Another world, Celeste

Chapter Ten

At the mansion of the lord of the mining town, influential individuals gather with the utmost discretion. Aside from the lord, the guild masters of the Adventurer and Commercial Guild are present amidst tension filling the mood of the room. When the bell of the town's clock tower chimes at midnight, a knock on the door cause the lord to flinch in his seat. He invites the guests into his study room and the three people simultaneously stand up when the door opens. Chief strides in with a towering force despite a dwarf's short stature and following behind him are Hovel and the elf ranger, Syl. The lord has taken on his father's position ten years ago and this is his second time meeting the Chief after he begins managing the territory. The second time is even more nerve-wracking than the first time.

"Thank you for coming all the way here, Chief."

The lord extends his welcome after gathering himself and turn to the elf donning a ranger uniform.

"To you as well, miss ranger."

Syl respond by giving an elvish greeting then remain silent throughout the meeting. Now, the attendees are all here to discuss the matter of the incident involving the gnomes in Kirashira Village that occurred a month ago and the improvement of security measures.

The mining town as the name states mines materials in multiple caves that connect through a tunnel leading to the lower mountain in the forest. It is also known as a town of skilfull craftsmen selling their wares in a limited quantity and never sell them a second time once it's sold out unless there is a large demand for it. Apart from that, what set this town apart from the rest is a unique policy enacted by the current lord's grandfather to strengthen and enforce the promise his family made to Chief during the establishment of the mining town; that no dwarves, gnomes and humans living in this town shall be treated poorly and unequally. 

The policy is a mandatory thorough sweep within the organisation of the town for every five years to inspect any corruptions and illegal dealings happening within and outside the system as preventive measures. The guilds' staffs are no exception as well, although it is done according to each guild's policy. Therefore, the sense of security earns every merchants' trusts in managing their business and ease the town's growth into a thriving trade route. The next scheduled sweep is supposed to be in two years. Due to the lord's hindsight of the unexpected incident, he orders for a preliminary sweep especially towards the temporary employees they hired to handle the huge influx of visitors coming for the elves' village's festival and those who begin working in this town for the last two years. The internal department is busily investigating the matter with Master Hovel's assistance.

Officially, the mining town is under the city of Esmeron's jurisdiction but in reality, the town could only exist due to Chief's permission in opening the trade route famously known as Kiln Road. Five generations of the lord's family have served in maintaining the well-fare of this territory and building good relations with the dwarves and gnomes, in return of Chief's protection. The lord is frantic over the outcome of this meeting and nervously glances at Chief who's sitting in his direct line of sight. If Chief decides to close the trade route of Kiln Road, there won't be anything to change his decision.

Chief listen to the same information with what Hovel has informed him beforehand. The identification check on the swindling merchant and adventurer's arrival is cleared through the crystal orb. Problem is, entry to Kirashira Village needs to be reserved through a specialised civil officer team who act on behalf of the elves' representatives and it's been found the criminals stole the existing names on the reservation list. Since neither the merchant nor the adventurer is capable of manipulating the guild card's information, they deduce a mage is involved in their scheme. The internal department found the mage amongst the temporary workers the lord recruited from the city and the people whose identities are stolen are newcomer adventurer and a merchant's apprentice. With the assistance of the Imperial Army soldiers, they've been found unconscious and tied up in the woods and alive.