......... Sorry, I'm sorry.

It was in the innermost part of the guild, in a secure room.
Hanzam, a guild employee, had bowed his head to a certain person.
The blood drained from his face, probably due to guilt.

''You needn't worry about it. It was all accidental.''

But the supposedly apologetic old man was calm in contrast to Hanzam.
The old man, with long white hair and ears that were impossibly long for a human, smiled with a smile that oozed unconcealed fatigue.

'...... you're doing well in a world where you can't help yourself.

Huh!

Hanzam's face contorts at the old man's kind words.
As if the old man's words were inspiring.

''I'm ......, but this case is an unforgivable blunder for such a thing.

But still Hanzam did not meditate on his blunder.
His face twisted into a regret that he didn't even try to hide, and he opened his mouth.

''I gave ...... information against a superb adventurer, and on top of that, I mutated a hydra. One wrong move and it's an irreversible blunder.

...... hansom.

At Hanzam's words, the old man's face was shadowed by his words.
Indeed, Hanzam's blunder was something that, if he made a mistake, could greatly derail his plans later on.

This labyrinth city has a power independent of the royal capital's guild headquarters.
That's how valuable the materials of the demonic beasts from this place to the other cities, that's how valuable they are.
That's why the guild of the King's Capital is trying to keep this labyrinth city under control somehow.

...... But if the guild of the labyrinth city is brought under the control of the guild of the King's Capital, all of our plans will be aborted.

''It's ...... okay. As long as that man is around, no one from the King's Capital Guild can interfere with the Labyrinth City.

However, whether the blunder could punish Hanzam for it was a no.
As long as a man was present, the authority of the labyrinth city would not waver.
After all, it was an adventurer's guild that was supposed to have power independent of the state, but it would have to answer to some extent to the demands of the state.
And as long as that is the case, the labyrinth city is safe.

Also, the old man had decided that it wasn't Hanzam's fault as far as Hydra's mutation was concerned.

'As for the Hydra's mutation, there's nothing I can do about it. You know that, too.

Huh!

In response to the old man's words, an agitation appears on Hanzam's face.
Hanzam also understands that he couldn't help himself with the Hydra case, let alone the matter of leaking the information to Larma.

Hanzam had discovered early on that a guild employee named Amherst had been trying to hide Hydra's existence.
...... Still, the failure to defeat the Hydra before it mutated was only because of a combination of circumstances that Hanzam was unable to bear.

The absence of a party that could reliably defeat the Hydra, and the arrival of a top-notch adventurer, Laruma, in the labyrinth city.


......... And then there's the unusual situation of the apparently quick time frame for the Hydra to mutate.


Indeed, once the Hydra mutated, the damage could have been catastrophic.
It was common knowledge that once a mutated super-difficult demonic beast appeared, the surrounding city would be destroyed.

''Hanzam, I'm not going to blame you for the Hydra.

But there was no way the old man could hold Hanzam responsible for Hydra.

...... There's no one to blame for you in this situation.

The Hydra's mutation, it was such an irregularity.
The only reason why the Hydra's mutation occurred in such a short period of time was because the magic power in the depths of the grasslands had increased rapidly.

......... And the increase in the magic power in the depths of the grassland was an indication of something.


......... they say the awakening is near.


The old man's words brought an unconcealed agitation to Hanzam's face.
The reaction convinced the old man that Hanzam had come to the same conclusion as he had.

'Hanzam, I understand that I have no responsibility to you. You have done everything I have asked of you perfectly, and this is one of the few mistakes you have made. It is not my intention to condemn you for that. ...... No, we can't afford to do that in the first place.

...... I get it.

Hanzam nodded at the old man's words after some hesitation.
The situation is looming right in front of you.
Hanzam would have to understand that.

''So, is things progressing without a hitch?

The old man, just as he was checking the condition of Hanzam, so the old man asked Hanzam, "Yes.

He said, "Yes. I'm sure there are a few good adventurers left, but the worst that can be done is to ignore this level of damage.

...... Right.

The old man replied to Hanzam's words with a shadowy look on his face.
...... The old man's heart is filled with a sense of helplessness about the future.
I'm not going to be able to get out of the house, but I'm going to be able to get out of the house.

But the old man, knowing that this was impossible, suppressed the thought in his heart.

The old man suppresses the thought deep in his heart, knowing that it is impossible.

And then the old man's next words made Hanzam's face tense.

'Guild leader, I will be with you to the end.

In the next moment, Hanzam kneels on the spot and tells it so, as if raising an oath.
After nodding once to that, the old man, the head of the Labyrinth City Guild, Ramulus, opened his mouth.

''We are close to the end of the labyrinth city.

...... mutated Hydra, a disaster that could not be compared to that or any other, was approaching just beside the labyrinth city.