An ordinary profession creates the world's strongest

"Of course, maintaining a barrier that covers the entire caravan won't last long unless you're summoned from another world. It will take a little longer, but as long as you wait patiently, the barrier will automatically dissolve."

The caravan might have been attacked by surprise at the beginning. Several people were injured and squatting on the ground, and several others were lying in a pool of blood, apparently having been killed by thieves.

The caravan was barely able to hold out thanks to the sturdy barrier Shi and the others had mentioned. However, the numbers on both sides were already outnumbered, and the number of guards had even been reduced by several. If the barrier were to break, they would be slaughtered. A woman who appeared to be an adventurer was seen being stripped naked by the thieves as a warning to fellow adventurers within the barrier.

Just as Hajime had guessed, the moment they finished speaking, the barrier lost its effectiveness and disappeared into thin air as if melting.

As if they had been waiting for this opportunity, the bandits shouted and swarmed towards the caravan, their minds seemingly focused solely on the spoils of war, and every face sported a lewd grin. The guards fought desperately, but were outnumbered and fell one after another.

At this moment, Kaori, who had been frozen in shock, anxiously asked Hajime for help.

“Hashi-kun, please save them! Whoever’s there might be…”

Hajime responded to Kaori's request without even hearing her words, silently accelerating his magic-powered four-wheeled cart, the "Britjet." The facts were stark: if he'd listened to Kaori's words and considered saving them, the caravan would have been completely destroyed. So, regardless of Kaori's intentions, he'd act first. Hajime's motto was decisiveness, and even more so when it came to his companions' requests.

The wheels of the Britt bit the ground tightly, and the car accelerated forward with the force of a rocket.

"Hajime-kun...thank you."

Seeing that Hajime was willing to take action even without hearing the details, Kaori smiled happily, but Hajime just shrugged.

Meanwhile, Yue and the others saw Hajime driving at high speed and seemed to realize what he was planning to do. They all fastened their seatbelts and held onto anything secure inside the car.

“Um, um, Hajime-kun? You’re not…”

Britt's speed increased over time, and Kaori's cheeks twitched. She had indeed been the one asking him to rescue her, but she couldn't help but wonder: As someone with common sense about Earth transportation, was it really okay for him to use that method without hesitation?

Hajime answered Kaori, who possessed common sense, without blushing or panting:

"When you see a criminal, you should step on the accelerator... Isn't that what driving school teaches?"

"No way! Don't bend traffic rules without your permission! Look, Yue and the others believed it!"

Despite Kaori's taunts, Hajime didn't care at all and rushed towards the man directing the thieves from behind. His movements, without a single ounce of hesitation, seemed to say, "Cars exist to run over criminals!"

The man who looked like the bandit leader finally noticed the unidentified object, raising a cloud of dust and rapidly approaching. He frantically gave instructions to his companions and began to chant magic himself. They must have thought it was a new kind of monster, never dreaming it was a manned hunk of steel.

He injected magic power into the machine, activating the mechanism of the Bridget. Sharp blades about one meter long immediately extended from both sides of the hood and the top cover.

Seeing a monster they had never seen before rapidly approaching, the thieves' faces were filled with fear, and they launched a series of fireballs at it. Since those attacks were pointless anyway, Hajime ignored them completely and charged forward without a word.

Seeing that the black iron block was not hurt even after being hit by several inflamed bullets and continued to rush forward, the thieves were extremely shocked.

Bang! Crack! Bang! As the realistic sounds echoed, the thieves, with expressions of trembling, despair, and confusion, were easily knocked away.

Some rolled on the hood and were cut off by the sharp blades on the top of the hood; some tried to jump to the sides to avoid it, but had parts of their bodies cut off by the sharp blades on both sides; those who were lucky enough not to be hit by the sharp blades were knocked into the air by the vehicle at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour, and their bones and internal organs were shattered.

In just a moment of conflict, seven people from the rear group of thieves were killed.

After crushing the rear group of thieves, he reversed the car in a tailspin and stopped behind the thieves.

Whether they were thieves or caravan members, everyone was stunned, staring at this sudden massacre. Some thieves and guards even stood there, swords still clashing, staring at each other in bewilderment.

