"So, this is the place. ...Yeah, there's definitely no one here."
It was a spot in Gilm relatively close to the Slum District.
A space that had formed by chance between two buildings, surrounded by an abundance of flowers befitting spring.
The fact that no one was around was likely due to the location itself.
Ordinary people wouldn't want to go near the Slum District, and the residents there were too busy scraping together their daily meals to wander off.
Of course, even in a place like this, it wasn't as though no one ever came.
For example, children.
Ordinarily, they wouldn't dare approach the Slum District, but among children, plenty mistook recklessness for courage, and for those types, this place would make an ideal secret base.
Fortunately, even those children showed no sign of coming here at present—perhaps because they were busy with their own work.
"Gruu, gurururu, gururururruu."
It was probably happy about all the flowers growing around. Set let out a pleased cry as it bounded around the area.
There was no trace of the tension that had been there just moments before.
Naturally. When they'd been in the crowded streets, there was no telling where an assassin might appear from.
Since the incidents had occurred amid such thick crowds, spotting the enemy had been extremely difficult.
If not for whatever was causing that sense of incongruity—the thing that suppressed killing intent and similar emotions—they might have been able to sense hostile intent even in a crowd. But as things stood, they still couldn't.
In other words, they'd had no choice but to detect and defend against the enemy the instant they made their move.
Attempting that, though, naturally raised the difficulty considerably.
Set was probably relieved to be free of all that tension.
Seeing Set roaming the area in a relaxed, carefree manner, Rei felt his own mood settle as well.
Rei hadn't appeared particularly bothered despite being targeted by assassins, but even so, the tension had clearly weighed on him more than he let on.
As a change of pace, this was by no means a bad spot.
"...Wafuu."
When he turned his gaze toward the sudden cry, a puppy was standing there.
"Ah... I see."
Rei understood at once.
This place wasn't somewhere people frequented.
Which meant that for any creature wanting to avoid humans, it was also an ideal hiding spot.
And the puppy at the center of Rei's gaze was exactly that—something that didn't want to be found by people.
But when the puppy returned to its hiding spot, what it found there was Rei... well, that aside, Gryphon Seto.
From the puppy's perspective, it wouldn't have been strange to feel that death was certain the moment they met.
Even so, the fact that it didn't flee meant this place was that important to it.
An act that could only be called reckless.
But because the other party was Set, the puppy's gamble didn't cost it its life.
"Gruu?"
Set looked at the puppy and let out a short cry.
It wasn't the kind of sound directed at a foe. If anything, it was a gentle, nurturing cry.
A cry that might have meant "want to play?" or "come over here," though its exact meaning was hard to pin down.
Precisely because it was Set, it must have taken a liking to the puppy that stood its ground instead of running away.
"Kyau?"
A questioning sound escaped the puppy's mouth.
It had been ready to confront the creature that had stolen its resting place, but instead of hostility, Set was radiating a friendly atmosphere—and so its confusion was only natural.
"Wau... waf?"
Perhaps judging that Set meant it no harm, the puppy let out a tentative cry and stepped forward—one step, then two, then three—approaching timidly but surely.
An existence overwhelmingly larger than itself, overwhelmingly above it in every way, something it normally couldn't even approach. No—something it should have fled from the moment it entered its field of vision, or else resigned itself to death.
And yet, rather than acting hostile, Set was showing nothing but friendliness.
When the puppy reached Set's side, it looked up.
Indeed, between the three-meter-long Set and a puppy, there was no way to fully take in Set's form without literally craning its neck.
And from up close, Set's sheer enormity was impossible to miss.
...Despite that vast gulf in size, Set wasn't acting aggressively toward the puppy at all. If anything, its demeanor was warm.
Eventually, perhaps moved by the small creature gazing up at it, Set crouched slightly and brought its face closer.
"Gruu?"
"...Wafuu."
The puppy was caught off guard by the sudden crouch, but it must have already grasped that Set was friendly.
Compared to its initial encounter, its cry carried far less wariness now.
And then, seeing Set gently lower its face... lick. One small lick across Set's face.
Watching from a slight distance, Rei figured that for the puppy, this was probably its way of offering a greeting.
From that moment on, Set and the puppy exchanged cries in a friendly atmosphere, as though conversing.
At least, that was how it looked to Rei.
...In reality, given the vast difference in species between Set and the puppy, actual conversation was hard to imagine. But even so, there was no mistaking that, from Rei's vantage point, the two appeared to be communicating perfectly.
"Hmm... they're really taking it easy."
Watching the puppy interact timidly with Set under the warm spring sunshine, Rei murmured to himself.
In truth, summer was already approaching, making the sunshine warm enough that calling it hot wouldn't be far off—but for Rei wearing his Dragon Robe, the temperature of the sunlight wasn't anything he needed to worry about.
As long as it wasn't overcast and the sky was blue, that was enough for now.
"Gururu?"
"Kyan, kyan!"
In the ten seconds or so that Rei had spent gazing at the blue sky, something must have happened—the puppy was now darting happily around Set.
The way it had taken to Set so completely was a clear testament to Set's remarkable nature.
(Set actually gets disliked by animals quite a bit... no, feared, I should say. Thinking about it, that puppy's kind of a big deal, isn't it?)
Even at the Wheat Inn at Dusk's stable, horses and other animals meeting Set for the first time often panicked.
