In a room within the Elema Trading Company, Daridora — the room's master — slammed his fist onto the table, his irritation plain for all to see.
The impact sent a jolt of pain through the spot where an arrow had pierced him, but the frustration burning inside Daridora was enough to make him shout right through it.
"Are you still unable to determine who attacked me?!"
Daridora had always been a nervous man, but his eyes darted around the room with even more anxiety than usual.
Standing under his gaze were men who worked for the Elema Trading Company — men skilled in rough business.
They were also the ones who built the company's underground information network, capable of catching wind of the latest rumors in Gauche faster than anyone.
But even men of their caliber could not produce words that would satisfy Daridora in his current state.
A short distance from the desk, several guards stood quietly, keeping watch on their surroundings.
Normally, Narcus — the man who commanded the guards — would have been among them. But Narcus was absent, receiving treatment for the injury he had sustained during the attack on Daridora.
"Our apologies, Lord Daridora. But there shouldn't be anyone in Gauche right now who would cause such a large disturbance..."
The man's words trailed off vaguely, but that did nothing to improve Daridora's mood — it only sharpened his glare.
"Such a massive uproar occurred right here in Gauche!? And yet you're telling me you don't have a single piece of information?!"
"Yes. We apologize, but no information regarding the attackers has reached us. Ah, however, there is one piece of information that we believe may be related to this incident."
"...What is it?"
Under Daridora's gaze — desperate for even the slightest scrap of information — one of the men standing before the desk spoke with some hesitation.
What he was about to say was indeed likely related to the current incident.
But if he voiced it aloud, it could potentially bring about the worst possible outcome for the Elema Trading Company.
He knew that full well, and would have preferred to keep silent... but as long as he was employed by Daridora, he could not keep it hidden.
"While Lord Daridora was being attacked, there was another person who was similarly attacked."
"...The fact that you're hesitating here — does that mean... Lord Lyubrand!?"
Daridora demanded, his expression desperate.
If his political patron Lyubrand had been attacked and injured by someone, it was certain that a great many problems would follow.
The reason the Elema Trading Company held such enormous influence in Gauche was largely because Lyubrand — the lord — served as its backer.
Of course, having a patron alone was not enough to grow the Elema Trading Company to this size; Daridora's own abilities played a role as well.
Even so, having a patron versus not having one made a tremendous difference.
"No, that's not it. The one attacked was not the lord."
A different man from the one who had first mentioned the information immediately denied the attack on Lyubrand.
"I see... Then who exactly was attacked?"
Daridora asked, letting out a breath of relief. The man who had denied the attack on Lyubrand braced himself and spoke.
"It was Augusto."
"...What did you say?"
For a moment, Daridora could not comprehend what had been said — but he understood quickly enough.
Since both he and Augusto had been attacked, whoever was behind this likely viewed them both as obstacles.
"What about the attacker on their side?"
"Apparently just one person."
"I see. In that case, the primary target of whoever planned these attacks was me."
Daridora's tone implied it was only natural that he, rather than Augusto, would be the main target — and considering their respective influence, that was not an unreasonable conclusion.
"So, I'll ask just in case — what were the damages on their side?"
"We hear Augusto suffered serious injuries, but apparently he recovered thanks to Rei's potion."
"...Hm? Augusto was injured even though Rei was there? Against a single opponent? Even if that one person was considerably skilled, that's a bit hard to believe."
Having heard of Rei's abilities from his guards, including Narcus, and with his own gathered intelligence corroborating that level of skill, Daridora found it completely unimaginable that Rei could be present and Augusto still end up injured.
It wasn't just Daridora. The guards present in the room felt the same way.
While they were not as skilled as Narcus, they had nonetheless been hired by Daridora for their proven strength.
They had met Rei only once before, but they fully understood how powerful he was.
Moreover, it wasn't just Rei. Given that he had a Gryphon as a Tamed Monster, it was utterly unbelievable that he would fall behind against some random attacker like the ones who had come after them.
The doubts held by Daridora and his men were resolved once the man explained the circumstances.
The man who had harmed Augusto had fled and encountered Rei along the way. Since he had been waving his spear around, Rei had subdued him.
"I see... That would explain it. I can accept that."
Daridora nodded — but when he noticed that the man who had delivered this information still seemed to have something to say, he tilted his head.
"What is it? Is there something else?"
If he reported this, Daridora might launch a full-scale assault on Augusto.
That thought crossed the man's mind, but under the pressure of Daridora's gaze, he opened his mouth anyway.
"Actually, according to the information we've received, Rei knocked out the man who targeted Augusto, and Augusto's side has secured him."
"...What did you say?"
The moment he heard those words, Daridora's eyes flashed sharply.
Among the attackers who had come after them, the ones who had fired arrows — he couldn't even begin to fathom where the attacks had come from. Not only could they not capture them, they hadn't even been able to confirm their appearance.
As for the three who had attacked first, they had been killed during the counterattack. But after Daridora and the others took shelter inside the shop, when the guards went outside to check if anything could be gleaned from the attackers' belongings, the bodies had vanished completely.
(Narcus said it was likely the work of the ones who fired the arrows... but there were many bystanders there besides us. How could they have pulled off something like that with so many eyes watching?)
In any case, having no information sources at all was an extremely dire situation.
That was precisely why he had summoned the men before him — to search for any scrap of information.
But now... that information had been obtained.
Understanding that, Daridora could only groan in frustration.
If this had been about ten days ago, he would have undoubtedly led his guards straight to Augusto's shop.
As things stood now, however, there was no way he could do such a thing.
If he did, he would make an enemy of Rei.
(But I must make the ones who targeted me pay for what they've done. ...What should I do, I wonder. A forceful approach is out of the question.)
