"Ugh... what am I supposed to do?"
Rei collapsed onto the bed, stripping off his Dragon Robe and Sleipnir's Shoes as he let out a frustrated groan.
It had been five days since he arrived in the City of Emocion. He had ventured out to sea several times, but every trip ended the same way: a barrage of seawater spears and no sign of the Lemures.
Over the last two days, he had even enlisted the help of an adventurer party that owned a magic item ship—a group he’d crossed paths with before. While Rei and Seto drew the monster’s fire, the party searched the depths in detail, yet they hadn't found so much as a single clue.
"How is the thing even tracking me? Every time Seto and I fly over the water, it attacks like clockwork..."
It was an undeniable fact. Whenever they took to the sky above the sea, the Lemures struck without fail. There were no exceptions, and Rei was at a total loss as to how the creature pinpointed his position.
"Logically, it’s probably sensing my magic power... but I don't have any proof. Well, as long as I can keep acting as a lure, I guess it doesn't matter."
His gaze drifted to the floor, where several bags lay tossed aside. They were stuffed with copper and silver coins, with even a few gold coins mixed in.
This was his take from the past few days, and the pile would only grow until the Lemures was finally dead.
The source of his sudden wealth was simple: whenever Rei and Seto were in the air, the Lemures focused its attacks entirely on them. Ship owners had realized that if they set sail while Rei was acting as a decoy, they could leave the harbor with almost no fear of being sunk.
Of course, safety wasn't strictly guaranteed. The Lemures was a fickle creature. While it attacked Rei reliably, it sometimes seemed to grow bored and would suddenly shift its sights toward a departing vessel. It had already happened a few times.
Even so, the high probability of a safe passage meant that more and more ship owners were coming to Rei with direct requests.
If he cared only about money, he could easily make more doing this than the actual bounty was worth. However, Rei was far more interested in magic stones and rare materials than coin, so the current stalemate did not sit well with him.
There was also the matter of the local adventurers. Their jealous glares were becoming a nuisance. To them, Rei was a pampered outsider making a fortune just by flying around, so their resentment was somewhat expected. The adventurers who had invested in ships specifically to claim the bounty hated him with a particular passion. The only reason they hadn't tried to kill him yet was out of fear—the combat prowess of a Gryphon was legendary, and Rei himself was a known Alias Holder. If he had been an ordinary C-Rank adventurer, he likely would have met with a "fatal accident" by now.
Realizing they couldn't touch him directly, the bitter locals had resorted to spreading rumors. The word on the street was that Rei had released a monster he’d tamed himself into the waters off Emocion just to extort ship owners and drive up the bounty.
While most people dismissed the gossip as petty jealousy, a small number of desperate adventurers who had come to the city to strike it rich—and failed—chose to believe it.
When skeptics argued that taming such a massive beast was impossible, the believers pointed to Seto, an A-Rank monster, as proof that Rei could tame anything. When Rei claimed he hadn't known about the Lemures until the Guild Master in Gilm told him, they argued that a disaster of this scale would have reached the ears of anyone in Gilm, regardless of the distance.
Some, fueled by misplaced righteous indignation, even tried to confront Rei. He generally ignored them, but for those who got physical, his response was simple: knock them unconscious and leave them in the gutter.
If they got robbed or kidnapped while lying face-down in the dirt, Rei figured they brought it on themselves. It was just a stroke of bad luck.
He had a special policy for the ones who believed the rumors and tried to extort money from him—he’d knock them out, take their valuables as "compensation," and then dump them on the roadside. In fact, a good portion of the money in the bags on the floor had come from the pockets of would-be muggers.
"Either way, I’m stuck until I actually see the thing. It can see us perfectly, but we're blind to it. Damn it... if this were on land, I’d have finished it by now."
With a heavy sigh, Rei closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep to wash away the day's exhaustion.
The next morning, Rei headed for the Guild with Seto, clinging to a faint—vanishingly faint—hope that some new lead might have surfaced. He was about to leave Seto outside and head into the building when a voice called out from behind him.
"Um, e-excuse me! You in the robe!"
Rei turned around, expecting another headache, but the sight that met his eyes immediately explained why he’d been stopped.
The speaker was a young man in his late teens, slightly older than Rei, wearing standard leather armor and carrying a longsword. He had a timid, unassertive smile, but it wasn't the man who caught Rei's attention. It was the bird standing quietly at his side. It was a massive creature, about a meter tall—an Icebird. It was the same D-Rank monster Rei had noticed near Seto during a previous visit to the Guild.
(If he's with that monster... then he's a...)
As Rei reached the conclusion, the man spoke up, confirming his suspicions.
"Um, are you the one who tamed that Gryphon!?"
Rei nodded at the man’s sudden burst of intensity.
"Yeah. I tamed Seto. And I take it you’re the one taming that Icebird? Or is it a summon?"
