The monsters that had come seeking the lingering scent of yesterday's dissection or the fragments of meat left behind were wiped out in a matter of minutes.
The absence of any High-Rank Monsters among the gathered creatures was fortunate for those trying to do the dissection work, but for Rei and Set, it was honestly disappointing.
If a High-Rank Monster had appeared, they might have been able to secure an unknown Magic Stone.
Be that as it may, the matter was quickly settled under the rule that whoever killed a monster claimed ownership of it.
The adventurers here were Gilm adventurers, though, so setting aside literally delicious monsters like Orcs, none of them particularly wanted the remains. Ultimately, it was decided to turn them over to Suchee and the other Slum District residents.
This was partly because disposal would be a hassle, but Rei also wanted to sharpen their dissection skills even slightly and keep the Gigant Turtle's dissection progressing as smoothly as possible.
No one else knew exactly how much dissection skill the Slum District residents possessed.
That was precisely why he was doing this.
Of course, better dissection skills among the residents meant the Gigant Turtle would be finished that much sooner, which also meant the amount of meat they would ultimately receive would shrink.
"So, what should we do? I certainly didn't expect the previous day's dissection to still be having an effect after a whole night."
While watching the workers who had already begun dismantling the Gigant Turtle, the Guild Staff Member turned to Rei.
This was the staff member entrusted with overseeing the dissection site—the same person who, during the monster attack, had ordered those unable to fight to cluster together.
His split-second judgment had been precise, worthy of the responsibility placed on him.
"Hmm, even if you say that, there's nothing to be done about it. We obviously can't dissect the Gigant Turtle inside Gilm."
Doing so would undoubtedly be the best option. It might have been feasible once the dissection progressed further and the Gigant Turtle's body shrank, but bringing the creature in its current state into the city was absolutely out of the question.
"Yeah, you're right... Or perhaps we could have Rei-san divide the Gigant Turtle's body into several pieces and dissect them inside Gilm... Would that be too difficult?"
"Probably. To begin with, as long as we don't know which parts of the Gigant Turtle are usable as materials, I don't want to do anything careless."
If carelessly severing a leg, the body, or the tail ended up ruining the materials, that would be a real loss. Rei honestly wanted to avoid that.
If there were detailed documentation on the Gigant Turtle and they knew exactly which parts yielded which materials, Rei would have agreed with the suggestion. But with the risk of ruining the materials, he would rather not take that option.
(In that sense, severing the head was probably problematic too. Though honestly, with something this massive, there weren't many ways to kill it.)
If they had carelessly drawn out the fight, it would have sustained even more injuries, and that would have significantly lowered its value as material.
"Hmm, that's a tough one. There weren't any particularly strong monsters today, so it wasn't an issue, but... there's no guarantee tomorrow will be the same."
The Guild Staff Member's gaze asked: What should we do?
They had hired adventurers to guard the dissection workers, but fighting off a sizable group of monsters while protecting people behind you was difficult, if not impossible.
And as the staff member had pointed out, today only brought weak monsters. There was no guarantee that High-Rank Monsters wouldn't appear from tomorrow onward.
After pondering for a moment, Rei spoke.
"Alright. I'll handle that. Fortunately... though 'fortunately' might not be the right word, there are monsters like Orcs that are tasty to me. If I take on a certain tier of monsters myself, then the Goblins and Cobolts—... speak of the devil, here they come."
Perhaps drawn by the scent of the Gigant Turtle's blood, a Cobolt appeared.
Watching the guard adventurers immediately charge toward it, Rei muttered something about speaking of the devil.
That said, these were Gilm adventurers. There was no way they'd struggle against a mere Cobolt, so Rei just glanced in that direction and continued his conversation with the staff member.
"Anyway, I'll handle the High-Rank Monsters. Even when there aren't any, I can cover for a reasonable number. Does that work?"
Even as he said this, Rei showed some reluctance.
Fundamentally not a morning person, waking up early every day in this situation—tolerable mid-quest, but otherwise—was actually quite rough.
Still, since Rei was the only one who could store the Gigant Turtle, the dissection couldn't begin without him showing up at dawn. That was simply a fact.
"Yes, please. Being an Item Box User is enviable, but on the other hand, it's quite troublesome in various ways."
"Yeah. Only the user being able to operate it is convenient for security, but at times like this, it causes all sorts of problems. It'd be nice if the more widely available simplified version had a larger capacity."
"Don't ask for the impossible. Something slightly larger might be manageable, but trying to handle something the size of a Gigant Turtle whole..."
