The sun had risen, and it was already close to noon.
Though it was much later than his usual waking time, it was around then that Rei finally opened his eyes.
Sitting up from the bed and looking around, he let out a big stretch once he realised he was in his usual room at the Dusk Wheat Pavilion.
「Fuaaaaaaaah……」
Still unable to shake off his drowsiness, he surrendered himself to the slow flow of time in a daze.
About five minutes passed like that. With his mind finally starting to work, he considered his schedule for the day while getting dressed.
(Let’s see, I need to show my face at the Baron Cisne residence for now. I left the escort duties to Freon and the others, so there shouldn’t be any worries. No, since Keep and his subordinates were captured in the first place, there shouldn’t be any need to worry about an ambush anymore.)
Having finished getting ready, he finally put on the Dragon Robe taken out from the Misty Ring, stepped out of the room, and headed for the dining room.
On the way, he passed several guests, but for some reason, many seemed rather restless.
Sensing the restless atmosphere drifting through the inn, he entered the dining room, and at that moment, the gazes of the people inside turned towards Rei.
Probably because noon was approaching, there were guests having an early lunch as well as those those killing time in the dining room because it was winter.
「Hey, it’s Rei. Do you know about yesterday’s matter?」
「Yeah. You mean the guy he fought in the duel at the festival attacking the Baron Cisne family?」
「Not quite. It was the noble who hired that guy Zeros whom Rei fought in the duel. Word is he didn’t want to pay the half of his fortune he wagered, so he brought hired men to slaughter everyone in the Baron Cisne family.」
「Ah, I heard, I heard. And Rei anticipated that, ambushed them with his companions, and rounded them all up in one fell swoop, right?」
「Seems so. Rumour has it that noble had all his arms and legs severed.」
「Even so, I wonder what that red stuff appearing around his body during the duel was. Just looking at it made my body freeze up.」
「Yeah, exactly, and there was a B rank adventurer near me, but even that guy was paralysed. Sweat pouring down his face.」
「……Even though they’re both B rank? As expected, Rei is extraordinary in more ways than one.」
「Well, of course. In the first place, his duel opponent was also a B rank adventurer.」
From the contents he overheard, it was immediately apparent that they were talking about the duel and last night’s ambush.
Rei took a seat at a table and placed an order for food with Lana without showing much concern, as being the subject of rumours was an everyday occurrence for him.
(Keep only lost both arms, not his arms and legs. As usual, rumours grow exaggerated fast. Where did the information leak from? The city guards? Or the adventurers Freon brought along? Well, either is fine.)
While drinking a glass of water and idly listening to the surrounding rumours to pass the time until his food arrived, he suddenly paused his actions as he was lifting the glass to his mouth.
「Was that carriage loaded with treasure related to that noble as well?」
「Yeah, apparently so. A corpse was left behind. It was crushed by the carriage and supposedly in quite a terrible state, though.」
Tilting his head at those words, Rei directed his gaze towards the direction where the conversation came from.
It was a spot not that far from Rei’s table.
It was a conversation between two men who appeared to be adventurers.
Seeing their familiar faces, Rei stood up.
They were individuals who had come up in conversations with Kenny and Lenora for being shrewd enough to make the Dusk Wheat Pavilion their regular inn despite being C rank and not high rank adventurers.
Both men were in their early twenties, one being a Human and the other a Rat Beastkin.
Approaching the table where the men were seated, Rei spoke to the two men looking at him.
「Sorry, but could you tell me a bit more about what you were just discussing?」
「Eh? A-Ah. I don’t mind, but……is that okay?」
「Ah, yeah.」
Though the two were clearly older than Rei, their attitude towards him was still that of someone addressing a superior.
That was due to the difference in rank, but above all because it was obvious he possessed strength that even B rank adventurers could not hope to match.
Furthermore, Rei was a person who had climbed to that position in less than two years since arriving in Gilm and registering as an adventurer.
Being such a figure, quite a few men harboured feelings bordering on admiration toward him.
……Of course, given Rei’s personality, there were also quite a few who disliked him.
Fortunately, these two were favourable towards Rei. While surprised at being addressed, they promptly urged Rei to take a seat.
What Rei then heard from the two was that late last night, Furtos had been found crushed to death beneath an overturned carriage.
Furthermore, judging from the bloodstains left on the coachman’s seat, the one driving the carriage was likely Furtos himself, and valuables, gold coins, and even platinum coins had been loaded into the carriage.
「……In other words, what? Was that guy Furtos ordered by Keep to transport the treasure?」
「No, I doubt it. If that were the case, he would have hired a professional coachman rather than Furtos. Considering that man Furtos’s physique, you wouldn’t think he’d willingly act as a coachman, right?」
At those words, Furtos’s figure flashed through Rei’s mind.
A figure so fat he seemed to weigh two, three times……or potentially even more than Rei.
(With that physique, willingly acting as a coachman……normally no one would think so.)
Nodding in understanding, what Rei ultimately concluded was something that made him inadvertently furrow his brow.
「In other words, he used his master as a decoy and fled?」
「That’s the common view. ……And there was also talk that his death was because you pulled strings, but it seems that isn’t the case.」
Rei nodded as if that were obvious.
Using the master one served as a disposable pawn was something Rei could not have anticipated.
It might have been different had he known Furtos’s personality, but the only times Rei met Furtos were when Ashie was harassed at the Baron Cisne family’s residence, when visiting the Margrave’s residence regarding the duel, and during the duel itself.
If asked whether Rei himself had conversed with Furtos on those occasions, he had almost no memory of it.
For better or worse, Keep’s personality had left a strong impression.
「……In that case, who did it?」
At the other man’s words, Rei spoke with a cynical smile.
