"Yes, I've been waiting for you. How did things go on your end? My trade finished without any issues."
Upon arriving at the meeting point, Augusto waved with a joyful smile.
From his demeanor alone, it was obvious the trade had gone well.
"Yes, things on our end finished safely as well. There were quite a few incidents, though."
Zarust directed a complicated look at Rei, who stood nearby with Set.
He had known Rei was a strong adventurer, but hearing the receptionist at the Guild utter the words "Alias Holder" had caught him off guard even more than everything else.
It wasn't just Zarust—Gorkas, who had provoked Rei, and the other adventurers who had overheard the conversation between Rei and the receptionist felt the same way.
Looking at Rei's appearance, no one could possibly believe he was an Alias Holder. But neither could anyone believe that a Guild employee—one who shared information between Guilds—would mistake someone's identity.
Above all, though the others didn't know it, the receptionist had heard about Rei from Marina, so there was no way she could have been wrong.
The fact that Rei hadn't corrected the receptionist when she mentioned the alias "Crimson" only lent further credibility to his status as an Alias Holder... and in the end, every trace of contempt vanished from the looks directed his way.
The one who had it worst was Gorkas, who had provoked Rei first.
The moment he learned that the person he had picked a fight with was an Alias Holder, Gorkas locked eyes with Rei just as his conversation with the receptionist ended—and immediately bolted from the premises.
With the atmosphere inside the Guild turning thoroughly strange, Zarust and the other guards quickly finished the paperwork for completing their escort request and left the Guild in short order.
A few had wanted to grab a drink at the attached tavern, but given the current state of the Guild, that was out of the question.
In the end, everyone filed out together, and those other than Zarust scattered into the city streets.
"Incidents, you say... Well, I can somewhat imagine."
Augusto's smiling gaze turned naturally toward Rei.
"Considering you have Gryphon Seto with you, it would be stranger if there wasn't a commotion."
"...No, that's part of it, but there was more to it than that."
"More than that?"
"Yes... It turned out that Rei is an Alias Holder."
"Oh!? Well, I understood that Rei-san was strong, but... I see, an Alias Holder. That is wonderful."
Augusto muttered, looking at Rei with genuine admiration.
His reaction differed from the adventurers in the Guild because, even though it had only been one night, he had camped alongside Rei and understood the kind of person he was.
Furthermore, becoming acquainted with an Alias Holder like Rei was significant in its own right.
An Alias Holder adventurer was a special existence in many senses.
That held true not only for adventurers but also for merchants who commissioned requests.
For Augusto, this was unexpected good fortune.
(He possesses such an incredible Magic Item, and on top of that, he has a Gryphon as a Tamed Monster. Thinking about it that way, it wouldn't be strange at all for him to be an Alias Holder.)
Augusto turned his gaze back toward Rei and Set with a smile and spoke.
"Now then, shall we head to my house? I sent a messenger ahead, so by now my wife should be preparing a delicious meal. Zarust-san, would you like to join us? You've been guarding us all this time, so at least let me treat you to a meal now and then."
"No, I'd love to, but I told Rei I'd handle the Sand Serpent dismantling. I need to get the preparations in order for that."
Augusto nodded in understanding.
The Sand Serpent was roughly five meters long. Its head had been destroyed, leaving about four meters, but dismantling a monster of that size couldn't be done just anywhere.
Moreover, this was a desert, so they couldn't simply work near a river like Rei had done back in Gilm.
Facilities for that kind of work required proper applications, and that was what Zarust was saying he needed to handle.
(Well, if he's willing to do it for me, that saves me the trouble, so I'm all for it.)
Rei had no complaints about someone taking over the troublesome paperwork.
In the worst case, even if they didn't dismantle it here, there was always the option of doing it after returning to Gilm.
"I see, that's a shame. ...Well then, Rei-san, and Set as well. Shall we go? I'm sure you'll be pleased."
Augusto looked slightly disappointed when Zarust declined the dinner invitation, but he quickly shifted gears and called out to Rei and Set.
Rei had no objections either and gave a ready nod.
"Well then, Zarust-san. Thank you for your escort work this time. I look forward to working with you again should anything come up."
"Yeah, take care, Augusto-san. ...Well, if Rei and Set are staying at your house, anyone who tries something foolish would only end up regretting it."
He directed the latter half of his words toward Rei.
If anyone was bold enough to sneak into a house where an Alias Holder adventurer and a Gryphon were staying, they could unquestionably be called a hero.
(A hero, yes—but one of reckless courage.)
Even so, a hero was a hero—or so Zarust seemed to think as he flashed a sardonic smile, bid farewell to both Rei and Augusto, and walked away.
"...Well then, let's be off. My wife's cooking is exquisite."
"Yeah. I've heard about it plenty of times, so I'm looking forward to it."
Augusto's boasts about his wife had been repeated endlessly in this short span of time.
It went without saying that he was a devoted husband.
Augusto smiled at Rei's words and led the way forward.
Gauche was one of the more prosperous cities within Solrein, but even so, it couldn't hold a candle to Gilm.
The fact that it was built around an oasis probably had something to do with that as well.
"I never imagined that Rei-san was an Alias Holder adventurer."
"Is that so? ...Well, I suppose that's natural."
Rei himself was well aware of how his appearance came across.
If someone could see past his looks and identify him as a powerful individual, that would be one thing—but ordinarily, no one would ever think that.
"Since you have Set as a Tamed Monster, I assumed you must be famous, though?"
Augusto's gaze drifted to their surroundings.
Most of the residents stared at Set—at the Gryphon—in surprise, and some were even visibly frightened.
