Watching the golems retreat from the Slum District, Rei hesitated over what to do next.
Still, he reasoned that destroying even one more golem here would ultimately reduce the Dolan Workshop's combat power. With that in mind, he decided it was best to whittle down their numbers as much as possible right now.
Alternatively, if he kept destroying golems, the Dolan Workshop's alchemist might show up to stop him. That would give Rei the chance to defeat or capture the alchemist himself.
"Power Slash!"
A single blow from Death Scythe sent a golem flying.
Like the others Rei had destroyed so far, it was a humanoid-type golem.
(As expected, no amorphous ones like water-types.)
This was the second golem he had brought down among those already in retreat. Combined with the ones he'd destroyed before the withdrawal began, that made four golems total.
He had also asked Seto to take down golems, so there was no doubt his partner had been handling things on his end as well. In other words, the majority of the golems that had been trying to flee the Slum District had already been destroyed by Rei and Seto.
There was also a chance—slim, but possible—that someone else in the Slum District had somehow managed to destroy a golem on their own.
(I don't know exactly how many golems entered the Slum District, though.)
When Rei had surveyed the area from the sky on Seto's back, he had confirmed about ten golem figures towering above the surrounding buildings. But if there were golems small enough to hide in the shadows of those buildings, even Rei couldn't have spotted them.
That was precisely why such golems, if they existed, would remain undetected and unengaged.
"At any rate... their numbers have definitely dropped significantly. I'm not sure exactly how many Seto took down, though. Then again, I did tell him I wanted to store the golem remains, so maybe he hasn't defeated that many either?"
Seto, who could fly freely through the sky, would have no trouble spotting even small golems from above. But even if he found a large number, Rei's earlier request might have held him back.
"I'd like to rendezvous with Seto. The Dolan Workshop's alchemist might be hiding somewhere around here."
Whenever Rei or Seto destroyed a golem, the remaining ones fled. It was possible they had been ordered to do so from the start. But since Rei would prefer to draw the alchemist out, he decided to act on that hopeful assumption, activating his Sleipnir boots to run up into the air and survey the area.
He ascended to a height of about ten meters before scanning his surroundings once more. That said, while the Sleipnir boots let him kick through the air, they couldn't sustain him standing in midair. On Seto's back, he could stay airborne without worrying about falling—but not here.
"He's not here."
He scanned the area, but naturally, there was no way he'd find anyone that easily. Rei began his descent toward the ground, using the Sleipnir boots several more times to kill his speed before landing.
"Hmm. The golems fled right after confirming we were destroying them, so I figured someone had to be watching from somewhere. Or maybe they're using a Magic Item like a Paired Orb to monitor the situation remotely? ...No way."
Rei understood exactly how precious a Paired Orb was—he had traveled to the Labyrinth himself to obtain one. Given that, even the Dolan Workshop shouldn't be able to acquire one so easily. And even if by some miracle they did, he couldn't imagine they'd be permitted to use it freely.
"They're alchemists, though. Maybe they created a simplified version, if not a full Paired Orb?"
Rei's Misty Ring—the Item Box—also had a simplified version with limited storage capacity. Of course, even the simplified version was quite expensive, and not something even High-Rank Adventurers could purchase casually. If even the Item Box, of which only a few existed in the entire world, was like that, then it wouldn't be strange for a simplified version of the Paired Orb to exist as well, given that it was hard to obtain but still circulated in reasonable numbers.
Or perhaps... Rei's expression soured as the thought crossed his mind.
(They were already using necromancy to create golem cores. I can't rule out the possibility that they're using souls to handle surveillance in a similar way.)
It wasn't something he wanted to imagine. But if, for example, they used necromancy to turn a human soul into an Undead—a Ghost or something similar—and deployed it like a Tamed Monster, Rei wouldn't be surprised. They were already using human souls as material for golem cores, after all.
While he was turning this over in his mind, Seto suddenly swooped down from the sky toward him.
"Grrrrr!"
Spotting Rei, Seto descended with a happy purr and rubbed his face against him, demanding praise. Rei smiled and stroked his head.
"The fact that you came to me means you're done with the golems?"
"Gruu!"
Seto gave a confirming cry. Rei smiled at his partner's enthusiasm, but quickly recalled the situation at hand.
"I'd love to spend a little more time with you, Seto, but we can't afford that right now. The Dolan Workshop's alchemist might be hiding somewhere nearby, and I want to find them."
"Grru? Gruu, grrrrrr?"
Seto purred a question: Was it okay to leave the wreckage of the golems he'd defeated where it was? Since Rei had specifically asked him to gather the remains, Seto probably thought he should deal with the wreckage first before going alchemist-hunting.
