"I heard that a group of bandits had gathered around here. Would that happen to be you?"
The man who spoke was positioned as though he were leading the approaching soldiers.
He appeared to be in his mid-thirties. His eyes held a cunning glint, and he was clearly looking down on Rei and the others.
Seeing this man, the adventurers other than Rei felt not irritation, but rather something more aptly called admiration. They understood full well that they could never adopt such an arrogant attitude with Rei and Set present.
"Now then, you are bandits who have caused detriment to Sablusta. May I consider you as such?"
"That's right! We were just hunting in the forest, and these guys attacked us without question!"
The first to respond to the question directed at Rei's group was one of the captured bandits.
Then, as if to agree with that bandit's words, the others chimed in as well, claiming they had been captured despite having done nothing wrong.
At those words, the man leading the soldiers reacted with exaggerated surprise.
"Hoh! To think you are a group of illegal slave merchants capturing innocent people! This requires us to apprehend everyone and hear the circumstances!"
"Yeah, help us! At this rate, we'll be sold as slaves despite being completely innocent!"
As if riding on the man's words, another bandit shouted.
The other captured bandits, perhaps harboring the hope that they might actually be saved, all proclaimed their innocence in unison, insisting they had been forcibly captured by adventurers—no, illegal slave merchants—while in the forest.
So it really turned into a troublesome situation, huh.
Rei, whose prediction that things would become troublesome upon seeing these soldiers was perfectly on the mark, looked up at the endlessly high blue sky as if begging for divine intervention.
Even though summer was nearing its end, the midday sun was still making a sufficiently intense assertion of itself.
The wind drifting in from the forest slightly calmed the irritation simmering within Rei, and he opened his mouth.
"Shut up."
That single word was not spoken particularly forcefully, nor was it shouted. Yet it somehow resonated throughout the surroundings, silencing the bandits who had been loudly protesting that they had been forcibly captured for no reason.
"Hm, from the looks of things, it appears you are the one leading these slave merchants."
The man leading the guards called out to Rei with a sadistic smile. He made no attempt to hide his attitude, clearly believing that even adventurers wouldn't dare defy him.
"Slave merchants? What are you talking about? We're adventurers. I never thought there'd be someone living around here who doesn't know who I am. Right, Set?"
"Grrrrrl."
At Rei's words, Set purred as Rei scratched its head.
The act itself was nothing unusual for Set. However, it was likely bothered by the fact that someone was clearly trying to be hostile toward Rei. Rather than its usual affectionate cry, it let out something that sounded more like a threat.
Hearing that sound, the man who had directed provocative words at Rei instinctively retreated several steps, bumping into the guards behind him before finally coming back to his senses.
...If there hadn't been guards behind him at that moment, he would likely have been unable to withstand Set's pressure and would have ended up flat on his backside. In that sense, he should have been grateful to the guards.
Instead, the man glared at the guard as if telling them not to get in his way, then turned his glare on Rei, attempting to conceal the disgraceful display in which he had appeared frightened—no, had genuinely been frightened on instinct.
The reason he glared at Rei rather than Set, the one who had actually frightened him, was because Set, even as a Tamed Monster, was ultimately a monster. He had no way of knowing when it might attack, and he didn't want to provoke it any further.
Compared to Set, Rei was, after all, human. ...In reality, an Artificial Human crafted with the culmination of the Zephyle Clan's technology was the accurate description, but there was no way the man could know that.
"A-are you trying to intimidate me!?"
"Hm? Intimidate? How did it come to that? Set just agreed with what I said. It's not like it actually attacked you or anything. Do you feel threatened just because a dog or a cat barked?"
A coward who cowers at dogs and cats.
The man, implicitly mocked in that manner, turned bright red with humiliation as he opened his mouth.
"You!? You say you!? Do you have any idea who I am!? Someone of your standing has no right to speak to me in such a manner!"
"Even if you say that, unfortunately, I don't know your name. Well, since it seems you don't know mine either, I'll tell you. I'm Rei. I hold the alias of Crimson, for what it's worth."
"Hmph, an Alias Holder acting so high and mighty. But I suppose I'll commend you for introducing yourself before asking my name. I am Tarania. I serve the Local Deputy of Sablusta."
The man who introduced himself as Tarania looked at them as if to say, "Well?" apparently believing that stating his name and position would make Rei and the others back down.
Rei, however, received that look without any particular concern, watching Tarania without so much as a flinch.
Even if the other party were a noble, Rei was the type of person who wouldn't hold back at all if a conflict arose. If it had been a noble himself, that would be one thing, but Tarania was merely a subordinate of a Local Deputy dispatched by a noble. There was no reason for Rei to be surprised that he had stated his name, let alone to back down.
"So? What business does the Local Deputy's subordinate Tarania have with us?"
Despite having introduced himself, being called by the bare name Tarania—and receiving such treatment from someone of Rei's stature—caused Tarania's face to turn red once again.
"W-what is the meaning of this!? I hold a position directly subordinate to the Local Deputy! For a mere adventurer to... understand your place!"
"Even if you say that, I'm an adventurer belonging to Gilm in the first place. It's not that I've never set foot in Sablusta, but that's irrelevant today. Given that, how exactly am I supposed to respond just because Tarania showed up here?"
At Rei's words, delivered as if stating the obvious, Tarania was so furious he couldn't utter another word.
