Chapter 11

Beta: Worldbringer of Joseun

Cover: LousGndiner

Illya was once again watching from her perch atop the numerous buildings.

Last time, she had been watching from an arguably short distance away. At that distance, nothing would actually stop the Hamelin guild members from taking a bored glance up, taking notice of her, and giving away her position.

She needed to prevent that at all costs.

So this time, Illya was on a building's roof almost twice as high and equally as far away. Granted she couldn't see anything from this distance, nor could she listen to the sound of their voices. It was an inconvenience for anyone choosing to listen in. Hell, Illya couldn't traditionally listen in from this far away.

Traditionally, that is. Focusing for just a second, Illya began to see through her eyes, or rather a separate pair of them.

Her familiars circled above the towering buildings before diving into the nearby canopy of trees. None of the adventurers looked up as they conducted their usual deal. They were professional, Illya could give them that.

They were still sleazebags though. The few days Illya had spent watching them did nothing to change that fact.

She had also managed to confirm her little… suspicion, that Hamelin was using lower leveled players as miniature yet renewable experience potion farms. Krentelfal's reports from becoming intangible and invisible to tail them made that very, very clear.

Every day a player going by the name of Schreider, it could've been Shredder but Krentelfal wasn't sure of the spelling, had been bringing along lower leveled guildmates to find and fight monsters in the form of supply runs. In short, gathering materials and food items from the other areas.

According to Krentelfal, despite the presence of a slightly higher leveled player to babysit them, the party consecutively failed to have efficient runs due to the fact that monsters ignored the tanks and attacked the back rear, where the other weak support members were.

Of course, it would, Illya thought. The idiot was still the highest level in the party. Tanks couldn't stop monsters from attacking him and ruining their formation because he dealt way too much damage. The teacher system existed for a reason!

Then again, the guild member was only level forty-six, so that meant he barely had any experience raiding whatsoever. He had probably never had a proper dungeon run in his life.

Illya conveniently ignored that tank classes were the exception due to the fact that they were supposed to be attacked in the first place.

Her familiar settled onto a tree branch and watched the proceedings with little issue. She noticed Krentelfal listening close by but wasn't completely sure where he was. For a knight, he was surprisingly stealthy when he needed to be.

The Hamelin member raised a thumb in confirmation once the transaction was complete. The Black Sword Knight's representative left without issue, like always.

Illya still wondered why the Black Sword Knight's decided to conduct business with a sleazy guild such as theirs but she could see the appeal, the EXP pots were a big deal in later levels.

When used, they improved the amount of experience gained by a substantial degree. In fact, they provided double the amount, which was basically a hundred percent increase. Also, it lessened the level requirement of monsters you needed to kill to gain experience.

Normally, you'd need to slay a monster, that was at least five levels lower than you, in order to gain EXP. This means that if a monster was level fifteen and you were level twenty-one, then you'd gain literally no experience. However, the potion made it so that you just needed the enemy to be seven levels lower, which wasn't a lot, but it allowed you to gain EXP from a wider range of mobs.

If you were in a dungeon, then you'd be able to grind on more mobs for experience instead of a select few. Add that to the fact that they increased attack power, alongside a player's health and mana recovery rate, and you had yourself a recipe for absurd leveling sessions.

And the effect lasted two hours. Two. Whole. Hours. You could do a regular dungeon in that time with ease. Absolutely broken.

Of course, Atharva foresaw this – the game company who developed Elder Tale – and made it so that only level thirty or lower players obtained them once per day. Apparently, the item was implemented so that newer players could enjoy the game, level up sooner, and even join raids.

Like that worked at all. Bot accounts were everywhere and guilds bought those things in bulk like crazy. Most players even had second accounts to supply themselves an EXP pot daily.

Of course, Illya was no exception. It was a shame though, she wouldn't be able to use that character ever again. She was starting to like playing as a Kannagi.

Illya shook herself from her thoughts as the Hamelin member finally started to leave. She carefully noted that the dealer didn't change at all, so she'd need to figure out a way to find the other guild members–

The trees rustled on the opposite side of the open field.

If it weren't for Illya's familiar having been specially made to detect high-speed movement – she was pretty worried about assassin class servants before she summoned Berserker – then she wouldn't have seen the blurring plum-colored figure atop the canopy.

A player.

Illya focused, making her familiar take off in flight to get a closer look while remaining out of sight.

The player was short, about as tall as Illya used to be. She wore her hair in a ponytail and wore the traditional garb that most Assassin class players opted for.

Strange… Why would another player be spying on Hamelin? Maybe she was from the Black Sword Knights and ensuring the transaction went smoothly?

The player's eye twitched.

For a moment, Illya noted the fact that her familiar had just made eye contact with the diminutive player.

In that second, the assassin bolted away.

