「Heh, so you guys were on an escort mission. You’ve took on a pretty troublesome request considering how cold it is this time of the year.」

「Ahahaha. Well, we managed to get back to Gilm before it started snowing, so it ended up working out for us.」

Ekril gave a wry smile at Rei’s words as she turned to look out the carriage window.

Yes, the members of Scorching Wind were currently riding inside the carriage along with Rei and the others.

Originally, adding three more passengers would have exceeded the carriage’s capacity, but Ekril was an archer who prioritised nimble movement and she had quite a small build.

Sulunin, who wore a somewhat uncomfortable expression, was a mage, so he didn’t have any bulky equipment outside of his staff.

And above all, Milein and Johanna weren’t inside the carriage at all, instead they were walking outside, right alongside Set.

Just as Rei had anticipated, despite both being Set-lovers, neither was willing to back down to the other, so their relationship could hardly be called good.

Even so, if the two of them fought openly, it made Set sad, which was why they were currently in cold war of sorts.

(I guess two alphas can’t share the same space.)

Rei thought to himself as he watched Milein and Johanna walking outside the window, flanking Set on either side.

The snow that had started falling before they entered Gilm was coming down quite a bit now, making one wonder why it hadn’t snowed until now.

It was a good thing there was no wind, but if there had been any, it would have undoubtedly turned into a blizzard.

「This…the snow is going to pile up.」

「Indeed. The Gamelion hunting season is probably nearing its end. Since the hunting period was short this year, the price of meat will unfortunately be on the high side…but even so, it’s a huge help that they could be hunted at all. This is all thanks to you, Rei-kun.」

Sulunin spoke to Rei as he turned to look at him.

「Didn’t you guys go Gamelion hunting? Surely you’re more than capable of defeating them.」

「Milein said she wanted to go. But we couldn’t turn down this escort request either.」

「Ahahaha. In Milein’s case, it’s not like she wants to sell the Gamelions, her real target is the meat.」

Ekril spoke while looking out at the two walking alongside Set through the falling snow.

「Ah, that’s probably the same for our Johanna. If she hears that Set likes Gamelion meat, she won’t sell her share of the meat from this hunt either and will probably give it all to Set.」

One of the former guerrilla force members spoke up, his gaze following Ekril’s out the window.

The others inside the carriage nodded in agreement.

「Looking at them like this, those two are birds of a feather. That’s exactly why they can’t stand each other.」

Everyone nodded in agreement at Rei’s words.

However, considering the number of people packed inside, even an exchange like this made the carriage feel quite cramped.

「By the way, the snow was quite late this year, wasn’t it.」

Realising that continuing this topic would lead to all sorts of troublesome discussions, Sulunin changed the subject while looking outside.

「Well, true, I did feel like the snow was later than usual this year. But as someone living in Gilm, the later the snow falls, the more helpful it is. It’s the same for Scorching Wind, right? You said you were on an escort mission, so you must know well enough that escorting someone through snow is much harder than usual.」

「That’s true. Bandits don’t show up much around here, but monster attacks are always a possibility. Considering that, snow is never a welcome thing as it obscures your visibility.」

Rei listened to Rent and Sulunin’s conversation, and he finally let out a faint sigh of relief when the guild came into view.

「We’re finally here. …For now, my job ends once I hand over the Gamelions, right?」

「Hold on a second. Don’t tell me you’re planning to run away just like that?」

Rent directed a glare towards Rei, as if he wouldn’t dream of letting him escape, but Rei simply shrugged his shoulders, completely unbothered.

「What do you mean run away? In the first place, my job was to find the Gamelions and transport the corpses. Since I’ve done exactly that, it’s not like I’m running away…」

「You’re being naive.」

Sulunin cut in, interrupting Rei.

He directed a gaze that carried a hint of pity towards Rei.

「Even if you leave this place, what Milein and Johanna-san are obsessed with is Set. They will probably chase right after you, you know? Don’t you think it would be better to resolve things here properly to prevent that?」

「…Well, as someone who has to dismantle the Gamelions, I’d prefer if Rei didn’t head home just yet either.」

With Rent agreeing with Sulunin, Rei was completely at a loss for words.

In reality, he could easily anticipate that even if he dumped the Gamelion corpses here and left with Set, Milein and Johanna would undoubtedly follow him.

「Where are you going to dismantle the Gamelions?」

「Hmm? Oh, no need to worry about that. Didn’t I tell you I secured a place? I talked to the guild and rented the training ground. That’s why we are heading to the guild in the first place.」

Rent smiled, clearly proud of his thorough preparations, though there was no doubt he had originally wanted to show off this efficiency to Johanna.

The very same Johanna who was currently outside competing with Milein.

Amidst the awkward atmosphere, the carriage finally arrived at the guild.

「Alright, let’s get moving right away. Johanna, we’re going to dismantle the Gamelions, so come with us.」

「Milein, we need to report that the escort request is successfully finished, so please come along. You are the party leader, after all.」

Called by Rent and Sulunin respectively, the two women reluctantly separated from Set, though they maintained their beaming smiles while remaining wary of each other.

Johanna headed towards the training ground with Rent and the others, while Milein headed inside the guild with Sulunin and Ekril.

Both fully understood that they had met their match, a natural enemy in a completely different sense than usual meaning of the term.

「Gururu~……」

Set gave a soft cry as if saying ‘see you later’, completely oblivious to the rivalry between the two women.

To Set, both Milein and Johanna were simply people who doted on him.

His honest desire was for them to get along without fighting.

