「Captain Rei, could you store this for me?」

At an inn in the Imperial Capital.

There, Rei was storing various items into his Misty Ring at the request of a guerrilla unit member.

「Yes, that’s fine. You’re by yourself? Is there anyone else you’re bringing with you?」

「Ah, right. I’m an orphan, so I don’t have any relatives.」

「What about your party? Or did you also work solo like myself?」

「No, of course I was in a party. But, shortly before the civil war, some issues came up regarding reward distribution.」

「I see.」

As Rei stored the man’s spare armour into the Misty Ring, he gave a nod in response to his words.

An adventurer party was able to complete quests more reliably as well as ensure their individual chances of survival would be higher.

However, as group of adventurers, as a party grew larger, so did the web of relationships between individuals.

As an adventurer himself, Rei knew that this could easily lead to parties disbanding and he had seen various parties arguing on various occasions about splitting rewards and interpersonal relationships.

「Considering that, it’s easier for solo adventurers like myself.」

「……It might be understandable for low rank adventurers, but once you reach a certain point, it’s hard to stay solo. You either have to have overwhelming strength, like Captain Rei, or a special skill that no one can copy.」

「Really? ……Well, I guess that’s true. In my case I have Set, so I don’t really need a party. So, is this everything?」

Rei asked as he saw a backpack filled with camping gear, to which the man nodded.

「Yes, that’s all. Everything else are items I still need to use, so you can leave them here. I just need to put them into the carriage I was given as a reward. ……Well, honestly, one of the reasons I want to go to the Mireana Kingdom with you was because I didn’t want to stay in the Imperial Capital and be reminded of the issues that happened within my old party.」

「Looking for a fresh start? ……Well, if you’re coming with me, you can do what you want. You know where we’re meeting, right? Outside the main gate in two days, around 9am. Make sure you complete the necessary procedures to leave the Imperial Capital early.」

「Yes, thank you very much.」

「……I’ll say this first, but if you can’t make it for whatever reason, tell me in advance. If you disappear without telling me anything, I’ll have to dispose of your items.」

「Yes, I have been told that already.」

「That’s fine then. See you in two days.」

With that brief exchange, Rei left the room.

He had to take care of the luggage of over 10 people, so he didn’t have much time to dally around.

Rei had just gone to collect the luggage of a single adventurer who lived at an inn, so there hadn’t been too much to store.

The adventurer had even packed everything beforehand, but it had still taken Rei 30 minutes to store everything.

Of course, that was partly due to the fact that he slowed down to talk with the adventurer as he stored everything away.

After that, Rei left the inn to meet back up with Set, who was waiting outside. ……However, Rei had to weave his way around the people who were keeping their distance from Set.

Set might have been treated like an adorable pet by those in Mercurio’s army, but that was only because they had gotten used to his presence.

To the people in the Imperial Captial, Griffons were something most of them had never seen in their lives, they only had a strong impression of Griffons due to the fact that they were A rank monsters.

Considering that, it wasn’t surprising that most people would find it hard to approach Set.

Among those keeping a distance were soldiers, but they didn’t make any moves themselves as they could see that Set was wearing a Necklace of Subservient Monster and, most importantly……

「Sorry, but could you step back for a moment?」

「C-Crimson Rei……」

Because they knew that the Griffon belonged to Rei.

Rei was the reason the Bestire Empire had been defeated in the Spring War and, although he had lost to Noiz in the fighting tournament, he had still come second, appearing to be evenly matched. His achievements in the recent civil war could even be considered the highest.

It was said that Rei’s name was now more well known in the Bestir Empire than the Mireana Kingdom, where he had come from.

But, there wasn’t much the soldiers could do to him.

Rei hadn’t committed any crimes after all.

「Gururu~」

Set gave a happy cry after spotting Rei.

Surprised by Set’s reaction, the ring of people around him only grew.

(If they were scared of Set, they probably wouldn’t have gathered around him……maybe they’re a little interested? That would be nice.

Looking around as he thought, Rei took out a sandwich from the Misty Ring as he gave it to Set where everyone could see.

「Guru~?」

Is it okay to eat it here? Set seemed to ask as he tilted his head. Rei nodded……and the next moment, the sandwich disappeared from his hadn.

「Gururu~, Gururururu~!」

Set gave happy cries as he ate the sandwich.

To outsiders, he looked just like an adorable pet.

Those watching from the surroundings didn’t seem to understand what was going on at first.

(Hopefully this will ease their fear of Set, even if just a little.

Stroking Set as he ate the sandwich, Rei started to think about where he needed to go next.

 

 

「Hey, what were you assuming? I have no plans to leave the Imperial Capital!」

After giving Set a sandwich, Rei had gone to his next destination and was about to to knock when he heard voices coming from inside.

「Come on, it will be fine. Besides, if I stay in the Bestir Empire, I might have to fight Captain Rei on the battlefield. That’s definitely more dangerous.」

「Then why don’t you just stop being an adventurer? You’ve always said you would look to help out at my parents’ house, right? If you can work there, why do you have to do such dangerous work as an adventurer?」

「Isn’t the pay is too different!?」

「That’s true……but even if the pay is good, it’s not worth the risk. Aren’t you just selling your life? You can’t keep doing that kind of work forever!」

「I know that. I don’t believe I can be an adventurer forever either. But I can still do it now. So, I want to make some money while I still can……」

「Don’t be ridiculous! You’ve been spending every coin you earned!」

Hearing such voices from inside, Rei didn’t knock.

He couldn’t imagine carrying out a proper conversion with them right now if he did knock.

While he wasn’t sure if it was a marital dispute or a lover’s quarrel, he would definitely be dragged into it.