It was only from Illya's experience that her familiar was able to follow her. She didn't doubt that the player was an Assassin now, seeing as the equipment she wore were mostly found on players of the class.

And she was using the Tracker subclass skill Silent Move. It's rare to find anyone else use the subclass outside of the assassin class, so it was the best conclusion.

Why was she running away in a panic? It was like she wasn't supposed to be seen.

Illya could rule out the Black Sword Knights then, seeing as if she was a part of them and had been caught, she could say that she was just insurance to protect the transaction. Could she be from Hamelin then?

No… that was also a flimsy assumption. If she was from Hamelin, then she'd be running towards her ally to warn them of the familiar watching them. The panic that Illya had seen on the assassin's face during her quick moment of escape made absolutely no sense if she was from that guild of sleazebags.

This meant that the assassin was a third party altogether, completely unrelated to the Black Sword Knights and to Hamelin.

Why? What reason would there be for a third party to exist here?

Was it one of the bigger guilds like DDD? Or was it a stray player that got curious? Unless her familiar got close enough to view her status, Illya would never know.

The questions kept piling up within Illya's mind. Luckily, it seemed that her familiar could keep up with the unknown player. The bird formed from the locks of Illya's hair masterfully weaved itself above, below, and even through the numerous branches as it made a beeline towards her.

At this rate, Illya would be able to–

The assassin spun around in the air and in a burst of fluorescent pink light, she was nowhere to be found.

Illya ordered her familiar to stop in order to detect any further possible movements. Her Engel Note familiar scoured the area, hurrying its gaze across the canopy's maze of leaves.

The last thing Illya saw through her familiar was the flash of a blade before her connection was severed. Within seconds, Illya's mind was back and focused on the rooftop she sat on.

That was… the assassin got the drop on her familiar. She must've used the skill Hide Walk to weave her way into her familiar's blind spot.

Well played.

Congratulations aside, Illya was now just a tad bit stuck. She knew where her familiar died and could send another to follow, but by then the assassin would have already vacated the area.

Whoever that third party was, she escaped, and Illya didn't even know what she was there for.

She let out a sigh.

"Great…" Illya muttered. "Krentelfal?"

The ghost, who had appeared by her side, answered. "Yes?"

"That assassin, did you catch her name at all?" Illya asked.

"There was an assassin?" Krentelfal muttered in slight alarm. "I hadn't noticed, Illya. Were you harmed?"

"She got my familiar, but that's it," Illya muttered. "She didn't look like she was affiliated with any of the guilds at the transaction. She's a third party, or in other words an unknown variable."

"Will your plan need revision?" Krentelfal asked.

Honestly, Illya wanted to. However…

"There's too little information available. I didn't even see her face, she ran before I could get a good look," Illya bemoaned. She huffed and straightened her frown. "She was short, wore a ponytail, and looked like a stereotypical ninja… If I want to plan around this third party, I'd need to figure out who she is."

"I suppose this means more reconnaissance?" Krentelfal asked.

Illya nodded. "I want you to head into town and look for adventurers that match her appearance. She could've changed her equipment so focus on looking for a short assassin about this high."

Her arm was held up to below her breasts, exactly as high as she was in Fuyuki before the transfer.

"Report back by the end of the day," Illya finalized.

"Understood," the ghost nodded. However, he still mused as he always did. Not even being trapped by a crystal prison could change that, which Illya was alright with. "This is starting to remind me of my days serving under my late lord… troubled times, those were."

Illya admitted to wincing just a little bit. She ordered him around like nothing, hadn't she?

Her eyes mellowed a tad bit from her prior serious demeanor. "If you can't find anything, then that's okay. A list of possible adventurers would be fine too. Don't push yourself."

Krentelfal raised a brow and nodded before fading into the building, likely to scour the city.

Illya let out a sigh. She did say she wanted to start over with him as friends, but wasn't this… not that? Honestly, it felt more like she was his superior, which wasn't technically right.

She regressed into her attitude from when Sella and Leysritt were still around. She had ordered them around just as she did Krentelfal. Terrific. Some friend she was.

At least Krentelfal saw nothing wrong with it, even if she did for just a bit.

Illya shook the thought away. Melancholy could wait.

For now, she needed to head back to the guild. It was getting late. Shirou, Rin, and Sakura were probably already back from their roles. Unfortunately, Illya wouldn't be able to tell them of this issue.

They didn't know that she was stalking Hamelin, and if she let it slip that that she met an unknown player while gauging its members, then the secret would be out faster than Berserker breaking through the Einzbern castle walls.

She'd have to tackle it alone, which honestly shouldn't be that big of an issue. As long as it was just one player, Illya would be fine.

Shirou made his way out of the forge and sighed.

Even after spending a day reassuring them, Meltraus and Melhia were still kind of wary around him. He could understand, seeing as it was just human nature to do so.

