Welcome to the Monsters’ Guild ~ The Strongest Group Who Did Everything, for a Price ~ - Chapter 17

Raiz’s job – Ranch management

“Raiz, today you’ll come back with us!”

“Hey, Lety, Merck.”

The day after the shadow unit captured Serga’s special forces, the tamer’s old comrades showed up again.

“You are welcome, Lady Lety, Mister Merck.”

Lamia showed them in politely, and the man greeted her back.

“Good morning.”

“Raiz! You were once part of our army, so you should understand your role, don’t you?! This country needs a capable soldier like you to avoid another war!”

He quietly listened to her, but he already knew what she was going to say.
He asked Cat Sith to keep observing them, after all.
They would’ve tried to convince him to return to the army by saying that he would be rewarded adequately for his merits.

“Sorry, but I’m busy this morning. I appreciate your efforts, though. Do you want to come to see me at work?”

“If you came back, there would be no need…!”

“Lety, we shouldn’t hinder his work. Everyone has to work,

so we would only cause problems to other people.”

Merck properly admonished the flamboyant woman.

“Right. If I don’t go to work, I’ll get sued for breaching the contract, and I’ll have to pay a huge amount of money. If the army is going to pay for me, then I’ll seriously think about your proposal. Keep in mind that, to regain the lost trust, the actual sum will grow several times the original amount.”

“Several times?!”

Her body stiffened as she tried to imagine how much that would have been.

“I have to go now. Feel free to come with me, if you want.”

Without waiting for their reply, Raiz left the hut.

“Hey, wait! We haven’t…”

“Why don’t we go to see what he’s going to do? Even though he doesn’t want to come back, he’s at least busy with something.”

“…Fine.”

Maybe she already foresaw the situation, so she quietly listened to her companion.

“A cockatrice?!”

In front of them, the frightening monster that could petrify with its

its gaze was laying in its nest.
Those with a high magic resistance had nothing to worry about, but it posed a real threat to anyone else.
Lety and Merck couldn’t help but hide from it in a panic.

“Don’t worry, her eyes are half-closed.”

“So what?!”

Both replied in a shocked tone.

“Cockatrices can weaken their power by half-closing their eyes. It can’t petrify anyone right now, not even you guys.”

The two soldiers tilted their heads, dumbfounded.
The monster really had its eyes half-closed, as if it was glaring at them.

“I didn’t know they could do that.”

“Neither did I. What a surprise.”

“Well, usually don’t do that intentionally.”

Raiz left the two behind and approached Cockatrice, then he slipped beneath her feathered belly.

“What are you doing?”

Asked a surprised Lety.

“I’m sure it’s cozy in there.”

“Cockatrice’s plumage keeps you warm on cold days.”

Lamia replied seriously to Merck’s joke.

“Thinking about it, a mattress stuffed with its feathers must feel great.”

And then, she thought about a new

a new business move.

“Wouldn’t you need a huge one, though?”

Asked Lety after seeing one of the enormous feathers scattered around.

“But why is Raiz under her right now?”

Merck asked Lamia who pointed at the monster in front of them.

“Look carefully. There’s only one reason.”

They faced that direction again only to see Raiz bringing a huge egg with him.

“I see, you only wanted its egg.”

“Yes, but the crucial part starts now.”

“The crucial part?”

They asked while wearing a quizzical expression, then, all of a sudden, a loud, strange roar pierced their ears.

“W-What?! What’s going on?!”

Raiz dashed away from there and passed by them at full speed.

“Run! Cockatrice is going berserk!”

As Lamia warned them, she was already far away.

“Eh…? Whaaat?!”

“Cackleee!”

The monster unleashed another thunderous roar.

“Waaah!”

The two started to run for their lives.
Behind them, Cockatrice spread her wings and chased them.

“I-It’s flying! It’s gonna swoop on us!”

“No, it’s not flying, it’s gliding! Cockatrices are like chickens, they can’t fly!”

“Who caaares!”

Behind them, a loud them, a loud sound of flapping wings preceded each attack of the monster.
The two soldiers were traumatized by that experience.

“Don’t worry, Cockatrice is not very smart. She will move around for a while, then she will forget about this and return to her nest.”

Raiz was carefully washing their loot in the hut.

“Thank you, guys. You were a great decoy. Today’s catch went flawlessly.”

“De…coy…?”

“Usually, we have to ask fast monsters to help, but you’re well trained.”

Praised them Lamia cheerfully.

“…Kh!”

Lety wanted to punch Raiz with all her strength, but she had no more energy after running around so much.

“We’re gonna sell this egg in town. Are you tired or do you want to tag along?”

Asked Raiz, as he loaded the egg onto a wagon.
Lety immediately regained her energy and stood up.

“Of course we’re coming!”

“I’ll take a break for now. Catch up with you later.”

On the other hand, Merck couldn’t move and was sprawled on the ground.

“Okay, let’s go.”