Zakunya — a village much like any other you'd find in the countryside.
It was a small settlement with a population of about fifty, but at the moment, quite a commotion was unfolding within it.
"Move, Dad! I have to go search for Schiller!"
"No! The sun has already set! If you leave the village at a time like this, you'll definitely be in danger. Think about that!"
"But Schiller!"
The man was on the verge of rushing out of the village to search for Schiller — the woman he loved, who had left to pick berries and never returned.
His father was desperately trying to stop him, but the difference in their ages meant the man simply dragged his father along as he burst from the house...
"Calm down, you fool."
Along with those words, a fist came down on the crown of the man's head.
"Gah!"
At the pain that made sparks dance before his eyes, the man crumpled to a crouch.
The person who had caused those sparks — the person who had been waiting for the man in front of the house — looked down at the crouching figure and spoke with an exasperated tone.
"You don't need to risk your life for that foolish daughter of mine."
"What's that supposed to mean? She's your own daughter, there's no need to talk about her like that!"
"Exactly because she's my own daughter. ...It doesn't have to be you who goes to search. I'll go."
"...Huh?"
The man, still clutching his head, turned his gaze back to the other man — Schiller's father — wondering what had just been said.
But when he saw Schiller's father wearing leather armor made from monster hide and holding a massive greatsword, he couldn't help but understand the true intent of those words.
He had heard stories that the man used to be an adventurer in the past, but he had never actually seen him looking the part to this extent.
That was precisely why the man shouted.
"Is your knee going to be okay?!"
At those words, Schiller's father flashed a fearless grin and spoke.
"Hmph, don't worry about it. I probably won't be able to endure prolonged combat, but even so, it's better than letting my future son-in-law die."
"Wh-what!? S-son-in-law..."
What that meant was obvious.
In other words, the man before him was acknowledging him as Schiller's husband.
...However, Schiller was somewhat absent-minded by nature. It would likely take considerable time before the man's feelings got through to her and she accepted them.
That was precisely why, in a village where people often married in their mid-teens, Schiller had passed the age of twenty and was considered a late bloomer, yet had never been in that kind of relationship with anyone.
For the man, that was also a welcome thing, but the fact that almost all of his intense advances were brushed off meant it wasn't entirely a blessing.
Even so, the fact that the man's feelings had gotten through to Schiller's father like this meant it hadn't all been completely in vain.
"Wait here. I'll go find Schiller and bring her back—"
Schiller's father was about to finish his declaration when someone came running onto the scene before he could get the words out.
Schiller's father, who had already slipped into what could only be called adventurer mode, nearly raised the greatsword in his hand thinking it was an enemy — but the person running toward them was someone he knew well.
This was a small village.
So small, in fact, that it was safe to say every villager knew every other villager.
Given the nature of such a place, it wasn't difficult to tell that the person running toward them was a local resident.
"Hey, Schiller-chan is back! She's safe! Don't worry, Regura, Jazz!"
The one called Regura was the man who harbored feelings for Schiller.
The one called Jazz was Schiller's father.
Both of them widened their eyes at the words of the villager who had come running with the report.
What filled their eyes was mostly relief, but at the same time, there was no small amount of confusion.
They found it strange that Schiller had returned at this hour — a time when, despite it being summer, the sun had already sunk below the horizon and it was fully what one would call night.
Of course they were happy that Schiller had returned, but they still wondered how she could have come back safely at such an hour.
"Was there anything unusual about Schiller?"
When Jazz asked to confirm, the man who had come to report her return nodded with a bewildered look.
"Y-yeah. Actually, it seems there's an adventurer with her. Apparently, they rescued her after she was taken away by Orcs..."
"Orcs!?"
At the word, Regura's voice cracked as he shouted.
He knew perfectly well what it meant for a woman to be carried off by Orcs.
That was why the thought that the woman he harbored feelings for had been through such an experience had crossed his mind.
"Seems like you don't need to worry about that. The adventurer defeated the Orcs and saved Schiller before anything could happen to her, or so I heard."
At those words, not only Regura but also Jazz breathed a sigh of relief.
He must have been tormented by thoughts of what might have befallen his daughter.
"So, where is that adventurer? They saved my daughter, so we need to thank them, right?"
"Uh... well... about that..."
At the way the villager hesitated, the three who had been listening — Regura, Jazz, and Regura's father — all grew suspicious.
Something had definitely happened, but they couldn't figure out what.
If Schiller were being held hostage by someone, the man who had come to report would have looked much grimmer.
Since that wasn't the case, it was certain that whatever had happened wasn't fatally bad, but...
"Understood. I'll go."
They didn't know what had happened.
But at the very least, Jazz — a former C-Rank adventurer — could handle most situations no matter what came up.
Jazz's decision was based on that reasoning.
And since Jazz was the strongest person in the village, Regura and his father were convinced as well.
...Without noticing that the man who had brought the news of Schiller's safe return had been wearing a rather subtle expression.
Seeing the three of them hurry off, the man muttered.
"No matter how strong Jazz is, I can't imagine him being able to do anything about a gryphon."
Those words quietly faded into the darkness of the night.
"Schiller! Are you saf—"
Regura called out as he spotted Schiller at the village entrance, but his words stopped mid-sentence.
That was because, in the direction Regura was looking, Schiller was happily stroking the body of a massive gryphon.