「……Let’s go check out the other places first and come back here later.」

「Guru~」

Set gave a cry in agreement with Rei’s words.

Better safe than sorry, Rei thought as he left.

He had the suspicion that the male adventurer inside the house might not be able to follow him back to Gilm.

 

 

「Oh, Set-chan! ……Mm, ahem. Captain Rei, you came here quite quickly.」

Seeing the woman’s wide smile as she opened the door, Rei sighed.

「Am I just an afterthought? Well, that’s fine. You seem to live in a much nicer place than I expected……why are you an adventurer again?」

「Ahaha. Well, I run quite a big shop, so there’s a lot I do.」

「……But, you’re coming with me? If you run a shop, you won’t be able to bring your family with you, right?」

「Yes. That’s why I’m going to the Mireana Kingdom by myself.」

Despite the fact it could be the last time she would see her family again, the woman smiled without a trace of sadness on her face.

「Is everything okay?」

「Yes? ……Oh, it’s note like I hate my family or anything. My shop also does business in the Mireana Kingdom, so it won’t be that hard to keep in contact with them.」

「I see. If that’s okay with you, I won’t say any more. So, where’s your luggage?」

「It’s all packed already. Please come in. ……Ah, sorry, Set. I can’t bring a Griffon inside……」

With those words, the woman went back inside, only to return shortly.

In her hand was a plate with large pieces of stewed meat on it.

The rich aroma it gave off and the rising steam made it clear that the food had been freshly cooked.

「It might take a while, so enjoy this Orc stew while you wait.」

「Gururururu~!」

Set gave a happy cry, his round eyes urging her to hurry up.

While Set’s eyes gave the woman the urge to stroke him, she refrained from doing so as she wanted Rei to collect her luggage first and placed the plate onto the ground.

Leaving behind Set, who was still giving happy cries as he ate the stew, and bringing Rei inside the house……she seemed to be letting go of something, like saying goodbye to a former lover she still held feelings for.

Along the way, they ran into a middle aged woman in her forties, probably a maid, who bowed towards Rei. Eventually, they arrived at the woman’s room at the back of the house.

「So, Captain Rei. Here’s all my luggage, I’m leaving it all in your care!」

「……You……where are you planning on going?」

Rei muttered in exasperation as he looked at the luggage inside the room.

The room was about 10 tatami in size, which was spacious by Rei’s standards, but not particularly big in Elgin.

Of course, this was the Imperial Capital, where the price of land was expensive, so it could still be considered quite a big room.

However……Rei’s reaction was due to the amount of luggage packed inside the room.

There was clearly too much. Way too much.

At the very least, it was too much to fit inside an adventurer’s lodging in an inn.

「Isn’t this too much? What kind of place are you planning on staying at in Gilm?」

「Ah, no. It will be fine. I’m planning on renting a house with some friends. This luggage also contains some things I will be selling.」

「……I see. Is that okay?」

Renting a house. The idea had never occurred to Rei.

Perhaps it was because his father had owned the house he lived in back in Japan.

(Renting, huh. Since I have the money, maybe I should buy a house. That way, Set wouldn’t be confined to the stables and would be able to wander about in the garden or something……but the Dusk Wheat Inn is also quite good.

The Dusk Wheat inn was outfitted with various magic items, allowing for a comfortable life on par with modern Japan.

In comparison, Rei definitely wouldn’t be able to live as comfortably if he rented or bought a house.

(Plus, I’d have to do my own cleaning. ……Maybe a maid? No, that wouldn’t be a good idea considering the secrets I have.)

Rei thought about it some more before eventually decided that the Dusk Wheat Inn was still his best option for now.

……Now that he had grown accustomed to living in one of the finest inns in Gilm, it wasn’t that easy to lower his quality of life.

「Captain Rei, what’s wrong?」

「Ah? Oh, nothing. By the way, how many people are planning to live in the house you’re renting?」

Rei asked as he started to store everything into the Misty Ring. The woman thought for a moment before speaking.

「We haven’t officially agreed on everyone yet, but for now, it will include all the women. As for the men……well, I’m not sure. That’s up for discussion.」

「You don’t mind living with men?」

「Of course. As an adventurer, it’s not uncommon to have to sleep alongside men during a request. ……Well, there are always those who get carried away and try to make a move, but I’ve trained myself to deal with that kind of thing.」

Coming from a woman who was part of an elite guerrilla unit, Rei could only agree.

She was more than capable of dealing with random men who tried to attack her.

That was the kind of strength she had and why she had been selected for the guerrilla unit in the first place.

She even made the gesture of crushing something in her hands as she spoke, which Rei pretended not to see.

「Just so you know, if you plan on becoming an adventurer in Gilm, it’s pretty tough, being on the frontier. It will be winter by the time we get there as well, so the guild’s requests will be a lot harder.」

「Ahh……that’s true. But, if we can sell the items that you’ve just stored for me, we should be able to get through winter somehow. Besides, the reward for this request was pretty substantial. Even with the carriage as a special reward, it’s enough to live comfortably for six months.」

As the woman spoke with a smile, Rei thought that it wasn’t that surprising for members of the guerrilla unit to be rewarded so much, considering it was an elite unit.

Even Rei himself had received an artifact from an ancient magical civilisation……the New Moon Ring, something that was probably worth several light gold Coins.

「Well, captain. That’s all my luggage, so please head over to everyone else’s place. There are still people waiting, right?」

「……Your words are a bit too suggestive out of context.」

Rei muttered, leaving the woman behind, who was laughing at Rei’s reaction, before heading to the next location.

For now, he planned on leaving the house where he had heard people arguing for last.

That was what he thought as he left.

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