Chapter 8, Detached Force

Translator: Kazumi

Editor: Silavin

 

Crown Headquarters, located on the 5th Floor of Amamiya Tower, had been renovated several times over the years and now sprawled across a considerable area. First-time visitors inevitably got lost navigating its labyrinthine corridors, though the member registration area was fortunately placed in the most obvious location upon arrival.

 

Throughout the building were numerous conference rooms, used both for meetings with outsiders and discussions with parties who had received designated requests. It was in one of these conference rooms that Roman and his companions were now gathered.

 

Having received many designated requests before, Roman’s party had no trouble finding their way. However, before entering the conference room, they noticed several Adventurers wandering the hallway with confused expressions. Without hesitation, Roman and his party guided the lost group, who coincidentally were headed to the same conference room.

 

“Thank you so much!” Exclaimed the leader of the lost party, not for the first time.

 

Roman smiled slightly and waved his right hand dismissively. “It’s fine. If you see anyone else lost next time, just help them out.”

 

The advice was actually something a senior Adventurer had told Roman long ago, a fact his companions clearly remembered, judging by their knowing grins. Roman felt a twinge of annoyance, anticipating their teasing later.

 

When they entered the meeting room, another party had already arrived. It was a mid tier Adventurer group they had worked with on several previous requests.

 

It was quite rare for three parties to be gathered for a designated request outside of Crown’s large-scale transport operations. The more parties involved, the more significant the request was likely to be.

 

As Roman reminded himself to remain focused, two more Adventurers entered the room.

 

“Cecil-sensei!”

“Arisa-sensei!”

 

Roman and his companions were surprised to see Arisa, while the party that had arrived earlier seemed equally surprised to see the other woman. They were former students whom Cecil had taught at the Academy. Brief greetings were exchanged between Cecil and Arisa before two more women entered the room.

 

One wore the Crown’s administrative uniform, clearly a staff member assigned to explain the request. The other woman, however, drew immediate attention.

 

“Lirica-sama!” Several priests among the gathered Adventurers exclaimed upon recognizing her.

 

The name rippled through the room, causing most present to react with surprise. Kousuke was establishing himself as a living god in Razequa Amamiya. While Sylvia was widely known as his shrine maiden, Lirica’s name had also spread among those in priesthood as Sylvia’s assistant.

 

With Cecil, Arisa, and now Lirica all present, everyone’s attention turned expectantly to the Crown employee. Noticing all eyes fixed upon her, the woman’s cheek twitched slightly as she began explaining the request.

 

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A short distance from the Seichun City, Eku waited for the teleportation gate to activate.

 

Since using teleportation gates within city boundaries was restricted, she had established this one outside the city. However, this inconvenience would soon be unnecessary. According to their plan, once the guild Wolf Fang grew in prominence, they would be able to use teleportation gates normally within the city.

 

Though it was merely a plan at this stage, Eku had complete confidence in its success. After all, three of her strongest people were working alongside her. She felt that no matter what challenges arose, those three would simply smile and overcome them.

 

As these thoughts crossed her mind, the teleportation gate before her hummed to life. Roman and the others emerged from the portal, accompanied by a Crown employee.

 

Eku addressed the employee first. “Thank you for your hard work. You may return now.”

 

“Yes. Please sign here.” The employee handed Eku a document, which she promptly signed.

 

After confirming the signature, the employee returned through the portal, activated it, and disappeared back to Crown Headquarters. Eku immediately began tampering with the portal, erasing all evidence of its existence.

 

The gathered Adventurers watched with wide eyes as the portal vanished. It was a rare sight. Dismantling a portal required Administrator authority, and with so few individuals possessing such privileges, witnessing the process was almost unheard of.

 

Feeling their curious gazes, Eku completed her work and turned to address the group.

 

“As you’ve been informed, we’re heading to the nearby Seichun City. There, you’ll be operating as members of the guild, Wolf Fang.”

 

The Adventurers had already been briefed at Crown Headquarters about their mission. The guild Wolf Fang would function as an unofficial branch of Crown, though they were to conceal this connection initially to avoid arousing suspicion in Seichun.

 

“For now, we’ll only accept requests through Seichun’s official guild, but your actual activities will be identical to what you did at Crown.” Eku explained.

 

As they walked, everyone listened to Eku’s review, acknowledging that the information matched what they had heard at the headquarters. Roman, however, had a question. “Is there anything specific we should prioritize when accepting requests?”

 

Eku shook her head. “Nothing in particular. We may receive instructions to limit certain activities, but that will happen after we arrive in the city.”

 

“We?” Lirica asked suspiciously. “Aren’t you supposed to be the one giving out instructions? That’s what we were told at headquarters.”

 

Like Lirica, Cecil and Arisa were unaware that Kousuke was in Seichun. Eku’s exact position in the hierarchy remained unclear as well. Though Cecil, Arisa, and Lirica had met her on several occasions, they maintained the pretense of unfamiliarity around the others.

 

This explained Lirica’s suspicion when Eku mentioned receiving instructions from someone else.

 

“Fundamentally, yes, you’ll follow my orders,” Eku clarified. “However, if instructions come from someone in Seichun, those take priority over mine.”

 

Cecil and Arisa exchanged meaningful glances at this clear statement of priorities. They could already guess who that person in Seichun might be.

 

Simultaneously, they realized the true importance of this request and could not help but sigh inwardly at the implications.