The upper guilds in the seventh district were divided into three buildings. This was a measure to avoid congestion as it is difficult to deal with the 10,000 explorers who are the 'attackers' in one building.

　The building we will be using is called the 'Green Building' and as the name suggests, the roof is painted green. There are three floors, and each level has a room for guild officers and searchers to hold meetings, but we had access to the first floor. It is said that from the 1001st position in the hierarchy, you have to go up to the second floor, and from the 2001 position you have to go up to the third floor - although it seems that you can transfer to each floor in response to the adventurers' requests.

''If you can have the reception on the first floor, it would be a lot less hassle to move around.
''My brother always reported to me alone, you know. It's better for us if he comes home as soon as possible~
"...hmm?　I would have thought Misaki would have made some kind of mischief, but it's rare that she didn't.
'Oh, what's the matter, you think I'm always being lax, don't you?
That's the general idea, but it's not true.
You're not telling me that...　You're hiding your embarrassment, aren't you?　You're not an honest person, big brother.

　I guess I'm excited because I'm in a new ward - but to be honest, I don't feel bad about it when I can be so innocent and friendly.

''Please take care of Suzu-chan while I take a break, okay? Also, I thought it would be nice if you could leave me alone while you're here.
'It would have been nice if the party could have been made up of more than nine people. Ellie, is there any reason why we shouldn't?
"A skill that works on 'people in the same party' can only work on a maximum of eight people. But even if they can act together, against the ninth person and beyond, I don't think Ariecht's skills will be effective unless they can be used by designating an 'out-of-party' person.

　Using 'Other Assist' all the time against the ninth and onwards is too much of a drain on magic power. If there are members who don't get my assistance, the danger will also increase, and basically, we should enter the labyrinth with up to eight people.

''........But, I see. So it's possible to think about diving with multiple parties? Louisa-san, have you seen quite a few examples like that until now?

　I ask Louisa for her opinion. She seemed nervous in her new office, but she smiled happily when I called out to her.

''Yes, there are people who work together in multiple parties from Heisei, not to defeat powerful demons like the 'Juggernaut'. The larger ones are called 'alliances' or 'brigades' and exist as mutual aid organizations of explorers.

　Elitia was also originally a member of the 'White Night Brigade'. I wonder if we'll ever join some organization in the future too.

　Or I could start it up myself - the current group of nine people, including me, and in some cases it could be even more.

'There are some parties from the Seventh Ward that head to the labyrinth jointly to reduce the risk of exploration. We won't always work together, but just having a party that can cooperate in the same labyrinth will completely change the situation.
'Sometimes a party of higher rank will ask for something in return, but I think a party of equal rank can team up without that. The higher up the ward you go, the more important the interests are, and the harder it is to team up as equals, but...

　That's probably why Elitia couldn't rely on the help of other parties to help her friends - the idea that other parties would be willing to risk their lives to rescue her when not even members of her brigade would be able to do so is a It's not easy.

　It's certainly reassuring to have a party to work with. I don't know if the North Star will be able to catch up with us, but if we can get to know other parties and build a friendly relationship with them, that would be great.

(Getting information from other parties has been something I've rarely been able to do. If possible, it would be nice to have a member who is a good talker to join us...)

　Thinking that, I suddenly looked at Louisa-san. It was because it occurred to me that if she was a 'receptionist', she would be excellent at talking.

''Ah, um........a, Atobe-sama, your new workplace is right around the corner, and if this is a serious conversation, I'll talk to you again after work......''
Oh no, I'm sorry. Did I really look at you that closely?
'Rear, you've been getting sharp eyes sometimes for a while now, haven't you? Is it because of some skill?
''I have a skill called 'Eye of the Hawk,' which may have an effect on me, but... no, it's scary if I'm usually glaring. I'll be careful.

　I don't know if it's a single white point, but the most important thing to worry about when partying with the ladies is gaining their trust anyway. No matter how much I'm worried about Louisa-san's skills, I shouldn't be discouraged.

''........I'm like the resident receptionist for Atobe and the others, so if you have any requests, there's no need to refrain from doing so, right?
We're coming up together from the eighth district, you know.
''Yes, I hope I can continue to do so in the future. Since we are a promising newcomer party, we have received priority permission from the guild.

