Before Rei, Tris bowed deeply.
"Thank you very much. I truly caused you all sorts of trouble this time..."
Normally, Tris would wear a smile on his lips while his eyes remained unsmiling. But today, offering a genuine apology, he couldn't pull off such an act.
He bowed low, looking truly sorry from the bottom of his heart.
Beside Rei stood Galahat, chairman of the Azoth Firm.
The day after Precious was captured, Rei and the other members of the Crimson Lotus Wings, along with Galahat and his guards, were gathered in a private room at a high-class dining hall—restaurant would be a more fitting term—used by wealthy merchants and nobles within Gilm.
Naturally, reserving a private room in such an establishment required a commensurate fee, and the Spiel Firm had little margin to spare at the moment. But even so, given the turmoil Precious had caused, they had no choice but to push through and foot the bill.
They couldn't possibly summon the chairman of the Azoth Firm—a larger operation than their own—to their branch office. Fortunately, this dining hall's private room was available, and they had booked it.
The fact that no food had been brought out yet was likely because Tris wanted to offer a thorough apology first and settle the matter before eating.
Whether he understood Tris's intentions or not, Rei looked at him as he raised his head and spoke, harboring a hint of dissatisfaction.
"Precious is ruined now, and that's fine with me."
Even as he said this, his displeasure was apparent. It likely stemmed from the fact that, regarding the assault on his acquaintance—someone he could even call a friend, Asimov—he had not carried out any concrete retaliation.
Precious had been captured by the guards and could be said to be ruined as a Spiel Firm merchant, but Rei hadn't so much as taken a single limb from him.
Given that, perhaps because it felt anticlimactic, a sense of dissatisfaction lingered.
Still, being able to bring the situation under control before any other major damage occurred was a relief for Rei.
If Precious had not learned his lesson and had again laid hands on Rei's acquaintances, Rei certainly would not have settled for merely capturing him.
Probably... no, he definitely would have lost at least one or two limbs.
(Arrogan and Culotte, who I asked to guard Asimov, apparently ended up with nothing happening either.)
What's more, when Rei went to tell them that Precious had been captured yesterday and they no longer needed to worry—but to continue guarding for a few more days just in case—he recalled Culotte delighting in the fact that Pamidor had taken a liking to her and forged a short sword for her.
Incidentally, the reward for the two of them was scheduled to be paid from the compensation Tris was providing for this incident.
Though Tris was confident he would recover that compensation soon enough.
It had been decided that the carriage, horses, goods, and personal belongings Precious had used for travel would be returned to Tris after the guards finished inspecting them.
The value of those assets was certain to exceed the damages Tris had suffered in this affair.
However, that did not mean Tris had made a pure profit.
The Spiel Firm would be under the Guard Force's scrutiny for some time due to this turmoil, and above all, they had incurred a massive—a truly massive—debt to the Azoth Firm, one of the largest firms in Gilm.
Owing a debt to the Azoth Firm while conducting business in Gilm carried significant implications.
It would undoubtedly become a major burden for Tris going forward.
Though, looking at it positively, it also meant a connection with the Azoth Firm had been forged.
"I'm fine with that as well. Ultimately, what we gained from this incident was greater."
Galahat, understanding this, had no dissatisfaction unlike Rei. He replied to Tris casually.
In the first place, the only damage to the Azoth Firm was receiving a visit from a furious Rei.
That, too, had been resolved immediately, and no actual damage remained.
...Of course, that was only to say there was no physical damage. For those who had faced Rei while his blood was running hot—including Galahat—the psychological toll had been substantial.
"Thank you very much. We will continue to work hard at our business in Gilm, so we look forward to your continued goodwill."
Tris bowed deeply once more.
A few seconds later, he raised his head and signaled to his subordinates. Food was brought in, and a banquet began in this establishment that could rightly be called a high-class restaurant.
Rei ate until he was full, had a souvenir made for Set, and since Byune—who boasted an appetite rivaling Rei's—was also present, the amount spent that day was considerable.
"Is it really okay for me to eat this?"
Culotte let out a cry of surprise at the dish before her.
It was only natural. What sat before her now was food she would normally never be able to eat.
The day after the reconciliation with Tris's apology concluded, Rei visited Asimov and Pamidor, who were no longer worried about being attacked. He placed the dishes from the previous day's banquet before Culotte, Arrogan, and Pamidor for lunch.
Kumito's absence was because he needed to help his mother at home today.
Pamidor, who had been teaching his son smithing, was slightly dissatisfied about that. But even so, the fact that he ended up complying with his wife's wishes showed that they were a close couple.
As for Asimov, upon learning his safety was secured, he simply returned home, wanting to continue his research.
"Yeah, I asked a lot of you, so this is partly a thank-you. As for the taste, it's a place used by nobles and wealthy merchants, so the food is unquestionably first-class."
"Wow... to eat food like this... is this really okay?"
"Rei's the one offering it, so it's fine. Come on, let's eat."
"Hey, Arrogan!? Could you show a little refinement?"
"What refinement? More importantly, it'd be a waste to let this food get cold."
"That's true, but... hey! Even you, Pamidor!?"
Listening to the lively commotion, Rei reached out further and brought a dish resembling tian to his mouth.
(Marina, Vihera, Byune, Set... they're all busy, that much is certain.)
Rei thought about the members who were absent from this gathering.
Marina had gone to the lord's mansion to explain the situation. Vihera and Byune went to the Guild. And Set had gone on a picnic outside Gilm with Mirene and Yohanna.