After spending enough time together, the stable animals would gradually grow accustomed to Set's presence.
But even then, Rei knew, most animals still kept their distance out of caution.
Unlike those stable animals, though, the puppy currently circling Set showed not the slightest hesitation.
Watching the endearing pair, Rei felt a warm sensation bloom in his chest and began to think that keeping the puppy might not be a bad idea.
Of course, unlike Set, it didn't possess high intelligence, so the chances of it patiently waiting in a stable were slim.
If that was the case, bringing it to the Wheat Inn at Dusk would be out of the question, which meant it would have to stay at Marina's house.
Marina's courtyard was fairly spacious—large enough for Set to run around to some extent—so raising a puppy there freely would be perfectly feasible.
That said, while it was fine for now, the question of what to do when Rei and his party eventually needed to leave Gilm for an extended request still lingered.
(Marina's house has Spirit Magic handling all sorts of things, so having spirits look after the puppy might work. Or, depending on the situation, bringing it along on requests... might be possible? The real question is whether it'd get along with Ielo.)
In Rei's mind, keeping the puppy was already half-decided.
While Rei had been watching the puppy, Set—enduring the small creature clinging to it—must have also found the animal endearing, since it showed no fear and had bonded so readily.
Letting out happy cries, Set raced around the clearing with the puppy at its side.
How much time had passed?
About thirty minutes, though not quite an hour.
After spending that long, Rei suddenly noticed that Set had stopped moving.
It was shielding the puppy behind its body.
If that was the case, figuring out what had happened wasn't difficult.
Rei turned his gaze in the direction Set was staring intently... and before long—though probably not because of his gaze—nearly ten Black Garb members emerged into view.
"You lot again."
That was what slipped from Rei's mouth, and there was no doubt it reflected his honest feelings.
He recognized those Black Garb outfits.
After all, they were the same ones worn by the group that had come to the lake at night previously.
And the ones who had ambushed him to take back the captured group while he was transporting them to Gilm had worn the same Black Garb.
There was a possibility, albeit slim, that they were from a different organization despite the matching outfits.
It wasn't impossible. But even so, from what he could see, they certainly looked like they belonged to the same group.
"Heh. So luring us out to this deserted spot was your plan all along."
The Man in Black had shown himself fully aware of Rei's intent—that much was clear from his demeanor.
That the man standing before Rei was the leader of the Black Garb group was obvious from how the others were positioned around him.
Observing him, Rei opened his mouth with a look of mild surprise.
"You came out knowing that? Honestly, that's nothing short of suicide."
"Like hell. We came out because we can win. ...I figured you'd understand at least that much."
"Even if you say that, words from someone in an organization that's lost to me over and over don't carry much weight."
He'd said it half as provocation, but even so, he couldn't imagine anyone would take the bait so easily in this situation. He couldn't imagine it, and yet...
"You really want to die, don't you, you bastard!"
The man roared, his bestial nature laid bare.
Ehh... was Rei's honest reaction, but he couldn't very well show it in the current situation, so he kept it to himself.
He'd never expected that someone calling himself an assassin would fall for such simple provocation.
(Was it because his organization was insulted? Or because his comrades were insulted? ...The latter, I suppose?)
Given that he'd shown himself here, the Man in Black so openly displaying his irritation was undoubtedly regarded as a skilled fighter within his organization.
And the fact that the other Black Garb members seemed to follow him obediently suggested there was something about the shouting man.
It wasn't impossible that he'd forced the others into submission through sheer ability, but from what Rei could see, the surrounding members didn't seem to feel fear or awe toward him.
Granted, unlike the previous group, they now had their faces hidden beneath the Black Garb.
So he couldn't confirm their expressions directly, but such things could be roughly gauged from the atmosphere.
"Die? Die, huh. ...Me? And killed by whom, exactly? Don't tell me you mean the likes of you?"
"...You really do have a death wish. Just because you beat some small-fry like before, do you seriously think you can handle me? Handle us?"
"No, that's actually what I'd like to ask."
Another provocation.
Receiving it, a man already quick to anger wasn't about to stay composed.
Drawing a weapon from inside his garment, he assumed his stance and glared sharply at Rei.
Personality aside, in terms of raw ability, he was undoubtedly first-rate.
Facing Rei, the man readied his weapon—a short dagger whose blade split into three points, resembling the character for "mountain."
There existed a weapon known as the Trident Dagger.
However, since the Trident Dagger was technically a term for a weapon mounted on a long pole rather than a short blade, the man's weapon couldn't accurately be called one.
Regardless, Rei had seen such weapons in games, manga, and anime back in Japan, but this was his first time seeing anything resembling a Trident Dagger in person.
"That big mouth of yours... you're going to regret it!"
With a shout, the Man in Black broke into a dead sprint toward Rei.
His speed was considerable.
Fast enough that "like the wind" would be an apt description.
And as if chasing after the first man to charge, the other Black Garb members also broke into a run toward Rei.
Even so, in terms of sheer speed, the man with the Trident Dagger was the fastest.
Closing the distance to Rei in an instant, he raised his weapon to strike... but then, as if suddenly sensing something, he leaped backward, putting distance between them.
"Daub... what the hell are you doing?"
The other Black Garb members also gathered near the man with the Trident Dagger... and then, suddenly, turned their gazes toward a spot some distance away.
Standing there, a dagger in each hand and a smile on his face, was a man with a balloon-like physique.