After buying some food from a stall—nothing fancy, but something Rei at least thought looked appetizing—he and Nielson made their way toward the lord's manor.
As expected, a crowd of merchants and nobles had gathered around the grounds, all hoping to secure an audience with Daskar.
Among them were even people with no appointment at all, waiting on the slim chance that a scheduled visitor might fail to show up and leave a gap in the day's schedule—cancellation-seekers, in other words.
Rei walked past them without paying any particular notice.
"What's with that mage? Is he seriously trying to get an audience with Lord Daskar?"
"Don't be stupid. Even we can't get in that easily. There's no way some nobody mage—an apprentice, at that—could pull it off."
Thanks to the Dragon Robe's concealment effect, the robe Rei wore appeared outwardly as nothing more than an ordinary robe—the kind you could pick up at any shop.
To anyone lacking a trained eye, Rei looked like little more than a wandering apprentice adventurer.
Had Seto been at his side, it might have been a different story. But since Rei needed to avoid being recognized, passing as an apprentice mage was undeniably a stroke of luck.
"Who knows what someone like that is thinking, trying to see Lord Daskar."
"Hell if I know. Though I bet the gatekeepers just send him packing."
Letting the remarks wash over him, Rei reached the main gate.
Two gatekeepers stood posted there with spears in hand—both familiar faces to Rei.
Fixing a sharp gaze on him, one of them began to speak.
"This is the lord's manor, residence of Lord Daskar, lord of Gilm. Regarding your business—"
"Long time no see. Actually, maybe not that long, huh?"
Cutting the gatekeeper off mid-sentence, Rei spoke up.
The gatekeeper looked irritated at being interrupted, but the moment Rei raised the hood of his Dragon Robe and revealed his face, the man caught his breath.
"Rei—"
Understanding Rei's standing as he did, the gatekeeper stopped short of saying the name aloud.
If he had spoken it there, a good number of the people waiting near the main gate would have surged forward, all eager to speak with Rei—completely unaware that their earlier conversation mocking him had been overheard.
Whether merchant, noble, or otherwise, they all already knew Rei was the one who had slain the Crystal Dragon.
Given that, it was only natural they would jump at any chance to make contact—to beg him to sell Crystal Dragon materials, or to pry loose whatever information they could about the creature.
Rei wanted no part of such a spectacle, and the gatekeepers felt the same way.
With that many people already clustered near the gate, if every last one of them suddenly mobbed Rei, there was no telling how things would end up.
It would be endlessly troublesome—of that there was no doubt.
Which was exactly why the gatekeeper bit back the name the instant he recognized Rei.
"My business is that I need to see Lord Daskar."
Once he judged the gatekeeper had confirmed who he was, Rei pulled the hood back up, hiding his face once more.
With his face concealed again, the gatekeepers collected themselves and spoke.
"Lord Daskar, you say... You know as well as anyone that an audience isn't easy to come by, even for you."
"Even so, I need to see him. Send word immediately. It's... no, it's quite important."
Seeing the dead seriousness in Rei's expression, the two gatekeepers exchanged glances.
From the look of it, this was no mere courtesy call to curry favor with Daskar.
And given everything Rei had done for Gilm, the gatekeepers simply couldn't turn him away.
"Understood. But Lord Daskar is busy. Even with you requesting an audience, I can't promise he'll be able to see you right away."
"If that's the case, tell him I'm willing to wait."
For Rei, this was actually the preferable outcome.
After all, Nielson—currently tucked away inside his Dragon Robe—was itching to eat the food they had bought at the stall.
The more time she had, the better.
If anything, if he were ushered in to see Daskar right this moment, Nielson would no doubt be disappointed at missing her chance to eat.
And knowing her, she might well demand to eat her stall food while sitting in on the meeting with Daskar.
If word of something like that reached the Chief's ears, it would undoubtedly become a major headache.
Then again, Nielson was now far from the Fairy Dwelling and the Chief's watchful eye, so such concerns probably didn't even register with her.
"Got it. Let me go check."
With that, one of the gatekeepers headed off toward the manor.
The onlookers who had been watching the exchange were stunned.
An apprentice mage had tried to see the lord. Fair enough. They had assumed the gatekeepers would brush him off, and the young man would either throw a tantrum and cause a scene or slink away in disappointment.
Instead, one of the gatekeepers was now walking toward the manor—which could only mean they had decided this person actually needed to see Daskar.
"H-hey. What the hell? Why's a guy like that—"
"How should I know? I honestly have no idea, but what in the world just happened?"
"Think maybe he's actually somebody important, despite how he looks?"
"No way. The robe he was wearing was plain ordinary. I may not look it, but I've got a good eye for weapons and armor. I'll stake my reputation on it—that was nothing but a standard robe."
"We're in the middle of town. Wouldn't it be normal enough for someone to wear a plain robe as casual wear?"
In truth, it was a Dragon Robe. But unfortunately for the man who prided himself on his discerning eye, he could not see through its true nature.
