"Why us?"
Riezel raised the most fundamental question.
From the way the magus carried themself, it was clear they had come specifically to find them.
Because of that, Riezel felt somewhat curious.
Why would this person choose this moment to track down him and Ais in particular?
In the original story, the magus also approached Ais, but that was because she had already come into contact with the mastermind behind the incident beforehand.
But here, due to Riezel's influence, Ais had recently leveled up and spent most of her time confined in the manor, practicing Wind Breathing, which made her barely go outside and not be involved in any of the events that originally took place.
Given that, she naturally had not encountered those figures stirring in the darkness ahead of time.
If that was the case, then why would this person from the Guild seek out the two of them?
Riezel could not help but feel a bit puzzled about the reasoning behind it, but fortunately, that confusion was resolved soon enough.
"Why? There are actually two reasons why I came to the two of you."
At Riezel's question, the magus lowered their head slightly and spoke in a subdued tone.
"First, the monster outbreak on the 24th Floor was not the first time this phenomenon occurred, because the same type of incident had happened on the 30th Floor before."
"Back then, I also requested a High-Class Adventurer to investigate the site. Although there were many twists and unexpected developments in between, he still managed to bring back an important related item from the scene."
"After obtaining that item, he secretly handed it over to another adventurer I requested while staying on the safe floor of the 18th Floor, and right after that… he was killed."
As soon as these words left the magus's mouth, Ais, who had been quietly listening, reacted at once.
"Killed… on a safe floor?" Ais asked, her expression shifted.
"Yes... He was killed on a safe floor." The magus responded with a grave tone.
Needless to say, the implications were significant.
Safe floors were places where monsters did not spawn—even if a few monsters wandered in from other floors, such monsters would only appear on floors adjacent to that safe floor.
Given that the 18th Floor belonged to the Middle Floors, the monsters active around that area would only reach up to Level 2 at most.
Meanwhile, the 30th Floor was part of the Lower Floors—a place even a party of Level 2 adventurers could not explore, where the Guild also recommended that adventurers reach Level 3 before entering the place.
If the adventurer requested by the magus had been able to freely move around the 30th Floor, that meant he was at least a Level 3 Second-Class Adventurer.
For an adventurer of that level, being killed by monsters on the 18th Floor was highly unlikely.
In other words...
"In other words, this was very likely a man-made incident." The magus continued in a low voice. "In fact, he was killed in an inn within the town itself. It's highly unlikely that any monster could appear there."
Meaning, the possibility of it being man-made was almost one hundred percent.
"As for the one who was killed… he was a Second-Class Adventurer from the Ganesha Familia, Level 4."
Upon hearing this, both Riezel and Ais understood everything.
"So you believe these two monster outbreak incidents weren't just simple dungeon anomalies, but that someone might be manipulating things behind the scenes?" Riezel looked at the magus deeply. "Since the perpetrator could easily kill a Level 4 inside the town, you judged that resolving this incident would require at least a First-Class Adventurer above Level 5?"
"Correct." The magus nodded slightly, confirming Riezel's conclusion.
A Level 5 First-Class Adventurer—while more common than Level 6—such adventurers were still far from numerous in Orario.
At the very least, the number of familias in Orario that possessed First-Class Adventurers could practically be counted on one hand.
Among those familias, the Loki Familia was without question the brightest, strongest, and most prominent—only the Freya Familia could compare.
Given that, it was unsurprising that the Guild would wish to commission a First-Class Adventurer from the Loki Familia for this incident.
Of course...
"Well, that was the first reason." The magus shifted their gaze and looked toward Riezel. "As for the second reason... It's because of you, Riezel Brynhart."
"Because of me?" Riezel raised an eyebrow, truly not expecting this.
"Yes—because you already had contact with the suspicious monsters during Monster Feria."
As the magus's words fell, Ais once again recalled what had happened during Monster Feria.
"...You mean those man-eating flower monsters?" Ais chimed in, clearly still remembering those hideous monsters well.
"Yes, them." The magus nodded, then continued. "During the incident on the 30th Floor, our assisting personnel reported seeing a type of multicolored man-eating flower monster they had never encountered before."
For this reason, the magus sought out Riezel deliberately, because he had already brushed against the edge of those suspicious events and glimpsed some of the hidden clues within.
"I know those man-eating flowers were highly troublesome. Not only did they possess skin that nullified physical attacks, but they also reacted violently to magic."
"To deal with such monsters, simply sending a frontline warrior or a rear mage would not suffice. You would at least need a swordsman equipped with high-class equipment—or even better, a magic swordsman adept in frontline combat and Concurrent Chanting."
"Besides, there were also individual differences among those monsters. While the weaker ones only had around Level 2 or Level 3 strength, the stronger ones possessed strength equivalent to Level 4 or possibly even Level 5—enough that only exceptional First-Class Adventurers could handle them."
"But such troublesome monsters were wiped out effortlessly by you that day."
As the magus shared information about the involved monsters with Riezel and Ais, they also looked directly at Riezel.
"I see..." Riezel replied calmly. "Is that why you set your eyes on me?"
Evidently, that was the second reason the magus had deliberately sought out both Riezel and Ais.
"Orario's strongest magic swordsman and strongest swordswoman—your strength is praised even by the gods." The magus continued calmly. "Since this incident cannot be resolved without First-Class Adventurers, you two naturally stand at the top among them. We hope for your assistance, and this is also the Guild's intention."
As the official governing body of Orario, the Guild had the authority to issue mandatory quests to any familia within the city during emergencies, while the familias within Orario also had the obligation to assist the Guild—an agreement that had been established since the Guild was first formed.
