'Such ...... half! It's impossible!'

'You're in a situation where you need that arc, aren't you! You can't get by with just a few in the first place!

What the hell is going on here?
I couldn't hide my confusion at the commotion that had started right in front of me.

Eva was looking at me with a dumbfounded look.
The members of the group began to argue with each other, and I observed them, unable to say anything.

No. ...... Did I say something funny? I.

I'm not sure if I'm praising myself, but Footprints is one of the top clans headquartered in the Imperial Capital. Its strength is also much higher than the average.

There were two reasons why we started this clan in the first place.

The first was - to get away from the front lines for the sake of running the clan.
The second was to improve the social skills of the members of the Ghosts of Sorrows by increasing their interaction with other parties.

There is such a thing as too much talent, and that is loneliness. A prominence of talent alienates the majority of those without it.
In the case of Ghosts of Sorrows, I was not lonely because all the members except me were blessed with unparalleled natural talents, but at the time I felt that this was the reason why we were not able to interact with other parties.

Therefore, when I decided to establish "Footprints" and gather the founding party, I used the talent and age of the members as criteria for selection.
I thought that if the hunters were close in age and were as good as Luke and the others, then Luke and the others would accept them.
I hoped that the members of the Ghosts of Sorrows (usually Luke and Liz) would develop their social skills through interaction, and that eventually I would be able to add someone from the outside to replace me who was dragging them down.

With faint hopes, I approached every party that was well known in the Imperial Capital at the time.

The Black Gold Cross, all of whom possessed high healing abilities, were able to conquer highly difficult treasure halls with almost no casualties.
The Starlight, which has several powerful attack mages and is unrivaled in its ability to annihilate large areas.
The Torch Knights, whose strict discipline and systematic training ensured that all of its more than ten members maintained a high average level of ability.

And above all, the Ark Brave was a rival to the Ghost of Sorrows.

The negotiations went surprisingly well. All the other members agreed with me and volunteered to negotiate with their respective parties.
Although I have not yet completely achieved my goal, the situation is going well. I've been able to leave the front lines, and I'd like to think that Liz and the others are doing better than if they hadn't created the ...... clan.

Aside from that, the members of this clan, which started off with a bang, are naturally excellent.

It must have been a good stimulus for them. From the second group onwards, we added parties at random without regard to their abilities, but "Footprints" still maintains its reputation as an elite clan and is judged as a growing clan.

The members gathered now shouldn't be so bad as to cause such a fuss.

Ark is outstandingly strong but I chose him because he's the most reliable and easy to ask for, not because I think he's absolutely necessary.

First of all, if you think about it calmly, a situation where Ark is indispensable is too dangerous. What's going to happen?

I look at Eva who was able to gather so many hunters in such a short time.

In the first place, the talk about giving full cooperation to Mr. Gark was more of a social call, but he's taking it too seriously. I don't know how you managed to get so many .......

Well, I've already known that Eva is excellent, but I have only one concern in my mind.

It costs money to run a hunter. I wonder where this money will come from. .......
I'm the one who said I'd cooperate fully. That's also why I said half would be fine.

Ava met my gaze, nodded once with a serious expression, and said in a voice that seemed to echo throughout the entrance.

'Everyone, please be quiet, Mr. Cry wants to talk to you.

At the sound of this voice, everyone immediately ended their discussion and looked at me.
At the painful silence and stares, I coughed once to cover my mouth.

Seriously,......, does Mr. Cry want to talk to you,......, which Mr. Cry?
No, it's fine, okay? It's okay.

Unsure of what to say, I smiled to disguise my inner turmoil.

'Hey, hey, calm down, guys. Think about it calmly, the treasure house that had the problem this time is a former level 3. Don't worry about it.

'That's a lie!

A hunter in a black robe who looked like a mage shouted.
The hunter, who was much stronger than me, narrowed his eyes and stared at me with a shivering expression.

I'm not lying. I'm not lying. I never have.

'Besides, I'm sure Chief Gark is running other parties too. It's not just our problem. It's true, the White Wolf's Den is more dangerous than usual right now. I can understand your anxiety, but ......'

Overrunning a treasure house with firepower is not a hunter's main concern. They are so-called adventurers.
For some reason, my logical persuasion did not change the expressions on their faces. They don't trust me at all.

Even Tino's eyes were cold. Well, it's no wonder she has a record of the White Wolf's Den from the other day. .......

