97 - The Four Guild Branches
The morning after arriving in Beim.
When I left my room and went down to the first floor of the inn, a man with narrow eyes was eating in the area that served as the dining hall.
The innkeeper was giving a wry smile to the man, who was eating with a beaming expression.
Breakfast was supposed to be a service for overnight guests, so the system should have been that it wasn't served to general customers.
Noticing me, the man waved his hand.
"Good morning. Care to join me?"
"Have you been waiting for me since this early in the morning?"
At that, the man opened one eye just a little and pointed to his breakfast.
"The breakfast here is delicious. When I told him I was waiting for an important guest, the owner told me to go ahead and eat. He's a good person, isn't he?"
The innkeeper raised both hands in a "good grief" sort of gesture.
Whether he was just a smooth talker or not, he seemed to be enjoying his meal.
An inn employee came to me to confirm my breakfast menu.
It seemed the menu differed by the type of soup.
"Corn soup, please."
As I said that, the owner headed toward the kitchen and the employee left the table.
As I sat across from the narrow-eyed man, he continued to enjoy his meal slowly.
He was tearing off pieces of bread and dipping them into the soup.
"Corn soup is good too. Some of the adventurers order additional meat dishes, but I wonder if it'll be enough for you, Liel-kun?"
Many adventurers move their bodies.
Especially those who engage in combat eat a lot.
It didn't seem unusual for adventurers to order several steaks, let alone meat dishes, from the morning.
"Today is for sightseeing, after all. Aren't you ordering any meat dishes?"
"Since it's a kindness, I can't bring myself to be that brazen."
In other words, the man in front of me didn't seem to intend to pay for his breakfast.
As I gave a wry smile, the employee brought my breakfast.
I received and ate a breakfast consisting of bread, soup, and salad.
The warm soup was very delicious, especially since the cold days had been continuing.
While I was enjoying the taste and the feeling of warming up from the inside, the narrow-eyed man watched me as if observing me while drinking water.
"Is something wrong?"
"No, I just thought you eat quite neatly. That aside, aren't your other companions coming down?"
We had rented four double rooms, and Monica was sleeping while standing in my room.
She was currently cleaning, so I was the only one who had come down.
"Either they're taking time to prepare, or they're still asleep. After all, it's still earlier than the scheduled time."
The man nodded and began to tell me today's plan.
"In that case, I'll tell Liel-kun a few things first. There were some things I wanted to ask as well."
Since he said there were things he wanted to ask me, I tilted my head.
"What? Simply whether you're interested in the nightlife. I'd like to introduce some places, but since your party is special, I thought I'd ask in advance. So, is it necessary?"
I suppressed a cough and shook my head.
I wouldn't say I had no interest, but in the current situation, I had no time to play around.
However, from within the Jewel Orb, a voice teased me.
It was The Sixth.
"What? Why don't you learn a bit about pleasure. Sickness and such can be handled however you want with magic."
Hearing that, The Fourth shouted.
"Are you going to tell Novem-chan to treat you because you caught a disease? You're an idiot!"
I also wanted to avoid such a situation.
The narrow-eyed man chuckled.
"I thought so. That green-haired girl seems a bit dangerous, so it might be better for Liel-kun to stay serious. Oops, if you become curious, I'll be loitering near the gate, so just call out to me. I'll introduce some good places immediately. I can introduce as many as you like depending on the price and preference. Also, it's better not to try and find them on your own."
The narrow-eyed man gave me a warning.
While it might be partly because he wouldn't make money, it seemed there were many suspicious shops.
"Young adventurers who aren't used to the city, once they start earning money, fail through gambling, alcohol, and then women. If you don't know how to play in moderation, it becomes a disaster later. Oops, thinking about that, maybe Liel-kun should learn about pleasure too."
While looking at the laughing narrow-eyed man, I finished my meal.
After taking a breath and drinking water, the narrow-eyed man told me about the characteristics of Beim.
"People, things, and money gather in Beim. However, it's not all good, so be careful. Depending on the location, a place that's normal during the day can become dangerous to walk around in at night."
Walking around the complex city of Beim might require caution.
I asked about the places adventurers basically use, and the places it's better not to enter.
As I was doing that, I heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs.