　When you say priority permits, you're saying that you're going to put our duties first. I'm very grateful for that - because with a population as large as the Seventh Ward, the wait for a turn is going to be hard.

''Then I will feel free to rely on you as an exclusive. I'm still a newcomer, but I think I understand the importance of time for searchers too.
'Yes, leave it to me. When you're assigned exclusively, you'll have access to the same accommodations, so I can live in the same place if there's a room available for one person.
Wow, that sounds great. In some cases, we can have meetings at night, too.
'Ha, yes I'm sure Mr. Atobe will continue to be very busy, so you can call on me at any time. I will add my contact information to your license as well.

　One of the most useful features of the license is probably this contact function. But not just anyone can use it, it requires a specific skill.

"My profession as a 'receptionist' has a few 'contact' type skills. I can only communicate with the parties I've registered with, so I never registered a specific party before, but now that I'm exclusive, I don't have a problem.
'Thank you. No, it makes me feel safer when I can get in touch with you.
Yes, yes I'm the one... and... and... and... and...

　 Does it mean that as a receptionist and explorer, I'll be looking forward to working with you in the future?

''........Sister Kyouka, don't you think your brother is vicious sometimes?''
'Well, that's not... well, if they did the same thing to me, that's fine...'
Quite...?　Kyouka, what's fine?
No, thanks a lot. Or, as they say in English, "belly well.
It's not English in my country, but...?


　In my previous life, I never had a woman ask me for my contact information, but now I hear there's a demand for it. What are you saying at the same party, though?

　◆ ◆

　We entered the Green Pavilion and decided to wait in the lobby while Louisa-san went to arrange a room for us.

''Compared to District 8, there are a lot of people with strong-looking equipment... I wonder if you can buy a spear like that somewhere?''
''The store-bought equipment is of better quality than the eighth ward, but it's not as good as the stuff in the treasure chest or the stuff processed with materials available in the labyrinth. If it breaks, I'd be happy to replace it if it breaks... oh, but if the 'silver' equipment is in stock, I'd be happy to buy it. It's not very hard, but it can deal with enemies of the spirit system.

　Everyone listened intently to Elitia's story about her experience. Since the topic of materials came up, I suddenly became curious.

'I heard that the saber ticket is made of a metal called 'Crisdite', is this a metal that can be used in armor?　No, I'm not going to cast the ticket and melt it.
There are only a few workshops that have a furnace that can process it, but it's said to be a better material than the high mithril I'm equipped with. It's only found in some chunks of ore, but since it's rare, it's very valuable. It is wasted in weapons, which is why it is used in more widespread applications in the regions above. Glow Gold, Heaven Still, and these are still very valuable though.

　There are a number of metals that are worth more than gold - one of these days I'd like to equip myself with some kind of slingshot or armor that's more than just high mithril.

"Rear-kun, look... a large group of people over there, it looks like they're the ones making the 'organization'.
Well, it looks like it's about 24 people, three parties.

　One of the party, a young man with gray hair, approached the women in front of the bulletin board in the lobby.

'Kaede, are you still talking about looking for a mate elsewhere?　I told you that if you join our alliance, you'll be pulled up to the Sixth Ward in turn.
I'm telling you that if we can partner up with someone, we'll find them ourselves. That's why you're in trouble, because you're all on the ground floor of that labyrinth, and that's why you're in trouble.

(That woman with the sword on her back and the other two are Japanese. I haven't seen much of them since I entered the Seventh Ward...)

'Hey, don't do that, maple. I'm sorry, we've decided to recruit people who can assemble themselves...
''The most efficient way to earn a contribution is to join our alliance, and do a spring crush on the ground floor of that labyrinth. Then, as long as we pass the promotion test, Roland-san's party will go up and the pecking order will be empty. With the repetition of that........

　I guess the image of spring-crushing is that we're going to sack the demons every time they spring up - it would certainly be more stable if we could get ahead of them, but I get the impression that we're too focused on efficiency.

''I suppose that's one way to do it, but we can't pay you guys anything in return,''

　The third woman is tanned and - what can I say - normally equipped with bikini armor, but I wonder if her defenses are okay. She is dressed as a former competitive swimmer or beach volleyball player.

