Rei, Lazaria, and Set—one person and one beast—made their way through the Slum District.
Though it was collectively called the Slum District, the area contained all kinds of places. There was the main street where Rei had encountered the man from Black Dog, and there were also the narrow alleys that same man had led him through to reach the Black Dog hideout.
If one were to categorize the routes, Lazaria was undoubtedly taking the narrow paths.
Narrow enough that Set had to use Size Change again.
Naturally, Lazaria was surprised when Set shrank down to about seventy centimeters using Size Change. She probably never imagined the gryphon could become that small.
The reason Rei demonstrated the skill so readily was because he had already shown it to the man who had guided him to the hideout. That man had surely passed the information along to Black Dog.
An unknown skill possessed by Set would be extremely valuable intelligence—information that many people would want to get their hands on.
That said, Rei didn't think Black Dog would sell their information so easily. But since they undoubtedly already knew about Size Change, he saw no problem using it in front of Lazaria.
"Still, you're taking us through some really narrow paths."
At Rei's murmur, Lazaria, walking ahead, nodded and spoke up.
"I was planning to take slightly wider roads at first, but once I learned Set-chan can shrink down. The bigger roads inevitably draw attention, and while it's one thing for me, when Rei-san and Set-chan are walking together, you really stand out."
"Ah... well, that's true."
"Gruu?"
When Rei agreed with Lazaria's words, Set tilted its head as if to say, Really?
For Set, who always stood out anyway, being told it was conspicuous wasn't anything particularly worth worrying about.
(If it were just me, the Dragon Robe's effect would probably keep me from standing out... but even if that happened, I feel like I'd just get dragged into a different kind of trouble.)
When Set wasn't around and someone couldn't recognize Rei as Rei, they would often perceive him as simply a mage's apprentice, or a mage who had just become an adventurer. Because of that, it wouldn't be strange for Slum District residents to see him as easy prey.
...Though if they made that mistake and attacked Rei, they would ultimately meet the worst possible end.
"Putting the roads aside... how long until we reach the first organization's hideout?"
"It's soon. Since they only recently came to Gilm, they haven't grasped all the narrow paths like these shortcuts, unlike the main roads. That's why we can reach the hideout without being interfered with by the enemy. ...Look, see over there."
What Lazaria pointed to was a building just around the corner of the narrow path.
Three stories tall, it was larger than the Black Dog hideout. However, its exterior was quite old—a building that looked like it would collapse immediately if a major earthquake hit.
"That's it?"
"Yes. An organization called Blue Spear. As the name suggests, many of its members are said to use spears."
"...Spears, huh."
Hearing Lazaria's words, Rei tried to recall whether any of the assassins he had encountered in this incident had been carrying a spear, but none came to mind. It was possible there had been someone who used a spear as a weapon, but they probably hadn't shown enough strength or surprise to leave an impression on Rei.
"So it's certain that this Blue Spear organization sent assassins after me, right? I wouldn't think so, but maybe this Blue Spear organization is simply hostile toward Black Dog, and you're tricking me into crushing them... no, that doesn't seem to be the case."
Lazaria nodded repeatedly, over and over. To her, deceiving and using Rei seemed like nothing short of suicide. At the very least, she had no intention of doing such a thing.
...Though Lazaria was merely guiding Rei to a location she had been told about beforehand, so if Black Dog's upper echelons—especially Zoraku—were using Rei, there was a real possibility she was being deceived as well.
"Then fine. Come to think of it, Zoraku wouldn't do something that stupid either."
If he did, Zoraku would undoubtedly be disliked by Marina, whom he regarded as a sister or mother. Rei couldn't imagine Zoraku doing such a thing, so he concluded that the building in his line of sight was unquestionably a hideout used by one of the enemy organizations.
(If possible, I'd hope that organization turns out to be the source of this unease.)
Honestly, the fact that he was being targeted was one thing, but his true desire was to deal with the sense of unease first. Because of it, sensing killing intent and the like had become extremely difficult, and being assaulted by such discomfort the entire time he was in Gilm was no laughing matter.
Of course, it was also an undeniable fact that he couldn't just ignore the assassin situation.
(For now, their vigilance is... lax.)
Hiding in the shadow of a building to avoid being seen, Rei directed his gaze toward the hideout. Its security didn't look fully airtight. It wasn't that there were no guards—but their security was only on par with the Black Dog hideout, far too lenient for an opponent hostile to Rei.
(Huh? Could it be... they haven't noticed at all that I've come to the Slum District? No, that... can't be right, can it?)
At the very least, the assassin who used hypnosis or brainwashing should have known Rei had come to the Slum District. After all, Rei had actually been attacked there.
And yet, the fact that those guarding the hideout showed no signs of being on alert for Rei bothered him. What on earth could cause them to act like that? Rei had absolutely no idea.
(No, could it be... they haven't noticed I'm in the Slum District? An organization that uses spears as their symbolic weapon, and an assassin who uses hypnosis or brainwashing—their areas of expertise are completely different. And whether they're a new organization or whatever, there's no doubt they're separate entities.)
