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82. Meanwhile, The Three

「Yakiniku…」

「It’s a little different than I expected, but it’s good to have an appetite.」

「meat……」

She seemed to be doing better than I expected, so I quickly removed her shackles and teleported to aboveground.

The place we teleported to was the back of the military base, in a blind spot on a deserted street with no lookouts or people. I thought about rushing straight to the yakiniku restaurant, but I thought about meeting up with the other three first, so I turned towards the street. As Sodom said, they prepared the bare minimum of clothes to welcome the girl’s transfer, and fortunately for me, it wasn’t so conspicuous that we couldn’t even walk outside in public.

「So, what’s your name?」

「Azura. Dwarf.」

She answered without hesitation. Feeling that I had earned some trust from her, I proceeded with the conversation.

「Azura, I’m heading to where my friends are, so please come with me. …This way.」

I used my skill to find the presence of Koe-san and the others and felt relieved when I found them. Thinking they weren’t that far away, I headed for the main street that connected to the city center and the downtown area. On the way, I turned right and entered a narrow alley.

After following their presence, even though I took a few wrong turns, I eventually came across an old mansion with a large workshop-style building in the garden, in a corner of an old residential area.

It seemed like the three were waiting over there.

「Fighting?」

I heard the sound of fighting. However, considering that the girl I had just rescued was still unable to run, I maintained my pace to match hers. But just as we arrived, the noise stopped.

◆◆◆

— About half an hour ago.

After seeing off Marge in pursuit of the knights – although he couldn’t be seen due to the effect of the skill [Shadow Inactivity] – Koe and the others were looking for a place to use as a base for the time being.

「We can’t stay in an inn. I learned at Kinui that if something were to happen, it would cause a lot of ruckus.」

「But we do not know the surroundings of Vita Tama. I wonder if there is anywhere else we can stay other than an inn?」

「But the knights will come to attack us. Even if it isn’t the knights, someone will surely come.」

Shizuku nodded at Angelina’s affirmation.

「If they manage to trap Marge, we’ll be next.」

Shizuku’s ears perked up as she looked around. There were so many people passing by that it was hard for her to narrow them down, but she was sure there were guards from the Knights Order among them.

「If we let our guard down, they’ll come to take our heads. They’re not the kind of people who shy away from crowds. So let’s choose a safe place with fewer people…」Shizuku said, lowering her voice

「So let’s head this way.」

「What?」

Koe and Shizuku followed Angelina as she started walking.

She went north on the main street, turned halfway and entered an alley. She then walked through the intricate path with familiar steps. They arrived at a residential area lined with somewhat old houses.

「It’s a mansion.」Koe said.

Exactly as the word suggests, there was a large mansion that everyone immediately thinks of when they hear the word “mansion.”

If there were some unusual features to point out, the first one would be the workshop-style building that occupied more than half of the garden. It was made of simpler stone than the main residence and had fewer windows. It didn’t even look like a guest house. It was just a simple and practical building.

What looked like a flower bed was spread out in the rest of the garden. However, it didn’t seem to have been cared for at all, and was overgrown with dead grass and shrubs, with winter-blooming red flowers adding a little color to the dreary landscape. There was no sign that anyone had lived there, at least not within the past few years.

「We’ll use this place. It’s spacious enough, and the surrounding area is quiet, so it would be difficult for a commotion to spread. There’s also a basement, so we can set up a barricade in case of an emergency. We can replenish supplies at the two bread stores across the street.」

「Just because it’s an empty house, does not mean we can use it as we please. Also, I’m curious as to why you know of such a convenient house…」

「It’s not an empty house.」

While partially dodging Shizuku’s perfectly natural question, Angelina placed her hand on her gate. The iron gate, covered with rust and ivy, refused to budge while making a heavy creaking noise.

「It won’t open. Funnununu!」

「Shall I help you?」

「No, Koe-san, this is the scene where Geli quickly opens the gate and announces the shocking truth!」

「Shocking…?」

「It’s completely rusted, so I don’t think you can open it with your strength no matter what. Let me push it too.」

When Shizuku pushed as well, the stuck lump of rust came off and the gate began to move. At the same time, the damaged hinge made an ominous cracking sound.

「Ah.」

And thus, Angelina fell into the garden along with the entire gate.

「My gate…」

「Um, sorry. I’ll fix it later– My gate?」

「Ah.」

A bead of sweat ran down Angelina’s forehead.

However, Angelina got back up on to her feet with lightning quickness and made a mysterious expression as she beckoned Koe and Shizuku.

「This is the house where Geli was born. Welcome to the Emesmes mansion.」

「You are from Vita Tama, Angelina?」

「Yes.」.

「We’re coming in.」

The Emesmes family mansion was in disrepair on the outside, but the inside was in good order. Angelina continued down the hallway, saying that there are valuable materials and equipment. There seemed to be a lot of small rooms. Shizuku counted up to 10 rooms and then gave up.

「What about your family?」

「They’re not there. They just went out for research and that’s all.」

「What do you mean by research?」

「Geli’s parents, no, her grandparents, and the ones before them, were all alchemists and researchers. They were here doing research about dungeons. Alchemists are generally secretive, so, even Geli herself has not been told of the details.」

「I can kind of imagine that, but… Why didn’t you tell us before we came here?」

「Hmm?」

Shizuku asked doubtfully as Angelina tilted her head to the side.

「You said you had an academic interest or something. You should have just told us that it’s your hometown and that you would show us around.」

「Because it’s a secret.」

「I see?」

「Just kidding.」

She stopped at a corner of the hallway and opened a creaking door to a small guest room. It was simple but equipped with the minimal necessity of a bed, table, and chair.