"Assassins... you say? I apologize, but I have never heard of such things."
Augusto replied to Daridora's explanation.
After parting ways with Rei, who had accompanied him to the research facility, Daridora had arrived at Augusto's mansion in under an hour—and the subject he raised was assassins.
Augusto knew such figures existed. Even if Solrein was a small country compared to the surrounding nations, he didn't think Solrein alone had no connection to such people.
But... he also felt that such talk belonged in Solrein's Royal Capital, if anywhere.
In fact, he had heard stories of that nature from merchants visiting from the Royal Capital on several occasions before.
But those were, at most, stories of other places.
Not stories of where he lived.
Because of that, even hearing it from Daridora's own mouth, it was difficult to believe right away.
(Daridora once sent Sand Bandits after me. If so, could it be that here, Sand Bandits served a role similar to assassins... I wonder?)
He pondered this, but Sand Bandits and assassins, while both existed in society's darkness, were fundamentally different.
Sand Bandits—whom anyone could become if they tried—and assassins, who truly sank into the deepest shadows of society.
Of course, this was merely Augusto's speculation, and he could guess that the reality was far more nuanced.
But... even so, the idea that assassins existed here in Gauche, and moreover that they were targeting them, was something he simply could not comprehend.
"First of all, why are Daridora-san and I being targeted? I simply don't understand the reasoning behind it."
To Augusto's questioning voice, both Zarust and Rei, who were serving as guards, nodded in response.
"Naturally, as long as I work as a merchant, I could never claim that I've earned no one's grudge. But what reason could there be for both Daridora-san and myself to be targeted simultaneously?"
To that question, Daridora could only shake his head.
He understood that he was resented by many, and conversely, that Augusto—his polar opposite—was well-liked by the city's residents.
Because of that, he could not figure out what common factor would cause both of them to be targeted at the same time.
"Wasn't Augusto-san targeted as a decoy, to blindside the guards on that side, after all?"
Zarust's murmured voice echoed through the room, which still held the faint crimson remnants of the sunset and was beginning to grow dim as evening deepened toward night.
Since that was the most plausible possibility given the current situation, everyone inevitably wore expressions of understanding.
"Even if I am the one being targeted, the fact remains that Augusto-san is also being targeted. If so, there is a very real possibility that they will use Augusto-san as a decoy again and come after me..."
"And by peeling off and replacing the skin of the face, leaving aside the build, the outward appearance becomes an entirely different person... is that it?"
As Augusto murmured, continuing Daridora's train of thought, the two let out sighs in unison.
The revelation brought this time—that one could peel off facial skin and become a different person—was that troublesome.
So troublesome that even acquaintances would likely be unable to tell the difference if the skin were applied. Considering that, the honest truth was that there was truly no way to stay on guard.
"In that case, we'd want to avoid being in a passive position. Since we don't know where they've infiltrated, it would be more efficient for us to go on the offensive all at once."
Rei murmured, narrowing his eyes at the faint red glow of the dying sunset that lingered in the room.
That was indeed the truth, but... there were also reasons why it could not be done so easily.
"But, Rei-san. To begin with, we don't even know where the other assassins are, do we? In that case, how exactly do we attack them from our side?"
At Augusto's words, the others present nodded in agreement.
Indeed, there were no clues to speak of at all.
All they had was the corpse of the assassin that Rei had killed—more accurately, the assassin who had committed suicide from the impact of Rei's strike—but finding the enemy's hideout with just that was asking too much.
Rei, subjected to such gazes, showed a smile as if to say that had been calculated from the start, and opened his mouth.
"It's not... a sure thing, but there is a way to track down the base of the ones who sent the assassins this time."
When Rei declared that, everyone present looked at him with expressions of disbelief.
Naturally. Everyone had discussed various options but ultimately failed to find a way to break the current deadlock, and the only approach they could think of was to wait in a defensive posture and deal with the assassins when they came again.
In that atmosphere, Rei suddenly proposed a way to find the assassins' hideout.
There was no way they wouldn't be intrigued.
Augusto spoke on behalf of everyone, whose attitudes practically demanded to know the method immediately.
"So, Rei-san. What exactly would that method be?"
"It's not that complicated. We rely on Set."
"...Set, you say?"
At the mention of relying on Set, initially everyone including Augusto failed to understand.
Some of Daridora's guards didn't even know Set's name, and confusion only deepened.
Seeing Daridora's guards in that state, Augusto opened his mouth to explain.
"Set is the Gryphon that Rei-san keeps as a Tamed Monster. ...So, Rei-san, what will you do with Set?"
Daridora's guards reacted slightly to the word "Gryphon," but Rei nodded at Augusto's question and spoke.
"As you know, a Gryphon is an A-Rank monster."
Strictly speaking, Set was treated as a Rare Species and handled as an S-Rank monster, but there was no need to mention that now.
Seeing everyone present nod at the words "A-Rank monster," Rei continued his explanation.
"And as such a monster, naturally its five senses are far sharper than a human's. ...That includes the sense of smell, of course. And Daridora has the assassin's corpse on hand. ...Now, what do you think can be deduced from all this?"
Having said that much, many would arrive at the answer.
