Rei had been ambushed the moment he stepped into the room. Suspecting the assailant's identity, he had fought back to demonstrate his prowess, coming within a hair’s breadth of landing a fatal blow before the master of the house intervened. That man, Daskar Larkus—Margrave and Lord of the City of Gilm—had finally called for a halt.
The attacker, who had been hoisted into the air and was nearly cleaved by the Death Scythe, managed to break his fall and land on the floor. However...
"Gugh..."
Even through his armor, he had been struck squarely by the shaft of a weapon weighing over a hundred kilograms, swung with all of Rei's superhuman strength. The dented, half-shattered torso of his plate mail was proof enough of the impact. The man crouched, clutching his side in a desperate attempt to endure the pain.
"Kyuste-dono, I shall send for a healer immediately," Margrave Larkus offered.
"No, that will not be necessary."
The man called Kyuste removed his helmet, revealing a handsome face in its twenties framed by orange hair. Ignoring the Margrave's suggestion, he focused his mind.
"Water, with your merciful heart, heal my wounds... Blue Healing."
A faint blue light gathered in his palm before being absorbed into his side. After a few seconds of concentration, Kyuste rose to his feet.
"Forgive the unseemly display. I am fine now."
"Ho. You can use water recovery magic? Impressive, as expected," Daskar noted.
"It is a requirement for anyone serving as her guard," Kyuste replied stiffly.
"I see. Well then, I should introduce myself properly. I am the Lord of this City of Gilm."
Margrave Larkus nodded at Kyuste’s words and then turned to Rei. In response, Rei gave an awkward bow.
"I am Rei, a Rank D adventurer. I was summoned regarding the nomination request. I was raised deep in the mountains, so please overlook any rudeness in my speech."
"Do not let it bother you," Daskar said. "More importantly, take a seat. We have much to discuss regarding the request."
Internally, Rei was still Reiji Saiki, a young man from rural Tohoku. His informal speech was ill-suited for addressing nobility, but fortunately, Daskar was a pragmatic warrior at heart and didn't care for meticulous etiquette. Kyuste, however, directed a look of pure disdain toward Rei.
"Actually, you cannot sit there, can you? Hold on," Daskar said, eyeing the sofa Rei had sliced in half with his scythe. He rang a bell on his desk.
A butler appeared instantly at the knock. "Did you call, my Lord?"
"This sofa is ruined. Replace it."
"As you wish."
The butler bowed and left. Within minutes, three servants arrived with a fresh sofa, swapping out the wreckage and vanishing as silently as they had arrived.
Watching them leave, Daskar turned his attention back to his guests.
"Let’s get down to business. First, introductions. As I said, I am Daskar Larkus, Lord of Gilm." He rested his hands on his heavy executive desk.
"Kyuste Brashin," the other man added. "I serve as the captain of Lady Elena's escort unit."
(I see, a surname holder. So this Kyuste guy is a noble, too,) Rei thought.
Kyuste shot Rei a look that demanded his turn.
"Rank D adventurer, Rei," Rei replied bluntly.
Unlike the others, Rei’s introduction was short and lacked any prestigious titles.
"Now, regarding the request... Kyuste-dono, the explanation, if you please," Daskar prompted.
Kyuste turned to Rei. "Listen well. The request is simple. You are to escort Duke Kerebel's Daughter, Lady Elena, to the dungeon near Gilm. You will guide her to a location known as the Altar of Inheritance, which is said to be near the lowest floor."
"The Altar of Inheritance? What’s that?" Rei asked.
Kyuste scoffed at the question. "Even if the Margrave recommended you, a mere commoner has no need to know such details. Just shut up and do your job."
Rei frowned but kept his silence for the Margrave's sake. "So, I am strictly a guard?"
"Precisely. We would not need you at all if Lady Elena and the rest of us were alone, but the Margrave insisted. Don't get ideas. You are merely an extra. If you follow us quietly and don't cause trouble, you will receive your reward. No complaints, I trust?"
"Kyuste-dono, that is going a bit too far," Daskar chided. "It was Duke Kerebel who specified a Rank D adventurer, was it not?"
"I am aware of that," Kyuste snapped. "But could you not have at least found a noble adventurer?"
Daskar shook his head. "Unfortunately, this is the frontier. Out here, skill matters more than lineage."
"Margrave Larkus! Are you mocking the nobility?"
