At the voice calling out from behind, Rei turned around with a question in mind.
That question was simple: why had she gone out of her way to approach him?
Rei was indeed clad in the Dragon Robe, but as a Magic Item, it carried a concealing effect that prevented its wearer from standing out. In other words, the current Rei looked like nothing more than a person wearing an ordinary — if somewhat flashy — robe.
Furthermore, Rei was shorter than the other patrons and looked like nothing but a child at a glance. He had come to Mejougo under the pretext of gaining real-world experience, but even so, he could hardly be called a high-value customer compared to the others.
So why call out to him? It was only natural for the question to arise.
At the end of Rei's gaze as he turned around was a prostitute who was still young — seemingly in her late teens at most. She wore light makeup, and her features were better described as cute rather than beautiful.
"Me?" Rei replied to the woman who had called out to him.
At his response, the woman smiled and nodded.
"Yes, that's right. You're probably here for the first time, aren't you, boy? So I thought, before you get dragged into some shady establishment, how about you come with me? I may not look like it, but I only became a prostitute recently, so you can enjoy a fresh body."
Even if she was young, a prostitute was still a prostitute. The woman directed a gaze at Rei that was meant to lure men in and posed her question.
For someone who claimed to have just become a prostitute, her approach was remarkably practiced. Unfortunately, Rei, who had never purchased a prostitute before, showed no sign of noticing her calculated demeanor.
"I did get recommended some shops from an acquaintance I came with..."
"Ah, no, no. Don't you think a shop chosen by a prostitute's eye is more likely to be a winner than one chosen from a customer's perspective?"
"Well..."
At the prostitute's words, Rei quietly averted his gaze.
In truth, even considering the restaurants serving the food Rei enjoyed, there was a difference between establishments that would satisfy ordinary customers and those that would satisfy the cooks who actually made the food. If asked which one would provide genuine satisfaction, it would certainly be the latter.
Of course, customer satisfaction was a given, and those with purely self-serving opinions were another matter entirely. Regardless, if one were choosing a recommended brothel, asking a prostitute was undoubtedly the right approach.
...Though Rei had not come to Mejougo intending to buy a prostitute in the first place. He had come to confirm what fate had befallen the women who had been forcibly abducted.
"Hmm, that does sound interesting, but... I want to look around Mejougo more and properly see what kind of place it is. After that, I might end up buying a prostitute's services, but... unfortunately, I can't do it right now. Besides..."
Seeing Rei pause mid-sentence, the woman tilted her head curiously.
"Besides? What's wrong?"
"Well, given what you just told me, the shop you'd guide me to would be your own, wouldn't it?"
"Urk, w-well, that's..."
It seemed she had hit the mark. The prostitute quietly averted her gaze from Rei.
But her immediate recovery was probably a sign of how quickly she bounced back.
"But my shop is a well-known one around here. I'll do my best for you, so how about it?"
"Ahaha. You're right. I'll look around various places, and if I'm satisfied, I might visit your shop. ...Oh, that reminds me — could you tell me your name? I'm Ren."
"Ren?"
For an instant — just a fleeting instant — when Rei said "Ren," the prostitute's expression turned quizzical. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't have been strange to miss that brief moment.
But thinking of Rei as "normal" was already far too unreasonable to begin with. The moment he detected something off about the woman, Rei's wariness rapidly intensified. That his vigilance didn't show on his face was thanks to the experience he had gained surviving countless battles.
"Yeah, I'm Ren. And you?"
"Huh? Me? Oh, I didn't introduce myself, did I? I'm Sura. Nice to meet you."
Perhaps pleased to have exchanged introductions with Rei, the prostitute named Sura beamed with a full smile.
But Rei, who had caught that momentary flash of doubt earlier, was already suspicious that the woman called Sura might be suppressing her true feelings and hiding behind the mask of a rookie prostitute.
(That expression just now... Could it be she acted knowing I'm Rei? Well, I did use my Guild Card normally when entering Rossi, and people around me were surprised at the time, so it wouldn't be strange if the information had circulated.)
Thinking that, Rei couldn't help but wonder if there was really no need to be so vigilant. But even so, he reconsidered that caution was necessary for now. If she had approached him with him as her target from the start, it was because he had no idea what she might be after.
"I see, Sura. Nice to meet you."
"I'd be happy to have you, but I'd prefer it if you'd buy me, you know. ...No good? Really no good?"
"Like I said, not right now. I want to look around Mejougo more. Besides, beautiful women are a feast for the eyes."
The moment he said that, Rei felt Ielo move inside the Dragon Robe, and he hurriedly continued speaking.
"W-well then, I'll be taking my leave. If we meet again, I'll be counting on you then."
"Huh? Ah, wait... Fine, I got it. Well then, come play again if we run into each other!"
Sura had been about to say something more to Rei, but before she could, Rei had already moved away from her. She likely judged that pressing him further would only leave a bad impression.
Sura wore a slightly disappointed expression as she watched Rei walk away.
Once she confirmed that Rei's figure had completely disappeared from view, she headed straight into the alley between two nearby brothels.
The main street had numerous lights, but those were solely for the enjoyment of customers' eyes. Naturally, places like back alleys had no such lighting. Even so, the moon floating in the midsummer night sky, with not a single cloud in sight, brought a fair amount of brightness down to the ground.
