As sunlight poured through the window, Rei sat up in bed and blinked.
He scanned his surroundings with a puzzled expression. A frown touched his brow when he realized his bed no longer monopolized nearly the entire three-tatami corner room. Finally, it clicked: he was no longer staying at the Coral Inn of the Blue Sea in the City of Emocion.
"Right. I’m back in Gilm."
He muttered the words to himself and stretched, glancing around the room at the Dusk Wheat Inn. It already felt nostalgic.
That said, he didn't have many personal effects lying around. Normally, staying at an inn for a long period would inevitably lead to an accumulation of belongings, but in Rei's case, nearly everything was stored inside the Misty Ring. He kept only the barest essentials out in the room.
He finished his morning routine, pulled on his Sleipnir's Shoes, and donned his Dragon Robe. With that, his preparations were complete.
"Well, breakfast first, then the Guild," he murmured, leaving his room to head down to the 1F dining hall.
"……Am I a bit too early?"
Rei stood inside the Guild, observing the crowd of adventurers as he spoke.
After finishing his meal at the inn, he had headed toward the Guild with Seto as usual, stopping at various street stalls along the way to buy snacks before reaching his destination. However, the guild in the morning—his first visit in quite some time—was significantly more crowded than he had anticipated.
(No, is it really? Or is it just because I haven't been back to the City of Gilm in a while that it feels this way?)
Rei tilted his head inwardly. At the counter, the receptionists—including Lenora and Kenny—were busy processing a swarm of adventurers. Judging by the scene, he decided it would be better to wait a little longer before approaching them. Since he had nothing else to do, he began browsing the request forms posted on the request board.
(Subjugation, escort, gathering. Well, these are common enough. What else is there…… hm?)
His eyes widened slightly as he looked at a request form posted on the D-Rank board. It was for a "Guard Training Partner."
(A training partner? Why that? Shouldn't the guards themselves be enough for practice?)
As he tilted his head and read closer, he saw that the Guild was specifically looking for adventurers to play the thief role. Essentially, they wanted to simulate a battle where the Guard Force defended the city against an organized group of thieves.
"……I see. That looks a bit interesting."
"Perish the thought. If an outlier like you were to sign up for that request, Rei-kun, the guards wouldn't stand a chance."
A voice called out from behind him. When he turned around, he found a man with a rugged face standing there.
"What's the captain of the Guard Force doing here?"
"I'm here for a meeting regarding that very request. The Guard Force never expected someone like you to even consider it, Rei-kun……"
"No, I don't actually intend to take it. I'm just killing time. It looks like they’re still swamped over there."
Rei gestured toward the counter as he replied to Ranga. A fair number of adventurers were still lined up, and he could see Lenora and Kenny looking exhausted as they handled the rush.
"Is this about your official report for returning yesterday? You're quite late getting to it."
"Well, I came by yesterday, but the Guild Master wasn't in."
"I see. ……Come to think of it, quite a lot of people have come to the City of Gilm looking for you, Rei-kun. Have you met any of them yet?"
At those words, images of Maruka and Koan, whom he had befriended the previous day, flashed through his mind.
But those two were the only ones Rei had met; no one else had managed to make contact. To be precise, the fact that Rei had met with Maruka, the daughter of Duke Quento's House, had acted as a deterrent. Other parties felt that if he had already turned down an invitation from the powerful Duke Quento, their own chances were slim.
Of course, not everyone had given up, but since Rei had finally returned to the frontier, many were focused on gathering information to gain leverage for future negotiations. Fortunately or unfortunately, Rei remained unaware of this. He sensed eyes on him but assumed they were simply showing restraint out of deference to the Quento family.
"No, I haven't met them. I’m sure they have their reasons. More importantly, has anything interesting happened in the city while I was away?"
"Interesting? Well…… there were several minor skirmishes, but nothing particularly significant."
Naturally, there had been incidents involving those who wanted to recruit Rei through unscrupulous means or those who tried to antagonize him to extract concessions. However, those were shadow conflicts—wars of attrition behind the scenes. Although Ranga was aware of them due to his position, he didn't feel the need to trouble Rei with the details.
Before being the captain of the Guard Force, Ranga was a resident of the City of Gilm. As such, he understood exactly what a powerhouse like Rei meant to this region.
"Regardless…… I think it's about time, don't you?"
Ranga muttered while glancing toward the counter. Rei followed his gaze. A few adventurers remained at the counter, and Kenny was still occupied, but fortunately, Lenora’s station was now vacant.
In a way, this reflected the hierarchy of the receptionists' popularity. While Lenora was well-liked, she had a somewhat stiff, professional personality that some found intimidating. In contrast, Kenny was perceived as more approachable and lighthearted, making her the more popular choice among the rank-and-file adventurers.
"You're right. I'll take my leave then. Good luck with the Guard Force business."
Rei gave a small wave, parted from Ranga, and headed toward the counter. He went straight to Lenora, as she wasn't currently serving anyone.
However, even without a line, Lenora wasn't exactly idle. She was busy organizing and verifying documents for accepted requests. Rei chose to call out to her simply because she and Kenny were the only two receptionists with whom he shared any real rapport.
"Lenora, is the Guild Master available for a meeting?"
"Oh, Rei-san. Yes, I passed word along yesterday, so you're all set. Fortunately, the Guild Master is in her office right now. She gave orders to let you through unconditionally the moment you arrived. Please, follow me."
