The morning after arriving in Baim.
When I stepped out of my room and headed down to the inn's ground floor, a narrow-eyed man was eating in the dining area.
The innkeeper wore a wry smile at the man, who was eating away with a cheerful grin.
Breakfast was a complimentary service for guests staying at the inn—it wasn't supposed to be available to outside customers.
When he noticed me, the man waved his hand.
"Morning. Want to join me?"
"You've been waiting since this early?"
The man opened one eye a crack and pointed at the breakfast spread.
"The breakfast here is really good. When I told the innkeeper I was waiting for an important guest, she said she'd bring me a plate. Great person, isn't she?"
The innkeeper raised both hands in a helpless "what can you do" gesture.
He was quite the talker, and he was eating with obvious relish.
One of the inn's staff came over to me, checking what I'd like for my breakfast.
It seemed the menu varied by the type of soup.
"Corn soup, please."
At that, the innkeeper headed to the kitchen and the staff member stepped away from the table.
I sat down across from the narrow-eyed man, who was savoring his meal at a leisurely pace.
He tore off a piece of bread and dipped it into his soup before eating.
"Corn soup is a good choice too. Some adventurers order extra meat dishes on the side, but is this enough for you, Laiel?"
Many adventurers keep their bodies active.
Adventurers who regularly engage in combat tend to eat a lot.
It's not uncommon to see adventurers ordering multiple plates of meat—steaks, no less—first thing in the morning.
"Since we're sightseeing today, won't you be ordering any meat dishes?"
"That's kind of you, but I can't be so shameless as to take you up on it."
So the man sitting across from me didn't plan on paying for breakfast.
Just as I managed a wry smile, a staff member arrived with our meals.
I received the breakfast—bread with soup and a salad—and began to eat.
The warm soup was especially delicious, given how the cold days had been piling up.
As I enjoyed the warmth spreading from my stomach and the flavor of the food, the narrow-eyed man watched me with a kind of scrutiny while sipping his water.
"What is it?"
"No, it's just—you eat remarkably neatly, that's all. But I do wonder, are the rest of your companions not coming down?"
We had rented four rooms for two people, and Monica had been standing in my room, asleep.
She was tidying up now; I was the only one who had come down.
"Either they're still getting ready or they're still asleep. See, it's still earlier than the time we'd planned."
The man nodded, then began to tell me about the day's itinerary.
"In that case, maybe I should go over a few things with you first, Laiel. There are a couple of things I've been meaning to ask you about."
Since he said there were things he wanted to ask me, I tilted my head in curiosity.
"Oh, it's simple—what do you plan to do about the nightlife. Personally, I'd like to introduce you to a few spots, but since your party is rather unusual, I thought I'd check with you beforehand. So, is it necessary?"
I suppressed a near-cough and shook my head.
I wouldn't say I had no interest, but as things stood, I had no time for leisure.
However, from within the Jewel, a voice teasing me could be heard.
It was the Sixth Generation.
'What's wrong? You should learn to have some fun. Sickness can be handled with magic, you know.'
Hearing that, the Fourth Generation shouted.
'You'd actually tell Novem, "I got sick, so heal me"? Are you an idiot!'
I wanted no part of that situation either.
The narrow-eyed man chuckled softly.
"Right. That green-haired girl does seem a little dangerous, so maybe it's best you stay as you are, Lyle. Oh, but if you're curious, she's loitering near the gate, so go talk to her. She'll introduce you to good spots right away. She can recommend as many places as you want, matched to your budget and tastes. Also, I wouldn't advise trying to find places on your own."
The narrow-eyed man offered me some advice.
There was probably an element of him not profiting from it, but there seemed to be a lot of shady establishments around.
"Young adventurers who aren't used to the city earn some money and then blow it all on gambling, booze, and women — that's how it always goes. If you don't learn to play in moderation, things get ugly down the road. Oh, and thinking about it, maybe you should learn a bit about the nightlife too, Lyle."
Watching the narrow-eyed man laugh, I finished my meal.
After drinking some water and taking a breather, the narrow-eyed man told me about the characteristics of Baim.
"Baim is a place where people, goods, and money all converge. But it's not all good, so you need to be careful. Some places that are perfectly fine during the day become dangerous to walk around once night falls."
Navigating the complex city of Baim might require some extra caution.
I asked him about the places adventurers typically frequented, and the places I should avoid.
As I was doing so, I heard footsteps coming down the stairs.
It was Novem.
"Good morning. I see the guide was with you as well? I thought there would be more time to spare?"