The villagers who had gathered around were also unable to bring themselves to speak to Schiller, seemingly unsure of what to make of the situation before them.
"Um... huh? What's going on here? Schiller?"
"Ah, Regura? Why are you in such a panic? You too, Dad. Your knee is giving you trouble, so you shouldn't push yourself. You even brought out your weapons from your adventurer days."
What came out of Schiller's mouth was neither a voice of relief nor one of joy at being reunited.
Regura, if anything, felt reassured by that.
This is it. This is Schiller, he thought.
While feeling that relief, he judged that he needed to hear what had happened for now, and turned his gaze to the gryphon Schiller was stroking... and that was when he first noticed the person standing apart from Schiller and the gryphon.
Of course, that person — Rei — had been there from the start.
But between Schiller, whom they had thought was gone, and Set, who delivered a far greater shock to anyone who laid eyes on him, it was only natural that they had failed to notice Rei.
...Though if Rei had taken off his Dragon Robe hood, they would have also been startled by his feminine face.
At any rate, Jazz, Regura, and Regura's father were all relieved that Schiller was safe.
What they were curious about next was, naturally, Rei and Set.
"Schiller, um... who's that person and that gryphon?"
At the question from Regura's father, Schiller broke into a full smile and spoke.
"You know, that bard who came before sang about it, right? The adventurer who distinguished himself in the war with the Bestia Empire. They said he earned the alias of Crimson for his achievements back then. That's this child."
This child — Schiller spoke of Rei as though he were a youngster, but Rei had nothing in particular to say about that.
Of course, if someone took such an attitude with the intention of looking down on him, Rei would respond in kind.
But in Schiller's case, there was no particular malice behind it; she simply treated Rei that way without a second thought.
...Whether he found it amusing or not, it was, truthfully, slightly unamusing.
"I see. To think my daughter was saved by Crimson. I'm Jazz, Schiller's father. Let me thank you for saving my daughter. Thank you."
Jazz bowed deeply.
Following Jazz, Regura also bowed his head.
Schiller looked puzzled as to why not only her father but also Regura was bowing, but then reconsidered — of course a friend would do the same.
"Hey, what's with everyone doing that? I mean, I'm sorry I got carried off by Orcs and all."
"That's right! Why were you out of the village alone in the first place? You're always told to go in a group when you leave!"
At Schiller's words, Regura, having raised his head, shouted.
For Regura, those words came from worrying himself sick over Schiller, but Schiller couldn't grasp that.
She puffed out her cheeks in displeasure.
"It couldn't be helped. Everyone was busy."
"No, even if we were busy... Geez. Anyway, I'm glad you're safe. Jazz was about to go outside the village to search for you at any moment."
Without mentioning that he himself had been stopped by Jazz when he tried to leave the village, Regura reported that.
"You're one to talk," several people who knew Regura's personality thought as they cast glances at him, but the man himself didn't seem to care in the slightest.
No — rather, Regura was caught in a complex tangle of emotions, feeling relief at seeing Schiller safe while simultaneously growing irritated by her completely carefree attitude. It was more accurate to say he simply didn't have the composure to notice those looks.
"I'm sorry. But Rei-kun saved me, so don't worry. More importantly, I want to bring Rei-kun into the village, is that okay?"
"Hmm, I suppose that's fine."
The one who answered was an old man who had arrived a short while ago and had been watching the exchange between Schiller and Regura.
"The village chief," someone among the villagers murmured.
With this many villagers gathered, it was no surprise that the village chief had come.
"Hm. ...Lord Rei, was it? I would like to express my gratitude for saving one of our own. Like so."
Just as Jazz and Regura had done before him, the village chief bowed deeply.
"No, please don't worry about it. It was a coincidence on my part, and Orcs are literally delicious prey for me as well."
"I-I see. ...But I must still offer something in return for saving Schiller. However, as you can see, Zakunya is a small village. I doubt we have anything worthy of an Alias Holder adventurer like you, Lord Rei..."
"Ah, what I want is already decided."
At Rei's words, the village chief tensed without letting it show on his face.
Because he had no idea what Rei would ask for.
As he himself had mentioned, Zakunya was a small village of only about fifty people.
If there was something a renowned adventurer like Rei desired, it would be...
Whatever he had imagined, the village chief's gaze drifted toward Schiller.
Though she was getting on in years, Schiller still had better-than-average looks.
If he desired Schiller's body... the reason that thought crossed the village chief's mind was probably because the adventurers he had met up until now had been a rather unruly bunch.
...Schiller's father, Jazz, was also an adventurer, but he was likely regarded as one of the few exceptions.
The one who immediately understood the meaning of the village chief's gaze was Regura.
Because he harbored romantic feelings for Schiller, he was extremely sensitive to that sort of look.
"Wha—! Village Chief!?"
Regura, blood rushing to his head, tried to say something, but before he could, Rei spoke.
"I heard this village has a local specialty dish, right? That's the deal — you let me and Set eat our fill of it."
"Huh?"
The words that came out of Rei's mouth were so completely unexpected that not only the village chief, Regura, and Jazz, but all the villagers who had been listening murmured in unison.
An Alias Holder and B-Rank adventurer.
The thought that such a person could be put to work for a meal as payment was what had crossed their minds.
But Rei, as he turned his gaze toward the village chief, was by no means joking or anything of the sort. He was completely serious.
Understanding that, the village chief eventually let out a hearty laugh and invited Rei and Set into the village.