What emerged from the bushes was an old man—and not just any old man, but someone Rei and everyone else present recognized.
Marina spoke up on behalf of the group.
"Grandfather!?"
That's right. Pushing through the bushes to reveal himself was Optis—Marina's grandfather and the Elder of the Dark Elf settlement in this forest, serving a role much like a Village Chief.
Yet as he watched Optis, a question formed in Rei's mind.
He had spoken with Optis just yesterday, which was precisely why he knew the voice that had called for Poro moments ago hadn't belonged to the old man.
Marina surely knew this as well. She had known Optis far longer than Rei had, so that was only natural.
That was why she asked the moment Optis stepped out of the bushes:
"Grandfather, that voice just now wasn't yours, was it? Whose voice was it?"
"Marina. You did well with the matter of the World Tree. Even from a distance, I could tell that it had regained its strength. Now then, about that voice from earlier. Allow me to introduce him. This is As."
At Optis's words, a single young man appeared from behind him.
He looked to be in his late teens, slightly older than Rei. He stood about a head taller, and where Rei's features were soft and almost feminine, this man's face was rugged—unmistakably handsome in a masculine way. Brown hair that seemed woven from the earth itself drew the eye.
His equipment was clearly chosen for mobility. He wore a chest guard made of monster hide rather than full leather armor, prioritizing freedom of movement. A bow and quiver that appeared to be Magic Items hung across his back, and a short sword rested in its sheath at his waist. Everything about his loadout emphasized lightness, making it obvious that his combat style relied on speed.
"—!? Old man Optis, who are these people...?"
The young man called As looked over Rei's group—or rather, his gaze landed on Set beside Rei and he caught his breath for an instant. But the fact that he didn't panic at the sight of a Gryphon spoke volumes about his composure.
"Hmm, I told you, did I not? This is my granddaughter Marina, and her husband Rei. And this is As. He's an adventurer who came to investigate the abnormalities in the forest. We happened across each other in the woods. I thought him an enemy at first, but after talking, he turned out to be a good fellow."
"Grandfather..."
Marina's exasperated gaze dropped to the cane Optis always carried. She checked it for blood and, finding none, let out a breath of relief before turning to address As, whose eyes were still fixed on Set.
"It seems Grandfather gave you some trouble... As, was it? Is that Carbuncle your Tamed Monster?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah, that's right. Seriously, I thought you'd vanished, and here you are getting other people to play with you?"
"Pororo!"
At As's words, Poro let out a delighted cry. The conversation it had shared with monsters like Set and Ielo must have been quite enjoyable for the little creature.
Seeing Poro's reaction, As flashed a wry smile and bowed his head to Marina.
"Looks like our Poro caused you all some trouble..."
Several people around them showed visible surprise at how casually As spoke to Marina, without a trace of hesitation. Rei in particular couldn't hide his astonishment.
Marina was undeniably a beauty striking enough to steal anyone's breath. Someone with looks that extraordinary wasn't the kind of person you could just casually chat up. Sure, with enough effort you might manage it, but being nervous was the natural response. And yet, right before Rei's eyes, As was conversing with Marina without the slightest sign of intimidation.
Does he have someone as beautiful as Marina, Elena, or Vihera close to him? If so, he might just be used to it.
Rei was still turning that thought over when As suddenly looked his way—and in the next moment started walking directly toward him, forcing Rei to abandon the line of reasoning entirely.
"Hey, you're Rei... Crimson, right?"
"...Yeah."
Addressed in a rougher tone than As had used with Optis and Marina, Rei gave only that terse reply. Even so, beneath his Dragon Robe, he remained on guard, ready to activate the Eye of Nebula at a moment's notice. Given that Optis was with him, As almost certainly wasn't an enemy—but Rei couldn't bring himself to completely trust a virtual stranger.
Whether As sensed Rei's tension or was simply operating at his own pace was unclear, but he reached out his hand as if offering a handshake.
"I'm As. C-Rank Adventurer. Getting to meet The Rumored Crimson is a treat for me, too."
"Rei. B-Rank Adventurer out of Gilm. And that's Set."
"Guruu? Gurururuu!"
At Rei's cue, Set padded toward As with a happy rumble in its throat. Normally, a Gryphon approaching would be nothing short of terrifying. The residents of Gilm were a different story, but that was only because Gilm itself was exceptionally unusual.
"Hm? What is it? What's wrong? There, there."
Without the slightest hint of fear, As reached out and stroked Set's head.
"Guruu, gururururu!"
Set rubbed its face against As, exuding an expression of pure bliss. That utterly relaxed demeanor came as a surprise even to Rei.
He had seen Set warm up to people plenty of times before. Set was an affectionate creature by nature and rarely neglected anyone who showed it kindness. Given that, such a scene wouldn't normally be unusual—but from Rei's perspective, there was something markedly different about this.
Even among instances of Set bonding with someone, there were varying degrees. Between a person who gave a light pat on the head and one who offered food, Set would inevitably favor the latter. By that metric, the intensity of Set's attachment to As right now was considerable—on par with how it acted around Mirene and Yohanna.
As if some wonderful scent were emanating from As's body, the way Set pressed its face against him looked utterly relaxed even from an outsider's perspective.
What is this? Is he using some kind of special Magic Item? Or is it just a natural trait?
