The place Pamidor led Rei and Set to was a building about a twenty minute walk away from his shop.
Like Pamidor’s shop, it was located in a back alley, but the surrounding buildings were quite old and showed no signs of being inhabited.
「……Hey, I’m starting to get a bad feeling about this.」
Could it be that the reason there was no one living nearby was because of the alchemist they were visiting?
As Rei voice the bad feeling in his mind, Pamidor quietly averted his gaze.
Given that Pamidor looked like nothing short of a brutal bandit, his expression gesture could almost be described as comical.
「There’s no mistaking his skill, so don’t worry about it.」
「……Are you really, absolutely sure? If this turns out to be all talk, I’m going to be mad, okay?」
「Yeah, you can rest easy with regards to that. There’s no problem with his skill. With his skill, that is.」
It was so important that said it twice. Sensing that kind of vibe from Pamidor, the bad feeling within Rei only grew stronger.
Would it be better to just leave without getting involved? While Rei considered that, he also knew that to repair Noiz’s magic sword, an alchemist’s skills were absolutely necessary.
That was why Rei tried to convince himself that backing down here would not only be meaningless, but completely detrimental.
「Understood. Well then, let’s go.」
「Yeah. Well, he’s not as terrible a guy as he sounds, so I don’t think you need to worry too much. Alright, here we are.」
Saying that, Pamidor pounded on the door of the house where the alchemist supposedly lived.
……Right, it was more appropriate to describe Pamidor’s actions as pounding rather than knocking.
He swung his fist as if he didn’t care if the door broke and a violent sound echoed out around them.
At first, Rei thought the door might break, but he quickly realised there was no need to worry about it.
The door didn’t creak at all, nor did any splinters of wood fly off.
(What’s with that door? Is it not made of wood?)
In appearance, it undeniably looked like an ordinary wooden door.
But considering it showed no signs of damage even when pounded on by Pamidor, a blacksmith who possessed more strength than an average adventurer, it was hard to believe it was just made of wood.
Rei thought about it for a moment, but quickly accepted it once he remembered whose house this was.
(Alchemy, huh.)
Right. This was an alchemist’s house, so this level of abnormality probably wasn’t strange at all.
While Rei was looked on in admiration, Pamidor continued pounding on the door.
「Hey, Asimov! I know you’re in there, come out!」
To someone who didn’t know better, the way Pamidor shouted made him look like a debt collector.
(If so, I guess that makes me his underling.)
An unpleasant thought crossed his mind as Rei instinctively looked around.
However, the houses on either side of the one belonging to the man Pamidor called Asimov were both empty, so there were no signs of anyone else coming out.
There were a few people passing by, but none of them seemed interested in either Rei or Pamidor.
Rei tilted his head in confusion at the surrounding reactions.
Normally, the sight of someone like Pamidor pounding on someone else’s door with all his might would be enough to get the guards called.
Yet right now, the passersby showed no signs of trying to do anything of the sort.
On the contrary, after seeing it was Pamidor pounding on the door, some were even directed sympathetic looks towards them.
A few minutes passed like that. Pamidor’s pounding grew stronger, making Rei wonder if even this sturdier than normal door would break.
Just as Rei was thinking that, the door finally opened.
「What is it…… Who is it? Hm? Ah, Pamidor. Seriously, I had only just gone to sleep a few hours ago, you know? Don’t just show up out of nowhere.」
The man who appeared from the door was somewhere between his thirties and forties, about the same age as Pamidor.
However, while Pamidor was a heavily muscled giant, the man called Asimov was quite thin.
In Rei’s eyes, he was so skinny it looked like he might only weigh half as much as Pamidor.
Despite that, there was no fear in his eyes as he looked at Pamidor.
If anything, there was a hint of displeasure.
「Listen here. Why are you still sleeping at this hour? What time do you think it is?」
「Huh? Ah……I know it’s before noon.」
「Exactly! Why are you sleeping just before noon……sigh, forget it. Anyway, I’m coming in.」
「Tch, do whatever you want.」
While cursing, Asimov readily let Pamidor into his residence……and that’s when he finally noticed Rei.
And also Set, who had been watching their exchange curiously beside Rei.
Asimov froze, as if he had been turned to stone in an instant, then slowly turned his gaze towards Pamidor with a movement that practically screamed like his joints were creaking.
「H-Hey. Pamidor. That Griffon……」
「Hm? Ah, you mean Set.」
Pamidor casually replied to Asimov’s words, but to Asimov, it was absolutely not something he could ignore.
「You can’t just say ‘Ah, you mean Set’! Why on earth is a Griffon in a place like this!? It’s an A rank monster, you know!?」
Asimov shouted with words that felt insufficient to convey his shock, but Pamidor just directed an exasperated look at him.
「Listen, Set has been in Gilm since last year. Yet you completely failed to notice? He even often walks around outside with Rei.」
「Last year!? ……Damn it, damn it, damn it! I had absolutely no idea!」
「Sigh. You really need to take an interest in things other than your alchemy.」
「Guh, th-that’s true……」
For Asimov, taking an interest in things other than alchemy was incredibly bothersome.
Normally, he would have brushed off Pamidor’s words.
But seeing a Griffon right in front of him, he couldn’t voice his complaints.
Even so, after quickly regaining his composure, Asimov sidled up to Rei.
「You, it’s safe to assume you are the master of this Griffon, right? How about it, would you be willing to part with some of this Griffon’s materials?」
The moment he heard those words, Rei’s cheek twitched.
Noticing Rei’s reaction, Pamidor frantically tried to hold Asimov back.
However, Asimov himself didn’t seem to care at all and continued speaking.