「Probably someone who couldn’t leave their own disgrace running loose.」
「Eh? Does that mean……」
Before the man, who understood whom those words referred to, could say anything, Rei stood up from his seat.
「Thanks for the information. If anything comes up, let me know. I’ll lend a hand in return if I can.」
Leaving those words to the two adventurers who were shocked by the implication of the Royalist Faction’s involvement, Rei returned to his original table.
「Ah, Rei. Welcome. Thank you for your hard work yesterday.」
Having finished his meal in the dining room, Rei arrived at the Baron Cisne residence.
Ashie greeted Rei with a happy expression.
That was natural. If not for Rei, she likely would have been turned into a noble’s plaything.
Having saved her from that and protected her life, along with Mouet and Baslero, she could never thank Rei enough.
「Don’t worry about it. More importantly, has anything happened since then?」
「No. The escorts remained just in case, but there was no disturbance in particular.」
「I see, that’s good. ……So, is Mouet here? I want to discuss various things regarding this matter.」
「Understood, I will call him right away. Please come inside.」
Guided by Ashie, Rei stepped straight into the reception room he had used before.
Herb tea and dried fruit were promptly prepared.
She had likely served the same items because she remembered Rei enjoying them last time.
Popping the sweet and sour dried fruit into his mouth and washing down the sweetness with herb tea, he ate and drank with an appetite that made it seem like he hadn’t just eaten a hefty meal at the Dusk Wheat Pavilion and snacked from street stalls with Set on the way to the noble district.
Or rather, for Rei, it was likely considered a light palate cleanser.
Just as he finished the herb tea, Mouet appeared as if having timed his entrance.
Understanding that the discussion concerned this matter, Mouet was the only one who entered the reception room.
「Sorry to keep you waiting. Now, regarding today’s business……it’s about the duel, isn’t it?」
「Yeah. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but you know that fat man who was an attendant to Keep? It seems he died.」
「Yes, I was informed about that by the city guards. Apparently, he was shot and killed with an arrow.」
「……Hm? No, from what I heard, he was run over by a carriage.」
When Rei asked while recalling the information heard at the Dusk Wheat Pavilion, Mouet shook his head.
「No, the direct cause of death seems to have been the arrow piercing his chest. Falling to the ground from that impact and getting run over by the carriage was……」
「I see. And the culprit is as expected?」
「Yes. While there is no proof, it is likely a purge at the hands of the Royalist Faction. Though, whether that purge was because he tried to steal the Earl Eliel family’s fortune and flee, or if he was caught in the aftermath of Keep-dono bringing shame to the Royalist Faction……they say they do not know which it is.」
From the words spoken by Mouet, Rei suspected it was probably the latter.
There was no clear reason, but he felt that was likely the case.
「Well, with this, there’s no one on their side left to do anything, so this house is safe. Ah, I’ll leave the rewards for the adventurer guards to you.」
「Yes, of course. If not for Freon and the others, I, Baslero, and Ashie would likely be dead. I have no intention of withholding rewards from our saviours. ……Um, and regarding Rei’s reward……」
He hesitated awkwardly.
That was natural. In this incident, the one who worked the hardest was undoubtedly Rei.
Correspondingly, it was natural that his reward would be higher.
Furthermore, Rei was a high rank adventurer at B rank, and possessed a title to boot.
「Ah, that’s fine. You don’t need to force yourself right now. It’s fine to wait until the assets from the Earl Eliel family arrive.」
「……That would make me feel guilty, so please accept at least this for now.」
Saying so, Mouet handed a pouch to Rei.
Inside the pouch were three gold coins.
While far from an amount sufficient to hire Rei, it was nonetheless the maximum amount the Baron Cisne family could currently offer.
Having understood that, Rei nodded slightly without saying anything in particular and stored the pouch into the Misty Ring.
「Since the problem has been cleared up, you can spend this winter at ease.」
「Yes, indeed. ……To be honest, I never imagined I would become this busy. Even after the duel concluded, I ended up drafting various documents. Such as the contract with Daska-sama.」
「Ah, the one to collect the fortune from Earl Eliel’s territory.」
「Yes. The report concerning this duel has apparently already been sent to the Royal Capital and the Earl Eliel family via messenger birds summoned by magic, so Daska-sama mentioned there shouldn’t be any particular issues, but……」
Trailing off, Mouet did not look very happy.
That was because he anticipated that some dispute would undoubtedly occur.
Even so, he let out a faint sigh of relief, likely because he could return to his usual daily life from now on.
For some time now, Mouet, who originally disliked standing out, had been placed heavily in the spotlight.
With those days coming to an end, he could return to his everyday life.
(Of course, with such a massive commotion having occurred, the name of the Baron Cisne family has undoubtedly been seared strongly into the minds of Gilm’s residents.)
Mouet understood that as well.
Furthermore, there was no doubt the name had become known to the Royalist Faction to which the Earl Eliel family belonged.
Though he would be able to live quiet days starting today, it remained a fact that things could not return completely to how they were before.
Just then, Rei’s gaze was suddenly drawn toward the door.
At the same time, the door opened, and Baslero appeared.
「Rei, I’ve come up with a special move! Could you please take a look at it!」
Perhaps because the Flame Emperor’s Crimson Armour Rei displayed during the duel had left a strong impression, Baslero’s eyes were filled with the hope of creating his own special move.
(Well, it’s a good thing I was able to protect this smile, at least.)
Seeing Ashie standing behind Baslero, Rei smiled and stood up from the sofa he was sitting on.
「I see, a special move. I’d definitely like to see that. Is the courtyard fine?」
「Yes!」
Together with Baslero, who wore a happy smile, Rei walked out of the room.