Early morning, the day after Rei and Set had met with Yohanna and the others.
At a time when Rei would normally still be asleep, he was already walking toward the Guild.
It was not yet six, but as expected of the high-end Wheat Inn at Dusk, a proper breakfast had been prepared, and eating it had completely dispelled his drowsiness.
The guests staying at the Wheat Inn at Dusk were mostly merchants and adventurers, and among such people, more than a few would leave Gilm first thing in the morning.
...Though since it was currently winter, hardly anyone was departing that way.
If there were people accepting Cobolt subjugation requests, some might head out early, but the adventurers staying at the Wheat Inn at Dusk were those worthy of being called High-Rank Adventurers. They wouldn't participate unless they had reasons like keeping their skills from rusting or wanting to blow off accumulated stress.
In fact, Vihera and Byune, who had time on their hands this winter, were still wrapped in their futons, fast asleep.
Even so, Rei was grateful that breakfast had been properly prepared. And since it had just been made, there was freshly baked bread to be had—in that sense, too, Rei felt he'd experienced the old saying about early rising bringing its own small reward.
Above all else...
"Gruu!"
Set purred at Rei.
Rei understood exactly what that meant.
"Your lunch is for later. You just ate, right, Set?"
He stroked Set's head as he said it.
When Lana, the proprietress of the Wheat Inn at Dusk, had learned that Rei was leaving early today, she had packed him sandwiches loaded with toppings for lunch. And not just for Rei—she'd made a portion for Set, too.
...It wasn't enough to truly fill Set, but that couldn't be helped.
At any rate, with it still being before six in the morning, Rei and Set made their way through the pitch darkness.
Both Rei and Set had Night Vision, but Rei carried a lamp that Lana had prepared for him. This wasn't because she felt sorry for them navigating in the dark, but rather because without some kind of light, there might be people who wouldn't realize Rei and Set were there and could bump into them.
As they walked along the mostly empty main street toward the Guild, the number of people gradually increased the closer they got. The majority of those gathering were dressed in a way that made them instantly recognizable as adventurers.
"Whoa, so many people even though it's still dark... kind of impressive, don't you think?"
"Gruu?"
Set tilted its head at Rei's words, as if to ask, "Really?"
For Set, the presence of so many adventurers at this early hour didn't seem particularly surprising.
While exchanging this banter on the way to the Guild, Rei noticed that several people were glancing toward him and Set. He didn't particularly mind, since attracting attention was nothing new for either of them. But the gazes directed at him now felt different from the usual ones—awe, admiration, jealousy, fear, respect. These were unlike those typical stares.
Wondering what it was about, he noticed an adventurer whispering to a companion about the Gigant Turtle dissection, and it clicked.
To these guys right now, I'm not someone to be wary of. I'm the employer giving them work, or the generous person letting them investigate an unknown monster... Well, the pay is low, though.
As long as Cobolt subjugation took priority for Gilm, Rei had no choice but to accept the Guild's decision, and he harbored no dissatisfaction. ...If he were actually on the dissection side and the pay turned out lower than Cobolt subjugation, he might feel differently. But since the reward for this request was clearly stated upfront, there was no risk of the pay being low after the fact.
"Ah, Rei-san. Good morning!"
Rei turned toward the voice that had suddenly called out to him and saw a familiar face.
"Hasta. It's been a while since we've run into each other like this. You doing well? ...Well, looking at you, you seem fine."
"Ahahaha. That's right. I'm doing my best in my own way, at least. The diner's been doing quite well, too."
"Well, the Full Belly Diner is known for being delicious, fast, and cheap."
The Full Belly Diner, run by Hasta's parents, was a restaurant Rei knew well. Among the dishes stored in his Misty Ring, many were from the Full Belly Diner. It was also famous in Gilm as the first shop to sell udon.
Hasta had become an adventurer to supply meat for his parents' diner. He had first met Rei during the Gamelion incident, a hallmark of autumn.
Given the kind of person he was, it was easy to guess why he had approached.
"Are you here for the Gigant Turtle dissection too, Hasta?"
The Cobolt subjugation requests also yielded meat. But since Cobolts were Low-Rank Monsters, their meat was by no means tasty. It was far better than Goblin meat, to be sure, but the fact that Goblin meat was the comparison point probably told you all you needed to know about its flavor. Still, unlike Goblin meat, it could be made reasonably edible without too much effort.
"Yes. By the way... it's not just me. Quite a few of the diner's regulars said they're participating too."
"They're after the meat as well? Well, I can pretty much guess what they're thinking."
Dishot, Hasta's father and the cook at the Full Belly Diner, was a skilled chef. It wouldn't be surprising if someone figured that bringing Gigant Turtle meat to Dishot would result in a delicious meal.
Well, Dishot has probably never cooked Gigant Turtle meat before, and the cuts they can get will vary, so he'll need considerable trial and error.
