As the carriage rolled through the passage, Rei and the others rested while making small talk, with nothing in particular to do.
Naturally, they stayed ready to move at a moment's notice, so they couldn't afford to let their guard down entirely.
However, the hidden passage contained no traps of any kind, and nothing emerged to intercept them.
Time passed with nothing happening at all...
"It looks like the exit is coming into view."
When Marina, who was handling the reins, called out to them, Rei and the others prepared to dismount, secretly disappointed that no ambush had materialized.
"It would've been nice if they'd prepared some kind of welcome for us."
"Is that so? Hmm, but... wouldn't that just make things troublesome again?"
Elena replied to Rei's muttering while stroking Ielo's body.
In truth, the reinforcements who had ridden that carriage were far from what anyone would call strong.
Of course, that assessment came solely from Elena's standard.
If anything, the presence of someone strong enough to earn Elena's respect would have been a problem in its own right.
"That's true. If possible, I would have liked somewhat stronger opponents to show up. Considering they came as reinforcements against us in the first place, they should have understood that combat power of that level would never be enough."
And the one wearing an even more dissatisfied expression than Elena was, naturally, Vihera, who loved combat.
Having just fought Giants — opponents with at least some substance to them — the reinforcements that appeared afterward being only that weak was deeply disappointing for Vihera.
To draw a comparison, it was like eating a delicious course meal at a restaurant, only for the final dessert to be nothing but the peel of a fruit.
Thinking along those lines, Rei pulled some dried fruit from his Misty Ring to calm the disgruntled Vihera.
"For now, eat these and settle down."
"...Normally, if you had something like this, wouldn't you bring it out during the trip? Well, it wasn't really a long enough trip to call it one, though."
Wasn't it odd to hand over something like this right when the destination was in sight?
Saying so, Vihera nevertheless accepted the dried fruit from Rei.
Naturally, Byune beside her, as well as Elena — and Ielo, still being stroked by Elena — also received some and enjoyed the sweet taste.
(Should I give some to Marina later?)
As Rei savored the sweet-and-sour taste spreading across his palate, the carriage came to a halt, as though sensing his thoughts.
Rei was startled for a moment, but recalling that Marina had mentioned they were nearing the end of the line, he judged there was no cause for alarm and stepped down from the carriage.
What greeted Rei's eyes was a door sealing the underground passage's entrance.
Stationed around it were nearly twenty armed soldiers.
The soldiers were visibly bewildered, yet still aware enough to recognize that the people before them were deeply suspicious. The man at the front of the group spoke up.
"Who are you? That is... who are you people?"
Bewildered words.
If the one holding the reins had been a more intimidating figure rather than Marina — a Dark Elf in a Party Dress — the men would have been far more vigilant.
The fact that there was only one carriage, driven by Marina, was another reason for their confusion.
They simply couldn't bring themselves to believe these were enemies.
This location was especially remote, and information traveled slowly.
As a result, these men had no understanding of who had attacked Mejougo.
That was why, even looking at Marina, they couldn't possibly have pegged her as someone who made a living through combat.
...Of course, when confronted with a Dark Elf woman in a restrictive Party Dress — and a beauty unlike anything they had ever seen in their lives — such assumptions were only natural.
Had Marina still been wearing her bow and quiver, it would have been a different story.
What's more, among those who climbed down from the carriage, there was no burly, combat-ready man in sight, so that assumption was only reinforced.
Rei had stowed his weapons in his Misty Ring, and Byune — due to her small stature... no, her sheer childishness — didn't register as a combatant.
Vihera wore Hand Gauntlets and Foot Guards, but given the rest of her outfit, she too wasn't taken for a fighter.
The sole exception was Elena, who was properly armed... but even she, by virtue of her beauty, apparently couldn't be believed to be a combatant either.
"Oh, you don't know who we are? Has no information come through?"
"...You people came from the Giants' nest, didn't you?"
Marina was momentarily confused by the mention of a Giants' nest, but she quickly grasped what it meant.
After all, the only thing this hidden passage connected to was the Underground Facility they had just come from.
"That's right. Given that we're here, I'd think that was obvious, wouldn't you?"
Marina delivered this without a trace of panic.
She was unquestionably suspicious, but perhaps she had nothing to hide?
That thought flickered through the soldiers' minds.
"That carriage is the one the reinforcements rode out in a while ago, isn't it? Why do you have it?"
Perhaps they were important guests of the organization.
The man speaking to Marina must have reasoned so, because his tone shifted to something noticeably more polite.
"That's right. We passed each other going opposite directions, so we borrowed one."
Marina chatted with the men, flashing a radiant smile.
But... right in the middle of that exchange, a single man shouldered his way through the others and stepped forward.
"Hoh... quite a fine woman, ain'tcha. But that's strange. If women this fine... top-quality women like this were coming, it'd be strange for word not to have reached us here."
"Z-Zelsturi!? Why is Zelsturi in a place like this!?"
The soldier who had been speaking with Marina let out a cry of sheer astonishment at the man who had suddenly appeared.
