kscans

Chapter 181 - Intruder

People began to gather at the headquarters of the clan Daedalus.

The main purpose of this meeting was to distribute the treasures obtained from the salvage operation, the ghost ship, and the defeat of Poseidon. Although the ghost ship's treasures had been divided on the spot, there were still other treasures, money, the wealth hoarded by the bandit group, and the bounty money from defeating the bandits left to distribute.

Not all the members who participated were present. Instead, the leaders of each group had come to represent them.

Here now were Hayato, Relic, and Esha as usual, along with four others. Sonia from the Treasure Hunter Guild, Ney from Kokuryu, Rosalie from Black Rose, and Cecil from the Dragon Busters.

Other members had also helped, but they had received what they needed the day before and were not participating today.

Ivan had said he didn't need any reward and went off somewhere again. Jolt of the Bandit clan had happily departed, saying that just getting the manufacturing method for the Arondight Replica was more than enough payment.

The prima donna, Noat, had only participated to rescue Rose in exchange for a week of free meals, so she said she didn't need any treasure. She had been staying at the base since yesterday but was not yet awake.

(It's all women. If Relic-san wasn't here, this would be a little awkward.)

Even in virtual reality, the only men who could be comfortable surrounded by women were likely those accustomed to their company. Hayato felt slightly intimidated.

Despite the situation, Hayato looked at Esha.

Her mood had improved as of yesterday. She said she had spoken her mind to Diite, so she was no longer angry. She also understood that the organization responsible for the hacking was the real culprit. She had even said that she might have been a little too harsh on Diite and would apologize later.

(Maybe I should have kept Diite-chan here a little longer, until Esha logged in...)

"Master, what is it? I understand you are captivated by my beauty."

"Hm? Hayato, I think I'm quite a looker myself. What do you think?"

"I can't compare to Lunaria-sama, but I'm fairly attractive, you know?"

"Looks and personality aside, my abs are pretty amazing, you know?"

"Should I join in as well... I do think I'm not half bad, you know?"

(Is it because the ratio of women is so high? They're starting to say things they normally wouldn't... this is a bad trend.)

"Alright, alright, let's start the distribution."

Determined not to be overwhelmed by the atmosphere of the women, Hayato began distributing the treasures in a businesslike manner.

There was no issue with the money. It could be divided equally. The amount was substantial, so each person received about 2,000,000 G. With about fifty members in total, that meant the grand total was quite large. He gave each leader the money for their respective group members, and that concluded without a hitch.

The problem was the other items.

It was easy to acquire items no one wanted, but when desires overlapped, it would be decided by rock-paper-scissors. However, it was statistically possible for someone strong at the game to get everything, which would feel very unfair.

For that reason, they had a rule. You could only raise your hand for a desired item up to five times. The only exception was for items no one else wanted, in which case you could raise your hand as many times as you liked. To raise your hand, or not to raise it. There were various strategies involved.

It was a bit troublesome, but it was the rule they used in Kokuryu, and they were using the same format this time.

After explaining these rules, the distribution of the treasures spread across the dining hall table began.

The process went peacefully from start to finish, with no major trouble.

Sonia had declared from the beginning that the airship blueprints were hers and wanted nothing else, and Relic didn't particularly need anything. Cecil wanted only the cool-looking swords, and since no other members wanted them, basically all the weapons and armor went to her. Since Cecil couldn't use an item bag, it was arranged that they would be sent to her home later.

There were some overlapping desires for beautiful gems, rings, and necklaces, but this also caused no problems, and no one objected to the results of the rock-paper-scissors matches.

The problem was a single piece of equipment. He had intentionally saved it for last, and when its turn came, the air changed.

When they defeated Poseidon, some materials had dropped. There was Kraken ink, and slices of Kraken meat. Although it was Poseidon, it was ultimately a higher species of Kraken, so Kraken-related materials had dropped.

But separate from those, a single piece of equipment had also dropped. This was an item that rarely dropped upon defeating Poseidon, and it was safe to say it dropped because of the influence of Hayato's Dismantling Knowledge skill.

It was "Poseidon's Swimsuit." It was a so-called bikini-type swimsuit, but its stats included a significant increase in water resistance and a ten percent reduction in MP consumption when using magic. What's more, it was an item that could be equipped separately from armor. In other words, it could be layered, making it a super rare item that any female character would covet.

"Master and Relic, please wait over in the shop area. From here on, it's a woman's battle."

"What are you planning? And why is everyone drawing their weapons?"

"It seems this won't be settled with rock-paper-scissors. Therefore, it should be decided by force of arms. The extra rules have been invoked."

"First the Maid Guild, and now you guys. Why are you all so fond of violence... and could you please not rampage in the base?"

