"Lord, my friends have brought you this month's jewels.

　Zeldo the lizardman comes to tell you that his friends have arrived.
　They were to pay Lasse the reward in installments that they couldn't pay for the earlier demon slaying.

Okay. Send her to the parlor.

　Lizardmen had no concept of money.
　Therefore, their reward was in exchange for the gems they would excavate.
　But you can't take a lot of gems in a waiting room full of other guests.
　If the thieves find out that you received too many jewels, they are more likely to come, and it might cause trouble for the Lizardman's village.

　That's why the rewards were received in the parlor in secret.

"It's been a long time, Mister Lasse.

　Vivaota, who will be leading the lizardmen instead of Zeldo, greets Lasse.

It's good to see you, Vivota. Is Jujiki's swamp okay after that?

Yes, thanks to you. "Yes, thanks to the reconstruction of the village that was destroyed by that monster, it is now as vibrant as before.

"It's better than anything else.

　In a smiling atmosphere, Vivota talks about the state of reconstruction of the village.
　You can feel a happy feeling from Zeldo, who is standing next to Lasse.

"This will be the gem of the month. You'll see.

　Vivauder takes the bag from her subordinate and puts it on the table.
　Then Lamia, who was standing quietly beside Lasse, opens the bag and places its contents on the table.

...... This again.

　Inwardly, Lasse was quite surprised.
　He had heard that the lizardmen were digging for gems, so he thought they were in the rough, and
　But the jewels in front of me were clearly man-made.
　The colorful gems were large in size, and it was obvious that even just one of them would be of considerable value.

(Honestly, hasn't this already paid for the demon slayer?

　But the contract with Zeldo was for all the gems stored in the lizardman's settlement, and somehow the gems were to be paid every month until he gave me the same amount of gems that were lost.

(I wonder how much money I'll have when I've paid it all off)

　But here Lasse noticed a curious gem.

This is ......

　The jewel was the largest jewel in the payment.
　But at the same time, it was something that made me feel very uneasy for some reason.

What is it?　Magic power?

　When Lasse stared at the jewels, he felt a magical surge from inside them that sent chills down his spine.

"Mr. Vivoda, how did you come by these gems?

　Vivauder sees Zerdo next to Lasse.
　She looks to the chief for direction.

"No problem, my lord is our benefactor. And if you are my lord, then so is the lord of our lizardmen. Speak to me of any question.

"Ha!

(I'm not asking for that much loyalty.)

　Lasse is inwardly astonished at the lizardmen who show excessive loyalty.
　Lasse wants to get along loosely with the demons, but for some reason, the demons who follow him tend to follow Lasse as the absolute master.
　A good proof of this is that even the unicorns who are reckless with him complain but obey him obediently.

These gems were found in the ruins of a swamp in Juziki.

Ruins?

　Lasse, recalling memories of a previous trip to Jujiki Swamp on a dragon, tilts his head at the fact that he can't find any memory of such a building.

Was there such a thing?

"It was nighttime last time you were here. And the ruins are obscured by trees. No wonder you didn't notice them.

"Well, ......

　When Lasse heard of the ruins, it made sense.
　It's not strange to get a gemstone from a decaying civilization.
　But Lasse couldn't help but remember the evil that oozed from the gem in front of him.

"Didn't either of you find a gem like this in the ruins before?

　Lasse asks them, pointing to a disgusting gemstone.

"Is this gem?

Hmmm, I've never really cared for it because they all look the same, like jewelry, etc. ......

　The lizardmen nodded their heads and pondered.

Oh, yes, as I recall, the previous chief displayed it on a wall shelf, purporting to show it to people who would come to trade with him from outside!

"Oh, that was it, that was it!

　When Vivauder smacked his hand to remind him, Zeldo seemed to remember and agreed.

"A missing gem, and this evil presence, a demon apostle who suddenly appeared ......

　Lasse looks at the gem and recalls what has happened so far.

"I guess I'd better take a closer look at this gem.