At Novem's puzzled look, the narrow-eyed man narrowed his eyes even further.
"No, I can't keep guests waiting. It's important to move quickly, after all."
The narrow-eyed man, looking every bit the part of someone in control, glanced at Novem before turning his gaze to me.
A shop assistant approached Novem and went over the menu with her.
The narrow-eyed man murmured softly.
"I'm glad I came to say hello."
He drank his water, then switched topics and told me about Baim.
Evening.
I'd thought sightseeing around Baim would be a relaxing affair, but I couldn't have been more wrong.
Shannon was being carried on Monica's back, and Aria looked completely wiped out, her expression drained.
Eva had shown interest in all sorts of things along the way and was now tottering about, exhausted.
Novem and Miranda seemed fine, but Clara, on top of being worn out by the crowds, had apparently gotten herself drunk and was looking rather green.
Free City Baim was absolutely teeming with people.
I'd thought Central was crowded, but this made it look quiet by comparison.
Standing before us now was the final highlight of today's outing — the Guild branch.
Darion and Aramsass — those were the two Guilds we'd been using as our bases. But looking at this building they called a branch, I found myself stunned.
Me, of all people.
"There are four of this scale?"
The narrow-eyed man smiled and explained.
"Sorry to disappoint, but the largest one is actually the branch near the harbor. The others are all roughly the same size, though the one used by the mercenary company is probably the smallest."
Speaking of mercenary companies, they tended to be large operations.
He found himself wondering whether a branch office used by places like that could really afford to be small.
Miranda seemed to notice something and cut into the conversation.
"Are you mainly brokering, then?"
The narrow-eyed man snapped his fingers and declared the answer correct.
"They do travel from place to place, and while they take down monsters, their real goal is mercenary work. Rather than hunting monsters, they spend more time fighting on battlefields or tackling Dungeons. In some cases, they can bring back treasure from the deepest reaches of a Dungeon and live off it without a care. That said, they do properly buy up Magic Stones and materials as well, but requests that involve recruiting mercenaries tend to gravitate toward that side. Put another way, the other types of requests don't end up there."
At the Guild office near the harbor, it seemed they took on maritime monsters.
Most ocean-dwelling monsters posed no real threat if they were small.
But large ones were far from rare, so the haul tended to be big. That was apparently why the Guild itself had grown to such a scale.
Novem sought clarification.
"What are the remaining two characteristics?"
The narrow-eyed man rested a hand on his chin and explained.
"The quality of service is the same across the board. Whether the staff are any good varies, but since they all receive basic training, I'd think it's pretty much even? The deciding factor would be you yourselves, I suppose."
When he said it came down to them, the narrow-eyed man looked them over and nodded several times.
"If you're using Baim as your base, there are a few patterns to consider. You know how specialized adventurers exist at other Guilds too? For that kind of crowd, Baim would be better off with the branch near the harbor or the other Guild. If that's not the case... this might be something unique to Baim, but they have a dispatch model where you move from place to place."
"Dispatch?"
When Novem asked, the narrow-eyed man gave a careful explanation.
What set Baim apart from other Guilds was the number and caliber of its adventurers.
With four whole branch offices, the adventurer count at Baim was orders of magnitude higher than in other cities.
Could all those adventurers survive on the Baim area alone? The answer was no.
When that was the case, the approach Baim took was to dispatch its adventurers to various locations.
They dispatch adventurers to places where they themselves can't handle the situation or require reinforcements.
What caught my interest was—
"You're saying we can operate without changing our home base? I mean, wouldn't travel take up a lot of time?"
The narrow-faced man scratched his head, wearing a troubled expression.
"Yeah, it takes time. But they handle all the other procedures for you, and they also secure means of transportation. You can even tackle Dungeons managed by Baim, but in exchange, you basically take on an obligation to complete requests that come your way. So, honestly, it's not popular."
He said it so bluntly—this wasn't popular—then turned and gazed at the Guild branch building.
"For reference, this is one of those unpopular branches. Oh, and normally, regular adventurers don't go to the main office. That's where the big shots work."
I looked at the large building, and people were streaming in and out of the entrance nonstop.
Scanning the area, I noticed there were no chimneys.
The narrow-faced man pointed to where a chimney would be on the branch building.
"This place has full bath facilities, too. There's lodging, so if you absolutely can't find an inn, you can stay here overnight."
The facilities seemed well-equipped.
I naturally thought, *As expected of Baim, which has the main office.*
Aria, Clara, Shannon, and Eva looked tired.
