from the darkness.

What stepped forward was a tall man. His shoulders were broad, but his muscles were not grotesquely swollen. His body was supple, honed purely for sharp, efficient movement.

The leather armor draped over him was designed only for practicality, yet its tailoring had an oddly refined quality. At his waist hung a short staff adorned with a purple gemstone. He gave the impression of being something between a thief and a noble. Clearly, he was in an entirely different class from the two underlings.

“Seems my men caused you some trouble.”

The instant his sharply narrowed eyes pierced me, my heart leapt violently. The air in the alley grew oppressively heavy.

“B-Boss…!”

“S-Sorry! This guy got in the way…!”

The two underlings raised desperate voices, and at that title, the answer inside me solidified. This must be the leader of the thieves’ guild that rumors spoke of. I never thought the boss himself would come. If I’d known this, I wouldn’t have left my sword behind.

“…So you’re the one in charge of training these guys?”

“Yes, something like that.”

“Then hurry up and take them back. I already contacted the guards, and they should be arriving any minute now.”

“My, how well-prepared. Is getting wrapped up in this sort of thing a daily occurrence for you?”

The conversation made sense, but the man before me had no interest in me whatsoever. And of course, he didn’t need to. With just a glance, I could tell he was stronger than me.

He wasn’t on Lisette’s or Ragnar’s level, but his ability seemed at least on par with that eerie man I’d fought before. If that were the case, then even his two underlings were troublesome. If I made a careless move, they would seize the opening.

And on top of that, I had the handicap of being just a tourist here. Fighting here would be a losing battle for me. I had to find a way to withdraw.

Thinking that, I kept my wooden sword raised in caution—yet the leader ignored me completely and strode straight toward his men.

“…You’re not hurt, are you? We have work ahead, and what are you doing wasting time here?”

With a tone of exasperation, the leader planted the tip of his staff on the ground. A faint, ominous glow seeped from the gemstone, and a magic circle spread across the stones. Fine, flowing lines wove themselves through the gaps between the cobblestones as if they were alive.

This is… A transfer spell!

A spatial transfer magic of considerable scale. Most likely meant to extract his subordinates. Yet the fact that it required no elaborate chant or gestures meant it was either a prebuilt automatic formula or that he was extremely practiced at it. Either way, it was troublesome. I instinctively stepped back half a pace.

Getting caught in this would be bad. If I were flung into another space with no information, I wouldn’t know the terrain and would just be at his mercy. The smartest choice was to retreat at once. My head understood that. But—

“Tch…!”

As the transfer circle shone even brighter, one man—the tourist who had fallen on his rear at the edge of the cobblestones—was about to be dragged into the center of the spell.

His legs tangled. He couldn’t even run. Eyes wide open, not understanding what was happening, he was about to be swallowed whole by the torrent of light.

There was no time to hesitate. I dashed forward, grabbed his collar, and yanked him back with all my strength. In that motion, my own foot crossed over the edge of the magic circle.

Too late.

The air twisted, gravity flipped in every direction. It was too late—I couldn’t escape. As my body gradually stopped obeying me, I used the last of my strength to fling my wooden sword away and shouted loud enough for the tourist to hear:

“Give this… To the loud musclehead—!”

The corner of my vision was dyed purple, lines of light raced in every direction. All my senses were rapidly cut off, my hearing lost. I couldn’t even tell if I was still shouting.

The last thing my eyes caught was the leader glancing at me, brows narrowing just slightly.

As if to say, “That wasn’t supposed to happen.”

The ground beneath me vanished, and my entire body was hurled into the void. The next moment, I sank into another space soundlessly.

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