"Understood. We will rampage quietly."

"You don't understand at all."

With Esha's words, which sounded like she truly wouldn't rampage, Hayato and Relic were kicked out into the shop area.

Relic smiled as he looked at the door to the dining hall.

"She may speak of force, but that is merely a way of hiding her embarrassment. It also seems she does not want anyone to know whose hands it falls into. It is a fine thing to be young. Though I do wonder why Sonia remained as well."

"I think there are bigger things she should be hiding... please consider that last line off the record."

"Hayato-sama, Relic-sama, what happened? Weren't you in the middle of distributing treasure?"

Rose, who was in the shop area, spoke to them with a curious expression. The shop wasn't open, but she seemed to be in the middle of preparations, cleaning outside the counter.

"We got kicked out. Is it okay if we stay here for a while?"

"Is that so. In any case, this is your base, Hayato-sama, so there is no need to ask my permission. By the way, Relic-sama, I apologize for yesterday."

Rose bowed deeply to Relic.

Relic calmly said, "Please raise your head."

"Rose-sama, please do not concern yourself with it. If you apologize so many times, I will feel quite humbled. In the first place, Ban is a disciple of mine and Sonia's. What happened is our responsibility as well. If anyone should be apologizing, it is us. I am sorry for involving you in all of this."

"However..."

"If you truly wish to apologize, then please do so by continuing to serve Hayato-sama as a colleague. I, too, will strive to make up for this mistake."

"...Thank you, Relic-sama. Yes, I will do my best as your colleague."

(I'm employing her, but she's serving me...? Well, I guess I'm grateful. It would be a little sad if it were just about the money.)

Hayato thought this, then began to wonder what to do next.

Most likely, the women's battle royale wouldn't end anytime soon. But staying in the shop area would be in the way if customers came. To get to his room, he had to pass through the dining hall, so he couldn't go there for a while.

The option of going outside was also off the table. The bandit group was destroyed, but there were still factions targeting Hayato. The Assassin Guild and a group of samurai called the Ten Holy Demonic Swords.

Hayato thought. At this rate, he would never be able to go outside alone. It was unfair to everyone to always have an escort, so this was something he had to proactively resolve.

"You two, I want to ask you something. How can I come to an understanding with the Assassin Guild?"

Hayato decided to deal with the Assassin Guild first. After all, no one from the Ten Holy Demonic Swords had ever contacted him. That information came from the Maid Guild, and so far, there had been no actual harm.

In that case, he thought he should handle the Assassin Guild.

"Would it not be faster to annihilate them rather than come to an understanding?"

"Rose-san, you're quite extreme. Is that the Maid Guild's policy? Well, that aside, do you know what the Assassin Guild even does? You're good at assassination too, right, Rose-san?"

In this game, assassination was impossible. You could defeat an opponent without being noticed, but that was all. It wasn't like you could steal items from a defeated opponent. No player had likely ever been a victim, but if their HP suddenly dropped to zero, they would probably just think it was a bug.

"I apologize. My assassination is more of a one-hit-kill type of attack from a hidden state, so I am not affiliated with the Assassin Guild. I do not know much about what they do."

"I see. I was prepared to not be surprised if I heard you were formerly from the Assassin Guild, though."

There was a skill called Stealth, which temporarily made one's form semi-transparent. Unlike the item Invisible, which made one completely disappear, this allowed for movement while semi-transparent, and attacks delivered from this state received a power bonus.

If used well with a weapon skill, one could deliver a one-hit-kill attack, so it was a skill that almost every player role-playing as a thief would have.

"Next time someone from the Assassin Guild comes, shall we capture them without defeating them? I am also skilled at making people talk."

"I won't ask why you're skilled at that, but I do want to hear a more concrete story. I don't understand what they mean by improving the Assassin Guild's image."

Just as Hayato said that, a loud noise came from the dining hall.

(Did they really start rampaging? If the furniture is broken, I'm going to be seriously mad...)

Thinking this, Hayato opened the door to the dining hall.

There, a strange scene unfolded. Chairs were overturned, but it wasn't what you'd call a rampage. However, one point was an unmissable situation.

Cecil and Rosalie were restraining an unfamiliar man. The man was face down on the floor, with Cecil holding his right arm and Rosalie his left, seemingly applying a joint lock.

In a virtual reality where pain wasn't felt, a joint lock might be meaningless, but in that position, he couldn't get up.

"Um, what are you doing? And who is that?"

"W-Wait! I'm a member of the Assassin Guild! I just came here to talk! I'm not a suspicious person, so help me!"

He couldn't be more suspicious, but Hayato decided to at least hear him out and had the man tied up with rope.