I Decided To Hire The Man
As if to continue from where I left off, Leo showed her fangs and growled. With a pale face, the man promised that he would not run away.
As for whether or not he was to be believed, it all came down to how he worked from here on out. But now that he knew that Leo was a Silver Fenrir, he should understand that he could not escape. And so I doubted he would try anything foolish.
“So, will you work for me?”
“If you will have me…yes! I will do my best!”
The man seemed very moved by my words as he nodded and accepted.
“Well, Sebastian. Please do it.”
“You will be hiring a criminal. Are you sure about this?”
“Yes. I believe if set on the right path, he will be reformed. Of course, should he try and escape, I’ll send Leo after him.”
“You are too soft, Mr. Takumi. From my point of view… Well, I respect your way of thinking. Very well. I will cast the spell.”
Sebastian was probably right, and I was being too soft.
It was clear that he was a criminal, and there was the possibility that he would repeat the same offense again.
However, for some reason, I could not ignore him so he would be sent off to be punished.
“Now then… Black Element Mark Pursuit.”
Sebastian had nodded at me once before turning to the man.
Then he held his hand over him and chanted the spell and unleashed the magic.
Black strands extended from his hand. They wrapped around the man and then disappeared after a few seconds.
Now we would be able to track him… It was definitely a strange sight.
“With this, you will always be able to know this man’s current location. Can you see it, Good Leo?”
Leo nodded at Sebastian.
Apparently, Leo was also able to tell, due to the magic.
…Magic really was convenient.
“Now, I will remove the ropes. I’m sure that I don’t have to tell you, but…”
“Ye-yes! I will stay calm!”
I approached the man in order to unbind him.
He looked at Leo and nodded readily.
Leo was behind me and growling with bared teeth… I doubted anyone would even think of doing anything violent in such a situation…
“All right, you’re untied now.”
“Thank you, brother!”
“Since you saved me, allow me to call you brother from now on!”
“Well, I suppose… But you better work seriously, all right?”
The man smiled and nodded.
However…it definitely felt strange, being called ‘brother’ by someone who looked like they stepped out of a post-apocalyptic setting…
“Ah, Mr. Kalis. Do you have a minute?”
“Yes. What is it, Mr. Takumi?”
While I was dealing with the man, Mr. Kalis started selling the herbs again as if nothing had happened.
That was quick… He was certainly a tough salesman…
But I called him over so that I could explain what would happen now.
“Mr. Kalis. From now on, this man will be delivering the herbs for me. And when he’s not doing that, you can make him do odd jobs around the store.”
“Umm…while we could use the help, are you sure about this?”
“It should be fine. Sebastian had cast a magic spell on him, and he understands what will happen if he disobeys. …You will work hard, won’t you?”
“Yes! I won’t do anything that would disgrace you, brother!”
“I can hardly believe this is the same man who caused such a scene… Very well. I, Kalis, will watch over him as he works here.”
Now, that was settled.
Of course, I would have to be the one who pays him.
That being said, since I was being paid for the herbs, I could just pay him from that… I will have to discuss the matter with Sebastian and decide on a rate…
“Well, let’s begin then…uh…what is your name?”
“Nick… Please follow me.”
“Yes! Goodbye, brother!”
So the man’s name was Nick… Now that I thought about it, I had forgotten to ask him his name.
And so I left Nick with Mr. Kalis, and patted Leo on the head for doing so well. And I went over to Ms. Claire, who had been watching the whole scene.
“Mr. Takumi. Was that really wise? He attacked you with a knife…”
“Yes. Not all criminals should be punished. It’s better if they can be reformed. …Though, Sebastian doesn’t seem to agree…”
I said with an awkward smile to Ms. Claire’s question.
“There is no doubt that you’re too soft, Mr. Takumi. However, I still commend the way you took care of the situation. Otherwise, it would have ended with a very harsh punishment.”
“Yes. It would be different if we were seen as being too lenient. It could cause confusion in the lands that we govern.”
“So leaving it to you was likely the right thing to do, Mr. Takumi. …That man…Nick. It’s all up to him now.”
“I’m sure that it will be fine. And if not, Leo will deal with him.”
According to Ms. Claire and Sebastian, as the part of the duke’s family, they could not have handled the situation in the same way.
Those who stood on top had to be fair, or it would be difficult to govern.
And in any case, there was no way that he could escape from Leo… And now that I’ve been training, even I could restrain him with ease.
“Welcome back! What happened outside?”
“We’re back, Tilura.”
“Tilura, Takumi was doing something very interesting.”
After Ms. Claire had led us back into the store, we were greeted by Tilura, who had been waiting patiently inside.
Leo was still playing with the children, and I was sure that she’d be able to handle them on her own now.
Besides, Mr. Kalis and the other clerks were also used to being around her.
Ms. Claire then happily told Tilura about what had happened.
Sebastian also filled in some details as they talked, and we enjoyed our time and relaxed qwhile sipping some tea. And then a moment later, Nick walked in the door.
“Hey, brother! I came to call you because they finished selling all of the herbs.”
Mr. Kalis must have sent him in to call us.
Since the herbs were all sold, we all stood up from the table and went outside.