Thinking that far, Rei suddenly realized something. This might not be a bad arrangement for him either. Adventurers would bring Gigant Turtle meat to the Full Belly Diner, and Dishot would experiment until he created delicious dishes. Then, by the time Dishot had figured out how to cook it well, Rei could bring dissected Gigant Turtle meat and have it cooked—enjoying delicious turtle cuisine without any effort.
Though if that's the case, maybe it'd be better for me to provide the meat since I have a huge amount, and let them experiment with that.
Pondering this, Rei headed toward the Guild with Hasta. The closer they got, the more adventurers they saw.
"Quite a crowd. Some of them are probably mixed in for the Cobolt subjugation too."
"That's true. But compared to lately, there's definitely more. Rei-san's Gigant Turtle matter has been spreading quite a bit since yesterday. I think that's why."
"For me, the more people there are, the faster the Gigant Turtle dissection goes, so it helps."
"Ahaha. For me, if there are fewer people, the dissection work lasts longer, and I get that much more Gigant Turtle meat, so I'd prefer that."
Whether they heard Hasta's voice or not, several nearby adventurers nodded in agreement.
Rei was about to say something to Hasta, but before he could, they arrived right in front of the Guild.
"Alright, I have a quick meeting with the Guild, so I'll leave you here. I'm sure it'll be fine, but good luck getting the request."
For this Gigant Turtle dissection request, the more people the better. Even those with unskilled dissection techniques could always carry divided parts, and there were plenty of other tasks, so everyone was welcome. But that was because the Gigant Turtle dissection was an exception; for normal requests, the number of recruits was fixed.
Since it was basically first-come, first-served, getting lucrative, easy, or bonus-attached requests meant going to the Guild early in the morning when the request papers were posted on the Request Board. Of course, that just meant requests were often posted in the early morning; depending on the situation, it wasn't uncommon for new requests to go up closer to noon or in the afternoon.
"Ahahaha. Since the request is what it is, there seem to be a lot of people, but the competition rate doesn't seem that high, so no need to worry. Well then, I'm heading in."
Saying that, Hasta bowed and entered the Guild.
"Alright, I have a meeting and things to do, so wait here as usual, Set. It's busy right now, so I don't think many people will come fuss over you."
"Gruu."
Rei stroked Set as he spoke, and Set purred and headed to its usual spot, lying down.
Normally, several adventurers and passersby would come to dote on Set. But right now, as Rei had said, it was still dark, and many adventurers were heading to the Guild to accept work. ...There might be some who would dote on Set after accepting their requests, if they had time to spare.
Glancing back at Set, Rei entered the Guild...
"Whoa."
The voice slipped out before he knew it.
Despite the hour, the bar area had people still drinking, passed out drunk, having a quick cup as a pre-work boost, or eating breakfast. But in contrast to the bar, the Guild side had an even larger crowd of adventurers.
From spring through autumn, it would have been a perfectly ordinary sight. But since Rei rarely came to the Guild at this hour, the surprise was all the greater.
Still, as the one carrying the Gigant Turtle, he couldn't just stand here watching forever.
Rei walked through what could genuinely be called a crowd. Those who noticed him quietly made way, and those who didn't, he slipped past—until he eventually reached the front of the counter.
That said, with this many adventurers trying to accept work, there was naturally a long line. At a slightly later hour, one might try flirting with the Receptionist while accepting a request, but doing so in the current situation would only earn the resentment of the other adventurers waiting in line behind.
Knowing this, the adventurers didn't make any inappropriate moves and left immediately once their requests were accepted.
Rei watched this scene while standing in line, but a Guild Staff Member noticed him.
"H-hey, Rei-san!? Why are you lining up over there like normal!? You're not an adventurer today, you're the client! You don't need to line up there!"
Saying that, the Guild Staff Member came out from behind the counter and pulled Rei inside.
The adventurer who had been lined up behind Rei, seeing him gone, thought himself lucky that one person's worth of space had opened up ahead and stepped forward.
Unaware of what was happening behind him, Rei moved inside the counter.
...Lenora gave Rei an apologetic look for not noticing him sooner due to being so busy, and Kenny gave him a disappointed look, wishing she could have been the one to attend to him. But both were too overwhelmed processing adventurer requests to keep their eyes on him for long.
"Sorry for not noticing you sooner."
The Guild Staff Member bowed to Rei once they were inside the counter.
Rei shook his head, telling him not to worry about it.
"I've almost never come at this hour, so honestly, it caught me off guard. Don't worry about it. So, what's the plan from here?"
"Ah, yes. Shortly, everyone will head outside Gilm and begin the dissection right away. And, um... actually, given the size of the Gigant Turtle, we'd like to temporarily hire people with dissection skills who aren't adventurers—just for this time—to finish the work as quickly as possible. What do you think?"
The Guild Staff Member looked at Rei with a gaze that clearly said, Please say yes.
Rei nodded without hesitation, indicating he didn't mind.