He wasn't wrong.
The Slum District residents who had fled to avoid getting caught in the crossfire between Seto and the golems would surely return once the battle was over and the victor had left. All that would remain was the golem wreckage. Naturally, they would try to claim it for themselves.
Seto didn't particularly mind if that happened. If these were ordinary monsters—ones with edible meat—it might have been a different story. But they were only golems. For Seto, golems held no great value; they were simply monsters to be defeated and nothing more. He had no objection to the Slum District residents stripping them for parts.
Even so, the fact that Seto thought to ask showed he'd picked up on Rei's concern about exactly that.
"I know how you feel, Seto, but first I want to check the area from the sky and search for the alchemist. It shouldn't take long, so we can head to where you gathered the wreckage right after."
At Rei's words, Seto seemed satisfied—or rather, he judged that if Rei said so, there was no problem. He lowered himself so Rei could mount his back.
"Thanks."
Rei voiced his gratitude. He had asked Seto to gather golem wreckage so he could store it in his Misty Ring, only to immediately reverse himself and ask Seto to search for the alchemist instead. Seto had gone along with the change without complaint.
Seto purred happily at Rei's thanks.
Rei swung onto Seto's back, and with a few running steps, Seto launched into the sky. He soared upward, but Rei surveyed the area from atop his back without any particular surprise. Flying through the sky on Seto was business as usual for him.
What he needed to do right now was find his target—the person who was likely the Dolan Workshop's alchemist. However...
"Figures it wouldn't be that easy."
Looking out over the entire Slum District from above, Rei muttered in disappointment.
The Dolan Workshop's alchemist would be fully aware that Rei could fly through the sky on Seto. Being in a spot visible from the air—say, on a rooftop—would be the same as putting up a sign asking to be found. That was why spotting the alchemist from above was extremely difficult.
"Grrr?"
Seeing Rei's frustration, Seto purred a question: What do we do?
Rei hesitated. He hadn't expected to find the alchemist easily. Still, given the situation, he had hoped that maybe...
But as long as they were up here flying, the odds of spotting anyone were slim. Should he keep searching from the sky, go deal with the golem wreckage Seto had gathered, or head to Fusetsu's hideout to check on things there?
He had plenty to do, but he couldn't handle all of it alone.
(What should I do? Start with the golem wreckage, I guess? If Seto gathered it all in one place, it shouldn't take long to store it in the Misty Ring. But... I can't deny the possibility that the alchemist might slip away while I'm doing that. Ugh. If only I had someone I could ask for help.)
If Elena, Marina, Vihera, or any of his trusted companions were here, he could have palmed off some of the more demanding tasks. But they were all in Gilm, not Egginis.
In Egginis, the only person Rei could turn to was Lindy—and Lindy's combat ability as an adventurer was only slightly above average. She was far from reliable enough for what he needed.
More importantly, Lindy was tasked with guarding Anne and the other former slaves. Rei couldn't ask her to abandon that duty to help him. She was already occupied with her own responsibilities, and she lacked the combat power to be of much use in a fight. He had no right to pull her away.
(Then Nicky? No, that won't work either. Guarding Maruka has to be his top priority.)
In terms of pure combat ability, Nicky was undoubtedly the strongest ally Rei had access to right now. But that didn't mean Nicky would abandon his guard duty over Maruka to help him. Then again, Nicky did admire Rei and called him Brother—if Rei asked him in earnest, he might prioritize helping over guarding Maruka. But then there was no telling what punishment Nicky might face once their business in Egginis was over.
Nicky himself might be fine with it, but Rei could never stomach the thought of someone who looked up to him suffering for it.
Though honestly, Rei did find it a bit odd to be called Brother by someone younger and taller than him.
"In that case, I should start with what I can do. ...Seto, head toward the golem wreckage. I'd rather secure it ourselves than let the Slum District residents take it. Sorry for the unreasonable request."
"Grrr, grrrrr."
Seto replied with a purr that said it was no trouble at all. Rei stroked the neck before him with gratitude.
Whether the attention pleased him or not, Seto gave a happy cry, flapped his wings, and dove toward the ground—toward the spot where the wreckage of the golems he'd destroyed lay waiting.
At Seto's flying speed, they reached their destination in under ten seconds. The wreckage of golems that had been heavily damaged and brought down by Seto's attacks was gathered more or less in one place...
"Figures."
It was because Seto had been away. A crowd of Slum District residents had already swarmed the golem wreckage.
"Keep your hands off! Those golems belong to me!"
The residents who had gathered around the wreckage sensed danger the instant they heard Rei's words and scrambled away from the scene.