As Rei stood up, declaring he had no intention of accepting the request, Linus opened his mouth in a panic.
"Wait! You came all this way—do you really think I'll just let you refuse!?"
"Your circumstances are none of my concern. This has nothing to do with me."
Rei's tone was already far from the polite speech he had used when he first met Linus. He had judged the man as hostile based on his unreasonable demands.
"Don't mess around! You came to this mansion, which means you intended to accept my request, didn't you? And yet—"
"It's true I was willing to consider it, but unfortunately, I have no intention of accepting a request without even hearing the details. Much less when I'm told that once I hear the contents, I'll have no choice but to accept unconditionally. There's no way I'd accept a request like that."
If this had been someone like Daskar, who already had a relationship with Rei, it might have been a different story. Or even if Linus had treated Rei politely from the start, Rei might have accepted.
But Linus had maintained a confidence-filled attitude befitting a noble—which, from another perspective, was exactly the kind of noble's approach Rei found disagreeable. Of course, he wasn't quite the typical noble Rei despised most: the kind who assumed from the start that others would obey him and looked down on everyone from above. Even so, there was no mistaking that Rei found him an unpleasant person to deal with.
"Don't mess around!" Linus's shout rang out once more.
Though Linus projected an air of composure, it was by no means genuine. After all, if he truly possessed that composure, there would have been no need to come all the way to the frontier city of Gilm. The very fact that Linus, who did not normally reside in Gilm, had traveled all this way was proof of his lack of it.
Nevertheless, Linus had his pride as a noble—and a noble of the King's Faction at that. No matter how skilled Rei might be, his pride would not allow him to humble himself before a mere adventurer. His attitude had turned this way largely because Rei did not look like someone who possessed the strength his rumors spoke of. If Rei's appearance had been that of a heavily muscled, towering man, Linus might have adopted a different approach.
"Our business is concluded, then? In that case, I'll be taking my leave."
The escort knight standing behind Linus fixed a sharp glare on Rei for angering his master. But Rei showed no sign of caring about the knight's demeanor as he rose from the sofa.
The knights had not moved because their master, Linus, had not yet issued any orders. If a command left Linus's mouth, they would spring into action immediately—though that was no guarantee they could do anything about Rei.
"Wait!"
Rei heard the shout but let it pass over him as he exited the room.
"Damn it!" Linus shouted in frustration.
"Shall we go after him, if you'd like?"
"No."
He instantly rejected the escort knight's suggestion. He had not confirmed Rei's abilities with his own eyes. Even so, if even half—no, even a quarter—of what he had been told by his King's Faction colleagues was true, it was clear that no matter what the escort knights tried, they would be no match.
The knights understood this as well, but their words had stemmed from the conviction that they could not simply let Rei go after he had refused their master's request and humiliated him.
Linus himself now belatedly understood that he had mishandled the negotiation, but he could not turn back time. He was by no means in a position of composure right now. If making a request of Rei had become impossible, then he had no choice but to take alternative action. It was far from the best course, but it was all he could do in his current situation.
Having flatly refused Linus's request, Rei went to the stables, left the mansion with Set, and exited the Noble District as well.
Set, walking beside Rei, looked thoroughly satisfied—largely because while Rei had been dealing with Linus, Set had been fed and pampered the entire time by the maids, soldiers, and butler.
"Looks like you had quite an elegant time while I was dealing with the noble."
"Gruu?"
At Set tilting his head as if asking "Really?", Rei reached out and stroked his body. It must have felt good; as they walked, Set narrowed his eyes and purred happily.
The irritation from talking with Linus melted away as Rei stroked Set. His frayed feelings gradually settled.
"Now that I think about it, Set, you're like my mental stabilizer."
Whether it didn't understand Rei's words or not, Set tilted his head slightly. Just like that, Rei and Set proceeded down the main street, both having enjoyed a fulfilling time together.
Naturally, Rei and Set were visible to the people walking along the main street, and the first to approach were the children who had been playing nearby.
"Set-chan, Set-chan, let's play together!"
"Ah, Set's playing with us!"
"Noo! Set-chan's playing with us!"
"Shut up! Set's playing with us, that's what I said!"
The children gathered around, wanting to play with Set. But the boys and girls each insisted that they would be the ones to play with him, and an argument broke out. Normally, the boys would push forward assertively and have their way, but when it came to playing with Set, the girls refused to back down either.
"We play! We're the ones playing! Set-chan would rather play with us, right?!"
"Don't screw around! Set's playing with us!"
It was a powder keg—either side might lash out at any moment. The adults watching nearby started to step forward to stop them, but someone stepped in before them.
"Grururu!"
It was Set's admonishing cry. Compared to the cry he let out when fighting enemies, it could be called gentle, but it was still more than enough to draw the children's attention to him.
(Artisan technique...?)
Watching Set admonish the children while purring, Rei suddenly thought this. If it were an ordinary monster, hearing Set's cry would have been enough to make it flee on the spot. But right now, Set was adjusting his cry so that it reached the excited children's ears clearly, directing their awareness toward him without frightening them. It wasn't strange for Rei to think of it as an artisan technique.
