"......I apologize."
The receptionist before Rei returned his A-Rank Adventurer Guild Card and bowed her head.
"Don't worry about it. You were just looking out for me, right?"
He'd had to show his Guild Card in the first place because the receptionist had been worried about him. If she carelessly processed his registration and it caused problems later, he might end up targeted by powerful figures—or so she must have thought. She had asked him, in so many words, whether he'd really be all right.
Rei had told her there was no problem, but she couldn't simply take him at his word. Only after he handed over his Guild Card did she finally accept that he was an A-Rank Adventurer and that no one would dare cause trouble for him.
Not that anyone would try. If they did, Rei would mount an appropriate counterattack. In his case, even if the opposing party was a noble, he wouldn't hesitate for a moment.
Anyone who knew Rei's reputation would naturally know that much about him, which was exactly why they wouldn't pick a fight with him so easily. Those who didn't know him might try something, but everyone else would just see such a person as lacking in information-gathering ability. If they provoked Rei and got counterattacked, it would be their own fault.
The man serving a Count's House who had been ahead of Rei in line had treated him in a friendly manner for exactly that reason.
"For now, since you've judged me as no issue, that means I can participate in purchasing a Dolan Workshop Golem, right? Though I still don't know how they decide on the buyer."
"Yes, of course. However, those details haven't been decided yet. We're only accepting registrations at this stage, and we'll notify you of the conditions at a later date."
It was nothing but a hassle for Rei, but he figured it was better than being told it was first-come, first-served. Given the current situation, everyone else was just as clueless about the purchasing conditions as he was, so at least they were on even footing.
"Got it. Then I'll wait."
With that, Rei began filling out the documents the receptionist had handed him. It was less a reservation to purchase a Dolan Workshop Golem and more of an application form to participate in the event itself. That said, having heard they used various selling methods in the past, he filled it out without any particular sense of incongruity.
(Though I do think it's a bit odd that there's no place to write how much financial leeway you have for purchasing a Golem.)
Then again, it wasn't as though there was nowhere to indicate one's budget. There was a field for writing one's selling points. Those who were financially comfortable would probably write something like how much they were willing to pay.
Rei had initially considered writing an amount, but quickly dismissed the idea. This was a place to list his selling points—his so-called appeal points. If Rei were the wealthiest person there, it would be fine to write a number. But among the nobles and merchants, there were naturally those richer than him. Rather than fighting on the opponent's home turf, it was far more efficient to highlight his own strengths.
As payment, he could provide monsters obtained around Gilm, a frontier, along with materials from A-Rank monsters of the Forest of Magic. And while it would be fur and feathers, he could also provide a limited amount of Seto's materials, which were treated as S-Rank equivalent.
He wrote all of that down.
He considered listing the Crystal Dragon materials as well, but unfortunately, the Crystal Dragon's corpse was currently being dissected and he didn't have any materials on hand. That said, they would undoubtedly serve as a major appeal point, so he simply noted that they were currently being dissected at the Gilm Guild and would be available soon.
Finally, he wrote the Star River Inn as his contact address and filled in every remaining field on the form.
"Oh, the Star River Inn. You're staying at a fine inn."
The receptionist already understood that Rei was an A-Rank Adventurer, so seeing that he was staying at one of the best inns in Egginis didn't surprise her in the least. She simply nodded in acceptance. Many of the people working the reception desks were themselves staying at the Star River Inn, just like Rei. Given that, the revelation hardly came as a shock.
Then, reviewing the form once more—
"Eh? This! ......Is this real?"
The receptionist's eyes landed on a particular section of the document. She nearly cried out but somehow suppressed her astonishment and turned back to Rei to confirm.
He couldn't see exactly what she was pointing at since she was holding the form, but he could at least guess what had surprised her.
"If you're talking about the Forest of Magic monster materials, it's no mistake. If you want me to show you right here and now, I can."
Hearing that confident tone, the receptionist could tell he was telling the truth. She had already understood from his A-Rank Adventurer Guild Card that Rei was highly skilled. But the fact that he could immediately provide A-Rank monster materials was a far bigger selling point than she had expected.
It seemed the receptionist wasn't familiar with the Forest of Magic; she appeared excited just by the mention of A-Rank monster materials alone, though Rei didn't notice.
"Is that so. With this, I think your chances of being selected are quite high. Plus, while limited in quantity, you even have materials from a new dragon species and gryphon materials..."
Once again, the receptionist directed a look of pure astonishment toward Rei. He was used to receiving such gazes, so without appearing the least bit bothered, he finished the remaining paperwork and left the office.
On his way out, several of the people who had been completing their own paperwork inside shot him meaningful glances, but he ignored them all. Some of those stares carried obvious malice—likely from people who didn't know or recognize Rei, wondering why a child like him was in a place like this. Or perhaps they had overheard his conversation with the receptionist, learned that he possessed A-Rank monster materials, and now saw him as a threat.
