"Gruu, grururururu!"
Seeing Rei enter the stable, Set let out a cry as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
That cry showed just how happy he was that Rei had come to visit him.
"Hoh... so this is Gryphon Seto?" Remuria asked, evident surprise in her voice as she watched Set rub his face against Rei.
Naturally, Remuria knew about the monster called a gryphon. She had needed to gather gryphon feathers in the first place, so it was only natural that she would have researched them.
However... there was a world of difference between knowing something as information, as knowledge, and seeing Set directly with her own eyes like this.
What surprised her most was his size. His body, over three meters in length, made it all too easy to imagine the sheer power it must contain.
For Set's sake, a Magic Item had been placed inside the stable, casting a decent, if not particularly bright, light.
Set's figure, illuminated by that dim glow, stirred up a desire within Remuria to flee the area as swiftly as possible.
The only reason she didn't was because she understood that Set's feathers were of vital importance to her. And...
"Kyu? Kyuukyuu!"
The fact that Ielo was perched on top of Set's head was also a major factor.
Across the entire Kingdom of Mireana, there were few nobles who held the rank of duke. Among them, Duke Fulundar's house belonged to the Noble's Faction and naturally maintained a close relationship with Duke Kerebel's House.
Given that closeness, she of course had ties with Elena, and by extension knew of Ielo, Elena's Familiar.
That was why, upon seeing Ielo riding on Set's head, Remuria might have felt like running but managed to stop herself.
"Yeah. ...Set, you don't need me to introduce Bluitt, right? And this is Remuria. Remuria Fulundar."
"Gruu? Grururu!"
At Rei's introduction, Set tilted his head, but still looked toward Remuria and purred as if to say, nice to meet you!
Seeing Set's attitude, Remuria finally seemed to relax. She composed herself and spoke.
"A pleasure to meet you, Set."
"Grurururu?"
Perhaps curious about Remuria's distinctive speech, Set purred.
Ielo, however, was already accustomed to her manner of speaking. Showing no particular reaction, he flew off Set's head to be caught and petted by Elena.
"Set, Remuria wants your feathers. Fresh ones... freshly plucked, that is."
"Gruu."
At Rei's words, Set let out a slightly displeased purr, no doubt because he understood that the feathers in question weren't ones lying on the ground, but the ones currently growing from his body.
For Set, having his feathers plucked wasn't particularly painful. It wasn't... but even so, it was certainly not a pleasant sensation.
"Eek!"
At Set's slightly cranky cry, the mage employed by Remuria let out a small shriek.
Remuria could not afford to act afraid of Set for the sake of her family, but the mage had no such resolve. Having suddenly seen Set up close like this, it was only natural for him to be startled.
Fortunately, Set merely glanced at the mage before turning his round eyes back to Remuria.
Naturally, Set did not like pain either.
He hesitated for a moment... but then stared at Remuria and let out a short purr.
At that sound, Remuria's employed mage gave another small shriek, but Set no longer looked his way, instead turning his body toward Remuria.
"...Lord Rei?" At Set's behavior, Remuria turned a bewildered voice toward Rei.
Since he had turned his body toward her, wasn't he indicating that it was fine to pluck his feathers?
It wasn't that she didn't think so, but if she plucked them and she was wrong, it could end up angering Set. That was why she asked just to be sure... but to her, Rei nodded and spoke.
"It seems he's fine with you plucking his feathers. Though he probably wants you not to make it too painful."
"Of course."
Nodding at Rei's words, Remuria gently reached out to Set's body... and then pulled out several feathers.
Set showed some signs of pain as the feathers were plucked, but he did not thrash about.
At least when it came to pain, Set was a monster and had a certain tolerance. After all, taking hits while fighting enemies, including other monsters, was a fairly common occurrence.
"Gruu..."
"Thank you, Set."
When Set purred at having his feathers plucked, Remuria spoke words of gratitude to him.
As the head of a ducal house, her current behavior might not have been appropriate. But thinking that Set's feathers might cure her family's illness, the words of gratitude came to her lips naturally.
Set purred happily in response. He seemed to be saying that this made enduring the pain worthwhile.
"Hehe, Set is as friendly as ever."
The one who said that was Elena, who had been petting Ielo.
...Though for Rei, seeing Ielo so delighted at being petted by Elena made it hard to honestly agree when Set was the one called friendly.
In any case, oblivious to Rei and Elena's exchange, Remuria placed Set's feathers into a container she produced from her bosom and dragged the mage who would use Summoning Magic outside the stable.
Given that she needed fresh gryphon feathers, she no doubt wanted to send them to her territory as quickly as possible.
While chasing after Remuria alongside Set, Rei suddenly had a question.
(Come to think of it, Anesis should naturally have a barrier as a countermeasure against intruders, including those coming from the sky... what will she do?)
This city of Anesis was called the second city of the Kingdom of Mireana, and its defenses were naturally strict. Gilm, located in the frontier, had a barrier as a countermeasure against monsters coming from the sky at night — though it was currently an exception during its expansion — but here in Anesis, there were those who flew through the sky like Dragon Knights, in addition to monsters.
Even without flying, there were many who illegally climbed the walls using some method to infiltrate the city.