At least they sort of trusted him, otherwise, they'd never let him follow Melhia once more to their supplier. The distance between them wasn't substantial, but it was still noticeable.

As usual, he was treated to some odd and wary glances, but considering the meeting they had days prior, it was understandable. He made tried to make eye contact and give them a friendly smile, but most of the Landers barely reacted. Some of them even turned away as quick as they could.

Adventurer and Lander relations were really not at their best, weren't they?

He caught sight of the familiar stall with a steel plated caravan parked behind it and the equally familiar merchant beside it. Tomtom seemed to be close to closing up shop for the day before he caught sight of Melhia.

His smile brightened before dimming at catching Shirou, who still had no idea why.

"G-Good afternoon, Melhia," He started. "I see you brought your little… helper again."

Melhia nodded. "Yeap. Don't worry, I'll just grab the usual bag and leave."

Tomtom nodded. "It's in the caravan. Ask my assistant, he should be able to direct you to it."

She nodded and made her way to the back. Although, in doing so she neglected to address the fact that Shirou was now standing in a Lander-only marketplace without so much as a reason to be there.

From the increasingly uncomfortable stares that he was receiving, Shirou was starting to feel just a tad bit exasperated.

Maybe he should've followed Melhia out back?

"I can still ask a question about you, correct?"

Tomtom's sudden question cut through the awkward air like butter, something that Shirou was honestly pleased with.

"Yeah, you can. I offered it in the first place."

"Good, because I have a few to ask," he straightened his posture. "I've heard this from… a credible source. Is it true that you all weren't always… an adventurer?"

Ah… so he was looking to clarify what was said nights ago. In that case, Shirou would oblige.

"Yes, that's true," he confirmed.

"Could you elaborate further?"

Shirou hummed in consideration and proceeded. "This world is… pretty strange to me. Unlike the other adventurers, who've at least seen this world through… a different lens, I was only about to start when we came to this world."

"I see…" He muttered. "Well, that's one question down. My other question is, what do you intend to do? I've seen other adventurers and you do not act like them."

Odd question, but it probably meant he was confused as to why he wasn't either in a constant state of gloom like the others. A loaded question… but he shouldn't hold back in his answer.

Be open and sincere. This was one of the best ways to get Landers to trust you, or at least that was what Ferlna from the Arcadia said.

"I don't think it'd help anyone if I did that. I get why they're depressed, but it's not really something I'd do," Shirou admitted. "Besides… I have people, or rather a family, that I need to protect. I can't do that if I wallowed away like the rest."

Shirou didn't know what Tomtom was thinking, but he seemed to like the answer.

This was good. The magus of swords had a feeling that the Lander didn't trust him very much at all. Maybe he was one of the people harboring anti-adventurer sentiments?

"Alright, last question," Tomtom added on. "What's your relation with Melhia?"

Shirou blinked.

"She's the daughter of my master and a friend?" Shirou uttered with a slight tilt to his head.

Or at least, that's what Shirou believed their relationship to be. He wasn't entirely sure of the friend part, though. Melhia was pretty wary of him nowadays, so perhaps he'd have to try and make amends.

"Is… is that it?" Tomtom asked with a look of puzzlement in his eyes.

"Yes?" Shirou said his own puzzlement mimicked his perfectly. "I mean, I get along with her fine."

Or at least, I think so. It's been hard to tell recently.

"I-I see…" Tomtom muttered before letting a smile grow onto his face. "That's good! People need friends after all!"

Why was he cheerful all of a sudden? Hell, he was even patting his back like they were old buddies!

"Melhia mentioned that you could forge regularly like other Lander blacksmiths, right?" He asked with a smile, to which Shirou nodded. "Why don't you use that fancy magic of yours that Meltraus hates? I could never understand that."

At least the guy seemed more comfortable around him, even if Shirou had literally zero clues as to why.

"I'd like to know too!"

Shirou blinked and turned his head, which gave him enough time to catch the sack of heavy metal ores tossed his way. Reflexively, he reinforced his forearms and caught it easily. Much easier than he thought, actually. Had he gotten stronger?

"M-Melhia!" Tomtom cried out in shock. "That's priceless merchandise! I don't want Meltraus to get cracked ores! It'd ruin your shop's reputation!"

"It's fine, he looked like he could handle it." Melhia waved him off. She still wasn't up to calling him by his name like before, wasn't she? "More importantly, why'd you forge normally? You never really told us."

"I didn't?" Shirou muttered. He thought back and sure enough, he didn't find a single memory of explaining himself. Odd, he was sure that he had? Or maybe he didn't.

He let out a short hum and answered. "I felt that it was a bit too easy."

Melhia blinked. "That's it? That's a pretty weak reason if it is."

"I oversimplified it then," Shirou muttered. "I think the most important part of a weapon is the history behind it. A sword is just a sword to anyone else, but to people like us, a sword tells us a lot of things just from the way it was forged."