Was there something wrong with my words? .......
I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm sure it's worth it.

It's been a long time since I've been a hunter. I'm not sure if I'm being naive.

If you are rejected so excessively, you will feel as if you are making a mistake. I'm not a very confident person to begin with.

I ask Eva next to me briefly.

'What do you think?

'...... This time, the situation is the situation. I think it's best to leave some room for error.

'...... hmmm ......'

Apparently, Eva rather agrees with them.

I look around at the members.
There were many, but none of them seemed to be at the top. Not to mention Ark who is visiting the nobles, there are no other parties such as Black Gold or Holy Thunder.
Well, it's not strange since our top tier means that they are busy.

But still, I think it's overpowered. .......
If so many parties were to head for the White Wolf's Lair with so much motivation, not even penny grass would grow there.

'Hmm, what if we pull out a few parties?

Putting aside the issue of rewards, if all the parties in the trail were to disappear, I would have no one to turn to when something went wrong.
Of course, I can't honestly say such a shameful thing, but .......

I'm not sure what to say, but I'm sure you'll be able to understand.

'Master, I'm not asking for more! No problem, right?'

'Hmmm, .......'

'Well, we're in the same clan, but in different parties. We're cooperating, but we have no obligation to follow your orders. Or if you have a good reason why we shouldn't reduce it, let me know!

'Hmmm ......, that's a good point.'



Behind me, several hunters are nodding their heads in agreement. You guys don't want to lose that many?
You're always so brave, what are you so scared of? .......

But you're right. .......

This time, I said I would help Mr. Gark in a social manner, but that does not mean I will volunteer. I'm sure you'll be able to find a lot more information on this subject in the future.

'Eva, will the rewards be paid for everyone? Their budget is not infinite. I don't think they can afford to hire this many people, do you?

The investigation was commissioned by the Empire. The budget is determined by the expected difficulty of the investigation.
What occurred at the Treasure House this time was a major anomaly, but even so, I don't think it's enough to hire half of the Footprints.

I'm not ready to give up," Eva replied with a smug look.

'No problem,' she said. Chief Gark has pulled in additional funds from the government. I've checked, and it seems reasonable.'

'Seriously? You pulled in enough money to mobilize this many high-level hunters? ...... What kind of amazing skills are you talking about?

The empire isn't stingy, but in order to ask for an increase in the budget that the other side originally provided, they would need materials.

It's also possible that the hunters who were sent to investigate ...... brought something back with them?

It's possible that some new information came in while I was on a date with Liz, although she didn't seem to know anything about it when she came to talk to me.

And because of this uncertainty, our elite are nervous about reducing the number of personnel.
Yeah, that's the most likely scenario.

I felt as if the pieces of the puzzle fell into place.

I breathed a sigh of relief so that others would not notice.
I'm glad our members aren't the kind of people who would take my word for it. I was about to make the same mistake I made with Tino.

But if you have any new information, please let me know in advance. It's not like I'm going to do anything if I know.

When I looked at Eva, she gave a small nod, her glasses shining as usual.

'Yes. It seems that Branch Chief Gark used the information he got from Kry-san as material.''

'Huh?

What? I have no idea what you're talking about.

I didn't know what to say, so I nodded plausibly.
I wondered if there was anyone else in the city besides me. If there is such a person as ...... who is a great informant, I would love to be a part of it.

Did I give out such important information?

You frown and twist your neck.

I don't know anything. I'm willing to help.
All I said was that I'd send Ark if he was around but he's not.

I don't know what kind of material I need to convey to convince the country when I haven't said anything concrete. .......

I wish I hadn't said, "Let's cooperate. I was under no obligation to cooperate, so I should have just said I was busy with other things and there was nothing I could do.

It's a good thing you don't have any regrets.
...... Oh, I'm going to puke. If nothing in particular happens, will it be my fault?

I hold my forehead and feel self-loathing.
Ah, why is my mouth so flat and light? It's because I'm just saying things at random. ...... Well, I think there's a problem with Kaina and others who take my words in a strange way.

I'm not sure what to do,......, but since they're going to increase the budget to deal with it, it will be impossible for them to forgive me even if I apologize now using my high-level kneeling skills, which is my only pride and joy.

In front of me, all of the gazes of the gathered clan members pierced me.
They all had serious expressions on their faces. As long as we're not getting a discount, there's no reason to reduce our numbers.
And even if the number of our members decreases, as long as we have the budget, we'll probably just fill in the positions from other sources.

