The moment Rei and his party entered the Guild, the adventurers inside turned to look at them, almost as if repeating the previous day.
Of course, since it was still daytime, there were far fewer people than there had been yesterday.
Even so, Elena, Marina, and Vihera were beauties one would not normally even have the chance to see, and they naturally drew people's eyes. Several of those present had seen Rei's party yesterday, but even they were surprised by the sight of Vihera, who had not been with them the day before.
Naturally, there were also those who directed envious glances at Rei for walking alongside such women, but none of them acted on it.
In just two days—yesterday and today—word of Rei must have spread thoroughly. Though, really, the moment anyone saw him accompanied by a gryphon, it was obvious who he was.
Naturally, there were some who did not realize this, but even they knew of Elk, and so they did nothing to make an enemy of Rei.
Receiving stares from those around them, Rei and his party paid them no mind—as always—and headed for the counter.
The receptionist at the counter, seeing Marina arrive so soon after yesterday, immediately understood the matter at hand.
"Welcome, Marina-sama. Do you have business with Representative Worker?"
"Yes. Could you let him know that there have been developments regarding yesterday's matter?"
"Right away."
The receptionist nodded, and one of the Guild Staff Members from inside the counter immediately headed toward the back.
Watching him go, Rei recalled that the person in charge here was named Worker.
Naturally, Rei had met Worker and exchanged introductions before, when he had come to the Altar of Inheritance with Elena.
But there was no way he could perfectly remember someone he had met only a few years ago, and it was only from that brief exchange just now that he finally recalled him.
"Rei, you should make sure not to forget Worker's name. He is undoubtedly going to become a well-known figure."
"...Well-known?"
Rei tilted his head slightly at the words from Marina's mouth.
Seeing his reaction, Marina smiled.
Elena and Vihera also looked puzzled, unable to understand what Marina intended by saying that.
"Hehe, that's a secret. For now, it's enough that you remember Worker's name."
"Well, if you say so, Marina."
The receptionist standing right nearby naturally overheard their conversation.
However, she did not understand what Marina was talking about and merely exchanged glances with another receptionist nearby.
Several minutes passed, and eventually the Guild Staff Member who had headed to the back returned.
"Representative Worker will see you. Please come this way."
"Yes. Shall we, then?"
"Lady Elena, I will wait here. The conversation will likely involve complicated matters."
Rei and his party had been about to head behind the counter, but Ara suddenly addressed Elena.
"Is that so? I don't think Worker would mind if you came along."
Marina said this to Ara, but Ara shook her head slightly.
She could predict that the upcoming conversation would be of considerable magnitude, and she judged that at her current standing, it would be better for her not to hear it.
Deciding that pressing Ara would be pointless, Rei and the others left her there and headed inside the counter. Marina, continuing from yesterday, along with Rei and Elena, came face to face with Worker for the first time in several years.
"You returned from the dungeon quite quickly. ...It has been a while, Rei-san. And you must be someone I haven't met before?"
Rei and his party were greeted by Worker, who had stood to receive his guests.
When Rei had seen him before, Worker had looked young—though still considerably older than Rei or Elena—and now, meeting him again after several years, his appearance seemed unchanged from before.
He looked to be in his twenties... or at most, his early thirties.
Could he have elven blood or something like that? ...But for all that, his ears look just like a normal human's.
He did not have the long ears characteristic of elves; they appeared to be ordinary human ears.
Rei found this curious, but upon further reflection, he reasoned that this was another world—a fantasy world—so it would not be strange for certain individuals to live longer than ordinary people.
"Yes, I am Vihera. The one who caused this incident... perhaps that's the simplest way to put it."
"Oh, so you're... I heard you had been unconscious for quite some time. Are you all right?"
Worker looked puzzled at Vihera's words, but Vihera smiled and spoke.
Vihera was wearing the thin garments typical of a dancer or prostitutes, but the fact that Worker showed no particular surprise or lustful expression upon seeing her dressed like that was likely a testament to his competence.
"Thanks to Rei and Marina. ...Ah, and Elena too."
Elena, having been mentioned as an afterthought, wore a slightly displeased expression, but she did not say anything further about it.
Once everyone had taken their seats on the sofa and spent a few minutes exchanging brief introductions, Worker opened his mouth to get to the main topic.
"So, if Lady Vihera's consciousness has returned, does that mean the results the Guild Master spoke of yesterday came to pass?"
The fact that he addressed Vihera as Lady Vihera meant that Worker knew her true identity.
Of course, given that Vihera had not been particularly trying to hide her background—including her role in the civil war in the Bestia Empire—it would not be difficult for someone reasonably well-informed to learn who she was.
"Please stop calling me Lady Vihera. I've already abandoned my position, so just Vihera is fine."
"...Understood. Then, to restate— if Vihera-sama's consciousness has returned, that means the Silver Lion was defeated and the dungeon core was destroyed. Is that correct?"
Worker asked, staring at Marina.
Worker had been dispatched to this land and had managed the Guild ever since the dungeon first appeared.
Even if it was not a full-fledged Guild but merely a Branch Office... or rather, precisely because of that, he had grown attached to this place.
Understanding Worker's feelings, Marina nodded straightforwardly and spoke.
"Yes. The Silver Lion has been defeated, and the dungeon core has been destroyed. ...Rei."