Shirou withdrew the first sword he made from his inventory and held it up to them. "This looks like a regular sword too, but I remember melting the metal, folding it, and strengthening it. I remember fitting the handle onto the tang and painstakingly making sure that it wasn't loose in the slightest."

He sent the sword back into his inventory. "If I had done it like other adventurer blacksmiths, then I wouldn't have those memories. The art of making a weapon would be nothing more than a push of the button, and that is… not something I'd ever willingly want to do."

"So pride and sentimental value?" Tomtom mused. "I think I understand that…"

"Is that why you still use that old caravan?" Melhia asked him. "I thought you couldn't afford a better one."

Tomtom chuckled wearily. "I'm the biggest supplier in the center part of this city and you thought I couldn't afford a better one… That's reassuring to my pride as a merchant."

"You had pride?"

"Guh!"

Melhia shrugged, ignorant of the wince that both Tomtom and Shirou shared. "Well, see you later Tomtom. Papa will want us back soon. Take care!"

Shirou offered a farewell bow, which must have been odd to see as he did so while carrying all of the ore.

"Take care!" Tomtom offered as he went back to his stall, finally closing up shop.

As their distance increased, Shirou felt a smile worm its way onto his face. Melhia wasn't walking with a substantial distance between them anymore, so she must've gotten comfortable with his presence again.

She might still be wary, but it was a start.

That was fine with him.

Sakura swung her legs atop her bed. Her little puppy barked as it sat atop her legs – or rather on top of her stomach – in glee as she scratched its chin.

Shirou had not yet returned and neither had Rin. Illya said that she was on her way back soon so Sakura supposed that she wasn't going to be waiting for long.

It still didn't abate the subtle boredom she felt.

The room wasn't really dirty in the slightest, seeing as she had already cleaned it up numerous times in the span of an hour. Again, done more so out of boredom.

In her opinion, she hadn't really done much today. All she did was help out in the inn.

Sure, she managed to get an adventurer to help out an old lady, but later he had admitted that he only did it because she reminded him of his own grandmother.

Following that comment, the adventurer remembered his own family and spiraled into gloom once more.

Sakura winced at the memory.

Luckily for her, the West Wind Brigade showed up and realized what she was attempting to do. Fortunately, they managed to help her nudge the adventurer out of his gloom for a while before he left the inn. She didn't know where the adventurer was right now, but hopefully, he took the first step towards betterment.

Sakura frowned as she stared out the guild room window.

These were just the early days in the plan, they could still improve the city for them to live in. The Landers hadn't reached their tipping point yet, and neither had the tensions between combat guilds worsened to the point of no return…

… but Sakura wasn't naive. She could tell that her little actions, while they helped alleviate the local adventurer populace of their gloom momentarily, it wasn't permanent.

Sakura could only hope that Illya's plan worked out. She didn't know how the potions would help the adventurers or the Landers, but the guardian seemed sure of herself, so Sakura had faith in turn.

She sighed and took a deep breath.

At least the innkeeper seemed to like her, that was good.

The door opened as Illya strode in without a fuss. Behind her, Rin and Shirou trickled in until they sat back on their own respective beds. Krentelfal shimmered into existence beside Illya, momentarily causing her own dear wolf pup to yelp in surprise.

Oh, right. She still hadn't named the little guy… girl?

No, it was definitely a guy. Sakura could see his cute little wiener.

"Alright everyone, anything to report?" Illya asked as she began to unequip her armor, leaving soft pajamas in its place.

"The EXP potion project is proceeding slower than expected. I'm struggling to completely reverse engineer the ingredients," Rin admitted. She ruffled her torn cultist robes in frustration. "Also, we're running low on ingredients at the Arcadia. Ferlna has a lot of materials, but she doesn't have enough for continuous trial-and-error. We'll need someone to go get those materials."

Illya nodded. "Alright. Krentelfal, are you okay with errand duty?"

The ghost nodded as he straightened his posture. "I believe these ghostly bones should be capable of that much. I accept."

Rin tossed him a scroll, which he caught.

"We're going to need as many as you can find," Rin informed. "Ferlna listed the locations along with the following ingredients. Do you need a map?"

"No, I believe that the landscape hasn't changed very much. I should be able to know the way myself."

Illya raised a brow in curiosity. "Hasn't it been thousands of years since you left that fountain?"

"A little under that amount I admit," he said as he shrugged. "Well then, if there is nothing else, then I may as well acquire an early departure."

"Is that so?" Sakura mused. "Are you sure you don't want to stay for a while?"

"We're still technically in a meeting," Illya informed, to which Sakura nodded. It still was, as informal as it felt.

He let out a minor chuckle.

"My lady, if I remain here then I would not be able to contribute in the slightest," he gestured to the scroll. "At least with this, I shall be able to be more efficient."

