Several hours had passed since their life-or-death struggle with the Mantis. Since it was late summer—or perhaps early autumn—the sun had not yet fully dipped below the horizon by the time the carriage carrying Rei and the others reached the dungeon during the evening hours.
"...Whoa. This is far beyond the scale of a village," Ara muttered from the carriage window, sounding half-exasperated and half-impressed.
At her words, Rei, Elena, and Kyuste also peered outside.
Their prior information suggested that the settlement near the dungeon was a naturally occurring village, but as far as they could see from the carriage, it had already reached the scale of a town. It was, of course, significantly smaller than the City of Gilm, but impressive nonetheless.
A considerable number of merchants were lined up in front of the gates that served as the entrance to the village, likely hoping to acquire treasures from the dungeon.
Initially, when the carriage came into view, the merchants instinctively prepared to flee, and the soldiers raised their weapons. After all, regardless of the carriage itself, the presence of a Gryphon—a creature rarely seen even in this frontier—made such a reaction inevitable.
However, Vel, who was driving, guaranteed Set's safety by invoking the names of Duke Kerebel, a heavyweight of the Noble's Faction, and Margrave Larkus, the ruler of these lands. Furthermore, Set remained perfectly calm and docile, allowing them to enter the village without further incident.
Set was currently wearing the Tamed Monster's Necklace he had used in the City of Gilm, walking quietly beside the carriage.
The village residents were startled at first by the sight of the Gryphon, but they breathed sighs of relief once they noticed the necklace.
Unlike in the City of Gilm, most people in this village were either adventurers or those who had come specifically to do business with them. As a result, they were more thick-skinned than ordinary civilians. Once they realized the creature posed no threat, they judged that it could be a valuable asset to the village defense and accepted its presence. The fact that a fair number of adventurers diving into the dungeon brought along summoned beasts or tamed monsters likely contributed to their acceptance as well.
Naturally, not everyone was pleased, and a few directed gazes of loathing at the Gryphon, but the general atmosphere was one of tacit approval since the creature was undeniably powerful.
"I read in a library book that building a city in the frontier is extremely difficult, and that it took a massive number of National Army soldiers just to establish the City of Gilm... I suppose this is the draw of a dungeon," Rei murmured, sounding impressed.
The structure of the village was easy enough to understand. At the center lay the entrance leading to the dungeon, surrounded by defensive walls built to prevent monsters from emerging. Various buildings spread out from that center, and the entire settlement was enclosed by a large, sturdy timber fence to protect against outside threats.
Rei wasn't overly surprised by the scene, as the explanation behind it had been in the books about dungeons he had been reading lately.
Because the Dungeon Core at the deepest level forcibly teleports monsters in the surrounding area into the dungeon to protect itself, the monster population around the exterior naturally thins out. This phenomenon makes it possible for the Guild, adventurers, and merchants to establish a village near the entrance. Of course, since the teleportation isn't absolute, monsters do occasionally attack the village. To counter this, adventurers are hired for the village defense.
The defense mission was a popular way for adventurers to earn a bit of pocket money, as they were paid a small reward even if no attacks occurred.
However, the safety of the land depended entirely on the Dungeon Core. If the core were destroyed, monsters would no longer be teleported inside, and the area would return to being a high-risk zone like the rest of the frontier. Additionally, because monsters very rarely emerge from the dungeon itself, it wasn't a place where residents could live in total peace like they did in the City of Gilm.
The villages and towns formed near dungeons existed solely for the sake of those challenging the labyrinth and the merchants who profited from them; fundamentally, they were temporary settlements.
The reason for that caveat was that some locations were officially developed by the state or a local lord, who deployed a Knight Order or the National Army to turn the area into a permanent Labyrinth City. While monsters were abundant in the frontier where Rei and the others currently were, the number of monsters appearing on the highways near the center of the country was far lower. The few Labyrinth Cities within the Kingdom of Mireana were built in such stable locations.
