Chapter 53

"Don't hide it, it won't do you any good!"

"I'm not hiding anything. I merely said that he is not here."

At the gate of the Keena household in the border village of Felskeiro, a tense atmosphere was created by the heated exchange between a knight who was raising his voice and a maid who was gently refusing him. The knight was the main source of the tension.

Three knights from the Helshper Order had arrived on horseback in the early morning, shouting, "Where is that adventurer called Keena?!" and pressing the matter with Roxane, who was in charge of the household in the master's absence. Before Roxane and Roxilus could explode in response to the knight's high-handed attitude, Siren intervened and the exchange repeated itself.

Honestly, Siren, who is usually mild-mannered, was starting to feel a buildup of dark thoughts due to the knights' repetitive and forceful statements, which were backed by their authority. On the other hand, Roxane and Roxilus, who were initially on the verge of exploding, were now trembling in fear at Siren's aura, which seemed about to burst. After all, this was the castle of their beloved master, no matter how small the house might be. As those entrusted with the household, they did not want to make a single mistake in their response, which could lead to the impression that "the master of the maid is not much."

Sealing away her frustrated and depressed heart, Siren maintained a cool expression as she dealt with the three foolish knights. Then, good news came to her: a friend communication from her master, Opekettenshurthammer Krostetbonber. It read, "Move to the Guardian's Tower, Luka and Keena will also come. Stop by Helshper and then return."

Ideally, such a notification should have been received right after leaving the village. Siren decided to save her complaints for when the master returned and instead briefly conveyed the current situation. A quick reply came back: "I've sent a message to Keena, the handling is up to you." Siren, trembling with joy at finally being able to get rid of the knights in front of her, hid her feelings behind an ironclad expression and delivered the final warning to the three annoying knights.

"Just now, we received a message from our master. Keena-sama is in Helshper, and he will go directly to the knights' order."

"Don't lie to me. How could you possibly have communicated with him while facing us? Cut the act!"

If someone who knew Keena and Opus's maids well had been there, they might have made the sign of the cross. The two maids and one butler, freed from the constraints of their programming, had gained free will and the ability to interpret their master's orders to their advantage. Opus's message of "I'll leave it to you" was interpreted by the three (especially Siren) as "Since the purpose of summoning Keena-sama has been fulfilled, the messenger is no longer needed." The knights' authority and power were as meaningless as scraps of paper. The knights, who had failed to read the room, were paralyzed by the overwhelming pressure directed at them by the maids and butler, who were far below them in rank. The summoned maids of Siren could use one-tenth of the skills possessed by their summoner. While most of these skills were for daily life, they were not lacking in combat skills, especially with four hundred of them.

"Just don't kill them. It could get complicated if someone dies."

"Understood."

"Neither alive nor dead. Understood."

The three, even combined, could not match the level of a single maid. Within seconds, the pitiful screams of the three knights echoed through the village in a trio. The villagers, who knew that Keena's servants also served as the village's guards, ignored the screams, considering them just desserts for the intruders.

---

In Helshper.

After spending a night in a camp, Keena and company used [Flight] to reach Helshper. They had started moving before dawn, returned the fire and lightning spirit beasts, and took a break for Luka, who was feeling dizzy from the speed and altitude. Opus contacted Siren and received a notification that "a summons from the Helshper knights' order has been issued to Keena-sama." Of course, they had no idea about the fate of the knights who had delivered the summons. Expecting a long wait, they decided to book a room at the inn where they had stayed with the Eilene caravan before. They ran into an acquaintance there.

"Hey, little lady. Meeting you here is quite a coincidence."

"Is that not Keena-sama? And Luka is with you too?"

"Arbiter, Eilene, it's been a while."

Luka, still holding Keena's hand, bowed her head. Eilene and the others smiled warmly. Arbiter's suspicious gaze was directed at Opus, who stood behind Keena. The tall, non-human mage, who was not just anyone, raised the alert level of the "Flame Spear Mercenary Corps" leader to the maximum. Sparks flew between the two. Opus, who had heard about the interactions in this world from Keena, was not directing hostility but simply returning the glare. As a bonus, he activated a few [Active Skills] and sent a powerful pressure point-by-point as a greeting. For Opus, it was just a joke, but Arbiter, who received a solid mass of extraordinary chills, was frozen in place, drenched in cold sweat like a waterfall. When Keena intervened and stopped the mischief, a thoroughly exhausted Arbiter was left behind.

"Hey, Opus. Arbiter and Eilene are my benefactors, you know. Don't be rude! This is Opus, an old friend of mine. He's a bit eccentric, but he's not a bad person, so please be kind to him."

"Ah, yeah... No, I was the one who was rude... Sorry."