The staff member cut off and shook his head.
Rei had been half-aware of this already, so he wasn't particularly bothered.
"You never know. It might be impossible now, but the possibility that an Item Box could be created someday can't be denied. Since one actually exists, it wouldn't be strange for something similar—or even a higher-performance Magic Item—to be created in the future."
"Well... I suppose."
The Guild Staff Member nodded, but his expression made it clear he didn't expect anything like an Item Box to appear anytime soon—certainly not within a few years.
That said, a Magic Item's value depended greatly on materials, not just the Alchemist's skill. With that in mind, obtaining materials from a rare monster like the Gigant Turtle meant the possibility of an Item Box being created wasn't zero.
A very slim possibility, Rei knew.
"Anyway, that's the plan going forward."
Reasoning that daytime naps could solve his morning sleepiness, Rei stated this firmly, if somewhat forcefully.
For the staff member, if Rei was willing to do that much, there were no complaints whatsoever. More than that—Rei was showing consideration for the Guild, so refusing wasn't even an option.
"Yes, thank you very much. The Guild will do its best to meet your expectations. Though, looking at how things are going, the dissection might actually finish surprisingly quickly."
The staff member's gaze drifted toward the workers.
There, just as those who had participated yesterday were working with enthusiasm, the Slum District residents were tackling the dissection even harder.
The residents had initially struggled with the sheer size difference between Cobolts and the Gigant Turtle, but they gradually found their footing.
The fact that many of those who came today were children Suchee trusted played a role here. Being children, they adapted to the situation quickly.
The adults who came also largely possessed dissection skills, and while not as fast as the children, they acclimated at a respectable pace.
Fifty people who could be called an immediate fighting force. That was naturally enough Combat Power to accelerate the Gigant Turtle's dissection.
Above all, Rei could take heart in what Suchee had told him: while today's group was around fifty, the numbers might increase from tomorrow.
Many who were supposed to come today had errands or were hanging back, unwilling to trust what sounded like well-paying work by Slum District standards. But Rei had heard that such people might also join from tomorrow onward.
Naturally, since it had been made clear that any trouble from them would bring penalties down on Suchee and the whole group, Rei felt confident she would only bring people she trusted.
(Still... if the Slum District residents start making unusually good money, other residents will naturally ask where they earned it. Some might even try to rob them. If they belong to an organization, I doubt they'd try something like that, though.)
To the underground organizations in Gilm's Slum District, Rei was essentially a God of Plagues. Several organizations that had crossed him in the past had been destroyed—or at the very least, suffered devastating damage.
And who was behind the Gigant Turtle's dissection was something anyone could learn if they bothered to gather even a little information. Rei wasn't hiding his name when recruiting workers.
Under those circumstances, attacking Suchee and her companions would be tantamount to declaring war on Rei.
No one could seriously believe they'd win against him head-on, and if Rei and Set waged guerrilla warfare together, the situation would become completely unmanageable.
Weighing risk against return, the risk was overwhelmingly greater. A high-risk, low-return venture was something any underground organization would avoid at all costs.
No—considering it meant making an enemy of Rei, it wouldn't even be low return. It would be no return at all.
For those reasons, anyone affiliated with an underground organization wouldn't dare make a move against him. Though low-ranking members might act recklessly without understanding the broader picture.
(Thinking about it that way, the ones most likely to target Suchee and the others are people who don't belong to any organization and don't bother gathering information. I should warn her about that. Some of them seem to have decent strength, but...)
Among those Suchee had brought, a few seemed to have backgrounds as former adventurers. Rei could tell roughly from the way they carried themselves. But their numbers weren't large enough to protect all of Suchee's companions.
(Ideally, I'd want them to all stay in one place so everyone can be protected, but with nearly fifty people... no, even more coming, there's nowhere that can house them all.)
Before the Expansion Construction, it might have been manageable. But now, many lodgings were occupied by construction workers, leaving no spare capacity.
Since it was winter, some people had left Gilm, so a small number could be squeezed in somehow.
"Can something be worked out?"
"Yes? Did you say something?"
Apparently catching Rei's mutter, the staff member looked up.
Rei explained the concern that had been nagging at him.
"Ah... I see. Now that you mention it, that does sound like a problem. Hmm... should we try doing something on our end? For this many people... actually, I know of a place that can accommodate even more. Though it would require the Guild Master's permission to use."
Rei immediately understood what the staff member meant.
It was probably the Guild's massive warehouse.