Prompted by Marina, Rei took the dungeon core out of his Misty Ring.
It possessed an almost mysterious allure—a presence that drew the gazes of everyone around it merely by existing there.
"So this is the dungeon core... I've never seen one before."
"I imagine not. Normally, getting to see a dungeon core isn't something that happens very often. Quite the experience, wouldn't you say?"
Worker, told this with a smile, stared at the dungeon core in Rei's hand and spoke.
"May I... touch it briefly?"
"Yeah, I don't mind. The Guild will be holding onto it temporarily anyway, right?"
"I expect so. Of course, we won't do something like confiscate it outright, so please rest assured. Ideally, I would like you to leave it with us today, but..."
"That's a bit difficult. I plan to return to Gilm soon, and I'm not too keen on coming all the way back here just to retrieve it."
"Oh, that won't be a problem. The core will be studied in earnest in Gilm, not here."
Marina said this in response to Rei's words, but Elena spoke up with a puzzled look.
"If it will be studied in Gilm, then there's no need to leave the dungeon core here today, is there? I would think returning it after we go back to Gilm would be fine."
Vihera and Rei also nodded in agreement with Elena's words, but Worker shook his head at them.
"No. While the in-depth study will take place in Gilm, we can do a preliminary examination here. If we do, we'll be able to return it to you sooner even after the investigation in Gilm."
"That's right. Besides, with the dungeon disappearing, the number of people gathered in this area will naturally decrease, and the buildings erected here will gradually be torn down. When that happens, this Branch Office will steadily scale down its operations as well."
A meaningful glance was directed from Marina toward Worker.
It was a gaze that might evoke thoughts of something flirtatious, but Marina was not doing it intentionally—it was a natural gesture.
And Worker, too, likely understood what Marina's gaze meant. He let out a small sigh and spoke.
"I do think becoming Guild Master of Gilm would be too heavy a burden for me."
"Eh!?"
At the words that came from Worker's mouth, Rei, Elena, and Vihera all voiced their surprise simultaneously.
Three pairs of eyes turned toward Marina, who was wearing an alluring smile as she observed Rei and the others.
She surely understood why everyone's gazes had gathered on her, yet she spoke with a smile still on her face.
"Oh, is something the matter?"
"Is something the matter...? What did that just mean? If Worker is becoming the Guild Master, then what about you, Marina?"
Indeed, the current Guild Master of Gilm was Marina.
If Worker was to take Marina's place as the Guild Master of Gilm, then naturally that meant Marina would no longer be the Guild Master.
"What do you mean? I'm stepping down as Guild Master."
"Can you really just step down that easily?"
Vihera felt a flash of doubt at Marina's casually spoken words.
No, it was not just Vihera. Everyone else had the same question.
It went without saying that Gilm was the only frontier territory in the Kingdom of Mireana.
Its value was naturally immense, which was precisely why Daskar, who ruled Gilm, was able to lead the Neutral Faction.
Because Daskar led it, the Neutral Faction was able to maintain its presence despite its small numbers.
The reason Daskar could exert such influence was his position in the frontier.
The rare materials that could only be obtained there.
Materials stripped from monster corpses, and the various plants and ores that grew in that ecosystem.
The large number of merchants who gathered to obtain those materials, available only in the frontier.
Alchemists, apothecaries, blacksmiths, and others who wished to obtain those materials as cheaply and in as great a quantity as possible.
And above all, the adventurers who could earn substantial rewards by collecting those materials.
Though there were many factors at play, Daskar held strong influence as the lord of Gilm because of the adventurers... in other words, because of the Guild.
Skilled adventurers often had eccentric personalities.
The fact that someone was able to manage such adventurers—causing many small disturbances but never allowing a crisis that would collapse Gilm—was largely due to Marina's power.
There was no way such a declaration from Marina that she would step down as Guild Master could be accepted so easily.
"Oh, it's fine. I've already spoken properly with Daskar about it. Besides, it's not as if I'll have absolutely nothing to do with the Guild. Let's see—I'll hand over the Guild Master position to Worker, but I intend to remain involved with the Guild as an advisor or something along those lines."
"An advisor?"
Vihera repeated the word "advisor" with a somewhat vague feeling, and Marina nodded.
"Yes. Even I don't think it would be right to just abandon the Guild in Gilm as it is. I want to make sure I can speak up immediately if anything happens."
"...In that case, isn't there really no need to step down as Guild Master?"
"That's true. But... if I remain as Guild Master, then unlike Vihera, I won't be able to stay with Rei, will I? I'd been thinking about stepping down as Guild Master and returning to being an adventurer for a while now. And besides..."
Trailing off, Marina's gaze turned toward Worker.
He apparently understood the meaning of that look. Worker let out a small breath and spoke.
"The Guild is running without any problems right now. But... it's too dependent on the Guild Master. That's what you want to say, isn't it?"
"Yes. Of course, I am a Dark Elf, so I live far longer than humans. But I can't remain as Guild Master forever. If something were to happen and I were gone... at worst, the Guild might not be able to function properly anymore."
Understanding the meaning of those words... everyone understood why Marina was trying to step down from the position of Guild Master.
Of course, the desire to increase the time she could spend with Rei was also, without a doubt, her true feeling.