A refreshing breeze drifted through the small window into the room.
The desk in the Clan Master's office. Sinking into a deep slouch in his usual seat, Klye blinked at Eva's report.
"Huh? Saya came here? To the capital? That's faster than I expected."
"Yes. Ritz found her, and apparently she's in the underground training arena right now doing a mock battle."
"??? What? Why?"
Saya Chromis. A level 8 Hunter who had taken the level 9 certification exam alongside him.
She had mentioned wanting to visit the capital at some point, but this was way too quick, and the very first thing she did upon arriving was jump into a mock battle? Made no sense.
Was this just how level 8 Hunters operated?... Come to think of it, had she managed to reach level 9?
As long as she wasn't causing trouble for Ritz and the others... Actually, jumping straight into a mock battle? You guys got friendly awfully fast.
Right then, the Clan House shuddered. Apparently things were getting pretty heated in there.
He had built the training arena underground precisely so the house wouldn't collapse even if things went overboard, but if it was still shaking, then high-level Hunters really were something terrifying.
As Klye stared at the trembling ceiling, Eva frowned and spoke.
"Countermeasures against structural collapse are fully in place. We do have a great many high-level Hunters here, after all."
"Anthem went and punched through a thick metal wall like it was nothing, after all."
Luke's penchant for slicing everything in two down the middle was one thing, but doing the same thing as a fellow human being was just absurd. You could only reinforce a building so much with sturdy construction materials...
Before he'd set out to become a Hunter, he was supposed to be about on the same level as these people. Look at the gap now.
While he was lost in these musings, Eva glanced briefly toward the entrance to confirm something.
"Would you like to see her?"
"...No, as much as I feel bad for Saya, I'll pass. Everyone seems on edge, and I don't exactly want people prodding at wounds I don't even have."
The entrance to the Clan Master's office — just beyond the open door, nearly ten people were watching him with sharp, focused gazes.
Of varying attire and age, they were the observers assigned to watch over him once the suspended sentence had begun. Representatives from the Explorer's Guild, various Knight Orders, relic investigators — apparently dispatched from a range of different organizations.
He'd been in the capital for years now, but this was a completely unprecedented measure. (For the record, Eva had asked if she could refuse, but he'd told her not to bother.)
"I'd really rather they didn't hover around so close. Who knows what kind of rumors they'll start..."
"Now, now, don't say that. They're here doing their jobs, so we should be considerate. Why don't you offer them some tea?"
Klye gave a wave to the group still keeping watch from just outside the Clan Master's office, but nobody cracked so much as a hint of a reaction from their stern expressions.
Incidentally, this was a 24-hour surveillance operation with rotating shifts. They at least didn't come into his private quarters, but being watched this closely by this many people — wasn't this treatment on par with that of the Emperor himself?
He hadn't done anything wrong, and in all this time he'd practically never done anything wrong either, yet they trusted him not at all. Starting to understand just a little how some locked-away princess must have felt.
"If Klye says so, then... Well, it won't last long regardless. When you consider the size of the suspended sentence bond..."
Eva sighed and looked away from the observers. It seemed she wasn't particularly happy about this situation either.
Having your own Clan Master placed under watch for something he hadn't done wrong was certainly not a pleasant feeling. Perhaps there was also an element of not wanting to appear weak for fear of being looked down on — but well, this time he figured he'd let it slide since he owed them a favor.
"I just wish the incident would get resolved quickly."
"Huh? Something happened?"
"...You weren't aware? Right now, every organization is scrambling to investigate the cause —"
When Klye asked so casually, Eva's eyes widened and she explained.
To summarize what Eva told him: there had been a spate of disappearances in the capital recently, and the state was mobilizing to investigate.
"Ah, come to think of it, Lucia mentioned something like that."
"As the investigation progressed, they discovered that a considerable number of people had gone missing... It's truly an unusual situation."
Well, well... must be really rough out there. If he weren't under suspended sentence, he probably would have gotten another troublesome request from someone like Gaark. Thank goodness for the suspension.
Which also meant — the sudden appearance of these observers giving him those sharp looks... they were here to make sure he didn't go off and do something unnecessary again.
No way he'd agree to move even if asked!
"Because the case is so deeply perplexing, there are concerns that deities may be involved, and everyone is on high alert. This was, after all, the site of the Star Temple."
"Deities...? No, I don't think that's it."
"!? How can you be sure?"
