In a corner of the base, in a wide space where luggage had been cleared away, boxes brought up from the basent were stacked neatly.
These were the potions that had recently begun mass production.
In addition to those, items that once occupied the first floor were moved elsewhere, and various supplies began to pile up in the now empty, spacious area.
Watching this scene quietly, Rin turned her head to look out the window.
The bustling streets were sohow filled with a familiar and peculiar atmosphere.
A procession of wagons several tis larger than usual.
Soldiers walking the streets.
rchants beginning to stockpile goods.
Co to think of it, a year has already passed.
Rin, who had already experienced the sa event once, naturally realized that ’that ti’ was approaching.
The annual event of Labyrinth. The monster invasion was drawing near.
Last year, she wondered why the small shops and inns were preparing so busily, but seeing the supplies pile up at the base brought those mories back.
The faint clouds of war hanging over the city could be felt against her skin.
Rin muttered while looking out the window.
’It’s starting soon... That ti has already co.’
’Hm? Ah... you an that.’
Mika, who had been buried in the sofa, raised her head, glanced out the window, and nodded.
Seeing that, Anne, who was passing by, asked.
’What are you talking about?’
’Ah... I guess you guys wouldn’t know.’
’I see... So you don’t know.’
Hearing Rin and Mika’s conversation where the subject was omitted, several people wore expressions of confusion.
They were the recruits who had never experienced a monster wave before.
Anne, Karen, and Seria.
Tanya’s friends and rookie rcenaries who had recently moved to Labyrinth. They were the three who had joined as mbers of the Ian rcenary Group’s second-tier party.
Rin nodded and wore a smug smile.
’In Labyrinth... war will soon break out...’
’Ah... were you talking about the monster invasion?’
’...Eh? How do you know?’
’I heard it from Tanya...’
Rin had spoken to the recruits with a aningful smile, but everyone reacted as if they already knew.
When Seria answered nonchalantly, Rin jumped up and called for Tanya.
’Tanya! How can you be so an and brag about it all by yourself!’
’I didn’t brag, I just inford them!’
Tanya replied with an exasperated face.
Once the monster invasion starts, everyone will have a role to play, so she had simply explained it in advance so they wouldn’t panic.
Back in Tanya’s day, there was no one to tell her, so she had to learn everything one by one without knowing a thing, but there was no need for that now, was there?
...Of course, since everyone was listening with sparkling eyes, she might have gotten a little excited and told a bit more than necessary.
It was strictly for the sake of work.
’Wouldn’t it be better for to explain it again rather than hearing the story from Tanya, who was a novice back then...?’
’Rin, you only saw it exactly once back then too. Why are you acting like you’re more of a veteran than us?’
’But... there’s probably no one in this city who has caught as many slis as I have.’
Everyone gathered by the window and shared stories while looking outside.
Suddenly, Rin rembered another person who wasn’t there at the ti and turned her head to call Lia.
Since Lia had a longer career as a rcenary, she likely had more experience going through monster invasions.
Curious about what other rcenary groups did, Rin asked Lia.
’How was it for you, Lia?’
’Co to think of it, you’ve been through it a few more tis than us, right?’
’Huh? Nothing special, really... Further back, I was only E-rank anyway.’
Lia’s rise to C-rank was also a relatively recent event.
Before that, when her rank was low, she was ordinary mobilized for tasks like moving supplies, so there wasn’t much special to tell.
’What about when you were C-rank?’
’Back then...’
Lia recalled the mory of the last invasion.
After rising to C-rank, she was assigned to the standby unit.
Those who go up onto the walls are usually rcenaries capable of long-range attacks or front-liners with high defense who can push back monsters that crawl up.
Soone of Lia’s type rarely had a chance to be active even if she went up on the wall.
At the ti, she didn’t belong to a rcenary group, so she didn’t have a crowd to fit into either.
That’s why she was placed in the standby unit. The official na was the Ergency Standby Unit.
It was a unit that stepped forward when the wall defense line was pushed back by monsters or when monsters infiltrated inside. She heard the tis they actually entered combat could be counted on one hand.
Since such situations didn’t happen easily, it was essentially a place to roughly gather rcenaries who had nothing else to do.
Rather, the story about the underground waterway she heard from the three of them was more fascinating to Lia.
’What do we do this ti?’
’Since our rank went up, wouldn’t we go sowhere else...?’
’Is everyone on the surface?’
Everyone turned their gaze to Ian and asked about this year’s plan.
Having received the question, Ian fell into thought for a mont.
