Published: January 13, 2026
The second volume of the carefree lord’s book edition and the first volume of the comic adaptation will be released soon!
Each comes with an original side story!
Please be sure to check them out!
The group that went out with Arte was disbanded on the spot. When I told the adventurers to collect their rewards from Espada later, they laughed and noisily dispersed.
The mechanical bow unit lined up, reported their battle achievements, and then headed to Seato Village. It seemed they had worked quite hard. At the end, they quietly asked me to praise Arte, which made me think the mechanical bow unit members might have taken a liking to her.
By the way, Arte stayed right beside me.
“Are you planning to build something on this street?”
Suddenly, Arte spoke up. I just turned my face to nod.
“Yes. Since most travelers and merchants heading to the adventurers’ town will just pass through and aim for Seato Village, I wanted to set up shops, inns, and restaurants on the main street everyone must pass through.”
After explaining that, I gave Arte a wry smile as she nodded in understanding.
“Are you alright? You just got back, so you should probably rest today.”
I said worriedly, but Arte smiled and shook her head.
“Thank you for your concern, but I’m fine. Since I selfishly hired the mechanical bow unit and the adventurers, I want to do my best to be of help to Lord Van. To do that, I think it’s important to observe what you’re planning and thinking, so I want to work closely by your side.”
For once, Arte clearly expressed her intention, looking me straight in the eyes.
“I see. But if it gets tough, let me know, okay? Maybe I’ll have someone prepare a chair for you.”
“Thank you, but I’ll walk with you.”
With that, Arte made a small fist in front of her chest. Her determination seemed solid. Looking at her, her expression even looked more dignified than usual. Perhaps her experience on the battlefield had changed her mindset in some way.
I was impressed that she was only ten years old, but couldn’t hide my fatigue. Smiling gently, I asked Til to prepare a small one-horse carriage. It was about the size of a rickshaw.
“Well then, I’ll move by carriage. If you’re going to think about my work with me, it’d be helpful to have you beside me.”
Saying that, I climbed into the carriage ahead. Arte blinked, then smiled softly.
“…Thank you.”
As Arte thanked me and tried to get in, I offered my hand to help her. Til gave me a very strange smile and stared, but I stubbornly decided not to care.
In fact, as soon as we both sat in the carriage, people around us kept glancing and smiling. It was a bit embarrassing.
Anyway, ignoring the grinning onlookers, I reminded myself of what needed to be done.
“Even with the current number of shops, Bell and the others seem to be at their limit. So until reinforcements arrive from the commerce guild or mary trading company, we’ll manage on our own. First, find people who have become villagers recently and see if any of them were merchants.”
“Yes!”
Kamusin gave a good response and quickly moved out at my command. Espada followed, saying, “Let’s lower the standards a bit this time to secure enough people.” I figured I could leave the recruitment to the two of them.
Then, I looked over the street again.
“Alright, let’s prepare a new inn first. If it also serves meals, the first floor should be a dining hall. Since we don’t know how many guests there’ll be, let’s build it fairly large. The adventurers’ town is small, so it’s better to make it three or four stories and larger on top.”
Saying that, I began selecting a site near the town center for the inn.
“As for location… it should be reasonably close to the entrance.”
I tried to pick empty lots along the roads to the left and right of the main street. At that moment, a familiar face appeared from behind the carriage.
“Lord Van, what are you doing?”
It was Pluriel. Earlier, she was with many adventurers, so I had just offered words of thanks to everyone. As for Ort and the others, I planned to host a barbecue later to properly thank them.