On the night of the day they defeated the bull monster, Rei and his companions made camp a short distance from the Forest of Magic.
If Rei had pushed a little harder, he would have arrived at the forest right around evening. But as he'd told Zakat, he chose to enter the Forest of Magic the following morning and begin his two-night, three-day Promotion Exam from there. As a result, their afternoon travel had been leisurely, and they now found themselves camping just shy of their destination.
"This meat is delicious," Zakat murmured, savoring the skewers with genuine appreciation.
These weren't the usual prepared dishes Rei pulled from his Misty Ring. They were thigh meat from the bull monster he'd slain that day—an extremely simple preparation, just skewered, grilled, and sprinkled with salt.
It was simple enough that even Rei could manage it. Someone more skilled at cooking—Marina, for instance—could certainly have made something even better. But with no such person present, Rei had no choice but to handle it himself.
He'd asked Zakat whether he could cook, but since Zakat always left it to his companions, his skills were on par with Rei's at best, if not worse.
That was why Rei had gone with amateur skewers—seasoned with just salt, no sauce—yet despite the simplicity, the meat was genuinely delicious, as Zakat's reaction confirmed.
Since Rei had been the one cooking, the doneness left something to be desired. The uneven heat had charred the meat in spots, and the only saving grace was that at least nothing was raw. Even so, the meat had a remarkable texture that seemed to cling to the tongue—a fitting description. For thigh meat, it had surprisingly little fat, yet it remained moist and juicy, and with each bite, the meat's natural umami flooded the mouth.
"Yeah, it's delicious. Definitely glad I cut some of this off and kept it," Rei said.
"Gruuru!" Set, who was eating alongside them, let out a happy cry.
Set's call echoing through the night would have been enough to send any ordinary monster fleeing the moment it heard them. But this close to the Forest of Magic, not every monster would cower at the sound. There was a real possibility that some might decide prey was near and come investigating.
Meanwhile, unlike the two humans and one gryphon happily devouring meat, Zakat's horse was enjoying its own dinner of dried grass and water. Water aside, the dried grass was apparently made from a rather special type of herb, and to the horse, it was probably a feast. Just like the night before, the horse showed no sign of dissatisfaction.
"I get my fair share of opportunities to eat high-rank monster meat, but cuts this good are rare," Zakat said happily, though his expression soured slightly as he noticed how few skewers remained.
As an A-Rank Adventurer, Zakat undoubtedly had plenty of chances to fight high-rank monsters, just as he said. But even for him, this meat exceeded all expectations.
"Orc meat is tastier than its rank suggests, right? This bull is probably the same—better than its rank would indicate. I don't know this monster, so I can't say for sure, but..."
Rei's guess was that it was somewhere around B-Rank. Measured against A-Rank standards, it would be notably weak. Yet the fact that Rei's Flying Slash had barely scratched it confirmed it was still a fairly high-rank monster. Going by that logic, B-Rank seemed a reasonable conclusion.
"Running into a winner like this is probably just your luck, Rei. Though considering an ordinary adventurer would likely get killed without being able to do a thing, I'd say it's precisely because it's you."
"That's a gray area between compliment and not. Well, I'm happy I got the meat, so no complaints there."
In truth, while the fight had given Rei some trouble, it had been only a minor struggle. Earning such delicious meat for that level of effort was something to celebrate. At the very least, he had no complaints on that front.
If he had to manufacture one, it would be that he wished more of the creatures had shown up.
"In the Forest of Magic, there should be any number of monsters like the ones you're hoping to fight," Zakat said. "That said, they're all tough opponents. You'll need to stay on your guard."
"Here's hoping. By the way—is it within the Promotion Exam rules to ask about your previous experience in the Forest of Magic?"
"Information gathering is part of the exam, so it's not a problem. That said, there isn't much I can tell you."
"Really? I'd have thought you could hold your own reasonably well in there."
When Rei had first awakened in this world and escaped the Forest of Magic with Set, it hadn't been easy, but he'd still managed to act with a reasonable degree of composure. An A-Rank Adventurer like Zakat should have been able to do the same.
That was the assumption behind Rei's question, but Zakat shook his head.
"No—my party entered together. And as a result, we couldn't stay very long."
"Ah... I see."
They'd entered as a party. Those words alone told Rei everything he needed to know about why Zakat's group couldn't remain in the forest for long.
Rei had no way of knowing how strong Zakat's companions were. But judging by Zakat's demeanor, in terms of sheer strength, they undoubtedly fell short of him.
(In other words, B-Rank... or maybe even C-Rank?)
