Nothing feels as good as justice!

"Kari-chan! I heard you're looking for bandits!? What excellent taste!"

"Bandits make the best test subjects, right!? They're free, and you can do whatever you want to them!"

"In our country, there aren't any bandits left anymore."

"We kinda… hunted them all to extinction… teehee."

"And nobody new wants to become a bandit either. If you find any, share two or three with us, okay?"

So proclaimed the Five Elders.

… The dwarven nation is terrifying.

Banditry = volunteering as an unlimited test subject. Yeah, nobody would do that.

Even if you're starving, you're better off volunteering for normal clinical trials where you actually get paid and keep your dignity…

As for the highway check, it was a road extending from the dwarven nation, so that's probably why there weren't any bandits.

"Hold on, how does everyone know about this? Misha, did you leak it?"

"I told her to keep it from Dea-chan, but this is something the wives should know about, nya?"

"I was thinking I'd keep it secret from everyone and handle it quietly, you know. Also, I said Dea-kun and the others."

"Then you shouldn't have told me in the first place, nya."

Misha shrugged, utterly unrepentant.

I gave her butt two or three swats for that.

"… You didn't tell anyone else, right?"

"Ow ow… Of course I told Mashiro too, nya!"

"Why!?"

"Huh? If I didn't tell her about something as fun as bandit hunting, she'd hold a grudge, nya?"

"That's right, Karina! You're not having fun without me!"

From behind, an arm slung around my shoulders with a grip that was firm yet somehow fluffy. Mashiro-san. So fluffy.

She smelled like a freshly washed dog.

"Lately, there haven't been many guys with the guts to turn bandit."

"Ah, Mashiro, is that why you left the country, nya?"

"You bet! Adventurers are all about hunting bandits, right? Those guys hoard cash and they're decently strong. Perfect for having some fun!"

I see. So in the beastkin nation of Terarialbee, hot-blooded adventurers actively hunt bandits.

"Also, you won't find bandits on the main highways. Check the back roads. The ones pulling in real money target solo merchants chasing big scores. I'd recommend mountain passes with barely any foot traffic."

Mashiro-san cheerfully doled out instructions in high spirits.

Apparently, the main highways are regularly patrolled by knight orders, so bandits steer clear.

"O-oh. You're… pretty experienced at this."

"I'm the type who hit A-rank before I knew it just from hunting bandits!"

"Karina. She was also known as 'Mashiro the Bandit Hunter,' nya."

"Oh, that takes me back. These days I'm called 'The Silver,' you know."

Hmm, in that case… I should skip the highways in Terarialbee and Tessin and search somewhere else.

"Oh yeah. Alchemia fell recently, right? Security around there must be in shambles. That's your best bet."

"Ooh! Great idea, nya! We can rampage all we want, nya!"

"Huh? What's this, Misha? You gonna become a bandit?"

"Hard pass, nya. I'd rather be on the side that hunts bandits, nya. I want to wield violence in the name of justice, nya. Gotta follow the rules, nya!"

"Same here. Nothing feels as good as justice!"

What these two are saying is pretty messed up. I've heard that people can become endlessly cruel when they have a righteous cause on their side… but what even is justice, anyway? Urghh.