Hajime ignored them, turned back to look at Kaori, and said in a confirming tone:

"Since I'm going to take action, I won't show any mercy. No one will be left alive. No mercy will be shown to them. Do you understand me?"

“…Yeah, I understand.”

Hajime's point is: no matter how kind Kaori is, she is not allowed to heal or protect the enemy. If she shows mercy to the enemy, Kaori can no longer be Hajime's companion and should return to the team of heroes.

Kaori took a deep breath, looked at Hajime with a determined look, and nodded.

"Just go ahead, I won't let anyone get in your way."

"Um!"

After getting off the car, Kaori ran towards the injured person without looking back. Although the thieves were frightened by Britt, they immediately came to their senses when they saw that it was a young woman coming towards them. They were furious at their companion's murder and attacked Kaori.

"You stinky bitch! Go to hell!"

The thief roared and swung the sword in his hand.

However, Kaori only glanced at him and then looked away as if nothing had happened. She did not slow down at all, chanting as she ran towards the injured.

Seeing that Kaori didn't take him seriously, the thief became even more angry, but he couldn't show his anger because the next moment, his head was blown off.

—Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

As explosions continued to rip through the air, a murderous wind swept through, sending thieves' heads blasting one after another, blood and flesh flying everywhere. Seeing that scene, the rescued guards couldn't help but shudder.

The battle was so one-sided and brutal that the number of thieves, originally over forty, was reduced to half in just a few seconds.

The bizarre scene caused several thieves to panic. They shouted and rushed towards the rabbit girl who was standing there in a daze, attempting to take her hostage.

A guard shouted, "Danger!" However, that was a pointless worry. Sia, who was currently here, had been continuously strengthened, becoming superhuman. The fighting rabbit had no blind spots!

Shia reached diagonally behind her and pulled the Drukken from her 'treasure vault'. With a snap, she gripped the handle tightly and swung it out in one swift motion. As the Drukken swung, a circular white film formed at its tip – a wall of air – which shattered the upper bodies of the three thieves who were approaching at once, sending them flying.

"Huh? Wow, that's a lot of blood!"

Having recently faced no enemies of normal (common) strength, Shia's power against the mobs was miscalculated. She'd intended to send the enemy flying, but instead accidentally snapped him in the middle, like a twisted version of the forbidden game of 'Da Daruma'. The spray of blood startled Shia, and she quickly jumped back to avoid it.

Yue and Tio were speechless at Shia's reaction, and at the same time, they cast magic without mercy, making it completely impossible for the thief to get close, and they were brutally ravaged.

When there were only about ten thieves left, they finally started to flee, but they couldn't escape. They were all easily shot in the back of the head and died without even a chance to beg for mercy. It was a completely ruthless massacre.

Kaori repeatedly cast the multi-person intermediate recovery spell "Kaiten" to heal the injured adventurers and caravan members. Unfortunately, the adventurers who had fallen before Hajime and the others arrived seemed to have already died. Even regeneration magic could not revive the dead, and Kaori was unable to save them.

Kaori gritted her teeth, looking at the group with regret when a figure suddenly rushed over. The person was short, his face hidden by the hood of his cloak, making him look very suspicious. However, Hajime, judging by the flow and color of his magic power, could tell that this person was the one who had cast the barrier and desperately protected the caravan, so he allowed him to pass without stopping him.

"Kaori!"

The cloaked figure called Kaori's name in a gentle voice, rushed over and threw herself on her, hugging her tightly. Kaori didn't expect her guess to come true, and her face was full of surprise. She called out to the other person:

"Lily! Are you really Lily? I thought that barrier looked familiar, but I didn't expect you to be in a place like this. I was skeptical..."

The one wearing a cloak, whom Kaori calls Lily—

It was none other than Liliana S.B. Heilig, the princess of the Heilig Kingdom.

Liliana seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Her shining blond hair, blue eyes, and beautiful features were visible beneath the brim of her hat. She narrowed her eyes, a mixture of emotions, and stared at Kaori. She said,

"I didn't expect to meet Kaori in a place like this... I'm so lucky. Looks like my luck isn't over yet."

"Lily? What do you mean..."