Illya sighed and tossed him her bag. "Use my magic bag. There isn't much in there anyway, it's all in the bank."

The ghost nodded and faded through the door.

"So he can make other objects intangible too…?" Rin muttered as she trailed off in thought. A short hum of consideration followed. "That's useful. He could technically steal whatever he wants."

"His honor as a knight probably wouldn't allow it," Shirou reminded. "Anyway, I've managed to get a few Landers to give the other adventurers a chance, but I'm not sure how long that'll last."

Sakura nodded. "I'm having the same issue. Helping the Landers and adventurers is a good idea, but there won't be any lasting effects for a while."

Illya waved it off. "That's fine. It wasn't meant to be a permanent fix, remember?"

"Yeah, the reproduction of EXP pots is our end goal," Rin muttered. "You know, it would be faster if you helped me out, midget. Alchemy was your family's specialty, right?"

Illya blinked and appeared to be considering it for a moment.

"... I don't think I can help out this week," Illya admitted, an apologetic smile forming on her face. "Sorry, but there are a few other things that I need to sort out before I can."

"No worries, just drop by the shop when you can. " Rin nodded as she sighed. "If only there was a way to gain more knowledge. All the books and tomes at the Tohsaka residence were about gemcraft and possible applications."

A few seconds pass.

Illya blinked slowly. "Shirou, does the blacksmith class give you information?"

"That's out of the blue…" Shirou muttered, but he shook his head. "I don't think so… ah, wait. I think it does, but I already knew most of the information before I got the subclass. It did tell me how to repair chain mail, despite the fact that I've never seen chain mail before."

"Subclasses do give information then," Illya smiled as she slapped her fist onto her palm in realization. "Then that's perfect! There's an alchemist subclass, that should be able to help you!"

"There is?" Rin blinked in surprise. "Well then, where do I get it?"

Illya hummed as she recalled the information.

"If I remember right, it should be an easy one… You'll need to get it from the local Lander production guild. It's a production class, so you'll need to ask a grand alchemist to give you it…" Illya turned a glare towards Sakura's paramour. "… Unless you're an idiot with just swords on his mind and takes an apprenticeship that'll last for years or something."

Shirou had the decency to look away.

"I won't," Rin waved away the concern. "I'll take the usual method. I only need the class anyway."

"There could be more information the higher your subclass level is," Sakura pointed out.

"Hmm, tempting," Rin slyly muttered. "I'm just a bit torn between the two options now."

"Please don't," Illya begged. "We need all of your focus on the EXP pots."

Sakura let out a small giggle at the interaction before widening her own eyes. The small bundle of fur on her lap had pounced onto her chest and climbed onto her shoulders.

"Oh, right. You had a puppy…" Rin muttered. "You know, I don't think we ever named it."

"I don't even know how she managed to get it in the first place…" Illya bemoaned in frustration. Only Shirou decided to console her with a pat on her head.

"Have you named it yet, Sakura?" Shirou asked, taking out some regular bread from his inventory to nibble on, but Sakura knew he wanted to make a sandwich with it.

Black blobs were unappetizing.

Sakura hummed as she poked the puppy's nose. It let out a bark and hid its face in her collar. "I'm thinking of… Raijuu."

"Reasoning behind that name?" Rin asked with a little curiosity.

"The Raijuu was a wolf made of thunder and lightning," Sakura began. "It was the companion of the Raijin, the Shinto god of thunder. I think he looks like one, maybe?"

"Sure, he looks like a ball of lightning," Rin teased, "I don't think it has a standardized appearance though. So the reasoning is a little loose."

"I mostly named him that because he sleeps on my stomach every night. The Raijuu does that to people in legend too," Sakura honestly added. "What do you think, Illya?"

"Just name him Raijuu, I really don't care," Illya muttered, sending a minor frown towards the wolf. "It's honestly getting late, so we should hit the hay."

"Raijuu it is then," Sakura cheered. She picked up the puppy and held it close to her face. It barked and nuzzled her cheek. "Your name is Raijuu now! Do you like it?"

Raijuu barked.

"I'll take that as a yes!"

As Sakura nuzzled the puppy, the other guild members opted to crawl into their beds and rest for the night. Sakura followed suit, but in doing so she didn't notice the notification popping up in her menu and dismissing a moment later.

Thunder Wolf Pup – Raijuu – has been taken as your companion.

The night was tranquil.

Leaves scattered across the wind as midnight creatures crawled from the woodwork. From atop the many ruined buildings of Akihabara, the city looked as beautiful as he always remembered it.

Although, it was marred, changed due to an unknown phenomenon. Even to this day, the enchanter knew nothing of how it happened…

… However, that did nothing to stop him from finally beginning his plan.

He leaned on his Staff of the Wise Horned Owl and pulled himself up from the root he sat upon.

