"Wait... doesn't that mean that even after we arrive in Gilm, we won't have anywhere to live!?"
As they passed Sablusta and headed toward Abuelo, Sura half-shouted at Rei, who was riding in the same carriage.
Normally, the others would have reprimanded her for that.
But having heard from Rei about the current state of Gilm—knowing that there was practically no lodging of any kind—it was only natural she wanted to scream.
"Don't worry. Lord Daskar has known from the start that this group was coming. They're not mansions or anything, but proper houses have been built—enough to last through the winter."
This group led by Sura was, for Gilm, nothing short of a great blessing.
Of course, having this many women suddenly arrive would surely cause its share of problems.
But as long as they brought benefits that far outweighed those issues, Daskar had no intention whatsoever of treating Sura and the others dismissively.
"...Really? Well, I suppose that's fine... But in that case... it's not really our place to say, but wouldn't it have been better to build more temporary lodging buildings?"
"Look, I'll say this just in case—it's precisely because your arrival was anticipated that they could plan properly and build houses. Adding more houses on top of that for the people who suddenly came for the Gilm expansion construction is a bit difficult."
Sura had no choice but to accept Rei's words.
If something like a crude hut would suffice, those could indeed be built right away.
But in such a place, while it might be better than standing outside in the falling snow, the difference would ultimately be marginal.
Without heating equipment and unable to block the wind pouring through gaps in the building, the possibility of freezing to death was impossible to deny.
"Though even so, your chances of survival are still higher than freezing to death outside in winter, so if it truly comes down to it, we'd probably resort to that... but at the very least, it won't be as comfortable as the houses prepared for Sura and the others who were always planned to live there."
Which would Daskar, as lord of Gilm, prioritize: those merely staying for the expansion construction, or those who had truly resolved to migrate to Gilm? There was no need to even think about it.
Moreover, Rei was fully cooperating with Sura's migration, and for Daskar—who placed deep trust in Rei—the answer was obvious.
"Well, as long as our living arrangements are properly secured, that's fine."
At Sura's relieved words, the others stayed silent, apparently having no particular objections.
Gimekara had originally come all this way to relocate the Zorgeh Merchant Guild's headquarters to Gilm, and Rocks was serving as an escort but originally hailed from Gilm and already had a place to live.
Sura, who led the Resistance and this group, along with Sharia, who had joined the Resistance back in Mejougo, were the ones concerned about the houses built specifically for them.
"Oh, right... and probably—really, just probably—but if you arrive in Gilm and find yourselves short on money, you can still join the Gamelion hunt. Gimekara... no, the aid from the Zorgeh Merchant Guild only lasts until you arrive in Gilm, right? In that case, you'd better figure something out while you can still save up."
"...Gamelion? Are they still around?"
The first to respond was Rocks, who, being based in Gilm, was well-informed about Gamelion.
In a normal year, this was about the season when Gamelion would already be disappearing, so his reaction was only natural.
"It seems they're lasting longer this year. I've been too busy with various things to participate myself, but from what I heard from an acquaintance, that's the situation. Once I finish up my urgent work, I'm planning to check out the Gamelion hunt myself."
"Hoh. Then maybe I'll give it a try too."
A seasonal delicacy, and for Gilm something close to an annual festival—the Gamelion hunt.
For Rocks, an adventurer of Gilm, not participating simply wasn't an option.
He'd been busy with one thing or another this year, and with the Reblurina situation on top of that, he hadn't expected to join the Gamelion hunt at all—so Rei's information was extremely welcome.
"Umm... what exactly... is a Gamelion?"
The one asking in bewilderment was Sharia.
As a Wolf Beastman, it was only natural for her to be interested in hunting.
What's more, this group excelled at pack combat, much like wolves.
Because of that, the prospect of joining a Gamelion hunt with this group set Sharia's heart racing. ...In a physical sense as well, her ample chest was bouncing.
"Simply put, it's a giant rabbit monster. But it's a limited-time monster that only appears during this season, when autumn turns to winter."
"...A rabbit?"
At the word "rabbit," Sharia murmured, seemingly having lost a bit of interest.
Rei and Rocks had anticipated exactly that reaction, so neither paid it any mind.
Gamelion was undoubtedly a rabbit monster, but in reality it merely originated from a rabbit. Nothing about it retained the faintest trace of a herbivore.
But even if they explained that here, they doubted Sharia would listen properly.
Only by seeing one with her own eyes would she truly understand what kind of creature a Gamelion was.
(Well, when it comes down to it, she'll just have to see for herself. But the Gamelion hunt is already nearing its end and their numbers are low, so even if Sura and the others come... there absolutely won't be enough prey to go around.)
Sura's group had over a hundred carriages and nearly a thousand people.
With those numbers, even if they managed to bring down Gamelion, the reward and amount of meat per person would be negligible.
If they'd arrived in Gilm a little earlier, they could have made it for the peak of the Gamelion hunt... but there was nothing to be done about that now.
It wasn't as if Sura and the others had deliberately chosen to miss the peak season.
In the first place, even though everyone was traveling by carriage, this was a migration on the scale of a thousand people.
Setting aside their actual travel speed, preparing for departure inevitably took time.
