“Another Seeker from outside? And from Japan…”
Muller paused, realizing something.
“Could it be, they came in response to the German government’s request?”
“That’s right. We came to Germany as promised. But it seems we were too late… I apologize for not making it in time.”
Rui lowered his head. Muller looked incredulous that support Seekers had actually come from Japan.
“Muller-san. We couldn’t help the German government. But we can help you all. We will definitely defeat the Conglomerate, so in return, we want the [White Magic Gem] you were supposed to receive as a reward. Do you know where the Magic Gem is now?”
Hearing that, Muller looked even more perplexed.
“Defeat the Conglomerate? You guys?”
Rui nodded, a hint of confidence in his voice. “Leave it to us!”
“Don’t be ridiculous… No one can defeat that monster. Don’t waste your time.”
“We can do it. But we’re not going to defeat it for free! Tell me if the Magic Gem you promised is still there.”
Muller fell silent at Rui’s assertive tone.
Yuma listened quietly to Rui’s words, saying nothing. Either way, they needed to defeat the Conglomerate to leave Berlin.
Rui probably intended to help these people regardless of the reward.
Even so, he was negotiating with government officials. Yuma was impressed by Rui’s ability to do what he could never do.
“…Fine. It’s not like you’ll ever get your hands on it anyway.”
“So, the Magic Gem is safe!”
Rui and Yuma’s faces lit up.
“I can’t say for sure that it’s completely safe, but there’s a high probability it is. The Magic Gem should be stored in a government facility in Potsdam.”
“Potsdam…”
Rui turned to Felix, meeting his gaze.
“Do you know where Potsdam is?”
“Ah, yes… I know, but…”
Felix trailed off. Rui asked, “What is it? Is there a problem?”
Felix hesitated before speaking.
“Potsdam is… a city outside of Berlin.”
◇◇◇
Walking along a road piled with rubble, Rui and Yuma stopped in front of a collapsed building.
Felix, who had guided them, turned to look at them.
“This is the border of Berlin. If you cross this, the Conglomerate will automatically attack. Are you sure you want to do this?”
To Felix, who asked anxiously, Rui replied firmly.
“It’s okay. We’ll definitely defeat the monster and make sure you can all get out.”
Yuma nodded confidently.
“Leave it to us, Felix-san! We’ll beat the Conglomerate to a pulp. Just stay back, it’s dangerous here.”
“Ah, okay.”
Felix moved away from Yuma and Rui, crossing the road to the sidewalk.
There stood Emilia, Muller, and a large man named Wolfgang, who had come with them.
Felix found it annoying, but he couldn’t refuse their request to come along.
Felix stood a little away from the three, watching Rui and Yuma.
At that moment, he overheard Emilia’s conversation. Wolfgang was shouting something loudly.
Felix kept his eyes forward, but he listened to Emilia and the others.
◇◇◇
“Are you really going to let them do this!?”
It was Wolfgang who raised his voice. He frowned, glaring at Emilia.
“What if the Conglomerate goes on a rampage because of your meddling? It’s a miracle that Tzore Station is still intact! Why would you deliberately put it in danger…”
Emilia replied without changing her expression to Wolfgang, who was expressing his anxiety.
“Even if we live safely in Tzore, we’ll run out of food soon. Either way, we have no future. You know that too, don’t you?”
“That’s… true, but if we run out of food, we’ll go and get more! There’s no need to take such a risk.”
Emilia shook her head at Wolfgang’s words.
“We’ve been getting food from nearby stores so far. If we want to collect more long-lasting food, we’ll have to go further afield. If that happens, we’ll inevitably encounter Monsters. Can you beat the Marionettes?”
Wolfgang bit his lip. Emilia was right.
Securing food for the surviving humans was now an urgent problem, and no solution had been found.
That’s why there was even talk of killing the people in the Underground City and stealing their food.
Emilia gently touched Wolfgang’s arm, who looked distressed.
“But it’s not like there’s no hope at all.”
“What do you mean?”
Emilia looked away from the confused Wolfgang and looked at the two Seekers from Japan.
“I heard a little about Japan before.”
“What kind of rumors about Japan?”
“Muller-san probably knows more about that than I do.”
Muller adjusted his glasses and muttered, “Ah.”
“There was a rumor that Japan had repelled the [Red King] at one point.”
“Red King? What’s that?”
Wolfgang looked puzzled. It was the first time he had heard the word, as he was neither a Seeker nor a government official.
“A powerful monster. A supernatural monster said to turn cities to ash with a single blow.”
“Turn cities to ash!? There’s no way you can defeat a monster like that, right? How did Japan repel such a monster?”
Muller quietly closed his eyes.
“I don’t know. Most people in the government didn’t believe it. But it was none other than the International Dungeon Research Organization (IDR) that spread the information. I don’t think it’s a complete fabrication.”
“Isn’t that just because the Japanese army was strong!?”
Muller smiled faintly.
“It’s a monster said to have annihilated the Russian and Chinese armies. How could Japan compete? Above all, modern weapons shouldn’t work against such a monster.”
“Then, then…”
Wolfgang swallowed hard.
“Yes, I can only think that there were some very talented Seekers.”
“You’re saying those guys have that kind of power?”
“I don’t know. It seems that even the IDR doesn’t have all the details. But perhaps they are more capable than Germany’s strongest Seeker Clan, ‘Schherz’.”