Puzzled, Rei glanced at the only other monster present besides Poro and Set—Ielo. But Ielo wasn't doing anything in particular; it had returned to Elena's side and was quietly being petted. Compared to Set's intense bonding with As, Ielo's behavior was clearly different.
"There, there, how's that? Here? Does this feel good? There."
At the edge of Rei's vision, As wore an easy smile as he stroked Set. Watching that playful scene, Rei found it hard to believe As was using some Magic Item to deceive the Gryphon.
It was rare for Rei to be at a loss, but seeing his confusion, Marina called out to As.
"Isn't that about enough? This area is near the Dark Elf settlement, you know. You mentioned you came to investigate the abnormalities in the forest—could you tell us a bit more? Of course, given that Grandfather brought you here himself, I doubt you have anything to hide. ...Oh, that's right. I nearly forgot to introduce myself."
She paused, offered a small smile, and continued.
"I am Marina. Marina Alianza. The old man over there is my grandfather—the Elder of the Dark Elf settlement in this forest."
"Huh? The Elder!?"
As apparently hadn't heard that part from Optis. He turned a look of sheer astonishment toward the old man. Seeing this, Marina concluded that the two of them had only just met.
"That's right, the Elder. And incidentally, I'm also the Guild Master of Gilm's Adventurer's Guild."
"Ehh!?"
That was clearly the last thing As expected to hear. He stopped petting Set entirely and swept his gaze across the others present.
"Th-then... could it be that the rest of you are important figures too?"
"That's right. Over there is Elena Kerebel. ...If I say 'Princess General,' would that ring a bell?"
As turned toward Elena and was left speechless. His features were refined enough to be called rugged, but with his eyes wide in shock like this, his face also carried an oddly endearing quality.
This one's interesting. As... come to think of it, the name of an adventurer who supposedly cleared a dungeon about five years ago was As, wasn't it? That's right—he's a Tamer, and seeing him with a Carbuncle Rare Species called Poro confirms it.
While speaking with him, Marina recalled the name from a Guild Master meeting she had attended.
"Um, then... could that beauty over there also be someone famous?"
As had managed to hold Marina's and Elena's gazes without flinching, but Vihera alone he couldn't face head-on. The reason was, naturally, the thin garments Vihera wore.
The diaphanous fabric that hinted at everything beneath was hardly something an adventurer would put on. It was the kind of attire more fitting for Prostitutes or Dancers—and on top of that, Vihera possessed beauty that ranked among the most striking As had ever encountered. To look straight at a woman that beautiful in such a revealing state, As simply didn't have enough experience with the opposite sex.
I never thought I'd meet someone more beautiful than Liv.
The image of a woman who was more than a friend but less than a lover—someone he was close with—flashed through his mind. For a moment, he could have sworn the Liv in his thoughts had fixed him with her familiar sidelong glare—the one she wore without changing her expressionless face, yet one only someone close to her would recognize. As hastily shook his head to chase away the guilty thought.
Marina seemed to read his behavior with ease. She offered a small smile before speaking.
"That's right. There are various circumstances, so I can't say exactly, but what I can tell you for certain is that she's an important person."
"...And the others?"
"Well, let me think. Maybe, maybe not. ...But that's beside the point. You said you came to investigate the forest's abnormalities—whose commission is this? I was under the impression this forest was generally off-limits."
"A commission from Cross merchants."
"...I see. Cross merchants. I have a pretty good idea who that would be. That makes sense."
Cross was a village located not far from this forest. The reason Marina accepted the explanation so readily was that the Dark Elf settlement maintained a modest trade relationship with Cross's merchants.
The lord governing Cross likely wished to conduct larger-scale trade with the Dark Elves, but the Dark Elves preferred to keep their interactions with humans to a minimum. As a result, trade between them had remained small in scope.
A previous lord of Cross had once attempted to raid the Dark Elf settlement, only to suffer devastating losses in the counterattack and ultimately lose his house's standing. The current lord's family had succeeded that fallen house—and knowing that history, the present lord refrained from any heavy-handed tactics. He extended generous protection to Cross, but never resorted to force.
This dispatch of As was part of that arrangement.
Though to be precise, the lord is probably paying the reward on their behalf.
That was Marina's guess. Several people in Cross did trade with the Dark Elves, but the scale was still modest. Whether such villagers had enough savings to hire a C-Rank Adventurer was highly doubtful. In other words, there was a strong possibility that some—or all—of the commission fee was being covered by the lord.
"So, while I was investigating the forest, Poro suddenly bolted... and when I chased after him, I ran into old man Optis."
"Glad you made it out in one piece."
The one who said that was Rei, who had been on the receiving end of Optis's sudden attack just yesterday. But As tilted his head, clearly not understanding what Rei meant. Seeing his baffled reaction, Rei concluded that Optis probably hadn't attacked him, and shot the old man a sidelong glare.
Caught under Rei's accusatory stare, Optis quietly looked away. Rei kept his gaze fixed on the old man, but Optis simply continued averting his eyes with dogged persistence.
"Sigh... both of you, enough. We're heading back to the settlement. We found Grandfather, after all. ...As, would you come with us?"
"Huh? Oh, sure. I don't mind, but... um, is it okay to leave those two?"
"It's fine. They're just playing around."
With that, Marina let out a sigh and turned her gaze toward the settlement.