As the sun started to set, Rei and Set walked along Emoshion’s main streets.

The two of them had come for the bounty placed on the unknown monster called a Lemrace. However, their target destination was not the adventurers guild.

Normally, they would have gone to the adventurers guild to find out information on the Lemrace. However, it was already evening and many adventurers, having completed their requests for the day, would return to the guild. Because of that, Rei decided that it would be better to head to the guild to ask for information and a slightly more leisurely time tomorrow so as to not trouble the guild staff. In addition, the guards that had processed his entry into the city had told him to avoid places with large numbers of adventurers in order to avoid getting dragged into any trouble.

The guards had advised Rei with some desperation as they would really be in trouble if they had to deal with a famous adventurer and Griffon running rampant in the city.

Of course, that wasn’t all the guards did.

「Gurururu~?」

「Well, it looks like there are quite a few people who aren’t afraid of Set.」

Seeing Set tilt his head in puzzlement, Rei responded with the same action.

This was one of the things the guards had done. They had spread the information that the Griffon, Set, had contributed greatly to saving the civilians and sailors on the sinking ship.

They had also spread the information that the famous adventurer and high ranked monster would become an important force against the Lemrace.

However, the news wasn’t spread purely by the guards but also by the people and sailors that had actually been rescued. The news was also spread by the adventurers who had been on the scene as well as the sailors on the many ships that had gone out to rescue people.

「Well, there’s nothing better than there being more friendly people. I don’t want to cause a disturbance here either way.」

「Gururu~」

Of course, not everyone was friendly to Rei and Set. Some just associated Set as a monster like the Lemrace while other tried to run away as soon as they saw Set. However, there were many more looks of gratitude for assisting with the rescue operation. Most of all, there was hope that a high ranking monster like a Griffon would be able to deal with the Lemrace that was causing damage to the city of Emoshion.

「I would like to be able to meet their expectations……but, I didn’t think that it would really stay completely underwater all the time. Now then, what should we do?」

「Guru~」

Set gave a cry and rubbed his head against Rei to cheer him up.

The two of them continued down the street as Rei scratched Set’s head.

(I was thinking of using 『Dancing Fire Snakes』 as one of my trump cards, but if it never leaves the water, it’s not of much use. Maybe it’s tentacles……)

Rei thought to himself for a moment but soon remembered the time he tried to use 『Dancing Fire Snake』 on the Queen Ant.

(It’s no use, it would likely cut off its own tentacles before the fire snakes reached its main body, similar to that time fighting the Queen Ant. In the first place, I don’t even know if it has tentacles.)

He had to think of new ways to attack the monster. As Rei thought about that while he walked through the city, a fragrant smell suddenly drifted over towards him.

「Guru~」

Set must have smelled the same thing. Looking around, they searched for the source of the fragrance. And……

「Hm?」

Looking where Set’s gaze had stopped at, Rei saw a street stall. It was a street stall selling grilled seafood such as fish skewers.

Various kinds of fish were prepared and grilled on skewers. Even though they were only seasoned with salt, the sight of them being grilled on a fire and the smell of the fat burning whet their appetites.

The city of Gilm was located on a plain with no sea nearby, only mountains and forests. The only fish that could be caught were river fish. It was also true that one of the reasons Rei and Set had come to Emoshion to enjoy the seafood.

「You want to eat some?」

「Guru~!」

As Rei said, let’s eat! Set seemed to say as he nodded. The two of them immediately went over to the stall.

The closer they got, the more fragrant the smell of grilled fish became and the more appetite they felt.

In fact, there were already nearly ten people around the stall, happily eating seafood that had been grilled on skewers or on metal nets, perhaps for dinner.

「Woah!」

In the midst of all this, a man eating a skewer with a fluorescent green fish about 30cm in length raised an astonished voice when he saw Rei and Set……or rather, when he saw Set.

The other guests who heard his voice also turned to look at Rei and Set. However, most of them just watched on in interest without trying to run away.

Of course, not everyone stayed where they were. Some did run away in a hurry. However, they didn’t cause a commotion as it was more on reflex. It could be said that there was a vast difference between how the people acted here compared with the cities Rei had stopped along his way to Emoshion.

The old man in his 50’s who ran the street stall noticed the Griffon approaching. However, without changing his expression, he focused on grilling his food.

As Rei and Set came over……

「Boss, two fish skewers please……」

「Here, eat.」

Without letting Rei finish, he immediately served him some grilled skewers. The skewered fish had yellow and blue spots that would normally make a person hesitate to eat, but all the guests in the surroundings just started discussing in surprise.

「Hey, that’s a pretty high quality fish……」

「Yes. It’s delicious, but it’s usually a rare catch and quite expensive.」

「Moreover, because of the Lemrace, the number of people going fishing has also dropped……」

「As expected of the old man. He’s a man of great character.」

「Ah, I wanted to try it once as well. But, two silver coins is a bit much for a snack.」

Hearing the voices of the people around him, Rei realised that the fish on his skewer was worth 2 silver coins. He looked at the old man who owned the store in surprise.

「I didn’t ask for such expensive fish.」

「It’s my treat. You’re hungry aren’t you? Eat it. It’s because of you kid that a lot of people were saved from the Lemrace. It’s my thanks as a man who lives in Emoshion.」

「……I see, thank you. Thank you very much.」

Giving a brief thank you, Rei bit into the fish skewers he had been given.

The skin was so crisp that he couldn’t imagine it was fish. It started to melt as soon as it entered his mouth.

The meat was full of fat, but there was no bad aftertaste.

Rei took one bite, followed by a second, a third and a fourth in quick succession.

Next to Rei, Set was also in a good mood. However, the size of the fish was a lot smaller compared to Set, so he had eaten it in one bite, making it seem kind of lacking.