It was Novem.
"Good morning. Was the guide with you as well? I thought we had plenty of time?"
As Novem tilted her head, the narrow-eyed man narrowed his eyes further.
"No, it's not good to keep the customer waiting. Moving early is important."
The narrow-eyed man, showing his composure, looked at Novem and then at me.
The employee approached Novem and confirmed the menu.
The narrow-eyed man muttered.
"...As I thought, it was good that I spoke up."
Continuing to drink water, the man changed the subject and told me more about Beim.
Evening.
I had thought of sightseeing in Beim as something easy, but I was dead wrong.
Shannon was being carried on Monica's back, and Aria had a tired expression, looking exhausted.
Eva showed interest in various things and was now staggering, perhaps from fatigue.
Only Novem and Miranda were normal, but Clara had a pale face, having grown tired of the crowds and perhaps becoming motion sick.
The Free City of Beim had an enormous number of people.
I thought Central had many, but this was even more.
The guild branch, the final highlight of this trip, was before us.
We had operated with two guilds, Darion and Alamsars, as our homes, but I was surprised to see the guild building called a branch.
I was.
"There are four of this scale?"
Then, the narrow-eyed man explained while laughing.
"Too bad. The largest one is the guild near the port. The others are roughly the same in scale, but the guild used by mercenary groups is the smallest."
Speaking of mercenary groups, they are large organizations.
I wondered if it was okay for a guild branch used by such people to be small.
Miranda seemed to notice and interrupted the conversation.
"Does that mean they mainly handle mediation?"
The narrow-eyed man snapped his fingers and declared it correct.
"Even those who move between regions kill monsters, but their goal is mercenary work. They spend more time working on battlefields or challenging labyrinths than killing monsters. In some cases, they can live in luxury just by bringing back treasures from the deepest part of a labyrinth. Of course, they also handle the purchase of magic stones and materials, but requests to recruit mercenaries gather there. Conversely, other requests don't gather there."
At the guild near the port, it seemed they handled monsters from the sea.
Many monsters that appear in the sea are not a threat if they are small.
However, there are not a few large ones, so the prey is often big. Therefore, the guild itself also becomes large in scale, apparently.
Novem confirmed.
"What are the characteristics of the remaining two?"
The narrow-eyed man placed a hand on his chin and explained.
"The quality of service is the same. There are good and bad staff, but since they are basically trained, I think it's the same. The problem depends on you guys, I suppose?"
Saying it depended on us, the narrow-eyed man looked at us and nodded several times.
"Even if you make Beim your home for activities, there are several patterns. Look, there are specialized adventurers in other guilds too, right? For those kinds of people, it's better to choose the port-side branch or the other guild. If not... and I think this is unique to Beim, there's the dispatch type that moves to various regions."
"Dispatch?"
When Novem asked, the narrow-eyed man explained politely.
What made Beim greatly different from other guilds was the number and quality of adventurers.
As expected of a place with four branches, the number of adventurers in Beim was on a different order of magnitude compared to other cities.
Could such adventurers make a living just around Beim? The answer is no.
When that happened, the measure Beim took was to dispatch adventurers to various regions.
They sent adventurers to places they couldn't handle on their own or where reinforcements were needed.
What concerned me was—.
"You can operate without changing your home? Or rather, wouldn't moving take time?"
The narrow-eyed man scratched his head with a troubled expression.
"Yeah, it does. But they handle various other procedures for you and secure means of transportation. You can challenge labyrinths managed by Beim, but basically, you'll have an obligation to complete the requests that come your way. So, to be honest, it's not popular."
The narrow-eyed man, who stated flatly that it wasn't popular, looked back at the guild branch.
"By the way, this is that unpopular branch. Oh, and basically, general adventurers don't go to the headquarters. That's where the big shots work."
I looked at the large building, and people were entering and exiting the entrance in a constant stream.
Looking around, there were no chimneys.
The narrow-eyed man pointed to the chimney of the guild branch.
"This place is fully equipped with baths. There are also lodging facilities, so if you absolutely can't find an inn, you can sleep here."
The facilities seemed well-equipped.
I honestly thought it was as expected of Beim, where the headquarters is located.
Aria, Clara, Shannon, and Eva were tired.