「How about it? Of course, I’ll pay a suitable reward. If you’d prefer, I could even pay you with magic items I’ve created.」
「Rejected.」
Rei rejected the offer immeidately, but Asimov didn’t back down as he pressed futher.
「Why? You look like an adventurer, right? Don’t you want magic items?」
「I certainly won’t deny that. I have a hobby of collecting magic items, after all. But that doesn’t mean I want them so badly I’d sacrifice my partner, Set.」
「……Hm?」
That must have finally brought him to his senses. Asimov realised that there was a disconnect between his intention and Rei’s understanding.
「Just so we’re clear, I’m not asking you to hand over the Griffon……Set, was it? I have no intention of asking for Set’s eyeballs, internal organs, or anything. All I want are the feathers and fur that the Griffon sheds. Maybe some Griffon saliva for something a bit unusual.」
Rei wore a slightly surprised expression at those words.
He had completely assumed Asimov was asking him to hand Set over, just like the Azoth Firm had done before.
(I overreacted, huh.)
Reflecting slightly in his heart, he petted Set, who was beside him.
「Guru~?」
What’s wrong? Set turned his gaze towards him. Rei looked back at Asimov and continued speaking.
「Say, Set. That guy is asking if he can have some of your shed feathers and fur. What do you think?」
「Gururururu~……」
Set gave a cry, sounding slightly troubled.
He was probably remembering the alchemists who had approached them while they were in the forest in the Bestir Empire.
As the silence stretched on, Asimov remained tense…… Eventually, Rei had an idea.
「Hey, do Set’s fur and feathers need to be freshly plucked?」
「Hm? Fresh is preferable if possible, but even if some time has passed, they still have their uses.」
「Then if you come to the Dusk Wheat Pavilion, I think you’ll be able to find some in the stables.」
「……What? Wait, is that really okay?」
Perhaps finding Rei’s words unexpected, Asimov asked again.
However, Rei nodded, indicating there was no problem.
「Consider it an apology for doubting you in a weird way, and besides, you’ll need a reward for your work too, right?」
「Reward?」
What was the reward for? Asimov repeated the word in his mind as Pamidor spoke up.
「Actually, the reason I brought Rei here is because there’s something we want you to do.」
「Something you want me to do? Are you asking me to make some something again? Well, if I can get Griffon materials out of it, I have no intention of refusing. So?」
「Rei.」
Prompted by Pamidor, Rei took the magic sword out of his Misty Ring and held it out towards Asimov.
The blade was snapped cleanly in half, and it was undeniably useless in its current state.
However, what surprised Asimov wasn’t the magic sword that appeared before him……but the Misty Ring Rei possessed.
「Whoa! Hey, you said your name was Rei, right? Is that……an item box? Or perhaps a degraded version?」
「Degraded version? Ah, I see. No, in that sense, it’s a true item box.」
Rei understood that by ‘degraded version,’ Asimov was referring to the pseudo item boxes like the one Elena possessed. Hearing Rei’s words, Asimov directed an intense gaze at him once again.
Despite his skinny frame, Asimov currently exuded a mysterious intimidating aura.
「Those shoes, the bracelet on your left hand, and that robe are all magic items too, right?」
「……Correct. I see, you certainly seem like a capable alchemist.」
People had seen through the magic items he wore before, but Rei never expected it to happen here as well.
Rei shrugged and directed a look of admiration at Asimov, who proceeded to circle around Rei, examining him from every angle.
「That ring is a magic item too. And a highly advanced one at that, isn’t it? ……Seriously, how on earth did you manage to get your hands on so many magic items?」
「Well, I think you’re more amazing for seeing through all of them. ……Anyway. What I want you to do is repair this magic sword.」
「Oh. This magic sword is quite the piece of work too. But it’s snapped clean in half along the blade. ……Where did you get it?」
「In the Bestir Empire, when I fought Noiz the Immovable.」
Asimov once again had a surprised expression at the name that came out of Rei’s mouth.
「Noiz the Immovable, the Bestir Empire’s S rank adventurer? Hah……just how many times are you going to surprise me?」
Despite his words, the expression on Asimov’s face was closer to understanding than surprise.
「Since you have an A rank monster with you, I suppose you managed somehow……but still, that’s amazing. Your opponent was an S rank adventurer, you know?」
「Listen here. Rei is an titled adventurer too, alright? Seriously, you need to learn to go outside instead of just holing up in your house. Even I know Rei’s name.」
「Hmph, doing experiments is much better than going outside and engaging in pointless noise.」
In response to Pamidor’s exasperated words, Asimov stated his case as if he was completely in the right.
Watching Asimov act like that, a question suddenly popped into Rei’s mind as he spoke.
「If going out into the city is that much of a bother, what do you do about food and stuff?」
If he ever went out into the city, there was a high probability he would hear Rei and Set’s names, yet he claimed he hand’t heard about them at all.
Rei asked, finding it strange, but Asimov answered as if it were nothing strange.
「Ah, I hire someone to handle my meals and shopping. I leave all those troublesome things to them. That way, I can concentrate on my alchemy.」
「……I see.」
Rei nodded at Asimov’s words, understanding that the person before him wasn’t plotting anything suspicious, but was simply an alchemy obsessed maniac who had absolutely no interest in anything other than alchemy.
(Is this going to be alright? Actually, because he’s so obsessed with alchemy, I feel like he might be even more likely to make a move on Set.)
While Rei was contemplating how to evaluate the person in front of him, Asimov interrupted his thoughts.
「Well, anyway, it’s cold talking out here, so come inside. I’ll hear the details in there.」
Saying that, he urged Rei and Pamidor to enter the house.