At his answer, the people watching him began to murmur amongst themselves.
They'd been eavesdropping. Well, he already knew that — they were there specifically to keep him from doing anything out of line.
He knew because he'd confirmed it with his little fox through her phone, but he couldn't exactly say that honestly.
His little fox was a glutton, but she was still a Phantom... So Klye tapped the desk with his index finger, going full hard-boiled.
"I'm under suspended sentence, but I can still tell you that much. Anyway, if Lucia's on the case, it'll be resolved soon enough."
Watching the observers scramble to contact someone somewhere, Klye yawned.
Lucia was ten thousand times more competent than him and had way more friends to boot. On top of that, unlike Luke or Ritz, Lucia had no real weaknesses to speak of.
If anything, if even she couldn't solve this case, it would have to be a seriously major incident.
Ah, but wait — if the case got resolved, maybe his suspended sentence would be lifted too... That thought made this time feel precious. Better make sure to slack off properly.
"Eva tilted her head. "I'm not sure. The information seems pretty tangled up at this point..."
"Tangled up...? It's not that there are no leads at all?"
"Rather than no leads, it seems there are too many. Strange rumors have been spreading all across the capital — something about monsters dragging you away if you walk through back alleys late at night, or doors being knocked on in the middle of the night and if you answer, you get dragged into a world of darkness and never come back... Most of them are probably baseless rumors, but the Knight Orders have even issued caution advisories."
"I see. I suppose if disappearances were happening in the capital, it would cause quite the stir. Especially with caution advisories being issued on top of that."
It was probably only a matter of time before the perpetrator was caught.
But baseless rumors, huh...
"How do you know they're baseless?"
"Well, if everyone who encountered them never came back, then who's spreading the rumors?"
"...Eva, you're really smart."
That was absolutely right. If everyone had been wiped out, the rumors couldn't have spread in the first place.
Well, he would never answer a knock at his door anyway, and he never walked through back alleys at night, so it didn't really matter to him either way.
At his praise, Eva gave an awkward expression.
"...I appreciate the compliment. It seems rumors that hadn't been circulating before have been exploding in number, and the citizens are growing fearful. I've always made an effort to suppress that kind of information, but... I hadn't been keeping up with it."
Eva really did have answers for everything, didn't she... Truly a hard worker. Could she probably make a living as an information broker too?
"The source of the rumors is unknown, the connection between the rumors and the disappearances is unclear, and none of the organizations have yet been able to identify the cause."
"The capital's investigative bodies are supposedly all top-tier, so that must be really tough. You'd think disappearances would be easy to figure out..."
The organizations investigating were probably the same ones the people currently watching him belonged to. He glanced at the observers and spoke with a sigh.
Zebuldia was said to have an extremely high caliber of personnel — an education system that was well-developed and meritocracy ran rampant. Hunters, who anyone could become, were a mixed bag, but there shouldn't be a single incompetent person among those serving the state.
For that many elite minds to gather and still not find the cause... Was this really happening within the capital? Zebuldia was supposed to be a relatively safe country with good public security. Really, far too many things had been happening lately.
Should he just think of it as a good thing — more work for Hunters?
Then Eva asked him something curious.
"They investigate, but all they find are strange rumors and no cause. The missing people haven't been found either. There are several peculiar characteristics that seem beyond human doing. What would you, Klye, do?"
"Huh...? ...Wait for someone else to solve it without doing anything myself, I guess?"
"..."
"I-I'm joking. Hmm, let me think..."
At his half-serious answer, Eva narrowed her eyes and stared intently at him. What was that? He felt an intense pressure.
Still sitting, Klye crossed his legs the other way and took a sip of the tea Eva had poured for him.
Logically speaking, there was no way he could figure out something that a team of elite investigators had already failed to crack. But... let's see.
Before forming the Clan, he had survived countless life-or-death situations alongside the Mourning Specter. Well, more accurately, he'd just been swept along by circumstances, but surprisingly enough, there were instances within those battlefields where he had broken through exactly this kind of stalemate.
He raised his index finger and declared in his best hard-boiled voice.
"In situations like this, you just have to become a victim of the incident yourself. In this case, that means getting swept up in the disappearances."
"!?!"
The observers' eyes went wide at his conclusion as they stared at him. Hmph — this answer had probably caught them off guard. Well, as for him, he wanted nothing to do with it twice over.
Eva's eyes went wide. She swallowed hard, then asked cautiously.
