Chapter 161: Information Spreads in the Blink of an Eye

On the very first day of Ryu’s arrival in Herz, the capital of the Gran Federation, he was unexpectedly challenged to a duel by the leader of the Hero Party—and he accepted without hesitation.

The tavern had erupted into chaos for a moment, but once the Hero Party left, Ryu and his companions simply continued eating as if nothing had happened.

Soon enough, rumors began spreading outward like ripples in water. People whispered everywhere that the leader of the Hero Party and a member of the newly formed clan Dragon Road would fight over the latter’s ace.

However, since neither the date nor the location had been decided yet, there were still no further details.

On the top floor of the Guild Headquarters, one man sat clutching his head in frustration.

It was none other than the Grandmaster, supreme leader of the Adventurers’ Guild.

At the moment, he was listening to a report from his beautiful secretary.

“…Is that information accurate?” he asked slowly.

“Yes,” she replied. “It appears that Sakamoto Ryoma belongs to the Dragon Road clan. The duel is said to determine whether he stays or leaves.”

“Wait a moment,” the Grandmaster said sharply. “What did you just say?”

“Sakamoto Ryoma. The samurai of Hinomaru who is praised as the greatest swordsman in history.”

The Grandmaster stared blankly for a moment.

“…Why is someone of that caliber here?”

“Well,” the secretary said calmly while adjusting her glasses, “this is the capital of the Gran Federation—the heart of the continent. All sorts of influential figures visit here.”

“That’s not what I mean,” the Grandmaster muttered irritably. “Sakamoto is a retainer of the Tosa domain, isn’t he? I’ve also heard he possesses strong patriotism. Would someone like that normally come here right after the war ended? And now you’re telling me he belongs to some mysterious new clan. I want more information…”

The secretary pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose again.

“There is one thing we do know. The leader of the new clan is apparently a female swordsman who is currently a C-rank adventurer.”

“Let’s ignore, for the moment, the question of why the world’s strongest swordsman belongs to a clan led by a C-rank adventurer,” the Grandmaster said dryly. “Is Takeshi planning to fight her?”

“No. Another member.”

“And the name of that member?”

“Still unknown. The incident only occurred earlier today.”

“Well… that’s unavoidable.”

“Do you have any other questions?”

“None. Continue the investigation. You may mobilize the Guild’s intelligence division if necessary.”

“Understood.”

With a brisk bow, the secretary left the room.

Left alone, the Grandmaster sighed heavily.

“…Of all the times for this to happen—when assassins from two major powers are already being sent here…”

After all, duels were events where the time and location were publicly decided. Sometimes spectators even gathered.

For an assassin, it would be the perfect opportunity.

(The Hero Party will probably come here to request the training grounds sooner or later. I’ll hear the full story then.)

Later that evening, the group gathered at the luxurious inn where they were staying.

They had rented two large rooms—one for the men and one for the women—but everyone had gathered in the men’s room for dinner.

“Man… thanks to Esther’s shrinking potion, Axel can live with us now,” Ryu said happily. “I’m really grateful.”

Axel had been reduced to the size of a stuffed toy and now sat comfortably on Lena’s lap, happily munching away at the food placed before him.

“Truth be told, I could always brew a shrinking potion whenever I wanted,” Esther admitted. “I should have thought of it sooner.”

“You’re absolutely right,” Ryu said. “Sorry about that, Axel.”

“Brrruu…”

“Axel is sleeping with me again tonight, right?” Lena said cheerfully.

“Brrruu…”

Normally, Homura spent most of her time guarding Lena, but she still ended up spending more time with Esther overall.

Lena had apparently always been a little jealous of that.

That was probably why she had refused to let go of Mini-Axel lately.

Meanwhile—

Alice refused to let go of Ryoma.

“Here you go, Ryoma-sama. Say ‘ahh’.”

“Th-that’s a bit…”

“You won’t eat it? Does that mean you dislike me?” she sniffed dramatically. “I see… well, that’s fine…”

“W-well… maybe just one bite…”

“Good! Say ‘ahh’♡”

“Ahh—”

Chomp.

The dining table had descended into utter chaos.

The only person behaving normally was Stingray.

Perhaps choosing her as the party leader really had been the right decision.

“Um… shouldn’t we discuss the situation with the Hero Party?” she asked hesitantly.

“That can wait until the date and location are decided,” Ryu replied casually. “Tomorrow is our first dungeon attack. That’s more important.”