Kaori didn't understand what Liliana meant. As if suddenly realizing something was wrong, Liliana covered her face with her hat again and put her index finger to Kaori's lips, signaling her not to call out her name.

It seemed Liliana had indeed arrived here alone, without any entourage, having joined the caravan. Kaori understood that something must have happened to force a princess to do this, and her expression suddenly became solemn.

"Kaori, is the treatment over?"

Just as Kaori and Liliana were staring at each other seriously, Hajime came over and asked.

Since there was no sound beforehand, Liliana couldn't help but let out a cute exclamation of "Ah!" and looked up at Hajime from under her cloak. After thinking for a moment, she suddenly said to Hajime with an expression of sudden enlightenment:

"...You're Nagumo-san, right? It's been a while. I heard from Shizuku and the others that you're still alive. I'm truly impressed by your strong will to live. I'm so glad you're safe... Kaori was truly unbearable to watch while you were away, weren't you?"

"Really, Lily! Now's not the time to talk about that!"

"Hehe, I also heard about Kaori's courageous confession from Shizuku. Can you tell me the details later?"

Liliana's tone seemed to be teasing Kaori. She ignored Kaori who was blushing with embarrassment and smiled at Hajime.

Liliana was a princess beloved by her people. Her charming smile captivated everyone, young or old, regardless of gender.

However, Hajime didn't seem to feel anything about it. Instead, he looked at Liliana with a puzzled look and said tactlessly:

“…By the way, who are you?”

"what?"

When Hajime was still in the Kingdom, Liliana actively communicated with Kaori and the others, and must have had several conversations with other students. Due to Hajime's awkward position, she did not talk directly with Hajime often, but she did have conversations with Hajime in Kaori's company.

Furthermore, Liliana was a princess, and with her approachable personality, even people who had only spoken to her once had never forgotten her. So when she saw Hajime looking at her like a stranger, Liliana couldn't hide her inner turmoil, even making strange noises unbecoming of a princess.

Seeing Liliana's stunned expression, Kaori quickly came to her rescue. If Liliana's princess identity was exposed, it would be troublesome, so Kaori leaned close to Hajime's ear and whispered:

“Hajime-kun! She’s the princess! The princess! Princess Liliana of the Heilig Kingdom! You’ve spoken to her, right?!”

“…………………………………………………………………………Ahh.”

"Wow, I was forgotten. This makes me feel really hurt, wow."

“Lily! Don’t cry! Hajime-kun is just a little bit ‘that’! Hajime-kun is a ‘special case’, ‘normally’ no one would forget Lily! So please stop crying, okay?”

"Hey, you always feel like I'm being called worthless?"

Kaori tried her best to comfort the tearful Liliana, but her words were quite hurtful, and Hajime couldn't help but complain.

Kaori brushed it off with a "Hashi-kun, be quiet!" And Liliana's resolute response, "It's okay, Kaori, I was just too arrogant," left Hajime unable to complain. This was Hajime's fault for completely forgetting Liliana's existence.

When the atmosphere among Shi and the others was awkward, Yue and the others came over with someone who looked familiar.

"Long time no see. It seems you're not only safe and sound...but also quite active."

"It's the energy drink guy..."

"Energy drinks? Our company does sell energy drinks... but they're not so famous that they've become synonymous with us, are they?"

"Ah~ No, it's nothing. I remember you were ※Modo, right?"

"Yes, I'm honored that you still remember me. I'm Modo from the Yongkel Chamber of Commerce. This is the second time you've come to my rescue. We truly have a connection."

The man smiled and shook hands with Shi. He was the leader of the caravan that Shi and his companions had escorted from [Brook Town] to [the neutral commercial city of Fren], Modo Yongkel of the Yongkel Chamber of Commerce.

Hajime also remembered clearly the incident when his businessman's nature had gone awry. It could be said that Hajime had learned the nature of this world's businesspeople from Modo. In reality, his businessman nature remained unchanged. During their handshake, Modo casually touched the "Treasure House" ring on Hajime's finger. Modo's unsmiling eyes seemed to say, "Is it about time to sell?" This was definitely not Hajime's illusion.