The reason it hadn't caused a major commotion was partly because Set wore a Tamed Monster collar, but more importantly, because Augusto was walking alongside Rei and Set.
Though Augusto was targeted by the Elema Trading Company, he wasn't hated by all of Gauche's residents.
In fact, one could say he was well-liked thanks to his honest character. ...Of course, they couldn't openly associate with him in front of Elema Trading Company affiliates.
(I still need to absorb the Sand Serpent's Magic Stone, and I'd like to properly test the Sand Ship at least once. There's no guarantee that someone named Daridora or whatever won't come demanding its return.)
Generally, the possessions of bandits belonged to whoever defeated them. However, if the original owner requested their return, there was a need to negotiate. ...That is, if they could agree on a price.
The problem in this case was, once again, the Sand Ship's value.
Rei didn't know exactly how much it was worth, but he could at least guess that it couldn't be bought with Gold Coins or Platinum Coins.
(Then again, maybe it actually could be bought with Gold Coins? ...No, they said it was a considerable expense for the Elema Trading Company, so that's probably not the case.)
Rei had been musing about the Elema Trading Company's finances, but Augusto's wife-boasting continued without end and was growing tiresome.
Not knowing how long it would take to reach Augusto's house, and finding the one-sided conversation dull, Rei stroked Set's head beside him—partly to redirect the conversation—and voiced something that had been on his mind.
"Hey, I wanted to ask—can the Sand Ship I got only move on sand?"
What came to Rei's mind when he asked were the grasslands, rivers, and seas near Gilm—places other than deserts.
Fundamentally, Rei traveled on Set's back when moving outside of cities.
Flying through the sky on Set was overwhelmingly fast, and since most monsters wouldn't even approach, it had many advantages.
However... nothing had only advantages.
One drawback of flying on Set's back was that no one besides Rei could ride along.
Strictly speaking, a small child might be able to manage, but once they grew a little bigger, even that became difficult.
For adults, it was completely out of the question. Traveling with a large group was nothing more than a pipe dream.
But if the Sand Ship could be used anywhere, that would be a different story.
With that thought in mind, Rei asked Augusto... but what came back was a simple nod.
"The Sand Ship is, as the name suggests, a Magic Item created for the purpose of traveling over sand. I'm not an Alchemist, so I don't know the detailed theory, but the point is, it apparently can't move unless it's on sand."
"...Just as the name Sand Ship implies, huh."
"Yes. Unfortunately so."
He had expected as much from the name, but being told it only worked on sand was still a disappointment for Rei.
"Only on sand... does that mean the Rocky Desert is out too?"
"That's right. Only on sand. Of course, this is just based on what I know, so there might actually be models that can travel on other terrain... However, the Sand Ship that Rei-san obtained was made in what was called Magic City Ozos."
"...You sure know a lot about it. I couldn't tell just from seeing the Sand Ship."
At Rei's question, Augusto gave a small shrug before answering.
"Daridora boasted about it to me when we met previously. At that time, he only mentioned that he had obtained an Ozos-made Sand Ship, so yesterday was actually the first time I saw one in person."
"Magic City Ozos, huh. I've heard the name several times before, but I've never actually been there."
"Is that so? You mentioned having a hobby of collecting Magic Items, so I thought perhaps you might have visited..."
"Unfortunately, I've never had the opportunity to go. I'd like to visit someday, though."
Rei had heard the name Ozos many times, but he had never actually set foot there.
This was strange even to Rei himself.
Normally, Rei had a hobby of collecting Magic Items. It would be perfectly natural—even expected—for him to want to visit Ozos, which could be called the cutting edge of magic. ...No, it would be more accurate to say it was only natural.
And yet, for some reason, Rei felt no desire to go to Ozos.
(Why is that? ...Well, whatever. I'll probably want to go if the opportunity comes up eventually.)
It was a completely different pattern of thought from his usual self, but Rei showed no awareness of it as he reached that conclusion.
"I see. Well, I've only heard about Ozos and never actually been there either. I would like to visit someday."
Rei nodded along with Augusto's smiling words.
"So... what were we talking about? Ah, right. The Sand Ship. If it can only travel on sand deserts, it's pretty impractical."
"That's true. But for the Elema Trading Company, that was probably sufficient. There was likely an element of vanity involved, and besides, if they were to use it, this is Gauche. It's a city built around an oasis in the desert, so there's no problem at all with using a Sand Ship here."
"Well, for someone living here, there'd be no need to worry about that... but for me, it's certainly not very practical."
Perhaps it would be better to sell it here in Gauche, where there were plenty of people who would want it.
Rei considered that, but if he sold it to a careless buyer, it was a certainty that the Elema Trading Company would find a way to get their hands on it from there.
(In that case, if I'm going to sell it, I'd be better off selling it in another city. The Elema Trading Company's influence is probably limited to Gauche. Fortunately, I hear most of Solrein is desert.)
It was a Magic Item he had gone to the trouble of obtaining, but Rei had no intention of moving to Gauche, nor did he plan to let the Sand Ship gather dust inside his Misty Ring.
He believed that Magic Items weren't meant to be displayed and admired like works of art—they had meaning only when actually used.
Of course, there were Magic Items in the world created for the purpose of being appreciated.
Things like moving paintings or dolls similar to pet robots.
For Magic Items like those, Rei could accept that their purpose was to be admired.
As he walked along deep in thought, Augusto suddenly spoke up.
"Ah, it's right over there, Rei-san! My beloved wife Cathy is waiting for me in our love nest!"
"...No, love nest...?"
Was staying at Augusto's house a mistake?
The phrase "love nest" gave Rei a moment of doubt.
As if to encourage the troubled Rei, Set purred softly beside him—a sight that somehow struck a chord in his heart.