It was the day after the banquet.
While dawn’s light was still faint, Rei's entourage was already gathered outside Goto, finalizing their preparations for departure. Among the group, a few were clutching their stomachs or heads, looking visibly ill from the previous night's festivities—their hangovers were clearly taking a toll.
Some cast sympathetic glances toward them, but most of the onlookers simply looked on with an air of "you brought this on yourself." It was understandable. Everyone had been warned before the banquet started that they would be leaving at first light, and they had been cautioned specifically not to overindulge. Despite the warnings, they had ended up in this sorry state.
"Here, drink this. It should help you feel a bit more human."
"Sorry, ma'am... Thank you," one of the men muttered.
The woman was likely a resident of the house where the man had stayed. The elderly woman handed him a wooden cup filled with a murky liquid. The man tried to gulp it down in one go, but the next moment, his face twisted into a violent grimace as the foul taste exploded across his tongue.
"Hahaha! Medicine isn't supposed to taste good, boy. Come on, drain the cup. You’re a man, aren't you?"
"Ugh... Fine. To hell with it—fortune favors the bold!"
He shouted a self-encouraging cry and drained the rest of the cup. Setting it aside, he wore an expression of total despair, as if he had just glimpsed the end of the world.
"...Is this one of those things where it trades the hangover headache for this nightmare flavor...?"
"Who knows? But you’re about to spend hours in a swaying carriage, aren't you? Trust me, this is better than suffering through that with a pounding head."
The man had no choice but to concede. Traveling in a jolting box carriage while hungover was nothing short of torture. Compared to that, the lingering aftertaste of the hangover medicine was the lesser of two evils.
Similar exchanges were happening throughout the camp. Once the stragglers had been dealt with, the final preparations were complete.
"Well then, thank you for looking after us for the night," Rei said.
"Not at all," Luchard replied. "Yesterday's banquet was a delight. You’re always welcome here. If you’re ever in the area again, please stop by."
"...If I'm back in this area, it’ll likely be for business in the Seremuse Plain or the Bestia Empire. If that happens, I’ll be sure to drop in."
After his brief exchange with Luchard, Rei turned his attention downward. Specifically, he looked at Epika, who was currently stroking Seto’s head.
"Epika, thanks for being so kind to Seto too."
"...Yeah."
The boy's reply was strained, his voice thick with suppressed loneliness. It was clear he didn't want to part with the Gryphon. He understood that he couldn't be selfish, so he simply nodded while fighting back his tears.
"Guruuu..."
Seto rumbled softly and rubbed its face against Epika as if to comfort him.
However, that gentle gesture was the final straw. Tears began to spill from Epika's eyes.
"Hic... sniff... Hey... you’ll come back, right? This isn't the last time I’ll see you?"
Epika spoke directly to Seto while wiping his eyes. Seto, not quite understanding the reason for the sudden outburst of grief, simply continued to nuzzle the boy, trying to cheer him up. This only made the prospect of parting harder for Epika, and he began to sob in earnest.
Several members of the former Mobile Unit within Rei's entourage nodded in understanding as they watched the scene.
"I get it... I really do," one of the women murmured. "If I had to say goodbye to Seto-chan, I’d be devastated too."
"True. Parting with Seto is never easy."
"Oh, what a touching sight..."
Rei glanced at the sentimental soldiers, let out a small sigh, and placed a hand on Epika's head.
"Listen, I’ll show my face in Goto again if I ever have business nearby. Make sure you’ve cured that crybaby streak of yours by then. If you haven't, Seto will laugh at you."
"Ugh... yeah... okay..." Epika managed to say, desperately rubbing his eyes.
"Gururuuu..."
Seto nuzzled him once more. This time, Epika didn't burst into tears. Instead, his hand gently stroked Seto's head in return.
Once the farewell was settled, Rei addressed the group in a booming voice.
"We’ll likely be camping tonight. Unlike the Seremuse Plain, we shouldn't run into monsters constantly. However, thieves and their ilk might target us instead, so do not let your guard down. Furthermore, from here on, we are moving truly inside the Kingdom of Mireana. If you cause any unnecessary trouble now, it could be misinterpreted as Bestia Empire's sabotage activities. Be extremely careful."
The people around him tightened their expressions and nodded. They were well aware that, as refugees from an enemy nation, they were inherently under suspicion.
(When I think about it like that, I'm glad we’re heading for Gilm. If we were going anywhere else, we’d probably have some local noble trying to pin a strange grudge on us.)
Thinking of the many troublesome nobles he had dealt with in the past, Rei gave the final command.
"Now, move out!"
Rei gave Seto's back a light pat, and the Gryphon began to walk forward without needing a verbal command. Following them were the long line of carriages and the horse Vihera was riding. Behind them, the people of Goto waved their hands enthusiastically until the caravan disappeared from sight.
"Man, it’s so peaceful..."
A few hours after leaving Goto, as they proceeded down the highway without incident, those words reached Rei's ears. It was a fair assessment; they hadn't encountered a single problem since the journey resumed. Perhaps because Rei had been so stern in his warnings before they left, the lack of immediate danger made the boredom feel even more pronounced.
"Hey, it might be boring, but you should at least keep up the scouting," a woman acting as the driver for the adjacent carriage called out.
"Scouting? What's the point? Seto’s here. Anything we find, it’ll have found ten minutes earlier," the man shot back.
"...That's..."
The woman fell silent. Every member of the former Mobile Unit who had fought through the civil strife alongside Rei knew exactly how sharp Seto's Five Senses were. She couldn't argue with the logic, no matter how much she disliked his lack of discipline.
"Rei, should I do something about them?"