"Calm yourself. In the Royal Capital, there are plenty of capable nobles, but here, our few noble houses lack real military might. Surely you understand that, serving as you do under Duke Kerebel?"
"That is... yes, I understand."
"Besides," Daskar continued, "you felt Rei's strength yourself. And he has a familiar—an A-Rank gryphon. Do you still have complaints?"
"No. Since it is the Margrave's wish, I will accept it. I must prepare for Lady Elena's arrival tomorrow, so I shall take my leave. Rei, meet at the main gate tomorrow at the nine o'clock bell for the introduction. Bring the gryphon. And do not be rude to Lady Elena."
Kyuste glanced at Rei condescendingly and stormed out of the room. He could not stand the thought of a commoner like Rei acting as their peer.
(Damn it, why must I pay attention to a commoner? The Margrave is truly reckless. To let someone of unknown lineage get close to Lady Elena... what is he thinking? Could it be, as Vel warned, that he is trying to whittle down the power of the Noble's Faction?)
The warnings from his colleague, Vel, crossed his mind. Vel had suggested that Margrave Larkus might be plotting something regarding Elena. To mitigate the danger, Vel had consulted with the Duke to limit the escort to Rank D adventurers...
(That boy's strength was no Rank D,) Kyuste thought as he walked. (He's at least Rank B, maybe even Rank A. And he has a gryphon? This is dangerous. I’ll have Vel look into his background once Lady Elena arrives.)
Kyuste had come early to Gilm as a herald to show sincerity, and though it had pained him to leave the side of the Princess General, he was now glad he had. He had seen firsthand how dangerous this city truly was.
"I apologize for him," Daskar said once Kyuste was gone.
"It's fine. I assume that's how most nobles act," Rei replied, slipping back into his natural speech.
Daskar chuckled. "You really are bad at formal speech. But now that you're Rank D, you'll be dealing with more nobles. Your skill already rivals Rank B or A, so you'd best get used to it."
"I'll try. But... isn't it dangerous to be alone with me like this?"
Daskar gave him a knowing look. "You've noticed, then?"
Rei glanced toward the door to the next room, then the ceiling, and the floor. He could feel the suppressed presences of people hiding in every direction.
"You really aren't cut out for Rank D," Daskar laughed. "Even Kyuste-dono, who leads an elite escort unit, didn't notice my shadows."
Daskar realized Rei had pinpointed every guard. He let out a bitter smile.
"Now, let's get into the main subject of the request. As Kyuste-dono said, Lady Elena's destination is the Altar of Inheritance near the lowest floor of the dungeon."
"Why would the Princess General go to a dungeon?" Rei asked.
"I don't know the details. But coming all the way from the capital to the frontier for this altar suggests a significant reason. The problem is that they have to break through the entire dungeon to get there. Rei, what do you know about dungeons?"
Rei recalled the books he had been reading. "They are created when magic power materializes into a Core. A monster empowered by that Core becomes the Boss Monster. The dungeon expands until that Boss is defeated, and it collapses if the Core is destroyed. But since they're sources of materials and items, Cores are rarely destroyed."
"Exactly. And the dungeon Lady Elena is heading to is a 'living' dungeon—the Boss has never been killed. It's incredibly dangerous. That's why I'm nominating you."
"What about maps?"
Deep-floor maps were usually monopolized by those who found them, far out of reach for low-rank adventurers.
"I've prepared what I can," Daskar said. "We don't have anything for the lowest floors, but I have maps up to the middle floors. Information is valuable, though, so there's only one copy. Lady Elena will keep it, as she is the exploration leader."
"Understood. Any map is better than none."
"I'm counting on you," Daskar said, his expression turning solemn. "Honestly, this request is far too suspicious. Even as the Princess General, Elena's experience is on the battlefield against humans, not monsters. Yet they only brought a few guards and insisted on a Rank D adventurer from our side. It's so blatant it's almost insulting. But if she dies on this mission, I will be held responsible."
"Isn't that their fault for making unreasonable demands? They should have just brought a party like the Axe of the Thunder God."
"A Duke's status allows him to turn his own unreasonableness into my failure. I trust your strength, Rei, even if you just made Rank D. I'm asking you to do this—not for me, and not for yourself. Do it to keep the Noble's Faction from getting an excuse to interfere with Gilm."
Daskar bowed his head again.
"Please, raise your head," Rei said. "It would be a problem for me if strange people started messing with this city. I'll do my best."
Thus, Rei found himself inevitably caught up in the schemes of the nobility.