It was Kouhi’s instruction that Nana attach herself to the instigator.
Kousuke, who had returned to Smit Country using a different Teleport Gate than Hino’s, was checking the adventurers to see if he could identify the instigator.
And with Hino’s actions, the commotion was resolved and the instigator was identified. Of course, it was Kouhi.
After that, Nana was assigned to one of the instigators.
With a collar on, Nana looks just like an ordinary pet dog, making her perfectly suited for tailing someone.
Furthermore, there are rarely any complaints about owners needing to keep their dogs on a leash at all times. This is because, in town, there are many other free-roaming dogs and cats besides Nana.
Of course, if a pet dog causes trouble, the owner can be held responsible, but Nana has no such worries. If the one they are tailing becomes suspicious, Nana can change her body size to avoid detection.
In the end, Nana was able to discover the base without raising much suspicion.
Having discovered the instigator’s base, Kousuke pondered where to report the information.
Naturally, he would report to the Crown, but in Sumit Kingdom, there were routes to report to the Royal family or the Shadows.
In this case, if Kousuke were to report directly to the Royal family, it might be perceived as pressure from the Avatar.
Therefore, Kousuke decided to report this matter to the Shadows. After that, if the information was passed from the Shadows to the Royal family, they would likely discuss how to deal with it as a kingdom themselves.
If he were to discuss the Teleport Gate usage fees with Razek Amamiya on top of that, it would already be a matter between nations. It was not something Kousuke should interfere with.
He also decided to tell the Shadows that the discovered base seemed to be related to the Dark Guild. The area was clearly the kind of place where people from that underworld would come and go, so Kousuke immediately understood. He only confirmed the location and decided it was best not to get involved, so he immediately turned back.
♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦
After reporting the instigator to the Shadow leader of the Sumit Kingdom, Kousuke headed straight to the branch. Although Kousuke was ostensibly working as an adventurer, he wasn’t sure if he could meet Hino, the Branch Manager, so easily. However, perhaps Hino had made arrangements, because as soon as Kousuke gave his name to the receptionist, he was shown to an inner room.
“Ah, it’s good you came,” Hino said, welcoming Kousuke into the Branch Manager’s office with open arms. Hino hadn’t known Kousuke before, but knowing that Gazeran was on friendly terms with him was enough to realize he wasn’t an ordinary adventurer. Moreover, it seemed that not only Gazeran but also other Division Heads held him in high regard. Other Branch Managers would likely notice this as well. They wouldn’t have been appointed Branch Managers if they couldn’t discern something of that magnitude.
“Was there something you needed?” Hino’s remark, as if he had been expecting Kousuke’s arrival, made Kousuke tilt his head. Tailing the instigator was an independent action taken by Kousuke (or rather, Nana), and Hino shouldn’t have known about it.
“We parted ways immediately after meeting at headquarters, so I didn’t get a chance to say it then, but I wanted to thank you properly,” Kousuke said. Hearing this, Hino nodded in understanding.
“No, it was just a coincidence that I was active near the branch. Since I found something, I felt I had to report it.”
“I see. You are currently on a request from the Royal family, aren’t you?” Since the request from the Crown Prince was being delivered through the branch’s counter, it was officially received by the Crown. Hino had investigated the request properly before speaking with Kousuke. While this didn’t necessarily mean anything, being a person who receives a direct request from the Royal family alone greatly increased his credibility.
Understanding that Hino had investigated him thoroughly before meeting him, Kousuke nodded at his words and then spoke about the instigator. Upon hearing Kousuke’s story, Hino wore a troubled expression. After all, regarding the instigator, Kousuke and his companions had merely suspected and followed them. The commotion had already ended, the group had disbanded, and the Knight Order had not been involved. Frankly, the Crown had no way to deal with the situation. If they were to take concrete action based on Kousuke’s words, it might provide an opening for the Crown to exploit. Seeing through Hino’s thoughts, Kousuke raised his right hand to stop him from saying anything further.
“I don’t intend for the Crown to do anything with this information. In fact, I think it’s better if you do nothing. I just wanted to let you know that something like this happened.”
When Kousuke said that, Hino seemed to agree and nodded. Even if they had discovered the instigator, there was no concrete evidence. If they reported it to the Knight Order with just that scant information, they likely wouldn’t take any action. Instead, it might even invite unnecessary trouble. Therefore, it would be better to wait until concrete evidence was obtained or until their intent to attack the Crown was confirmed.
Hino, having thought this based on Kousuke’s words, thanked him for the information and ended the meeting. Thus, the sudden commotion came to an end, and afterward, without any further similar incidents, peaceful days ensued. Ultimately, the purpose of the Dark Guild, which had caused this disturbance, remained unknown and the incident faded into ambiguity.
♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦♢♦
Upon hearing the report from his subordinate, the leader of the Dark Guild let out a sigh of relief.
“So, both were unharmed?”
“Yes. Both seem to have responded immediately after hearing about the situations in the Royal Capital and Gabont.” The individuals overseeing the Dark Guilds in Ichii and Niruni understood their importance as key locations and had fortified their defenses. Whether it was due to these precautions or not, there had been no moves from the Kingdom’s Shadows thus far. However, it was unlikely that the Shadows, who had simultaneously taken down the bases in the Royal Capital and Gabont, would do nothing further.
As the leader pondered what their next move would be, his expression turned to one of shock.
“W-wait! What’s going on here? Are there any unusual movements among our affiliated Dark Guilds!?” While Ichii and Niruni were important bases, it would be meaningless if this location, their headquarters, were to be destroyed. With the fall of the Royal Capital and Gabont, their momentum to absorb other Dark Guild organizations in different regions had also waned. If their headquarters were to fall now, it wouldn’t just be a disruption to their plans.
Seeing the leader’s panicked demeanor, one of his subordinates looked bewildered.
“Boss, there’s no way that’s happening. We’d know immediately if they did anything strange.”
“Is that so? If that’s the case, then it’s fine…” While others nodded in agreement, the leader’s bad premonition continued to grow. They were dealing with an organization that had existed for a long time, perhaps since the founding of the nation. It wasn’t impossible that they had a “favor” or two owed to them by the Dark Guilds within the country. With this thought, the leader shook his head and issued instructions to his subordinates.
“For now, investigate our subordinate organizations. Don’t do anything that might hint at our intentions.”
“Y-yes sir!” Some of the subordinates, having received the leader’s instructions, began to move busily. Watching them, the leader’s bad premonition intensified.
Ultimately, they couldn’t determine which organization the instigators belonged to. It could be said that they didn’t try to investigate that far. After all, Kousuke and his companions weren’t specialists in such matters. (Peach and the others are not in the Royal Capital at the moment).
