The moment Rei announced his name, every person present was struck by emotion.
Until then, they had been on guard against a sudden intruder, but hadn't particularly cared about who it was.
With Rei's declaration, however, they now recognized that the person standing before them was the adventurer with the alias of Crimson.
And Rei was recognized as an adventurer specialized in combat.
...In truth, he had earned his alias through his exploits in the war against the Bestia Empire, so that assumption wasn't entirely wrong.
Though, to be fair, he wasn't exclusively specialized in combat—not with his transport capacity via the Item Box and investigation work utilizing Set's sharp senses...
Regardless, those defending Count Relduct's Lord's Manor understood that the person before them was not someone they could handle, no matter what they tried.
"Now then."
When Rei muttered those words and swept his gaze across the crowd, nearly everyone present trembled, their faces draining of color.
They knew exactly what would happen if they tried to interfere with Rei's actions.
Information about Rei... about Crimson was, naturally, something most of those present here possessed.
It was said he showed no mercy, even against nobles.
Given that he was such a person, it was easily predictable that he would swing his scythe without hesitation, even against soldiers serving a noble.
...After all, he was the kind of person who would forcefully break through a city's barrier in the middle of the night and storm into the Lord's Manor. It was obvious to anyone that he would have no hesitation in doing so.
"The reason I came here is, as I said earlier, retaliation from the person Relduct crossed. ...So, only those who want to get in my way and fight should stay. Everyone else, get lost. I won't pursue you right now."
As soon as he said that, most of those around turned on their heels and ran.
They could easily imagine what would happen to them if they fought Rei.
The fact that they were ultimately just hired hands with no real loyalty toward Relduct also played a major role.
If this were Gilm, even if an alias-holding adventurer attacked the Lord's Manor, there would be many who would stand and fight despite knowing they were outmatched.
Unlike Gilm's soldiers, Relduct's men retreated the moment they judged themselves unable to win.
This difference clearly illustrated what could only be called the gap in character between Daskar and Relduct.
However, the fact that many had fled meant, conversely, that a few had remained...
"Do you really need to put your life on the line for Relduct?"
In response to Rei's question, one of those who remained spoke up while brandishing his longsword.
"That vulgar creature has nothing to do with it. I simply don't want to miss the chance to cross blades with a strong opponent like you."
"Ah... I see. You're that type."
He harbored no deep loyalty toward Relduct; he simply wanted to fight a strong opponent.
The same kind of person as Vihera, so to speak.
...Though Vihera also enjoyed combat, that didn't mean she would allow herself to be hired by someone like Relduct.
The others... are a different breed, huh.
Rei had assumed they were all combat lovers, but of the three who remained, only one was directing a gleaming, eager gaze at him.
So why were the other two here? Rei wondered for a moment, but upon seeing the collars around their necks, he immediately understood.
Slaves, huh.
They didn't look particularly strong.
Well, they had builds that could probably handle ordinary people, but from Rei's perspective, they were simply large targets—easy to take down.
They themselves probably knew they couldn't win against Rei... but with Slave Collars on, they couldn't defy their master's orders.
"Look at me, Crimson! Me!"
Shouting, the man with the longsword lunged straight at Rei.
As expected of a Battle Maniac, his step-in was considerable.
Enough to function perfectly fine as an adventurer in Gilm.
If you enjoy combat that much, you wouldn't have any shortage of opponents if you went to the frontier.
With that thought, Rei swung the Twilight Spear in his left hand to meet the man's charge.
With the sound of slicing air, the impact of the man being blown away echoed across the courtyard.
His step-in was swift, and he had enough skill to operate in Gilm... but conversely, that was all he had.
Competing against Rei was utterly impossible given the man's ability.
Blown backward, the man struck a nearby tree and lost consciousness.
Glancing at him, Rei next turned his attention to the two slaves leveling their spears at him.
Bound by their Slave Collars to obey Relduct's commands, the two couldn't move from their spot despite the fear visible in their eyes.
It was obvious from the exchange just now that Rei was not an opponent they could possibly match.
The man Rei had just dispatched was someone even the two slaves combined couldn't have so much as scratched.
Against Rei, who had dismantled such an opponent with literal ease, what could they possibly do?
"...Don't worry. I'll knock you out quickly."
Rei didn't have a habit of attacking and toying with opponents weaker than himself.
Well, he didn't dislike crushing arrogant opponents, but he had no taste for attacking people like these, who were silently pleading with their eyes for help.
Whether they believed Rei's words or not, the two slaves momentarily let their guard down... and in the next instant, they were struck in the solar plexus by the butt cap of the Twilight Spear, losing consciousness then and there.
Having thus stripped all three remaining men of their consciousness, Rei noticed something while petting Set, who had approached him.
"Ah, if I knocked everyone out, I can't ask where they've stashed the Magic Items."
"Grrr."
Set let out a cry as if to console Rei, gently rubbing his face against him.
Pleased by Set's thoughtfulness, Rei stroked his body even more gently than before.
An adventurer playing with his Tamed Monster.
On paper, it sounded like a rather heartwarming scene. ...Provided there weren't unconscious men scattered about, that is.
After playing with Set for a few minutes, Rei shifted his focus and turned his gaze toward the Lord's Manor.