"Yes... I'm Eilene. If you need anything, feel free to ask... Are you okay?"

"...Opus, are you okay?"

"......! ...!?"

Opus, who received a powerful elbow strike to the solar plexus, enhanced by [STR Boost] and [Power Amplification] magic, was writhing on the floor. It was a tragic scene that made the guild members and the caravan members feel both sympathy and concern.

"Ugh, cough. That was tough..."

"Deserved punishment, I'd say."

The high-level attack of the interruption, the resilient bodies that could withstand it, and the display of these by the two left the guild members trembling. Eilene's caravan was about to leave after finishing their negotiations, and if the timing was right, they agreed to travel together to the village. Keena told Eilene about the summons from the knights and entrusted Luka to Opus and the caravan members before setting off with a sigh.

"Why are you leaving with a dejected look, little lady?"

"Well, she used to frown at power-related requests."

Arbiter's question was answered by Opus, who had been traveling with Keena for a long time. In the game Riedale, quests given by the king and nobles often had unpleasant endings. They involved learning about the inner lives of people who had been reduced to slaves or seeing the fates of those who defied the powerful from the perspective of the nobility, leaving a bitter taste in the player's mouth. These quests were also designed to reduce the number of skill masters, as there were over four thousand quests, some of which had content that forced players to return to reality. Opus had been involved in some of these quests but not all. By the time the game was discontinued, the number of quests had swelled to 4,200.

After seeing Keena off, Opus also took action, heading to the guild to get a guild card. It served as identification, but for Opus, who did not intend to use the guild much, it was more like a student ID. Just knowing that he was there and that his friends knew it was enough. Still, it was a kind of insurance, and half the reason was that he would be scolded by Keena if he didn't get it.

Just as Opus was about to leave the inn, he was pulled by the hem of his clothes and stumbled. Turning around, he saw Luka looking up at him with the eyes of an abandoned puppy.

"Are you... going somewhere?"

"I'm just going to the Adventurer's Guild and will return soon."

"Can I... go with you?"

Opus couldn't refuse Luka, who had been entrusted to him by Keena, but he also felt bad about disappointing Eilene, who had been asked to take care of her. However, Eilene and Arbiter smiled and sent them off.

"It's better for the little lady to have someone she's familiar with, right?"

"Indeed, I was asked by Keena-sama, but I'm not so petty as to be offended by this."

"Thank you for understanding."

Opus bowed to Eilene and the others with a sincerity that would have made them fall over in surprise if they knew him well. Then, he hoisted Luka onto his shoulder and left the inn. Their destination was the Adventurer's Guild, where three white towers stood together. According to Arbiter, they could find it by moving west from the main street after leaving the inn. It was indeed easy to find. They slipped through the crowd and entered the guild, where an empty, spacious room greeted them. There was a receptionist at the counter, but no adventurers were in sight. "It doesn't matter whether they're here or not," muttered Opus to himself as he put Luka down and headed for the counter.

"Welcome to the Helshper Adventurer's Guild. How may I assist you today?"

"I would like to register as an adventurer. I've already been briefed by the leader of the Flame Spear Mercenary Corps."

"Oh, you're a referral from Arbiter. Please fill out this form with the necessary information."

She handed him a sheet of paper and a pencil. Opus mentioned the Flame Spear Mercenary Corps because Arbiter had given him permission, saying it would speed things up. Although he was told, "You're trusting too quickly," he was also told with a smile, "There's no mistake with the little lady's acquaintance." It was indeed a pleasant surprise to have things go smoothly without unnecessary explanations. He filled out his name (the long full name), race, and chose a safe occupation as a warrior, then handed it to the receptionist. After a quick check, she gave him a number tag and said with a businesslike smile, "Please come back tomorrow to pick up your official card."

Meanwhile, Luka had been staring at the request boards on the wall since Opus went to the counter. She occasionally tilted her head, skipping over the unreadable words and following the meaningless text with her eyes. Suddenly, a hand was placed on her head. Opus, who had approached from behind, picked up Luka and adjusted her position on his shoulder so that her eyes were level with the request boards.

"Did you find something interesting?"

"...I can't read... the words..."

Opus, not angry at her answer, which was different from his question, muttered, "You're eager to learn," and answered her questions about the words she couldn't read. For a while, only their Q&A conversation echoed in the empty guild, but it was interrupted by the sudden sound of the entrance door opening.

"Oh, what a terrible experience... Huh?"

"...Ah."

The one who opened the door with a tired expression was a woman who gave an impression of being lively and wearing leather armor. She had light armor, a saber, and a whip at her waist, and most importantly, she was someone Luka knew. The presence of Opus and Luka, who were the only ones in the guild, was impossible to miss. The woman, Quorke, who looked a bit surprised, raised her hand and greeted Luka with a happy face.

