Published: August 10, 2026
Adventurers' guilds have different characteristics in each country.
That is mainly due to the personality of the guild master. Some guilds run things like labyrinth tours where monsters roam freely, while others even hold mysterious tournaments at sea to test adventurers' teamwork. They come in all kinds of forms.
So then, what about the homey, family-run adventurers' guild in Sars?
"From here on, we will be holding the adventurers' guild's very own 'Grand☆Weeding Tournament'!"
It turned into this.
And what's more, everyone was forced to participate.
It all began with a huge banner hung above the quest board.
"What's that?"
"Weeding?"
Three people—Lizel and the others—read the boldly written words on the white cloth.
The content was simple. The tournament had been decided upon. The date was listed. And it ended with a red warning that participation was mandatory. No details were written, so any adventurer who didn't know would have to ask the guild staff.
Looking around, some adventurers were staring dumbly at the banner that stood out so much, while others were making grim faces and muttering, "So it's that time again."
From that, it seemed this was a regular event at the Sars adventurers' guild.
"Wasn't this a thing when you two were in Sars?"
"No idea."
"Don't think so."
Gill had blitzed through the nearby labyrinths at breakneck speed and left all of them behind, of course. As for Eleven, when he had still been in Sars, it seemed he hadn't been all that serious about adventurer work.
So Lizel nodded, seeming to understand why they didn't know.
"Should we ask about it later?"
"There ain't even any soil in Sars. Where are they supposed to weed?"
"There was a little bit of dirt ground at the Magic Academy."
"That'd be too small to have all the adventurers go weed it."
"What if they lure adventurers in with weeding, then use them as experimental fodder one after another..."
"They'd probably just put out a quest that says [Volunteers for Test Subjects] with no tricks at all."
"Even if they did, who'd take it?"
"Maybe nobody takes them, and that's why you never see quests like that."
"Scary. ...Oh, what's that?"
"Oh, that looks like a good quest. Gill, is this okay?"
"Yeah."
While chatting, Lizel and the others decided on a quest and headed to the reception counter.
Behind them, the adventurers who had been smirking knowingly about where the weeds would be pulled from suddenly turned pale after being made to peer into the darkness of the Magic Academy.
At the counter, when Lizel asked for the details of the weeding tournament, the staff member cheerfully answered.
"The weeding site is around Sars."
"Around Sars?"
"Around Sars."
Even when Eleven echoed her back as if he'd misheard, the staff member firmly repeated herself without wavering.
Around Sars. Not inside Sars, but around Sars. In other words, outside the lake.
Outside the huge lake that embraced an entire country.
"Not limited to the roads?"
"Not limited at all."
Her cute, plastered-on smile didn't waver even a little.
Lizel and the others looked at one another. Only now did they understand what the words "mandatory participation" meant.
"Oh, but don't worry."
Seeing their reactions, the staff member added reassuringly, continuing in a tone that suggested she'd say "as long as you can."
Right, Lizel and the others thought, relieved.
"The vigilante groups from the north, west, and south will also be weeding, so it's one quarter."
"Even if you say one quarter—"
"It's too huge."
"The schedule was only for one day, right?"
"That won't finish."
"We'll finish it."
They could feel the determination in her voice—there was no other choice.
If you looked closely, the staff member's eyes were dead too. She was probably participating as well.
The tournament seemed less like an actual competition and more like a pretext to raise adventurers' motivation.
"So on the day, please gather outside Sars Great Bridge in clothes you can move around in!"
"Understood."
At that point, the adventurers had no right to refuse.
Lizel nodded, looking somehow pleased, while Eleven and Gill cast annoyed looks into the distance.