"Well then. We've made it inside, but what shall we do now?" Elena asked as the carriage moved along the packed-dirt roads, having passed the gates using their Guild Cards and identification.
Rei thought for a moment before speaking.
"There are two main options. We can head to the Guild to report that Mantis, or we can find an inn first. ...Personally, I recommend the latter."
"Oh? And why is that?"
"As you can see, this village is overflowing with adventurers and merchants. If we don't secure an inn as soon as possible, we might struggle to find a place to stay at all."
"But Lord Rei, surely you don't expect Lady Elena to stay in the kind of inns found in a place like this?" Ara countered.
From Ara's perspective, the idea of housing Elena in a cheap inn used by common adventurers was intolerable.
However, Elena shook her head at Ara's words.
"Ara, do not be so demanding. I am a person of the battlefield. As long as the place isn't truly wretched, I have no problem with it."
"That may be true on the battlefield, but as one of the Kerebel bloodline, you should stay in a location befitting your status," Kyuste added.
"I understand your concerns," Elena replied, "but isn't the majority of the lodging here intended for adventurers? Are there even inns like the ones you describe?"
"I've looked into that beforehand," Kyuste said. "While adventurer inns are the norm, it isn't actually that rare for high-born individuals to visit a dungeon for various reasons. It doesn't happen frequently, but it does happen."
"Is that so?"
"...Ara, don't interrupt. To answer your question, yes, it's exactly as I said. It isn't unheard of for nobles who are confident in their martial skills to challenge dungeons. Many of them cannot bear the thought of sharing an inn with commoners, so there is almost always an inn for nobles near a major dungeon. Although, as I mentioned, noble challengers are rare, so the primary clientele is usually high-ranking merchant companies."
As Kyuste answered Ara's question, Elena narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Kyuste. It is good to have pride as a noble, but I do not appreciate you looking down on commoners. We nobles only live because of the taxes they provide."
"...Yes. My apologies. I spoke out of turn."
While apologizing to Elena, Kyuste shot a sharp gaze at Rei.
In Kyuste's eyes, Elena's sudden focus on the importance of commoners was likely a direct result of her growing interest in Rei.
Rei ignored Kyuste's glare with an internal wry smile and looked toward Elena.
"Lady Elena, what is your decision?"
"Hmm. Personally, I wouldn't mind an ordinary inn, but..." She thought for a few seconds before deciding. "Our presence might cause unnecessary trouble at a common inn, so let's head to the inn for nobles Kyuste mentioned. Kyuste, inform Vel."
"Understood."
Kyuste nodded, opened the door to the driver's seat, and relayed the destination.
Watching this, Ara nodded with a satisfied expression.
"...Do you really dislike ordinary inns that much?" Rei asked, curious.
Ara gave him an exasperated look.
"Lord Rei, Lady Elena's decision is for our sake, but it's for yours as well."
"For mine?"
"Yes. Ordinary inns often house low-quality adventurers. Some might see the value of this carriage or the warhorses and try to steal them. But before they even looked at the carriage, they would set their sights on Set. He's an A-Rank monster. Imagine the price he would fetch on the black market. Or, if they couldn't capture him, they might kill him just to strip his Magic Stone and materials."
"I see..."
Rei nodded. Back in the City of Gilm, he stayed at the Dusk Wheat Inn, which was very understanding of tamed monsters, so he had never really had to worry about such things.
(Though I think any random adventurer who tried to attack Set would just end up being killed instead.)
After all, in addition to his natural abilities, Set had numerous skills from Magic Stones and was equipped with magic items for Projectile Nullification, Strength Up, and constant health recovery. A handful of Rank B or C adventurers would be literal child's play for him.
While Rei was thinking, the carriage reached a fairly luxurious-looking building.
Compared to the adventurer inns along the road, it was certainly grand. However, it still wasn't enough to fully satisfy Ara or Kyuste, who both watched the building with slightly disappointed expressions.
