Surprisingly, the inn was a nice, clean place.
Beastmen's buildings are often the exact opposite of the exterior and interior, so when I saw a solid building, I imagined a damp room, but the interior was monochrome and upscale, which was a surprise because the hotel was black and white and upscale.


'It's a nicer place than I thought it would be, but are you sure you'll be able to afford the accommodation and stuff?'


We're high school boys who eat a lot of food, and since Amelia eats more than I do, the cost of food alone is incredible.
On top of that, when it comes to such a nice place to stay, I'm not sure I have enough on hand.

I asked Jir in secret, he smiled and said it was okay.
As I was twisting my neck to see what was okay, a friendly looking beastman tribe came out from the back.


Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Hotel Raven. I am Corvo, the owner. Please make yourself at home today.


I stayed at "Toriman." If the native-shouldered husband of the "Tori-man" is a pigeon beastie, this guy is a crow beastie, I guess.
I'm not that familiar with animals, so I could be wrong.
I judged that because I saw a glimpse of jet-black wings from the shoulders.

Corvo speaks up happily as he leads me into the room.


'Actually, I was an adventurer in the past, and Crow-sama saved my life at that time. I heard that Crowe-sama and his companion were having trouble finding a place to stay, so I asked them if they would be willing to stay with me.


I see, I'm convinced that's how it was.
I'm sorry to say this, but that Crowe does help people too, doesn't he?
So, I said no thanks for the lodging fees and stopped in front of a significantly better room in the hotel.
It would have been bad if this was going to cost me a room.


'Master Crowe, I have brought you all here,'


He knocks and opens the door after Crow's muffled reply.


'Whoa!'

Oh!


The brave men cheered.
I, too, opened my eyes and looked at the scene in front of me.


'Wow!'

Yeah, .......


The room is black and white like the interior of the hotel, but the outer wall side of the room has a full view of the outside, and it's a bit of a nighttime view of the glittering city.
I thought we went up quite a bit of the meeting on the way to this room, but this is what it was for.
It was a vivid view, as if there were no walls there, but there were proper walls, and I was surprised to see the view outside, even though it wasn't glass.


'Only this wall is made of demon scales, so you can enjoy the view outside. Well then, if there is anything you need, please feel free to contact me.


With that, Corvo quietly left the room.
If there was anything moving in the black and white room, it was Crowe relaxing on the black couch.
With one hand, he was spinning a glass of wine-like beverage and looking at the brave men who were frolicking in the night scene.


'It's a nice room,'

'Yeah, I didn't think I could stay in a room like this for free either. There are no underhanded connections at ...... Corvo, and none of the employees are suspicious. You can spend tonight in peace.


Maybe it's because he's heard rumors like that, but he's also been researching Corvo thoroughly.
He looks up at the glass and reflects me in his eyes for the first time.


'About that rumor, don't get too worked up about it.


My eyes widen at the words of concern for me that come out of Crowe's mouth.
He was that in the beginning, but I wonder if he's actually a gentle guy.
I always thought he was a tsundere, but lately I think he's more of a delinquent.


''Even though Amelia might be the target?''

You're the type of person who can show off your abilities if you take it easy. It's better to keep your head down than to be nervous. It'll keep him safe.


I chuckled at Crow, who turned his gaze towards the window again, and I sat down on the couch next to him.


'You sound like a teacher,'

Didn't you hear? I used to take an apprentice. ...... Well, the rest of them ended up in the hospital.


I heard that from Amelia.
After all, he wanted to pass on his skills, which were the same as those of the first hero, to the future generations, but all of his disciples had broken their spirits.
Apparently that's also the reason why he refused to accept Amelia's apprenticeship.


'I was wondering, what kind of skill is that?'


Amelia didn't say what it was either.
I guess it must be a skill that relatively anyone can acquire since Crow, whose profession is blacksmith, has acquired it.
I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that when Crow came to help me in the labyrinth, the 'shadow magic' that was controlling my body and the magic circle that Mahiro had put on Amelia had been released.

Crowe thought about it for a bit and opened his mouth.


'...... Simply put, it's the offsetting of attack magic. The official name of the skill is Extra Skill 'Reversal'. No matter if you're dealing with a magician's circle, just look at the magic and it will create a reversed magic and cancel it out.


I marveled at the heck.
Practically, I didn't think I had the skills to offset it by just looking at the magic.
That's why Mahiro is so wary of it.
That's a hell of a sorcerer's killer.


''But of course there are disadvantages. In acquiring this skill, you have to master the ancient language. And this ancient language is terribly difficult to learn. And that's exactly what it is, to the point of mind-breaking.


When you say ancient language, you mean the language inscribed on the magic circle, as I recall.
Indeed, if it wasn't for Extra Skill's 'language understanding', it would have just looked like a pattern.


'Besides, even if I understood the ancient language, the words in the ancient language are another conundrum. ...... It took me a hundred years to learn them too.


To that word, hmm? I'm stuck with it.
As I recall, didn't I say that the life span of the beast race was a little over a hundred years?
One hundred years to learn the ancient language and acquire 'Inversion', and one hundred years ago when we went to defeat the Demon King as a party of heroes.
For the life of me, the math doesn't add up.


''You, how many years have you been alive for?''