If they'd been adventurer women, they would have been accustomed to making quick preparations... but while this group understood how to fight as a unit using bows, they were fundamentally not warriors, and their mindset was still close to that of ordinary people.
...Though given how casually they could now kill, and how calmly they stripped equipment from bandit corpses, "ordinary" might not be the most accurate term. Something between ordinary people and adventurers was probably closer to the truth.
(Now that I think about it, returning to being ordinary people... I won't say it's impossible, but it'd be fairly difficult. When I see how much they love Set and things like that, no matter how I look at them, they just seem like women who love cute things.)
Of course, if it came down to it, there was always the option of being employed by Daskar, so Rei wasn't too worried about the group's future.
Naturally, not all of them could be hired.
Sura's group possessed overwhelming strength only because they numbered over a thousand and could unleash what amounted to a barrage of arrows from that many people.
But that was possible only because Gimekara—because the Zorgeh Merchant Guild—spared no expense in preparing arrows.
If they came under Daskar's command, fighting the way they did now would be virtually impossible.
"Well, if you're interested in Gamelion, you can hunt them after arriving in Gilm... no, in this case 'hunt' is the more accurate word. Just go with that. Though the carriage-based charge tactics you've been using... probably won't work."
At Rei's words, Sura's expression turned slightly sour.
She had thought it through carefully and concluded that this was the best tactic for their current capabilities—mobile combat using carriages... something that could be called "carriage archery" rather than horseback archery.
It was a fighting style she had that much confidence in, and she had indeed overcome multiple bandit groups using it.
So why—the dissatisfaction she felt was only natural.
But Rei directed a gaze of exasperation not at Sura, but at Rocks.
Rocks himself, understanding exactly why he was receiving such a look, simply averted his gaze.
Seeing that, Rei let out a small sigh before speaking.
"The opponents you've been fighting are basically bandits, right? Monsters... at most, Goblins or so?"
"That's right. Outside the frontier, monsters don't appear that often, and we traveled along the highway."
"I figured. That's exactly why Rocks didn't bring it up either. ...Listen. Your way of fighting is strong against opponents like bandits—or rather, anyone slow on their feet. I'll guarantee you that. But... when you're in carriages and almost everyone only has bows, you're terribly weak against something like Gamelion, which is faster than a carriage and has fur that deflects weapon strikes."
A carriage moved faster than a normal person running, so ordinarily they'd never be caught.
That was precisely why they could attack one-sidedly from a distance... but against something like Gamelion, that very strength became a weakness.
A Gamelion's speed was incomparable to a running human.
The fur covering its body couldn't be scratched by any half-hearted weapon.
Its massive frame was a mass of muscle; even ten ordinary humans banded together would be sent flying if they collided with a Gamelion at full speed.
Its tail was highly flexible, like a whip.
Its ears were blades, with sharpness equal to—or perhaps exceeding—that of a knife.
Its fangs were sturdy enough to easily crunch through a carriage.
...No matter how he looked at it, Rei couldn't imagine Sura and the others fighting Gamelion and actually winning.
"For now... if you do go Gamelion hunting, you'd better assume you can't fight the way you have been. The aid from the Zorgeh Merchant Guild will be gone too, after all."
"That's..."
She'd been struck right where it hurt. Sura was at a loss for words.
A single arrow wasn't all that expensive, true, but that didn't mean they could use as many as they wanted.
Given that, once the Zorgeh Merchant Guild's aid disappeared, they'd have to figure out the money for arrows on their own.
"If you think about that and still believe you can manage, then maybe you should give it a try."
Rei said that, but he figured it would probably be tough.
No—if it was just a matter of defeating Gamelion, Sharia was there: a Wolf Beastman with high combat power, more than sufficient even by the standards of a Gilm adventurer. And those with former adventurer backgrounds had a decent amount of skill as well.
But even so, he couldn't imagine them defeating Gamelion unscathed.
Those without that level of skill would likely end up injured—or worse. That was Rei's assessment.
Sura seemed to understand what Rei was getting at, and she fell into dissatisfied silence.
She wanted to fire something back, but she understood that whatever she said would only come across as excuses or sour grapes.
"Ah... hey. If you want, I'll help out too, so cheer up, alright."
Perhaps because Sura looked so down, Rocks spoke up as if to encourage her.
Gimekara watched him with a somewhat exasperated gaze, while Sharia had grown interested in Gamelion from what Rei had told her.
"Rocks escorting these people is only until Gilm. I don't think he needs to look after them beyond that."
"...No, well, you see..."
Rocks replied to Rei in a somewhat evasive manner.
As Rei tilted his head at that behavior, Gimekara's earlier exasperation shifted into a grin—a sleazy, amused sort of grin.
Rocks noticed it and tried to say something, but he was too slow to silence Gimekara.
"You can't just leave your lover in danger, now can you?"
At those words, Rei froze for a moment in surprise... and then looked back and forth between Rocks and Sura.
"...Lover?"
He asked, thinking perhaps he'd misheard, but what came back was Sura, her face dyed bright red, averting her gaze out of sheer embarrassment.
And Rocks, fumbling over what exactly to say.