Ardis, who began to climb the stairs at the back of the tavern, unexpectedly reacted to the killing intent that came down from above her head.
　Faster than you can think, he thrusts the 'Sotensaika' that he had pulled out, up towards the killing intent.

''Guha......''

　The tip of the sword pierced the belly of a man with a dagger in his hand.

　Part of the ceiling popped open, revealing a space that looked like a hidden room.
　It was probably a place made with the idea of catching a person going up and down the stairs by surprise.

　The dagger the man held in his hand was coated with some kind of liquid, reflecting the moonlight that shone through the window in a mysterious way.
　Without even having time to frown at the blood dripping from his sword, two spears were now thrust out from the walls on either side of the stairs.

　It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're going to do with it.
　With a sound as if the tip of the spear was slammed into a hard rock, the spear's hilt snaps and pops off.

''Is this a trick?''

　Aldis couldn't help but spill the knowledge he had heard about when he saw the four spears that attacked him without a handle.

　He finished off the ceiling man, who was still breathing, and threw him down the stairs, and Aldis continued on his way.
　When he reached the top of the stairs and stepped out into the upstairs corridor, Aldis saw a grim door and two women standing on either side of it.

　The women were dressed in matching clothes reminiscent of servants' dressings, and they hung their heads reverently to Aldis as she arrived.
　It's not the same as the image of a tavern from the outside, but the presence of the two neatly dressed men and the magnificent double doors between them make it seem strangely out of place.

Welcome. The head's eyes are waiting for you at the back here.

　The women welcomed Aldis as if nothing had happened, even though of course they should have seen that Aldis had taken care of herself on the stairs earlier.
　They pulled the doors open, pulling them open on each side, and then bowed again and stood back to either side of the door.
　You can see a large number of people standing behind the open door.

　It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for when you're going to be able to find it.
　In the hand, a dagger with a blade length of about 20 centimeters was held, and the tip of the blade was aimed precisely at the neck and side of Ardis.

　Of course, this is not Aldis to be caught off guard in this situation.
　As a natural response, he slashed off the arm of the woman attacking him from the right, while simultaneously grabbing the wrist that the other woman had thrust out with his left hand to stop her.
　It's a good idea to take out your own weapon and cut off the necks of the women who are trying to cut you down, using the magic blade created without chanting.

　It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for when you're in the market.

'Welcome, my guest.

　The door Aldis had passed through seemed to be located at the end of the room, and the wall immediately followed on the left side of the room, while the space extended to the right.

　When I moved my gaze to the right side of the voice, I saw a middle-aged man with his elbows propped up on a desk at the back of the room, with his chin resting on his elbows.
　The man, who looked to be in his mid-forties, had no eyebrows.
　Whether it was innate or shaved, I don't know, but his head was covered with a thin layer of purple hair, and he did not appear to be constitutionally hairless.

　The man turned his gaze to Ardis with a careless smile.
　The owner of the voice heard earlier is probably his.

　On either side of him, armed men stand and wait, and a large number of people stand around the entire room, looking at us.
　The eyebrow-less man seemed to be the highest-ranking presence in this place in terms of standing position.

''Now, please don't stand there like that, come inside.

　The eyebrow-less man acts as if nothing has happened to Aldis, who just a few minutes ago killed two women who would have been their companions, right in front of him.
　The people standing around him remain unconcerned.

　Aldis feels a creepy feeling at the situation, but never shows it on her face as she walks forward.
　If the other party intends to shake us up with actions that are out of the ordinary, we will simply pass it off with a cool face.
　It's because Ardis has nothing to gain by being swallowed by the atmosphere.

　As far as I used my magic power to check, it seemed that all the humans left in this building were in this room.
　Regardless of the process, they were the targets to be crushed in the end.
　It was just as well that it was less hassle than looking around for a hidden opponent.

　Advancing out to the center of the room, Aldis found himself surrounded by nearly forty enemies.
　Although it's not a small room, the distance to the nearest opponent is only about three meters open due to the large number of people inside.
　If the other side were to slash at you, you would probably be able to reach your blade in a single breath.

　Of course, that's the same condition as Ardis.
　If you were so inclined, you were confident that you could reap the life of anyone in the room in an instant, no matter who was in the room.

'Welcome to the house. I apologize for the rather rough welcome we gave you downstairs.

　The eyeless man, who doesn't seem to feel bad about it at all, utters a sincere apology.

What's the matter? You are bothering each other. Besides, people who are leaving for the other side from now on don't need to worry about such things.

Oh, I'm scared.

　The eyeless man, who showed his mischievousness, changed his stance and leaned back in his chair and continued to talk without regard to Aldis' words.

It's a good idea to have a good time with the "Magician of a Thousand Swords". The other day, due to business reasons, we had to collide, but if possible, I would like to settle the matter with you around here, right?

That's convenient. It's all very convenient. You want to shoot me in the face, but I was attacked one day for no reason. There's no way I'm going to just say, "Oh, I see.

But you've just dealt with a lot of my men, too, just now. We're both doing well, aren't we?　Both he who welcomed you on the stairs and the girls who welcomed you there were invaluable personnel to us.

You attack me, and now you're the victim?　And it's disgusting to hear that you're 'my most important men' without giving any help at all.