"Um... and how exactly would you do that?"
"..."
At the perfectly reasonable question, Klye broke into a bright smile.
Because, you see, if you just waited for someone else to solve it without doing anything, you'd end up getting dragged in anyway.
"So, after being taken... what then?"
"..."
Klye maintained that smile with everything he had.
Because, you see, if you just waited for someone else to solve it without doing anything, your comrades would come save you.
"For reference, from what I heard, that exact strategy was already submitted to the Knight Orders, and they tried it — attempting to lure the phenomena by spreading rumors. But not a single person disappeared, apparently. Isn't that right?"
"Y-yes. That's correct. After all, with almost no leads to go on..."
When Eva looked toward the observers, a young man in light armor answered with a deflated expression.
Ah, right. Of course. There was no way they hadn't thought of something he could come up with so easily.
"The vast majority of the disappearance victims were ordinary citizens without combat skills — or else students and rookie Hunters. High-level Hunters and influential figures holding important positions in the capital have been almost entirely unaffected. After analyzing the information on the missing people, the conclusion was — it's as if the disappearances are selecting their targets. Isn't that right?"
"!? Where did you —"
The Explorer's Guild observer stared at Eva in shock. Eva's information network was too powerful.
"With everyone scrambling to investigate, the disappearances keep increasing as if mocking their efforts. The Empire is... reportedly also considering the possibility that a Treasure Hall has manifested."
A Treasure Hall manifesting. In the middle of a city like this? Logically, that was impossible. Treasure Halls were supposed to appear in remote, uninhabited locations.
In particular, the capital was one of the most populous metropolitan areas in existence — any Mana Material would be absorbed by the city's inhabitants long before it could give rise to a Treasure Hall.
Still, while the Treasure Hall theory was probably a stretch, the fact that multiple national organizations were collaborating on the investigation spoke volumes.
To conduct and analyze this much in such a short time... If he'd been involved in the incident, he probably would've disappeared on day one. Bad luck, that.
By the way, what were the observers staring at him for? Were they seriously hoping for his advice?
"...Well, I don't think there's anything more I can say. I am under suspended sentence, after all."
"!? W-well, yes, that's true, but..."
"Besides, if they already know that much, shouldn't it be almost solved? Multiple state organizations are working together on this, and if deities aren't involved, it should be a piece of cake."
He had to admit — if a Phantom of a deity were involved, he'd be fleeing the capital immediately. But at least that part had been ruled out.
He didn't know what the cause was, but if no deities were involved, then this Clan Master's office was nearly safe. Probably.
Then he struck upon a brilliant idea and snapped his fingers.
"Ah, that's it. Saya's here, so why not ask her to help? Saya's abilities are honestly incredible. Her level's high too, and her 'Sarasara' would be perfect for solving this case. Yeah, that's the ticket! Done deal!"
He didn't really understand what 'Sarasara' was, but Saya had said she could do anything, so it shouldn't be a problem.
And if the case was resolved, his suspended sentence would probably be relaxed too. He wouldn't be allowed to do any work, but being permitted to leave the house would be the ideal outcome.
So far there hadn't been any issues, but if this suspension dragged on much longer, even he might start going stir-crazy...
"...If a foreign Hunter ends up solving it, that could create a different set of problems... *sigh.* Understood. I'll at least bring it up."
"I'm counting on you. I was a bit worried about Lucia handling it alone. If that doesn't work out, we'll figure something else out then. ...This wouldn't count as doing something, right?"
When he asked for confirmation, the observers quickly averted their gazes. Seemed like it was just barely acceptable.
Eva placed a pamphlet on the desk and spoke.
"I don't know if it'll be of any use, but I've compiled the information we have so far. Could you please hand this to Lucia when she arrives?"
"Mm, thanks. That's a real help. Eva, you really are such a good person."
"...I appreciate the sentiment."
It was truly a godsend. She must've been swamped just running Clan operations, yet she still went out of her way to think of Lucia's needs too.
If he had the authority to raise Eva's salary, he would. (He didn't — the authority rested with Eva herself.)
Klye glanced at the pamphlet, let out another huge yawn, and pulled out his phone.
§ § § The report finished, Eva departed the Clan Master's office.
The individuals dispatched from various organizations to monitor Thousand Transformations during his suspended sentence were conversing with bewildered expressions.
Sensing the indescribable tension between them, Eva pushed her glasses up and sighed.