Sura walked through that faint moonlight, but the likeable smile that had been on her face moments ago was completely gone. The word "expressionless" could not have suited anyone better — her face bore not a single trace of emotion.
Dressed in the revealing attire typical of a prostitute, the expressionless Sura almost seemed like a doll.
"So, how was it? It's definitely Rei, right?"
"Yes, probably. ...Though, it seemed like he grew suspicious of me partway through. I thought we were talking normally up to that point."
"...You? He was suspicious of you?"
"It seems that way. He's sharp, or rather... is that the ability of an Alias Holder who's also a High-Rank Adventurer?"
"Then what do we do? Do we make contact? You know this, but our Combat Power is undeniably insufficient. ...Another one of our bases was attacked yesterday. By those people."
It was a man's voice, trying to suppress his emotions, but not entirely succeeding. If anything, the degree to which he failed only filled his tone with more hatred.
"I know that. But if we act carelessly, we'll be crushed immediately. ...The incident in spring taught us that thoroughly, didn't it?"
The incident in spring. Hearing those words, the man reflexively almost shouted something back, but as he realized where they currently were, he forced his mouth open with visible effort to suppress himself.
"I know. ...We lost so many comrades all at once then. But if we don't act here, they might go after Rei. Or Rei might go after the organization — after Jaya's people."
The moment the name of the organization — Jaya — left his mouth, genuine hatred dwelled in the man's words. But seeing the man's state, Sura thought it couldn't be helped.
His lover had been taken away, forced to work as a prostitute... and ultimately, her life had been lost. On top of that, the reason her life was lost being what it was. It was clearly not something he could ever accept.
"You're right. If Jaya makes a move, they'd just be the ones to suffer the consequences... but still, why did they have to come now, right when we're trying to make our move?"
"...Hmph, who knows. Maybe Jaya's people picked a fight with Rei? I don't know why they'd go after Gilm of all places, where Rei is based."
"Would they really do that? Even with their forces assembled, this country is still just a small nation, isn't it? There are plenty of other places they should be attacking. Even in the Kingdom of Mireana, remote villages and such..."
"Gilm's doing expansion work, right? So maybe it's because people are gathering there... or something like that?"
Information about the expansion work being done in Gilm had apparently reached as far as Reblurina. The man stated it matter-of-factly.
Reblurina was over a month's journey by carriage from Gilm, yet the information had still made its way there — a testament to how widely known Gilm's expansion had become. That was precisely why people from all across the country, and even from neighboring nations, were flooding into Gilm seeking work.
"But... no, well, never mind. In any case, it's now clear that Rei isn't employed by Jaya's people. ...When I first heard the information that Crimson had come to Rossi, I panicked, wondering if maybe he'd been hired by them."
Saying that, Sura wore a faint expression of relief.
Jaya already had deep ties with the nation's upper echelons, and the gap in Combat Power between them and the Resistance was vast. If an Alias Holder adventurer were to side with Jaya on top of that, the gap would become despairingly wide. That was something absolutely not to be permitted.
"Rei came to Rossi with several women, right? Then if they learn what Jaya is doing, even if Rei himself might not, wouldn't the women cooperate? If they're Rei's party members, they must have considerable power."
In situations like this, there were cases of women relying entirely on a man... and sometimes the reverse pattern as well. But in the case of Rei's party, the Crimson Lotus Wings, that wasn't so — the man remembered hearing from a merchant who had come from the Kingdom of Mireana that every member was sufficiently strong.
That was why, even if Rei himself was beyond reach, if they could bring his companions over to their side, they would become a powerful fighting force — or so the man understood. And if they learned the circumstances, they would probably... no, almost certainly cooperate with them, he predicted.
However, hearing the man's words, Sura shook her head.
"Reaching out carelessly is dangerous. As a fighting force, there's nothing more reassuring, but those people are still citizens of another country. Especially since it's not fully confirmed yet, but one of them is supposedly the Princess General."
"!? Really!? Then!"
The man spoke with enthusiasm. Naturally so. If the one who had truly come was the Princess General, there was no doubt she would not overlook what was happening in this country... and in this Mejougo.
"Calm down. I told you already, didn't I? Even if she's the Princess General, she's ultimately a citizen of another country. If she learns what Jaya is doing, she might cooperate up to the point of stopping it. But what do you think happens after that?"
"After that...? Well, Jaya's people, including the nobles, would be brought to justice, wouldn't they?"
"Well, that's true. But do you really think everything would just end there?"
"...What are you getting at?"
"If the rumors about the Princess General are true, the Princess General herself will be fine. But what about the people behind her? You know this too, Hollans — the Princess General is the symbol of the Noble's Faction. Nobles. Now, do you think they'd just let it slide after learning what Jaya has been doing?"
Having said that, Sura's expression shifted to a faint, wry smile, and she opened her mouth again.
"Though, I hear the ones behind Rei are from the Neutral Faction, another noble faction... but even so, they're said to be more reasonable than the Noble Faction Nobles."
At Sura's words, Hollans fell silent, his face troubled, unable to find further words to say.
Just how terrible and worst of an existence nobles could be... the Resistance, to which both Sura and Hollans belonged, knew that better than anyone.