Leaving the investigation of the Underground Space to Anastasia and Fana, Rei emerged from the Underground Space and headed toward the Birth Tower with Set.
Along the way, he caught sight of trees being felled some distance away.
It was obvious who was responsible.
"Looks like the woodcutters are working hard. Want to drop by for a bit?"
"Gruu? ……Grururu!"
At Rei's words, Set hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement to go visit the woodcutters and their adventurer escorts.
As Rei and Set made their way through the Treant Forest, voices soon reached their ears.
When they pushed through the bushes and appeared, the adventurers instantly readied themselves for combat—but upon realizing it was Rei and Set, everyone visibly relaxed.
"What, it's just Rei and Set. Don't scare us like that."
"Sorry about that. I just came to check on how things are going… by the looks of it, I take it there's no particular problem?"
Rei looked around. The woodcutters and the adventurers assigned to miscellaneous tasks were stripping branches from felled trees.
From what Rei could see, there didn't appear to be any problems.
Relieved by this, but asking just in case, Rei prompted one of the adventurers, who nodded.
"Yeah. That said, today's work just started. As long as we don't know when monsters might show up, we can't let our guard down."
"Yeah… figured as much. But going by how you all reacted just now, I'd say you're fine."
Rei said this, looking at the man.
Judging by how they had readied themselves the moment Rei and Set emerged from the bushes, they had clearly been checking their surroundings properly. Their movements were practiced and confident.
Of course, Rei was the one who had reported the Cerberus appearance in the Treant Forest to the Guild, and the Guild had dispatched skilled adventurers as escorts based on that report—so this level of readiness was only natural.
"Really? Glad to hear that from you, Rei. So, what'll it be? We've got some felled trees already. Want to take them?"
"Yeah, I'll do that."
Normally, hauling felled trees was a labor-intensive job, but for Rei with his Misty Ring, transporting them was no problem at all.
That was exactly why Rei would collect the timber even when there were only a few felled trees.
"Got it. I'll guide you to the logging site, then. Follow me. ……Mind watching our backs a bit."
The adventurer who had been talking with Rei called out to one of his companions, then led Rei and Set deeper into the Treant Forest.
"Still, who would've thought the Treant Forest would become this dangerous?"
Rei had to agree with the adventurer's heartfelt mutter.
"True. Though, a fair amount of time has passed since this Treant Forest appeared. At first there were no animals or monsters, but it wouldn't be strange for them to wander in from somewhere sooner or later."
"Yeah… guess so. Though, the highest-rank monster in the Treant Forest is still Set, without a doubt."
"Can't argue with that."
Set was classified as a Rare Species, making him the equivalent of an S-Rank monster.
For Set to be the highest-rank monster in the Treant Forest was an undeniable fact.
"Gruu?"
Did you call me? Set turned his face toward Rei.
Rei shook his head at Set to indicate it was nothing, then took out a piece of Dried Meat from his Misty Ring and gave it to him.
Set ate it happily.
It wasn't the expensive Dried Meat made with plenty of Spices—but rather, the ordinary Dried Meat that adventurers would bring along when taking on a request.
Even so, Set ate it happily simply because it came from Rei.
"…Just look at him."
He didn't finish the sentence, but Rei understood what the man meant.
That Set was a high-rank monster was unquestionable.
But to the people living in Gilm, Set was more of a mascot than a high-rank monster.
This was largely because, despite being a gryphon, Set never attacked anyone of his own accord unless he was attacked first.
Of course, if someone was committing some kind of crime, Set wouldn't hesitate to attack. Even so, he never inflicted serious injuries on them.
Because of how Set behaved, many people in Gilm knew he was a high-rank monster but didn't truly feel it.
For Rei, when it came to ordinary citizens it was one thing, but with people like adventurers, he worried they might become too accustomed to Set. If for some reason they encountered a gryphon other than Set, they might treat it the same way they treated Set.
Set was Set—he had been created by Rei through Beast Magic, which was why he had been accustomed to people from the very beginning.
But if someone encountered an ordinary… wild gryphon and acted the same way, that person would undoubtedly be killed or seriously injured.
Or, if by luck or skill they managed to defeat the attacking gryphon, they might be reminded of Set and be unable to deliver the finishing blow, letting it escape.
"Hey, I just want to confirm… if you encountered a gryphon other than Set, you wouldn't hold back, right?"
"Obviously. The opponent's a gryphon, you know? If I did something stupid like go easy, that'd be a fatal wound right there."
"…I see. That's fine then."
Rei returned the words to the adventurer, but still felt a faint unease.
The response just now seemed to say he wouldn't hold back if he encountered a gryphon, but at the same time, it also sounded like he was distinguishing between Set and other gryphons as separate entities.
"Alright, we're here. Though, since it's still morning, there aren't many trees yet."
At the area the Adventurer Man led them to, there were indeed several trees with their branches already stripped.
Rei stored them one after another into his Misty Ring, then headed toward the Birth Tower with Set.
He understood that there was nothing left to do here.
"Well then, I'll be going. Say hi to the others for me."
"Yeah, got it. Good luck out there."
Exchanging words with the adventurer while straddling Set's back, Rei headed with Set toward the Birth Tower.
