Just as Rei had predicted, the group leading the former prostitutes arrived within sight of Rossi during the night.
Then again, perhaps it wasn't quite accurate to say things had gone as predicted.
Judging by the time, Rei had expected to reach Rossi around eight in the evening, but when he checked his pocket watch upon arrival, it was nearly ten.
The schedule had slipped by nearly two hours, and the sheer number of people was to blame.
However, it wasn't for trivial reasons like the women who had voiced complaints earlier. Rather, it was those whose stamina was a genuine issue.
Among those brought along were all manner of people. Some had hardly ever left their homes before being kidnapped by Jaya, while others simply couldn't leave.
Those who had never gone out, and those who couldn't go out. The phrasing sounded similar, but in reality, the two were vastly different.
The former were so-called sheltered daughters. The latter were those who couldn't go outside due to illness of some kind.
At least, that was the story Rei gathered from what he was told.
They worked as prostitutes despite being sick? he wondered. But apparently, wearing a Slave Collar enhanced one's healing abilities, and their illnesses had cured naturally.
Hearing that, Rei conceded that perhaps the power of the Black Crystal wasn't purely evil after all.
For that reason, there were inevitably some who walked slower than normal, and those people ended up dragging down the entire group's pace.
I should have grabbed some carriages or something along the way... Damn. I shouldn't have dropped those carriages while the Resistance and Jaya were fighting. Or I could have just taken the ones sitting in the Deepest Layer of the giants' nest.
Thinking about it now was already too late, but for the moment, he considered whether they should stop at a village or town along the way. No, there was no need to go that far, was there?
What lay in the direction of his gaze was Rossi, the capital of Reblurina. And those who likely resided in Rossi, directing the nation, were clearly hostile to Rei and his group.
Though it was more accurate to say that the upper echelons of the nation had no choice but to oppose Rei's group, who happened to be present, because they needed to make Jaya recognize them as a common enemy alongside whoever would be arriving from the Kingdom of Mireana.
In other words, ordinary citizens aside, I can safely consider the upper echelons my enemies. In that case... they can't complain if I procure supplies here. Fortunately, with Set's power, pulling one or two carriages—or even more—should be easy.
Having made that decision, Rei flagged down a nearby member of the Resistance and asked him to fetch Elena.
Strictly speaking, the Resistance members were not Rei's subordinates and had no obligation to follow his orders. But there was no question that Rei was the one leading this group right now.
If Rei and his companions were to disappear from this place, it was a certainty that this group would be left to the mercy of Jaya and the people of Reblurina.
A few minutes after sending someone to fetch Elena, she emerged from the walking crowd and approached his side.
"What is the matter? Did something happen? Judging by your demeanor, it does not seem as though there is any particular inconvenience."
"Yeah. I just had an idea. As things stand, our movement speed is just too slow. So I'm thinking of getting some carriages."
"...Carriages? Ah, I see."
For a moment, Elena looked puzzled, but when she saw Rei patting Set walking beside him, she nodded in understanding.
Perhaps pleased at being petted, Set was purring.
Regardless, having understood the implication of acquiring carriages, Elena brushed back her hair—which sparkled beautifully even under the moonlight—and spoke.
"I do feel some sympathy for the people of Reblurina. Though considering what they have done up until now, I can hardly sympathize at all."
Having carriages stolen without their knowledge—and since it was Rei doing the stealing, they would be thoroughly stripped—Elena did feel a twinge of pity for Reblurina. But when she considered that the upper echelons had joined hands with Jaya, her judgment was that they deserved absolutely no sympathy.
And it wasn't just Elena. If anything, those in this group who could forgive Reblurina's upper echelons for partnering with Jaya had to be the minority.
"Well, for that reason, I'm going to slip in for a bit."
"I have no objection, but... what about the barrier?"
In Mejougo, there had been no barrier of any kind, so they had been able to enter from the sky without issue. But Rossi, however diminished, was still a capital. For emergencies, there was no doubt that a barrier had been erected.
"Right. There's no doubt one's been set up. But... I'm guessing it's the kind that just alerts them to an intrusion."
He wasn't saying this without basis. A barrier like the one around Gilm, designed to physically prevent enemy intrusion, was powerful—but that also meant the necessary catalysts would be expensive. Expensive enough that even the capital of a nation, especially a small country like Reblurina, would have difficulty procuring one.
Besides, given that flying monsters rarely ever came, Rei found it hard to believe they would have such an expensive barrier in place.
Of course, even if by some chance such a powerful barrier had been erected, he was also confident that Set could easily break through it.
"I understand. I shall say no more. The fact remains that we need carriages. Though I do wonder what we will do for horses to pull them while you are gone."
"Didn't you just say you wouldn't say anything more? Well, we'll just have to figure that out at some village or town along the way."
Since Rei's Misty Ring couldn't store living creatures, he couldn't steal horses from the castle to pull the carriages.
It would be nice if it could store living things too, he mused. But deciding there was no point dwelling on what couldn't be done, he shifted his mindset.
"Ideally, cavalry would come chasing after us. That would save us the trouble of procuring horses."
"Hehe, indeed. That would be rather entertaining."
Rei returned the smile to Elena, who had a grin on her face, and then left the scene together with Set.
