When Rei was back in Japan, he had once seen a snow party on TV.
For Rei, who had lived in a snowy region, the idea of deliberately holding a barbecue outdoors while it was snowing had always puzzled him. But somehow—truly just somehow—he felt like giving it a try.
The reason for that was probably the novel Rei had read at the library.
Whether it was Takumu or someone else entirely, he couldn't be sure if there had been a Japanese person who came to Elgin before him. But the novel was undoubtedly written by someone with knowledge of Japan.
Having read it and feeling somewhat nostalgic for home, when the question of when to hold the party came up, the idea of a snow party simply occurred to him.
Why his thoughts had gone in that particular direction, even Rei himself couldn't say.
But having thought of it, and having a place where it could actually be done, there was no reason not to follow through.
Several days passed since Rei first conceived the idea. Snow had been falling right up until the previous day, but today dawned with the kind of weather that could only be called a clear winter's day. Under a cloudless blue sky, preparations for the snow party proceeded steadily.
"Heeey. I brought some drinks—this okay?"
"You idiot. Didn't you hear Rei-san say he doesn't drink? Get some tea or something ready."
"Huh? Oh, I forgot. I'll go buy some right away!"
"Heeey, about the vegetables Rei-san brought out—is this how they should look?"
"Are you an idiot!? If you cut them that big, they'll be hard to eat!"
"Ehh? You think? They're small enough to eat normally."
"Idiot! A complete and utter idiot! Maybe that's fine for you since you stuff food into your mouth wide open, but Vihera-sama is coming to this party too! And Marina-sama, the Guild Master. There's no way people like them eat the way you do!"
"Urk! T-That's..."
Even as preparations carried on in this manner, Rei laid out the ingredients he had brought out from his Misty Ring.
The snow had piled up quite high, the ground already covered to a certain depth and packed down firm.
The sunlight of the clear winter day reflected off the snow, dazzling and glittering.
(If we're having a party here, I think it'd be better to just do it inside the house... no, inside the mansion.)
While sorting the ingredients he had taken from his Misty Ring, Rei mused to himself.
His gaze was fixed on the mansion where Yohanna, the other Former Mobile Unit members, and their families lived.
It was a fairly large mansion even by Gilm's standards, purchased by Yohanna and the others, where they now lived communally.
In the courtyard of that mansion, preparations for the snow barbecue party were underway.
"Rei-san, could you show me what the Silver Lion meat looks like?"
"Ah... sure, go ahead."
Lenora, who had been sorting ingredients, asked him that.
"Ah! Hey, Lenora! I told you I'd be the one looking after Rei-kun!"
Seeing her colleague approach, Kenny shouted at Lenora with obvious envy.
Just like the last time Rei had seen her, Kenny was in a state that could only be described as thoroughly bundled up.
"Kenny. Do the food prep properly. If you don't cut that right, it'll be a pain when it's time to eat, you know?"
"But, Guild Master!"
Marina scolded Kenny, but for Kenny, the jealousy toward Lenora was impossible to suppress.
Min watched Kenny's noisy commotion with visible amusement.
She, too, was doing food prep while enjoying what could loosely be called a rivalry over Rei—though perhaps it lacked a certain intensity to be called an all-out battle.
(Hehe, it never went like this with Elk and me. Watching it is quite refreshing.)
Various others were also pitching in on the preparations, and in the courtyard, Set could be seen playing in the snow with the children.
"Hey, Yohanna. That's my spot to pet!"
"Oh my, I'm sorry. But I touched him first, so I'm claiming this part of Set-chan."
"Hey, you two. Let me play with Set too!"
"M-me too, me too! I want to play with Set-chan!"
Whether one could really call what Mirene and Yohanna were doing—fighting over Set—"snow play" was debatable.
"Good grief, those two... come on, enough is enough. If you two are the only ones playing with him, it's not fair to the children, is it?"
At Surnin's words, Mirene and Yohanna felt dissatisfied but still couldn't bring themselves to take Set away from the children. They reluctantly pulled away from him.
As devoted Set enthusiasts, they absolutely did not want to leave his side. But they also knew that if they acted selfishly toward the children, Set would come to dislike them.
And if they did anything here to anger Rei, there was a real chance they'd be kicked out and miss the party entirely.
"Mirene, Yohanna—come help us over here."
The two turned toward the voice and found Vihera.
Despite the winter chill, she wore her usual thin clothing.
That figure, as always, delighted the men and filled the women with envy and jealousy.
Mirene and Yohanna were no exception.
Wearing slightly resentful expressions, they were dragged off by Vihera.
"Mnh!"
What awaited them was vegetable peeling.
Spread out before them was an array of vegetables, with a knife resting on top.
Use this to peel! Byune indicated to Mirene and Yohanna through gesture alone.
Rather than reacting to Byune's attitude, the two were stunned to see Vihera peeling vegetables.
Mirene was surprised that someone dressed as provocatively as Vihera would be peeling vegetables at all. Yohanna, on the other hand, was surprised that Vihera—the former princess of the Bestia Empire—was doing so.
But even if someone had pointed it out, Vihera probably wouldn't have cared.
She had fled the Bestia Empire a long time ago.
During all that time, she'd naturally cooked her own meals on occasion, so peeling vegetables was hardly anything unusual.
