Miranda invited me over, and I'd come to the spot where Alette's party had set up their tent.
I'd been checking on Clara and the Mini Porter, but they said there were some items that needed confirming, so I made my way over... and now here I was.
"I still don't feel like going through with this."
Miranda looked at me with an exasperated expression.
"After coming all the way here, you can't just back out. Ideally, you should have listened to what they had to say when you first introduced yourself."
Miranda was right, and I had indeed attempted to greet Alette. But that was when I'd witnessed something absolutely dreadful.
Even I have a shred of mercy.
"...I just can't be that cruel."
"What are you even saying? Come on, let's go already!"
Miranda approached one of the lookouts standing watch nearby and explained our business. The moment the lookout caught sight of my face, their expression stiffened, and they headed toward the tent with a complicated look still lingering on their features.
Miranda turned to me.
"What did you do?"
"...I didn't do anything."
That was all I could say. And yet, the Successive Heads inside the Jewel were laughing away——
'That's true, you didn't do anything. You didn't lie. But... you're finally meeting Alette! I wonder how the dreamy young lady is doing!'
'To secure favorable terms across the board, I think the Third Generation's line — "Have you found a good person?" — is absolutely necessary. Laiel, put on a smile! A smile! Use that smile to shake them up!'
'You should verify what kind of person they are first. It could be a bad deal. Tease them too much and you might end up like someone's bride. That's the scary part.'
'...Fifth Generation, are you talking about me? Anyway, shouldn't we follow the Fourth Generation's suggestion and focus on shaking them up to secure favorable terms...'
'The Sixth Generation got into all sorts of trouble, after all. Laiel, don't go taking after the Sixth Generation.'
Ignoring the opinions of the Successive Heads inside the Jewel as usual, I got permission to enter from a guard standing outside the tent with a guarded expression.
"...They say you may come in."
Sensing the tense atmosphere around us, Miranda turned to me.
"Hey, why is it like this? You didn't do anything, right? Or did someone do something to you?"
To Miranda, who was worried about me, I said:
"We'll know once we meet them."
Saying that, the two of us stepped inside the tent.
Inside the tent was the tall knight that Alette and I had dealt with before.
"Ah, um... it's been a while."
When I said that, the knight replied, "It's been a while." Miranda also chimed in with something like "Nice to meet you~," but...
Alette was sitting in a chair behind a desk, head bowed.
And then—
"Damn it, just kill me!"
"...Huh?"
The atmosphere in the room turned strange. She had suddenly blurted out for someone to kill her.
Not only that, she clutched her head with both hands and started slamming her forehead against the desk.
"Just kill me already! What the hell, are you all getting a kick out of tormenting me?! Fine, I'm just a woman who missed her chance at marriage! It can't be helped! I never thought I'd actually advance in rank! It can't be helped... it's all because of the work..."
Miranda had a smile on her face, but her cheeks were twitching.
A male knight who appeared to be an adjutant in the room pressed his right hand against his face and said nothing.
"No, we're here about something else today—"
"—A different matter? What? Then there's no point in teasing me! If you didn't come here to laugh, then what exactly are you after, you little b—ow!"
The knight who could no longer stay silent chopped his hand down on Alette's head.
"Captain, please pull yourself together. If you carry on like this during a Dungeon subjugation, it wouldn't be surprising if someone lost their life."
Alette steadied her rough breathing, then cleared her throat.
"S-sorry. I just can't help feeling embarrassed. ...So, what brings you here, Lyle?"
Having taken a deep breath and calmed down, Alette looked like an entirely different person from moments ago.
She immediately put on a sharp expression and gestured for us to sit, then prepared to listen. If this had been our first encounter, I'd surely have taken an unconditional liking to her.
But the emotion I currently harbored toward Alette was—
(What is this uncomfortable feeling?)
It was sympathy.
She was a fellow companion who had experienced the same sudden shift in mindset that came with rapid growth. I had decided not to tease this woman.
Sitting across from each other with the desk between us, Alette's composure now allowed me to spare some awareness of my surroundings.
Third Generation spoke up.
"Oh my~ aren't you going to ask all sorts of questions? This is interesting, you know."
