It seemed that beneath the Explorer's Guild headquarters, there existed teleportation magic circles connecting to locations around the world.
We borrowed one of them, teleported to the town closest to Code, and from there took a prepared horse-drawn carriage to the station serving Code, which the Guild had tracked down.
It was unusual for the Guild to handle this much preparation for a Hunter's commission.
You could see from their attitude that the Level 9 certification exam was little more than a formality.
The Guild had done everything they could to prepare, but there was still so much we didn't know.
The biggest problem was that we knew almost nothing about the inside of Code. No map of the interior was understandable enough, but not knowing the population, culture, or system of governance at all was something unthinkable in a normal hunt.
Of course, figuring out how to compensate for the lack of information was where a Treasure Hunter showed their worth. A first-rate Hunter had to be prepared to handle any kind of accident.
After several hours in the carriage, we passed through lush green grasslands and entered a barren wasteland where nothing grew.
The destination station existed somewhere a fair ways into that desolate expanse.
Its scale was closer to a small town than a station. Inside the sturdy stone walls surrounding it stood numerous buildings, and the whole place radiated an intimidating atmosphere.
According to the Guild's gathered intelligence, this station had been built collaboratively by multiple organizations that dominated the underworld, and it belonged to no country.
Geographically, it sat right on the edge of Code's attack range — the only group that Code would not unconditionally attack, provided they were of a certain size.
No identification was required to enter through the gate. I showed the pass card to the handful of soldiers guarding the entrance, and they let me through without a fuss.
This lax screening was probably because not all of the station's users were allies. This place was a miracle buffer zone that underworld residents had temporarily banded together to create for the purpose of conducting smooth trade with Code.
I see — in that case, there was no risk of outsiders like us being exposed. Or rather, this city's vigilance toward outsiders simply wasn't that strong.
It was an odd way to put it, but this place had order born from the absence of rules.
The first things to catch my eye upon entering the gate were the narrow roads and the densely packed buildings. And scattered everywhere were groups of sharp-eyed individuals.
They ranged across all ages and genders, but they shared two things in common: an imposing air and weapons. None of them looked like ordinary civilians.
Night had already fallen. Streetlamps existed, but their light wasn't particularly strong, and darkness lurked between buildings here and there, creating the illusion that once you stepped in, you'd never come back out.
Despite the surging atmosphere of violence, the surroundings were quiet. There were people around, yet it felt as if everyone was holding their breath.
The atmosphere alone reminded me of the Decadent District in Zebludia, but this station was probably even more dangerous than that.
While I was nearly swallowed by the unexpectedly menacing air, Kaiser had already grabbed one of the armed men walking nearby and struck up a conversation.
"Hahahaha, you there, my good man! This is my first time visiting this station, and I must say it's a quiet place! Everyone's looking my way, yet not a single soul will talk to me!"
I think everyone was staring at Kaiser because he was quite the sight to behold.
The man suddenly accosted by Kaiser flinched momentarily at the force of it, but to his credit, he answered.
"...Uh, yeah. Ah, right. Fighting is strictly prohibited here. Even organizations that are normally hostile toward each other are expected to set aside grudges — that's the rule. We're already within Code's attack range, and if we cause a scene, we could be burned to the ground. You saw it on the way in — not a single blade of grass grows around here."
"Come to think of it, we didn't encounter any Monsters either."
"They're probably sensing the danger of this place by instinct. We're the only ones foolish enough to approach Code — humans."
The man let a deep grin spread across his face, as though making a threat.
Come to think of it, the grasslands had suddenly turned into wasteland on our way here too... Maybe the aftermath of Code's attacks had something to do with that?
"Say, are you heading to Code too? We're planning to go in ourselves — but we haven't been told a single thing about Code. If you have any information about the city, I'd appreciate it—"
Kaiser flashed the card ostentatiously as he spoke. The man's eyes went wide at the metal card.
"No... I'm not going in, and I don't know anything. Getting a pass to Code — you guys must be impressive. I know they've been issuing more lately, but still—"
"Hahahaha, I don't skimp on training even so. I'm confident I have the strength befitting a high-level Hunter. Speaking of which — you said they've been increasing lately...?"
"...It seems Code has been gathering large numbers of fighters. That card of yours — it used to barely circulate at all, but lately, quite a few have been issued."
I see... that explained why there were so many people. I didn't know how reliable the information from our client was, but something had clearly happened in Code.
But Kaiser — you really don't care who you're talking to, do you?... Honestly, that was a lifesaver.
As I watched Kaiser cheerfully exchanging words with some underworld organization's man, Saya spoke in a quiet voice.
"I looked into it. There are some moderately strong people, but inside this station — within the walls — no one matches our level. Unless someone as skilled at disguise as you is hiding in there, in which case it's a different story..."
How had she investigated while staying by my side the whole time?
