A short distance from the dungeon entrance.
Space warped for just an instant, and the next moment, Rei and his companions materialized.
Rei, Elena, Marina, Vihera, Ara, Elk, Min, Rhodos, Yohanna, and Yohanna's companions.
Naturally, Set and Ielo were among them as well.
Only Rhodos was unable to stand on his own and remained slung over Elk's back — the Axe of the Thunder God had been stashed in Rei's Misty Ring — but everyone else was completely unscathed.
...Right after the battle with the Silver Lion ended, Rei, Elk, Ara, and Set had all been covered head to toe in injuries. Now, thanks to potion treatment, every external wound had vanished.
However, that only applied to visible damage. The aches radiating through their bodies were another matter entirely.
Rei himself had taken several direct blows from the Silver Lion through his Dragon Robe, leaving him with a nagging soreness deep in his muscles and bones.
He kept quiet about it partly because the pain was bearable, but the bigger reason was far more practical: he had no desire to be force-fed healing potions for internal injuries.
They would soon be throwing a massive banquet at a shop Yohanna had offered to guide them to — celebrating Vihera and Rhodos's recovery, their victory over the Silver Lion, and the completion of the dungeon conquest all rolled into one.
If he knocked back potions now, his sense of taste would be obliterated, and all that delicious food would turn to ash in his mouth.
If there were a battle still ahead of them, he would have downed a potion without a second thought.
But since they could teleport straight from the Deepest Layer to near the entrance, such concerns were virtually nonexistent.
Rei turned toward Grimm, who stood a short distance away, and bowed his head.
"Grimm, you really helped us out this time. Thanks to you, we managed to bring Vihera and Rhodos back to consciousness."
At Rei's words, the others followed suit, bowing deeply to Grimm. Even Set lowered his head. ...Ielo, perched on top of Set's head, followed along and bowed as well, simply because everyone else was doing it.
It went without saying that every person present was genuinely grateful to Grimm.
But gratitude aside, Grimm as an existence was still... a special one in many ways.
There was awe, and there was fear.
If they were being honest, more than a few of them wanted to put some distance between themselves and Grimm as quickly as possible.
But when someone they revered — or their own son — had just had their consciousness restored, they could hardly commit such a breach of etiquette.
Grimm noticed that the gazes directed at him carried not only gratitude but a heavy undertone of awe, yet he chose not to comment on it.
He was acutely aware that he was an Undead monster, an existence that inspired fear and revulsion.
If anything, he was mildly surprised that their feelings toward him had shifted to awe rather than disgust simply because he had helped Vihera and Rhodos.
"Foh foh foh. Think nothing of it. Rei is a particularly special existence to me as well, after all."
Rei felt relieved that Zephyle's name never came up.
He understood that Grimm treated him favorably because of his connection to Zephyle.
...Of course, by now it wasn't simply through the lens of Zephyle. Grimm genuinely found Rei interesting and, moreover, had grown fond of him.
"Um, Grimm-dono. I apologize for all the trouble you went through on my behalf... no — thank you very much."
It was a rare attitude for Vihera.
But she firmly believed that the reason she had regained consciousness — no, more than that, the reason she had grown stronger by absorbing the densest essences of Unbris and the Silver Lion — was because Grimm had been there.
Without Grimm, she would likely still be trapped in her Mental World, maintaining the upper hand against Unbris but unable to land a decisive blow.
That had changed because Rei and the others defeated the Silver Lion, and Grimm used its heart to grant her power.
Even though she was no longer human — or rather, even though she had transformed into something that could only be described as a being beyond human — there was not a trace of despair in Vihera.
If anything, she felt joy. Joy at knowing she could live alongside Rei through the same passage of time.
...The truth was, Vihera was no longer human. Having absorbed Unbris and the Silver Lion, she had become something else entirely.
That was Grimm's conclusion after his investigation, and for Rei and the others, it was an undeniable fact.
Her outward appearance had changed only as much as her eye color, but her internal makeup was vastly different.
Her lifespan had also become far longer than any human's. She had gained a lifespan that would certainly rival Elena's, who had inherited an Ancient Dragon's Magic Stone; Marina's, as a Dark Elf; and above all, Rei's — a Homunculus, or Artificial Human, created through the pinnacle of the Zephyle Clan's techniques.
At the very least, there was no question of her dying within a mere hundred years like an ordinary human.
Grimm had confirmed this with a brief examination — deploying a Magic Circle and finishing in mere seconds.
"Do not fret. You shall spend ages alongside Rei as one of his partners. Compared to that, something of this degree is nothing at all."
Grimm replied to Vihera, but several of those present sensed something lonely... and sorrowful woven into his words.
Because he had become Undead, Grimm had no one left who had lived through the same era.
Of course, if asked whether he regretted it, Grimm would likely say no.
There was loneliness that came with being Undead, but there was also a joy that surpassed it.
Meeting Rei — still immature though he may have been — as Zephyle's successor was enormously significant for Grimm.
And that was precisely why, when Rei asked something of him, he felt inclined to answer.
"No way..."
At Grimm's words, Vihera's cheeks flushed faintly.
She never bothered hiding her affection for Rei, but being told so plainly by someone else — especially someone close to Rei — was enough to make her blush.