"No, he's definitely tamed. ...Um, would you mind if we talked for a bit?"
"Ah... well."
Rei glanced toward the Guild. He was only there on a whim anyway, so he decided there was no harm in a short delay.
"Sure. This is the first time I’ve met another tamer. I can give you thirty minutes."
He had a request from a ship owner in about an hour, but he had time to kill.
"Thank you! Then, uh... let's see. There's a stall selling juice over there. Why don't we talk there?"
"Works for me. Lead the way."
"Right! This way!"
The man’s previous hesitation vanished completely, replaced by a beaming smile.
"Shen, let's go."
"Kikii!"
The Icebird, Shen, gave a short cry in response.
(Right, that’s the sound they make.)
As Rei recalled his experience fighting Icebirds in Gilm during the winter, Shen suddenly took flight and landed lightly on Seto’s back.
"Guruuu?"
"Kikii!"
"I-I'm so sorry! Shen, get down!"
"Gururuuu."
The man panicked, but Seto let out a soft rumble from his throat, signaling that he didn't mind the passenger.
"Seto says it's fine. Don't worry about it. By the way, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Rei, a C-Rank adventurer from the City of Gilm."
"Oh, I know. You've become quite famous here in the City of Emocion... in a lot of different ways."
"...I'll bet."
Rei nodded, knowing the man was referring to the rumors.
"My name is Hendeka. I’m a D-Rank adventurer from the Village of Cuenca."
"Cuenca?"
Rei repeated the name, but Hendeka just shook his head with a sheepish grin.
"It's just a tiny place in the sticks. I doubt you've heard of it."
"Fair enough. Still, you were brave to approach me, knowing the kind of reputation I have right now."
"Well, I actually wanted to talk to you the last time I saw you at the Guild, but you seemed to be in the middle of something serious, so I didn't want to interrupt..."
Rei remembered that day. He’d been caught in the middle of a dispute between some adventurers and a fisherman's daughter. He’d seen the Icebird Shen standing near Seto when he finally stepped back outside.
"Back in Cuenca, I was the only tamer. I’ve seen some summoners in the larger cities, but..."
"I can imagine."
Taming and summoning magic were two sides of the same coin, yet fundamentally different. Tamed monsters stayed with their masters constantly, meaning the tamer had to provide food and care around the clock. Summoners, however, only called their creatures when needed and sent them back afterward, incurring almost no maintenance costs. It made sense that most people chose the latter.
"I have to ask, how did you manage to tame a Gryphon?"
"I didn't tame him as an adult. We've been together since he was a cub."
"I see... that makes a lot more sense than trying to break a wild one. But it's still incredible."
"What about you, Hendeka? Taming an Icebird is pretty unusual. The difficulty might be low, but they only show up in winter, don't they?"
"True. About five years ago, I found Shen injured during the winter. I nursed him back to health, and he’s been with me ever since. I got lucky and found an alchemist who could make a magic item that lets him stay active even when it isn't cold out."
"That is lucky."
They reached the row of stalls while discussing the finer points of taming. Hendeka walked up to a stall decorated with tropical fruits and bought two cups of mixed juice and a few pieces of fruit. He handed one juice to Rei and fed the fruit to Seto and Shen.
When Rei took the cup, he was taken aback by how cold it was. It felt like it had been pulled straight from a refrigerator.
"This is..."
"Surprised? This stall uses magic items to keep the juice chilled. It’s not too busy since it’s still relatively mild, but they say people line up for blocks once summer hits."
"Hahaha! You got that right! I spent a fortune getting those magic items made. Even with my connections, it was a huge investment. I'd be in serious trouble if business didn't pick up!"
The owner let out a boisterous laugh and tossed two bite-sized pieces of fruit to Rei and Hendeka as a service.
"Oh, thank you."
"Much appreciated."
The two caught the fruit and moved into a patch of shade.
"So," Rei said, getting back to business after a sip of juice. "Why did you call me out? It wasn't just to talk shop about taming, was it?"
Hendeka stiffened for a second, then gave a small nod and a timid smile.
"Right. I heard that you and Seto go out every day to look for the Lemures, and that you're helping the ships get out safely. I was wondering if you'd let us help. Shen can fly with Seto, and his eyesight is amazing. I think he could really help you spot the monster. What do you think?"
"I see."
Rei went quiet, weighing the offer.
(The fact is, Seto and I haven't seen a thing in five days. If having another pair of eyes in the sky increases our chances, even by a little, it might be worth it.)
He looked at Hendeka’s earnest expression, then at Shen, who was happily pecking at his fruit.
"What's your price for the help?"
"Well... since today is just a trial, how does 1 silver coin sound?"
"...That's all? Well, if you're fine with that, I have no objections. I can't promise I'll keep hiring you after today, but let's give it a shot."
"Yes! Thank you! I won't let you down!"
With the deal struck, the two humans and their companions headed for the harbor.