Consumed by the branch chief's intimidation, I unknowingly stepped back.
However, in contrast to me, Master is a calm and collected man.
He glares at the branch chief with a cool gaze and opens his mouth.

''Are you going to play the master face now?''

Huh!

I let out a shudder as I realized that the branch chief's words were true when he told me that his master was a disciple.
The best proof of this was the attitude of the master who did not deny that he was his teacher.
But now that I understood that the branch chief was Master's teacher, a question arose in my heart.

If that was the case, what could have happened to make him so hostile to the branch chief?

'It's quite sad to hear that from your apprentice.

I have that thought as I look at the figure of my master, who is still holding the magic that is on the verge of being activated, and glaring at the branch chief who is holding a smile that shows no emotion.
If it was a master and student, it was not normal for them to try to invoke magic as soon as they met.
Especially for a master, considering that the activation of magic is the reason why he acted because he recognized the other party as an enemy, it's safe to assume that his resentment towards the branch chief is deep.
Now that he has activated his magic, there is no doubt that his master is making a decision to fight, so he can .......

...... eh?

It was only when I had thought that far that I noticed something suspicious.
Until now, Master had been prepared to fight when he invoked his magic.
So I thought that this time, too, when he invoked his magic, Master gave up negotiations and switched to forcing the conversation.

And yet, contrary to that expectation, Master still hadn't invoked the sorcery he had built up to the point of invoking it.

Master would negotiate properly and move carefully before activating the magic.
As if to say that it was a reaction to that, Master's attack after activating the sorcery had no hesitation.
But for some reason, only this time, Master hadn't attacked the branch chief yet.
That was an action I hadn't usually seen, and I couldn't understand Master's intentions, and I couldn't help but stare at him in amazement.

It was then that Master opened his small mouth to tell me something.

'...... You should assume that everything that man is saying is true.

The Master stared at the chapter leaders with a nervous look on his face as he piled on the words with a volume of voice that the chapter leaders could not reach.

'Don't take the prejudiced words of a race that didn't find favor with the gods or anything else, Raust. Even if you don't have the skills, to the point where it doesn't matter, elves are far more adept at handling magic than humans.

The knowledge of the elves spoken from the master's mouth in a matter-of-fact manner, something that even I, who had read quite a few books, did not know.
And in that master's words, I understand that the knowledge I read in books is of no use in this situation.

At the very least, the elves in front of me are dozens of times stronger than the assumptions I got from my books.

As I naturally grew more cautious, my master told me to be cautious.

'You should be cautious, but don't make your hostility too obvious. The other party is a being that has lived for six hundred years, even among elves with extraordinary magical powers. Think of my magic as something to escape from in a time of need.

......!

It was then that I understood why Master didn't attack him, even though he was on the verge of activating his magic.
Master didn't activate his magic because he had decided to fight the branch chief.

He acted because he judged that if it wasn't for the current situation where he was on the verge of activating his magic, he wouldn't even be able to fight him properly.

When I realized that, the words "30% chance of victory" that Master told me came to my mind.
Even now, I can't judge whether the head of the branch in front of me is really a match for him or not.
But considering the master's words, the branch chief was a monster that could be said to have a 30 percent win rate.
...... No, even a 30% win rate seems like a lot if you just take the words as a given.
I've been thinking about that and reflexively suppressed my hostility.
After confirming my reaction, the master opened his mouth to the chapter leaders.

''Branch Chief Mist, I'll tell you again, I didn't come here to talk in vain.

At the words of the master from above, Banzam glared grimly at the hindrance, but he was interrupted by the Branch Chief, revised Elf and Mist, who opened his mouth.

'Then what are you doing here? Are you trying to tell me that you two came together and were going to kill me?

That's what I was going to do at first. 'We can't just let a dangerous person who might have run the labyrinth into the ground, can we? We have Ronaldo with us for that.

At first glance, Master's words feel so high-handed that it feels like he's abandoned negotiations.
However, when I see his fists clenched tightly, I realize that he is not piling those words on top of each other without thinking.
It's the same with the seemingly abandoned attitude of a negotiator, but he is desperately trying to find out what's going on.

'...... I knew Ronaldo was coming too.

Mist's eyes narrowed slightly at Master's words.
As if he got a response from Mist's response, his fist was filled with even stronger force, but Master opened his mouth, pretending to be his usual self on the surface.

''That's not the only strength you have, okay? Another inexperienced, but mage. A martial artist with excellent skills. And my apprentice beside me is skilled enough to deal with whatever elves are at home base.

The master, who had been piling on the words so far in a matter-of-fact manner, opened his mouth there with hostility in his voice.

''I'm not saying that we can win. But now that I know the home base, don't you think that with this much strength, I can take you guys along for the ride?

Hanzam's face strengthened at his master's hostility, the smile faded from the branch leader's face, and the air in the room became tense.

''Nevertheless, it will only be to our mutual detriment if we fight each other now.

The moment he confirmed this, Master immediately dissipated his hostility.
However, the air in the room was still tense.

It was when I felt the air that I realized that Master's aim was the current situation.

Until now, Master had spoken in a high-handed manner, not even hesitating to fight.
It was an attitude that could lead to the worst-case scenario, a battle with Branch Chief Mist, but it was all a stepping stone to make the opponents believe that they would also take a hard-line approach.

After convincing them that they are prepared to take the worst possible course of action, Master smiles at the chapter leaders.

'This is the situation. I think that if we cooperate with each other, specifically by providing you with the means to escape from the labyrinthine city, we won't have to fight each other, what do you think?

Implicitly, he smells that he will take a hard line if you provide him with a means of escape.

I inwardly praise my master's brilliant skills.
I thought that from now on, everything would be fine without any problems.

I'm going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to do anything about it," said Mist, the head of the branch.

'I think you guys have a couple of things wrong with me.

Mist piles on the words with an attitude that is even somewhat unusual under this tense situation, like a grandfather troubled by his grandchildren's spoiling, even somewhat abnormal.

'As a prerequisite, we didn't cause the labyrinth runaway in the first place. This labyrinth runaway just happened the way it was meant to happen.

Then Mist closed her mouth a little awkwardly, and then laughed apologetically.

''──and another thing, we have no means of dealing with this situation or escaping from the labyrinth city, but...''


............ Huh?

Those words caused the air in the room to freeze.