Part of that shock was simply why someone like him would be in such a place — but more than that, there was a palpable sense that things had just gotten troublesome.
Marina too turned her gaze to appraise the man anew.
He stood taller than her, his frame packed with solid muscle.
It was obvious even to Marina that he was unmistakably someone from a criminal organization — and someone who held at least a certain rank.
And from the soldier's reaction, it was easy to infer that he was troublesome in all sorts of ways.
Yet even faced with such a man, Marina showed no particular sign of tension.
Partly because she was confident that no matter how strong he was, her group could handle him... but also because, strangely, there was no lust coloring the way he looked at her.
Though not to the same degree as Vihera, Marina was wearing a Party Dress that emphasized her cleavage, so she was well accustomed to being on the receiving end of desire-clouded stares. ...Of course, being accustomed to it didn't mean she didn't find it unpleasant.
In any case, Marina felt a measure of relief at that... until the very next moment, when she realized she had been completely mistaken.
The reason was simple: the man called Zelsturi was directing eyes brimming with desire at Byune.
(Ah. So that's how it is.)
Having lived a long life, Marina was well aware that certain people could only feel sexual attraction toward children.
She had even spoken with such individuals before, though from her perspective, it was not a taste she could exactly commend.
Quietly shifting to shield Byune behind her own body, Marina spoke.
"So, Mr. Zelsturi, was it? Could you tell me what your position here is?"
"Me? I'm the one in charge of guarding this gate, you could say."
Zelsturi told her this, but Marina caught sight of several soldiers exchanging dubious looks.
(In other words, a lie.)
That assessment seemed accurate enough to Marina.
And if he was making such a claim here, there was no doubt he was suspicious of Rei and the others.
(The real question is how high up he ranks... but from the look of him, he's definitely more adept at using his body than his head.)
Pretending to hold Zelsturi's gaze while watching him try to peer past her at Byune, Marina spoke again — having already concluded that if the other party was suspicious, their only option was to force their way through if it came to that.
"Oh? If you're the one in charge here, shouldn't you have been informed about us? Though, to be fair, I never imagined we'd end up coming all the way here through a hidden passage."
You already know about us, don't you? — that was the implication behind Marina's words.
Whether owing to her long years of experience, there was not the slightest hint of deception in her tone.
So much so that anyone who knew nothing — even Rei and the others themselves — might well have believed it was the truth.
Zelsturi, however, tilted his head as if he genuinely could not fathom what Marina was talking about.
"Hah? Sorry to disappoint, but no such information has reached me. If you were really Jaya's clients, it'd be strange for at least that much to have made the rounds."
Partly because Byune was hidden from view, Zelsturi's attitude toward Marina turned naturally aggressive.
Marina understood this perfectly, but that didn't mean she could exactly offer Byune up in her place.
"In other words, what are you saying? You're not seriously going to try something as foolish as detaining us here, are you?"
"I don't think it's that foolish. With no information coming through at all, you people are suspicious, no doubt about it."
"Then how do you explain this carriage?"
"...That raises questions too. Several horses have come back here on their own. Why do you suppose that is?"
"It seemed the carriage had already sustained some damage when we spoke with the drivers, so perhaps that's the reason."
She had no ulterior motive.
Marina delivered this with a look that all but said so — the performance of a true actress.
This world had no movies or television dramas, but theater did exist.
Her innate beauty, feminine allure, and this acting ability.
If Marina had ever set her mind to a career on the stage, she would have achieved tremendous success — that was the unanimous impression of everyone in Rei's party who watched her.
Of course, even apart from Marina, both Elena and Vihera possessed more than enough talent to become leading actresses in their own right.
"Heh... well, whatever. Anyway, I'll need to hear the details from you lot. Want you to tell me what went on over there, too."
Even as he spoke, Zelsturi's gaze was fixed on Byune behind Marina — on her faintly glimpsed hands and feet.
What he intended to do under the pretext of "hearing their story" was painfully obvious without a second thought.
...Despite three women who could only be described as top-tier beauties standing right in front of him — including Marina, who was actively negotiating — Zelsturi's gaze was trained solely on Byune.
Whether "single-mindedness" was the right word for it was debatable, but it made one thing abundantly clear: Zelsturi was a hardcore lolicon.
Knowing that, Marina couldn't possibly humor his demand.
Zelsturi was simply being honest about his desires, and the irony was that this honesty had ended up thwarting Marina's scheme.
"Oh, being alone with — or letting someone be alone with — a man who has the eyes of a wild beast is a bit frightening. I'll pass."
"Heh. Well then, we can't exactly let you through so easily, can we... Wouldn't it be better to comply while I'm still asking nicely?"
Zelsturi flashed a grin even as a violent aura radiated from him.
It was the demeanor of a man well-practiced in this sort of behavior.
(He's probably done the same thing to countless people before, sinking his fangs into them... but)
Cutting that thought short, Marina turned her gaze toward Rei.
Rei gave her a small nod.
What that nod meant was easy enough to understand.
"Then... yes. I'm sorry, but I suppose we'll just have to force our way through."
Smiling radiantly, Marina made the declaration.