After discussing whether or not to take the plunge, Aoi-chan and Hina-chan ultimately decided to become adventurers—exactly as Alice had predicted.
With Luna-san’s guidance, they filled out and submitted their paperwork to the Adventurer Guild, and their several-day basic training course concluded without a hitch.
I’d been curious about their legal status, but it seemed Lilia-san had coordinated with King Ryze. Proof of Citizenship in the Kingdom of Sinfonia was issued to both of them almost immediately.
I suspected Alice might have pulled some strings behind the scenes as well, but regardless, the girls were officially adventurers now.
The day of their first request finally arrived. They would be accompanied by a guardian arranged by Alice—or more accurately, by Alice herself in disguise.
Since she was the one handling the arrangements, I—who would also be coming along—simply got my gear ready and waited in front of the mansion alongside the others.
Lilia-san, Luna-san, and Sieg-san had also come out, likely out of curiosity. Lilia-san, however, looked a bit uneasy about this mysterious guardian Alice had supposedly hired.
"Well now, you two are officially adventurers," Luna-san said warmly. "If you ever have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I'm sure things will be fine since the Phantasm King-sama is providing a supervisor, but if you ever need a Companion, I'd be happy to go with you. Though, I suppose I'm a bit out of practice..."
"Luna was a former Top-class Adventurer, after all," Sieg-san added.
Known by the alias 'Adventurer of the Black Lily', Luna-san had indeed reached the peak of her profession. Her experience was vast, and her head was filled with practical survival tips; I knew having a mentor like her nearby was a huge weight off the girls' shoulders.
While Luna-san and Sieg-san chatted pleasantly, Lilia-san scanned the horizon with a furrowed brow.
"...It's past the meeting time. Our guardian hasn't arrived yet, has she?"
"You're right," I replied. "If they were coming on foot, we should have seen them by the gate by now."
The conversation naturally turned to the identity of the person we were waiting for.
"I wonder who it could be? Is it one of the Top-class Adventurers after all?"
"Hmm, I'm not sure," Luna-san replied. "If the goal is to teach them the ropes, raw combat power isn't everything. While the Phantasm King-sama could easily hire a top-tier professional... if that's all it was, wouldn't it have been simpler for me to go?"
"...Good point," Sieg-san agreed. "If the Phantasm King-sama went through the trouble of hiring someone else, there must be a specific reason."
Aoi-chan and Hina-chan stood by, looking increasingly nervous.
I knew the Companion was Alice herself, and her choosing to supervise them personally instead of delegating it to Luna-san was a testament to how surprisingly caring she could be.
However, I still had no idea what face she intended to show the world. If she wanted to convince Lilia-san and the others that Luna-san wasn't needed, she’d have to choose a disguise of someone truly legendary.
"I haven't heard a word from Alice either," I muttered. "I wonder who she—"
"I shall provide the answer! It is I!"
" " " " " " !? " " " " " "
Suddenly, a voice responded to my mutterings... from above. Startled, we craned our necks toward the roof of the mansion, where a silhouette stood against the blinding sun, obscuring their features.
"One! Sucking the lifeblood of the world of men! Two! A life of unbridled villainy! Three! 'That has absolutely nothing to do with this right now!' Yah!"
What was with that ridiculous speech? My tension evaporated instantly as I listened to the idiotic preamble. The figure leaped from the roof, silhouetted by the sun, and landed gracefully right in front of us.
"Ta-da!"
Did she really just say the sound effects out loud? I felt a headache coming on. It seemed she had chosen an incredibly eccentric persona for this outing.
Her hair was a brown and black two-tone color scheme, like custard pudding, with only the right sideburn grown long and braided. Her back hair was tied into a single thin, long strand that swayed like a tail with every light movement.
Standing about 150 centimeters tall, the woman was dressed in light gear that looked easy to move in, featuring unique circular pouches on both hips and a cloak just large enough to cover her upper body. Striking a dramatic pose, she looked back at us and made her announcement.
"The Great Chivalrous Thief of Love and Justice who Strides across the Three Worlds! Hapty has arrived!!"
The name rang a bell. If my memory was correct, that was a massive name to drop...
In my peripheral vision, I saw Lilia-san’s knees buckle as she collapsed onto the ground.
"Milady!?"
"...Luna... that person... she said Hapty..." Lilia-san stammered.
"...She did."
"...The same name as the member of the Hero Party who went missing a thousand years ago..."
"M-Maybe it's just a different person with the same name?" Luna-san tried to offer hope.
"...This involves Kaito-san, doesn't it?"
"It's the real one. Definitely."
Hey, that’s uncalled for. Why am I being naturally treated as the cause of all these headaches? I mean, it was Alice’s doing, and since Alice is my... well, I guess it does involve me.
Regardless, standing before us was none other than the legendary self-proclaimed great chivalrous thief, Hapty, the final member of the First Hero Party.
...By the way, the book I read before described her as an all-purpose Thief, and Noin-san had described her as a money-grubber and a trouble-maker... so I was fairly certain the "chivalrous" part was entirely her own invention.