As Rei silently ate the skewers, he gave a sigh in satisfaction before calling out to the old man at the stall.

「It’s delicious.」

「Was it? Then that’s good.」

Smiling at the old man’s fatherly like attitude, Rei suddenly asked as it suddenly came to his mind.

「Could you tell me if there’s a good accommodation in this city that can accept a Griffon?」

「……Let me think. Go straight down the street, turn right at the fifth corner then walk for about 10 minutes. You will find the Blue Sea Coral Inn. It’s a bit expensive, but it will accept your Griffon. I’ve heard it’s pretty crowded right now……but, if you say it’s an introduction from Arctos, it should be fine.」

「The Blue Sea Coral Inn, I got it. That will save me a lot of trouble.」

「Don’t mind it. You’re welcome.」

Giving a brief acknowledgement of the old man’s words……no, smiling at Arctos’ words, Rei and Set were about to head towards the inn they had been directed to……when he turned around on the spot and called out to Arctos again.

「I’m sorry, but could you prepare 5 silver coins worth of skewers and shellfish?」

In the end, Rei was defeated by the taste of seafood that he hadn’t had in a long time as well as Set’s eyes.

 

 

「The Blue Sea Coral Inn. It certainly matches its name.」

Following Arctos’ directions, Rei found an impressive building that had blue walls reminiscent of the sea with coral embedded into it.

In terms of its size, it was slightly larger than the Dusk Wheat but was still only considered a medium sized inn in Emoshion, which was home to up to several times more visitors and residents compared to Gilm’s population.

「It seems to be quite busy as I was told……well, it can’t be helped given the current situation.」

Thinking of that, Rei finished chewing and swallowing his fish before storing the skewer back into the Misty Ring.

「Gurururu~」

Set gave a happy cry after seeing the beautiful building for the first time.

The Blue Sea Coral Inn. Although it was originally a relatively well hidden inn that was only known by a few people, the current city of Emoshion was filled with adventurers aiming for the Lemrace’s bounty. Naturally, many inns were short on accommodation and many adventurers crowded into the Blue Sea Coral Inn, which was originally more well known as a more hidden inn.

「……Can I even stay in this inn?」

Even from the outside, you could hear lively voices from inside the building, so Rei couldn’t help but mutter to himself. That said, he still decided he should go in to take a look as he let Set wait outside.

After entering, the first thing he saw was a large number of adventurers eating and drinking in the dining area near the back of the first floor.

Like an ordinary inn, the first floor served as a dining area and bar. The second and subsequent floors served as accommodation. After making up his mind, Rei called out to a girl in her mid teens who was at the inn counter.

「Excuse me, I’d like to rent a place to stay.」

「Eh? Ah……I’m sorry, it’s a little hard right now. As you can see, all our rooms are filled.」

Rei understood right away as the girl told him apologetically.

As far as he could see from the inn’s entrance, the dining room was completely packed.

However, he still decided to mention Arctos’ name just in case.

「I was introduced here by an old man called Arctos who runs a street stall……is that still no good?」

「An introduction from Arctos-san!? U-Umm……wait a minute. I’ll ask my father right away.」

After Rei said that, the girl immediately ran off towards the dining area, leaving him behind.

「So, what do I do?」

As expected, Rei was a bit surprised by the sudden developments, but fortunately the girl returned in less than a minute.

However, the difference was that this time was that there was a woman in her 30’s behind her who seemed to be her mother.

(No, didn’t she say she was going to ask her father?)

Just as he was thinking about that, the girl’s mother, who appeared to be the proprietress here, called out to him.

「I heard you were introduced by Arctos-san.」

「Yes. After I bought some skewers from him, I asked about where I could find a place to stay and he introduced this place to me.」

「Pardon me, but I don’t think that Arctos-san would introduce someone to us just because they bought skewers from him.」

「I was told it was thanks for helping out the civilians and sailors who were on the ship that was sunk by the Lemrace.」

「……Ah! The customers from the city were talking about that!」

At Rei’s words, they probably understood why he had been given an introduction. Their somewhat doubtful expressions turned into smiles.

「Were you the one with the Griffon that they were talking about?」

「That’s right. So, can I stay here?」

「If you’re asking whether you can stay or not, you can stay……」

The girl’s mother seemed hesitant to speak. Seeing her mother like that, the girl spoke up herself.

「Right now, all our usual rooms have been filled.」

「I thought that was the case.」

Rei looked towards the dining area again. He could see many adventurers having their meals.

「In that case, I’ll look for another inn……」

「No!」

As Rei was about to say he would start looking for another inn, the girl immediately cut him off.

「I can prepare a different room from the usual ones, is that fine with you?」

「A different room from the usual ones?」

「Yes. It’s a room in a corner which is about half the size of the other rooms……」

After thinking about it for a few seconds, Rei nodded his head.

「Well, I don’t care about the size of the room as long as I have a place to sleep and eat. Would I be able to take that room?」

「Ah, yes. Hey, mother. That’s okay, right?」

「Y-Yes. It’s an introduction from Arctos-san and it’s fine to use that room. He’s also a benefactor of the city, so he’s very welcome.」

「So, how much will it cost? Oh, I’d like you to include food for the Griffon.」

「It will be one silver coin per day, including breakfast and dinner.」

Rei expressed his surprise at the cheap fee.

Even at the Dusk Wheat Inn in Gilm, it was 3 silver coins a night, excluding the cost of Set’s food. Considering the number of people currently in the city as well as the usual prices, it could only be considered extremely cheap.

「You have an introduction from Arctos-san and a benefactor of our city, we can’t take any more from you. Even though we can provide a room, it’s also half the size of our usual ones……」

Pressed by those words, Rei decided to stay in the Blue Sea Coral Inn during the rest of his stay in Emoshion.

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