That day, Ilse had been walking around Gilm since morning.
Fortunately for her, Ilse was a strong drinker.
Even when she had shared drinks with the Adventurer Trio, she had never once been drunk under the table. In fact, there had been many times when she had turned the tables and drank under the very people trying to get her drunk.
Of course, the three men she had been drinking with last night weren't the sort who would try to get Ilse drunk and force themselves on her, so she hadn't needed to worry about that.
(Come to think of it, setting Father aside, Mother was strong with alcohol, wasn't she?)
Ilse's beauty was something she had inherited from her Mother.
Her Mother, despite having given birth to two children, had not lost any of her beauty.
No—if anything, she had only become more maternal, and as a woman, she had likely grown even more attractive.
Because of who she was, whenever Ilse's Mother was apart from her father due to business, there had been many men who entertained thoughts of getting her drunk and having their way with her.
But in the end, every single one of those who harbored such thoughts had ended up drunk under the table by Ilse's Mother.
(Thanks to Mother, I'm strong with alcohol too, but... if possible, I didn't want to take after her in that regard.)
Reflecting on her own chest—modestly clad in Leather Armor, or so she described it—Ilse continued through Gilm.
She understood that now was not the time to be dwelling on her own physical complexes.
What she needed first was detailed information about her enemy, the man with the snake tattoo on his left arm.
And second, someone who would help her defeat him.
For the latter especially, an adventurer with considerable skill was preferable.
Fortunately, many skilled adventurers were currently gathering in Gilm.
With that in mind, she felt that finding someone to cooperate with her was not an impossible task.
Among them, the most promising candidate was undoubtedly Crimson Rei.
An exceptionally skilled adventurer who had become an Alias Holder and B-Rank Adventurer in the short span of a few years.
Naturally, she had asked the three men from last night about him, and she had also subtly inquired with Melan, who still hadn't completely sobered up that morning... but the reply she got was essentially that she would understand if she saw him.
Rather, the way he acted as though it would be impossible not to know just by looking made Ilse tilt her head in puzzlement.
But she couldn't press any further than that.
If she did, they would realize she had an interest in Rei.
Of course, since he was a very famous adventurer as an Alias Holder, there would be no real problem even if they realized she had some degree of interest.
Even so, since it wasn't an absolute certainty, she preferred not to let anyone know just how strong her interest in Rei was.
For those reasons, what she was ultimately able to learn about Rei was mostly information she already knew.
However, the fact that if she wanted to find Rei, she just needed to look for Gryphon Seto, was one of the few gains Ilse had made.
Gryphon Seto was treated almost like a pet in Gilm.
An A-Rank monster also known as the Grim Reaper of the Skies, no less.
Even for Ilse, who had caught a glimpse of that sight, it was still a story she could hardly believe.
...Had she known that Set was actually equivalent to S-Rank, Ilse would have shuddered in even greater astonishment.
"When in Rome, do as the Romans do"—Ilse didn't know that saying, but even so, she understood that since she had come to Gilm, she had to abide by Gilm's ways.
Anyway, while walking along with such thoughts, she suddenly stopped upon seeing a food stall with a large crowd gathered around it.
Given that it was currently lunchtime, it wasn't strange for a food stall to draw a large crowd.
Normally, she would have simply thought it was a popular stall... but when a gryphon's massive body was sitting right beside it, that was a different story.
Probably until just a moment ago, it had been eating the stall's food.
Now, it was rubbing its face against someone beside it, narrowing its eyes as its head was being patted.
It was the kind of heat where sweat burst out just from walking—a fine day... or rather, a scorching one that could only be called brutal weather.
In fact, even Ilse had sweat forming on her face just from walking.
Amidst all that, Ilse was slightly curious as to why that one person and one creature alone seemed... no, why even the people around the stall appeared somehow refreshed. But for now, she was about to make contact with her target, Rei... or so she thought as she took a step forward, only for her feet to stop in the very next instant.
That was because the person petting Set looked somewhat familiar.
There couldn't be that many people who wore a robe in this heat, but even so, Ilse immediately knew who it was.
It was the person who had stopped her yesterday at the Guild, when she had found the enemy she had been searching for for years and instinctively reached for her dagger.
(Eh? That kid is Rei? You're kidding, right?)
She thought that for a moment, but looking at how the person was petting Set... and looking at how Set was rubbing its body against Rei and acting affectionately, she could tell that it was the truth.
The Set that Ilse had seen yesterday had also looked happy toward the person who gave it food, but even so, it was vastly different from how it was acting toward Rei now.
It looked as though Set had completely let its guard down from the bottom of its heart and was being affectionate with Rei, whereas with the other people, even though it let itself be petted, it didn't seem to have let its guard down to that extent.
The sight of that person and creature not only drew Ilse's attention but also captured the awareness of others who had been eating nearby, creating a peaceful atmosphere around them.
Even though it was midsummer, being within that atmosphere somehow made one not feel the heat... such was the strange mood that hung in the air.
Rei probably didn't notice the surrounding atmosphere, but before long, he left the stall together with Set.
The people nearby, who had been reluctant to see them go, didn't say anything more and either resumed eating or returned their finished plates to the Hobbyist Shop Owner, each going back to their own work.
Amidst all that, Ilse quietly began to follow after Rei and Set.
It wasn't that she had any particular hostility or malice toward Rei; she simply wanted an opportunity to talk to him.