Hmmm, ............ is it a dead end?

I groaned for a while as everyone looked at me seriously, but I couldn't think of anything, so I gave up.

'............Well, whatever.'

'What?

I didn't say anything. I didn't mean to make it this big.
I just said I'd help. Gark-san is the one who decided to increase the budget.

If the Empire says anything, Mr. Gark will take care of it. Even if they say something, I'll let it pass with my high level smugness skills.

I'm sure you'll be fine. Master? You really should all go.

I'm not going to be able to stop you if that's what you want to do.

Do what you want, do what you want.

The members who had gathered there looked at me with a subtle expression, as if they had been disappointed by my complete abandonment.
Don't complain even if the difficulty of the mission is lower than expected.
I said it's okay to cut back. I said so.

And then, I heard a voice behind me that I didn't want coming in right now.
The faces of the hunters standing in line tense.

Without a sound of footsteps, I felt a soft touch on my back, and their thin arms were put in front of my body.

'You're talking a lot of nonsense, why don't you quit being a hunter if you want to herd so badly?

'Liz, let's not say anything that could be misinterpreted as mocking me, okay?

After the date, he seemed to be in a much better mood than usual today.

Tino moves naturally and hides himself behind the large hunter next to him.
You can't see her expression because she's behind you, but I'm sure she's laughing right now.

'You think I'm making fun of you? I'm making fun of you. I don't even want to yell at you. You know that, right?

He says it in a mellow tone, as if he's talking to everyone.
His voice was not raised, but the sense of intimidation contained in it was on par with the usual.

'It's true that Cry-chan's demands are always hopelessly high, but you can't be a hunter if you're afraid of death. If it were me, I'd never say no.'

And then I heard something I didn't want to hear.

...... What? Wait a minute. ...... Hopelessly expensive? I'm sorry.

I'm not sure what you're talking about. I'm not sure if you'll be able to find the right one for you.

'...... It's not high.'

I argue in a whispery little voice. The strength of the arm that was hugging me tightly becomes a little stronger.



'It's because ...... Zekage, you're strong.'

In the event that you're in a position to do this, you'll be able to do so.

You can see why Krai-chan is dismayed. ...... That's why you can't move on forever.

Do you think I'm stupid? No, I'm not disgusted. When have I ever been disgusted?

I'm reasonably happy with my current footprint. I've been wondering what you're so afraid of, but it makes sense if it's the kind of thing that makes you think that Lies is hopelessly expensive.

It's good to be cautious. I didn't want to die, so I decided to stop being a hunter.

'Well, it's okay. It's none of my business. ...... In fact, I'd be more than grateful if you refused.

Then, as they all looked at me, Liz made an indulgent sound.

'Hey, Crye? You and I will take this request, right? Is that okay? I thought the White Wolf's Lair illusion would be perfect for training, so it's perfect. I don't need anything else.

'What ......?

The elite, who are used to most things, buzzed at Ryss's words.
Tino screams in astonishment. Tino, haven't you had too much bad luck lately?

Liz continued, drawing a letter on my chest.

'So. If Ark-chan is required for the mission, Tee will be in danger, so I want you to share that. I don't have Brother Anthem, I don't have a healer, and I can't do anything if any of my limbs are missing or if I lose some of my internal organs, so you have one, right, Cry? The High Elixir of Creation. Please? Please.

The voice whispered in my ear was sweet and hot.
This girl is going to fight even if her limbs are blown off. .......

Tino is shaking like a frightened puppy. I smiled and said clearly.

'No.'

'Well, why not?

I mean, you can't work in a group.
No, no, no. There are other hunters going to the White Wolf's Den, so there's no way we can send them.
It's not just about being strong. Even if she's socialized, she's only a half-dead version of a full-dead version, and she's more terrifying than an illusion.
I'm not going this time either.

And I feel sorry for ...... Tino, no matter what.

I stroked the arm of the disgruntled Liz and soothed her, making a serious expression.

'I'm sorry, but things have just changed. I was talking about reducing the number by half, but I take it back. As Eva chose, we'll have everyone here go.'

'......!

'Just because it's a not-so-high level treasure hall, be careful not to let your guard down until the end.'

I suddenly changed my mind, and everyone looked at each other in confusion. Some of them are trembling and gnashing their teeth for some reason.

Now, I'll ask Liz to tell me later what part of this request seemed to be 'hopelessly dangerous'.