The emerging organizations were likely cooperating for now to defeat Rei, but that also meant once Rei was taken down, there would be no need to cooperate anymore. When considering what would happen after the "war"—an expression that might be slightly exaggerated—it wasn't strange for them to want organizations other than their own to be as weak as possible.
That said, this was purely Rei's speculation.
"So, what are you going to do? With Set-chan here, a diversionary tactic..."
"Huh?"
At Lazaria's words, Rei gave her a look that genuinely said he had no idea what she was talking about. It wasn't just Rei—even Set was giving her the same look.
"Eh?"
Faced with the stares of that one person and one beast, Lazaria simply couldn't understand what Rei and Set were thinking.
"Um, well... we're going to attack that building, right? Then we'd need to create a diversion or..."
"Don't need that. Rather than a diversion, I'll charge in from the front and take them down. By doing that, I can teach the enemy... and organizations other than this Blue Spear or whatever, just how strong we are."
"...Are you, um, serious?"
For Lazaria, rather than asking if he was serious, she honestly wanted to ask if he was sane.
She had heard he was going to crush an organization. She had heard that, but she figured he would use the Flame Magic he excelled at to manage it somehow.
...Actually, Rei hadn't dismissed that idea either. But if he did something like that and obliterated the entire building, he would no longer be able to extract information about the assassins targeting him, and more importantly, about the unease he'd felt since coming to Gilm.
On top of that, the Magic Items Blue Spear possessed would be burned to ashes.
Since this wasn't some kind of request but rather an effort to deal with those trying to assassinate him, Rei wanted to claim the Magic Items and treasures owned by Blue Spear and the other organizations as compensation for his troubles, if possible.
Considering those circumstances, Rei decided that smashing them head-on was the best choice.
...Though this was something only Rei, an Alias Holder adventurer, could pull off. For an ordinary adventurer, it would be nothing short of suicide.
"I'm serious. For now, Lazaria, hide here. Make sure the Blue Spear people don't find you. Set, let's go."
"Gruu."
"Eh, ah, wa..."
Leaving Lazaria behind, Rei walked toward the Blue Spear hideout without any sign of tension. Naturally, Set followed, and Lazaria, left alone, hesitated over how to call out to Rei—by which point he had already moved well away from her.
If Lazaria called out to him here, her voice would undoubtedly be heard by the Blue Spear guards.
Understanding that, Lazaria quietly hid in the shadow of the building, praying that Blue Spear would be destroyed as quickly as possible.
"Hm? Hey, look."
The one who spoke was a member of Blue Spear. True to the organization's name, he held a blue-dyed spear in his hand. The man he called out to was likewise holding a blue spear.
"A gryphon... tch, it's a raid! I'll buy as much time as I can, you go tell the guys inside the building!"
Blue Spear was hostile toward Rei. Naturally, they had informed their members of this fact.
The same could be said for the other organizations, but their misfortune was probably coming to Gilm as an organization. That was why, even though they had information about Rei, they didn't truly understand how strong he was.
Of course, they had gathered information by buying various intel from information brokers and the like, or taking it by force. But relying solely on what they'd heard from others was a significant disadvantage in this situation.
That was why the Blue Spear guard told his companion to call for reinforcements while he bought time. He didn't think he could win the fight, and it was questionable whether he could even stall. But buying time didn't necessarily mean he had to fight.
Seeing his colleague say just one word—"Got it"—and slip into the hideout, the remaining man tried to somehow mask his nervousness and deliberately spoke in a light tone.
"You must be Crimson Rei-san. What business do you have with our organization?"
"Business? In this case, do you really need to be told?"
"Huh? I have no idea what you're talking about. Our organization has—gah!"
They had never clashed with Rei. That was what the man tried to say, but before he could finish, Rei stepped forward and grabbed the man's throat with his right hand.
With just that, the man couldn't move a muscle.
...Well, strictly speaking, he could still move his arms and legs if he tried, but he half-instinctively realized that doing so would get his throat crushed. This was probably what it meant to still be someone from an underworld organization, despite everything.
"Unfortunately, I hate lies. So go to sleep for a bit."
Saying that, Rei punched the man's belly with his left hand while still gripping his throat with his right. His internal organs didn't rupture, but the sensation of breaking bones transmitted to Rei's left hand.
From that pain and shock, the man lost consciousness instantly.
"Hmph."
Rei tossed the man aside, still holding him with one hand.
...If Rei had been taller than the man, it might have looked impressive. But unfortunately, Rei's height was by no means tall. So even when the man's throat was grabbed, his feet weren't dangling in the air—they were firmly planted on the ground.
When he was thrown to the ground like this, his feet lightly scraped along the surface as he was sent flying, which slightly reduced the speed at which he was thrown. That was probably one of the few lucky breaks the man got.
"Set, I'm going inside the building. You stay outside and keep watch. If anyone tries to flee or someone who was outside for some reason comes back, take them down."
Picking up the blue spear that had fallen from the man's hand and storing it in his Misty Ring, Rei gave Set his orders.
Naturally, Set had no reason to refuse Rei's request and purred as if to say, Leave it to me!
After giving Set's head a pat, Rei entered the Blue Spear hideout.