Everything began today, and it would take a week before the first major step would take place. A step towards a unified Akihabara, a step towards a brighter future, and a step towards protecting those who put their faith in him.

With everything proceeding safely, materials were being gathered and all other preparations exceeding schedule by a significant margin, the enchanter knew that only something truly unexpected could derail everything.

"Milord, I have returned."

The enchanter let a smile grace his lips. "Akatsuki, welcome back. How was your job?"

He could tell that the diminutive assassin behind him had shuffled her feet in nervousness, but he couldn't draw upon a reason why. In the meantime, he kept quiet and awaited her response.

"I managed to obtain the usernames of two of their guild members. I haven't managed to see the other members yet."

The enchanter nodded. "That's fine, you have a week or two until the deadline. We should still be able to make it."

"As you say, milord…"

She didn't mention anything about what's bothering her… Looks like he'd have to draw it out of her.

"Akatsuki, is there something bothering you?"

She remained silent.

"If there's something bothering you, then all you need to do is tell me. I can't help you without knowing what the problem is."

Once more, she remained silent.

Just as he was about to gently prompt her again, her mouth opened in reply.

"A Hamelin member noticed me," she said, guilt lacing every tone in her voice. "I'm sorry, Shiroe-dono, but I failed to remain unnoticed."

Shirogane Kei, or more widely known as Shiroe the Enchanter, blinked.

Oh no.

"Are you sure that you were caught?" Shiroe asked as a hint of panic rose from within him. "Maybe you were mistaken? It could've been something else."

Akatsuki shook her head fervently.

"I'm certain. A creature or a familiar of theirs found me and approached," She swallowed some bile as she continued. "I tried to retreat, but it was too fast and agile to evade. I had to turn around and destroy it. There's no doubt in my mind that they know that I exist."

Shiroe slumped back onto the tree root he sat on prior.

"Apologies, milord," Akatsuki said once more, although it came out more hollow than usual. "My failure has ruined your carefully laid plans."

If Hamelin knew that someone was watching them, then they'd be far more discrete in their future trade deals, making it almost a hundred times harder to record their names for later use.

That wasn't all. With their increased security, they could use their influence with a few of the combat guilds as EXP pot suppliers and get them to investigate, which would ultimately lead to Akatsuki needing to lay low for the time being.

But they would still be wary, enough so that they'd probably require patrons to enter their guildhall to sell it to them directly or in some other more secluded location.

At this rate… they'd never be able to get rid of Hamelin.

This… this complicates things, heavily.

However, Shiroe furrowed his brow upon noticing something.

Hamelin, from before the Apocalypse, was not a PVP heavy guild, nor was it a Raiding guild and certainly not a legitimate production guild. It was just a medium-sized guild that focused on completing missions leisurely.

So where did they get a familiar capable of keeping track of an assassin who built her skill set specifically to be unseen?

Something didn't add up.

"Akatsuki, can you describe the familiar to me?" He asked. "Please, it's important."

Akatsuki, upon noticing his fervor, steeled her resolve and relayed the information.

"It was primarily white, glowed blue, and shaped like a bird," she began. "It was almost ethereal in nature, but when I destroyed it, it did not disintegrate like most other familiars, but instead it crumpled into a pile of string."

She narrowed her eyes. "… Actually, now that I think about it, it looked more like silver hair than strings."

"… Akatsuki, are you sure about that?"

The assassin of Log Horizon nodded in confirmation.

"Well, you can relax somewhat," Shiroe reassured as he pushed his glasses closer to the bridge of his nose. "Because I'm almost a hundred percent certain that that familiar doesn't belong to Hamelin."

He got onto his feet and continued.

"I've memorized all the familiars that a summoner or a druid can have – it made planning raids easier – and I can say with a hundred percent certainty, that I've never heard or seen a familiar with that description." He faced the assassin directly. "In addition, Hamelin hasn't left the city since the Apocalypse started, which makes it all the more improbable that it was them because they would need to do so to obtain something as new as this familiar… or as useful, considering how it was able to keep up with you."

He leveled a stare directly towards her.

"Akatsuki," he called, causing her to jolt just a little. "All of these facts added together makes it incredibly unlikely to be them, but instead, these factors point to a different answer altogether."

Akatsuki widened her eyes as the answer dawned upon her. "This was a third party. Someone else is watching Hamelin."

He pushed his glasses up once.

"They could be watching any of the combat guilds, or a specific player, but that is the most likely answer," he confirmed. "Akatsuki, I'll need you to continue watching Hamelin. If this third party was using a familiar to spy on them as well, then they wouldn't want to be seen by them either. We can still take them down."

However, Shiroe furrowed his brow once more.

"The bigger issue is who exactly is this third party? Is it a player working alone, or is it another guild entirely? If so, then what reason would they have to monitor them, or are they monitoring them at all?" He groaned in subtle frustration. "There's too little information."