"Sura, I'm going to infiltrate Rossi for a bit. Don't worry about us, just keep moving. If you carelessly stop, it'll cause trouble for us."
"Huh? Right. Understood... but are you serious?"
Since she had been nearby, Sura had naturally overheard the conversation between Rei and Elena. She had heard it, but she never expected him to say he would sneak into the capital so casually. She had even half-thought it was some kind of joke.
But he was actually saying he would sneak into the capital, so it clearly wasn't.
"Yeah. I'll leave the rest to you. Set."
"Grru."
At Rei's words, Set let out a short cry and lowered its body slightly. When Rei leapt onto Set's back, now easier to mount, Set immediately broke into a run.
After a few strides of approach, Set beat its wings and soared into the sky. The sight possessed enough strength and elegance to captivate the eyes of everyone watching from behind.
"That was fast. Not that I didn't expect it," Rei muttered, riding on Set's back and looking down at the ground.
Given the speed at which Set flew, it was only natural. In the blink of an eye, Rei and Set were already above Rossi.
Below them was Rossi—and specifically, not the city streets, but the castle.
Yes, Rei and Set were now directly above it.
"The problem is how to find where the carriages are stored. I guess it's safe to assume they're near the stables?"
Come to think of it, Rei had hardly ever needed to think about where carriages were kept. When traveling, he more often rode Set than rode in a carriage. There had been times he traveled in carriages prepared by the Guild, but in those cases, the Guild had arranged everything.
Unfortunately, Rei had no idea where carriages were typically stored.
"Which means... I guess I'll just have to search the old-fashioned way. First, the stables. I'd like to steal at least ten or so."
"Gru!"
Leave it to me, Set purred.
Patting Set, Rei spoke.
"Alright, I'm counting on you. Once we pass through the barrier, I imagine they'll detect that we've broken into Rossi immediately. When that happens, soldiers and knights will naturally come looking for us."
Though finding Set, who had descended from the sky, would be a different matter entirely.
If they kept flying, they might be spotted, but since Rei and his group were going to land directly on the ground, they would be even harder to detect. Especially since it was night, the difficulty of finding them was that much higher.
"Grrrul!"
Set let out a cry and descended toward the ground, flapping its wings.
It was a slim possibility, but Rei had considered that a barrier like Gilm's might be in place. As if to say, What happened to that resolve?, Set dove straight toward the castle.
He felt a momentary discomfort—that was likely the sign of passing through the barrier.
But even after crossing through it, nothing happened.
Wondering about this, Rei speculated that perhaps the barrier could alert specific locations or individuals without the intruder ever hearing a thing.
With that thought in mind, Rei remained mounted on Set as they landed near what appeared to be a stable building.
"Set, keep watch on the surroundings! If anyone attacks, you can fight back, but don't kill them!"
This order not to kill wasn't because Rei had a particularly humanitarian nature. It was simply because carrying injured personnel required more hands. Since they wouldn't be staying here long, doing so would also be a quicker way to reduce the enemy's combat power.
"Gru!"
Perhaps understanding their current situation, Set let out a short cry, soft enough not to carry, then slipped away and hid in the shadow of a building.
For Set, now over three meters in length, wandering around carelessly while on watch would inevitably lead to being spotted immediately. The soldiers and knights who were likely searching for intruders from the sky would, without a doubt, judge Set not just as a suspicious figure but, more accurately, as an invader.
That was why Set hid in the shadow of a building.
Leaving Set behind, Rei ran toward the building he had his eye on.
The first thing that caught his attention was a structure near the stables. The vague impression he got of it being a garage was probably because Rei had lived in Japan.
Regardless, he reasoned that if carriages were stored anywhere, it would naturally be beside the stables where the horses that pulled them were kept.
"Bingo."
The building wasn't even locked and could be opened freely. Given that this was within the castle grounds, they had likely judged that no one would steal carriages in such a place, and so their vigilance had grown lax.
Entering the building, Rei smiled and looked around.
Nearly twenty of the carriages he had been searching for were lined up inside. Among them was one with rather lavish decorations—likely ridden by someone of high nobility, or perhaps even royalty.
Unlike the gaudy, nouveau riche carriage Rei had seen during his Rank Up Exam, it was luxurious yet tasteful—an elegant splendor.
"Didn't think I'd find them on the first try. Well, judging by the arrangement of the buildings, I was pretty sure this was the right place."
It wasn't luck so much as his conjecture simply being correct.
There was no way Rei would carefully take just a few. He stowed carriages into his Misty Ring one after another, grabbing whatever he could.
Along with them, ropes, metal fittings, and other small items used to hitch horses to the carriages, as well as what appeared to be spare repair parts, were all swept into the Misty Ring without exception. Within a minute, the carriages and parts that had filled the building were completely gone.
"Normally, it would be better to use some magic here and cause a commotion, but... that's a bit much."
Since not everyone in the castle was Rei's enemy, burning innocent people to death didn't sit well with him.
So I should just head back quickly. The moment he thought that—
"Grrrul!"
"Uwaaaah!"
Set's cry and a scream echoed through the area.
"So I've been found."
Since his business here was already done, Rei had no reason to linger. He burst out of the building.