A forceful approach — if he led his combat forces to Augusto's shop or mansion, he would end up antagonizing Rei.
And the moment he made an enemy of Rei, his own destruction was certain.
(Whatever I do, Rei is the problem, isn't he? How troublesome. If only he had come to Gauche a little later. And for someone who supposedly arrived here by chance, he's showing no signs of leaving. ...Well, I suppose that's only natural.)
If nothing had happened, Rei might have left Gauche.
But given what occurred today — the fact that the master of the mansion where he was staying had nearly been killed — he wouldn't just irresponsibly walk away.
He wasn't that heartless. Which meant Rei's presence would become an even greater obstacle for Daridora.
"It really comes down to Rei, doesn't it? ...I'd like to pull him to our side if at all possible."
At Daridora's murmured words, everyone in the office nodded in agreement.
If they could gain someone like Rei as an ally, it would undoubtedly become a tremendous source of power.
Daridora also had confidence that he could utilize Rei's power more effectively than Augusto could.
"...No, there's no point thinking about the impossible at this stage. What I can do right now is..."
There was no meaning in dwelling on wishes forever.
Thinking so, Daridora quickly shifted his mindset.
Who was the most dangerous person at present? How might they be targeted? And what was the way to break through this situation?
After pondering these questions, Daridora apparently reached a conclusion. He let out a small sigh and spoke.
"Someone has already been sent to inform Lord Lyubrand of this matter, correct?"
"Yes. Along with instructions to maintain proper guard patrols."
When one of the guards confirmed this, Daridora exhaled in relief.
Given that both he and Augusto had been targeted, it was only natural that his patron Lyubrand could also be in danger.
With that in mind, it was better to keep him on alert.
Having confirmed that a messenger had been dispatched to Lyubrand, Daridora let out a small sigh and — though looking somewhat displeased — opened his mouth.
"Then... shall we go?"
"Go? Go where? With Narcus absent, our combat power has decreased. Considering that, I'd rather you not walk around town."
As guards, they had no desire to be out and about with their forces reduced following the earlier attack.
If the attackers were like the first three who had come at them, they could manage with their current strength.
But the ones who had fired arrows afterward — they hadn't even been able to catch a glimpse of them.
With that in mind, not knowing the enemy's identity was unsettling, and precisely because it was unsettling, they had no desire to carelessly engage in battle.
"I understand your concerns. But making contact with Augusto before things escalate further is an absolute requirement."
"...You're going to see Augusto?"
The guard looked surprised, having assumed from the earlier conversation that Daridora intended to visit the lord's mansion.
But Daridora nodded in response.
"Yes, that's right. After all, the person who could serve as a lead is in Augusto's custody. Given that, the only way to obtain information is to go there ourselves. ...We can hardly summon him here, after all."
"That's... true enough."
Even as a guard for Daridora, it was painfully obvious that the relationship between Daridora and Augusto was close to the worst possible.
After all, the very reason it had deteriorated to that point was because Daridora had tried to dispose of Augusto using Sand Bandits.
"Come now, let's go. Get ready quickly."
"...Understood. I'll at least report to Narcus."
Anything more would be meaningless — and worse, it might even cause Daridora to become displeased with him.
If he ended up being disliked by the very person he was supposed to protect, only the worst possible future would await him.
Thinking that, the guard ordered by Daridora chose the option of at least running things by Narcus.
"Yes, please inform him. However, even though he used a potion, that doesn't mean he'll be able to move right away. ...Or more precisely, he won't be combat-ready immediately. So please tell Narcus to rest for a while."
"Understood."
It had been several tens of minutes since Daridora left the shop with his guards.
At first, Daridora had been anxious about whether enemies might attack again — but as the peaceful minutes stretched on, he gradually felt somewhat more at ease.
The guards, knowing that a momentary lapse in vigilance could mean death, remained alert. But Daridora — the one being guarded — was able to behave as though his initial tension had already faded.
"It seems there's no one coming to attack us for now."
"That may be so. But then again, it may not be. We'll remain sufficiently cautious on that front, but... I know it's a bit late to ask — do you truly believe you can form an alliance with Augusto?"
"Who can say. Augusto is a man with a sharp eye for such things, despite appearances. His excessive kindness doesn't always translate into results, but he's no fool. I was attacked, and he was attacked too. Given that, he'll naturally realize there's a third party involved. Besides..."
Daridora was about to continue, but before he could say more, the carriage came to a stop.
Through the carriage window, Augusto's shop was visible.
...And so was the sight of merchants gathered in front of the shop, clearly on guard against him.
"Augusto... doesn't seem to be here. Perhaps he's gone home."
Murmuring this, Daridora stepped down from the carriage.
Naturally, the guards accompanied him. Those who had been riding outside the carriage remained wary of the merchants gathered in front of Augusto's shop.
After stepping out, Daridora walked straight toward the shop and addressed the visibly wary merchants.
"I'd like to speak with Augusto-san. Could you relay that for me?"
Unlike how he spoke in front of his own subordinates, Daridora addressed Augusto with the honorific "-san." One of the merchants opened his mouth with a tense expression.
"What is your business?"
"I have a few things to discuss regarding today's attack. I'm sure he'll be interested as well."
"...Unfortunately, Augusto-san has already gone home."
Observing the merchants' demeanor, Daridora decided he had no further business here and turned to return to his carriage.
But the merchant who had just answered spoke up once more.
"We heard that Daridora-san was also attacked and injured today. Is that true?"
"Yes, unfortunately — or perhaps I should say, it is indeed true. And needless to say, I was not the one who ordered the attack on Augusto-san."
With those words, Daridora left the scene, leaving behind the merchants who still seemed to have more to say.