Chapter 38, Survey Results

Translator: Kazumi

Editor: Silavin

 

Two days after Kouhi’s victory against Hartvin, the town of Seichun buzzed with rumors of a new powerhouse’s emergence.

 

There was also talk that Hartvin, who had dominated for ten years, had actually benefited from item enhancement. However, this revelation was not met with much criticism. Hartvin had gained popularity precisely because he continued winning using only his natural abilities without weapons, so while some complaints arose about the deception, they remained minimal.

 

Kouhi’s words during the fight had clearly made an impact. Anyone who dared criticize could be easily dismissed with ’Then you do it yourself.’ Besides, as Kouhi had demonstrated in battle, once you knew the trick, there were numerous ways to counter it. Whether Hartvin could maintain his winning streak would now depend entirely on his raw strength.

 

While Seichun buzzed with this story, another rumor began to spread, one that would prove far more significant. Word had gotten out that a Wolf Fang party had broken through the 60th Floor of Gazenran Tower.

 

Previous rumors about Wolf Fang parties conquering Floor after Floor had circulated before, but the reaction to this latest news was shocking. Most people had assumed Wolf Fang’s success stemmed entirely from Kouhi’s extraordinary powers. This recent achievement, however, revealed they had succeeded without Kouhi’s direct involvement.

 

As a result, Wolf Fang attracted more attention than ever before from all corners of the realm.

 

…

 

While Seichun remained abuzz with Wolf Fang rumors, Kousuke received an unexpected report. It was not from the Succubus, but from Crown. What surprised him most was that Schmidt himself had come to deliver it.

 

“Schmidt? What brings you here?”

 

Kousuke had expected someone else, so the question came naturally. The other party members were equally surprised to hear Kousuke’s reaction. Even those who had never met Schmidt personally knew his reputation. Schmidt offered a slight nod upon seeing Kousuke.

 

“Kou-sama, it’s been a while. I have quite a lot to discuss. Do you have time?”

 

“Oh, yes, of course.”

 

Though Schmidt maintained his typically calm expression, Kousuke had known him long enough to detect the hidden urgency beneath the surface. He immediately agreed to the meeting.

 

Schmidt entered a room with proper counterintelligence measures and got straight to business.

 

“Sorry for the sudden visit, Kousuke-sama.”

 

“No problem at all, but has something troublesome happened?”

 

Kousuke was genuinely surprised by Schmidt’s unexpected arrival. Perhaps anticipating this reaction, Schmidt nodded once before continuing.

 

“Things have shifted somewhat. Of course, it’s all for Crown’s benefit.”

 

Not understanding Schmidt’s meaning, Kousuke tilted his head in confusion.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

Seeing Kousuke’s puzzled state, Schmidt smiled slightly.

 

“You really don’t realize what you’ve accomplished. The other day, Kousuke-sama asked Crown to investigate those items, correct?”

 

At Schmidt’s reminder, Kousuke finally recalled requesting investigations into Aeris Water and Laspica Water. He had not remembered immediately because the request was relatively recent. He certainly had not expected results so quickly, and for Schmidt to personally get himself involved.

 

“Yes, I did, but did the analysis come back that fast?”

 

Schmidt shook his head at Kousuke’s question.

 

“No, we haven’t finished analyzing the ingredients yet. I came because we obtained information about those two waters.”

 

“Information?”

 

Kousuke tilted his head again, unable to imagine what information would warrant Schmidt traveling all this way personally.

 

“In short, of the two waters you provided, Aeris Water is an ingredient in beauty products beloved by Royalty and Nobility, while Laspica Water is a legendary ingredient among pharmacists.”

 

Kousuke’s expression went blank at Schmidt’s explanation. He had never imagined the other water was a legendary item.

 

“Well, connection to Nobles and Royals aside, but legendary… I assumed any capable Crown adventurer could obtain it somehow.”

 

While Kousuke had recognized its value, he never expected it to earn legendary status. As he explained to Schmidt, it seemed accessible to any high-level Crown adventurer.

 

“I won’t know for certain until we investigate the area properly, but I suspect local adventurers don’t realize it exists in the Tower. Valuable herbs are often discovered suddenly near well-traveled roads.”

 

“That’s possible, but…”

 

Kousuke remained puzzled. While wind-blown seeds could indeed sprout herbs near roads, these two waters came from fixed locations, natural springs. He could not fathom how the locations of such springs could be lost and not remembered as common knowledge.

 

At this point, Kousuke had not realized it was common in Seichun’s history for Guilds to monopolize information about springs, only for such information to later disappear in its entirely.

 

In a similar scenario, information about Laspica Water had vanished from historical records. This was something Kousuke would discover shortly.

 

After pondering this for a moment, Kousuke shifted his attention back to Schmidt. Regardless of why Laspica Water had been forgotten by adventurers, Schmidt’s purpose for coming became clear after hearing the explanation.

 

“Using these two waters as leverage, you can finally announce Crown’s branch establishment, right?”

 

Schmidt nodded vigorously at Kousuke’s deduction.

 

“Exactly. This will be more than sufficient to silence the other Guilds. And it seems Cory-sama has been performing excellently.”

 

Schmidt said this with a smile, deliberately using Kouhi’s nickname while glancing in her direction.

 

“I see. The timing does seem perfect. Should we make the announcement immediately?”

 

“No, we’ll wait until the current rumors settle down. Kouhi’s victory is just the opening act. Gazeran wanted to come as well, but he’s swamped with work. I was able to make the trip because I happened to be free.”

 

While Schmidt claimed to be free, as a department head, he rarely lacked obligations. Gazeran couldn’t leave due to unavoidable business, but Schmidt only had commitments he could postpone. Furthermore, he could handle some work remotely, so he’d brought tasks along.

 

Once Crown went public, they could establish a teleportation gate, eliminating distance concerns entirely. However, Schmidt had arrived via teleportation gate, which had become standard practice within Wolf Fang operations.

 

Kousuke chuckled upon hearing Schmidt’s explanation, imagining Gazeran’s disappointment at missing the trip.

 

“In that case, I suppose my Guild responsibilities are handled. I’ll continue investigating the Tower.”

 

“Leave everything to us regarding Crown matters, Kousuke-sama.”

 

Schmidt’s presence meant Crown had already begun planning the announcement’s timing and methodology. With that handled, Kousuke had little left to do on the Guild front. As he’d mentioned, he could now focus entirely on Tower investigation.