"Welcome."
As they entered the inn, Rei and his party were greeted by that voice.
Naturally, Set could not go inside, so it lay outside as usual.
However, it also served the role of keeping watch to ensure that Precious and his men did not flee once they learned of Rei's arrival.
"...He's not here."
Tuning out the clerk's voice, Rei cast a glance around the interior of the inn.
It had a typical layout—the first floor was a dining hall, while the second and third floors served as guest rooms—but as far as Rei could see from the entrance, the person he was looking for was nowhere to be found.
On the sofa set aside for those waiting for appointments, within the partially visible dining hall, and on the staircase leading to the upper floors... the person Rei was searching for was nowhere to be seen.
"Sir, if you are not staying here, I must ask you to leave."
The clerk called out to Rei as he surveyed the inn.
He surely knew who he was addressing.
As a clerk at a high-end inn, he would not neglect gathering information about Gilm.
Of course, even seeing Rei wearing the hood of his Dragon Robe, few would be able to identify him as Rei.
But when Rei was accompanied by a woman of peerless beauty dressed in thin garments like a dancer or a prostitute, wearing hand gauntlets and foot guards, there was no way they could fail to identify him.
...Additionally, while Byune had a reasonably attractive appearance, she inevitably fell short in sheer presence compared to a beauty like Vihera.
The fact that the clerk knew Rei was the one before him, yet still did not change his attitude, was enough to leave a favorable impression on Rei.
"A merchant named Precious is staying here, isn't he? I'd like you to get in touch with him."
At Rei's words, the clerk hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do.
If Rei had come in asking whether Precious was staying here, the clerk would have replied that as an inn employee, he could not answer such a question.
This inn placed a strong emphasis on security, and many guests were people with various complicated circumstances.
That was precisely why, if someone came inquiring with suspicion, the clerk would have answered accordingly.
But the current Rei was different.
He was clearly asking on the premise that he already knew Precious was here.
In other words, it suggested that Rei had come to ask because they had a prior arrangement.
For an inn that prided itself on security, it was of course the rule that if someone was coming to visit in advance, the guest should notify the inn beforehand.
Naturally, however, there was no guarantee that everyone would follow that rule, and it was not uncommon for guests to arrive without prior notice.
Moreover, if that guest was a well-known figure like Rei, it was entirely plausible that he would skip notifying the inn out of the hassle of explaining, fully knowing the circumstances.
...In reality, Rei had not made any arrangement with Precious, of course.
However, because Set had led them here, Rei was in fact certain that Precious—or more precisely, the person who had given the platinum coins to Keena—was here.
And... the inn clerk quickly organized his thoughts before bowing deeply.
"Please forgive me. I shall go check with Master Precious. Could I ask you to wait here a little longer?"
"...I'd prefer it if you could let me through right away."
At Rei's slightly dissatisfied tone, the clerk bowed once more.
"I apologize, but it is this inn's rule."
"Can't be helped, huh. Yeah, understood. Go ahead."
As Rei muttered that, the clerk exchanged a few brief words with another clerk nearby and headed up to the second floor.
After seeing him off, Rei sat down with Vihera and Byune on a sofa set slightly away from the counter.
"Are you sure? Once he finds out we're here, he might run, you know?"
"I wonder. He shouldn't think that we're involved in the attack on Tris... more precisely, on Tris's guards. If so, I don't think there's any need to worry about that. Besides, even if he runs..."
Rei paused, and his gaze turned toward the door leading outside.
More precisely, toward Set, who was surely on the other side.
For Set, whose five senses including smell were exceptionally sharp, it would not be difficult to notice if someone tried to sneak out of the inn.
If that happened, it would mean Precious had fled because he had something to hide—which could be fatal.
Once Precious learned that Rei and his party had come here, Rei did not think he would foolishly do such a thing.
"Set's out there, after all."
Rei spoke with complete trust.
Hearing this, Vihera and Byune once again felt just how much Rei trusted Set, and they could not raise any objections.
Then silence enveloped their surroundings.
Of course, it was only Rei's party that was silent; various other voices could be heard from elsewhere.
There seemed to be people eating in the dining hall, as a certain amount of noisy chatter drifted from that direction, and voices of passersby could be heard from outside the inn.
Additionally, near the counter stood two bodyguards over two meters tall, their bodies covered in muscle.
(For show only, huh.)
That was Rei's impression upon seeing the bodyguards.
They were muscles built not through combat experience, but for the purpose of intimidating others.
In Rei's assessment, they were like a bodybuilder's muscles.
They were probably stronger than ordinary citizens living normal lives in the city, but to an opponent of a certain level of strength or above, they were no threat at all.
Conversely, that also meant they were sufficient as a deterrent against those below a certain level of ability.
Those two bodyguards as well, when faced with Rei's party, surely understood that they could not win no matter how they struggled.
When Rei had first asked to see Precious, they had been extremely tense.
As bodyguards, if the inn's employees had ordered them to remove Rei's party, they could not have been the first to flee.
That was why it had been extremely fortunate that the inn's employees had calmly listened to Rei's words.
...The two bodyguards, now under Rei's gaze, maintained their silence without saying a word, though their unease was apparent.
Being scrutinized so thoroughly by opponents they had no chance of defeating, no matter how hard they tried, was not a pleasant feeling.