Flying through the sky would have gotten them to the Birth Tower much faster, but Rei was in the mood to run along the ground for now, so he told Set as much… and Set apparently had no objections either, weaving through the trees as they advanced through the forest.
Once they left the forest, they wouldn't need to weave between the trees anymore, but Rei and Set actually enjoyed the hassle—the act of weaving through the trees.
As Set continued running, he suddenly came to a stop.
What is it? Rei wondered for a moment, but looking at Set's demeanor, he could somewhat understand the situation.
An ominous presence was drifting from the direction of the lake.
"An enemy? No, that's not it. This isn't anything like killing intent. It's an ominous air, but…"
"Grururu? Gruu?"
What do we do? Should we go check? Set purred.
Feeling somewhat soothed by Set's behavior, Rei considered what to do.
Above all, not understanding the situation was a problem in their current circumstances.
If, like before, someone was attacking or coming to scout, they should already be in the middle of a fight.
But what was drifting from the direction of the Birth Tower was an ominous air, not the kind of killing intent.
"Can't be helped. Can't just stand here forever… let's go."
"Gruu."
Set nodded at Rei's words and pressed further into the forest.
Before long, the surroundings became familiar scenery.
A place near the Birth Tower… in other words, they had reached the edge of the Treant Forest.
Having passed through this area several times, Rei knew it well.
Stepping out of the Treant Forest…
"Ugh, what a pain!"
Those words slipped from Rei's mouth almost involuntarily.
That was because two groups were facing each other in front of the Birth Tower.
One group was the adventurers and Lizardmen assigned to guard here.
Among them, the most conspicuous figure was Gaga, standing nearly three meters tall and wielding a greatsword.
And the other group was… a man who appeared to be a noble, along with his private soldiers.
The noble was of medium build, but wore extremely flashy clothing—gaudy enough that "tasteless" would be a more accurate description.
His private soldiers also wore metal armor with flashy decorations.
Seeing the two groups facing each other, Rei was able to grasp the situation somewhat.
"Rei?"
Perhaps alerted by his remark about it being a pain, one of the adventurers turned toward Rei and called out.
Rei waved lightly at the adventurer and approached the adventurer and Lizardman group while still mounted on Set.
Naturally, this drew the noble's attention to Rei's presence as well.
Rei had suddenly inserted himself into the situation, and that was certainly not a pleasant sight for the noble.
The noble glanced at Rei with displeasure and opened his mouth to say something… then stopped.
He looked at Rei, then at Set, then at Rei, then at Set.
After repeating this several times, he finally opened his mouth with evident trepidation.
"Are you… Crimson Rei?"
If Rei hadn't been riding Set, and if Set hadn't been there, the noble would never have recognized Rei as Rei.
The Dragon Robe Rei wore had a powerful concealment effect, preventing it from being identified as an expensive Magic Item.
Thanks to that effect, without Set, Rei appeared to be nothing more than a novice mage.
Many people had made the mistake of accosting Rei looking like that, and had met the worst possible outcomes.
In that sense, this noble was lucky to have encountered Rei mounted on Set.
"Yeah, that's me. Want proof?"
Saying that, he took Death Scythe from his Misty Ring.
One of the things Rei was famous for as Crimson Rei was using a scythe.
Lately, his Twin Spear Style using the Twilight Spear alongside his scythe had also become somewhat well-known.
But regardless, seeing him holding a scythe, taking it out of a Misty Ring, and above all seeing Gryphon Seto at Rei's side—no one could possibly think Rei was a fake.
"Y-yes, I've confirmed it. Besides, the fact that you have a gryphon with you made it clear you were Crimson Rei. For now, please put that scythe away."
The noble told him this in a flustered manner—no, half-tinged with fear.
Among Rei's rumors was one that said if Rei got angry, he would swing his scythe without hesitation, even if the opponent was a noble.
The rumor claimed that over ten nobles had actually had their limbs cut off, so it was only natural for this noble to be terrified of Rei.
This noble held the status of a nobleman, but didn't actually have any combat ability himself.
That was why he understood that if Rei truly intended to do something, there was nothing he could do about it.
If it were an opponent he could somehow manage with his private soldiers, he might have been able to handle the situation.
But his opponent was Rei the Alias-Bearer.
On top of that, with a gryphon present, opposing him was virtually impossible.
That was why the noble wanted to settle things as peacefully as possible—without angering Rei, somehow bring this situation under control.
"Is that so? Then I'll put it away. ……So, who exactly are you? In the first place, this area should be off-limits to anyone entering without permission. Of course, coming here means you've received permission, right?"
"T-that is…"
"Rei."
One of the adventurers called out to Rei, who had been addressing the noble.
Rei prompted him with a glance—What is it?
"This noble showed up demanding we hand over the Lizardman children. When we refused, he tried to take them by force."
"Oh."
Rei looked at the noble in response to the adventurer's words.
As if intimidated by Rei's gaze, the noble retreated a few steps.
"So? That's what they're saying, but is that accurate?"
"Guh, guh… yes, it is. Lizardmen are monsters. There should be no problem with us securing them."
Perhaps judging that he could no longer hide his actions, the noble said this with sweat on his face.
"…I see. Then… I take it this means you're hostile to me, the one protecting this place. Is that right?"
Saying that, he once again took Death Scythe from his Misty Ring and asked with a smile.