The time rewound slightly.
Having seen off Rei and the others as they rushed out of Asimov's house, Marina placed the unconscious Asimov onto a platform of water created by Spirit Magic and headed straight for a clinic.
"From here, the nearest place would be... yes, Seraris's clinic should work best."
Recalling a clinic run by an acquaintance, Marina proceeded down the street.
Right behind her, something that looked at first glance like a Slime followed along.
However, unlike a slow-footed—though footless—Slime, this pseudo-slime made of water glided across the ground as it moved.
The area around Asimov's house saw little foot traffic, but it was not completely devoid of people. Because of that, the sight of a beautiful woman like Marina leading a pseudo-slime carrying an unconscious man on its back was witnessed by a handful of people.
"......"
But those who saw it all uniformly kept their mouths shut.
Seeing Marina, a beautiful woman, the pseudo-slime trailing behind her, and the man loaded on top of it, it was obvious there were circumstances involved.
Unfortunately, among those who had been watching the scene, none knew that Marina was the former Guild Master. Had they known, some might have approached her to offer gratitude... or seized what they would see as a perfect opportunity to get acquainted with her.
In any case, though Marina was aware of the gazes directed at her from the surroundings as she led the pseudo-slime, she proceeded down the street without paying them much mind. She was accustomed to drawing attention due to her beauty and the flashy party dresses she wore on a daily basis.
Even so, had she stepped onto the main street in this situation, it was certain she would have drawn the kind of attention even Marina could not ignore. Thinking of that, it was fortunate that Seraris's clinic was located on a back street, allowing her to avoid that level of scrutiny.
Upon arriving at her destination, Marina knocked on the door in front of her.
"Seraris, are you in?"
"Yes, yes. Hmm, that voice is Marina, isn't it?"
With those words, the door opened... and standing on the other side was a woman slightly shorter than Marina. She was not particularly beautiful, but she wore a smile that somehow put anyone at ease when they looked at her.
"I came suddenly, but is this a bad time?"
"No, I wasn't busy right now, so it's fine... The problem is that person? Or rather, isn't that Asimov-san?"
Seraris's gaze shifted to the pseudo-slime made by the water spirit behind Marina... and then to Asimov, who was placed on top of it.
Normally, one would be surprised by the sight of a pseudo-slime, but Seraris did not seem particularly startled.
"That's right. He was an acquaintance of mine... rather, an acquaintance of a party member of mine, but when I went to his house, he was collapsed with injuries."
"Huh. Asimov-san, huh."
Marina was slightly surprised that Seraris knew Asimov, but Asimov was, after all, known to some extent in this area as a skilled alchemist... and an eccentric. It was therefore not strange at all for Seraris to know of him.
Seraris quickly examined Asimov's condition as he lay on the pseudo-slime, but as she pulled back the cloth covering his body, she furrowed her brows. There was a visible amount of blood on it.
However, as she examined the wound itself, she furrowed her brows once more. His clothes were slashed, and there was blood on them. Despite that, Asimov's body had no wounds whatsoever.
"Umm, hey, Marina. It looks like there are no wounds."
"Yes. The wound itself was healed using a potion."
"...Then what did you come here for? If the wound is healed, there's no problem, right?"
"Well, there is that. ...What do you think caused him to sustain such injuries?"
At Marina's words, Seraris thought, now that you mention it... and turned her gaze toward Asimov.
Asimov was known as a skilled practitioner, but that was strictly in terms of his abilities as an alchemist. In the event he had to actually fight, like an adventurer, he did not possess the kind of skill that could be called first-rate by any stretch. Of course, being an alchemist, it would not be strange for him to possess various Magic Items for self-defense. Even so, it was hard to imagine him voluntarily heading into a combat zone.
"I see... A fight? Even so, his clothes are quite slashed up."
Since the wound was already healed, she couldn't say for certain, but the gashes in his clothes from some kind of blade were not something that could be called a mere fight. It could only be seen as a wound clearly aimed at taking Asimov's life.
After confirming that Seraris had realized this, Marina gave a nod.
"That's right. When he went to pick up a Magic Item that Rei had left in his care, this was the state he was in. Rei's potion managed to help, but since his life was targeted, I couldn't just leave him be, right?"
"...This is a place for treatment, not a place to shelter someone."
Seraris replied with words of displeasure, but Marina flashed a beautiful smile and spoke.
"My, the wound was healed with a potion, but the blood that was lost cannot be restored, you know? If that's the case, I want you to look after him here until that can be dealt with somehow."
"That's..."
When put that way, Seraris couldn't refuse. She had originally taken up this kind of work because she wanted to help injured people. Upon hearing that, even though the wounds were healed, a large amount of blood had been lost, she couldn't just leave him alone.
"...Fine. But I can't keep him here for too long, okay? As you know, it's a busy season for adventurers right now. The Guild Master should understand that much, right, Marina?"
"Former. Former Guild Master. Right now, I am nothing more than a mere adventurer."
"Come to think of it, you did say you were stepping down as Guild Master. Honestly, what an eccentric thing to do. How many people do you think want to become the Guild Master?"
"I live for love."
"...Yes, yes. Save the flirting for another time. More importantly, what are you going to do now, Marina? Weren't you with that rumored guy in the first place?"
While saying she would hear the flirting later, her friend still asked about that rumored guy... Rei, prompting Marina to smile and speak.
