Rei and his group ran toward the Slum District.
Naturally, a group like theirs running through the streets—especially fleeing as if something were chasing them—would stand out under normal circumstances. But it was nighttime, and with few workshops other than the Dolan Workshop in this area and hardly anyone around, they drew less attention than expected.
That said, going completely unnoticed was impossible. A handful of people caught sight of Rei's group fleeing and wondered what was going on.
"What in the world happened?"
"Who knows? Not our problem, right?"
"True, but... one of the people running had a gryphon. You know the rumors, right?"
"Crimson, huh. Still, I don't think he'd cause a major disturbance in a place like this... ah."
The two men had been walking and talking as they watched the group race past, but their conversation died when they spotted a band of more than ten armed men charging from the direction Rei's group had fled—the Dolan Workshop.
Given what they had just witnessed, they could say with certainty that this armed group was pursuing Rei and his companions.
The man at the front of the pursuing group shouted at them.
"Did you see which way the ones who ran went!"
The sheer force behind the question made the men feel that lying could get them killed—or at the very least, beaten. Half on instinct, they answered.
"They went that way! Over there!"
One of the men pointed in the direction Rei's group had fled.
When the man leading the pursuit realized the pointed direction led toward the Slum District, he let out an annoyed sigh but still offered his thanks.
"Appreciate it!"
With that, the pursuing group brushed past them.
Once the pursuers had completely disappeared, one of the men muttered.
"I wonder what happened?"
"Don't ask me. It's obviously connected to that Crimson... Rei group from just now, but something else must have happened on top of that. What in the world could it be?"
His friend replied that naturally, he had no idea what had happened—and in the current situation, the detailed circumstances were beyond their knowledge.
...Or perhaps if they followed that group from earlier, they might have found out what happened. But they had no intention of doing anything so reckless.
If they carelessly got tangled up in trouble here, there was no denying the possibility that they themselves might meet a grim end.
Given that, they had no intention of involving themselves any further. About the only use they could think of for what they had just witnessed was turning it into a topic of conversation at a tavern somewhere.
In reality, if this matter needed to be kept truly secret, spreading it as a tavern tale carried the risk of being silenced—but that thought apparently never occurred to them.
And so, the men prioritized putting as much distance between themselves and this place as quickly as possible.
"Rei, pursuers coming from behind!"
Lindy, running at the rear, shouted toward Rei at the front.
Beside her, Seto was running.
At Rei's request, Seto was guarding the rear of the group alongside Lindy.
The fact that Lindy showed little fear despite confirming the adventurers pursuing from behind—those hired as guards by the Dolan Workshop—was largely thanks to Seto's presence.
The reason they had been caught up to so quickly was, naturally, that everyone other than Rei, Lindy, and Seto was slow.
Rei, Seto, and Lindy, who was an active adventurer, were one thing. The others were by no means accustomed to daily exercise.
Anne had some stamina from working at the orphanage and running around with the children, but that was the extent of it.
The alchemists, Ilunara in particular, spent their days doing nothing but research, so they were inevitably lacking in physical ability.
Since the group was matching its pace to these people, their speed was naturally slow.
At the very least, compared to the pursuers behind them, there was a clear gap in speed.
"Seto!"
Hearing Lindy's call, Rei immediately shouted Seto's name.
That alone was enough for Seto to understand what Rei wanted. He abruptly changed direction mid-stride—directly behind, the exact opposite direction.
If an ordinary person tried something like that, they would without a doubt twist an ankle. Depending on the circumstances, severing an Achilles tendon or fracturing an ankle bone would not have been out of the question.
But that was only the case for ordinary people.
For a high-rank monster like a gryphon, such a maneuver would fundamentally never result in injury.
Lindy, running beside him, wore a startled expression at Seto's sudden movement.
"Grrrrrl!"
"Wait, Rei!?"
Startled by Seto's sudden action, Lindy shouted at Rei to ask what he was doing, but Rei answered without breaking stride.
"Don't worry about it! Leave the rear enemies to Seto! Our top priority right now is fleeing!"
What rang through Rei's words was absolute trust.
He trusted Seto enough to leave this entirely in his hands with full peace of mind.
Right now, rather than defeating enemies, reaching the Slum District as quickly as possible was the highest priority.
Rei ran with that determination, and the others desperately chased after him.
Unlike those moving away with Rei, Seto—entrusted with the rear by Rei—reversed course and charged straight into the pursuers coming after them.
"Ugh, uwaaaaaaaah!"
A scream tore from the mouth of the man running at the front of the pursuers.
He clearly had not expected the very targets they were chasing to come barreling toward them.
When the lead runner faltered in confusion, those behind him naturally assumed something had happened—and in that instant, Seto let out a thunderous cry that echoed through the surroundings.
"Grrrrrrrrl!"
Seto's King's Intimidation activated. The adventurer at the front froze mid-stride.
Naturally, stopping dead while running at full speed meant tumbling forward with all his momentum and crashing into the ground.