"Grimm-sama, you must not forget about me."
"Yes, please don't forget me either."
Seeing Vihera flushed at being called Rei's partner, Elena and Marina promptly began asserting themselves to Grimm.
(Somehow, it feels like the outer moats are being filled in around me before I even realize it...)
Watching Elena and Marina, Rei muttered that vague thought in his mind.
"Gurru?"
Set rubbed his face against Rei with a purr, as if asking what was wrong.
Smiling at Set's concern, Rei stroked his head.
It might have been something close to escapism... but that didn't mean Rei disliked Elena or the others.
If anything, there was no mistaking the fact that he held genuine affection for them.
"Um, Grimm-dono. Thank you for saving our son as well."
Keeping one eye on the three-way battle erupting among Elena, Marina, and Vihera, Min bowed her head to Grimm.
She knew full well that her son's recovery was essentially an add-on to Vihera's treatment. But without Grimm's power, there was no telling how long it would have taken to bring Rhodos back.
Thinking of it that way, Grimm was truly a benefactor to Min — not human, but a benefactor nonetheless.
"I see. If that is what you believe, then so be it."
To Grimm, Rhodos had been secondary — an adjunct to Vihera, the primary objective.
But if they were offering words of gratitude, he could accept them graciously.
That was the judgment behind his reply.
"Uh... ah..."
On Elk's back, Rhodos tried to speak.
But in his current state, coherent speech was apparently beyond him, and the sounds devolved into garbled nonsense.
Even so, Grimm seemed to understand what Rhodos was trying to say. He gave a small nod of his skull in response.
"Then, I shall take my leave around here. If I remain much longer, it may invite unnecessary commotion."
"I see. ...Understood. You really saved us this time, Grimm. I'll reach out if anything comes up."
"Foh foh foh. You may contact me even without any particular business, you know. Speaking with you is quite refreshing for me as well."
With a chuckle, Grimm swept the hand holding his staff in a wide arc.
The next instant, Grimm's figure vanished from before their eyes.
"Eh?"
It was unclear who let out that sound.
But Rei couldn't blame them.
Grimm, who had been standing right there moments before, had simply... disappeared.
It was enough to make one wonder if everything they had just seen had been some kind of illusion.
Despite knowing better, the disappearance had been that abrupt.
Of course, recalling the pressure Grimm radiated, there was no question that what had stood before them was real.
"...Should we get moving? No point in lingering here."
Rei's voice carried through the space.
They were in a dead-end corridor within the dungeon — and not far from the entrance, either.
There was always a chance someone might wander in.
(Then again, it's a dead end near the entrance. No one would come here without a compelling reason.)
But dungeons were precisely the kind of place where those compelling reasons materialized.
The others understood that well enough. No one raised an objection.
...Though, to be fair, few people would actually choose to linger in a dungeon if they could help it.
"Right. Once we're out, there's plenty to do. Reporting to the Guild Branch Office is top priority. ...Rei, you're coming too."
"Eh? Me too?"
Rei muttered, visibly caught off guard.
Marina sighed at his reaction, as if exasperated.
"Naturally. You were the one who destroyed the dungeon core, after all."
Put that way, Rei couldn't argue.
What Marina said was perfectly reasonable.
"Hmm, sure, Rei might have destroyed the dungeon core, but you saw it happen too, right, Marina? Then there's no need to drag him along, is there? He has things he'd rather keep hidden, and he's terrible at lying."
Several of those listening nodded in agreement at Vihera's words.
Rei was not skilled at deception by any stretch.
Whether he could bluff his way through questioning... that was what they were worried about.
"True. But that's exactly why I'm going with him. So don't you think there's little reason to worry?"
"...I still think it'd be easier to just let you claim you destroyed the dungeon core, Marina."
"Oh, for goodness' sake."
Sighing at Vihera's suggestion, Marina turned her gaze to Rei's right hand — or more precisely, the Misty Ring on his arm.
"The dungeon core was sliced clean through, you realize? And my weapon is a bow. How exactly am I supposed to explain that?"
"Hmm... Spirit Magic, maybe?"
A few heads nodded at the suggestion, but Marina shook hers.
"It's a dungeon core. Naturally, it'll be subjected to all manner of examination. The moment they do, they'll determine it wasn't cut by Spirit Magic."
"Is that so? ...No, I suppose you're right. It is a dungeon core. They'd certainly investigate it thoroughly."
"Exactly. What's more, since I'm the Guild Master, the Guild itself might try to confiscate it if I handle this carelessly."
"That would be a problem," Rei muttered.
Unlike the damaged or freshly formed dungeon cores he had destroyed in the past, this one had sat inside the dungeon for a long time and remained fully intact.
Considering its potential value as an Alchemy material, he honestly wanted to keep it for himself if at all possible.
"So, Rei — you and I are going on a little date to the branch office."
At the word "date," Elena and Vihera both visibly soured.
But they knew full well it was nothing of the sort, so neither pressed the matter further.
...Though they did look distinctly displeased when Marina pressed herself against Rei's arm, the twin peaks visible through the plunging neckline of the Party Dress she wore — even here, inside a dungeon — flattening against him as she clung tight.