It was probably because Klye's attitude was far too unlike what one would expect of a level 8 Hunter.
Since the observers had arrived, Klye had done absolutely nothing — no exaggeration whatsoever. He simply stayed locked in the Clan Master's office, polishing his Treasure Weapons, reading books, and taking naps. Not once did he utter a single complaint about the indignity of being placed under surveillance. On occasion, he'd even suggest bringing tea to the observers. He showed no interest in investigating the incident, no inclination toward anything productive. If they hadn't known his position, the observers would have surely written him off as nothing more than a lazy bum.
The observers, sent from prestigious organizations including the various Knight Orders, maintained round-the-clock surveillance on Klye.
The rumors of disappearances currently spreading throughout the capital were deeply unsettling. The situation was already short-handed, yet this many personnel had been allocated to surveillance. Eva could see the Empire's intentions all too clearly.
Yes — their intent to weaken the influence of Thousand Transformations.
It wasn't simply about being unable to pay his rewards for his accumulated achievements.
The truth was, Thousand Transformations had gone too far. So far that the Explorer's Guild had been left with no choice but to accommodate the Empire's position.
Klye Andrich had recently been involved in — and resolved — nearly every major incident that had erupted in the capital.
But those incidents were not supposed to be the kind of thing one lone Hunter could resolve.
There were national organizations that were meant to handle them, and the reputation of those organizations declined every time Thousand Transformations solved another case.
The people's expectations were growing harsher too. Every time something happened, relying on a Hunter to resolve it would damage the state's credibility. In the worst case, it could lead to a decline in national power.
It was, in a sense, a problem born from Zebuldia's very policy of prioritizing Hunters — a policy that had turned it into a promised land for elite Hunters.
That said, in principle, the more competent Hunters there were, the better.
Working alongside elite Hunters meant learning from them and being uplifted — everyone else's level should rise in turn. That was, in fact, one of the reasons the Empire had adopted its pro-Hunter policies in the first place.
If one were to single out the one unique and greatest problem with Thousand Transformations as a Hunter, it would be this: no matter how much time you spent with Klye Andrich, you could never obtain his abilities.
The trials that struck like calamity, pushing everything to the very edge, had certainly raised the abilities of those caught up in them immensely. But not a single person produced by them had come close to matching Thousand Transformations.
Even now, the Thousand Trials remained something entirely unexpected for those who underwent it — for the majority of people, it was simply something to be feared.
At the point when the Emperor had issued the bodyguard request, Klye was probably still regarded as nothing more than an extraordinarily competent Hunter. But after the three great victories — the prophecy crisis, the successful conquest of Yggdrasil, and the successful conquest of the Code — his evaluation had fundamentally changed.
The conclusion was that borrowing his power any further would create too great an impact.
The enormous sum the Explorer's Guild had posted as the suspended sentence bond was far beyond what the Guild could produce on its own. That figure spoke volumes about Thousand Transformations' standing.
The resolution of this case was a matter of national prestige. The Empire intended to use every tool at its disposal except Thousand Transformations to solve it.
Eva glanced at the observers, their faces tight with tension. As Eva — the one who had watched her Master placed under a suspended sentence for reasons that should have been impossible — she had her own feelings about these people. But at the same time, there was room for sympathy.
Just as Eva had reported, no imperial organization had yet managed to crack the disappearance case. Klye had made some snide remark about how "the capital's investigative bodies are supposedly all top-tier, so that must be really tough," but the investigators were far from incompetent. Thousand Transformations was the anomaly.
The observers likely felt uneasy about the fact that Thousand Transformations was doing nothing, yet were secretly relieved by it. But Eva knew better.
For that young man, solving an incident while doing nothing was easy.
Watching him to make sure he did nothing — staying in his room — was no comfort at all.
This time, Eva had done what she could, engaging Klye in conversation and feeding the observers as much information as possible. But she could go no further.
All she could do now was pray that they would solve the case before Klye grew tired of his suspension.
"Saya Chromis is in the underground training arena."
"...We appreciate your cooperation."
The elites from various organizations bowed stiffly, their expressions rigid, and dispersed.
Eva watched them go. Finally, she glanced back at the Clan Master's office and confirmed that Klye was cheerfully fiddling with his phone.
A man who wouldn't leave his room, and an Empire mobilizing through organized investigation to solve the incident.
Which side would prevail? Eva couldn't even begin to guess.