She sounded disappointed, but I ignored her.
The tent contained what appeared to be Alette's bed and armor. A large desk sat at the center of the tent, with various writing implements laid upon it.
A lantern—a type of magic tool—illuminated the dim interior with bright light.
The equipment she had was all of solid quality.
The most eye-catching item of all was probably Alette's greatsword. It was clearly a two-handed weapon, and undoubtedly a masterwork blade.
Fifth Generation spoke.
"Less like adventurers and more like a proper knight order, honestly. Who exactly are these people, and why are they adventuring?"
What I gathered was that they were members of some knight order, and that they were operating as adventurers to train the next generation of fighters — and as long as the books stayed in the black, they weren't too concerned about rewards.
Miranda explained the situation to Alette.
"Apparently, there's an adventurer named Albano, and he said Alette would understand if she was asked. He wanted us not to interfere with their work."
Alette listened and nodded.
"I was meaning to talk about this tomorrow, actually. So Albano, huh... He must have learned his lesson from the fight with Crate. Sometimes a good dose of that works wonders."
Her tone was a bit rough around the edges, but the overall impression was warm.
Alette then explained their circumstances to us.
"We may be adventurers, but the moment we return to the kingdom, we're knights. Calling it a martial pilgrimage might be a stretch, but we come to Baim to gain real experience. It's more or less a tradition, you could say. We train in actual combat conditions, and we earn our own keep."
She said it almost like a joke, but the Fourth Generation inside the Jewel perked up in response.
*That sounds nice~ I like that~*
After telling us about themselves, Alette went on to explain Albano's group as well.
"There are various reasons behind it, but I consider our relationship with Albano and his people to be a good one. In practice, they handle scouting, tracking, disabling and setting traps — they're dependable. There's nothing we can't do ourselves, but we've left that to them."
It seemed Alette's earlier remark about Albano's group having obtained permission was the real deal.
Miranda looked slightly dissatisfied.
"So they get to go ahead of us, and we're told not to get in their way? Does that mean they'll grab all the good opportunities?"
Alette gave a wry smile.
"Don't put it like that. Besides, we want to open up everything down to the fifth underground level early on and throw in some ad-hoc parties. Beyond that, they can do as they please at their own risk."
Hearing this, Miranda narrowed her eyes.
"...You're letting unauthorized parties into the Dungeon?"
Even with Miranda glaring at her, Alette just kept smiling. If not for that disappointing image from earlier, she genuinely would have seemed like someone you could rely on.
That's what I wanted to think, anyway.
"So, down to the fifth underground level. They'll be resentful if they can't earn anything after all that escort work. Besides, the fact that they're here means they're indirectly recognized as adventurers by us. The chances of them making some blunder and dragging us down are pretty slim."
She probably wouldn't say "absolutely zero," though.
"So we basically just follow after Albano's group?"
Alette shook her head.
"Apparently, the third underground level is already open. I say 'apparently' because we don't yet know whether the boss down there is the type that revives or if it's a Dungeon that never spawns the same monsters again. I'm having Albano's lot investigate that. It's quite a dangerous job, honestly. Even if they strike it rich, I wouldn't consider it unfair."
She was letting us know that while advancing was fine, it was dangerous. Alette must have acknowledged the strength of Albano's group if she was willing to send them into such a hazardous place.
For me, who was here for the first time and still learning how things worked in Baim, there was no point in objecting.
I flashed a smile.
"Understood. I'll do my best to avoid getting in the way or causing any trouble. And, well, as a newcomer, there's a lot I'd like to have explained, so I'll follow along."
Alette smiled and praised me.
"That attitude is something you should hold onto. But being too serious can be a problem too. Now, if we're talking about strong personalities, that'd be Albano, Crate, and probably Marina?"
Alette rattled off three names.
(I'd heard those names before, actually. But wait — strong personalities? Stronger than Alette?)
Miranda sought information, wanting to know more about the three.
"Are those three dangerous? If possible, I'd like to gather some information on them."
Alette replied with a smile—
"Unfortunately, I can't hand over intel on adventurers, especially ones I know personally. But they're just strong-willed — not especially dangerous. You'll have to find out for yourselves."