Those running behind the first one to fall tripped as well, colliding with the bodies in front of them.
As a result, the lead runners and those nearby were not only knocked down but caught up in their companions' falls, sustaining injuries that were by no means minor.
Some among them suffered fractures.
"Grrrl."
Seeing all the pursuers on the ground, Seto purred in satisfaction and immediately turned on his heel.
That unhurried demeanor was more than enough to give anyone watching the impression of a monster king.
Pursue further, and death was certain.
His attitude conveyed that with absolute clarity.
That was why the pursuers could do nothing but silently watch him go.
...Not that they could have moved even if they tried, still under the effects of King's Intimidation.
"Can anyone move?"
After Seto vanished from view, someone among those on the ground muttered.
But no one present responded.
"Kyaa!"
Lindy screamed at the roar that suddenly erupted from behind.
She hurriedly checked behind her, only to find every single pursuer fallen flat on the ground.
The roar had caused that—of that much, there was no doubt.
She had no idea what had happened, but there was no mistaking that the roar was responsible.
What in the world happened?
She harbored the question, but this was not the moment to ask Rei.
While she hesitated, Seto caught up from behind.
"Grru!"
Lindy could not understand the meaning of Seto's cry.
Even so, it certainly seemed like Seto was saying everything was fine now—and in fact, that impression appeared to be correct.
"Thank you, Seto."
Because she could read Seto's demeanor, Lindy was able to offer her gratitude to him honestly.
At Lindy's words, Seto purred happily.
And so, Rei's group continued running until they reached the Slum District they had been aiming for.
"Haa, haa, haa, haa..."
Rei slowed his pace upon arriving at the Slum District.
From behind came the sound of heavy breathing.
Several people had collapsed on the ground, lying spread-eagled, drawing in violent breaths.
"Well... for now, it seems we're safe."
Under normal circumstances, if a group like theirs were here, it would not be strange for the Slum District residents to attack immediately.
But even the residents could not bring themselves to believe that Rei's group was an easy target.
In fact, that judgment was correct.
If they had attempted an attack, they would have been effortlessly cut down by Rei and Seto—that much was certain.
Or perhaps, if anyone among them was even slightly well-informed, they would know the story of what had happened a few days earlier—when Rei and Seto entered the Slum District, those who had tried to target them were caught by Rei and disappeared.
In reality, Rei had simply asked for the location of Fusetsu's hideout, handed over axes as the information fee, and the two men who provided the tip had fled the Slum District with the axes in hand. That was all there was to it.
"I'd like to get in touch with Fusetsu beforehand if possible... but that's easier said than done."
After all, their combat power was far too insufficient.
Rei, Seto, and then Lindy, who fell considerably below them.
These two and one creature had to protect this many people while moving through the Slum District.
Additionally, while Seto's King's Intimidation had prevented the first wave of pursuers from continuing their chase, if a second wave of reinforcements had been dispatched, they would naturally not be under the effect of King's Intimidation—and the possibility of them reaching the Slum District could not be denied.
In that case, Lindy could handle one or two opponents, but dealing with more than that would be difficult.
But sending Lindy—who had no connection to Fusetsu—to Fusetsu's hideout was out of the question.
As for Seto, the major issue was that no one on Fusetsu's side could understand his speech.
There was a chance that Seto going there would lead them to recognize his connection with Rei and judge that Rei was calling for them, prompting them to act—but Rei had no desire to rely on something so uncertain.
That being the case, Rei had no choice but to go himself. But if Rei left, that in itself would put the group in a precarious position.
With Seto present, there would be no issue in terms of combat power, but the only one here who could properly understand Seto was Rei.
If some troublesome situation arose under those circumstances, it would undoubtedly only become more complicated.
But sending several people with stamina to spare to Fusetsu's hideout was also out of the question.
They did not know where the hideout was, and in terms of combat ability, they were nothing more than ordinary people.
"In the end, moving everyone together like this is the best option. ...Time to get up. On your feet, let's go."
At Rei's decisive words, those collapsed on the ground somehow struggled to their feet.
They might have wanted to complain under normal circumstances, but it was self-evident that being here, in this situation, was dangerous.
If they were going to rest, they wanted to do it somewhere more secure.
That was why, no matter how hard it was, they needed to stand and keep moving now.
...Slum District residents watching from a distance sensed something ominous about the group and judged them to be people they should not get involved with. Many quietly slipped away.
Rei was aware of the residents' movements, but right now, he needed to get everyone here to Fusetsu's hideout.
He had considered hiring locals with money to help... but unfortunately, by the time he could act on it, most of the Slum District residents had already vanished.
And so, Rei led the way at the front, guiding the alchemists and slaves through the Slum District.
Their destination: Fusetsu's hideout.
Once they reached it, he figured he could at least entrust everyone here other than himself and Seto to them. That was the thinking behind his actions.
Neither the residents at the Slum District entrance nor those deeper inside made any attempt to cause trouble for Rei's group... or so it seemed, until a single man with his face covered by a mask emerged from the road ahead.