Until now, within Sablusta, his words as the Local Deputy's direct subordinate had carried absolute authority. And yet, the man before him maintained a completely unperturbed attitude even when face to face with him. That was more unpleasant than anything.
"Y-you! A mere adventurer daring to..."
"Huh? A mere? You just said 'a mere,' didn't you? I see. So Sablusta's lord and its Local Deputy recognize adventurers as 'a mere' existence. That's a good thing you've taught me."
A twitch.
Tarania's cheek twitched upon hearing Rei's words.
No matter what he truly thought in his heart, if he went so far as to say it directly out loud, it could become the official stance of that person—and depending on the circumstances, of his superior as well.
Moreover, Tarania had already let slip that he was the Local Deputy's direct subordinate.
It would have been fine if the person he said it to were truly just an ordinary adventurer, but the person he had said it to this time was Rei, an Alias Holder adventurer.
Understanding objectively that he had just said something quite problematic, Tarania gave a small cough.
"No, it seems I went a bit too far as well. But you are also at fault. You should respect your elders, you know?"
"You say that, but... I wouldn't mind respecting someone worth respecting, but..."
That was, implicitly—no, half-directly—tantamount to saying that Tarania was not someone worth respecting.
Tarania's face turned red again at those words, but this time he refrained from uttering any careless statements and fell silent.
While observing Tarania's demeanor, Rei opened his mouth once more.
"Now, let's get back to the subject. The people you've brought along are, I believe, the ones who came to transport the bandits we captured. May I ask why they're here with you?"
"Bandits? What are you talking about? I said it earlier, didn't I? I came to apprehend illegal slave merchants."
Saying that, Tarania, as if suddenly noticing something, flashed a viscous smile that could only be described as leering.
"Yes, that would mean... despite being adventurers—and an Alias Holder adventurer at that—you captured innocent commoners as slaves. Is that what you're telling me?"
At Tarania's words, Rei directed his gaze toward the bandits captured by the other adventurers—the ones claiming they had done nothing wrong, that they had been forcibly captured while hunting in the forest.
"...Commoners? Those? I think that's a bit of a stretch."
"!?"
At Rei's words, Tarania faltered for a moment.
Tarania, too, likely understood that calling the captured bandits commoners was a stretch.
Even so, from his position, he couldn't let the bandits be taken away by Rei—no, by Rei and the others.
This is bad. No matter what sophistry I use, I must take the bandits back from them. Of all the people to run into...
Tarania's gaze shifted to several of the bandits being held by the adventurers.
At the very least, he needed to have those particular individuals handed over, and at worst, he needed to silence them permanently.
He couldn't let his group's connections be known.
If they were Sablusta's adventurers, I could have fabricated some excuse. Of all people, for them to be from Gilm... they've done something troublesome.
The one who had orchestrated this incident was Gilm... and probably—no, almost certainly—Daskar, the central figure of the Neutral Faction.
If such a man learned what they had been doing, and the bandits who could serve as witnesses were secured, what awaited them was certain ruin.
If so, Tarania had no option of backing down here. Even if it meant fighting the adventurers on the spot.
There's no way I can win against Gilm adventurers. I know that. But I don't need to win. I just need to silence them, that's all.
Among the guards Tarania had brought this time, several were mixed in who served as his assassins. In case of emergency, the arrangement was to make it look like a skirmish with the adventurers while those individuals did their job.
For that purpose, he absolutely could not quietly back down and obey the other side's words here. Rather, he should provoke them and force a confrontation.
Of course, the best option would be to have the bandits handed over without a fight at all, but under the current circumstances, that was impossible.
Since fighting was the last—and near-worst—option, it was something to be avoided as much as possible. Yet the fact that he wasn't holding back made him praise himself as competent for a few seconds, before he immediately cleared his throat and spoke.
"If you claim you did not illegally capture slaves... then yes. How about you hand over some of the people you've apprehended to us?"
"Hah? Why?"
Before anyone knew it—truly before anyone knew it—Rei had assumed the role of representative for the adventurers present and was negotiating with Tarania. Yet none of the adventurers here were dissatisfied with that.
No, it was impossible to know what they truly thought deep down, but at present, no one was showing any outward sign of dissatisfaction.
Rather, their honest feeling was that they wanted the negotiation to end quickly so they could get moving and leave this sweltering place.
...Even so, having the bandits they had captured stolen away after being picked a fight with was absolutely unacceptable.
Before those adventurers, the negotiation continued.
"If you claim you have not done anything illegal, then we need to obtain information on our end as well. Ah, and let me make this clear—having your side filter and relay only convenient information is unacceptable, as there's a possibility you'd only pass along what suits you."
"If that's the case, then wouldn't that mean information coming from the mouths of the ones you take with you couldn't be trusted either?"
"Hoh. Are you saying an adventurer's position is the same as mine, the Local Deputy's direct subordinate?"
"If that's what you're saying, then wouldn't that mean information investigated by Gilm's guards is also untrustworthy? Or are you saying that the people of Gilm are entirely untrustworthy?"
"That's..."
Cheap tricks.
That was what Tarania spat out in his mind.
It was already common knowledge that Gilm's guards were an elite bunch. If he said here that even Gilm's guards were untrustworthy, it would lead to all sorts of problems later.
At the same time, he truly couldn't let the bandits who had connections with his group be taken away. As he was thinking about what to do, a voice suddenly reached him.
"What is the meaning of this?"
The one who spoke was a beautiful woman with golden hair, as if the sun's light itself had taken form... Elena.