It's important. And that's why their deaths are such a great loss to us, a wound we can't bear. Because--

　With a sticky, sticky smile, the eyebrow-less man rested his chin on the end of his arms on the desk.

'You won't be able to convince me that there's no harm done here, will you?

...... Oh, I see.

　Aldis feels as if his stomach is filled with sludge.

　The men who attacked Aldis in the tavern downstairs must have been prepared from the start as discards for a hand slap.
　They were not informed, but were offered up as sacrifices to bring down the trough of Aldis' appetite.

　Of course, since they themselves are members of the organization, they are still the target of the crushing of the organization from the start.
　But even so, the way the eyeless man and his organization did it, Ardis felt the urge to spit on them.

'You. You're the type I hate.''

　The unadorned and honest words are slammed from Aldis' mouth.

''It's troubling. But any further concessions from us--

'I don't need concessions. All I demand is one thing: 'f*ck off.'

　Aldis kicked off the eyeless man's words as he still tried to pile on the words.

'That's not peaceful. ''If you say 'f*ck off,' you don't mean to say you plan to kill everyone here, do you?''

So you still don't understand that's why you're here?

　The eyebrow-less man sighs as if to say he's a troubled boy.

There is a necessary evil in the world. In our own way, we have a role to play in the world. There are many customers who need us. Well, only those with money.

Do you think you deserve to be here?

Isn't it?　I don't mean to suggest in my sleep that we are righteous or anything like that, but it's not like we can do without. You would be forgiven for claiming that much, wouldn't you?

"I understand that guys like you are a necessary evil. But that's not the same as this. There are a number of organizations just like yours. And when you're gone, other organizations will just do the job for you.

　In fact, while crushing his stronghold in King's Landing, Aldis was aware of the eyes that kept watching him.
　Probably a competitor of the organization is staking out the movements of Ardis, who is making a showy stand against the eyeless man's organization.

　I don't feel any hostility towards Aldis, and it's not like he's going to mess with me, so I'm leaving him alone for now.
　The reason for this is because they decided that it would be a check on other organizations if they reported back with the end result of the organization that messed with Ardis.

'Even if all the organizations are destroyed, there will be another one just like it. So even if you are gone, the world won't be much different.

Then the reverse is true.　The world will not change at all if our company alone disappears. It's pointless to ask us to disappear.

I told you, that's not what I'm talking about. I'm not pointing my sword at you because I'm trying to be on the side of justice. It's simply because you've become my enemy.

　It was a simple reason.
　The reason the Eyebrowless Man's organization is now in a quandary is not because it has been declared to be evil.
　It was simply because an attempt had been made on the life of a student who had been in its care for six months. This is also why there is no room for an explanation for involving Ardis in the process.

I'm at a loss. This is not the way to go. But do you seriously think you can win against this many people?　My constituents aren't all here, you know?　Do you plan to take on all of them by yourself?

'We can take on everyone here and still win, and we've taken care of all the other constituents. Almost all of the organization is here now.

　The eyeless man involuntarily lost his composure as Aldis said it matter-of-factly.

''Fu......, Fufu....... Hahahahaha!''

　Ardis gives a cold look to the eyebrow-less man who laughs out loud as if to blow away his previous impression of rei-liance, as if to see what was so funny.

'No, excuse me. Since the story was so unrealistic, it caught me a bit off guard. As expected of a sorcerer of a thousand swords, he is very grandiose. However, I would not recommend you to say something too outrageous. The people around you would be disturbed.

Three in the Ermenian Empire, five in the League of Cities and States, three in Thoria, and four in this royal city, including this one. Fifteen strongholds in all.

　Aldis opened his mouth to lay it over the eyeless man's words again.

　He is merely listing the places and numbers, but as he listens, the eyebrowless man's complexion clearly changes.
　The two armed men standing on either side of the eyebrowless man also showed signs of agitation in their expressions, and a hint of unspoken murmurs could be felt from the people around them.
　I think they understood what Ardis was trying to say.

''--I've crushed all of our bases except this one.

''Well, no way. I did hear that one stronghold in King's Landing was attacked, but other than that, nothing else: ......

　It is natural that Aldis' words are not immediately believable.

　In fact, according to the information obtained from Cesare, the organization has two bases in the Armenian Empire, four in the Union of City States, one in Thalia, and four in the royal capital, including this one.
　As for the other strongholds, Ardis himself investigated them, or heard about them from the mouths of his captors.
　Aldis wondered if there might still be some bases left, but from the eyebrowless man's drawn-out smile, it looked like there would be no misses.

'The report from the imperial capital will probably arrive tomorrow or so.　If only we had someone to send the report to and someone to receive it.

Ha, we're bluffing!

　Aldis taught the eyeless man, whose mask of composure was coming off, to count on his fingers.

The twin swordsman in the imperial city, the fine swordsman in Calvus in the city-state federation, and Tria's was a dark weapons user. I'm sure all of them will be lured away by your arrival in the afterlife.

Nah, nah, .......

　The raptured eyebrowless man had already lost the opportunity to even smile a mended smile.

　It's a good idea to have a good time with them.

'So the time for greetings is over. The rest of you will take care of your friends in the afterlife.''