Because the familias were able to operate in Orario and receive the Guild's support when exploring the Dungeon, they, in turn, were obligated to help the city when problems arose.
It was a long-standing cooperative model, which was why, after the anomaly on the 24th Floor occurred, adventurers called for the Guild to have the major familias dispatch First-Class Adventurers to resolve the matter quickly.
If not for the suspicious nature of this incident, the signs of human involvement, and the Guild's hesitation to act recklessly, the Guild would have already issued a mandatory quest.
In that case, not only Riezel and Ais, but the entire Loki Familia would have been obligated to assist.
However, because they could not directly issue a mandatory quest, the Guild had no choice but to approach Riezel and Ais in person and issue a quest without binding force.
Understanding all this, Riezel and Ais exchanged a glance.
Ais stepped back slightly, seemingly entrusting the final decision to Riezel.
Such a private quest could be refused since it was not mandatory, which meant the Guild could not force them to accept it.
However, considering the situation sounded quite serious, and there were signs of human manipulation behind the scenes, if left alone, it could potentially threaten the surface and endanger Orario.
Considering that, Ais felt the quest should be accepted if possible and the incident resolved.
Unfortunately, she was not good with words nor with complex reasoning, so she could not articulate her thoughts clearly, which was why she handed the decision to Riezel and let him judge.
Ais, however, had no idea that Riezel had come here with her today precisely because of this matter, since this incident was not completely unrelated to her.
Needless to say, Riezel had already decided he would intervene.
Even without the magus's sudden arrival and quest, he would have gone to the 24th Floor, so with that being the case, the choice had been the same from the very beginning.
"I have two questions."
Riezel suddenly spoke to the magus.
"Go ahead."
The magus lifted their chin slightly, signaling for Riezel to ask.
"You requested a Level 4 adventurer from the Ganesha Familia to go to the 30th Floor and even had him retrieve the item related to the incident from there, right?" Riezel pointed out sharply. "Where is that thing now?"
"...It has already been handed to me."
Seemingly not expecting Riezel to ask such a question, the magus paused for a moment before continuing.
"Another adventurer I requested brought the item back."
"When the town on the 18th Floor fell into chaos due to that murder case, he retreated to the surface and delivered the item to me, but I had already disposed of it since that wasn't something that should've been left alone."
Clearly, the magus's words concealed more than a little.
For example, they did not say what the item actually was, nor did they explain what would have happened if it had indeed been left alone.
Ais noticed this and pondered quietly.
'Is that item the reason the Guild didn't dare to publicly reveal this incident and issued a mandatory quest?'
Ais guessed inwardly and found it entirely possible.
Riezel, however, seemed uninterested in the item's whereabouts or true nature and simply moved on to his second question.
"You said we'd get a generous reward as long as we completed this quest, right?" Riezel said bluntly. "Does that reward include a grimoire?"
Hearing this question, not only did Ais show a faint hint of surprise, but even the magus froze for a moment before reacting.
"You need a grimoire?"
Seeming to understand something, the magus spoke thoughtfully.
"Everyone says you can use the magic of the Sword Princess and the Thousand Elf, so various gods have already speculated that, like Nine Hell and Thousand Elf, you might be someone with special magic—someone who can use far more than just three magic spells."
"Judging from that, your magic slots may indeed continue to expand, and you may discover even more magic."
"For someone like you, needing a grimoire is perfectly normal."
As they said this, the magus easily made their promise.
"Alright, since you need a grimoire, I can prepare it for you. In your reward, I will include at least two grimoires. How does that sound?"
Hearing the magus speak of such precious magic items as if they were vegetables on a street stall—easy to prepare at any time—Ais couldn't help feeling secretly shocked.
"Alright." Riezel, on the other hand, looked completely unsurprised as he suddenly smiled and nodded readily. "We'll take this quest."
"Thank you." The magus bowed their head. "For now, please head to Rivira. I've prepared helpers for you two. Once you arrive at the designated tavern and speak the password, they'll know your identity and purpose. As for the rest, it will be up to you."
Leaving these words behind, the magus faded away as though dissolving into the mist.
Only Riezel and Ais remained where they stood, silently watching the magus disappear.
A moment later, Riezel turned to Ais.
"You won't blame me, right?" Riezel asked softly. "For accepting the quest on my own and even naming the reward?"
"...I won't." Ais shook her head, considerate as always. "If it's something you need, then it can't be helped... It's just that..."
"What is it?" Riezel, seeing her suddenly growing hesitant, asked directly.
"Can we trust that person?" Ais voiced her doubt with hesitation.
"You think he's untrustworthy?" Riezel replied with a question rather than an answer.
"He's very suspicious..." Ais admitted bluntly, thought for a moment, then continued. "And for some reason, I just have a bad feeling about this..."
Riezel immediately fixed his eyes on her face, his gaze filled with meaning.
A bad feeling?
It seemed this girl had already sensed, through instinct alone, that this incident was very likely connected to her.
Another bloodline within her appeared to have begun stirring.
"Don't worry." Riezel gave a small smile. "If something really happens, I'll take care of everything."
Ais immediately looked straight into his face.
Seeing his calm and steady expression, her normally emotionless face unconsciously relaxed a little.
"Mm, I believe you." Ais nodded and quietly pressed down the faint unease rising in her chest.
"Alright, let's go." Riezel said while turning around. "We should head to the 18th Floor first."
Ais nodded again.
With that, the two walked toward the entrance leading to the 11th Floor once more, their steps noticeably faster than before, while the white mist continued to fill that seemingly endless floor as though brewing something beneath its stillness, refusing to settle.
===
[A bonus chapter for every 500 Power Stones.]
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