Demon Prince 52

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Chapter 52. A Designated Request

Two days after the auction ended.

I was summoned by the guild master and came to the adventurer's guild.

"What’s the matter today?"

"Right. There are three things. First, the reward for the dragon materials is ready. It's 3,640 gold coins. Take it."

"Got it, thank you."

"That’s an outrageous sum for a rookie adventurer. Don’t let anyone steal it."

If people find out I earned this much, I’ll definitely become a target.

Especially with Lily—she’s in serious danger.

"Second. All adventurers who participated in that investigation request are getting a rank-up. Not just one, but two. Jun, you're moving from F-rank to D-rank."

"Two ranks at once?"

"Yeah, considering you defended the kingdom from a Divine Beast Dragon. No one argued against it."

So, Sebasto and Noella are now B-rank.

And Lily has become C-rank.

"I'm B-rank now? I barely did anything before Jun-sama became an adventurer."

"Same for me. It's thanks to Jun-sama."

"I never thought I’d reach C-rank, suuu!"

Normally, it takes much longer to rise in rank.

D-rank is considered competent. C-rank is veteran-level.

B-rank is first-class. A-rank is top-tier.

S-rank is seen as heroic.

Whether I qualify as competent is debatable, but Lily has been hunting for ages.

Sebasto and Noella’s skills are undoubtedly first-class.

"Now, the third matter. There’s a designated request for you."

"A designated request? For me?"

"Yeah, I recommended you. They said you could use Holy Magic, right? So—"

"I refuse."

"Huh? What was that?"

"I refuse."

I smile brightly as I decline.

I just have a really bad feeling about this.

There’s only one kind of request where Holy Magic is needed.

I feel bad for the guild master, but I’m terrible at dealing with that.

"Hold on, why? I haven’t even explained the request yet."

"You don’t need to. It’s obvious—it's a request requiring Holy Magic, isn’t it?"

"Well, yeah. Users of Holy Magic are rare, though not as rare as healers. Right now, you're the only one available in the capital. That’s why this request is for you."

"Still, I refuse."

"Why, though? At least hear me out!"

"I refuse."

"No, no, we can't move forward unless you listen!"

"I absolutely refuse!"

Absolutely NO!

I will never take on a request that involves facing something like that!

"Onii-chan, are you still scared?"

"Jun, that's cute and all, but you should at least listen to him."

Ugh…

The two people who know my weakness aren’t backing me up.

Why can’t you take my side here?!

"Fine, I’ll explain. A friend of mine bought a house—a mansion, actually. But it’s haunted by ghosts."

I knew it!

I can’t handle this!

I’ve always been bad with ghosts, zombies, and anything horror-related.

When I found out this world had ghosts and zombies, I threw myself into Holy Magic training.

But that was because I was scared, not because I wanted to deal with them!

"The mansion was cheap for that reason. But even if it’s cheap, buying a mansion isn’t something you can easily undo. That’s where you come in."

"I refuse."

"Come on, please! Do it as a favor to me!"

"Is this request really that urgent? It doesn’t sound like it."

"Well, no, it’s not urgent, but—"

"Then just wait until another Holy Magic magician is available."

"But I promised my friend I’d take care of it. Please, I’m begging you!"

"Is this friend a woman?"

"Uh… yeah."

"An unmarried woman?"

"Y-yeah, she is."

"And the guild master is single too, right?"

"Uh, well, yeah."

So this old guy wants to impress her.

I kind of get where he’s coming from.

"Is the mansion going to be used as-is?"

"No, it’s old and neglected. They’re planning renovations and repairs."

"Is the ghost a wandering spirit?"

"It’s a maid who was killed by the mansion's previous owner. She attacks the current owner but doesn’t leave the mansion, so it’s a bound spirit."

"Ah, then it’s simple."

"Oh! You’ll take the request?"

"Yes. I’ll just destroy the mansion with magic."

What a brilliant idea!

I can complete the request without encountering the ghost.

"What are you talking about?!"

"If the ghost is tied to the mansion, destroying it will solve the problem. What’s the issue?"

"The mansion was purchased to use it! Blowing it up defeats the purpose!"

"But you’re renovating it anyway, right?"

"Renovation, not rebuilding!"

"Same thing, isn’t it?"

"It’s completely different! The furniture inside is still valuable! You can’t just blow it up! Besides, the mansion is in the capital—you’ll cause collateral damage!"

"No worries there. I’ll use barrier magic to contain the blast. As for the furniture, the guild master can buy replacements. It’ll be an efficient way to get closer to her."

That solves everything!

"Oh, right, you’re Eliza’s son. She’d come up with wild ideas too, but they’d somehow be logical and address all concerns. You’re just like her."

Why, thank you.

"But your plan is rejected. Rebuilding would cost too much."

"Then give up."

"It’s a designated request. Refusing one is unheard of!"

"But it’s allowed, isn’t it? Besides, you accepted this request without consulting me."

"Uh..."

"Just wait for another Holy Magic magician to be available. What’s the issue?"

"Well, actually, the request was made before the auction. They’ve already been waiting for a while. I can’t make them wait any longer."

"Then it’s your poor planning. Give it up."

"Is it really impossible?"

"I refuse."

"I see. Got it."

Looks like he finally gave up.

I feel bad for the guild master, but no means no.

I’ll help him with something else another time.

"Well then, I’ll be leaving."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow."

Tomorrow?

I’ll probably be back for another request, but his expression bothers me.

And the next day…

I ended up accepting the guild master’s request after all.