"It looked decent from a distance, but up close..."
"Indeed. ...Still, it can't be helped. It's the best inn in the village."
As they grumbled to each other, the carriage stopped, and Vel poked his head in from the driver's seat.
"We're here. We just need to handle the paperwork. Uh, sorry Rei, but could you handle Set yourself? If he's going in the stables, you'll need to give them some instructions."
"Yeah, got it. ...By the way, should I pay for my own room?"
Rei asked, as he had plenty of money, but Elena gave him a small smile and shook her head.
"You were dispatched at our request. We will cover all lodging and food expenses during the journey."
"That's a help."
Rei gave her a shallow bow and stepped out of the carriage to inquire about the stables.
"W-W-W-Welcome!"
An inn employee, a boy in his mid-teens, stammered with extreme tension as he saw Rei exit the carriage.
Rei saw the boy's gaze fixed on Set and spoke while suppressing a wry smile.
"I'd like to stay here. Can I use the stables?"
"Y-Yes! Right this way!"
The boy led the way toward the back of the inn with jerky, mechanical movements, his hands and feet swinging in unison.
Realizing the boy was on the verge of a panic attack, Rei lightly tapped his shoulder.
"Hieee!"
"Calm down. I get why you're nervous, but Set... I mean, this Gryphon won't hurt people unless provoked. You don't have to worry."
"Guruuu."
As Rei spoke, he stroked Set's head. The Gryphon purred happily, leaning into the touch.
Seeing this, the boy's tension began to melt away. Though still cautious, he looked at Set with curiosity.
"H-He really is docile... He's almost like a giant pet cat."
"Exactly. Just treat him like that and you'll be fine."
"Gurururuuu."
Set rubbed his head against Rei, demanding more attention. Rei glanced at the boy and saw him twitching, clearly wanting to reach out.
"Want to pet him?"
"I-Is it okay? He won't... bite, right?"
"As long as you don't do anything crazy, he's fine."
"Then..."
The boy gulped and fearfully extended a hand. He slowly drew closer until he brushed Set's back, then immediately snatched his hand away.
It seemed stroking the head was too much to ask for a first attempt.
When he saw that Set didn't react negatively, he reached out again, this time stroking the Gryphon's back several times.
"Guruuu."
The boy flinched as Set purred.
"C-Customer, just now..."
"Relax. That wasn't a growl. He's just happy you're petting him."
After that, the ice broke quickly. Within minutes, the boy was happily stroking Set's head, his earlier terror completely forgotten.
"Ah, I'm Linde," the boy said as they walked. "I handle the odd jobs around the inn."
"I'm Rei. As you can see, I'm an adventurer."
"Are you here for the dungeon, Lord Rei?"
"Yeah. As you saw, there are some important people in that carriage. I'm acting as their escort."
"Whoa... You're about my age, but you're already doing such big jobs. That's incredible. Oh, here we are. These are the stables."
Linde led them to a building twice the size of the stables at the Dusk Wheat Inn.
"It's huge," Rei remarked.
Linde nodded with a hint of pride. "Well, plenty of adventurers bring tamed monsters or summoned beasts like you do, Lord Rei. And when the big merchant companies come to buy stock, they have dozens of carriages and guard horses."
Linde opened the stable doors, and they entered with Set.
There were several horses inside, most of which froze the moment they sensed Set's presence. However, a few merely glanced at him before returning to their hay. They were likely warhorses, accustomed to danger.
"I'll bill the stable fee with the room. It's going to the nobles, right?"
"Yeah, no problem. I'd appreciate it if you could feed him, too."
"Understood. Any dislikes?"
"None, but he prefers meat."
"Got it. I'll take care of it."
Rei finished his conversation with Linde just as Vel arrived to lead him to his room.
Fortunately, it was a private room; he had managed to avoid sharing a space with Kyuste.
Once his things were settled, he headed out without a moment's rest to report the Mantis incident to the Guild Branch Office.