Then again, the fact that they never let Set perceive a hint of their underlying hostility showed just how shrewd they truly were.

(I guess being birds of a feather shows up in these kinds of moments too.)

Rei watched them leave, but Rent quickly came back to him with hurried steps.

「Come on, Rei. If you don’t come, we can’t dismantle the Gamelions. It’s already freezing cold since it’s snowing, so let’s finish this quickly!」

「…No, it might be a bit late to ask, but isn’t dismantling them while it’s snowing incredibly hard? Couldn’t you hire a different location?」

The thought of the warehouse near The Satisfied Stomach flashed through Rei’s mind, but while it would be a different matter if it were Gamelions he had hunted for himself, his role this time was strictly limited to finding the Gamelions and transporting the corpses.

He couldn’t exactly go out of his way to hire that warehouse, or more accurately, the dismantling shed, like he had done last year.

(Besides, Gamelion hunting is at its peak right now. The Satisfied Stomach is probably swamped with dismantling the portions they’re serving anyway.)

It was exactly around this time last year that he had hunted Gamelions, which led to the creation of udon.

Only a single year had passed since then, yet to Rei, it felt like an incredibly long time ago.

「Look, there are merchants who provide places for dismantling, but that costs money. On top of that, at this time of year, they’re so busy you need to book way in advance.」

Rent explained, but Rei countered.

「No, I’m completely fine myself. I just need to pull out the Gamelion corpses from my item box. But won’t it be tough for you guys working in this cold?」

More importantly, in Rei’s case, the Dragon Robe would automatically regulate his temperature.

But even though Rent, Johanna, and the others were wearing winter clothing over their armour, it didn’t mean they could completely stave off the cold while it was snowing.

「Everywhere else was packed, so there’s nothing we can do about it. Besides…look, we’re not the only ones out here. And we’ve taken some measures against the cold.」

Following Rent’s gaze towards the training ground, Rei spotted lights.

Numerous bonfires were set up inside the training ground, both for light and warmth.

Furthermore, close to ten parties had brought in their handcarts loaded with Gamelion corpses and were busy dismantling them.

「Wow……」

The unexpected sight cause Rei to unintentionally voice his surprise and amazement.

Perhaps sensing Rei’s surprise, Rent put on a proud grin as he spoke.

「How’s that, surprised? Well, it’s a bit of a local specialty of Gilm…though maybe that’s an exaggeration, but that’s what it feels like. Oh, that spot over there is open. Rei, over there please.」

Prompted by Rent, who had directed his gaze towards an open space inside the training ground, Rei moved near one of the bonfires and began pulling the Gamelion corpses out from the Misty Ring one after another.

The first one was severed cleanly in half, but the remaining corpses were in pristine condition.

Of course, since they had been defeated using weapons, they sustained a certain amount of injuries.

Even so, compared to the first corpse that had been sliced right down the middle, they could definitely be described as pristine.

「That’s a huge help. Well, this technically concludes your job, Rei…is it fine if I bring your reward over to your inn tomorrow?」

「Yeah, I’ll be looking forward to it.」

Rei replied, remembering the rich taste of the cheese he had sampled earlier. Rent bowed his head deeply.

「Thanks for today. Thanks to you, we were able to successfully hunt Gamelions like this. I appreciate it.」

「Rei-san, thank you very much. Please say thank you to Set-chan for me too. I’ll make sure to visit your inn sometime.」

Johanna spoke with a beaming smile, but Rent, who was listening nearby, showed no signs of panic.

He fully understood that Johanna’s goal wasn’t to see Rei, but rather Set, who would be resting in the stables.

……Though, getting Johanna, who was completely obsessed with Set, to turn her attention toward him was going to be an uphill battle.

The other former guerrilla force members stepped forward next to express their gratitude to Rei.

「Don’t worry about it, I was hired by Rent today. Like I said, I’m getting properly rewarded anyway. More importantly, you guys are the ones who might take some time getting used to various things now that you’re living in Gilm, so let me know if anything happens. I’m the one who brought you all here after all, so I’ll give you a hand if you need it.」

「Rei-san…」

Giving a small smile at Johanna’s soft murmur, Rei left the area.

The gazes watching him leave were filled with deep gratitude.

Of course, Rei himself paid no mind to those gazes.

It wasn’t that he wanted to be thanked, rather, he simply felt a sense of responsibility since he was the one who had brought them to this city, meaning he ought to look out for them to that extent.

However, that exact thoughtfulness felt incredibly reassuring and warm to Johanna and the rest of the former guerrilla force members.

Watching Rei depart, Johanna spoke up.

「Alright, let’s start dismantling the Gamelions. Captain Rei did all this for us, so we can’t let ourselves lose to the cold.」

「True. …Though, Johanna. Your way of addressing Rei-san went back to ‘Captain Rei’.」

At the words of one of the former guerrilla force members, Johanna quickly clapped a hand over her mouth.

It had likely been a completely unconscious action.

Seeing Johanna like that, Rent directed a gaze laced with a faint hint of jealousy towards her.

Even so, the reason his jealousy remained mild was because he knew the look in Johanna’s eyes when she looked at Rei was strictly that towards a dependable figure, not an expression of romantic interest towards a member of the opposite sex.

(Well, considering Rei’s age, there’s absolutely no way Johanna would look at him as a man. It’d make people wonder just how much of a shotacon she is.)

Rent thought to himself, an idea that would undoubtedly earn him a painful blow if a certain General Princess or a certain battle-crazed former princess ever found out.

……While wondering why a sudden cold shiver had just run down his spine, he convinced himself it was simply due to the falling snow.

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