Only Set was out playing, but even so, with Mirene and Yohanna acting together, it was obvious that the two, who got along poorly, would end up bickering.
For Set, who loved everyone getting along, the sight of two people who doted on him fighting would not be very pleasant.
Even as Rei thought about Set, the dishes continued to disappear one after another.
While eating, Arrogan spoke with an expression that still didn't sit quite right with him.
"But is it really okay for us to receive a reward? I mean, of course I'll take it if you're offering. But realistically, we didn't do anything, did we?"
If anything, Culotte had even been taken with by Pamidor and had a short sword forged for her.
Asimov had brought Culotte and the others to Pamidor's house, and as a result, she had caught his fancy.
Thinking about it that way, this request felt less like a windfall and more like they had earned too much.
But Rei nodded to Arrogan, indicating there was no problem.
"Thanks to you two guarding safely, we had the peace of mind of knowing we could respond even if that side was attacked. If you think of it as buying that peace of mind, it's a cheap price."
"Is that... so?"
Even hearing Rei's words, Arrogan muttered, still not entirely convinced.
Having accepted the request from Rei, he had expected to use his beloved Magic Sword to fight enemies. For the request to end without incident left him with lingering thoughts.
Of course, the fact that Rei was so casual about paying the reward was largely because there was compensation coming from Tris. Though he already possessed enough money to live in luxury for over ten lifetimes.
"Yeah. It was a relief for us. So don't worry about it and take the reward."
Hearing Rei's words, Arrogan thought for a moment before nodding.
At the lord's mansion, Daskar sat on a sofa facing Marina.
"Hmm, so in the end it was resolved as internal strife within the Spiel Firm. Knowing Rei, I assumed it would turn into something much bigger."
"Oh my, even Rei doesn't blow every situation out of proportion, you know?"
"...You've known Rei for a long time, but I can't bring myself to believe that."
Recalling how much Rei had done in the past, Daskar spoke with a hint of exasperation.
After all, Rei would wield his power without mercy against anyone who made an enemy of him, even a noble.
Normally, facing the status of a noble, it wouldn't be strange to feel some hesitation.
But Rei's actions held no hesitation.
That he showed no hesitation in his actions could be made to sound like a positive trait, but as someone living in noble society, it was clearly problematic.
Even setting aside the worst nobles, against the highest rank of noble—a duke—or even the King of Mireana, the nation's supreme authority, if there were a reason, he would swing that Grim Reaper's Great Scythe without a moment's hesitation.
Of course, even if it came to that, Rei would likely leave the Kingdom of Mireana.
And having affiliated himself with some other country, he would next turn that formidable fang against the Kingdom of Mireana.
(In terms of probability, the Bestia Empire would be the highest.)
From the previous war and civil war, the feelings that the citizens of the Bestia Empire held toward Rei were extremely complex.
Furthermore, his relationship with Vihera, who was popular among the people, had been witnessed by many during the civil war, and that too would influence their feelings toward Rei.
But at the same time, it was the Bestia Empire that had been shown Rei's power more dramatically than anywhere else.
If someone with that much power were driven from a country—especially with a princess of their nation near Rei, though she herself no longer had any awareness of being a princess—they would likely use whatever means necessary to draw him in.
As the lord of Gilm, and above all as a noble of the Kingdom of Mireana, Daskar had absolutely no intention of letting such a thing come to pass.
Rather, considering the magnitude of the damage that would come from antagonizing Rei, he couldn't possibly think of making an enemy of him.
"It'll be fine."
As if to dispel Daskar's concerns, Marina smiled.
"...About what?"
He knew she was trying to reassure him, but perhaps because she knew of his various misdeeds since childhood, Daskar couldn't be straightforward with Marina.
Especially regarding the proposal incident, she still brought it up from time to time to tease him.
But Marina gave a small laugh at Daskar's demeanor and spoke again.
"Rei has grown attached to Gilm. Someone like that wouldn't abandon Gilm... not easily."
"It's exactly that 'not easily' that I'm worried about."
Daskar sighed and reached for the tea on the table.
Dealing with Marina while sober was exhausting, and he would have preferred to drink ale or something similar. But a lord couldn't very well drink alcohol in the middle of the day.
Marina offered Daskar a small smile.
"Then, let's leave this matter here for now."
"Yes, that's fine."
The office on the second floor of the Guild.
There, Vihera and Byune were explaining the circumstances of this incident to Worker.
Originally, it would have been best if Marina, the former Guild Master, had come, but Marina had to explain things to Daskar, so Vihera came in her stead.
Of course, since it wasn't an explanation that required urgency, Marina could have come to the Guild tomorrow, or she could have come after finishing her explanation to Daskar.
For Worker, this was a disturbance that occurred the moment he took on the role of Guild Master.
In reality, while it was a disturbance, it wasn't that large of one. But even so, he handled it properly as his first major task as Guild Master.
In truth, when he had been working at the branch office near the Dungeon, disturbances of one kind or another had occurred more or less frequently, so he managed this incident without particular agitation.
"Still, I would prefer it if these kinds of disturbances didn't happen too often."
"You're right, I'll tell Rei that. Though for Rei, who has a constitution that attracts trouble, I think that will be difficult."
"Mm."
At Vihera's murmured words, Byune let out a sound of agreement.
"Hey, Mirene. Right now is my time to lean against Set-chan and enjoy a nap, isn't it?"
"What do you mean, Yohanna? You interrupted my time too."
"Gururururu..."