Kechachakka had no idea what was going on with the spectacle unfolding before his eyes.
The person standing before him was the executive of an organization that operated under absolute secrecy. The number of usable operatives they had would be incomparable to a single agent like Kechachakka.
And yet, Thousand Transformations was issuing orders to a group that had appeared without any warning or preamble. Fine, that was one thing.
But when that group was draped in white sheets, even Still Water would have been shaken.
Not that Kechachakka was one to talk, but the group was blatantly suspicious.
Just walking around in those getups would draw eyes. Not even the most headstrong Hunter or a Mage who couldn't care less about fashion would dress like this.
What stood out most was an enormous mass that towered above the rest. Kill Knight had been big, but what Thousand Transformations called the "Giant Ghost" dwarfed it in size. He couldn't tell what was inside, but the muffled voice it had let out made it clear that something with intelligence was in there.
The training exercise was equally incomprehensible, but even that paled in comparison to the shock he was feeling.
He had followed out of curiosity about what kind of training Number Thirteen conducted, but he wished he hadn't. He should have gone with Telmu on the escort mission, or helped prepare for the sky voyage. This was beyond anything Kechachakka could comprehend.
One of the sheet spirits was staring straight at Kechachakka.
The sheer presence alone told him this was a formidable fighter, but he couldn't tell anything beyond that. He couldn't understand why it was carrying a wooden sword on its back, either.
But what he understood even less was the delight with which Thousand Transformations was ordering it around. He couldn't tell if she was being serious or just messing around. If the earnest client Franz had been here, what expression would he have made?
"!?"
The Alchemy Ghost, who had been carrying a child-sized backpack large enough for a kid to fit inside, slung it off and lunged at Kryus, who had collapsed on the floor from exhaustion.
It pounced on top of him, then dragged his body straight into the sheet. Kryus should have been too drained of mana to even cry out, but a muffled scream escaped him before silence quickly fell.
The pile of sheets squirmed around.
"That should do it."
Thousand Transformations nodded with satisfaction. Noticing Kechachakka's gaze, she wore a half-hearted grin and spoke.
"The Alchemy Ghost is good at healing."
"Heheh..."
Healing? This... was healing? No matter how you looked at it, it looked like the Alchemy Ghost was devouring Kryus.
Kryus didn't seem to be a member of the fox clan, so maybe this was a silencing measure—but this was hardly the time for that.
Ignoring Kechachakka, who was at the peak of confusion, Number Thirteen spoke with pride.
"The Thief Ghost is very fast. A round trip from here to the Imperial Capital takes less than three days. See, I told you so."
The smallest ghost's form blurred for an instant, then vanished. It had simply run off.
Even Kechachakka, who prided himself on his dynamic visual acuity, could barely track it—just as described, its explosive speed was terrifying.
It could kill a Mage. Not just Kechachakka—even Telmu, who could activate almost instantaneously, would struggle to keep up with that speed.
Stupid getups, but they were no ordinary members. If people like this existed, assassination would be trivial. Could it be that the mercenary company they'd hired hadn't shown up because they'd been taken out by these guys?
As Kechachakka stood there in a daze, Number Thirteen continued the explanation.
"The Magic Ghost is good at magic. The Sword Ghost... loves swords, and... um... the Giant Ghost is very large."
"............"
"............If I said they were spirits under my command, would you let them board the airship with me?"
"Heheh..."
No good. He couldn't tell whether what she was saying was sincere or just toying with him, or whether she even understood the true meaning of her own words. He shouldn't overthink this. There was no way he'd get boarding clearance. If such a farce would work, Zebuldia would have collapsed long ago.
Kechachakka let out a small cry and fled from the training ground.
§ § § "Klye! What should the sword ghost that loves swords do?"
"...Your turn hasn't come yet, so why don't you practice some swings over there?"
"U... UOOOOOOH! Swings, swings, swings! It's hard to swing—hard to swing! I'm still not good enough!"
Gripping a sword through the sheet, the Sword Ghost began swinging it furiously.
The Sword Ghost that loves swords was unmatched when it came to cutting, but it was a defective ghost that could do nothing else. It was also the troublesome type that was perfectly content with that limitation.