Given the incident yesterday where she had run away the moment he spoke to her, it was undeniable that she felt somewhat awkward about it.
(If I had known that kid was Rei, when he spoke to me yesterday... no, it would have been impossible. The moment I found that man, I didn't have that kind of composure. Thinking about it, maybe I should be grateful that he stopped me then.)
Things never go as one wishes, she thought.
Letting out a small sigh...
"So, what did you want with me that made you follow me around?"
Before she knew it, Rei was standing right in front of Ilse, asking that very question.
Rewinding the time a little, while Rei was walking toward the construction site with Set, he had naturally noticed that someone was following him.
This was partly because Rei was sharp... but more than anything, it was largely because the skill of the person tailing him was terribly amateur.
(A trap?)
Deliberately following him in a conspicuous manner to focus Rei's attention there, while the real target moved unnoticed.
Rei had read or seen or heard about such a trap somewhere, so naturally, the first thing he suspected was that this might be one.
But even when he observed his surroundings under the assumption that it was a trap, he couldn't find any likely real target.
Of course, Rei... or more accurately, Set, who was with Rei, stood out.
Various people, from the original residents of Gilm to those who had recently arrived, directed their gazes toward Rei and Set.
But the person following him from behind was clearly directing a different kind of gaze at Rei compared to the rest of those people.
Rei hesitated for a moment about what to do, but eventually, judging that leaving things as they were could lead to all sorts of trouble, he spoke while walking and petting Set.
"It seems you have some business with me, so I'm going to go hear what it is for a bit."
"Gruu."
At Rei's words, Set purred as if to say he understood.
The worried hue in its round eyes was not because it didn't trust Rei's abilities, but simply because it was concerned for him.
Understanding that, Rei stroked Set once more and then surveyed the situation behind him.
The moment he saw the figure letting out a sigh, he immediately separated from Set and closed the distance with the woman.
Arriving in front of her, he spoke as if to catch her off guard.
"So, what did you want with me that made you follow me around?"
"...Eh?"
At Rei's words, the woman looked up as if involuntarily.
Seeing her face, Rei noticed that he somewhat recognized it.
The woman stood dumbfounded in astonishment, while Rei tried to recall where he had seen the face in front of him.
A strange silence spread between them for several seconds... and eventually, Rei recalled that the woman in front of him was the one he had encountered at the Guild yesterday.
Since she was someone who had almost drawn her weapon inside the Guild, Rei remembered her well.
No, it wasn't actually that rare for someone to draw a weapon inside the Guild.
Since it was fundamentally a gathering of hot-blooded people, it was natural for them to be quick to quarrel with one another.
Moreover, right now, not only the adventurers originally from Gilm but also many others had gathered to work on the expansion project.
...They were originally adventurers who hadn't had enough ability to come to Gilm, but even so... no, perhaps precisely because of that, there were no few people who were determined not to be looked down upon by Gilm's adventurers.
Rei had seen such people get into fights with other adventurers at the Guild and draw weapons on several occasions.
But even so, the reason Rei remembered the person in front of him was because she was someone who didn't seem to have the ability to come to Gilm by any stretch of the imagination.
Of course, the fact that she was beautiful was somewhat related as well.
However, Rei normally interacted with women like Elena, Marina, and Vihera—beauties to whom the adjective "peerless" could be attached.
The woman in front of him... Ilse, even if she was a beauty, was not someone who would move his heart that much.
Eventually, breaking the silence that had spread between them, Ilse opened her mouth.
"Um... I'd like to confirm just in case, but are you Rei-san?"
Despite already knowing that the man in front of her was Rei, she asked anyway.
It was likely mostly a way to prepare herself for conversing with him.
Whether he understood Ilse's ulterior motive or not.
In any case, Rei nodded in response to her words.
"Yeah, I'm Rei. Didn't you already know that when you followed me?"
"Um... that's true, but. You were a bit different from what I expected."
Even as she said it to cover up, Rei wouldn't do something like get angry over that.
In fact, people who held preconceptions about the adventurer with the alias of Crimson being surprised when they actually saw Rei had happened many times before.
Rei found it ridiculous to get angry at every such person, and as long as they weren't someone who looked down on him and took hostile action, he had learned to let it slide.
"I get told that a lot. So? Were you following me because I didn't look like someone who'd be called by an alias like Crimson?"
"No, that's not it. Um... I wanted to apologize for yesterday."
Ilse stated that this was first and foremost a chance to start a conversation, but Rei spoke to her with an attitude indicating he didn't particularly care.
"You don't need to worry about that. In the end, I stopped you yesterday, but even if I hadn't, someone else would have."
"But... oh, that's right. I'd like to treat you to something as thanks... how about it?"
While making the invitation, Ilse was inwardly holding her head.
She had surely seen Rei eating at the stall just moments ago.
Treating someone who had just finished eating to a meal could be taken as harassment depending on the person.
Ilse hurriedly tried to correct what she had just said, but Rei nodded without particularly minding her words.
"I see, then that works out perfectly... how about that restaurant over there?"
What Rei turned his gaze toward was a single diner.
Given that it was lunchtime, there were many customers, but the customers leaving all looked satisfied.
That indicated that the diner's food was delicious.
"Eh? Wai—are you sure!?"
Ilse had just invited someone who had finished lunch to a meal, but she probably never expected to be accepted so readily rather than being turned down.
A somewhat dumbfounded voice slipped from her mouth.