With several Cyclops corpses scattered around the area, Mirene considered what to do next.
The request they had originally accepted was to subjugate a single Cyclops.
Yet when they entered the forest, there were five of them—and on top of that, a red Cyclops that appeared to be a Rare Species or High-ranking Species.
After judging that they stood no chance against the red Cyclops and its companions, they had decided to retreat—only to find two more Cyclops rampaging where their horses and carriage had been.
A total of seven Cyclops, plus the red one that seemed to be a Rare Species or High-ranking Species.
Mirene had thought there was no way they could manage the situation on their own, but thanks to Deetz returning with reinforcements from Gilm, they had somehow survived.
(Ekril's injuries don't seem to be serious, either.)
Mirene glanced at Ekril, who was lying down a short distance away, and muttered inwardly.
Potions had already healed almost all of her external injuries, so all that remained was to wait for her to regain consciousness.
The fact that her injuries hadn't been that severe to begin with was probably Ekril's good fortune.
The injuries she had actually sustained were merely bruises and cuts from falling out of a tree. She hadn't suffered any fractures, nor had she been struck by the lightning discharged from the red Cyclops's hammer.
Thanks to that, the potions Mirene had on hand were able to heal her almost completely.
"So, what do we do now?"
The one who spoke was Vihera.
To Mirene, she was a face she was seeing for the first time—a woman who was apparently an acquaintance of her nemesis, Yohanna.
She was a beauty rarely encountered anywhere, yet despite being in the middle of a forest, she wore only thin garments like those a dancer or prostitute might wear, along with hand and foot guards.
No matter how you looked at her, she didn't appear to be someone who could fight in a forest—let alone battle monsters.
But having actually watched Vihera in that very attire take on five Cyclops at once—though Set had lent a hand as well—Mirene didn't feel like raising any objections.
More fundamentally, she could tell at a glance that Vihera was overwhelmingly stronger than herself.
"W-well, yeah. Bringing back seven Cyclops is..."
Seven Cyclops, each exceeding four meters in height.
No matter how she thought about it, carrying them back was impossible.
Even the single Cyclops they had originally been targeting was something they had planned to load onto their carriage and transport back to Gilm.
That carriage had been destroyed by the Cyclops's attack, making it nearly impossible to carry the corpses back as they were.
More importantly, the ones who had defeated five of the Cyclops weren't Mirene's group, so ownership of those corpses belonged to Vihera.
"Even carrying back a single one is impossible, so I suppose we can only take the subjugation proof parts—the right ears—along with the magic stones, and maybe the eyeballs and horns that sell for high prices."
"That's right. It's quite a shame, but..."
Surnin replied with a sigh.
Though he sighed, there was no particularly regretful expression on his face.
They had made enemies of seven Cyclops and had even braced for total annihilation at one point. The fact that everyone had survived was reward enough.
Ekril's injuries being minor probably factored into that as well.
"Hmm, but isn't it a shame? Cyclops materials—the meat, skin, bones, tendons—they all sell for quite a high price. And some of the internal organs are used as ingredients for magic potions and alchemy, too."
Mirene put on a dissatisfied expression at Yohanna's words.
However, that dissatisfied expression was directed less at what Yohanna had said and more at Set, whom Yohanna was currently petting.
If things were normal, Mirene would have wanted to pet Set too, but as the one leading what could only be called a Cyclops subjugation force, she had various tasks to attend to and no time to play with him.
"Even so, what's impossible is impossible. Well, if the people who scattered into the forest earlier come back, we might be able to carry a little by hand... but losing the carriage really hurts. Cyclops meat sells for a pretty good price, you know."
"Gururururu!"
At the words "Cyclops meat," Set purred.
That he was saying he wanted to eat some was clear from the greedy look on his face.
"Since we'll have to leave most of the Cyclops corpses behind anyway, if Set-chan wants to eat them, I suppose it's fine to let him. ...Um, Vihera-san? Or rather, -sama? Was it? What would you like to do on your end?"
Mirene called out to Vihera, who had been watching their exchange alongside Byune—but at that, Yohanna and Deetz both flashed expressions of alarm.
They had ultimately glossed over the explanation of what kind of person Vihera was, and that had now come back to bite them.
Vihera herself, however, didn't seem particularly bothered by Mirene's uncertain address as she spoke up.
"Let's see. I'll just take the subjugation proof parts and magic stones. You can do what you like with the materials. It's too much trouble."
What came out of Vihera's mouth was something completely unexpected to Mirene.
"Um, we were just saying we can't carry them all... Did you hear us?"
When Mirene asked in polite language for some reason, Vihera gave her a look as if she couldn't understand what she was talking about.
"We don't need a carriage or anything, right? After all... look."
Vihera directed her gaze toward the direction Mirene and the others had fled from.
Following that gaze, Mirene thought for a moment that the red Cyclops might push through the trees and appear, but...
"What, it's already taken care of? There was no need to rush."
What emerged from beyond the bushes was Rei, clad in his Dragon Robe as usual.
Given that he was here empty-handed, one might normally have questioned it, but in Rei's case, he was an Item Box User and didn't always keep his large scythe out in the open—when Mirene's thoughts reached that point, she turned her gaze toward Vihera.
She had just understood the meaning of Vihera's words—that a carriage wouldn't be necessary.
"I see. If Rei is here, then his Item Box..."
"Hm? What is it? ...Still, you certainly made quite a mess of things."
Though slightly puzzled by Mirene's words, Rei muttered as he looked around.
There were the corpses of the five Cyclops that Vihera had fought, and a short distance away, the corpses of two more.