...He really couldn't hide it after all. Kechachakka had been so exasperated he'd left.
Well, just having them here was reassuring enough. The Alchemy Ghost, who had been asked to treat Kryus, slowly pulled away. Kryus, who had collapsed face-down, didn't move a muscle. He'd probably been forced to drink an extremely bitter Mana Recovery Potion and passed out.
"Thanks for the save. But that outfit... did you get the idea from Liliz?"
The Alchemy Ghost didn't answer. Instead, it lifted its sheet high and tried to pounce on someone, but was yanked by the Magic Ghost and tumbled over spectacularly.
The Alchemy Ghost's contents rolled across the floor. The ghost that could only be identified as the Magic Ghost by process of elimination—since it had no distinguishing features—didn't even glance at the result of its own actions, and spoke in a cold voice.
"Leader, please stop fooling around on escort assignments. That's how you make enemies."
"......"
He had no memory of fooling around...
For now, he removed the Barrier Ring, which had been rendered useless, and handed it over. The Magic Ghost who received it was trembling.
They moved to the room where Citry and the others were staying, near the training ground.
Citry's lodgings were about a kilometer from our inn. For Hunters, it was about as close to top-tier as you could get.
Our inn was top-class in this city too, so theirs looked modest by comparison—but being the cheapskate I was, I'd have preferred to stay here.
Citry shed the sheet and class-changed from the Alchemy Ghost into an Alchemist, then spoke.
"This is the farthest distance the communication stone can reach."
"A communication stone?"
"It's a magical tool developed recently, incorporating communication magic. It was modeled after the Treasure Weapon, the Resonance Stone... its performance is significantly inferior, but it's a mass-produced item. We've also equipped Kill Knight with one."
"Oh... that's handy."
"Well, I say 'modeled after,' but that was a Treasure Weapon, so we only copied the form..."
What Citry showed me was a fist-sized square stone.
Compared to the Resonance Stone, it looked harder to carry, and the original had no range restrictions, so this was clearly a degraded version—but it would come in handy in plenty of situations.
I'd never even heard the term "communication magic" before, but magic seemed to be a field where anything went, so...
I settled into a chair, and Citry promptly poured me some tea.
I felt the weight lift off my shoulders. It seemed I'd been tense lately without even realizing it. Having Citry and the others around made a world of difference. With the Magic Ghost here, I'd definitely make it in time for the carpet practice. I felt terrible that they weren't earning contribution points for this.
Once Citry saw I'd calmed down, she smiled brightly and spoke.
"The escort mission is really getting down to the wire, isn't it? Once we take to the sky, our options will be limited... so I thought there might be something we could do while we still can."
"That'd be great. Let me think..."
I really hadn't been able to do anything up to this point. Asking for help was a bit pathetic, but earning some favor with His Majesty and Franz at this stage wouldn't be bad either.
After all, we'd be traveling through the sky. You could never be too prepared. I'd already asked Liliz for a favor, but with Citry handling supplies, Anthem on healing duty, and Lucia the jack-of-all-trades, there was nothing we couldn't do.
I had Citry prepare some additional potions, had Anthem cast healing magic on members with lingering injuries, and Lucia— "Just so you know—I still can't turn water into wine or orange juice yet."
Noticing she was being watched, Lucia furrowed her brow and spoke.
§ "Mm... where am I..."
"You're awake. Sorry for the trouble, Kryus."
"WEAK HUMAN...!? That's right, I—"
Kryus sat up on the bed and frantically looked around.
The room was mine. "Mine" was a stretch since I hadn't stayed here even once yet, so the bed was brand new.
Kryus held his head, checked outside the window, and finally looked down at his own outfit.
Night had fully fallen. Several hours had passed since Kryus had collapsed.
Apparently, the Alchemy Ghost had administered a memory-erasing drug along with the Mana Recovery Potion. It was true that things would have been troublesome if she'd remembered, but the lack of hesitation was a bit much.
Kechachakka? He could only go "heheh," so he'd probably be fine.
Suppressing his guilt, he put on a smile and spoke.