"Isn't that Luka? It's been a while. How have you been?"

"...Yeah."

"Today you're not with Keena? And who is this demon race brother?"

"...Opus, my brother. Keena, my mother, is... a friend."

At Luka's hesitant answer, Quorke's expression softened. Opus, who had heard from Keena about the players he had met in this world, had no intention of criticizing her response. He had even anticipated the possibility of being treated with suspicion. Luka's presence had saved him from a lengthy explanation. So far, so good, but the problem was the other person Quorke called from the newly entered Adventurer's Guild.

"Hey, Exis, stop dilly-dallying! You can meet Luka."

"You're the one who rushed ahead. Ignoring physical limitations, huh!"

The gray dragon person who appeared later slammed her complaints at her partner and tried to greet the small friend she hadn't seen in a while, but then she noticed Opus. The moment she saw him, she collapsed to the floor with a "slurp-splat" sound. "Slurp" was the sound of her legs slipping, and "splat" was the sound of her heavy armor hitting the floor. It was such a natural movement that it wouldn't be surprising if someone said she suddenly turned into a lifeless puppet. Quorke and Luka were stunned. Quorke, crouching down to check for a pulse, and Luka, clinging to Opus's temple, were frozen in shock. Opus approached Exis with a calm gait and looked down at her head.

"Are you still alive, Tarrant?"

"......You, Opus... Why are you here?"

"I think our situations are the same, don't you? You should have at least considered the possibility, Tarrant."

"......It's TARTAROS, not Tarrant! And that's not the issue right now!"

Exis, who had been lying on the floor in a relaxed state, quickly got up and tried to attack Opus. Of course, Opus, who had anticipated this, was already out of range by the time she stood up. He couldn't expose Luka, who was with him, to any danger. He would definitely be scolded by an angry Keena, ... Exis.

"Got it, Exis. Then that's fine. By the way, how long do you plan to keep your hostility towards us? It's not good to worry Luka too much."

Opus, with his arms crossed and shoulders shrugged, was unsure how to interpret Exis's growling reaction. Seeing Luka stiffen on his shoulder, he glared at Exis. Exis, sensing the relaxed but intimidating attitude, took a different defensive stance. Quorke, who had a vague understanding of their relationship, patted her partner's shoulder.

"Calm down, Exis. This guy is one of us, right? So there's no point in being hostile."

"Indeed, this gentleman understands the situation."

"Thanks, Quorke. If anything happens, please take care of it."

Opus shook hands with Quorke, who extended her hand, and introduced himself with a mischievous smile.

"I am Opekettenshurthammer Krostetbonber, but you can call me Opus. I am also a Skill Master No. 13, a fellow of Keena."

"Be careful, he's as notorious as Keena, known as 'Riedale's Zhuge Liang.'"

"Wh-What!?"

Quorke, startled by the malicious title added by Exis, pulled her hand away from the handshake and hurriedly put some distance between herself and Opus.

"Hehe, seems I'm not well-liked."

"Don't fight... please..."

Luka, pulling on Opus's coat collar, showed the authority of a mediator. Opus smiled at her timid appearance and gently stroked the girl on his shoulder.

"Since a common friend says so, it's best not to make a bad impression in front of a child. This is not the game world, and I don't intend to act recklessly."

On the other hand, Exis, "Huh? What's this guy talking about?" was dumbfounded. Quorke, who had heard about the notorious game-era characters, tilted her head. Ignoring their questions, Opus looked around the empty waiting room of the guild and asked the two, who seemed to know something.

"Is this guild always this empty?"

"Huh? Oh, that... It's simple. There's a tournament in Felskeiro in about thirty days. All the capable adventurers are heading there. The ones left are only taking requests within the city."

"Tournament... I see. But aren't you going?"

"Are you serious? We're way above the level of current adventurers. We don't do weakling bullying. Don't even think about entering, and tell Keena the same. A thousand-level match is just a fixed game."

"I appreciate the information. I'll see you again if the opportunity arises."

Opus, having heard what he needed, turned to leave the guild with a light farewell. Luka, looking back from his shoulder, waved goodbye to the two. Quorke waved back with a smile, but Exis, suddenly realizing something, took a few steps after Opus and called out to his back.

"Hey, what happened to Keena?"

"She's with me, but she's out on some errands. She seems to get involved in various incidents when I'm not looking."

"With a great-grandchild, that's to be expected... If you need help, just call. The debt from our guild days is still valid, at least once."

"Then, I'll ask for your help soon. Be prepared."

---

Although they parted with a light-hearted exchange, Exis later regretted it a bit.

"Man, that guy's schemes are terrifying..."

"That's what you get for making promises lightly."