"...This turned into quite a large-scale affair."
Rei muttered as he pulled additional ingredients from his Misty Ring.
He had invited many of his acquaintances—people he knew—and nearly all of them had wanted to come.
The fact that it was winter and many of them were between jobs was surely a factor.
Had it been spring, summer, or autumn, everyone would have had more on their plates, and a crowd this large probably wouldn't have gathered.
"Well, that's true. Being able to eat Silver Lion meat was probably the big draw."
"Marina... I know it's a bit late to ask, but are you sure it's fine for you to be here?"
"My, aren't you the one who invited me, Rei? So there's nothing strange about me being here, is there?"
The light of the cloudless sun poured down from above.
It was the kind of weather one might call refreshing, yet even under that cheerful sky, the smile Marina wore was intensely alluring.
Dressed as always in a party dress, she carried a certain mismatched air about her, and yet... there was something deeply captivating about it.
As Marina cast a sidelong glance at him with an inviting smile, Rei returned her gaze with a wry one of his own.
"Of course I'm glad you came, Marina. But what about the Guild Master handover? I heard Worker's arrival was delayed."
The greatest disruption caused by Rei and his party clearing the dungeon was, naturally, felt around the dungeon itself.
Given that it was a dungeon, clearing it was the natural objective. But once it was actually cleared, those who had been making their living from it would naturally lose their source of income.
For now, monsters still spawned inside, so the immediate problem was manageable. But in the not-so-distant future, the dungeon would inevitably become nothing more than an empty structure.
Once that happened, the entrance would be sealed to prevent outside monsters from wandering in and nesting, making the interior completely inaccessible.
Because people understood this, many had gone to the Guild Branch Office to ask if something could be done.
Worker had been patiently attending to each and every one of them, which was why he still hadn't made it to Gilm.
"That's right. He's running a little late, but... even so, he should be arriving soon."
"...Is that so?"
Rei's surprise was genuine. He had been worried that Worker's delay was a direct result of his own dungeon capture.
"Yes. Worker is going to be the next Guild Master, so he needs to be able to handle at least that much. My side of things is already completely finished. Once Worker gets here, we can start the handover."
In other words—right now, she had time to spare.
Rei nodded at Marina's explanation and pulled out some meat.
It wasn't Silver Lion meat—it was Gamelion meat.
The star of today's barbecue was, of course, supposed to be the Silver Lion meat. But the Silver Lion meat had one fatal flaw.
It was too delicious.
A single bite of Silver Lion meat would make ordinary food taste vaguely unsatisfying for days afterward.
That was how extraordinarily delicious it was.
Which was exactly why, despite being the main event, Rei planned to serve it dead last.
Those who had never tasted Silver Lion meat grumbled at the decision. But those who, like Rei, had already tried it once couldn't have agreed more.
...Then again, being told just how extraordinary it was probably only made everyone want it more.
Still, with Rei, Vihera, and Marina all saying the same thing out loud, the others had no choice but to accept it.
(Well, Gamelion meat is plenty delicious on its own.)
With Silver Lion meat on the table, a lot of people complained about Gamelion being served. But in any other year, Gamelion meat was without question a feast in its own right.
Last year, the market had seen very little Gamelion meat, so this year, people were enjoying it to their hearts' content.
Perhaps as a ripple effect of last year's shortage, a large quantity of Gamelion meat had flooded the market this time around. The fact that everyone had already eaten their fill of it was probably one reason it wasn't being greeted with as much enthusiasm.
Time passed, and eventually the preparations were complete.
The number of participants steadily grew, and some had already started on the ale.
In the center of the courtyard, several barbecue grills had been set up, the charcoal inside already glowing red.
Meat, vegetables, and even seafood sizzled over the flames, filling the air with an appetite-stimulating aroma.
"Hey, Rei. I'll be enjoying myself today."
The voice belonged to Elk.
The full smile on his face was almost certainly because Rhodos had regained consciousness.
"Come to think of it, where's Rhodos?"
"Ah, I tried bringing him along, but he said he'd sit this one out."
"...I see. I would've liked him to come if he could."
Today's party wasn't just about showcasing the Silver Lion meat—it was also a celebration of Vihera's revival.
And with roughly two weeks left until the end of the year, it doubled as a year-end gathering to mark everything that had happened.
"Well, Rhodos has a lot on his mind right now. I explained to him what kind of memories he'd lost, and he took it pretty hard."
Elk's expression turned briefly sorrowful, but just as quickly shifted back to a grin.
"For now, just give him some space. His body isn't ready for adventuring yet, either."
With that, he seemed to hear Min calling from a short distance away and headed off toward her.
"Rei, here."
As Rei watched Elk go, Marina pressed a cup into his hand.
Inside was not alcohol, but herbal tea—something Rei could actually drink.
"Everyone's just about ready. Could you do the honors and declare the party started?"
"Me?"
"Yes."
"I'm not really good at this sort of thing."
He muttered, but since he was the one who'd brought out the Silver Lion meat—the main event—there was no refusing.
Cup in hand, he raised his voice.
"Vihera's recovery, the dungeon capture, and the Silver Lion meat—so many reasons. Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
And with that cry, the snow barbecue party began.