Entering a Company From Another World! – Chapter 139

When I heard the term “Adventurer’s Guild Master,” I imagined three possible types of people.

The first was a gruff, battle-hardened Guild Master, the type who would be popular at a branch like this but have a difficult relationship with headquarters.

The second was a beautiful woman or girl with a hidden agenda. They could be a Dark Elf, a Vampire, a Beastkin, or any number of other possibilities, but in stories, they usually turned out to be attractive.

This type of person was typically someone who relied on their intellect.

The third type was…

“Nice to meet you, meow! I am the Guild Master who manages this guild, Mike, meow. By the way, I’m not a cat Beastkin, but a Cat Fairy, meow. Please don’t confuse the two, meow.”

…the type where a small animal served as the Guild Master.

However, I couldn’t underestimate them just because of their appearance.

Despite their appearance, the strength in their eyes conveyed the impressiveness of someone who had seen many battles.

Immediately judging that this was no ordinary creature, I straightened myself and introduced myself in return, determined not to be outdone.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Jiro Tanaka. Jiro is my given name, and Tanaka is my family name. I’m a Human, and I’m a Dungeon Tester belonging to the Demon Lord’s Army.”

Guided by Amiricia, I was led to a room in the back on the third floor of the building. The one who greeted me in the Guild Master’s office was… a cat.

To put it plainly, it was like a cat wearing boots.

It wore a white shirt and a red tie, stood perfectly upright on its hind legs, and had its back straight.

Upon confirming our entry, the cat, who introduced itself as Mike, walked on two legs. It trotted over to us, its light weight evident in its gait, jumped onto a stool prepared by Amiricia, and extended a paw.

It offered a paw with magnificent paw pads. For a moment, I thought it wanted me to pet it, but I quickly understood it was seeking a handshake and lightly grasped its paw.

“I’ve heard about you, meow. The Dungeon Experiment Unit directly under the Demon Lord. The location and personnel are kept secret, so much so that even I, a mere Guild Master, might not know if it truly exists, meow.”

“Am I some kind of ghost?”

“Ghosts exist, so I can believe that, but someone like you is something I wouldn’t believe unless I saw them with my own eyes, so in a way, you’re even more so, meow.”

The cat, swaying its split tail, grinned.

It implied I was a rarer creature than a ghost, but my workplace was essentially the birthplace of Heroes. It wasn’t unusual for such a high level of information suppression to be in place.

“So, as Amiricia told me, what is it that you need to report to me regarding the future of the guild, meow?”

Having finished the handshake, the Guild Master returned to its desk with its light footsteps. The desk was so large that even I would consider it big, which was disproportionate to its small body. Seeing the piles of documents on it, I could tell it was busy with work. Perhaps that’s why it cut to the chase, preferring to postpone troublesome discussions.

“To put it directly, I’m here to report that this Dungeon is about to dry up. And it will happen in the near future.”

“What?!”

I echoed its sentiment lightly, and Amiricia, who had been about to put away the stool, turned back in surprise. However, I kept my gaze fixed on the Guild Master.

“I like jokes, but I don’t like jokes like that, meow. If you want to have fun talking with me, you should work on your joke-telling skills, meow.”

“I wish it were a joke too, but unfortunately, this is a situation that can’t be resolved with a joke.”

Frankly, if it weren’t for my title as a Dungeon Tester, a position directly managed by the Demon Lord, I would be just a newcomer to this guild, and the Guild Master wouldn’t be meeting me directly. Furthermore, that title itself only had the value of an information source to verify the existence of Dungeon Testers. Once confirmed, the cat would likely end this meeting immediately. In essence, I was being given this opportunity to converse with the Guild Master out of sheer curiosity.

“And what about that human woman, meow?”

Honestly, I found this treatment infuriating, but I also had a bomb to drop. If it meant gaining more allies, I could endure this treatment. Holding a vulgar, dark emotion in my gut, I grinned and pointed at Himik with my thumb. The cat tilted its head, asking what joke this was.

Toward the cat, I said:

“This is the proof, a Fallen Angel.”

I slammed the physical evidence down.

“Himik, when I give the signal, release your hidden wings.”
“What’s the meaning of this, Master? Wouldn’t it be better to show them from the start? Perhaps I should threaten them directly?”
“Stop talking and act, won’t you? Huh?”

As we had rehearsed, Himik released her wings, and they unfurled with a rustle, spreading black wings.

“Mew mew mew!? What! A Fallen Angel!?”
“Hii!?”

The reason I went through such a roundabout method was to control the atmosphere of the situation. The negotiation table is more advantageous for the one who has seized the atmosphere. Although she is a Fallen Angel, she was originally an Angel. For the Demon Lord’s Army and those under its protection, being suddenly introduced to something like a disaster in a casual manner would surely cause surprise. For an ordinary person, it would be like being handed a bag and then told its contents were a bomb.

“I found this one inside a Dungeon and heard from her directly that she is a Dungeon Core. If you say that’s not proof, then unfortunately, our conversation ends here.”

