Having safely emerged from the forest, Rei and his party returned to Gilm in a carriage driven by adventurers who had been waiting for them.
After completing the paperwork with the guards, they made their way back to the Guild, where Marina offered a smile to the adventurers who had successfully fulfilled their request.
"Good work. Thanks to you all, we had a lot of help today. I'll be counting on you again if the opportunity arises."
"Y-yes. G-Guild Mastuh..."
The adventurer stumbled over his words, struck by the intense feminine charm radiating from Marina's smile.
Well, it can't be helped, having seen that smile, thought another adventurer as he spoke up.
"We're just glad to have satisfied the Guild Master. We're also very happy to have completed the request safely."
Neither this man nor the one who had stumbled over his words earlier were particularly inexperienced with women. As adventurers, they had naturally frequented brothels before—though they lacked the money for that sort of thing at the moment. They had also seduced women into such relationships a fair number of times.
But even so, when someone like Marina—a woman who embodied feminine allure—directed a smile at them, it was hardly surprising that they would act as if they were inexperienced with women.
Marina naturally noticed this as well, but without letting it show in her demeanor, she signed the documents handed to her by the man and processed the request's completion.
"Alright, this should do it. We'll take care of the carriage, so please collect your pay at the Guild."
"Y-yes, ma'am!?"
The man who had stumbled over his words earlier let out the shout, and Marina watched him go inside the Guild under the exasperated looks of his companions. She then turned to Vihera, who was smiling at her for some reason.
"Is there something you want to say?"
"Nothing in particular? I was just thinking that, seeing you like this, you're quite the popular one, Marina."
"If we're talking about that, I don't think Vihera is much different from me, you know? ...Take a look around."
Naturally, having this kind of exchange in front of the Guild drew attention. Moreover, both Marina and Vihera had appearances befitting the title of peerless beauties.
While Marina was not widely known by face outside of adventurer circles, Vihera—due to her personality and appearance—was somewhat known by name as an acquaintance of Rei's.
There were no reckless fools foolish enough to get involved with such people... at least, not in Gilm, which was currently in a state near lockdown. Let alone the fact that Set was near the carriage, and Rei had also stepped down from it.
Still, when it came to beauties of Vihera and Marina's caliber, simply looking at them was satisfying enough. There was a word for a feast for the eyes, and this was exactly it.
Particularly Vihera, who, in this season when most women wore cold-weather clothing, was clad only in thin garments so sheer that what lay beneath was visible. Her body line was truly a feast for the eyes, both for men... and for women.
Of course, there were those who preferred Byune, and there were exceptions who thought Rei was the better catch.
"Ah, it's Set-chan! Have you been well? Did you go somewhere outside?"
A girl of about ten spotted Set and ran over joyfully. The strange atmosphere that had been drifting around was instantly blown away by the girl's actions.
"Gurururu."
Whether Set sensed the surrounding atmosphere, or whether he didn't understand anything at all... either way, he purred happily and rubbed his face against the girl who was petting him.
The girl squealed with delight, and perhaps envious of the sight, a few more children appeared from the surroundings.
"Ah, no fair, Reirei-chan! I want to play with Set too!"
"Kyaaah! Kyaaah! Ahahahaha!"
"Long time no see, Set-chan. Have you been well?"
And so, several people crowded around Set, but...
"Hm?"
Rei noticed that someone who was not a child was mixed in among them, and he turned his gaze back toward Set. Among the voices he could hear, there was one he recognized.
And Rei's instincts were not mistaken—the person there was exactly who he expected.
"Mirene... where did you pop out from?"
"Hey, isn't 'pop out from' a bit harsh? Saying that to a beauty like me."
Those words were by no means wrong. Looking at her objectively, Mirene undeniably had the appearance to be called a beauty. Of course, she couldn't compare to peerless beauties like Marina or Vihera.
Understanding that, Rei opened his mouth in exasperation.
"Fair enough. If you were acting normally, I might call you a beauty."
Rei had no objection to the fact that Mirene was a beauty. However, that was only if she were acting normally. Seeing her fawning over Set like this, if asked whether he could think of Mirene as a beauty... it would be difficult to nod honestly.
(Though, there are people with unusual tastes... and there are probably guys who would think, "Even this side of Mirene is fine!" Yohanna included.)
Recalling the other famous representative of Set enthusiasts, Rei nodded at Mirene with a strangely convinced look.
Despite having been acknowledged as a beauty, Mirene wore an expression of clear dissatisfaction at Rei's reaction. She understood exactly how he was evaluating her. That was precisely why.
"Rei, playing is fine, but let's get things moving along here soon."
"Yeah. Let's grab a meal somewhere and hold a celebration and review meeting at the same time—"
"Ah, Rei-san! Long time no see!"
"...Hm?"
Let's go eat somewhere. A voice called out, interrupting Rei just as he was about to say those words. This, too, was a voice he hadn't heard recently but recognized.
When he turned his gaze toward the source of the voice, the person there was someone Rei recognized—however, compared to the last time he had seen him, the person was somewhat taller, and his build had become more warrior-like.
"Hasta... right?"
The person there was Hasta, who had accompanied Rei on his very first Gamelion hunt. Their connection had been formed when Hasta, wanting to help out at the Full Belly Diner where his father worked as a cook, had come to rely on Rei.
Rei showed his face at the Full Belly Diner fairly regularly, but it had been a very long time since he had seen Hasta.
"Eh? Yes, it's Hasta. What is it? Did you forget my face, by any chance?"
