Specifically...
"For a bunch of bandits, they haven't hoarded much."
...They were currently at a bandit hideout.
The explanation for how Rei ended up here was quite simple.
While traveling from Exil toward Gilm, Rei had noticed a commotion on the ground below. Looking down, he saw a group of armed men on horseback attacking a caravan of several carriages.
He had listened closely and heard the riders shouting threats at the occupants, leading him to conclude they were indeed bandits.
Having long since designated bandits as vermin to be eliminated, Rei had unleashed a barrage of Flying Slashes and Flame Magic from the air, successfully wiping out the majority of the attackers.
Furthermore, while there had been other bandits waiting in ambush along the caravan's path, they stood no chance against Seto's vision, hearing, and sense of smell. They, too, were easily annihilated by what could only be described as Rei's carpet bombing from above.
Once the carriages were identified as a merchant caravan, Rei had interrogated the surviving bandits to extract the location of their base. He then launched a raid on the hideout alongside the caravan guards.
In truth, Rei and Seto could have easily wiped out the remaining bandits on their own, making reinforcements unnecessary. However, the merchants and guards had pleaded with him, wanting both to repay the favor and ensure the local bandit threat was neutralized. Finding it too tedious to argue, he had agreed to bring them along.
The decision was also influenced by the interrogation, which had revealed that nearly all the gang's fighters had participated in the ambush, leaving only a small skeleton crew behind to guard the base.
The caravan members likely hoped to claim whatever treasures the bandits had hoarded.
Rei wondered if it was wise for guards to abandon their charge for loot, but since the merchants—the ones being guarded—were in favor of the plan, he simply warned them that he wouldn't be responsible for their safety and headed for the hideout.
Ultimately, the information from the interrogation proved accurate. Only a handful of men had remained at the hideout, and the guards captured them without much struggle. Along with the survivors from the initial ambush, these men were to be sold as slaves in the next city they visited.
Naturally, Rei had already been paid his share of the loot, including a gratuity.
"No, no, that's not true at all. For a bandit gang of this scale, this is quite a respectable haul."
A merchant spoke to Rei with a beaming smile.
From the merchants' perspective, the fact that they had legally claimed the bandits' hoard with virtually no effort was a stroke of luck. That Rei showed no interest in the bulk of the spoils was something they welcomed wholeheartedly.
"As we agreed, I'll take what I want first. Is that alright?"
"Yes, of course! But, if you could be so kind as to keep our side in mind as well..."
The merchant stated his own request clearly despite his hesitant air. It was a natural trait for his profession.
"Don't worry. As I said, there's almost nothing among these treasures that I want. You lot can keep the rest as an inconvenience fee."
After saying that, Rei surveyed the treasure vault... or rather, the place that better resembled a warehouse.
Since the bandit gang hadn't been particularly large, the contents consisted mostly of leather pouches filled with copper and silver coins, along with bundles of clothes, tableware, weapons, and armor.
Rei headed straight for the pile of weapons and began storing spears into his Misty Ring.
Although he had replenished his supply of throwing weapons at a weapon shop and blacksmith shop in Exil just in case, it was always better to have as many spares as possible.
He also collected all the daggers.
These would serve as consumables for stripping materials from monsters.
Even counting the spears and daggers, the stock was quite limited. Given they were just the leftovers used by a small band of bandits, it was only to be expected.
"Well, this should do. You can have the rest."
"A-Are you truly certain? I mean..."
The merchants had seen Rei summon his Death Scythe during the battle, but their eyes were once again drawn to the Item Box as he demonstrated its function. One of the merchants snapped out of his daze at Rei’s call and asked while glancing toward the leather bags of copper and silver coins.
From their perspective, they had assumed that a solo adventurer like Rei would prioritize the money.
Yet, he had chosen only the spears and daggers.
To the bewildered merchant, Rei nodded to confirm there was no mistake.
"I'm not exactly hurting for money."
Upon hearing those words, the merchants directed a gaze at him that was half-impressed and half-exasperated.
To a merchant, money was never something one could have enough of; the more, the better. Of course, even when seeking gold, they would avoid dishonest behavior. At the very least, the merchants present here possessed that much common sense.
Rei, however, was currently flush with cash from selling materials and magic stones in the Exil dungeon, as well as the rewards he’d received for handing over the Anomaly Species Corpse and information to Bosk.
"I see. In that case, it shall be as you wish. So, um... what will Lord Rei do now?"
"What do you mean?"
Rei asked back, as if the meaning of the question was beyond him.
"Well, I mean regarding your destination... if we are heading the same way, I was wondering if you would like to travel with us."
At those words, the other merchants nodded, thinking it was a brilliant proposal.
The hired guards, however, looked somewhat disgruntled.
"...Ah."
With that, Rei realized their true motive.
If they had a powerhouse capable of wiping out bandits from the sky traveling with them, the safety of their journey would be guaranteed. Since Rei had proven that one man and one beast surpassed the combined strength of all the hired guards, the merchants were desperate to hire him at any cost.
"Naturally, we will pay a proper reward. What do you say?"
Rei silently shook his head.
"I'm sorry, but I'm in a bit of a rush for various reasons. Helping you this time was merely a coincidence."
"Could you not find it in yourself to reconsider?"
"My apologies, but I want to get to Gilm as quickly as possible."
When he gave that final, short reply, the merchant who had been speaking to him eventually let out a small sigh.
"I understand. If you are in that much of a hurry, it seems further persuasion would be pointless. ...Lord Rei, thank you very much for saving us. As the caravan leader, allow me to express our formal gratitude."