"If it's Rei, he went off chasing the one who attacked Asimov."
"Oh my, dumped on your very first day?"
"Hehe, that's impossible."
Marina answered the teasing words with composure. She ordered Asimov to be brought inside the building using Spirit Magic, and stating that her business was done, she spoke again.
"It was necessary to move Asimov somewhere safe, and I also need to inform the Guard Force about this incident. ...If I don't take care of that, it will probably lead to all sorts of troublesome things."
Marina had said "probably," but considering Rei's personality, it was almost certain... there was no mistaking that it would become troublesome. His acquaintance—someone he could even call a friend—Asimov had been left with near-fatal injuries, and his Sleipnir boots had been stolen.
With all that, the possibility of Rei letting it go was less likely than a spear falling from the sky.
...Though, Rei was proficient with javelins. Now that he had the Twilight Spear, he didn't use other spears as javelins, but if he set his mind to it, creating a rain of spears would not be a difficult task.
(Ah)
Having thought this through herself, Marina must have realized it too. As if to gloss over something, she smiled.
"Anyway, I'm leaving Asimov in your care, alright?"
"Yes, yes. I understand. There's no need for any particular treatment, so I just need to let him rest quietly, right? After that, when he wakes up, I'll have him eat something nutritious, and that should be fine."
Marina expressed her gratitude to her friend for quietly accepting the task, and then left the scene.
She momentarily thought that a guard might be necessary considering Asimov had been attacked, but Seraris's clinic had many adventurers. Being in a clinic, they were naturally injured. But those injuries were mostly not life-threatening—fractures, cuts, bruises... the majority had those kinds of wounds. There were a few who had been strangled by tentacles and lost consciousness, but such individuals were very rare.
In any case, with that many of those types of people present, their combat power was by no means low. Of course, they were somewhat inferior compared to being in perfect condition, but even so, if they gathered in numbers, they could fight without issue. Because of that, there was no particular need to worry about the clinic's defensive capability.
"Then, I leave him to you. The Guard Force will probably come to collect Asimov, so please hand him over when they arrive."
"Yes, yes. ...Still, to get caught up in trouble on the very day you stepped down as Guild Master... you have bad luck."
She spoke in a half-teasing tone, but Seraris's words still carried a hint of concern for Marina. But to her friend's words, Marina smiled and shook her head.
"There's no need to worry. I knew that getting involved in trouble was inevitable if I acted alongside Rei. It's just happening a little early. Rei originally has a personality that dives headfirst into trouble, and he also has a nature that attracts it."
"...Are you sure you'll be alright? Well, I suppose you couldn't have become a B-Rank Adventurer in such a short time otherwise."
Since Seraris also lived in Gilm, she naturally knew of Rei and had seen him before. Her usual impression of Rei was nothing more than someone eating at food stalls... but it was obvious that this was merely one side of Rei.
"I'll be fine. I chose to form a party with Rei of my own free will. I had anticipated this much from the start. ...Well, it's true it came slightly earlier than expected. More importantly, I should get going now."
Flashing a beautiful smile, Marina left the clinic. She needed to go to the Guard Force's Guard Station now, so she couldn't afford to spend too much time here.
"Right. Take care."
After exchanging brief words, Marina dispelled the mass of water she had created with Spirit Magic and departed.
"...Really, take care."
Seraris briefly stated that, and then returned inside the clinic.
"Excuse me, do you have a moment?"
After leaving the clinic and stepping onto the main street, Marina called out to a Guard Force member who happened to be passing by conveniently.
At her voice, the Guard Force member grimaced for a moment... but upon realizing it was Marina who had called out, he immediately flashed a smile tinged with surprise.
The reason he made a displeased face was because, as was the case every year, spring had brought new adventurers to Gilm, causing various problems to occur. It was not uncommon for fights or even duels to break out... and he assumed this matter was related to that.
But looking at her now, standing there was Marina, a beauty one could not see anywhere else. Dealing with manly adventurers was one thing, but if the other party was Marina, the former Guild Master, that was a different story.
"Marina-sama. What is the matter?"
"I've already stepped down as Guild Master, so please just call me normally. ...Anyway, a bit of a problem has come up regarding Rei."
"Ugh."
Told it was about Rei, the Guard Force member blurted that out instinctively based on past experience.
...The matters Rei had been involved in up until now had become big in various senses. Considering that, it couldn't be helped if one wondered what kind of commotion it would be this time.
Seeing his partner express his honest feelings so openly, the other Guard Force member sighed. Of course, he knew that various troublesome things would happen because of Rei, but he still wanted to avoid taking an attitude like his partner's.
"So then, Marina-san. What did Rei do this time?"
"Let's see. To put it simply, the alchemist Rei had entrusted a Magic Item to was attacked by someone, sustained near-fatal injuries, and the entrusted Magic Item was stolen."
"Huh?"
At the words delivered from Marina's mouth, the two Guard Force members let out voices in unison. It was only natural. Even if they had heard that Rei had caused a commotion, they hadn't expected it to be this much.
Strictly speaking, what Marina had said was that a problem had occurred regarding Rei, not that Rei had caused a problem... but how Rei was normally perceived was obvious from looking at these two.
"So then, do you have a little time?"
"...Yes. It seems it would be better to hear this properly at the Guard Station rather than talking about it here."
"Yes, that would be helpful."
At the Guard Force member's words, Marina smiled and gave a nod.