Behind the two of them, Shia explained her relationship with Modo to Kaori and the others; Liliana couldn't help but mutter to herself, "People who have only met once still remember me... I'm obviously a princess... I'm obviously a princess..." and became even more frustrated.

As Kaori tried to comfort Liliana again, Hajime listened to Modo talk about his own experience.

According to Modo, they planned to travel to the Principality of Ankaji via the Inn City of Holyard. Word of Ankaji's plight spread among merchants, and they seemed to believe now was a good time to make money, so they flocked. Modo had already made a shipment and then purchased more goods in the capital. This was his second trip, and judging by his wide grin, he must have made a considerable profit.

Hajime and his companions had originally planned to travel to Fren via Holyard, report to Ilva, the branch leader of the Adventurer's Guild in Fren, that Myuu had been returned, and then proceed to the Hartrina Forest. Hajime informed Modo of the planned itinerary, and Modo asked Hajime to escort the caravan to Holyard.

At this time, Liliana stopped him:

"I'm sorry, Mr. Merchant, I wanted to hire them. You allowed me to go with you to Holyard, but I'm making this selfish request, but..."

"Oh, you don't have to go to Holya anymore?"

"Yes, that's all. I'll still pay the fees to Holyard, of course."

It seems that Liliana was originally scheduled to follow Mordo's caravan to Holyard, but she met Hajime and his group along the way, so there was no need to go.

At this point, Hajime realized that Liliana's intentions were unusual and wanted to complain, but Kaori gave him a look that said, "Stop bullying Lily!" So Hajime decided to remain silent for the time being.

"Really? No, it's my honor to help you. No need for money."

"Eh? No, that's impossible..."

Modo's refusal to charge her left Liliana perplexed. She'd been cared for so thoroughly in the caravan, from accommodation to meals, that she'd expected to be asked to pay afterward and even worried about not having enough. But Modo's words completely defied her expectations.

Modo looked troubled and smiled at Liliana.

"While I doubt you'll do something like this again... I still have a piece of advice for you. Generally speaking, whether you're riding in a multi-person carriage or sharing a ride, you must pay upfront. If you don't ask for payment before departure, it's either because of ill intentions or because there's a reason you can't charge. In this case, it's the latter."

“Could it be…?”

"I don't know what happened, but for someone of your noble status to be forced to travel alone incognito, it must be something of grave importance. If you fail to contribute in this critical moment, you will no longer be able to hold your head high as a citizen of this country, let alone as a businessman."

After hearing Modo's words, Liliana realized that he had known her identity from the beginning. Moreover, Modo knew everything but pretended not to know in order to help Liliana.

"Then, as a token of your gratitude, you should accept my reward. Thanks to you, I was able to escape the capital."

"Hmm...with all due respect, do you know what is the hardest thing for a businessman to obtain, yet what he most desires?"

"Eh? ...No, I don't know."

“It’s ‘trust’.”

"trust?"

"Yes, without trust, business can't start, nor can it last long, let alone make money. On the contrary, as long as there is trust, most situations can be easily resolved. In your opinion, is our Yongkel Chamber of Commerce trustworthy? If you trust us, we will have received the best reward..."

Hearing his clever words, Liliana couldn't help but smile bitterly. If she insisted on paying them, it would be a sign of distrust, and would be contrary to her desire to repay them.

Liliana took off her hood on the spot as if giving up resistance and faced Modo with dignity.

"You are a truly trustworthy chamber of commerce. As the princess of the Kingdom of Heilig, I, Liliana, will never forget your kindness and dedication. Thank you..."

"You're being too kind."

Hearing Liliana's thanks as a princess, Modo and his subordinates knelt on the spot and bowed deeply.

Afterward, Liliana stayed with Hajime and the others, while Modo and his group continued their planned journey towards Holyard. As they parted ways, Modo hinted at his knowledge of Hajime's conviction as a heretic, warning him of the unusual atmosphere in the capital. Hajime also provided information, informing him that the Principality of Ankaji had been restored to its former state. From this information alone, Modo seemed to have deduced the reason for Hajime's conviction, and offered, "If we're ever connected, please take care of me." This demonstrates that Modo is truly a natural businessman.