The leader bowed deeply, and the other merchants and guards followed his lead.
With those words at his back, Rei exited the cave that had served as the bandits' lair.
"Guruuu?"
Flapping his wings as he flew through the deep blue summer sky, Seto turned his head back and chirped.
Losing the battle against the plea for food visible in those round eyes, Rei pulled some dried meat out of his Misty Ring and fed it to Seto.
"Gururururuuu."
Seto flapped his wings happily while chewing the meat.
"You're quite the skillful flier."
Even while looking backward, Seto maintained his flight speed and course perfectly. It was a feat born of an instinctive understanding of flight.
Rei thought about this as he idly stroked Seto's neck.
Happy to be pampered, Seto let out a high-pitched cry and flapped his wings powerfully, increasing their speed even further.
As Rei watched several monsters on the ground flee into the woods the moment they heard Seto's cry, a small smile formed on his lips.
The height of summer had passed, and the world was gradually leaning toward autumn, but the season's heat remained. Even if the mornings and nights had become slightly cooler, the intense sunlight of the day had not changed.
Towering thunderheads floated in the distant sky, making Rei keenly feel the passage of time.
Thanks to his Dragon Robe, he felt almost no heat as they took shortcuts across the winding highway... and eventually, a familiar city came into view below.
Yes—Gilm, the only city on the frontier.
"Guruu, Gururururuuu!"
At the sight of Gilm after so long, Seto let out a high-pitched, joyful cry.
Several monsters on the ground heard that voice and scrambled back into the forest, judging they stood no chance of survival if they were spotted. Some monsters that had been locked in a death match to devour each other immediately abandoned their fight and fled in opposite directions the moment Seto's voice reached them.
...Of course, the biggest impact was felt by the travelers, merchants, and adventurers on the highway.
While most were locals who knew Seto as Gilm's Mascot Character, several newcomers or first-time visitors were terrified by the sight of a Gryphon.
When those people tried to flee in a panic, the locals quickly explained the situation. The visitors voiced their amazement, thinking it was exactly as expected of the frontier.
Being able to correctly identify Seto high in the sky by his form or his cry was a testament to how widely known he had become in the city.
At any rate, Seto continued to flap his wings, landing some distance away from the city before heading toward the Main Gate.
Normally, he could have descended directly at the gate, but since they had been scolded for that in the past, Rei made sure to be more careful.
"Oh, I thought so! Is that Seto and Rei? It's been quite a while."
One of the guards Rei recognized spoke with a smile as the duo approached.
"I went to Exil for a bit."
"Exil... if I remember right, that’s the labyrinth city. I've heard stories, but I've never been. Was your goal the dungeon?"
"Something like that. I had something specific I was looking for."
Exchanging small talk, Rei held out his Guild Card.
The guard accepted it with a practiced air and proceeded with the procedures for entering the city.
"More importantly, where is Ranga?"
When Rei asked about the Captain of the Guard Force, who usually acted as his primary contact, the guard skillfully shrugged his shoulders while continuing the paperwork.
"The Captain has some business. He’s been in Abuelo for about three days now."
"Abuelo?"
Rei tilted his head at the mention of the city closest to Gilm and prompted him to continue.
"Yeah. Apparently, a rather troublesome bandit gang showed up. They sent several knights as reinforcements, and a few people from the guard force—including Captain Ranga—were dispatched as well."
"Bandits, huh? We don't usually have to worry much about those around Gilm."
"True enough. If someone had the skill to work as a bandit around here, they could earn a better living as an adventurer. Right, here you go. Your Guild Card and the Tamed Monster's Necklace."
Being on the frontier, Gilm naturally had a massive number of monsters. It wasn't just the sheer quantity; the variety was vast as well. Even for an adventurer with a fair amount of skill, very few would dare to camp outside Gilm's walls.
Rei stored the returned Guild Card into his Misty Ring and fastened the Tamed Monster's Necklace around Seto's neck.
Once finished, he passed through the Main Gate and entered Gilm with Seto.
"Gururururuuu."
Prompted by Seto's chirping that he was hungry, Rei headed to a stall near the gate.
"Oh, if it isn't Seto! And Rei too! You're back! How about it? Today's Grilled Skewers are exceptionally delicious!"
The stall owner's boisterous voice echoed through the street, and dozens of gazes turned toward the pair.
"Oh, it's Seto!"
"It really is him."
"You're as cute as ever."
"I haven't seen him lately. I finally get to see Seto..."
"Seto-chan, do you want a sandwich?"
"Ah, Rei is here too."
"So he is."
"Yay, it's Seto-chan! Hey, hey, let's play!"
"Ah, that's not fair! I want to play with him too!"
Passersby, stall owners, adventurers, and children all began to gather around.
...Given Seto's status in Gilm, it was only natural that he was the star of the show while Rei was treated as an afterthought.
However, such a commotion in front of the Main Gate was bound to obstruct traffic...
"Now, now, don't crowd there too much. Seto isn't going anywhere, so scatter for now, scatter!"
They were cautioned by the guard at the Main Gate.
Though looking disappointed, the crowd obediently dispersed.
Of course, they didn't leave empty-handed; many people tossed Seto the dried meat or sandwiches they were carrying, and the quicker ones handed over Grilled Skewers they had just bought specifically for him.
Listening to Seto chirping happily as he received a mountain of food in an instant, Rei headed toward the Dusk Wheat Inn, his home for the night.