Monica, who had no interest, wasn't joining the conversation.
Miranda let out a sigh.
"Then, what's the reason for bringing us here? Logically, it would be more efficient to choose the other option and tackle a Dungeon managed by Baim, wouldn't it?"
The narrow-faced man raised both hands in a gesture of surrender.
It seemed the income the narrow-faced man earned didn't come solely from the shop side.
*(I see—the Adventurers' Guild itself is using these people to recruit.)*
When I nodded in agreement, the Fifth Generation's voice came from the Jewel.
"Well, at least he's the type to give a proper explanation upfront. Though who knows—there might be things he's leaving out."
The Fifth Generation had a point.
While I waited for the narrow-faced man's explanation—
"I don't have any intention of deceiving you. We'll properly stop by one more place on the way back. It's just that there's bound to be some bias, so the Guild side has been putting in a lot of effort too."
As I watched the nonchalant narrow-faced man, I was deep in thought when the Third Generation spoke.
"No, this is actually perfect. Lyle, this branch is a good fit for us."
I gripped the Jewel to signal my agreement.
"…Is that so? Then shall we head back? Shannon and the others have clearly reached their limits. Could you guide us to the inn from here?"
When I said this and prepared to leave, the narrow-faced man nodded with a smile.
I took out two silver coins and handed them over as payment for his services.
"I knew it was the right call to reach out. Oh, I almost forgot the most important greeting."
The narrow-faced man said with a grin:
"Welcome to Baim, the City of Adventurers!"
After returning to the inn, I decided to turn in early given how exhausted my companions were.
I poked my head into the Jewel and sought confirmation from the Third Generation.
"Why did you recommend that particular branch?"
The Third Generation rested his chin on the round table and spoke with a tired look.
"Taking on Dungeons to build up your strength is fine and all, but… Lyle, your goal isn't to get stronger—it's to beat Ceres, right?"
While wiping his glasses, the Fourth Generation joined the conversation.
"Honestly speaking, both options have their pros and cons. But this time, I thought a branch with more freedom of movement would be the better pick. If it doesn't work out, we can always switch branches, right?"
The reason he chose it seemed to be simply that, between the two, the dispatch-type branch looked like it might offer at least a slight edge.
None of the other Successive Heads showed up this time.
Only the Third Generation and the Fourth Generation were taking part in the conversation with me.
The Third Generation tilted his chin up, clasped both hands behind his head, and began explaining the plan while looking at me.
"I figured that a branch which lets us venture outside—not just to Baim—would give us more freedom. If it turns out different from what we expected, we can just change our home branch. Right now, we're sorely lacking in information, after all. Gathering intelligence while also going out there to see things for ourselves might be a good move. And at the same time..."
The Fourth Generation picked up where the Third Generation left off, adjusting his glasses as he spoke.
"We'll have you move around to find even a few allies. Besides, there's no problem with clearing Dungeons out in the open, right? Managed Dungeons don't let you claim the treasures hidden in their deepest chambers. And you lot need to gear up as quickly as possible."
The innermost chamber of a Dungeon that harbored rare metals.
The problem was that once you obtained them, the Dungeon would shut down.
That was why the cities managing those Dungeons deliberately refrained from clearing them, letting the Monsters keep spawning so they could harvest Magic Stones and materials.
The Fourth Generation looked straight at me.
"Manpower, resources, funds... right now, Lyle, you're lacking in everything. Given where things stand, if you want to beat Ceres, you can't afford to hold anything back. So let's go all in from here on out."
Rather than hiding his Skills and doing things the normal way, he would now have to actively use them to get the job done.
The Third Generation stood up and stretched.
"Well then, shall we get started?"
The Third Generation brought his hands to the back of his neck and started rolling his head around...
"...I'll have to politely decline today."
As I tried to back away, the Fourth Generation anticipated my move and grabbed both of my shoulders from behind.
When I turned around, his glasses were gleaming ominously, and a smile played across his lips.
"Hey, why not? You get to fight Lyle — the genius of House Walt, the one they called the Kirin Child. Come on, you beat all of us, didn't you?"
I make up an excuse.
"I-I only said that if I couldn't beat the Successive Heads, then I definitely couldn't beat Ceres! That's not what I meant at all!"
As I scrambled to find a way out, the Third Generation was beckoning me over.
"Ha ha ha, we're not buying any of that. Come on, we've got all the time in the world. The Fourth Generation and I will take turns fighting you."
I thought to myself.
(These guys are still holding a grudge!)