The time of tension for the two bodyguards lasted until the inn employee who had gone up to the second floor earlier returned.
That was why, upon hearing footsteps coming down the stairs, the two bodyguards felt a sense of relief from the bottom of their hearts, though it did not show on their faces.
"Thank you for waiting. Master Precious will see you now. Please, this way."
At the employee's words, Rei showed a look of understanding. So he hadn't run, after all.
He had thought that perhaps... just maybe, Precious might flee, but in the end, Precious must have judged that running from here would only work against him.
"Yeah, then... shall we?"
"Right."
"Mm."
At Rei's words, Vihera and Byune nodded and followed the inn employee up the stairs.
As expected of a high-end inn even within Gilm, its interior was quite refined—elegant would be an appropriate description.
Rei had initially thought it might be pointlessly decorated with lavish ornamentation, but in that regard, his expectations were exceeded in a good way.
Then again, the Wheat Inn at Dusk where Rei was staying was also known as a high-end inn within Gilm.
The Wheat Inn at Dusk also had an interior that felt calming without being flashy.
Of course, not all high-end inns were like that—some were indeed gaudy.
That likely depended on the tastes of their clientele.
Upon reaching the second floor, Rei's party was led to a room situated a certain distance from the staircase.
"Excuse me. Master Precious, I have brought your guests."
"Ah, please come in."
At those words, the inn employee opened the door... and then remained waiting in the hallway.
His role was, apparently, only up to this point. That was the implication.
Sensing this, Rei and his party entered the room without saying anything further.
Compared to the room Rei used at the Wheat Inn at Dusk, it was twice... no, nearly three times as spacious.
(But when it comes to the variety of magic items, it doesn't match the Wheat Inn at Dusk.)
The room was large, but there were not that many magic items of any kind.
This difference likely reflected the Wheat Inn at Dusk's commitment to making their guests' stay as comfortable as possible.
"You certainly found out which inn I was staying at with ease."
"I've got various connections in this city."
Rei answered Precious while looking around the room.
The room was spacious, but it contained only a bed, a wardrobe, a simple kitchen, and the like—nothing particularly different from an ordinary inn.
The only differences from the Wheat Inn at Dusk where Rei was staying were perhaps the large desk that could double as a work desk for Precious, and the multiple sofas.
And about five guards were stationed near Precious.
Among them was the man Rei had seen before in the Slum District... the person suspected of having hired Keena to attack Tris.
(I didn't really expect him to actually not have run.)
He had considered various possibilities, but the fact that Precious had stayed put without fleeing was slightly unexpected.
"Hoh, I would very much like to hear about those connections of yours. After all, I don't have that many connections in Gilm, and... I've been struggling with various things. Well, that aside. What brings you here today? I was a little surprised by your sudden visit without any prior arrangement."
At Precious's words, cutting straight to the point, Rei nodded in response.
"Right. I'm busy on my end too. Then let me get straight to the point. ...Are you aware that the Spiel Firm's branch was attacked today and Tris was targeted by an assassin?"
"Yes. I am, after all, a member of the Spiel Firm, so I was quite concerned about that matter. To be honest, it makes me wonder whether he is truly the right person to entrust with things."
"I see."
Rei found himself convinced by Precious's words.
The attack on Tris's guards was likely some form of warning directed at Tris.
But at the same time, having the shop itself attacked would be a significant blow to Tris... no, to any merchant.
That was likely the true aim of this attack as well.
"What do you think, Rei-san? Thinking about it normally—when the shop you patronize is attacked by someone... would you continue to use that shop?"
"I wonder. Wouldn't that depend on the person's circumstances? If there's a product that's only available at that shop, then they'd have no choice but to keep using it."
Rei understood what Precious was trying to say, but he did not elaborate further.
Vihera beside Rei, and Byune behind her, seemed to understand that this was Rei's moment to speak. Neither showed any sign of interjecting.
"Is that so. As expected of a high-rank adventurer, Rei-san, you are quite bold. ...Now then, we can't very well have our conversation standing up. Please, have a seat on the sofa."
"No, I'm fine as I am. There are various troublesome circumstances between you and me. Thinking of it that way, I can't exactly sit down on a sofa and have a leisurely chat, can I?"
"No, no, I certainly don't believe there are any troublesome circumstances between Rei-san and myself."
"Hoh? If that's what you think, then I'm glad to hear it. In that case, it would help us if you could hear my request in that same spirit."
"A request? ...To be honest, I don't believe I currently have any goods that would satisfy Rei-san."
The fact that he interpreted "request" as referring to goods was only natural, given that Precious was a merchant.
A slightly sharp glint entered his eyes as he looked at Rei.
Precious's current situation was far from good.
His contact in the underworld had severed ties with him immediately upon hearing that the man had made an enemy of Rei.
In other words, Precious currently had almost no combat power at his disposal.
Even if he wanted to manipulate information, with so few pawns at his disposal, there was nothing he could do.
Given such circumstances, for Rei to come to him with a request, it was only natural for him to harbor a faint hope.
At the same time, he also knew that Rei would undoubtedly become his enemy due to the incident in the Slums.
Precious held a complex mix of feelings, but Rei, as if none of that mattered, shifted his gaze... and looked at the man serving as guard near Precious before opening his mouth.
"I'd like to borrow that guard of yours, if you don't mind."
So he declared.