"Dad, the bandit problem near the shore has gotten kind of bad lately. If you can avoid going there to fish, it'd be best not to go."
It was a warning from his daughter Tsunami, given over breakfast.
She looked at her father Tazuna with worried eyes.
As the top bridge-building expert in the Land of Waves, his skills in construction were exceptional, so he was not only good at building bridges, but also repairing roads and building houses. Thanks to these abilities, and his courage, sense of responsibility, and willingness to help others, Tazuna was highly respected locally, a well-known figure.
But as a small Country, the Land of Waves had no Ninja to provide military protection.
Although the great Countries didn't care at all about the internal situation of the Land of Waves, when Ninjas from the great Countries went to war, it often led to all sorts of serious bandit problems in the surrounding small Countries.
These bandits were likely made up of people from the war zones who had lost their homes; unable to survive otherwise, they could only scrape by through robbery.
But this meant the people of the Land of Waves suffered.
The Daimyo and nobles did nothing, and the soldiers under them were very weak in combat, which allowed Pirates plundering the coastal towns of the Land of Waves to become increasingly rampant.
Even people who went out to sea to fish were greatly affected, and their livelihoods gradually declined.
"It's fine, Tsunami. And going out to fish is still a job. I may be a famous bridge-builder, but I have to think about our family's livelihood too."
Eating pickled cucumbers and holding a steamed bun in his hand, Tazuna spoke to his daughter Tsunami.
"But…"
"There's no helping it. Right now I'm the only one in the family who can go out and work. Once Inari grows up, he can take over my work and support the family."
Tazuna spoke earnestly, but there was also a lot of helplessness in his tone.
Inari was his daughter Tsunami's son. He should have had a complete, carefree childhood, but in order to deal with the Pirates at sea, the Daimyo and nobles had enforced conscription in the Country, and many young people had been drafted to go suppress the Pirates.
His son-in-law was one of those who died in the campaign against the Pirates.
There were many similar cases; the young men of countless families had died in the battles to suppress the Pirates.
As a result, those left at home were basically the elderly, women, and small children.
"Then please be careful."
"Don't worry. There are a lot of workers going with me. Even if we run into Pirates, with so many people we'll at least have some ability to protect ourselves."
Tazuna nodded, accepting his daughter Tsunami's concern.
After all, in recent years, fewer and fewer merchants in the Land of Waves had been hiring him to build bridges. Since he couldn't do his specialized work, he could only rely on fishing to keep the family going. That was still, in the end, a way to make a living.
Just then, the sound of knocking on the door rang out, catching Tazuna and Tsunami's attention.
"What the heck, it's not time to head out to fish yet. Why'd they come so early?"
Tazuna put down the bun in his hand and couldn't help complaining.
There should still be about an hour left before the agreed time for departure.
Before Tazuna could stand up, Tsunami rose to her feet first.
"I'll get it, Dad."
With that, she walked down the hallway toward the entryway.
After a while, there was still no sound.
Finding it odd, Tazuna called out, "Tsunami, why's it so quiet?"
Shortly after, Tsunami came back, her expression strange.
"What is it? Who's here?"
Tazuna asked curiously.
"They didn't say."
"They?"
"Mm. They're dressed very formally. They want to see you, Dad; they have something to discuss. Maybe they're here to offer a commission."
Tsunami said with a smile.
If that was the case, it would be great. Going out to sea to fish was just too dangerous. Even if he went along with the other workers, if Pirates set their sights on them, casualties would be inevitable.
If Tazuna were to fall, Tsunami really didn't know what they would do.
"A commission? This Country's already this poor. Who'd still come…"
Though he said this, Tazuna still very honestly got up from his seat and, under Tsunami's lead, walked together toward the entryway.
The door there was open, and they could see five people standing outside.
At their head was a very young girl, about twelve or thirteen. Her long black hair was as gorgeous as silk, a faint smile hung on her face, and one look at her clothes made it clear they were of high quality.
Behind her stood four adults, both men and women, dressed in matching, standardized outfits, wearing black coats and maintaining a solemn, authoritative air.
A noble young lady out traveling? Such a question rose in Tazuna's mind.
"Hello, miss. May I ask what business you have with an old geezer like me?"
Tazuna could tell that the girl in front was the leader, so he addressed his question to her.
"Hello, Mr. Tazuna. My name is Chiba Ichihime, and I'm from the Land of Demons."
"The Land of Demons?"
Hearing the girl's introduction, Tazuna was slightly taken aback.
Only then did he notice that on the black coats of the four Guards behind Ichihime, some kind of floral pattern was embroidered.
It was the Shion Flower.
The national flower of the Land of Demons.
The current Witch was also named after the Shion Flower.
"What business does someone from the Land of Demons have with me? It's the Daimyo who's in debt; that's got nothing to do with a little commoner like me."
Tazuna said this.
A Daimyo owing money was nothing unusual in this Country.