Ian was also in the middle of contemplating what to do this ti.
’This ti, we will be split into two.’
Although the numbers had grown significantly, since everyone’s ranks were different, it was difficult to cram them into the sa area, and it wouldn’t be efficient.
Even if he forced them into the sa place, one side would eventually end up with nothing to do.
Therefore, Rin’s party would be on the surface as planned.
Anne’s party was scheduled to be sent as support for the underground waterway.
Of course, there was no guarantee it would happen exactly as Ian wanted; it was sothing that could only be discussed once the detailed defense plan for this year was set by the Guild.
Everyone nodded after hearing Ian’s explanation.
Anne’s group looked nervous at the thought of being directly deployed to that underground waterway mission they had only heard about.
The other mbers, who had heard in advance what would happen during this invasion thanks to the events in the Labyrinth, also wore quite tense expressions.
As everyone was sharing stories about last year’s invasion, a sound ca from the entrance.
The sound of a guest knocking on the door.
Tanya, who had been in the kitchen for a mont and checked outside after hearing the sound, said.
’Captain. A guest has arrived.’
Since it was a face Tanya already knew well, she imdiately opened the door and guided the guest inside.
Chris, who ca inside, gave Ian a simple nod of greeting.
Because they had ended up handling matters for this invasion together, he and Chris were currently eting and talking steadily.
Chris, who briefly turned his gaze to look around the interior, muttered.
’The number of people here has really grown. It feels like just yesterday when there were only two.’
Chris glanced around at the faces of the mbers gathered in abundance on the first floor.
They say the growth of a smooth-sailing rcenary group is different every day, but this place was truly a site that had to be looked at again every ti he saw it.
It had been a conspicuous rcenary group since the first ti he saw it, but still, to think it would be to this extent.
Chris, who was moving his steps with a small smile, discovered the boxes piling up in a corner of the base.
At this ti, any rcenary group is bound to stockpile supplies, but among them, one item occupying a particularly large volu caught his eye.
Potion boxes.
Chris approached and asked Ian while looking at the boxes.
’Is this that item?’
’Yes. It was completed a while ago, so we’ve been making it.’
’Do you think the quantity won’t be lacking?’
’Sohow.’
Ian took one bottle out of a box and handed it to Chris.
Chris took the potion from Ian and observed the contents.
A clear red liquid sloshed inside the bottle.
As it was a very important matter, he had naturally been shared the recipe in advance and had heard sufficient explanations about what kind of effect the item had.
No matter how much of an ergency it was, they couldn’t distribute an unidentified item to rcenaries and soldiers.
Chris stared at it for a long ti.
While it was an item with good effects, it was a simple potion with no particularly special ingredients.
To think the fate of the city depended on such a thing.
’If this has no effect, we’re finished.’
’It will.’
Seeing Ian speak with such confidence, Chris let out a sigh.
’There are quite a few people in the Guild who oppose this plan.’
Ahead of the eting, the materials Ian brought were shared within the Guild in advance, but opinions were split in half.
’Your plan draws heavily on the defensive forces. If the event you warned about doesn’t happen, it only increases the defense risk on the main wall for nothing.’
’I know it’s an unreasonable plan, but that’s the best way to minimize the damage.’
Things would be a bit simpler if he could receive a formal budget or be allocated personnel, but for now, it was impossible.
Chris nodded his head slightly with a dissatisfied face.
’etings will start next week, so a decision will be made there.’
’Let know later once it’s decided.’
A preliminary eting to prepare for the invasion was scheduled to be held at the Guild soon.
But despite being called a preliminary eting, it was effectively a strategic eting that would continue every day until just before the monster invasion began.
Since requests and changes from the City Hall and the military would keep occurring until right before the invasion, there was naturally no ti to finish etings early and rest.
He probably wouldn’t be able to see Chris for a while.
When Ian spoke with that thought, Chris looked at Ian with a face that asked what he was talking about.
’What are you saying? You have to attend too.’
’Huh?’
Ian flinched, raised his head, and looked at Chris.
Ian, thinking he had heard sothing strange, asked Chris.
’Aren’t etings only for official employees of the Guild...?’
Chris held sothing out before Ian could even finish his sentence.
It was a temporary mbership ID for the rcenary Guild.
Ian, who received it, was at a loss for words and looked at Chris.
He wondered why Chris had visited so suddenly today, and it seed he had co to deliver this.
’After tossing such a task at us, did you really think you could slip away and stay out of it alone?’
Chris spoke to Ian with a bleak smile.
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