Legend

Inside a store in Teito. In it, Ray was observing carefully without any unconsciousness from one man.

The man, the store owner, has no idea what's going on and speaks to the man who came inside the store.

"Hey, did you do something to this guy? Don't interrupt me when I get a chance to see magic items around the corner."

It was a man in his 30s and 40s who came into the store. I guess I know the owner of the store. Exhale with a sharp look.

"You can say I'll get in the way. I just walked into the store, didn't I? You, too, don't make me so..."

A man with a look like he was out of his mind at the words of the shopkeeper gives a look of surprise as he realizes something when he turns his gaze to Ray.

What dwelt in that gaze was a complex intertwining of surprise, curiosity, and vigilance that we could encounter unexpected beings.

Ray, who is being gazed at, exposes his vigilance throughout his body.... Yes, because I sensed half instinctively that the man in front of me was not the only one.

The man must have noticed that too. Eventually I open my mouth when I draw an arc on my lips.

"Can I talk to you for a second?

"... am I with you? You're not laughing."

"Of course I'm not kidding. You know what I mean? And to you."

Ray also understands what the other person is saying to words that seem to mislead something.

Ask yourself...... no, I just have to nod at the words as if to confirm.

"Right...... right. Apparently, that's better."

But only the store owner protests with a disgruntled look before two people who know something they don't understand.

Ray in front of him is wearing a magic item that is neither first-rate nor super-class. As a shop owner selling magic items, I would have liked to have touched more for the after-school.

"Sorry, Mine. But I can't give up on this one.... and so will you"

"Oh."

Ray strikes an association without hesitation.

After seeing how those two were doing, I guess they decided that it would just be useless to interrupt any more. The shopkeeper, called Mine, looks toward the man with an abominable sigh of sigh.

"Damn, the time in the corner is ruined because of Cascarda. Fine, all right. I'll pull this off. That's all right, right? But I'll pay you back exactly what I owe you later."

"Sorry."

Smaller words of apology to the familiar shopkeeper, the man called Cascarda turns to Ray and leaves the store without saying anything in particular.

Ray also leaves the store trying to follow the man without saying anything in particular again.

Left Mine in the store with an unfortunate look on his face.

"It would be nice here."

That's what the man told me was a small building about 10 minutes walk into the back street from the front street.

A house that isn't old enough to collapse if the wind blows, but not very new, but I can't say.

Ray follows the man who walks into it in a big way.

I'm not the kind of ray who would do such a stupid imitation if I were you, but now I was just concerned about the person in front of me.

A man who makes you feel powerful enough to get into a battle posture just by looking at each other.

(Elaine, Vihera, and... elk)

Among those who have fought before, those who can be described as powerful enemies.

It was more impossible to be interested in someone who lived in them with the same strength as the others.

Of course, the fact that the other person hasn't taken hostile action is probably why he's been following me so much.

If he had been a hostile opponent to himself from the beginning, he would have exercised the magic of fire with all his might, even though it was in the Empire City.

From Ray's eyes, the person in front of him seemed like someone with that much strength.

"Come in. Needless to say, I'm not willing to be hostile to you. At least for now..."

"If you do, I'd appreciate it."

Return the words briefly and enter the building.

While I'm surprised it's cleaned up more beautifully than I expected from the outside, Ray is prompted to sit in a small room guided by a man, that's the chair in a room about six tatami sizes.

Move the chair slightly away from the table and lower your hips.

If anything happened, it was from the thought that I could handle it right away... and the man who saw it smiles bitterly and takes out the water splash and cup from the bag hanging from his waist.

You must have noticed that Ray, who saw it, accidentally stopped moving. Smile and small distortion of the mouth, handing a glass of cold, cold water to Ray.

"What's up? Item boxes aren't unusual for you, are they? Deep Red has an item box because if you have some information, you know it."

"... I knew it was an item box too"

I am completely known about myself. I thought so for a moment, but that's all that stood out in the first place when I competed in the fight. If you're wearing a hood like you did when you were walking around the city, you're still more of an exception to a shopkeeper called Mine, who wouldn't even notice if you put the hood down.

"Well, yeah. I didn't know that anyone with an item box who was said to have an unlimited number of existing ones would meet each other this way. Don't you think that's a bit of an interesting event?

"Well, it could have been funny if they weren't you"

The man exhales small to Ray, who is obviously looking at himself with vigilant eyes.

"Don't be so vigilant.... No, it's natural to be wary of this condition. Wait a minute."

A man who exhales and turns his hands behind his neck.

Though reaching for the dagger in the dragon robe for the man's actions, what happened the next moment was enough to open Ray's eyes.

Until now, the color of the hair has turned brown to green, which is no different from a tough face, but with the eyes sharper than the eyes rising, things like the shape of the mouth, ears, or the flesh of the cheeks have changed somewhat each, and things that were in their late 30s to early 40s, even at their age, have turned into something else in their early 30s, which, taken together, is completely different from their faces a few seconds ago.

"What do you say? You see why I'm changing who I am?

A man who bends the edge of his lips small and asks with a grin.

But Ray leans his neck unintentionally without knowing what the man is saying.

I guess the man is naturally a celebrity, as long as he says it in a confident tone. But Ray was completely new to the man, and he never saw his face.