　The fourth person was not Japanese, but a girl with striking blueish silver hair. It's a leather case on her back - a distinctive shape, but is it a kind of club?

'My boss is that kind of person, so it can't be helped. What's wrong with that, if you can get up to the sixth ward just to go out for a drink once in a while?
Haha.... that's ridiculous. Do you think your leader doesn't know how many girls in District 7 are crying?
Well, wait a minute, maple. It's not a good idea to pick a fight here.
Ibuki but isn't it frustrating, isn't it? The labyrinth can't be occupied by someone else.
'If your party is strong, though, you won't have to choose the labyrinth. Well, our alliance will continue to hide in the Beach of the Falling Sun for another two weeks. Even if we 'accidentally' monopolized the demons that spring up there, there would be no problem, right?
Huh...!

　Somehow I understood the story--that girl's party of maple has just come up to the higher guilds and cannot dive into the labyrinths with high difficulty.

　Among the labyrinths that searchers belonging to the higher guilds can go to, the 'alliance' to which the gray-haired man belongs is occupying the place where they can earn the most efficient contribution and other benefits.

　In return for joining the alliance, he has to attend the alliance's drinking party. However, the maple refuses to do so - it's not hard to see why.

　Many women would be reluctant to just be poured a drink without a second thought. On the contrary, the fact that 'many women have been made to cry' suggests the misogyny of a man named Rolando.

'Next time you change your mind, come to me from there. If you get my permission, I won't have to introduce you to Mr. Roland... hahahahaha...!

　From the beginning, he probably didn't expect to be able to recruit the maple trees this time. With the help of the organizational power of the "alliance" or something like that, that gray-haired man is trying to do as he pleases with them.

''........I can't allow it. To have an organization of people like that at the top of the Seventh Ward.......

　Igarashi-san is angry as if it were her own--and everyone else's. Of course, I feel the same way.

　I'm not thinking of getting rid of the highest-ranking people, but I have great doubts about that approach.

　Then what to do - first we need to decide which labyrinth we're going to go to. If it's not the same labyrinth as the Alliance, then we don't need to think about them, but if we are going to compete with the Alliance, then we need to think about how we are going to earn our contribution and how we are going to capture the labyrinth.

　If Maple and the other four are stumbling, are we in a situation where we can help them? We can only make an effective suggestion after we have established the groundwork.

''Well what do we do now, Maple?''
"I don't want to flatter them. I'd rather go back to the eighth ward and hone my skills, even if it takes me a long time to do so.
''But ... when you're a demon in the eighth district, your experience is less and the amount you drop is greater. You can't get stronger forever if you're thumping all the time.
Ibuki, what do you want?　Are you going to put up with them doing whatever they want to you?　We definitely don't like it, we'd bite our tongues if a guy touched us that we don't approve of. I know, Ryoko.
'I'm not saying it's set to happen I'd say.
Ryoko is only 28 years old. Isn't she a bit young to be called an aunt?

　The oldest tanned woman was twenty-eight years old, and the silver-haired girl was, by the looks of it, still in her teens. The girls, Kaede and Ibuki, must be about the same age. Misaki and Suzuna don't look so far apart from each other.

'Thank you, Anna. It's true that when I'm an explorer, maybe because I use my magic power, I feel like my skin tautness and such is better than it was before I reincarnated...''
Ryoko, your skin is important, but for now we have to decide what we're going to do.
That's right... hmmm... ah...

　The short haired girl called Ibuki notices us in the same lobby.

''........Those guys are newcomers, aren't they?''
Uh-huh. Maybe ... it looks like you're still new to this guild.
Isn't this ... an opportunity?　It's a party full of girls the guy in the back seems quiet.
Do you want to negotiate?　I generally agree with you. Because I don't want to ask a man like Gray to do it for me.

　Gray with gray hair, I thought it was just as it was, but I found out the name of the guy from earlier. I'd like to give him a crack at it eventually, but that's not why I'm exploring.

　As I was about to go near the bulletin board, the four maple trees walked towards me. The serious look in the eyes of the maple standing in the lead indicated that the story that was about to begin was very important to them - although it was likely to be the same for us.