“The opponent is technically humanity’s representative, you know? The rival of the Demon King?”

“Relax. I’m the head of the Arden Viscount family.”

“Please don’t start some bizarre title battle…”

“And I’d lose terribly anyway.”

“Please stop the self-deprecation too…”

“Listen carefully, Stingray—”

Ryu’s voice grew serious.

“I have no intention of losing to anyone. Even if the Hero and the Demon King teamed up to attack me… even if the Dragon King led every dragon species against me… I wouldn’t lose. Not ever.”

Stingray and Alice looked troubled by the absurd scale of the statement.

Meanwhile—

Esther, Lena, and Ryoma simply smiled quietly.

“And how exactly do you plan to defeat them?” Stingray asked cautiously.

“Simple,” Ryu replied.

“With guts.”

“…Seriously?”

Inside an inn reserved entirely by the kingdom for the Heroes—

“Hey, Takeshi,” Amane said thoughtfully. “Isn’t it a bit questionable for the leader of the Hero Party to try stealing a member from a new clan through a duel? It might damage the image of the kingdom’s Heroes.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Kaito added. “It’s unusual for someone as calm as you to act this forcefully.”

“…………”

Hearing their completely reasonable concerns, Takeshi frowned deeply.

“I’m fully aware of that,” he admitted. “And I’m sorry to involve the two of you in something like this. But it’s also true that we’ve reached a limit with our current strength. I need you to understand that.”

“…………”

Amane’s magic was White Magic—a rare ability capable of healing, defensive barriers, and physical enhancement buffs.

People tended to focus on the healing aspect, but if she strengthened herself with buffs, she could fight on par with high-level warriors.

In other words, she was the ultimate all-purpose holy maiden—exactly the type of opponent everyone dreaded facing.

Kaito’s magic was Divine Bow, a mid-to-long range magic.

The bow and arrows he created with magic were like legendary weapons from myth.

No matter the distance, his arrows never missed.

Their destructive power was tremendous, and he could use techniques like homing arrows and rapid fire. Even B-rank monsters were often killed with a single shot.

Even with those two—and Takeshi himself—the party had reached a plateau in the upper-level dungeons of the Gran Federation.

That alone demonstrated just how brutal the environment here was.

The fact that they had conquered most of the dungeons within a year and a half was unprecedented.

Kaito muttered quietly,

“Our biggest problem is just… numbers.”

In dungeon cities, clans were recommended for a reason.

Normally, dungeons were conquered by large groups.

“If Reina’s magic were combat-oriented, we’d have four members,” Amane said with a sigh. “But then the Garcia Kingdom would lose control internally, and we wouldn’t even be worrying about dungeons or the Demon King. So ironically, this is still our best option.”

“For our current situation, this is indeed the optimal arrangement,” Takeshi said. “But reinforcements are absolutely necessary. Most S-rank adventurers belong to major powers. And now that the Thunder Emperor of the kingdom has died, the only person I can truly trust is the samurai of Hinomaru—Sakamoto Ryoma, whose nation was founded by the first Hero.”

He clenched his fist.

“And now he stands right in front of us, saying he will join us if we persuade his leader. I feel bad for Ryu… but I intend to win. For our sake—and for humanity’s.”

“Anyway,” Amane said, stretching slightly, “tomorrow let’s go see the Grandmaster. We can talk about the duel and the assassin situation at the same time.”

“Agreed.”

“I’m exhausted,” Kaito groaned.

Far away, across the vast grasslands north of the Federation—

“This Federation is way too big!!” Lily shouted in frustration. “We’ve been riding all day and we still haven’t even left this weird grassland!”

“Captain Lily,” one of her subordinates replied patiently, “calling it weird is a bit much. This grassland has historical significance. Many battles were fought here in the past. It’s even said that the first Hero once considered founding his country here—”

“And yet he didn’t, right?!” Lily interrupted. “He built Hinomaru on some island far away in the east instead! If it wasn’t chosen, it has no value!”

“By that logic, Captain, you would also have no value since no man has chosen you.”

“I-I’m just too much of a high, unattainable flower! That’s why no one approaches me! I’m too dazzling!”

“Yes, yes. Very dazzling.”

“WAAAAAAAHHH!”

Watching the scene unfold, the swordsman Louise, the captain’s trusted blade, sighed quietly.

(Are these people really going to be alright…?)