The Clanhouse Lounge is famous among the treasure hunters of Zebredia.

Being a treasure hunter is a lucrative profession. In particular, it is not uncommon for a top hunter to earn enough money in a single hunt to last an average citizen a lifetime.

The clan house, built with abundant funds by a group of the best young hunters in the Imperial Capital, is cutting-edge and has become a kind of admiration for young treasure hunters. Combined with a clan name that sounds like it's aimed at beginners, it has often been the reason why newly registered hunter eggs have fantasized about a career as a treasure hunter. Probably, the master of this clan had built such a huge clan house in the prime location of the Imperial Capital with such an effect in mind.

And, of course, the deputy clan master that the clan master had found was so talented that it was a wonder he had not appeared on the stage before.


'The Clan Master wants to concentrate on other matters for a while, so he doesn't want anyone to contact him. I understand the situation, but please leave us alone.


The spacious lounge of the clan house. In the center of the lounge was a large table, at which Eva Renfrew, deputy clan master of Footprints of the Beginning, said in a clerical tone as she sat down in front of Gark.

Even after she retired, she was still a highly respected leader of the Association. There are only a few people who don't shrink in the face of a crying former "war demon". And when it comes to ordinary people who haven't inhaled enough Mana Material, there are only a handful of people in the entire Imperial Capital.

Eva Renfido is brilliant. She was the right-hand woman of the "Thousand Transformations", who was able to control the situation with ease, and the fact that she had managed to grow the clan to this level showed that she was no ordinary person.

At the same time, she has a certain stubbornness that she will not budge once she has made up her mind. When necessary, she would work with Gark to persuade Krai, but if she decided not to do so, she would never do so, no matter the threats or the money. Perhaps this temperament is one of the reasons why Krai chose her.

In addition, unlike Krai, she's the type to be reasonable. She is well versed in the laws of the Empire and the rules of the Searchers' Association. In addition, as a civilian and not a hunter, she is beyond the reach of the Explorers Society's authority.

The staff members who had already been brought in were all in a resigned mood. Originally, Gark had no intention of threatening them with violence.
There are many hunters belonging to the Footprints in the lounge. Hunters who would not be intimidated by the head of the Explorers Association. Of course, even if there were no such hunters, it would be outrageous to threaten ordinary people with violence.

'If the Thousand Transformations were a little more hardworking, Zebrudia would be twice as developed.

'If it were a little more hardworking, I'd collapse from overwork.'

In response to Gark's light-hearted remark, Eva said with a serious expression without even smiling. At this, Gark gave a small sigh.

The reason why Gark had come all the way to the Clan House today was to check on the progress of the incident at the Martial Emperor Festival.

He would have preferred to discuss it face to face, but this time there would be no problem if it was done by word of mouth. It was not as if any incident had occurred.
The fact that he didn't want to meet her meant that he didn't think it was necessary. If he was just a hunter, he should have forced himself to talk to her, but he had a proven track record of ingenuity, uncanny insight, and near-future vision. Zebuldiah also had a track record that could not be ignored.


Two weeks have passed since the incident at the Emperor's Festival. The operation to destroy the secret organization, the Nine-Tailed Shadow Fox, had gone more smoothly than Zebuldia and Gark had imagined.

They were dealing with an organization that had a reputation for being thoroughly secretive. It was an organization that the Empire and the Explorers Society had been investigating in secret, but had been unable to obtain much information about. No matter how hard the nations worked together to solve the problem, with the names of the organization's members, their bases of operation, and everything else unknown, there was almost nothing they could do.
Gurk and the others were prepared for a prolonged battle, but the situation had taken an unexpected turn.

Some of the members of the group had turned to Zebuldia with information. The person was not a senior official, and the information he brought was not that great in quantity or quality, but it was a big change to see a member of an organization that had not let them catch its tail turn.

'Thinking about it, the settlement of the Martial Emperor Festival was unlike him.'

'............'

Eva fell silent at Gark's words.

In the past, the Thousand Transformations had defeated every organization, bandit, and phantom that had stood in its way with stratagems that were unbelievably human. This time, too, he was calm when he faced the foxface in the arena, and that's why Gark and the others didn't immediately enter the arena to watch.
This led to a delay in the initial response and led to the loss of the fox mask, but this is a strange story to begin with.

If they didn't want to lose him, they should have just put someone on the escape route. There were many warriors there, including Luke and Lise.
The arena was warded, and escape routes were limited. There was no way Krai wouldn't have noticed something like that, and even if he had been absolutely confident in his plan, he would have definitely deployed people in the usual way. He would have had enough people to capture the fox mask just in time.

If that was the case, why didn't Krai seal off the entrance at that time? Was he counting on the former warrior emperor and the many hunters in the hall?

The fox face that escaped, and the plan that had holes, not unlike Krai's. And yet, the organization's investigation has made great progress.

And then Gark came to an answer.



What if all of this is part of the plan?



What if everything had gone according to Kry's plan, from the escape of the fox mask to the betrayal?


The intruder who came out at the Martial Emperor Festival would be a top-level member of the organization. Normally, there was no way he would be allowed to escape.

However, if it would end up benefiting us, wouldn't the Thousand Transformations choose to let him go?

The once solid organization has been shaken. It's clear that the incident at the Martial Emperor Festival was the trigger.

The launching of the treasure weapon that could destroy the world. I'm sure that was unexpected even for the organization. As a result, some people gave up on the organization.
Even if they were a huge organization, they wouldn't have the power to take on multiple nations at once. The enraged Emperor Radric Atrum Zebrudia is no longer willing to purge the nobles who are not cooperating with him.


Few know the truth behind the events of the Martial Emperor Festival. There is only one person who knows the truth: Gark, the Empire, and perhaps even the fox-faced man.