Several people inside were watching Rei in the courtyard, but they were clearly civil officials.
They wouldn't try anything like attacking Rei, unlike the three currently unconscious on the ground.
"I could try asking those types, but—"
"Eep!"
Perhaps sensing that his eyes had met Rei's, one man immediately bolted, and the others followed suit in fleeing.
Would it have been faster to ask a civil official like that?
Rei considered it for a moment, but judging from what he had just seen, they were far too terrified to hold a proper conversation.
"Well then, Set. I'm going to see Relduct, so wait here. Basically, don't let anyone inside. Oh, but if the Rebel Army shows up, let them in."
"Grrrr!"
At Rei's words, Set rumbled as if to say Leave it to me!
Giving Set a light pat, Rei stored the Death Scythe and Twilight Spear in his Misty Ring before entering the building.
By forcing his way in through a window, that is.
What Rei saw upon entering was the sight of people who appeared to be civil officials running away down the corridor.
"It would've been helpful if someone could guide me to Relduct's room. ...Guess I'll just have to search myself."
It was his first time here, but he had already confirmed the building's layout from the air.
And someone consumed by greed for accumulating wealth, with a strong desire to flaunt their status, would naturally set up their office or private quarters in the central part of the building.
Making that judgment, Rei pressed toward the center.
"Stop! You're an intruder!"
People would occasionally appear shouting such things, but they were either punched unconscious by Rei or shot by arrowheads formed by the Eye of Nebula, left groaning in pain on the floor.
Rei generally preferred long-shafted weapons, but he was by no means bad at throwing projectiles or hand-to-hand combat.
...Though, the Eye of Nebula was a Magic Item that created arrowheads from magical power.
Such attacks were effective for inflicting pain, but lacked the power to knock someone unconscious.
In that sense, it wasn't the most suitable method of attack for Rei's current purposes.
Knocking out those who tried to stop him one after another, Rei eventually arrived before a single door.
It was visibly different from the others.
In both size and appearance.
It fell several levels short of Daskar's office, but it was undoubtedly the most ornate door in this mansion.
No guards or gatekeepers, huh. The escorts... must be inside the room.
From within, Rei could sense presences on guard against him.
They had probably judged it better to concentrate their forces in one place rather than deploying them piecemeal and being picked off individually.
That was the thought Rei attributed to them... and at the same time, if they understood that the intruder was Rei, they might have also concluded that sending soldiers out would only result in them fleeing.
After all, many who had recognized Rei had already fled, so it was an understandable conclusion.
"Now. I can't stand here forever... and keeping them waiting wouldn't be polite either. ...Well, I suppose there's no need to worry about etiquette when I'm barging in like this."
Muttering to himself, Rei knocked on the door before him as a formality.
"Relduct, if you're in there, come out quietly. That'll leave you with lighter wounds."
He called out to the other side, but there was, naturally, no reply.
However, considering that the hostility radiating from beyond the door had clearly intensified, it wasn't that his words had gone unheard.
"It seems you don't intend to come out. ...In that case."
Drawing the Death Scythe from his Misty Ring, Rei swung it directly at the door.
Given that it was an ornate door, it was presumably sturdy... but without infusing it with magical power, using only the Death Scythe's weight, sharpness, and Rei's own skill, the door was cut through effortlessly, revealing the room's interior.
"Whoa!"
The moment the inside became visible, as if they had been waiting for exactly that timing, an arrow pierced through the space where the door had been just seconds before.
It was a strike that seemed to exploit a momentary lapse in attention, but the loosed arrow was effortlessly deflected by the Death Scythe.
It was a massive weapon with a two-meter shaft and a one-meter blade, yet Rei showed no sign of exerting any effort whatsoever in swinging it.
In fact, one of the Death Scythe's abilities was that its weight was imperceptible to both Rei and Set.
Thanks to that, Rei could wield the roughly one-hundred-kilogram Death Scythe with ease.
"Wha!?"
Even if they knew general information about Rei, they likely didn't know its detailed capabilities... let alone the performance of the Magic Items he possessed.
A voice of sheer astonishment leaked from the man who had just fired the arrow.
"I've confirmed hostile action. That means I don't have to hold back."
Even as he said that, Rei kept in mind that Daskar had strongly urged him to avoid killing anyone on this mission.
Strictly speaking, Daskar had only said not to kill Relduct, but Rei interpreted that as applying to everyone else as well.
Though Rei wouldn't hesitate to kill if there was reason to, he didn't particularly want to kill people either.
If he could get by without killing, that was fine by him.
"!? Kill him! Kill that bastard! I'll pay whatever reward you desire to whoever takes Rei down!"
Rei knew exactly whose voice that was, coming from inside the room.
Even without having met him face-to-face, there was only one person who would say such a thing.
Using my name Rei instead of the alias Crimson... he's trying to keep those inside from being paralyzed by fear, I suppose.
Even so, those words seemed sufficient to raise the morale of those inside, and war cries erupted from within.
Only the man who had shot the arrow at Rei wore an expression of despair, pale-faced and clearly aware that he couldn't possibly win.
"Well then... time for the finishing touch."
Muttering, Rei kicked aside the remains of the door's lower half and stepped into the room.