"… Should I attempt to make contact with them, milord?" Akatsuki asked.

This time, Shiroe shook his head.

"No, as it stands right now, we have too much to risk if we choose to make contact. Our operations should remain secret, we'd risk that if this third party learned of us now," he turned and began to walk away, Akatsuki following behind. "Presently, we can assume that they're in the same position as us. They lack information on us so it is likely that they won't meet us directly… but that familiar is a problem."

"It was rather stealthy despite the glow that it had," Akatsuki added. "I can destroy it, but I could risk revealing our guild if I do."

Shiroe opened his magic bag and pulled out a spyglass. "If our third party is keeping their distance, then I think you should too. This spyglass should allow you to see them from quite a while away. It should do, right?"

Akatsuki nodded. "I will graciously accept this gift, milord."

Shiroe laughed out wearily. "You could just accept it normally."

"It is a tool from milord! It must be treated with as much care as a newborn baby!"

"I-I see," Shiroe muttered. He coughed to keep his composure in check. "Well, the plan remains. Keep recording Hamelin members until the deadline, but this time you'll need to keep your distance. If you see the familiar again, try to find the summoner, but don't risk your position in doing so. If the opportunity presents itself, take it."

Akatsuki nodded and performed a salute. "As you command, milord!"

It admittedly looked cute because of her height.

He coughed once more. "W-Well, there is a time when you can risk it. If you manage to list all the members and we purchase the Guild Meeting Hall, then you can take some risks. By then, we'll have already completed all of our objectives."

Akatsuki nodded once more and vanished into the night, leaving the enchanter to gaze upon the wide and boundless starry sky.

A third party… this could complicate things.

If they're against Hamelin like they are, then it wouldn't be hard to convince them to follow along with his plan. However, if it wasn't Hamelin that they were looking for and it was someone else, possibly one of the players from the combat guilds, then it'd be a whole lot harder to predict.

Targeting the combat guilds was a death wish, a surefire way to get yourself publicly lynched and thrown out of the city manually.

Surely there would be nobody naive enough to attempt such a thing, right?

On second thought, maybe there was. If a summoner or druid managed to get a new high-level summon such as this agile blue bird, then perhaps it belonged to another combat guild seeking to monopolize the EXP pot market.

It was plausible, but then it could mean that the culprits could be DDD, Silver Sword, or even the West Wind Brigade – as unlikely as it sounded. None of those guild masters seemed like the type to do it… but perhaps if pushed into a corner, then that was a course of action that they'd take.

Shiroe sighed.

He was lacking information and potentially locking himself onto a single path for a conclusion, which was a completely bad idea. He needed to rationalize everything with an open mind.

The chance that the third party was one of the other combat guilds was high, but it could still be a singular player or a separate group altogether. Shiroe was not blind to the fact that power over a monopoly of EXP pots, which meant heavy influence over the combat guilds, was a tempting prospect – even for him.

Naturally, he wouldn't, especially considering how cruel it would be to keep people below level thirty solely to farm the potions.

However, the world was a wide place. You'd never know what kind of people existed out there.

If there was a group like that out there, or someone who would try and manipulate the combat guilds without insurance like he would eventually have, then Shiroe would need to bring his A-game.

Anyone who could even consider the attempt was dangerous.

He hoped this third party wasn't hostile.

He really did.

Otherwise… Shiroe wouldn't hesitate to blacklist them either.

The moon shined brightly above, drawing all towards its gaze and acting as the tender light to caress those who dreamed under it.

As for the ones who weren't dreaming…

The blonde teen sighed.

It was the middle of the night, yet he had neither rested nor had he closed his eyes for even a second. Instead, his legs trudged upon the beaten dirt path as if he were trying to wade his way through jello.

He honestly loathed every second of it.

"We're almost to Akihabara," the familiar yet stern voice called out from ahead of him. The boy pried his eyes away from the beautiful moon that tried to bewitch him into slumber. "Keep your wits about you. I won't coddle you here."

"Lighten up, Konkuraruzu Adobaiza~!" Called out a conversely cheerful voice.

"Just call me by my real name, please. Do not even try to say my username," he berated their other companion. "I do not want to listen to you butcher the pronunciation each and every single time."

"No! As an English teacher, it is my solemn duty to make sure that I can pronounce these words properly!"

He sighed heavily. "I swear you'll drive me insane."

"Hey, it's not like you can read my name either. I thought you could speak Japanese just fine?"

"I can speak it, but reading your overly complex language is beyond me," he bit back. "Do you honestly think that I, who teaches mostly non-Japanese students half-way around the world, would find the time to learn how to read your language's kanji?"

"Just make some time! Shove off a little work onto a student and call it extra credit!"

"That is horrible advice!" He shouted back. The blonde boy between them merely sighed in resignation as their argument progressed. "In the first place, why would you shove off work in the first place?"