And Monica, who was uninterested, didn't join the conversation.
Miranda let out a sigh.
"So, what is the reason for bringing us here? Normally thinking about it, it would be more efficient to choose the other one and challenge the labyrinths managed by Beim, wouldn't it?"
The narrow-eyed man raised both hands in a gesture of surrender.
Apparently, the income the narrow-eyed man received didn't come only from the shops.
(I see, the Adventurer's Guild itself is using these people for recruitment.)
As I nodded in understanding, The Fifth's voice came from the Jewel Orb.
"Well, he's a good guy for explaining properly in advance. Though, there might be things he hasn't mentioned."
It was as The Fifth said.
While I waited for the narrow-eyed man's explanation.
"I have no intention of deceiving you. We'll stop by the other one on the way back, too. However, because there's inevitably a bias, the guild side is also trying various things."
While looking at the aloof narrow-eyed man, I was thinking when The Third spoke.
"No, this is just right. Liel, this branch is suited for us."
I gripped the Jewel Orb and showed my intention of agreement.
"...I see. Shall we head back? Shannon and the others are at their limit. Could you guide us back to the inn?"
To me, who decided to return, the narrow-eyed man nodded with a smile.
I took out two silver coins and handed them over as payment for this time.
"As I thought, it was the right choice to speak up. Oops, I forgot an important greeting."
The narrow-eyed man said with a smile.
"Welcome to Beim, the capital of adventurers."
Returning to the inn, I decided to sleep early due to my companions' fatigue.
Peeking into the Jewel Orb, I confirmed with The Third.
"Why did you recommend that branch?"
The Third, resting his chin on the round table, said with a look of boredom.
"Challenging labyrinths to build strength is fine, but Liel's goal isn't to become strong, it's to defeat Celes, right?"
While wiping his glasses, The Fourth also joined the conversation.
"To be honest, both have merits and demerits. However, I felt that a branch with more freedom was better this time. If it doesn't work out, we can just change branches, right?"
The reason for the choice, whether it was either, seemed to be just that it was a dispatch-type branch that seemed to have at least some merit.
This time, the other ancestral heads didn't show their faces.
Only The Third and The Fourth participated in the conversation with me.
Lifting his chin and putting both hands behind his head, The Third explained the plan while looking at me.
"I thought a branch that allows us to go not only to Beim but also outside would have high freedom. If it's different from what we imagined, we can just change the branch we make our home. Right now, we are overwhelmingly lacking in information. While gathering information, it might be good to go outside and verify things ourselves. Simultaneously."
The Fourth took over The Third's explanation while putting on his glasses.
"We'll have you move to find allies, even if it's just a few. Besides, it's fine to defeat labyrinths that are outside, right? In managed labyrinths, you can't obtain the treasure in the Innermost Chamber. Liel and the others also need to prepare their equipment urgently."
The Innermost Chamber of a labyrinth where rare metals exist.
The problem is that once those are obtained, the labyrinth stops functioning.
Therefore, in cities that manage labyrinths, they intentionally let the labyrinth continue to produce monsters without defeating it, so they can collect magic stones and materials.
The Fourth, looking at me.
"People, things, money... Liel is lacking in all of them right now. To defeat Celes from the current situation, we can't afford to hold anything back. Let's give it our all from here on."
Instead of hiding my skills while working, from now on, I will be actively using my skills to complete jobs.
The Third stood up and stretched.
"Now then, shall we begin?"
Putting his hand on the back of his neck, The Third began to rotate his neck...
"...I'll pass for today."
As I stepped back, The Fourth, who had anticipated my move, grabbed both my shoulders from behind.
When I looked back, his glasses emitted an eerie light, and his mouth was smiling.
"Why not? I want to fight Liel, who was called the genius child or the prodigy of House Walt. Come now, you're going to defeat all of us, right?"
I made an excuse.
"T-that was because I thought if I couldn't defeat the ancestral heads, I wouldn't be able to defeat Celes! I didn't mean it in that way!"
As I tried to escape somehow, The Third was beckoning.
"Hahaha, I won't listen to such excuses. Come, we have plenty of time. The Fourth and I will take turns fighting you."
I thought.
(These guys are still holding a grudge!)