By the time the carriage arrived in Rossi, a semblance of calm had been restored inside.
As for the debate over which part of a woman's body they preferred, it ultimately reached the half-obvious conclusion that it varied from person to person.
Naturally, there were those who still had things they wanted to say, those who wanted to insist that their favorite part was supreme. But pressing the matter would only mean the dispute would never settle—and above all, the biggest factor was that everyone understood it was about time to arrive in Rossi.
And so the carriage arrived, and as everyone disembarked... Rei noticed the Coachman and their guards watching the passengers alight with subtle expressions on their faces, and he let out a small laugh.
(I see. So they really could hear the voices inside the carriage from outside after all.)
The conversations that had taken place inside the carriage had, honestly, included many things that made Rei want to hold his head in his hands.
Why did he have to listen to other people's preferences—and men's, at that?
But knowing that that time of ordeal had not been entirely wasted made him feel just a little better.
Though, of course, it wasn't enough to completely erase the mental exhaustion he had suffered inside.
At any rate, those who disembarked from the carriage exchanged light greetings and scattered.
Some had apparently hit it off quite well inside, exchanging information about where each was staying or where their homes were located.
Among the Big Breast Faction, there were those who tried to ask Rei for that sort of information, but Rei claimed he would be leaving Rossi before long and refrained from mentioning the name of the Silver Fruit Inn where he was staying.
(If I ran into those guys while I was with Elena and the others... yeah, it would definitely lead to all sorts of bad situations.)
If they encountered the carriage members while Rei was with Elena and the others... and then saw Elena and the others' appearances, they would completely understand why Rei had claimed to like large breasts.
What kind of uproar would that cause? It was not difficult to imagine.
(...Well, Ielo is here, so I guess there's no need to even think about that.)
Letting out a small sigh, Rei erased his presence and slipped away from the spot.
When the Big Breast Faction members tried to look for Rei again, it would be another few minutes before they realized he was already gone.
"Oh my, welcome back. It seems you had quite an enjoyable time. To be out with that many beautiful women—you certainly have an appetite."
The inn's staffer greeted Rei with a smile as he returned to the Silver Fruit Inn.
As a staffer at a high-end inn in Rossi, they naturally knew about Mejougo.
Of course, Rossi had its own entertainment district, but Mejougo was larger in scale, so they figured he must have had a good time there.
Since Rei had actually gone to Mejougo, the staffer's words were by no means mistaken.
...It was just that Rei had not purchased any prostitutes and enjoyed himself that way.
However, having gone to Mejougo, even if Rei claimed he hadn't bought any prostitutes, they probably wouldn't believe him.
Furthermore, Rei judged there was no need to forcibly explain himself to the inn's staffer, so he simply raised his hand lightly in response to their words and headed up the stairs.
The first place he came to was his own room.
He had considered returning Ielo to Elena, but he was tired from various things and wanted to rest for about ten minutes—or so he had thought, but...
"Haa."
As Rei went to open the door to his rented room, he noticed several presences inside.
Who those presences belonged to, Rei immediately knew.
He tensed for an instant, then relaxed in the next, and in the instant after that, he remembered where he was coming back from and tensed up again as he opened the door.
"Welcome back, Rei. So how was it? Did you enjoy yourself thoroughly?"
The first to call out to Rei was Marina, wearing a smile.
Beside Marina, Elena silently directed her gaze at Rei, and Vihera, while tending to Byune, also turned her eyes toward him.
"Ah... I'll ask just in case, but this is my room, right?"
"That's right. We waited here so we'd know right away when you got back... Is something wrong with that?"
"...No."
Judging that saying anything here would lead to all sorts of trouble, Rei started to voice a complaint but stopped himself.
"Kyu!"
From Rei's chest, Ielo popped out.
And flew straight to its master, Elena.
"Ielo, it seems you were full of energy."
"Kyu!"
At Elena's words of praise, Ielo let out a happy cry.
"Then, I would like to view Ielo's memories at once... would that be alright?"
Elena asked, seeking confirmation, but all Rei could do was nod.
The fact that he had nothing to hide in the first place was probably a big factor in his lack of resistance.
"Yeah, I don't mind. Well then, I'll tell you about what I experienced in Mejougo after that's done."
Saying so, Rei sat down on an empty sofa and pulled out Fruit Water from the Misty Ring.
The Silver Fruit Inn was probably a high-class inn within Rossi, but even so, it was still an inn in the small nation of Reblurina.
In terms of facilities, it was a step or two below the Wheat Inn at Dusk that Rei frequented in Gilm.
(Jaya apparently uses Magic Items well, but that has nothing to do with this inn.)
The fact that Elena and the others were gathered in the room was probably also a reason the temperature wasn't comfortable... but fundamentally, the bigger reason was likely that the Magic Items used in the Silver Fruit Inn simply weren't that high-performance.
"Ah, Rei. Can I have some too?"
"I want some as well."
"Mm."
Seeing Rei drinking Fruit Water, everyone except Elena, who was viewing Ielo's memories, asked for their own.
Since there was no reason to refuse, Rei took out Fruit Water for everyone, including portions for Elena and Ielo.
Ielo's portion was in a shallow dish rather than a cup.
After drinking the Fruit Water and taking a breather... eventually, Elena, who had finished viewing Ielo's memories, looked at Rei.