The buildings were packed densely, and "within the walls" had to cover a pretty large area... Even a top-class Thief wouldn't be able to scout all that without barely moving around.
"...It's nighttime right now," Saya said, almost as if making an excuse.
I hadn't seen what she did — hadn't even noticed she'd done anything. I couldn't tell whether it was because I was hopeless or because Saya was incredible. Probably both.
And the fact that there was no one here with the strength of Saya or Kaiser was welcome news. Well, it wasn't like Level 8-caliber thieves just hung around places like this!
Kaiser raised his hand and spoke brightly.
"Leader, I'm going to go chat with some people. Why don't you rest up ahead!"
"I'll scout around a bit too. There are some things you can only understand by seeing them with your own eyes."
Kaiser linked arms with the armed man and walked off. Saya, without a hint of hesitation, entered one of the buildings where a cluster of armed individuals loitered.
Left behind without a single bodyguard, what was I supposed to do...
Every direction I looked, nothing but intimidating faces. Everyone here seemed to operate in groups, and every faction was watching me, the guy who'd suddenly been left stranded. Kaiser and Saya were both far too accustomed to solo action.
When two out of three members of a Party are solo players, the remaining one naturally ends up going it alone too (obviously).
...Well, at least fighting was off-limits here, so it could've been worse.
I had a体质 that made people want to mess with me. Being all alone in a place swarming with underworld types — normally, I'd have been accosted in seconds.
What should I do now? I was sighing when a threatening, low voice suddenly came from behind.
"Hey, buddy."
"Oh come on, fighting's off-limits here, you know."
I turned around. Standing there was a group of five who looked every bit like petty thugs.
Lean but trained and honed physiques, old scars scattered across their bodies. Every last one of them wore a broad, heavy blade at their hip.
The man at the front was shorter than me, but his shifty eyes were glaring at me without a shred of restraint — he was far too accustomed to intimidating people.
The moment Saya and Kaiser were gone, here they come... When it came to me, exhaustion always arrived before fear.
"...Who might you be? I think you've got the wrong person."
The short, fierce-looking man at the front — probably the leader of their group — let a menacing grin spread across his face.
And then he said something outrageous.
"So here's the thing. One of my boys says he was at your mercy back in the day. The way our Family operates, when someone does you a kindness, you've got to return the favor. 'Thousand Transformations' — you remember this guy's face?"
"Hh... L-long time no see, Thousand Transformations. T-to think I'd run into you, here, of all places. S-so you finally became a Red Hunter?"
A man was pushed forward from the group, speaking in a trembling voice.
He had dark brown hair and an unsavory face.
But even hearing his voice and seeing his face, I couldn't recall a thing.
"...I think you've got the wrong person."
"Y-you... Because of you, every last one of my old crew ended up in prison. I was the only one who got away! Heheh, what happened to the Mourning Specter? Was everyone except you caught? Your luck's run out. The tables have turned! I've got new buddies now!"
The man was shouting as if trying to bluff through sheer volume. Ah... so we'd fought somewhere in the past. No wonder I couldn't remember — I never bothered to look at the faces of people I raided.
And what a grievance that was. I could understand his feelings to an extent, but the Mourning Specter wasn't the same as a Red Hunter.
The leader took a step closer. I instinctively took a step back.
"If we cause a scene here, we'll disturb the neighbors. Let's find somewhere else."
Ugh... I really didn't want to. Wait — wasn't fighting off-limits here?
I looked around, but nobody made any move to stop us.
Each building had guards posted, and every one of them had noticed us but said nothing.
Apparently, by the rules of this city, their behavior was perfectly acceptable. What an insane place.
The numbers were against me. The strength was against me. But assuming they wouldn't actually kill me — was that too naive?
I had no choice, so I tried to reason with them.
"N-now, now, let's not do this. A fight here benefits nobody. Let's just let bygones be bygones..."
Besides, wasn't it bad that they might figure out who I really was? They apparently thought I'd become a Red Hunter, but one look at my records would reveal I was still just a Hunter.
For now, getting through this situation was the priority— "I'm actually Level 8, you know? I have no intention of fighting, and... I'm a busy man, really."
"L-Leader, I-I'm fine. He has a point — picking a fight before Code would be bad!! Let's just let this go."
The member who apparently had a grudge against me was clearly terrified.
But the leader didn't even glance in his direction.
He drew a curved blade and took a stance aimed at me. I didn't know much about swordsmanship, but he looked pretty polished.
"You think threats are gonna work on us? The Dontan Family — the very group known for its martial prowess, the ones who took down a Level 6 Party — backing down from a single person? That'd ruin our reputation. We take you out quick, and Code won't even notice."
"A Level 6 Party...?"
Seriously? A Level 6 Party was fully first-rate. They'd probably relied on a surprise attack, but still — it wasn't the kind of group these thugs should have been able to beat.