Most of those present were skilled adventurers to begin with, and neither Augusto nor Daridora was slow-witted by any means.
"You mean... you can find the location of the hideout by scent...?"
"I can't say for certain, and since it involves tracking a scent, it might take some time, but still, it's better than having no leads at all, don't you think?"
At Rei's words, everyone present could only nod.
Indeed, as things stood, all they could do was wait for the enemy to make their move.
That meant the initiative lay with the enemy.
Being in such a situation would also be mentally draining.
"The possibility of them giving up after failing in this attack... is nonexistent, wouldn't you say?"
At Daridora's words, everyone nodded in return.
Indeed, no one believed the enemy would abandon their assassination of Augusto and Daridora after a single failed attempt.
If these were a second- or third-rate assassin group, perhaps that possibility might have existed.
But... there was no way such an optimistic prediction could be made about an assassin group that would go so far as to peel off facial skin.
"Then what should we do? We could go search starting now."
"Please wait, that would be dangerous. As you can see, it's already evening. As night falls, the temperature will drop and it will become harder to move. Furthermore, night is the time of assassins, so I think it would be fine to wait until tomorrow to search."
"...No, Daridora-san. If night is the assassins' time, then giving them exactly that—the hours of tonight—is precisely what we should avoid."
At Daridora's words, Augusto suggested that perhaps they should go search now, but Daridora shook his head at that as well.
"There's another reason it would be better to wait until tomorrow. ...Narcus, who serves as the commanding figure among our guards, can't serve as combat power right now. Well, if we pushed him, he could probably still fight, but..."
Narcus was the most skilled individual among the guards Daridora employed.
Whether or not that person was available as a fighting force made a significant difference.
At Daridora's explanation, everyone including Augusto wore expressions of understanding.
...Of course, the reason Daridora wanted Narcus to participate as combat power in this matter was not only to bolster their forces and deal with the assassins all at once, but also because if Narcus performed well, it would count as Daridora's achievement.
With Rei on Augusto's side, it was certain that the greatest credit would be taken by him.
But even so, if they were to end this matter without achieving anything at all, it would be a significant blow to Daridora.
Therefore, if possible, Daridora wanted Narcus to go when they attacked the assassins' hideout.
"Besides, if we're going to launch an assault on the assassin group's hideout, we need to make arrangements with the Guard Force as well. We need to go through Lord Lyubrand, so it can't be done immediately..."
"That's true. If guard soldiers stick their noses in while we're assaulting the assassins' hideout, it would cause all sorts of trouble."
Augusto also voiced his agreement with Daridora's opinion.
...The fact that neither of them counted the guard soldiers as combat power for this assault was, as expected, because their skill level was simply that low.
They understood that even if they brought guard soldiers along, they would only be a hindrance.
If the adventurers' skills were low, the guard soldiers might have been of some use.
But fortunately or unfortunately, the adventurers here were all at a very high level for the city of Gauche.
"...Got it. Then let's do it tomorrow."
Rei, who had wanted to settle the assassin problem today, nodded reluctantly.
After all, the deciding factor was that communicating with the Guard Force would take time.
And once Rei accepted it, the others raised no particular objections.
In the midst of that, the issue was...
"Um, Rei-san. Can Set really find the assassins?"
"Who knows. It's just a possibility. And by tomorrow, the scent will naturally have faded, so I think the chances will be lower than if we tracked it now."
"That's—! ...No, you're right. Since it's a scent, that would happen, wouldn't it."
Daridora started to say something, but realizing that once the scent disappeared there was nothing to be done, he quickly reined in his tone.
"In that case, should we get it done tonight even if we have to push ourselves a little? Considering the possibility that the scent trail will be lost by tomorrow... we can't very well bring up Narcus anymore."
"But in that case, what about communication with the Guard Force?"
When Augusto posed that question to Daridora, the response he got was a shake of the head.
"Regarding that, we can manage something if we head to the lord's mansion right now. ...However, there is a possibility that communication to the Guard Force won't be thorough, so they might stick their noses in."
What will you do? Daridora directed his gaze at Augusto.
If they wanted to fully prepare their forces, tomorrow. If they wanted to reliably track down the assassins' hideout, today.
As the two merchants wavered between that either-or choice, Rei took a potion out of his Misty Ring.
It was not as high-quality as the one he had used on Augusto, but it was still a potion that would unmistakably produce effects several tiers above anything sold in Gauche.
What that potion meant was, naturally, something Daridora also understood.
"Are you sure? Really?"
"Yeah. Having more combat power is helpful for us too. So there's no need to hesitate here, is there?"
"...Understood."
To be honest, Daridora naturally had a stock of potions as well.
But... even compared to those, the potion before him was clearly a high-quality product.
"That settles most of the issues. We're attacking the assassins' hideout tonight, agreed? And naturally, aside from me and Set, keep the participants in the assault to just a few people."
To Rei's words of confirmation, no one could say no.
In the first place, by tomorrow the scent would fade and the chances of finding it would decrease.
Considering that, as those being targeted by assassins, they couldn't refuse.
And so... contrary to what would normally be expected, they would search for the hideout and launch an assault on it during the very night that could be called the assassins' time.