For anyone who wanted a Dolan Workshop Golem, it wouldn't be strange to resent Rei for trying to trade with something other than money. Since the workshop's Golem production volume was never high to begin with, Rei—who possessed something no amount of money could easily buy, namely A-Rank monster materials that any alchemist would covet—was nothing but a powerful rival to the other prospective buyers. It was only natural to regard him as a threat.
That said, anyone dispatched here was presumed to be reasonably competent. Most of them naturally knew who Rei was, and no matter how much malice they harbored, they didn't think they could do anything to him by force. There might be those plotting to have someone else—a skilled fighter, specifically—threaten Rei or the like. But if they actually tried something like that, they would undoubtedly regret it.
Feeling those various gazes on his back, Rei stepped out of the office and rejoined Seto, who had been waiting a short distance away.
Fortunately, it seemed no one like yesterday's Roger had tried to mess with Seto while Rei was inside. If someone had, it wouldn't have been strange to find a few bodies unconscious on the ground around the gryphon. Given that, Rei naturally concluded there had been no issues.
"Gruu!"
Spotting Rei, Seto padded over, purring happily.
Rei stroked the gryphon's head and spoke. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Let's head to the Guild. Lindy might be there."
Yesterday, thanks to Roger, his conversation with Lindy had been cut short—though through subsequent developments, Rei had already obtained a fair amount of the information he'd wanted.
The matter of Golias, however, was a different story. He hadn't managed to gather a single scrap of intel. It was only natural. When it came to the Dolan Workshop, countless people were interested. Golias, on the other hand, mattered only to those from the orphanage; to everyone else, he was just one adventurer among many. That was precisely why so many people had information about the Dolan Workshop, yet so few knew anything about Golias.
To get anywhere on that front, Rei needed to make contact with Lindy. A Golem was important, yes, but he genuinely cared about the orphanage as well—there was no denying that.
......Of course, orphanages struggling financially existed in countless numbers. Until now, Rei had had almost no contact with such places. There might even be people who would denounce his actions as hypocrisy. But as far as Rei was concerned, he was simply acting out of consideration for those he had become involved with. So if anyone wanted to call him a hypocrite, he wouldn't particularly care.
(Looking at it like this, there are still quite a lot of people lined up. At this rate, the competition for a Golem is going to be fierce.)
Gazing at the queue in front of the office, Rei mulled it over. He had declared his intention to pay with materials from A-Rank monsters of the Forest of Magic, Crystal Dragon materials, and Seto's fur and feathers—but how much interest would that actually generate among the Dolan Workshop's alchemists? That would likely be the biggest deciding factor.
Along the way, he stopped at several stalls, bought some food, and ate as he walked with Seto. Normally, he would have stored the finished skewers in his Misty Ring as garbage or tossed them into a trash bin somewhere. But here in Egginis, garbage-collecting Golems were everywhere, so he simply tossed the skewers toward one of them.
The Golem immediately detected the skewer that landed beside it, scooped it up, and deposited it into its own stomach. Watching the Golem's behavior, Rei found it almost endearing.
(If they made a Golem with a cuter exterior, couldn't they sell it as a kind of pet robot? Well, since it picks up garbage, there's the question of whether it's appropriate for a pet robot to do that sort of thing, but...)
On that particular point, there was a subtle gap in perception between the people of this world and Rei, who had lived in Japan. So when it came to how alchemists designed their Golems—their aesthetic sense, that is—Rei decided to shelve the topic for now.
"Grurru?"
"Nah, it's nothing. Let's go. Lindy might be at the Guild, so let's head that way."
Drawn out of his thoughts by Seto's cry, Rei set off toward the Guild, making a mental note to purchase a cleaning Golem as soon as possible—whatever the case with the Dolan Workshop's high-performance models.
(Golems aren't living creatures, so I can store them in my Misty Ring, right? Monster Golems and ones made by alchemists are probably different in various ways, so I should look into that to be sure.)
He thought as much, but naturally he had no intention of picking up one of the garbage-collecting Golems on the street and trying to shove it into his Misty Ring. For one thing, he had no idea who owned them. If the alchemists had simply made too many and it was a case of "if you see one you like, feel free to take it," then fine. But if that wasn't the case—and it overwhelmingly likely wasn't—he'd be committing simple theft. And if that happened, his chance to purchase a Golem from the Dolan Workshop could go up in smoke.
So he decided that any experiments with Golems would wait until after he'd properly purchased one from a workshop, a Magic Item shop, or somewhere else. Before long, the Guild came into view.
"Well, I hope Lindy's there. What do you think, Seto? Think she'll be around?"
"Gruu..."
In response to Rei's question, Seto purred in a way that said he didn't think so.
Feeling a subtly bad premonition from the gryphon's reaction, Rei left Seto outside and stepped into the Guild.