So, one of the purposes of today's visit, I took out from my pocket the item I had been entrusted with and placed it on the desk.
Eva's eyes roll back in her head. The black stone with the strange pattern was also one of the most famous treasures.

'I have the sympathetic stone from Sir Franz. He's too secretive for that now. I want you to give it to Krei. The operation to eradicate the foxes will be state-sponsored, and we're still discussing how to proceed, but if you need anything, let me know.

You can't rely on treasure hunters to save your country's reputation, but you can't leave an effective hand up to them either.
It is impossible for a nobleman to give a direct line of communication to a hunter. This is probably a compromise that Sir Franz, who hated the Thousand Transformations, came up with after killing himself for the sake of the Empire. If Krai had made a mistake, he would have been charged with insult, but he was still on the edge.

Ava stared down at the treasure for a while, but then gave a small nod.

'............ I accept. I'll pass it on to Master.

'From now on, the Imperial Capital will be ............ noisy.'

I've heard from my sources that a large bounty has been placed on the head of the Thousand Transformations. I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm sure it's worth it.

Of course, I don't expect that man to fall behind so easily. Krei Andrich is not the same man he was when he came to the Imperial City to become a Hunter.
He's stronger. At first glance, he looks the same, but he has organized, trained his comrades, gained their trust--and now that the war with the fox has begun, the current "Thousand Transformations" cannot afford defeat.

A defeat for Krei Andrich would lead to a drop in morale. Crossing his arms, Gark continued.


'Eva, there is a possibility that the bandits who want to take control of the Thousand Transformations may try to harm the Clan staff. You must be very careful.'

'That's ............ something I don't need to be told now. There are also hunters here, and the upper floors were originally designed for raids, as instructed by the master when the clan house was built. The first and second floors were designed to allow hunters to escape while they were fighting. Fortunately, it hasn't been used yet, but--'



'............ I see. I've taken this into account from the beginning,............, and it's a natural consideration when hiring non-combatants--well thought out.'

It is more difficult than words can say for the powerful to think for the powerless. Even the Explorers Society can't say that they can keep their staff completely safe.
In the event that you've got a lot of time and energy, you'll be able to make the most of it.

'I'm fully protected. You can find a lot more than three floors, but the first and second floors are not so bad, because if you get caught in them, they will be destroyed anyway.

'What about .................. that?

In the first place, the Footprints of the Beginning is a clan where the authority of the clan master is supposed to be weak. Is it okay to include your hunters in the interception force without permission?
Such a question flashed through his mind for a moment, but Gark nodded broadly and convinced himself.
As the head of the Imperial Capital Branch of the Explorers Association, I probably shouldn't be saying this, but it's obviously better to have hunters fight to the death than to have ordinary people killed or injured. Those who are powerful must protect the weak. This is one of the purposes for which the Explorers Society was established.

'If you have any problems, please contact the Explorers Society as usual. We'll do what we can to help.'

'Yes, sir. If you do, I'll be counting on you.

He finishes his story and stands up.
Gark doesn't have time for this. First of all, he has to find out if there are any fox hands among the staff of the Search Council or the hunters who belong to it. My head hurts just thinking about it. In the first place, Gark had been appointed as the branch chief because of his charisma and experience as a hunter, and he was not good at detailed investigations.

As he sighed heavily, thinking about the work to be done after returning to the branch, he suddenly heard a familiar voice from the entrance.


'Ah, Eva, I've got you--there's a customer who's supposed to be here today. ............... Gee, Gark-san!

'! Krai-san!

The person who came out of the entrance of the lounge in high spirits was the master of the "Footprints of the Beginning", Krai Andrich, who had just refused to see me.
Our eyes met, and silence spread through the lounge. The people he had brought along with him were rolling their eyes at the smiling Krai.

Concentrate ...... on another matter? I'm not sure what to say. And did he say this guy?

I'm not sure what to say. I'm not sure what to make of that.
Krai frowned and approached him, checking his surroundings.

'What? Were you in discussion with Eva? I'm sorry, but I'm expecting an important guest today--'

'............'

You're the one I came to see.


Just as I was about to shout at him, the glass in the lounge flew open in a big bang.
Glass shards rained down in a glittering shower. Even though he had long since retired as a treasure hunter, Gark's kinetic vision clearly saw what had jumped in through the window.

He took a quick stance.

It was an arrow. A long, thick, golden arrow.
It pierced through the lounge window as if it were nothing, and plunged into Kry's forehead as if he were being sucked in.


Then, as usual, it was flicked off as if it had hit a thick wall.

'! What?

Cry's voice, not feeling any itch.
Despite the fact that Krai was standing still, the hunters in the party in the lounge immediately went into a fighting stance at the sudden breach of peace.

'What? What the hell? Liz? Is that Luke?

'Attack!

The absolute defense of the Thousand Transformations.
You can assume that the treasure collector Krai Andrich has a warding finger, but the attacker has also taken this into account.

Krai picks up a fallen arrow and looks around in confusion. A thick arrow that could blow the head off a phantom. The arrowhead was sharp and had something like a black box strapped to it.

The warding fingers are powerful, so countermeasures have been taken. The basic rule of assassination is to kill with two shots.
In such a case, the things to be attached to the arrows are predetermined. He stood in front of the men who had come with him and shouted a warning.

'Cry, a bomb!

'? Mr. Gark, pass!

'Aah!

With a light voice, Kry swung and threw an arrow at Gark.

Completely caught off-guard, the arrow spun around and slid across the floor. Krai jumps in a smooth, almost harmonious motion and hits Eva as if to protect her.


'Aaahhhhhh!


Is this what you call a guest?

She crosses her arms and takes a defensive stance. The heat and shock blew away Gark's entire body, and his eyes went blank.