"No, compared to the last time I saw you, you've gotten quite a bit bigger, so I didn't recognize you for a moment."
"Ah, haha. ...Come to think of it, I might have gotten a little bigger compared to before."
At the mention of getting bigger—perhaps noticing that a hint of jealousy was mixed into Rei's words—a deflecting smile appeared on Hasta's mouth.
Looking slightly envious of Hasta's state, Rei nevertheless told himself that he was himself and others were others, and opened his mouth.
"More importantly, it's been a while. Are you not needed at the shop today?"
Since it was winter, many adventurers were spending their time drinking and eating. For people living that kind of lifestyle, the Full Belly Diner—with its delicious, cheap, and plentiful food—was a wonderful establishment beyond compare. In fact, when Rei had previously visited the Full Belly Diner regarding udon, he had been told that winter was the most profitable season of the year.
On the flip side, including the matter of Gamelion meat, Hasta needed to gather as much meat as possible before winter set in—but only to the extent that it wouldn't spoil and have to be discarded.
Fortunately, it was the cold season of autumn turning to winter. If he had to do the same in summer, the meat would certainly rot. Though, if it were summer, he could probably just go out and defeat monsters every day to bring back fresh meat.
"Yes. I've hired a few temporary staff, and things have been busy lately, so I took today off."
Hasta told Rei this with a smile, but there was no sign of fatigue about him. He had originally been an adventurer and had plenty of stamina, so merely helping out with the shop's work probably didn't tire him particularly.
(Though, I imagine being an adventurer and being a waiter are quite different in various ways.)
Rei himself had done the sort of part-time jobs a few times when he was in Japan. General part-time work like at a convenience store, or short-term work like grilling yakitori at a night stall. What was exhausting about those jobs was not only the physical toll, but also the mental fatigue. Even if someone told Rei to work as a waiter, he didn't think he could do it.
And in the middle of their conversation... Rei suddenly noticed something.
"Come to think of it, Hasta, you have a warehouse for dismantling monsters, right?"
"Eh? Ah, yes. I have one, but?"
When Rei had gone Gamelion hunting with Hasta before, they had used that warehouse to dismantle the Gamelion. And...
"And you also said I could use that warehouse, right?"
"That's right. It's barely been used since then, though."
"Even so. Normally you're the one using that warehouse, so I can't get in your way, can I?"
It was a personally owned dismantling warehouse, but it was a space used on the premise that only Hasta would use it. And Hasta would obtain meat for the Full Belly Diner, dismantle it there, and deliver the meat to the shop.
If Rei were to dismantle monsters in such a place, it would be nothing but an obstruction to Hasta.
Besides, where Rei normally dismantled monsters was near the river in the forest they had visited today. Since there was an abundant water supply that could be used freely there, it was better equipped than Hasta's warehouse in terms of a dismantling environment.
However, if he were to dismantle monsters in the forest—to do something that involved shedding blood—animals and monsters might catch the scent and attack. The greatest advantage of a dismantling warehouse in the city was that such concerns were unnecessary.
But in Rei's case, he had a partner named Set. Ordinary monsters and animals would not approach Set on their own unless something extraordinary happened.
For those reasons, and because he submitted dismantling requests directly to the Guild when he had defeated a large number of monsters, there was almost no need for Rei to use Hasta's warehouse.
But if it was now, that was a different story.
Fortunately, inside Rei's Misty Ring right now was the Snow Salamander. He had skipped dismantling it in the forest because it would be a waste of time, but from here on, there was nothing in particular he needed to do. If there was, it would only be the celebration.
That celebration could be held at the Wheat Inn at dusk, or if he borrowed Hasta's warehouse, it could be held at the Full Belly Diner.
Making that judgment, Rei turned his gaze back to Hasta and opened his mouth.
"Hey, Hasta. Your warehouse isn't being used right now, is it?"
"Eh? Ah, yes. I'm just storing the meat I'll use this winter, but I'm not particularly using it."
"...Storing?"
Unable to comprehend what word had just come out of Hasta's mouth, Rei asked him again.
But Hasta nodded back at Rei's words as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Yes, that's right. Is something wrong with that?"
"No, it's not that something's wrong, I'm just surprised you can leave meat in the warehouse. That warehouse doesn't have particularly strict security, does it?"
As far as Rei knew, the warehouse door had a lock on it, but it was still in a place where, if someone really set their mind to it, breaking the lock would be fairly easy. If processed meat were left in such a place, for people who were struggling to feed themselves, that warehouse would seem like an ideal feeding ground.
But to Rei's doubts, Hasta opened his mouth with a confident expression, saying it was fine.
"The people living near that warehouse are regulars at the Full Belly Diner."
That alone should tell you the rest, right? At Hasta's attitude, which seemed to say just that, Rei wasn't completely convinced, but he understood well enough.
If a man who was devoted to the taste of the Full Belly Diner lived near the warehouse, the difficulty of breaking in would become extremely high. After all, if the meat were stolen, he would no longer be able to eat the cooking at the diner he loved so much—what's more, in the worst-case scenario, the Full Belly Diner itself might go out of business.
Thinking of it that way, it was essentially like having a security guard living right next to the warehouse.
Normally, one might wonder if anyone would go that far just for food, but considering the deliciousness, cheapness, and generous portions of the Full Belly Diner's cooking, it wouldn't be strange for there to be people like that.
"I see, then it's probably safe. ...Anyway, today we hunted a monster just outside of Gilm, so could I borrow your warehouse to dismantle it?"
That was what he asked.