Not that this was particularly surprising. The Dragon Robe was the creation of Esta Nor, an alchemist of the Zephyle Clan and the greatest alchemist in history.
There was no chance that someone with a merely decent eye for quality could pierce the concealment effect of a Dragon Robe forged by such a figure.
Though if they had been able to see through it, they might have understood why the gatekeepers were acting the way they were.
Not just the men who had been talking, but most of the people near the main gate were now casting envious, jealous, or simply bewildered looks at Rei.
Naturally, Rei was aware of the stares from the surrounding crowd as he spoke with the gatekeeper.
Being the target of such gazes was nothing new to him, and he didn't seem particularly bothered.
"Still, you picked one hell of a time to come back to Gilm."
While his partner had gone to the manor to relay Rei's request, the remaining gatekeeper struck up a conversation.
The gatekeeper was naturally well aware of Rei's current situation. If word got out that he had returned to Gilm, there was no question that a flood of people would want to see him.
Which was exactly why Rei was supposed to have stayed away in the first place.
Rei replied with a note of mild displeasure at the gatekeeper's exasperated tone.
"You say that, but I hadn't planned on coming back to Gilm for a while yet, either. The dissection at the Guild was nearly finished, though, so I think I would have returned before too long regardless."
"Is that so? ...Still. Even with all that going on, something dragged you back to Gilm."
"Unfortunately, I can't tell you what that is."
As Rei spoke, Nielson—bored with nothing to do—was fidgeting restlessly inside his Dragon Robe.
It was faintly ticklish. Rei reflexively moved to swat at the spot through the fabric, but managed to stop himself.
"I'm not going to ask. Probably best I don't, either—sounds like the kind of thing that'd drag me right in if I heard it."
Correct.
Rei swallowed the urge to say so.
The truth was, if he said anything about the defilement here, Daskar would almost certainly slap a gag order on the gatekeepers. And it wouldn't stop there—there was a strong chance they'd be tapped as operatives when the time came to act on the situation.
Given that, keeping his mouth shut was the right call.
"Then it's better I don't know. But... looks like the manor has more people in it than before."
"Yeah. It's autumn. Lot of folks wanting to get in to see Lord Daskar before winter sets in. ...Keeps us busy, that's for sure."
The gatekeeper's face was a picture of exhaustion. Rei nodded in sympathy.
While they exchanged small talk, the gatekeeper who had gone to announce Rei's arrival returned.
"You can go inside. But he's in a meeting with another visitor right now, so he's asked you to wait. A maid will show you the way."
"Understood."
Rei nodded and passed through the gate into the lord's manor grounds.
Those watching from near the main gate bristled with resentment—why couldn't they get an audience with Daskar, yet this person was allowed inside without a second thought?
The man who had insisted Rei's robe was plain was particularly shaken, his confident assessment shattered in an instant.
Unaware of the stir behind him—or perhaps fully aware but choosing to ignore it—Rei stepped into the building.
Inside, a maid he recognized bowed to him.
"It's been a while, Rei-san. I'll show you to a guest room."
"Thanks. And no need to rush—I just need to speak with Lord Daskar, that's all. ...Though I'd appreciate not being left to cool my heels until nightfall or something."
He didn't think that would happen.
But knowing how busy Daskar was, the possibility had crossed his mind.
The maid, however, smiled and shook her head.
"I don't think Master would ever forget about you, Rei-san. He'll most likely wrap up his current meeting as quickly as he can and see you after that."
"Let's hope so."
After that, they walked in silence, following the maid's guidance to a room Rei had used before—a familiar guest room.
"Please wait a moment. I'll bring some tea and light refreshments."
The maid left, closing the door behind her.
The very next instant, as if she had been counting the seconds, Nielson burst out from inside the Dragon Robe.
"Pwahh... mmm. The Dragon Robe is comfy enough, but nothing beats being able to fly around freely like this."
True to her word, Nielson zipped around the room, looking thoroughly at ease.
For a fairy, being able to move about freely was simply the more comfortable state.
"Just so you know—when that maid comes back, make sure you stay hidden."
Rei was used to dealing with Nielson, but that was because he was Rei. If someone with no knowledge of fairies spotted her, there was no telling how they'd react—one only had to think back to Bob's reaction for an answer.
Though in Bob's case, Rei felt the man had been startled to an almost comical degree.
"I know, I know. ...Sounds like she's coming."
With that, Nielson ducked behind a decorative pot in the room.
Given the pot's size, no one would ever suspect someone was hiding behind it.
The instant Nielson was out of sight, the maid returned.
As expected, she relayed that Daskar would need a little more time, set down tea and sandwiches, and left once more.
"See? What did I tell you? As long as I stay like this, there's almost zero chance of getting caught!"
"Alright, alright. So... what's it going to be? The sandwiches, or the food from the stall?"
"Both!"
Not a second's hesitation—not even a flicker of indecision. Nielson answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
For her, eating both had probably been the plan from the start.
Exasperated by her attitude yet secretly impressed by the utter lack of hesitation, Rei reached into his Misty Ring and pulled out the food.