Chapter 98

By the time Rio finished compiling the report, the sun had already risen.

Lying on the bed, Rio looked at Churas on the table.

Churas was curled up, using her tail as a pillow, and was breathing softly. It seemed she hadn't slept much recently, having been chasing after Rio and Shiraha.

Rio and the others hadn't slept well either since the repeated attacks by the White Masks after they arrived in this town.

"Let's sleep until after noon."

"Okay."

Shiraha, who seemed to be asleep, gave a muffled response, pulling the blanket over herself.

Closing his eyes, Rio quickly fell asleep and woke up around noon to the sound of a bell.

When he opened his eyes, Churas was sitting by his pillow. The bronze bell attached to her chain collar had rung.

"Did you get that collar from Nac?"

"No, I stole it."

"Uh..."

Churas proudly rang the bell on the stolen collar with her front paw and puffed out her chest.

"I stole it from Reen Dior a long time ago. It's a divine collar."

"Divine collar?"

Surprised, Rio sat up and lowered his voice, mindful of Shiraha sleeping in the adjacent bed.

"By the way, when we were attacked by the White Masks, I heard the sound of a bell and suddenly felt my head clear."

"Exactly, that's the effect. It's called the divine collar Eleteri."

Eleteri is a well-known divine item listed in the catalog of divine and evil artifacts.

Its effect is a powerful calming influence. Those who hear the bell instantly lose their hostility.

The White Masks' coordinated attack was disrupted because their hostility towards Rio wavered due to the calming effect.

Churas let her long tail hang down from the bed.

"Thanks to this collar, I can indulge in my thieving impulse and actually steal without being pursued. However, it has little effect on the Reen Dior."

"But it seemed to work, right?"

"Normally, they would drop their weapons. It seems they act out of a sense of duty or justice rather than malice when they kill. Eliminating surface-level hostility doesn't stop them for long. They are not normal beings."

Sense of duty or justice. These emotions are closely tied to the concept of saviors.

However, Rio found it disturbing that such strong emotions, which could repeatedly solidify the resolve to kill, were born for some unknown purpose.

"Can't we reach the facility with this collar?"

"It would work for ordinary animals. However, evil beasts and evil spirits are driven by overwhelming impulses, so the effect of Eleteri is weak or non-existent."

"Seems like its uses are limited."

"That's why I have high hopes for the evil item Night Stalker."

Churas leaped off the bed and onto the table.

"Since you're awake, let's discuss what to do next. ... Wait, someone's coming."

Churas's ears twitched, and the outside of the inn became noisy.

Rio immediately grabbed his sword, a habit he was starting to develop.

Churas narrowed her eyes, looking out the window.

"Rio, you should wake up Shiraha."

"Shiraha, wake up!"

While calling out, Rio picked up Shiraha's belongings and got ready for combat.

Shiraha, emerging from the blanket, looked up at Rio drowsily.

"...What?"

Even as she asked, Rio didn't know the details.

Turning to Churas, Rio saw her shift her gaze from the window to the door.

"You should know her. The female archer from the Hornedra Familia is coming."

"That one."

The woman who uses a nasty ability to fix her gaze on arrows.

Rio was on guard, thinking she might be coming to kidnap them, but the situation outside the room seemed odd.

There were no sounds of combat, only a sense of agitation and voices.

Before he could react, the woman arrived at the door and knocked.

"My name is Iona. I am the archer who was with the evil person Conrart. Rio, Shiraha, I have come to speak with you. It's fine if we talk with the guards present."

Iona, the woman, spoke calmly through the door.

Holding the hilt of his sword, Rio responded without opening the door.

"I want to talk through the door."

"That's fine. There are many guards here as witnesses."

It seemed there were guards in the hallway. Despite this, it was a mystery why Iona could enter the inn so boldly.

Since she showed no signs of forcing the door, it seemed her purpose was truly to talk.

"What do you want?"

When Rio asked directly, Iona responded in kind.

"I want you to help with the slaying of the evil god Kazha using your magic blade."

So that's it, Rio thought, recalling Conrart's face.

He didn't know the specific power of Kazha's unique magic, but it must be strong enough to destroy a country. It made sense they would want a magic blade as a countermeasure.

Before Rio could propose investigating the Reen Dior facility, Iona made a bold offer.

How to respond, Rio wondered.

Interpreting his silence, Iona continued.

"I am prepared to make a formal request through the Adventurer's Guild. In addition to the reward, I will protect you from the White Masks in the future. If you have any other requests, please let me know. We can negotiate, but I believe it will be approved."

It was an offer to buy the magic blade at any price.

Rio looked at Shiraha and Churas.

Shiraha had a displeased look. Investigating the facility was one thing, but slaying the evil god Kazha was an unnecessary risk. Her opposition was clear on her face.

Churas, with her cat-like appearance, was unreadable. However, she seemed to have no intention of giving her opinion and avoided eye contact with Rio.

After some thought, Rio spoke to Iona through the door.

"I can't guarantee help with the slaying. However, I want to propose a collaboration that would benefit both sides. We want to infiltrate the old Sveito kingdom to investigate the Reen Dior facility. The White Masks may have created the evil god Kazha."

"...The magic orbs, right?"

Given their direct conflict, she seemed to know about the magic orbs.

"We want to conduct a covert investigation with a small team. We need your help. Any information we gather will be shared."

Although it seemed too good to be true to request help without committing to the slaying, Iona quickly agreed.

"Understood. I will speak to my superiors and participate. I hope this collaboration in the infiltration will be a foundation for future cooperation."

With a veiled reminder of a favor, Rio couldn't help but make a bitter face.