A total of seven Cyclops corpses lay in this clearing.
With seven Cyclops corpses, each about four meters tall, the sheer volume was considerable.
"Fufu. Right? Still, honestly, the Cyclops weren't as strong as I expected. But given their large bodies, they were certainly tough, which meant I could attack them to my heart's content, so that was convenient in its own way. Is it presumptuous of me to wish I could have fought a stronger opponent?"
Saying that, Vihera sent a sidelong glance toward Rei.
The gesture, like a prostitute luring a man, combined with the effect of her thin garments, carried an allure that sent shivers down not only Rei's spine but also Deetz's—who knew Vihera's true identity—and even the normally mild-mannered Surnin's.
"Hey, Rei. From the looks of it, that woman is an acquaintance of yours... but what kind of person is she? An adventurer who can take on five Cyclops at once would surely be the subject of at least some rumors if they were in Gilm. The fact that I've never heard of her probably means she arrived recently, though."
"Correct. She just arrived in Gilm yesterday, together with us."
At Rei's words, Mirene thought I knew it and shifted her gaze—not to Vihera, but to Set, who was being fawned over by Yohanna.
"Honestly, if you were coming back yesterday, I wish you'd let us know in advance. Then we would have waited instead of taking a request to subjugate a Cyclops."
"Don't be ridiculous. In the first place, how was I supposed to contact you? If we had Paired Orbs, that'd be another story."
"Paired Orbs?"
As if hearing the name for the first time, Mirene tilted her head.
"It's a type of magic item," Surnin explained to Mirene, apparently recognizing the name. "It's a pair of two crystals, and using them allows you to talk to each other."
"What's with that convenient magic item? I've never heard of it. Wait, if I had that, I could talk to Set-chan anytime, right? Where do they sell them? I'll earn enough for a Light Gold Coin, just watch me!"
Being able to see Set anytime, anywhere.
The moment she thought that, power surged into Mirene's body from she knew not where.
So much so that she felt she could take on a few Cyclops right now.
"Ah... Mirene. Unfortunately, Paired Orbs are extremely rare and basically don't appear on the market. If you absolutely want one, you'd have to search through dungeons or ancient ruins. Or negotiate with someone who already has one to sell it to you."
The instant she heard those words, Mirene's gaze locked onto Rei.
It was a gaze so intense that Rei—an S-Rank Adventurer who had fought evenly against Noise the Immovable—involuntarily retreated a few steps.
Of course, Rei didn't think he would lose to Mirene in a fight, but he was still pushed back by her inexplicable intensity.
"I'm telling you, even if you take mine, the other one isn't here, so it's useless."
Strictly speaking, Rei had two Paired Orbs, but while the one paired with Elena was one thing, he couldn't reveal the one paired with Grimm to anyone.
At Rei's words, Mirene felt the power that had been surging through her body drain away in an instant.
"...I know that. Um, so what were we talking about again? Ah, right, right. About who this Vihera person is. And that child over there, too. For someone her age to be that skilled, and to use such a method without hesitation... that's not normal."
"Such a method?"
Rei asked, not understanding what Mirene meant. She answered anyway, furrowing her brows as if imagining the pain just from putting it into words.
"That child stuck a long needle between the Cyclops's toenail. Well, threw it, to be precise."
"Ow."
Understanding why Mirene had been making such a pained expression, a similar one appeared on Rei's face.
In terms of damage, it probably wasn't a fatal wound, but just imagining the pain made him wince.
Though it was Mirene's group that had then attacked and killed that Cyclops as a team.
"Um, Byune is a thief who used to party with Vihera back in Exil. And a skilled one, at that."
"I could tell she was skilled from that fight earlier... Exil is a Labyrinth City, right? The fact that she was a thief there means she's probably even more skilled than I imagined. ...So, what kind of person is this Vihera, then? If she's someone who can handle five Cyclops on her own, even if she wasn't in Gilm, I think I'd have at least heard rumors."
"...She was a famous, skilled adventurer in Exil, too."
Rei hesitated for a moment over how to answer, but in the end, that was his reply.
It wasn't exactly a lie, but he wasn't telling the full truth, either.
"Hmm. ...Well, fine."
She seemed to have a vague sense that Rei was hiding something.
But perhaps also understanding that there were circumstances involved, Mirene didn't press any further.
"Rei, sorry, but could you store the Cyclops in your Item Box and transport them? Their group's share, too."
At Vihera's words, Rei nodded without particular hesitation.
Most of the people here were his own people—well, that might be saying a bit much, but they were still people he was on good terms with.
Using the Misty Ring for people like that was nothing to Rei.
He immediately walked over to the five Cyclops corpses, and seeing that, Mirene headed toward Set, apparently satisfied that her work was done for the time being.
Of course, even in front of Set, she wasn't completely letting her guard down; she was properly checking whether any hostile presences were nearby.
And while doing so, she still kept a careful eye on Set, who was purring happily as Yohanna petted him—proof enough that she deserved to be called a veteran adventurer.
Surnin stood guard at Ekril's side, and Byune moved closer to Vihera, watching Set being petted with a happy expression. Deetz, meanwhile, felt somewhat idle but remained vigilant of the surroundings.
"Looks like you fought pretty enthusiastically."
"Did I? Honestly, I would have preferred a bit more of a challenge."
Standing before the Cyclops corpses, Vihera sighed as if the fight had been close to a disappointment.
"They were certainly tough, I'll give them that. But they were just swinging their arms and legs around recklessly... I wanted to fight enemies with a bit more skill..."
Listening to those same complaints as before, Rei touched the Cyclops corpses and began storing them away.