However, her cheeks were faintly flushed red.
Rei couldn't understand why Elena was in such a state. Was it because she had seen the provocative clothing the prostitutes wore? he wondered, but his party member Vihera wore far more provocative outfits than the average prostitute there.
If so, there must be some other factor, he thought, but nothing came to mind.
...In reality, she was blushing at the words Rei had said—that he liked large breasts—which Ielo had overheard.
"..."
Elena averted her gaze from Rei, who was looking at her with puzzlement, and gently touched her own chest over her clothes.
Hidden beneath her armor, the soft sensation and her own heart, beating fast enough that even Elena herself could feel it when she touched it, brought a small smile to her lips.
As someone who took to the battlefield, having large breasts was by no means an unambiguously welcome thing.
Before she had earned her nickname of Princess General as she did now, other nobles had envied her breast size and made snide remarks.
...Doing such a thing to the Daughter of Duke Kerebel, who led the Noble's Faction, was tantamount to suicide from a noble's perspective. But if they were not the head of a noble house, many wives and daughters did not concern themselves with the power dynamics between nobles.
If Elena had valued socializing among women, it might have been a different story, but from a young age, Elena had prioritized honing her skills over social events like tea parties where women gathered.
Of course, such petty remarks had faded as Elena's name spread.
At any rate, Elena had by no means liked her own large breasts, but now, for the first time, she thought it was good that her breasts were large.
Seeing Elena's demeanor, Rei judged it was about time and opened his mouth.
"It looks like Elena's finished viewing Ielo's memories too, so I'll talk about what I experienced in Mejougo."
And so, Rei recounted what he had experienced in Mejougo.
However, the essential information itself was not particularly extensive.
The prostitutes in Mejougo were women brought there forcibly by people like Ajas, and around those women's necks were fastened ornately decorated Slave Collars.
However, unlike the commonly known Slave Collars, these possessed the ability to make the women themselves willingly work as prostitutes despite having been brought there against their will.
He had met a Wolf Beastman woman named Sharia and learned about those circumstances from her.
And... this might have been mere idle talk, but there were people who believed that Reblurina could win even if it went to war with the Kingdom of Mireana.
"And this is the Slave Collar I borrowed from Sharia... Can you make anything of it?"
Saying so, Rei took a choker-style Slave Collar from the Misty Ring and handed it to Marina.
After handing it over, Rei turned his gaze back to Elena and spoke up.
"I had Ielo infiltrate Jaya's Guard Station. Was there anything that could serve as a clue?"
"...No. Apparently there was nothing in particular. Ielo looked around quite a bit, but it seemed no different from an ordinary guard station."
The flustered demeanor from moments ago was already gone from Elena's face as she said this.
Not as the woman Elena, but as Elena the Princess General, she brushed back her golden hair as she spoke.
"I see. ...So? How is it?"
Rei asked Marina, who had been conversing with Elena and was now examining the Slave Collar she had taken in hand.
Vihera and Byune were also interested in the Slave Collar Rei had brought, and they directed their gazes at Marina as she examined it.
However, Marina, receiving the others' stares, shook her head while still holding the Slave Collar.
"No good. I'm not an Alchemist to begin with. I might be able to understand simple Magic Items to some extent, but this is a quite complex and advanced Magic Item."
"Figured as much."
Rei agreed with that opinion.
Fundamentally, rather than forcefully making the other party obey orders, it made them obey the user's commands of their own will... naturally.
Even if the result of making them follow orders was the same, the process leading there was far too different.
"Listening to your account, Rei, I thought perhaps an Alchemist had modified an ordinary Slave Collar to achieve this performance... but this isn't quite that. As I said, I'm not an Alchemist, so I can't say anything definitive, but..."
Saying so, Marina held out the Slave Collar so that everyone present could see it. ...Though Ielo, perhaps tired, was asleep on Rei's bed.
"You might not be able to tell just by looking, but this is not a Slave Collar."
At those words, Rei and the others... even Byune, revealed expressions of surprise.
"If that's not a Slave Collar, then what is it?"
"...No, the effect is similar, so to be precise, it would be more accurate to say it's not the Slave Collar we know."
A question appeared on Rei's face.
A Slave Collar, yet not a Slave Collar.
Even hearing it put that way, he couldn't quite understand.
"You know, I keep saying this, but please understand this is strictly my opinion as someone who is not an Alchemy specialist, alright?"
Everyone nodded at Marina's words.
Confirming that, Marina once again took the Slave Collar in hand and spoke.
"If we consider this an ordinary Slave Collar, the construction feels a bit too simple. It's already not a normal Slave Collar—it has the effect of making people follow orders of their own will, right? If that's the case, this level of construction feels rather incongruous."
"Incongruous?"
Marina nodded immediately at Rei's murmur.
"Yes. This... at least from my perspective, it doesn't seem like it could have that level of performance. Of course, there's a high possibility it uses some special technique I'm unaware of and simply haven't noticed. Honestly, if you want to properly analyze this, I think you should show it to a professional Alchemist."
"Even if you say that, we can't exactly ask an Alchemist here in Rossi, can we? Jaya, was it? We don't know how far that organization's reach extends."
No one could raise an objection to Vihera's words.