Vihera pulled her horse up beside Rei and asked the question, having overheard the argument. Rei simply shook his head.
"They might be slack now, but they’ll do their jobs when it counts. They’re still riding the high from yesterday's banquet. It’s their first time being welcomed so warmly in the Kingdom of Mireana. Let them enjoy the feeling."
"...But honestly, the reason the villagers were so happy was largely because you provided all that meat, wasn't it?"
"I won't deny that."
Rei replied instantly. Indeed, while the residents of Goto were friendly because they knew Rei and Vihera, and were charmed by Seto’s presence, the warmth extended to the rest of the refugees was entirely bought by the food Rei had provided for the feast.
Even so, Rei believed it was a necessary investment. For those who had chosen to follow him to Gilm, being welcomed in the first Mireana village they reached would do wonders for their morale and help dispel their anxieties. It lowered the psychological hurdle of settling in a new country, even if it didn't create an immediate sense of kinship.
He hadn't planned it that way before reaching Goto—the banquet had been a whim—but the results were undeniable.
"As long as they settle into the Kingdom of Mireana, I’m happy. They went through the trouble of moving all this way. If they ended up regretting it and trying to sneak back to the Empire, it would just cause me more headaches."
"My, how attentive. I’d be delighted if you directed some of that care toward me as well."
"That's a separate issue. Besides... hm?"
Rei cut his conversation with Vihera short. His gaze shifted to a massive rock, over three meters high, sitting on the side of the highway ahead of them. He thought he had glimpsed a flicker of movement.
Once he realized what was lurking there, he let out a short sigh that quickly turned into a smirk.
"Even with autumn nearly over, some people just never stop working. If only they’d directed that work ethic toward being adventurers instead of trying to rob people."
"Gurururuuu."
Seto rumbled its throat in agreement, having noticed the same thing. A few seconds later, Vihera’s eyes sharpened as she caught on as well.
"I see. They certainly seem diligent. Though I doubt the locals appreciate them plying their trade here."
"Exactly. Besides, we aren't that far from the Seremuse Plain. Even if they wait here, they aren't going to find many targets worth the effort. ...Well, fine. Since they've gone to the trouble of coming out to meet us, I’ll take them down and make them tell me where their bandits' hideout is. It should be a decent haul. Besides, I wouldn't be able to sleep if I let them lurk here and attack Goto later."
Rei gave his excuse and then looked back at the line of carriages.
"I wonder if they saw this line and thought we were a rich caravan? It’s a reasonable assumption. Listen up! There’s a group waiting in surprise attack by those rocks ahead! It’s likely a bandit gang!"
Rei’s voice caused the reactions of those in the carriages to split down the middle. One group was paralyzed with terror. These were the ordinary civilians; even though they had seen Rei repel bandits before and even raid their hideouts for treasure, to them, thieves were still an absolute symbol of terror.
The other group, however, began to grin. It was the smile of a hunter who had finally found prey. Rei, Vihera, the former Mobile Unit, and the former adventurers all knew that the combat power of their entourage was vastly superior to any highway bandit. They had seen Rei in the civil strife and on the road; they were confident in their own skills and viewed a bandit raid as a bonus payday.
Maintaining their pace without giving any sign that they had spotted the ambushers, Rei's entourage continued down the highway. As they drew close to the massive rock, shadows suddenly rose from the top and the surrounding brush. A volley of arrows hissed through the air.
(Heh. Climbing the rocks to get a height advantage for their bows. They’re actually thinking, for thieves.)
Impressed in spite of himself, Rei pulled the Death Scythe from the Misty Ring and swung it in a wide arc. With that single sweep, every arrow flying toward him was batted out of the air.
He glanced back for a fraction of a second. The members of the former Mobile Unit acting as drivers were doing the same, using their weapons to deflect the raining arrows. Only Vihera, who specialized in hand-to-hand combat, didn't bother with a weapon; she was snatching the arrows out of the air and tossing them aside with effortless grace.
"Wha—! What kind of group is this!?"
The members of the bandit gang were the ones left in shock. They had spotted a group of expensive box carriages—much more valuable than simple roofless carts or covered wagons—and assumed they were a wealthy merchant caravan. They had executed a perfect surprise attack from a superior position, yet not a single arrow had found its mark.
The boss of the bandit gang realized immediately that these were no mere merchants. He loosed another arrow, his face twisted in irritation. Since they had already committed to the attack, their only options now were to kill their targets or disable them enough to seize the cargo.
"Keep shooting! If we let them get close, we’re dead!"
Following the command from the boss, the other thieves desperately loosed more arrows. They knew they were outmatched in skill, but the caravan was already too close to flee. They wouldn't be able to outrun them now.
As they fired, praying for even a single lucky hit, one of the thieves suddenly turned pale.
"Boss! Look at the one in front! Isn't that a Gryphon!?"
"What!?"
The boss squinted. Sure enough, at the head of the carriages was a Gryphon, and on its back sat a figure draped in a robe. The figure hadn't seemed that large compared to the box carriages, so he hadn't noticed at first, but now the truth was inescapable.
"The Bandit Eater!? Dammit, why is someone that dangerous here... Retreat! Everyone retreat! Fighting a monster like that is just suicide!"
He shouted and prepared to leap from the rock to flee, but it was too late. Rei casually loosed a single Flying Slash strike, and the boss of the bandit gang collapsed with a massive gash across his body.
The rest of the thieves, shaken by the fall of their leader, were frozen in place for several seconds as Seto unleashed its Crystal Breath. In that brief window of paralysis, the members of the former Mobile Unit leapt from their carriages and overtook them. The bandit gang known as Arrow Storm was annihilated that very day.