Chapter 41

"Good morning, Grace."

"Yes, good morning."

"…Ah, good morning."

"Yeah, good morning, Ashley."

When I woke up, Grace was smiling and looking at my face.

Ashley must have been woken up by our voices. She seemed to realize the position she was in and sat up, wide-eyed.

"I'm sorry..."

I smiled wryly at Ashley, who was hunching her shoulders.

"It's okay. Did you sleep well?"

"...Yes."

Caduceus, who had been on guard outside, returned.

Even though the Cardiff family's affairs were settled, there might still be remnants. Caduceus was planning to continue his night watch for a while.

"I'll leave Caduceus to Theo. I'll go make breakfast."

"Miss Grace, I'll help you."

Ashley ran to the kitchen after Grace.

I could hear their cheerful voices discussing what to have for breakfast.

It seemed like Grace was smiling more softly these days than when she was at the Gartner mansion.

"Good morning, Theodore."

"Yeah, good morning."

We met up with Siela near the square by the Adventurers' Guild. After a brief greeting, the four of us headed to the guild. If Ilmhirld's condition had improved, we could talk to her.

We left the carriage at the stable and entered the guild. Heather was as usual sorting papers at the counter.

After greeting Heather, I asked about the monsters, and she nodded slightly.

"Understood. This way, please. By the way, who is this?"

"Ah, well, we're considering whether to add them to our party."

I hadn't actually discussed joining the party with Siela.

I decided to give an ambiguous answer, suggesting that it wouldn't be a problem even if they didn't join us permanently.

"My name is Siela. I'll register as an adventurer, so please take care of me."

"Is that so? I'm Heather. Nice to meet you, Siela."

Heather nodded without any particular concern and led us to a room in the back of the guild. According to her, it was a facility for injured people.

I didn't want to be in that room if I could help it. As we approached the room, we heard singing.

...The song was infused with magic. Depending on the lyrics and pitch, it could easily become a curse song... but it was a children's lullaby that was widely sung. A duet of a harpy and a siren... that was quite impossible.

When we knocked, the singing stopped.

As we entered the room, their gazes turned to us. There were three—well, three female monsters lying on the beds, looking calm. They were the ones Caduceus had mentioned.

All three seemed to be using a transformation spell, taking on forms very close to humans, but the harpy had feathers peeking out from her sleeves, and the siren had ears shaped like fish fins.

That meant the one who looked completely human must be the lamia, Ilmhirld.

"Um, nice to meet you. I'm Theodore Gartner."

We were here because they wanted to thank us.

"Oh! A child. A human child."

"Is this the human who helped us?"

"Oh, how polite. I'm Ilmhirld."

The harpy and siren exchanged glances, then stared at us intently. Ilmhirld smiled and tilted her head. From their reactions, it was clear they were not used to human society.

Ilmhirld kept her eyes squinted and smiled warmly, giving off a very gentle aura. To be honest, it didn't seem very lamia-like, or even monster-like. She probably taught the lullaby to the other two.

"Hehe, let me express our gratitude, Theodore."

"No, it was for my own benefit too. This is Grace and Ashley."

We introduced ourselves. The harpy's name was Dominique, and the siren's was Justine. Dominique had freckles and a childlike appearance, while Justine had almond-shaped eyes and a beauty mark.

...Siela seemed a bit uneasy, wandering around aimlessly.

"Isn't Heather still working? We're fine here."

"Is that so? Well, since it's Theodore, I'll leave it to you."

Heather tilted her head slightly but left the room.

Many adventurers had learned their skills in the Thieves' Guild, so I had nothing to hide. However, Siela seemed to be concerned about being seen.

Oswald, the deputy, knew that the people around me were informants in the kidnapping case. He also suspected that one of them was from the Thieves' Guild.

So, it was better not to show that Siela was closely related to the kidnapping case in front of the guild staff. Even if the Adventurers' Guild was considerate, the Thieves' Guild might be stricter, and it was necessary to maintain appearances.

"Are you okay, Ilmhirld?"

"Yes, the guild people brought us rabbits. Siela, you came through the front today, didn't you?"

"Because Theodore helped me."

Siela and Ilmhirld seemed happy to see each other, so I decided to talk to Dominique and Justine first.

"Where were you before you came here?"

"Where? We don't know what humans call our birthplace, and we were dragged in by magic and put in a cell."

"Same here. I was suddenly captured by a demon."

"From your birthplace, you were suddenly brought to the border city?"

"That's right."

...The result of the demon Rynette's research, I suppose. It must have been a forced summoning from outside the city, but there should be restrictions on summoning magic inside the city due to the barrier.

Summoning contracted monsters was one thing, but wild monsters shouldn't be able to enter the city. Moreover, it was strange for a demon to be inside the city. The barrier was primarily designed to exclude demons.

So, Rynette must have found a way to bypass the barrier. The high-ups in the temple and the royal palace must be wracking their brains over this.

In that case, their situation might be relatively stable. It would be good news for Siela.

As valuable witnesses with some connection to demons, they were friendly and cooperative, so there was no reason for the Adventurers' Guild or its members to treat them poorly, even if they had been captured by humans.

They seemed to think they had been captured by demons, not humans.

"What about Ilmhirld?"

"I was born in the labyrinth and originally lived in the border city."

...That was consistent with what Siela had told me.

"Would you mind telling me about your life in the labyrinth?"

"Hmm, I don't mind talking, but are you really interested in that story?"

Ilmhirld put a finger to her lips and tilted her head.

"Yes, labyrinth monsters are different from others, and I'm curious."

For example, the reason I'm here might be connected to the border labyrinth.

The labyrinth, said to connect to another world, could also connect to Earth and this world.

But even if I don't know my origins, it doesn't matter.

As long as I'm alive, I have to keep living until the end. How many people really know the reasons for their existence?

BFO had set various backgrounds for Theodore, but not the information about his mother fighting a demon. My life is mine, and my mother's life is hers.

"...I want to know that too."

Ilmhirld's smile remained, but there was a hint of confusion in her expression. She couldn't return to the labyrinth, and she had been working on a map for Snakebite.

The reason—was it to return to her birthplace or to find out why she was born?

"I remember vaguely living with everyone in the labyrinth. We created a village-like settlement and lived there."

"A village...?"

It must have been an unknown area. A gathering place for friendly monsters, perhaps?

"But how should I put it? It felt like a dream... We all lived a life of doing what we were supposed to do, as we were supposed to do it."

Doing what they were supposed to do, as they were supposed to do it.

Other hostile monsters seemed to act as antibodies, eliminating intruders in the labyrinth, so I imagined their settlement as an NPC village.

"Living in the labyrinth was always comfortable, and we never felt hungry or anxious."

"Why did you come out?"

"The process... I don't remember clearly. But when I realized it, I was outside. It felt like the world suddenly had color. In exchange, I was rejected by the labyrinth."

...It seemed the labyrinth had controlled and dominated them.

Ilmhirld's monologue didn't feel like a fabrication at all.