"Grades don't matter in the long run!"

"My ears are internally bleeding at this nonsense."

"Come on prof!" The lightly brown-haired companion forced out in exasperation. "What matters is that the students find what they want to do in life. Once they figure that out, all they need to do is work hard! No biggie!"

"Has that ever worked out for your students?"

"Sure it did! I still talk to them, and it worked for me too you know!"

He sighed.

"This explains so little and yet so much."

The blonde pushed away part of his frazzled hair. He could practically feel the irritation radiating off of the taller adventurer. At the same time, he felt that the other one was also getting a tad irritated.

He just wished he knew what they were even talking about. Do adventurers go on weird tangents all the time or was it just these two?

"Oi, what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you act as irresponsible as a teenager," he barked out. "I don't even know how you managed to crawl into adulthood."

"Y-You! Take that back! I'll have you know that I'm very much an adult!"

"How? Provide proof and evidence for that baseless claim."

"Well, for your information, I had two wonderful students that rely on my guidance daily!"

"Emphasis on 'had'. What are they doing now?"

The female adventurer momentarily ceased her steps.

Feeling just a bit worried, the blonde teen turned back to her and called out. "Miss adventurer? Are you alright?"

She seemed to bounce back and waved away his concern. "N-Nothing is wrong! Don't worry about it kid… I just can't really recall the last time I hung out with my students. It must've been months at least…"

From ahead, the boy could hear the male adventurer sigh to himself.

"You miss them, I'm sure," he said without a hint of uncertainty. "I acknowledge the feeling. If I hadn't decided to come to Japan, then I could've at least had a few familiar faces with me…"

He shook his head. "… But that is neither here nor there. Focus not on the past, but the present. That has been a common saying of philosophers these days. I believe that you should learn from it too."

"… I've heard of that before. I guess I forgot," she sighed. "Fine, no use in crying about it now. We already left that shit-hole of a region, no offense kid."

"None taken, miss adventurer," the teen easily accepted. "I ran from that life for a reason, after all."

The female adventurer had a mischievous smirk stretched across her face.

"Well, if you're so fond of running, then let's start running now!" She shouted as she bolted off. "I see the city! I told you guys that we'd be there!"

"I was under the impression that it was I who was leading us all to this city, despite the fact that I am not native to this server." The male adventurer, ConquerorsAdvisor, merely growled in irritation. "The number of maps that I had to read to get here…"

The blonde teen merely chuckled with well-meaning and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Do not worry, mister adventurer! I'm certain that this city will be different from where we came from! Look, there aren't any smoke clouds yet!"

"Emphasis on the 'yet'…" He muttered. He sighed and pushed forward, his Robes of True Guidance ruffling within the subtle wind. "Come on, if we let that monster of a woman run off ahead, then we'll lose sight of her."

The male adventurer trudged on as the teen followed behind him.

"You can call us by our names if you want to, you know?" The male adventurer added one last time. "It's not like we're exactly strangers anymore. We've been traveling together for a month now."

"It is as you say…" the blonde teen muttered, but he shook his head. "Perhaps when I feel as if I am qualified to call myself an adventurer, then I shall do so."

The ConquerorsAdvisor sighed. "Fine. Do as you wish."

The teen could only smile in response.

Truly, the teen was lucky that these adventurers chose to help him out and escape the Nine-Tails Dominion. With the situation in that city looking dire, it was only fitting that he left!

It wasn't as if there was any reason to stay in such a place anyway.

He had no future there, but here in the city of Akihabara?

Rundelhaus Kode will definitely become an adventurer!

A/N: Last day of the month, only chapter of the month, and yes the adventurers are who you think they are. (Don't worry, this wasn't a last minute addition. They were planned to be added).

I hate summer classes.

Anyway, I'm sorry that this came out late. I've had my laptop reformatted (hard disk failure) and lost all of my files. I had to rebuild my draft from scratch and write up a whole new chapter. Luckily, it won't happen again because I've linked everything onto a personal cloud-storage. If you write, I suggest that you do it too. Never know when your laptop decides to go commit unalive.

New Collab event, which means I'm very excited about the coming Case Files anime. Also, eat salt because I got both Ohoho (what do you mean she doesn't say that in her lines!?) and best Imouto Reines. Nyeh.

The next chapter for this should come out sooner in the month after the next, so I guess you can look forward to that. I'll be trying to remake my 'My Ideal Academia' draft now. Whoopie.

Review if you find any errors or something bothers you. I dislike typos and continuity errors as much as the next guy, but they always manage to worm themselves into these chapters.

Until next time.

Kappa.

A/N 2: I made the explanation on what the EXP potion does much clearer. dialNforNinja pointed out that it was a bit confusing to read. I added some more descriptions so it sort of feels like an information bomb, but that's a necessary piece of info that shouldn't be overlooked.

A/N 3: Typo. Ewie.