Apart from the terrified man, the rest of the group quietly drew their weapons. The "martial prowess" reputation was apparently legit.
But beating a Level 6 didn't mean you could challenge a Level 8. If I really had Level 8 strength, you boys wouldn't have had lives to spare.
There was no time to say anything. The fact that they'd drawn weapons without even bothering to talk much told me their goal was my life — or more precisely, the Family's honor. Utterly pointless. Absolutely bottom of the barrel.
If you can't even talk things out, you might as well be Monsters.
"W-Wait—"
I had the Barrier Ring, but I didn't want to use it when we hadn't even entered Code yet.
Ignoring my protest, the leader lunged forward. The curved blade descended toward me — and stopped at the last possible instant.
The leader's eyes went wide.
"...What is this sound?"
"It's... close. Really, really close."
That suppressed voice was laced with strong agitation. His companions, still gripping their blades, stared wide-eyed with fear as they scanned the surroundings.
Sound...? I didn't hear anything unusual— But the Dontan Family's reaction was anything but normal. Stopping mid-attack was something that simply didn't happen.
Beads of cold sweat appeared on the leader's face, and he glared at me with the eyes of someone who'd just seen a ghost.
The other members checked the ground and walls with fidgety, nervous movements — perfectly normal ground and perfectly normal walls.
"What did you do... Thousand Transformations?"
How should I know? If anything, if something was happening, I wanted to run too!
Moments ago they'd been picking a fight with a supposed Level 8 Hunter without hesitation— Looking around, the disturbance wasn't limited to the Dontan Family.
Other groups that had been ignoring us were now fleeing in panic, as if seeing something terrifying. Their expressions, their reactions — identical to those of the men right in front of me.
I had no choice but to accept it: something was happening. Something I couldn't see at all.
The leader spoke in a pleading voice.
"C-Can't you hear it!? Can't you feel this presence! The sound! The sound of sand spilling and trickling down—"
"The sound of sand trickling... ah..."
Sara sara... that was what Kaiser had mentioned — Saya's ability.
I see, I see. So this was—Saya must have done something before she left.
It was a strange name, and I'd been curious about what kind of power it was. Judging by their reaction, it really did produce a sara sara sound.
I couldn't hear a thing myself, but their level of terror... Was it some kind of ability that affected the mind?
I would have appreciated a heads-up, but... Saya had saved me. I really should introduce her to Selen after all.
Blood dripped from the leader's hand still gripping the curved blade. He'd been clenching too hard.
I addressed the leader, who was clearly not in his right mind.
"Surrender?"
"!? S-Surrender...?"
His eyes shifted wildly — anger, fear, panic. He looked like he might burst into tears at any moment or suddenly start swinging his weapon.
Abilities that affected the mind were often feared and despised among Hunters.
I didn't know the details, but if this was the power of "sara sara," I could understand why people feared Saya.
It wasn't just the leader who was acting strange.
Screams of terror from the other members, wailing and sobbing echoing through the dark streets. The atmosphere was utterly surreal.
It took the leader only a few seconds to make his decision. He dropped to his knees right there, sobbing.
"I-I surrender! I surren—"
That was when it happened.
Without warning, the leader who'd been right in front of me vanished.
There was no warning. I saw nothing. I had no time to react.
He was blasted into the air. I only understood that after he slammed into the road with a wet, heavy thud.
His limbs bent at unnatural angles. He'd probably flown several dozen meters. At this level, a human who had absorbed Mana Material wouldn't die, but it was a devastating injury.
At that sight, the rest of the group scattered like spiders fleeing—only to collapse midway.
I thought they'd simply tripped, but none of them got up. Dark stains spread across the pavement beneath their crumpled forms.
Seeing that, I let out a deep sigh.
From the windows of the buildings, everyone was watching us, peeking out as if holding their breath.
It was a silent night without a single sound. Of course, there was no sara sara either.
It wasn't some mind-affecting ability at all. It was something far simpler — a physical attack. The power of pure destruction.
The self-proclaimed martial prowess faction cut down without so much as a chance to resist, overwhelmed by a force they couldn't even comprehend. Truly befitting of a Level 8.
I was really glad they were on my side. Riizu and the others could do the same, but this was somehow... unfathomable.
Could it be that this mission would actually be pretty easy?
The only survivor was the man who'd been a newcomer to the Dontan Family — the one whose old crew had supposedly been captured by the Mourning Specter.
I didn't know why he'd survived, but he was sitting on the ground with his legs giving out, staring at me with terrified eyes. I made eye contact to confirm.
"Want to go again?"
"!? ..."
The man shook his head vigorously. Well, to be fair, he hadn't seemed like he wanted to fight from the very beginning.
I couldn't fathom why he'd even been part of the confrontation.
With a sigh, I decided to find somewhere to rest while I waited for Kaiser and Saya to return.