"... well, I'm not selling more names than I thought either"

If you look at your face, you can see who it is without explaining it. That's just what I thought, the man's grin is turning into a bitter laugh, unlike what it was a few seconds ago.

I was Ray still unawary of how such a man looked, but I guess I thought it was a little bad. Open your mouth to comfort somewhere.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with the circumstances of the Bestian Empire. I can imagine that you have a safe house here, possibly from the Bestian Empire."

"Right. Well, if that's the case, can't you do it? Then let me introduce myself again."

Shaking his head small as if to regain his mind, the man turns his gaze toward Ray again, as he said.

The moment I saw that eye straight from the front, the sense of crisis springing up in Ray's chest.

When the man in front of you feels dangerous, he feels that... at the same time he inadvertently realizes the identity of the person who gives him a sense of crisis so far to himself.

Yes, it's true that there aren't so many people you remember as a threat. I mean...

"High rank adventurer of the Bestian Empire, or"

"Right, that's not wrong. … let me introduce myself again. It's Rank S Adventurer noise from the Bestian Empire. Cascarda is a pseudonym for disguise."

Ray, who heard the man's... noise, flashes for a moment.

Rank s adventurer. That's the highest adventurer there are only three of us in this Elgin, too.

He had heard that there was one in the Kingdom of Mireana to which Ray himself belonged, and likewise in the Bestian Empire. But when the person was actually in front of him, the story was different.

"... I see. Rank S, or"

Whimpering, he turns his gaze to the man who once again named himself Noise.

I didn't have the ability to read magic or anything, Ray, but still something special comes from the man in front of me.

It's not rational. The instinct part teaches that the man in front of you is a very strong opponent.

But look at such a ray. Noise carries the water into the glass to his mouth.

"You don't have to be so vigilant about anything else. Just... yeah, I just wanted to talk to you."

"Talk, right. I hope it's not a grudge."

Noise slightly tilting his neck at that word out of Ray's mouth.

I don't know what you're talking about. It was obvious from the side that I really thought that way.

(No, I don't think it's possible that Rank S adventurers show their feelings that easily in the first place)

It was Ray thinking inside, but the words out of Noise's mouth were affirmations of Ray's doubts.

"Why would I resent you? I know it's about the spring war, but I have nothing to do with it. You have no reason to resent me."

"But your acquaintance died, didn't he?

"Sure, that's true. But that's what happened in there at the request of being an adventurer. That's all a single adventurer failed to do when he asked for it himself, isn't it? Why should I be angry there?

Ray somehow understands when he hears that word asking in a heartfelt wonder.

He said the person in front of him is completely dividing his job from his private life.

Of course, if someone really close, like a friend, lover, or family member is dead, it might be different, but at least they don't have any resentment toward themselves right now.

That's what I decided... but I immediately thought of another possibility and breathed in my heart.

(Completely separate work from private life. That means even close opponents can be hostile if they work. Wouldn't that happen?

In other words, even friends don't pinch personal feelings if they conflict at work. I guess that's what this is about.

Still, I'm not going to be hostile over there right now. I exhaled softly in relief because I understood it... and noticed sweat seeping through my fist that was gripped.

(Were you unconsciously afraid?...... did you recognize the opponent as strong so far since Grimm)

The figure of the one who became rich admiring Zeppyr in the back of his brain is too much.

But unlike Grimm, who was always friendly due to his relationship with Zepail, the noise in front of him doesn't necessarily make him an enemy in the future anyway now.

That's why I needed to be discreet in my words.

"Well, you don't seem angry. Above all. That's not a very good place for a Rank S person to use it."

"Hmm? Yeah, this is one of the safe houses. I use it conveniently when meeting someone without seeing them too much. Besides, there's not much furniture or anything, but most of the important stuff comes in here. You would, too, wouldn't you?

Ray also nods at the words of noise he asks as he puts his hand on the bag of his hips.

My body was still somewhat tense, but I haven't imitated it to my expression.... at least that's what he thought.

"Right. If you're in this kind of profession, you don't know when or what."

In fact, virtually everything you need, even if you lay it, is stored inside the mysteries.

Even if you stay in an inn, what you're putting out there is something you use in your normal life, and most of it doesn't matter at all if it's gone.

It is true that the Inn residents also remember being surprised a few times over the matter, and there is nothing like being able to say something towards the noise.

"Right? Especially when you're an adventurer."

"... well, then that's fine. So, why did you bring me here after all? Over this period, you're not just talking about it, are you?

"Hmm, right. It can't be without it. An alias who suddenly appeared in the kingdom of Mireana this year. It's the strongest thing you ever wanted to see in my eyes."

"Also imitate insanity"

While answering that, Ray feels no malice or harmfulness from the man sitting in front of him, and finally comes up with a slight but reassuring look.

"If you're an adventurer to a somewhat famous degree, it's still natural to gather information if you also have an alias. Especially this time because there's a real thing right in front of you."

"No, I'm not saying no. I've never had a chance to talk to a Rank S adventurer."

While exchanging words lightly, I still get a sense of compression from the person in front of me as if I had seen a giant tree thousands of years later.

There was sweat in my hand that was being held, and I felt something cold on my back more than once.

Despite that state of affairs, Ray keeps telling us for a while that he never misses the good fortune of being able to have a direct conversation with someone from Rank S.

And when I finally finished talking and broke up with Noise, even Ray, who was confident in his health, was badly drained.