Ah, it was indeed a bomb. Honestly, I wanted to praise Himik for acting as instructed. Somehow, I thought she was the type to alter recipes when cooking, even if she was just following them, based on a vague feeling that the dish would look delicious. Truthfully, my own heart was pounding faster than the Guild Master’s or Amiricia’s, but that’s a secret. I was anxious, wondering if she might not notice the signal for proof, or release her wings arbitrarily because they felt constricting, or do something to ruin the mood for an unpredictable reason. Even now, as I speak with a calm expression, I’m inwardly breathing a sigh of relief that it went well.

“That magic power, it seems real, meow.”

“Are there fakes?”

“There are Winged beings, meow. They have a form very similar to Angels, so sometimes they claim to be Angels and engage in fraudulent activities. We deal with them every year, meow.”

“What a rude cat. To lump me in with such beings. I have more wings than them!! Don’t be mistaken!”

“You, be quiet.”

“Master, this is a matter of pride as an Angel! Even I am angered to be associated with those bird-mocks!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll listen to you later.”

“Then it is acceptable.”

I wanted to tell Himik that her retorts were misplaced, but to keep the conversation moving, I silenced her. I suppressed the urge to tell her to verify it thoroughly and show her wings, patting her head. Mait and Gray watched with wry smiles. Himik, with her head being patted, puffed out her cheeks with a pout, but I ignored it. Where had her initial cool demeanor gone? Well, that impression vanished within two seconds of our conversation.

“What are you doing?”

“Won’t magic fly at us, meow?”

“It won’t fly.”

While we were having that exchange, something happened to the Guild Master and the others. While Himik and I were bantering, Amiricia and the Guild Master had used desks and bookshelves to create a barricade. The Guild Master’s face, peeking out cautiously from behind it, looked as if she was worried about angering Himik and being annihilated.

“What kind of beings are Angels to you people?”

“In a word, they are recognized as more dangerous beings than you probably imagine, meow.”

“They have no blood or tears, and when they fight, the place is painted red.”

“Is it like an earthquake or something?”

“In a way, it’s even more so.”

The situation, indicating it was too stimulating, made me feel the disconnect. I checked with Mait and the others, and it seemed they also recognized this Fallen Angel as a surprisingly dangerous being. The way they flinched whenever I looked at the Guild Master and the others, and then hid behind the barricade, suggested that Mait was telling the truth.

“It’s alright, you can come out.”

“R-really, meow?”

“Yeah.”

“Will you skin me and stuff me, meow?”

“Do they do that? Angels?”

“There was a subordinate of my sister’s who collected the heads of enemies. She decorated her entire room with them.”

“Hii!”

When I asked Himik if such a thing was possible, expecting a negative answer, I received an affirmative reply. Himik, who had actually seen it, said it was quite imposing, and the Guild Master, who had briefly peeked out, disappeared behind the barricade again. This wasn’t going to advance the conversation.

“Haa, Guild Master, do you believe the story from before now?”

“Of c-course, meow! So, please spare my life!”

It wasn’t progressing, but it had to. It became a form of coercion, but it couldn’t be helped.

“Well, now that you believe the story about the Dungeon drying up, the next issue is the person responsible for the organization’s management. I’d like to move on to the next topic, is that alright?”

“Th-there’s still more, meow?”

For me, the objective was already met by providing advance information about the town that was managed with Dungeons, including the Adventurer’s Guild. If I did nothing further, the responsibility would fall on this cat. I wouldn’t know. For me, what I was about to discuss was the main point. Despite the cat’s pleading, small-animal-like expression, I couldn’t stop questioning if there were more problems.

“For me, this is the main issue. So, could you please tell me how to contact the Demon Lord’s Army headquarters?”

As I spoke, pointing at Himik, the Guild Master let out a sigh of relief from behind the barricade and said to wait a moment, meow. Then, rustling sounds could be heard as it rummaged through something.

“Amiricia, take this to him, meow.”

“Why me!? You take it, Master.”

“Hush, meow. I have a wife waiting for my return and thirteen children, meow. This is for their foundation.”

“No way! I have to preserve this life for my future husband too!”

“It’s the Guild Master’s order, meow.”

“You’re being cowardly because you want to save yourself!”

“I’m a cat, so I don’t understand, meow.”

“You idiotic cat!!”

I could only elicit a wry smile at the subsequent exchange. After showing such a provocative attitude earlier, not a trace of it remained.

“I’ll go get it.”

“Sorry, Gray, please.”

Sensing that my approach would only increase the confusion, I was grateful that Gray stepped in. As Gray slowly moved towards the noisy barricade, the clamor abruptly ceased. After a brief exchange of words, Gray returned with a green, glass-like orb in his hand.

“What is this?”

“This place is close to the Dungeon, meow. It’s a communication orb given by the country in case of any unforeseen events. With this, you can contact the Demon Lord’s Army headquarters, meow.”

The Guild Master explained without minding our conversation across the barricade. With a slight wry smile, I flowed my magic into the orb as instructed.

“Yes, Demon Lord’s Army. What happened- AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! You!!”

For some reason, a familiar demon appeared. Yes, specifically, this was probably the Supervisor’s… –

“Should I say it’s been a while? Ah, what was your name again?”

He was the younger brother whose name I didn’t know, whom I had once punched out during training because he was getting too carried away.

Today’s word: “Be mindful of the dosage when it comes to putting on a cat-like persona.”

That’s all for today. If you found this interesting, please leave your comments, ratings, and bookmarks. I hope you’ll continue to support this work.