The adults who had been trying to stop the children also unwittingly smiled at the sight. Set's species—normally, a Gryphon was an A-Rank monster that even residents of the frontier city of Gilm would almost never see. No, A-Rank monsters themselves were exceedingly rare, so seeing any A-Rank monster other than a Gryphon would also be unlikely. If A-Rank monsters existed as commonly as Goblins, the city of Gilm would be destroyed. For that matter, the Kingdom of Mireana itself would likely be in serious trouble.
(Besides, Set is treated as a Rare Species of Gryphon, making it equivalent to S-Rank.)
If S-Rank monsters were everywhere—just thinking about it, it seemed like not just Gilm or the Kingdom of Mireana, but this entire world might come to an end. If that ever happened, would Rei take Vihera and abandon Gilm? He thought about it, but whether he would actually do such a thing was something he wouldn't know until the moment came.
(I don't think Marina would do something like abandon the Guild, either. If it came to that, I'd probably end up cooperating with her side.)
Rei had been watching Set start to play with both the boys and girls when he suddenly sensed a gaze and looked toward a nearby building. There was a face he recognized—one of the escorts who had been standing behind Linus at the Viscount Marnino Family estate earlier. As soon as their eyes met, the man quickly left the area.
(What's his purpose? Don't tell me he came for revenge because he didn't like that I refused the request? If so, that's fine. I'll just respond accordingly.)
But while the knight's gaze had held irritation, there was also ample reason within it. If the other side tried something, Rei would simply deal with it. With that thought, he surveyed his surroundings once more.
Compared to during the Unbris incident, the number of people had increased considerably. Of course, winter was right around the corner. When it arrived, the City of Gilm—having finally seen an influx of people—would inevitably see its numbers decrease again.
"Winter... winter, huh."
"Hm? What is it, all of a sudden?"
When Rei muttered this without thinking, a man who had been watching Set and the children play with a warm smile nearby turned a curious gaze toward him.
"No, it's just that autumn is about to end and winter will begin. If so, I was thinking it'll be Gamelion season."
"...Now that you mention it, you're right. With the Unbris situation from summer through autumn this year, I'd completely forgotten."
Normally, the transition from summer to autumn brought cooler weather, making people far more active. Also, there were merchants who came to Gilm early to stock up on goods before winter set in, so while not as much as spring, it was usual for Gilm to be crowded. But this year, due to the Unbris situation, there had been few people from mid-summer through early autumn. That was why, even hearing Rei say it was almost Gamelion season, the man had thought "Now that you mention it, you're right" without realizing it.
Of course, Rei had gone Gamelion hunting almost every year until now, but this year he wasn't in the mood for it. There was the matter of Vihera, who had yet to regain consciousness, and that was his highest priority to resolve. Today's Nomination Request had been partly to change his pace, since he was feeling stuck with no progress on Vihera's situation. If Linus had properly explained the request's contents to Rei, Rei would have accepted depending on what it was. Of course, if the request would take one or two months, he would have refused.
"Ah, Gamelion, huh. It really is almost winter."
Another man who had been listening to Rei and the first man muttered. At those words, the others nodded in agreement.
"Is it a bit early for the season right now?"
"Probably. Gamelions won't come out until it gets colder."
While watching the people getting excited about the Gamelion topic, Rei directed his gaze toward his Misty Ring. The large quantity of Gamelion meat he had obtained during last year's Dungeon incident was stored inside. Over the course of the year, a fair amount had made its way into Rei and Set's stomachs, but there was still plenty stored within the Misty Ring. Considering it was meat that could only be obtained from late autumn to early winter, he couldn't help but hesitate to use it. As a result, the ever-present Orc meat ended up being consumed in large quantities instead.
(I hadn't planned on going Gamelion hunting this year anyway, but we've got more than enough meat.)
Thinking such things, Rei watched Set play with the children while chatting with the people around him for about ten minutes. Even just chatting like this was more than enough of a change of pace for Rei. But he couldn't keep wasting time here forever.
It's about time to head back... Just as he thought that, Rei spotted an impossible presence.
No, not quite impossible. He had seen this presence many times before. Even so, it was a being that should not have been in a place like this. It was—
"Kyu!"
Ielo let out a happy cry as it flew into Rei's chest.
"Ielo!? Why are you here!?"
At the completely unexpected turn of events, a voice of astonishment escaped Rei's mouth. This Black Dragon child was Elena's familiar. In other words, it was not something that should have been here.
And... if Ielo was here, that meant—
When that realization struck him, the sound of those around him catching their breath suddenly reached Rei's ears. Everyone was looking in one direction. Who was standing there—given Ielo's presence, Rei could understand even without being told.
The person who should have been here even less than Ielo.
Turning his gaze toward the beautiful woman with golden hair that looked like sunlight given form, Rei opened his mouth.
"Elena."