Arc Lab ③
Reold.
I have a slight connection to him through Pies, a Koon Hunt Hired Pup.
He’s a highly skilled Seeker who pretends to be a washed-up, booze-soaked grunt from Koon Hunt.
He looks like a worn-out old guy.
But I’ve actually seen a glimpse of his strength before.
I haven’t forgotten the Knife I failed to pick up back then, either.
Reold took a swig from his flask before speaking.
“Heard about it. You became a Seeker, right?”
“Ah, yes, well…”
“Congrats. Well, talented guys end up like that, yeah?”
“Do you think so?”
“Woff-kun. Are you acquainted with these two?”
“No, he’s the only one I know.”
I have no idea who the Maid is.
I’ve never seen a Maid so beautiful it’s frightening.
“………”
The Maid is staring intently at me. A chill runs down my spine.
“Ngh… Truly troublesome…”
“Could it be that the one pulling their strings behind the scenes was—”
“Ah, hold on, hold on. Nah, nothing like that. Koon Hunt isn’t involved.”
“You. Are you from Koon Hunt?”
Bid-san was instantly wary. Reold gave a small, wry smile at her cold gaze.
“Well now, seems I’m really disliked.”
“Isn’t it what you deserve?”
The Maid spoke coldly, her voice like ringing bells.
“Well, yeah, but… Oh, right. Woff. Thanks for dealing with those idiots at the Grave of Death.”
“Yes, quite.”
Those idiots.
The Koon Hunt Seekers who took the Hired Pups to the Grave of Death, seeking glory.
It was later widely announced by Koon Hunt that they had acted alone, without permission.
Though the public derided it as merely cutting off the lizard’s tail.
“Wanna know what happened to them?”
“No. I’m not interested.”
They’re dead anyway.
Even if they were alive, they probably wouldn’t be up to any good.
More importantly, I’m genuinely not interested.
Those guys were the worst.
Even after I saved them, they took the Hired Pups hostage and demanded The Witch and Juicy-san.
I could only think they’d completely lost their minds. I still think they did.
“I see. Ah, by the way, is this your group’s doing?”
“Ngh… Maybe… Perhaps…”
“Well, yeah, I guess so.”
Reold sighed.
“Just asking, what was the reason?”
“Actually—”
I explained. Feels like I’ve been doing nothing but explaining lately.
Reold nodded along, “Hmm, hmm.”
“I see.”
“Don’t we have justification?”
“…Well, that, yeah, I guess so.”
Reold nodded reluctantly at the Maid’s words.
He tilted his head as if wondering something, but I ignored him.
“Ngh… So… What business… does Koon Hunt… have here…”
Liv-san was wary.
Reold scratched his head.
“Ah, well, I’m kinda responsible for this area. Oh, I’m Reold.”
“…Liv.”
“Bid.”
“I am Hayyarn.”
“Whoa! The rabbit talked. What is this, a Monster?”
“Is it not a Monster?”
Reold and the Maid stared scrutinizingly at Hayyarn.
I quickly interjected.
“Ah, he’s kind of like Alexander-san!”
Right after saying it, I realized they probably wouldn’t know him. However…
“I see.”
“I see.”
They both seemed to understand.
Huh, Alexander-san. Is he surprisingly well-known?
Ah, but he does stand out. A talking Land Catfish.
Well, the last one remaining was the Maid.
She nimbly twirled, pinched the hem of her skirt, and gave an elegant curtsy.
“My name is Munieca, a Maid.”
“Ngh… As I thought…”
“Why are you a Maid?”
“Because I am in service.”
“Well, yeah, but, wait, to this old guy!?”
“Hey. What’s with that look? That’s not it. Or wait, is it not that different?”
Reold wore a troubled expression.
Munieca-san glanced at him.
“By the way, you said you’re responsible for this area. Then, aren’t you the mastermind after all?”
For some reason, it was Munieca-san who pointed it out.
“No way!”
Isn’t that Maid supposed to be on his side?
“But you just left those guys alone, right? I’ve been attacked in the Dungeon by them too.”
“Seriously…?”
“Of course… I made sure every last one of them disappeared from this world.”
Well, that can’t be helped. It was then I realized something I shouldn’t have.
“…Could it be that there are women inside this building who were attacked or kidnapped?”
With that one sentence from me, all the womenfolk turned against Reold.
And Hayyarn. Stop staring so intently at Munieca-san.
Don’t tell me you fell in love, that’s not funny, you rabbit.
If we end up opposing her, I’ll hand you over without a second thought.
Anyway, Reold-san panicked.
“W-Wait, that’s not true.”
“Why can you state that with such certainty?”
Munieca-san glared at Reold as she asked.
He didn’t have a single ally.
“Th-That’s because… Alright. I’ll talk. These guys were targets under surveillance. That’s why I was watching them the whole time.”
“Surveillance?”
“Yeah, to find their… sponsor… That’s why even when women were attacked, I was helping them from the shadows.”
“What about me?”
“It’s okay to leave them alone if the power difference is too great, right?”
“I guess so, but I don’t like that kinda thing.”
Bid-san stated clearly. Right? The other women nodded too.
Then, Bid-san glanced at me for some reason before speaking to Reold.