Because of that, a barrier had been erected over Anesis.
Even if one summoned a flying animal or monster, it should be impossible for it to leave, blocked by that barrier.
If she had obtained permission beforehand from Liberte, the lord of Anesis, that would be a different matter, but he would not easily permit the release of the barrier, even temporarily.
So, what would she do?
Rei's question was answered the moment he saw Remuria board a carriage and depart from the Duke Kerebel Mansion.
"Ah, I see. If she goes outside Anesis and uses Summoning Magic, the barrier doesn't matter. ...Even so, that's quite special treatment."
The gates leading outside the city, which were closed in the evening, would not be opened unless there was a considerable exception.
But if Remuria asked Liberte, she would be able to receive that exceptional treatment.
For Liberte as well, opening the gate was not as significant a matter as releasing the barrier, so if he received appropriate compensation, it was only natural for him to permit it.
"...Ah."
They had been seeing off the departing carriage — Rei, Elena, Bluitt, Set, and Ielo, three people and two creatures — when Bluitt suddenly spoke up.
"What is it?"
"No, Rei. You said you were going to get jewels from old lady Remuria, but you haven't gotten them yet, have you?"
At those words, Rei thought now that you mention it... and recalled, but Elena, who had been listening, immediately denied it.
"As if Duke Fulundar would do such a thing. She simply wanted to deliver Set's feathers to her territory as quickly as possible, which is why she left in such a hurry... but once that is done, she will surely come to call again — tonight, or tomorrow at the latest — to deliver the reward."
Bluitt didn't seriously think Remuria would fail to pay the reward, and he didn't argue with Elena's words.
Rei as well, considering Remuria's personality, judged she wouldn't do such a thing, and didn't interject.
Instead, he looked toward the Duke Kerebel Mansion and spoke.
"Well, that took more time than expected, but should we head back to the party soon?"
"Right. I wouldn't mind staying here and playing with Set and Ielo, but..."
At Elena's words, Set and Ielo both perked up happily, but... considering Elena's position, she couldn't actually do such a thing.
"It doesn't quite work like that. ...Right?"
"Indeed."
At Rei's words, Elena nodded with a look of disappointment.
Originally, Elena should have been in the party venue even now. It was precisely because the request came from Remuria, someone who held a rank equal to Duke Kerebel's House, that they were able to leave the party venue... let alone the Duke Kerebel Mansion itself, but that was strictly an exception.
Elena understood that as well, which was why she reluctantly agreed with Rei's words.
...In truth, Rei also wanted to stay and play with Set and Ielo alongside Elena and Bluitt.
However, playing here would naturally get their party clothes dirty.
Considering that, there was no time to linger.
"Shall we head back?"
At Elena's words, Rei and Bluitt nodded, and Set and Ielo let out disappointed cries.
"My, Lady Elena. I was wondering where you had gone... it seems you were having a secret rendezvous with a man, weren't you?"
When they returned to the party venue, that voice suddenly addressed Elena.
The tone was clearly provocative, and Rei, standing beside her, honestly wondered, is she serious?
Of course he would be. Elena, the Daughter of Duke Kerebel who bore the alias Princess General, was essentially the symbol of the Noble's Faction. ...Though she herself didn't seem to care much for that fact.
For someone to throw such provocative words, as if picking a fight with a person like that, was undeniably insolent behavior.
(Is this woman serious?)
Thinking that, Rei looked at the woman standing before Elena.
Beautiful. Her features were refined enough to warrant such a description, but even so, Rei was not captivated by the woman before him now.
That was because intense jealousy burned in the eyes she fixed on Elena.
At the very least, if asked whether he could spend an enjoyable time with the woman before him, Rei would not have been able to nod.
"Lirin. It has been a while."
"Yes. I suppose so. Lady Elena does not attend parties often, so it inevitably becomes a long time since we last met. ...Though I suppose a barbaric battlefield suits Lady Elena far better than an elegant party."
"Indeed. Honestly, I do not care for such parties. ...That said, today is a New Year's party, so I cannot very well skip it."
Lirin, who had her sarcasm returned so effortlessly, showed a flash of frustration for just a moment.
But immediately, her gaze shifted to Rei... and she spoke to him with a beaming smile, as if to ask what that previous expression had been about.
"You must be Rei-san? I had heard various rumors, but... I was certain you would look more barbaric."
As she said this, Lirin's gaze was directed at Bluitt, who was standing beside Rei and watching the exchange with an amused expression.
Normally, Bluitt could have taken offense at Lirin's attitude, but he seemed to find watching the exchange more entertaining than getting angry. He showed no sign of saying anything in particular.
"I suppose I should just say, nice to meet you, or something?"
"...My."
Perhaps displeased by Rei's manner of speech, Lirin furrowed her brows with an expression that clearly said she was offended.
When she had been speaking with Elena, her displeased expression had vanished in an instant, but toward Rei, she showed no such shift.
This was likely because Elena was the daughter of Duke Kerebel, whereas Rei was merely an adventurer.
"As expected of a lowborn adventurer. Someone like you showing your face at a noble social gathering is far beneath your station. Moreover..."
Lirin was about to press her point further, but...
"Lirin."
Elena's voice rang out through the surroundings.