Of course, being in a party didn't mean everyone had to excel in combat. Even within Crimson Lotus Wings, Byune was a step—no, five or six steps—below Rei, Marina, and Vihera in raw fighting ability. But in exchange, Byune possessed correspondingly high skill as a thief, and thanks to her training with Vihera, she was a formidable combatant when viewed within her own class.
Every party member naturally had a role. But Crimson Lotus Wings had Rei and Marina alongside the pure attacker Vihera and the thief Byune. Rei brought versatility—able to handle long, mid, and close range with Magic Items, Skills, and magic. Marina could attack from a distance with her bow while also being an extraordinarily powerful Spirit Magic user, capable of handling offense, support, and healing alike. And then there was Set, the winged creature whose name the party bore—able to fly and wield a variety of Skills, a true joker in every sense.
In that regard, Crimson Lotus Wings was not merely a party but a collection of individually exceptional adventurers. With a group like that, even operating inside the Forest of Magic wouldn't force an immediate retreat. And if Elena, Ara, Ielo, and the others—not formal party members, but close companions without exaggeration—joined them, their Combat Power would only grow stronger.
"A party, huh. Same with mine—there's always a lot to navigate. How often do you have member turnover?"
For Crimson Lotus Wings, there were currently no plans for any urgent changes to the roster. However, while the others could stay indefinitely, Byune would eventually have to return to Exil. When that happened, unless Rei and the others relocated their base of operations there, Byune would inevitably leave Crimson Lotus Wings.
What to do when that time came. Maintain a three-person party, or bring in someone new? Rei hadn't decided yet.
Crimson Lotus Wings was special in many ways. With beautiful women like Marina and Vihera, plus frequent contact with Elena, bringing a man into the party carelessly was simply not an option. The fact that they already had many highly skilled members factored in as well.
(I guess if Byune leaves, it might be better to keep it to three rather than bringing in someone new.)
Turning the thought over in his mind, Rei continued the conversation.
"Let's see. Until things settled, there was a fair amount of coming and going. But once we solidified, turnover dropped off considerably."
Rei nodded in understanding. Until you actually formed a party, you never truly knew whether someone was a good fit. A person might be perfectly fine on a personal level but mismatched in ability—or the reverse. Then there were those with issues on both fronts. The most troublesome were the ones whose abilities were fine but who, for some inexplicable reason, simply didn't click with the rest of the group. You couldn't know whether someone suited your party without actually traveling with them for a while.
In that sense, Rei had been fortunate when forming Crimson Lotus Wings. They already knew each other well, and their abilities complemented one another without friction. But the same couldn't necessarily be expected of someone joining cold.
"In that case, I might need to give my party some thought too," Rei said.
"Hah? Why? Your party is Crimson Lotus Wings, right? You're all heavy hitters—no need to think about new members or anything like that."
"Not necessarily. Do you know the thief Byune?"
"Yeah, that..."
It seemed Byune's reputation had reached Zakat as well. Rei was mildly surprised, but given Byune's uniqueness in every sense, she naturally stood out even in Gilm. Not to mention, she traveled alongside a rare beauty like Vihera, and Vihera was the only one who could truly understand what Byune meant down to the finest nuance. And Byune's own features were well-proportioned—widely expected to grow into a striking beauty—which only added to her fame. There were plenty of people with unusual tastes in the world, and Byune's popularity among them was yet another factor.
"That Byune will be leaving the party before long—still a few years off, but eventually. If she were a pure vanguard, we could manage. But she's a thief."
"Ah, I see." Zakat's expression cleared with understanding.
Thieves weren't strictly essential for adventuring, but having one was undeniably convenient. Scouting, setting and disarming traps, picking locks—those capabilities were significant. But when it came to popularity among adventurers, it was a different story. Thieves, like Young Mages in their own way, weren't particularly numerous. Or rather, if skill level wasn't a factor, there were a fair number—but what Rei wanted was a thief with high proficiency and sufficient combat ability.
In reality, Byune had only reached her current level after joining Rei's group, so Rei understood that training a replacement was viable if no ready candidate appeared. Still, his honest preference was for someone who could contribute immediately.
(That said, if that's impossible, we'll just have to manage. Maybe I, Vihera, or Marina could learn thief skills. Scouting isn't an issue at all, so it would mainly be traps and locks. Could we handle those somehow too?)
For trap detection, Rei had Pale Flame magic—he could at least sense traps set in the ground, though disarming them was another matter. Alternatively, Marina might be able to manage something with Spirit Magic. As for locks, worst case, they could always just destroy them.
(Huh. Maybe it's surprisingly manageable?)
With that thought, Rei passed the night before entering the Forest of Magic.