(...The contrast with how put-together she usually is really makes that post-evolution mess stand out. If I hadn't seen that, she'd probably come across a lot cooler...)
I ended the conversation with a twinge of regret.
The next day, I headed early in the morning to where the troupe of performers was staying.
I'd come together with Miranda, but—
"Don't be fooled, Lyle! That man is nothing but trouble!"
A black-haired man with his hair slicked back neatly, dressed sharply — Crate Benini — was pointing at Albano, who stood facing me across from me.
All we'd discussed was a simple agreement not to interfere with each other's work.
Albano wore an equally displeased expression.
The party led by the ever-serious Crate was the polar opposite of Albano's group.
Their equipment consisted of metal breastplates, gauntlets, and greaves. Beyond spears and swords, they also carried axes and maces.
Albano's side, on the other hand, wore robes — though even so, their gear was leather. They seemed to carry more tools than weapons, if anything.
"Crate, give it a rest. I'm talking business here. I've been told by the boss to open up access to the fifth underground floor as soon as possible!"
Crate looked frustrated at Albano, who wore an exasperated expression.
"That man really is... a splendid knight, and yet he won't follow the Guild's rules."
Miranda murmured to me in a low voice.
"Hey, it seems like he's got a thing for knights."
The Sixth Generation sounded a little exasperated.
*'Ah, yeah — there's always one like this. Sometimes they're so uptight they're exhausting to deal with. Not a bad person, but the world doesn't run on that alone.'*
So he really was a troublesome one, after all.
I said—
"...No, but what exactly are you asking me to do?"
Around us, adventurers who were set to seriously tackle the Dungeon starting today walked the streets in full armor.
The troupe of performers watched us with eager, excited expressions.
(These guys are the same as Eva. She wasn't the only special one after all.)
While I was holding that thought, Crate came over to offer me a word of caution.
"Listen up, Lyle! Those guys are former thieves! And they're the type who break the rules without a second thought. Be careful when you're inside the Dungeon."
With that, Crate walked off, his party in tow.
As for Albano—
"Tch, ran into someone annoying first thing in the morning. I was on a high after talking to that gorgeous lady, too... Let's move, you lot."
"Yessir."
"But that bastard Crate, is he still holding a grudge?"
"Hahaha, maybe next time we should sic some Monsters on him from behind!"
Unlike Albano, his companions were even sharper-tongued than he was.
Albano lowered his voice slightly.
"...Let's get moving. If you want money to blow on fun, the best move is to finish the job quick."
He might come off as aloof, but there was a certain edge to him—it made sense, given he was leading a group with such strong personalities.
(A little envious, actually.)
I decided to head back to Porter with Miranda.
"Shall we head out too? Today's more about getting a feel for the place."
Miranda, walking beside me.
"That leaves only Marina for the solo entries. What kind of person do you think she is?"
I shook my head when she asked.
"Who knows?"
All I could do was hope she wouldn't be another eccentric.
When we returned to Porter, Eva — who had found out about the commotion — was fuming.
"Why! Why didn't you take me along! It's so unfair... it might have been a fascinating spectacle!"
Eva, who was stuck on guard duty today, had her hair in disarray and looked truly dejected.
"It wasn't a fight or anything."
The moment I offered that excuse, she glared at me.
"Everything has a catalyst, you know! These little things add up and surely lead to something meaningful somewhere! Ugh, how frustrating. I want to sing or something to blow off some steam~"
Eva kept stealing glances at me, and it looked like she was silently begging me to negotiate on her behalf so she could sing.
While I was talking with Eva, Novem cleared her throat.
"Eva."
Met with a smile, Eva reluctantly backed off.
"Mm, fine."
On the first day, the four of us — me, Clara, Aria, and Miranda — planned to scope things out.
Novem, Eva, May, Shannon, and Monika were left to hold down the fort.
Novem turned a smile toward me.
"Well then, Lord Lael... please take care."
"I'll do my best not to get myself hurt. Novem, I'm counting on you with the others."
With that, I led Aria and the rest toward the Dungeon.