"You collapsed from mana depletion, so I carried you here... are you okay?"
For the record, I was the one who carried him, but Lucia used a weight-reduction spell, so it wasn't difficult.
Kryus was still a bit groggy from the drug's effects.
He stared up at me with those violet eyes for a while, seemingly lost in thought, then furrowed his brow and spoke.
"...What exactly was that group of ghosts?"
"...Maybe you had a dream?"
"I'm starting to remember... that ghost forced something down my—"
...His memory wasn't erased at all.
Spiritfolk So the potion hadn't worked properly? Citry was smart, but she'd always had a few screws loose.
Kryus's expression gradually shifted from its hazy state.
"I... I'm remembering... that's right. I recognize the person inside that ghost. It was a Party member of the Weak Human who came to negotiate when we were being recruited into the Clan."
On top of that, he'd seen their face. His memories were apparently quite vivid.
"You just had a dream."
Kryus swayed to his feet and closed in on me. Under the silent pressure, I instinctively stepped back.
Before I knew it, I'd been backed into a corner against the wall. Kryus narrowed her eyes and spoke as if threatening me.
Her pointed ears were twitching. It wasn't that scary since it was Kryus, but if the person across from her had been Gaark, it would have been game over.
"Weak—Weak Human, do you really think you can fool me with that story?! Tell me everything you're planning, right now!"
"It was a dream..."
"Hmm? Look me in the eye and say that again. If you're not lying, swear on the Weak Human's Party members!"
"Close—that's way too close!"
Those clear, transparent eyes and those perfectly shaped lips. I could practically count every eyelash. Spiritfolk or not, they looked almost indistinguishable from humans.
...Wasn't the power dynamic supposed to be reversed here? But even when I pointed that out, Kryus didn't flinch. She wasn't listening. Despite her delicate frame, she was a Hunter through and through.
Maybe I should just come clean... If it were Telmu or Kechachakka, that'd be one thing, but Kryus was a Clan member. If I explained the situation, she might understand... or at least it didn't seem impossible. What should I do?
Maybe my unease had been transmitted, because Kryus cracked a grin. It was a fearless smile, somewhat out of character for her. She spoke in a whisper.
"Come on, spit it out. Weak Human? If you're honest with me, I might just forgive you."
At that moment, the door suddenly opened.
"Thousand Transformations, I need to talk to you about something...!?"
"!?"
It was Telmu who entered. He took in the sight of me backed into a corner and Kryus wearing that fearless grin, and his eyes went wide in shock.
Telmu froze for a moment, then looked at the wide-eyed Kryus and the half-hearted grin on my face, seemed to come to some conclusion, and nodded deeply.
"Ah, I see... I didn't understand why you brought her along, but if that's the kind of relationship... Sorry for barging in. But, as an old man's advice... you should lock the door for that sort of thing. Ah, sorry for interrupting. Our discussion can wait. I'll come back later."
"!?????"
With a creak, the door closed.
Kryus blinked several times, looking back and forth between me and the door, but eventually seemed to understand what Telmu had been implying, because her face turned beet red.
"Hah?! HAAAH!? What kind of misunderstanding is that human having?! I... and... the Weak Human... have THAT kind of relationship?! Don't be ridiculous! What kind of brain do you need to come up with that?! A Spiritfolk with exceptional magical and physical qualities would never pair up with a fragile human!"
"...Well, biologically there's not that much difference. In extremely rare cases, there are even Half-Spiritfolk..."
Citry told me that before.
"Sh-shut up! Whose fault is— damn it, Weak Human, you'd better remember this! Telmu! Wait! TELMUUUU!"
Kryus dashed out of the room with tears in her eyes. Quite the expression.
It seemed that for Kryus, being misunderstood was the bigger humiliation. Crisis averted.
But wait... Could it be that Telmu had deliberately phrased it that way to help me out?
Telmu and I were the best team. He'd helped me coordinate stories during the sheet ghost incident before, so it was entirely possible.
"I should thank Abyssal Fire Annihilation for that..."
But there was no more to worry about. I'd done everything I could. Starting tomorrow, I'd show them a Thousand Transformations who was actually reliable.