Guided by Lenora, Rei entered the staff area behind the counter. He walked past Kenny, who was staring resentfully at Lenora. Before Kenny sat a male adventurer in his 20s who was doing his best to invite her to dinner. This man, a newcomer to the City of Gilm, was oblivious to the fact that Kenny’s heart was set on Rei, making his gentlemanly efforts entirely futile.
(Seriously, stop hitting on me and just go take a quest. Because of you, I didn't get a single second to talk to Rei-kun……)
Though she fumed internally, she maintained her professional facade and continued to deflect the man's advances. Perhaps it would have been better to turn him down flatly, but since the man was being perfectly polite and gentlemanly, she couldn't bring herself to be harsh. She could only watch with envy as Lenora led Rei away.
"Guild Master, I've brought Rei-san."
Ignoring Kenny's jealous gaze—perhaps as a small bit of revenge for their usual banter—Lenora led Rei up to the 2F and knocked on the door to Marina's Office.
"It's open, come in."
At the response from within, Lenora opened the door and entered with Rei. Inside, Marina was sitting at her desk, focused on her paperwork. She glanced at them for only a second before returning her attention to the documents.
"Sorry, but please wait a moment until I finish this. Lenora, serve Rei some tea using the tools over there."
"Yes, ma'am."
Following Marina's instructions, Rei sat on the sofa while Lenora used the tools placed near the table to brew tea. The Hot Water Pot (Magic Item) used for the tea was designed to maintain the optimal temperature for brewing. While not exactly a common household item, it was priced such that a wealthy family could afford one. Its greatest advantage was efficiency; because it only provided insulation, it could run for several months on a single Magic Stone from a mere Goblin. Of course, once the stone was spent, it had to be replaced.
"Here you go, Rei-san."
Rei took a sip of the tea and his eyes widened slightly at the refined flavor.
"These tea leaves are essentially only circulated in the Royal Capital," Lenora informed him with a soft smile.
After brewing a cup for Marina as well, she bowed and left the office. Rei watched her leave before turning back to his tea. The only sound in the room was the scratching of Marina’s pen. Finally, after about five minutes, she set her work aside.
"I'm sorry for keeping you waiting. ……Well, I appreciate you coming, but I've already received the gist of things via communication from the Guild in the City of Emocion. Still, I wanted to hear the report directly from your mouth…… and I assume that's why you're here?"
Marina sat on the sofa across from Rei. She was dressed in her usual evening dress, which was provocatively open at the chest and back, putting her lustrous brown skin on full display. As she crossed her legs, the posture seemed intended to do nothing but seduce.
Rei found his eyes drawn to her for a moment but immediately averted his gaze and spoke.
"Yeah. I’m here to report that the Lemures was successfully defeated. As you said, Marina, it was a good change of pace. Putting the monster aside, I managed to buy a massive amount of seafood and had some great meals."
"Oh, I heard. Apparently, you spread a dish called 'Okonomiyaki' over there? Between 'Udon' and 'Okonomiyaki,' I'm starting to wonder if you're an adventurer or a cook, Rei-kun."
Marina smiled, and Rei returned it with a wry one of his own.
"I just happened to know the recipes. Though my knowledge is mostly from books, and I often lacked the right ingredients when I tried to make things."
"Well, that can't be helped. ……But let's move on to the main topic. I heard that to defeat the Lemures, you used a Magic Item to forcibly teleport it from the seafloor to the surface?"
Rei instinctively caught his breath. Marina was peering at him with a deep, knowing gaze that felt as if it were stripping away his secrets. He obviously couldn't reveal that he had received help from the Lich, Grimm, so he focused on keeping his expression neutral as he nodded.
"Yeah. That's right."
"I see. ……I've been an adventurer for many years and have served as the Guild Master here in Gilm for quite some time, but I've never heard of a Magic Item with that kind of power."
"……It's a Magic Item I obtained in a Dungeon. It makes sense that you haven't heard of it."
"A Dungeon, hm? I believe the only time you've stepped into a Dungeon was during your stint as an escort for the Princess General. Did you find it then?"
"Yeah, exactly. There's no doubt I obtained it during that mission."
Technically, the Magic Item used to contact Grimm was indeed something he had obtained during the dungeon dive with Elena, so his words weren't a complete fabrication. However, they weren't the whole truth either.
"You're lying."
There was no deceiving Marina. Her years of experience as both an elite adventurer and a Guild Master made her an expert at reading people. She stared intently at him. Rei, unable to speak the truth, simply met her gaze in silence.
The two maintained their quiet standoff for several minutes. A heavy, suffocating atmosphere began to permeate the office.
"Well, fine. It's only natural for an adventurer to have a secret or two. ……But listen well. If that secret ever begins to cause harm to the City of Gilm or the Kingdom of Mireana…… I will be forced to stand in your path, Rei."
She spoke the warning despite knowing that, should it ever come to that, she likely stood no chance of winning. Yet, as long as she held her position, she could not hesitate to fulfill her duty.
"I understand."
Rei nodded, accepting her terms. He looked into Marina’s eyes. The seductive spark had vanished, replaced by a cold, sharp clarity.
"Good. Then we have no problems. I don't think you're the type to work against this city's interests anyway."
As if her serious expression had never existed, Marina relaxed, once again exuding her usual sensual aura as she shifted her legs. Her alluring, shapely thighs were exposed, but her experienced poise ensured nothing else was revealed. She smiled at Rei, whose cheeks were now slightly flushed.
"Now then, Rei. About your B-Rank Rank Up Exam……"
She finally moved on to the topic they both considered the true priority.