Ryan-san looked thoroughly bewildered, and his surprise only deepened when he noticed me lying on the sofa.
Seeing his confusion, Reina-san explained everything that had happened.
"Ah, well... That really was out of line, Olivia-san."
"Ugh, I know that. But can you really blame me? It's [Appraisal], you know? Anyone would lose their head with excitement after unlocking something like that, wouldn't they?"
"I understand that part. What I'm scolding you for is swinging Erik-kun around like a ragdoll. As a Platinum Rank adventurer, you of all people should understand the vast gap in your statuses. Surely you know what could happen if you go flinging a Bronze Rank adventurer like Erik-kun around by force?"
"Yes. I'm truly sorry."
Olivia-san tried to offer another excuse to Ryan-san, only to be promptly shot down and scolded again by Reina-san.
"Reina-san, you really don't need to be that angry. I got a little dizzy, but I'm not hurt or anything..."
"...Sigh. Fine, I understand. Olivia-san, since Erik-kun is letting it slide, I won't press the matter any further, but please be much more careful from now on, all right?"
"Yes! Understood!"
At Reina-san's words, Olivia-san instantly snapped to attention and replied with gusto.
Once I started feeling better, I pulled up a chair, and we began our discussion.
"Even so, once word gets out that you've discovered a method to acquire [Appraisal], it's going to cause a massive uproar."
"That's why I'm planning to hold off on any public announcement for now. I want to discuss it with a few trusted acquaintances first to investigate further. Would that be all right with you, Erik-kun?"
"I was only helping out, so you don't need my permission for that, do you?"
"What are you talking about? This research only progressed because you were there to help, Erik-kun. Discovering how to acquire [Appraisal] is as much your achievement as mine, you know."
As we looked at each other, Olivia-san made that clear.
"No, really, I just assisted..."
"Hmm, but hearing the details, I have to agree your contribution was huge, Erik-kun. In the first place, we only knew which training method was effective because of your [Fixed EXP]."
"Reina-chan is right. Without that, we would have been entirely in the dark about what actually worked."
Both Reina-san and Olivia-san insisted on the matter.
They even added that my name would be credited on the research papers.
Hearing that made me want to distance myself from the credit even more.
"No, really, you don't have to put my name on it... I honestly just lent a hand."
"...Olivia-san, I think it'd be wiser to leave Erik's name out of it."
At that point, Ryan-san stepped in on my behalf.
"Oh? Why is that? Having your name immortalized on research findings is a tremendous honor, isn't it? Besides, [Appraisal] is such a huge deal that everyone will hear about it eventually."
"That's precisely the problem. Everyone will hear about it. I'm pretty sure that's what Erik wants to avoid. If it's an already famous adventurer like you, Olivia-san, you've racked up countless achievements before, so this will just be chalked up as another one of your feats. But if a name like Erik's gets dragged into the spotlight now, it's going to bring him nothing but a mountain of trouble."
"...Ah. That's a good point. That completely slipped my mind. I'm so sorry, Erik-kun. I didn't think it through."
"No, it's fine. I was struggling to find the right words myself... Thank you, Ryan-san. For saying what I couldn't."
I turned toward Ryan-san and bowed my head in gratitude.
"Don't worry about it. Olivia-san had calmed down some, but she was clearly still riding high on the excitement... Still, it might be awkward for you to publish that you discovered it entirely on your own, Olivia-san. How about vaguely hinting that you had a collaborator? That way, you can keep Erik's identity safe while still being honest that you didn't do it alone."
"Right. That sounds like the best approach. You're surprisingly adept at this kind of mediation, Guildmaster. I honestly took you for much more of a musclehead."
"Normally, I am. It's just that the shock of seeing you like that hit me so hard it knocked me into a strangely rational state of mind."
Seeing the Platinum Rank adventurer Olivia-san practically bouncing off the walls seemed to have genuinely stunned Ryan-san to his core.
Paradoxically, that initial shock was what allowed him to think so clearly and offer such sound advice.
"If only you were this level-headed all the time, imagine how much easier things would be for the guild staff—and your wife..."
"Hey, don't bring that up now. We finally had a good mood going..."
At Reina-san's teasing nag, Ryan-san grumbled with a pout.
Watching the familiar dynamic between the two, Olivia-san and I couldn't help but chuckle.
"Come to think of it, Erik, it seems like you've been cooped up training in your room all this time lately. Aren't you going to use the training grounds?"
"Ah, there were so many adventurers around that I took shelter up here. Are the grounds free right now?"
"More or less, I suppose? There are still times when it gets fairly crowded, though."
"Adventurers returning from the dungeon use the grounds for tuning up and sparring, after all... Speaking of which, I heard you guys finally ventured into the dungeon. How did it go?"
Prompted by Ryan-san's question, I thought back to yesterday.
"Let's see. The atmosphere inside the dungeon is completely different from the outside world, but there was a ton of monsters, so it was a great learning experience."
"A ton of monsters? Ah, I see. You guys were sticking to the upper floors, weren't you?"
"We were, but does that have something to do with it?"
The moment I mentioned the sheer number of monsters, Ryan-san immediately deduced our location.
"The upper floors are the least lucrative part of the dungeon, so most experienced adventurers blow right past them without bothering to fight. Because of that, monsters end up pooling there over time. You probably took down a ton of them yesterday because of the buildup, but I wouldn't expect anywhere near the same numbers today."
"Is that so? We defeated nearly three hundred monsters clearing down to the tenth floor yesterday, though..."
"They must have just accumulated over time. I keep telling the guys heading into the dungeon to cull the upper floors on their way through, but nobody ever listens. Reina, didn't you mention this to Erik and his team?"
"I knew Erik-kun and his party were planning to head back in today, so I figured I'd explain it to them once they noticed the difference firsthand."
Reina-san turned her gaze toward me with a gentle look.
"Erik-kun, don't go pushing yourselves too hard just because the haul isn't the same as yesterday, all right?"
"I know. To be honest, I think it's better this way. If we could defeat that many monsters every single day, my growth would have gotten absurdly out of hand within a month."
"Calculating from yesterday's numbers, with your [Fixed EXP], Erik-kun, you would have ended up near Level 90 in just a month, wouldn't you?"
"I actually did that exact math last night, and the reality of it terrified me so much that I forced myself to stop thinking and go to sleep."
Hearing that, Reina-san and the others burst into laughter.
"Getting scared of leveling up too fast... Honestly, Erik-kun, you might be the only person in the world who worries about something like that."
"I have to agree. Back in my active days, I was so desperate to raise my level as fast as possible that I constantly pushed myself past my limits. I'm seriously envious of your [Fixed EXP], Erik."
"As your master, I'm thrilled to see my student grow stronger, but if you overtake me in the blink of an eye, my pride as your teacher will take a serious hit. I suppose I'll have to start putting in some real effort soon myself."
After chatting with Reina-san and the others, the mood was no longer suited for rigorous training.
Instead, the four of us simply sat together and spent a relaxing morning chatting until noon.