“It’s not about the power difference. The fact is, I was attacked by a large group of men, and it was scary. Even if I could beat them… being attacked like that becomes traumatic…”
Even Reold seemed shocked by Bid-san’s earnest words.
But why did she look at me before saying that?
“My bad. I also wondered how long I should let them run loose, but I just couldn’t get a handle on these guys. And then, well, this happened.”
“Ngh… Sooner… or later… it would have.”
“Probably. So, regarding this outcome, it was bound to happen, so I don’t have any complaints, and I’m not going to say anything about you wiping them out.”
“More importantly, shouldn’t you have crushed them sooner?”
“…Just whose side have you been on this whole time?”
Reold-san grumbled irritably at Munieca-san.
Munieca-san retorted without batting an eyelid.
“I am a woman. It is only natural that I side with women.”
Well, she has a point. Reold hung his head.
“I shouldn’t have brought her…”
“Isn’t it pointless to argue about hypotheticals?”
“Tch, yeah, you’re right.”
What is the relationship between these two?
Munieca-san looked at me.
“Now then, I dislike wasting time. Disciple of The Witch.”
“Y-Yes?”
“Let us go. The necessary documents should be further inside.”
“…Documents? Ah.”
Munieca-san started walking. We followed behind her, bewildered.
Also, why did she address me like that?
About an hour of searching the house later…
We found documents and letters, but none of them were particularly important.
This building had two floors above ground and one basement level. There were many rooms, so we could have expected something.
And yet, there was no treasure, nothing. Only loose change.
However, there were no remnants of the group left. Everyone had been out in the entrance hall.
It really hit home that we had truly annihilated them.
“Ngh… Nothing… What a… bust…”
“What’s going on here?!”
“…”
It was unnatural. So unnatural that there wasn’t a single important item.
Reold understood.
“This means it’s hidden.”
“Alternatively, it’s possible there was never anything important here to begin with.”
“If that’s the case, we’re stumped.”
“Ngh… Wasted effort… loss, loss…”
A mood of resignation began to spread.
“Hey. Woff. Be careful.”
Hayyarn said from atop my shoulder.
“Shouldn’t you be careful about your own shameless behavior?”
This rabbit. During the nearly one-hour search, he spent his time clinging to Liv-san, groping her chest and touching her butt, jumping on Bid-san’s rear end, and generally going on a sexual harassment spree.
Perhaps because they were kind, they forgave him the first time or two.
But it didn’t take long for the two of them to start developing killing intent towards the pervy rabbit who got carried away.
Somehow, for some reason, I was the one who calmed them down and apologized to them.
And he was forbidden from leaving my shoulder.
Did I do something wrong?
If it weren’t for Mineha-san’s matter… if I can’t get it done, you better be prepared, Hayyarn.
“Munieca-jou. She’s disguising her appearance.”
“…What do you mean?”
“I have no proof.”
“…Please say it after you have proof.”
“Therefore, to obtain said proof, could you ask Munieca-jou to hold me?”
“………”
Wordlessly, I found the tallest bookshelf and placed Hayyarn on top of it.
He was saying something, but I ignored him and went to the next room. Just stay there and dry up.
Oh? Bid-san is looking my way as if she wants to say something.
Her rabbit ears are twitching… ah, she’s approaching.
“What are you doing? Hey, where’s the pervy rabbit?”
Bid-san drew her Swiftfoot Sword, looking around.
She paid particular attention to the floor near her feet and behind her.
“I left him over there. He won’t be causing trouble for a while.”
“I see.”
Bid-san sheathed her sword, looked right, looked left, then whispered softly in my ear.
“Hey… wanna use… you-know-what? If you’re worried about being found out, I can help.”
“…You-know-what?”
She was so close, her sweet breath tickled my ear, and my heart started pounding for some reason.
Plus, Bid-san felt warm, and there was a faint scent of flowers.
No, no. I shook my head hard mentally.
I’m not Hayyarn.
“Geez, the Relic! You know, the one that can find treasure!”
“Ah, right, I forgot. I see. There was that option.”
“How careless of you, Woff-kun.”
Bid-san smiled mischievously, still close.
“There’s just too much stuff happening around me.”
“That’s true too.”
She seemed convinced. Then Bid-san quickly moved away.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah, ahaha— Um, look, let’s use it!”
“Right then.”
Pulling myself together, I immediately used [Wheel of Fortune].
Not this room. Not that room. Not that one either. Hmm, no reaction.
“Ah, Bid-san. There’s something inside that pot over there.”
“This one, ‘ssu? What is it, ‘ssu? It’s a Key Ring, ‘ssu.”
It’s glowing green. Wh-what’s this? A green beam of light extended out from the green glow.
This is the first time something like this has happened.
“Wof-kun?”
The line of light continues underground. The basement… that was the jail, wasn’t it?
Since it was dark, I illuminated it with an Orb of Light. There was no one in the jail.
Who knows what would have happened to Reold if someone had been inside.
The line of light pointed to the wall at the back of the jail.
Something on this wall… In the center, though small and hard to spot, there’s a strangely unnatural-looking hole.
Ah, this, this is—a keyhole.
A key? Could it be…? I borrowed the Key Ring from Bid-san.
I tried the keys one by one, and the fourth one fit. When I turned it, a square section of the nearby floor vanished.
Where it vanished, there were stairs leading down.
And the green line of light extended down the stairs.