Aftermath [Pt 5]

"Hup! And that's the last one!"

Rey grinned at the many sacks that lay in front of him, his cheerful expression unable to change.

'I can pack them all up in a total of forty-seven sacks. Not bad…'

Since the pile wasn't preposterously massive, as seen with the Hobgoblins, Rey could fit everything into [Inventory].

He still had his Spatial Rings, so he stored the other Items that occupied his slots in [Inventory], thus giving him enough space to store everything.

Once the process was complete, Rey stood all alone within the grand 99th Floor hall.

'Now that this is all done, I don't think there's anything left for me to do here.'

The rest of what greeted his sight would go to the Royal Council.

'They have the Dragon Corpse and now these too? If they take my advice and we launch a full-on raid, they'll be able to rake in even more profit.'

The more Rey thought about it, the more he realized just how rich the Alliance was going to become because of him.

'Well, it's fine. I probably shouldn't get too greedy…' He smiled, remembering a few faces of the beggars he saw on the street during the Excursion.

If some of these resources could be used for their sake—to better their lives—then he had no complaints

In the end, wasn't he also a human being?

"Alright! Time to head… b-ba…ck…"

Right there and then, Rey realized something that had completely skipped his mind since he woke up in this place a couple hours ago.

'The Half-Elf!'

Other than that, he also remembered something of equal pertinence.

'They'll be looking for me!'

How could he have forgotten that he was one of the Otherworlders who had come to this world for the sake of saving it?

He was a valuable asset to the entire United Human Alliance!

He had a few classmates who cared about him too.

'And I just bailed on them for this long? I don't even know how long I was out, or how long I spent here!'

He could only estimate, but he also had a theory that time operated much faster here than outside.

What if he had already spent days down here?!

'Ahhh! They'll all be worried. Especially after that Dragon attack too!'

Rey knew he had to hurry.

'I should probably go to the Royal Estate first. The Half-Elf can wait.'

He didn't even remember her name anymore.

'I'm sure they'll take care of her well for me. If not, well… let's not think of that for now!'

With those thoughts flowing in his mind, Rey put away his Enchanted Items and did away with his disguise.

Fortunately, he still had empty Spatial Rings to help him contain all his Items.

Once he returned to his normal state, he opened a portal and ventured inside.

'Let's hope I don't get into too much trouble!'

***********

When Rey arrived at the Royal Estate's front gate, he was welcomed pretty cordially by the guards.

He returned his Pass to them, and they didn't even ask him any questions.

'The sun is high up in the sky, so it should be around noon.'

Rey realized he needed to get another watch, not even remembering what happened to his previous one.

The weather was considerably warm, and while it was midday, everywhere was ominously quiet.

He passed by the guards and ventured through the gate.

Not too long after he did so, he could already see a cluster of students.

All twenty-seven of them.

'A-ah! Looks like everyone is up, huh?'

Billy and Alicia were among the group, though there was a clouded expression on the former's face, and a somewhat anxious one on the latter.

He smiled a little as he noticed Alicia's gaze darting around, almost as if she was looking for him.

She was also wearing the ring he gave her.

'Hehe!' He moved even closer.

Conrad and Vida stood before the students, alongside Brutus and Lucielle—both looking good as new.

Rey wasn't sure whether it was thanks to Alicia's [Absolute Healing Magic] Skill, or some other means, but he was happy to see everyone well.

He could also see Trisha, Belle, Justin, and the other Rescue Team members.

A few looked shaken up, but most of them seemed to have pulled themselves together.

Then, there was Adonis.

He had the most complicated expression of all. Something about his gaze seemed distracted, and he seemed to be intensely brooding on a lot of things.

'I guess he still hasn't gotten over what happened down there.' Rey sighed and decided to look away.

Noah was also there, though an expression akin to guilt seemed to be on his face. Rey wondered what the issue was with him now, so he decided he would ask him later.

'I hope it's all good, though.'

Rey was ready for a mouthful, so he just decided to take everything in stride and not worry about too much.

He finally closed the distance and thought it was the perfect time to announce his presence.

"H-hello, everyone! Sorry I'm late. You won't believe what happe—"

"REY!" The first voice that greeted him was, of course, Alicia's.

She rushed towards him, leaving the rest of the cluster of students behind her.

Her brown hair swayed and her amber eyes shone, reflecting the golden rays of the sun as she swiftly closed the distance.

"Where were you? We were worried sick!"

As she hugged him, Rey felt a sweet scent wash over him.

Before coming, he had used his [Water Magic] Skill to freshen up. It was a mere C-Tier Skill, but it had its uses.

"Haha… I can explain. But maybe later…" He rubbed his head awkwardly.

"A-ah! Yeah, sorry!"

As Alicia chuckled sheepishly, quickly separating herself from him, Rey simply responded with a stupid grin.

Everyone was now staring at him, including the two members of the Royal Council.

Rey thought he saw Lady Vida grin a certain wicked smile, but that was probably his imagination.

'This is so awkward!'

Fortunately, Conrad's voice saved the day right when Rey felt the burden weigh heavily on him.

"It's good to have you back, Rey. And just in time too."

'Just in time…? Time for what?' Were the first things that popped up in his head.

'Also, isn't he being too calm about all this?'

He didn't have time to process these thoughts, though, as the Grandmaster spoke yet again.

"Why don't you join everyone while we make the announcements?"

Rey was puzzled.

'What announcements? Why are they being made outside?'

Rey had a few thoughts in mind, but he dismissed them until they could be proven to be concrete.

"O-okay…"

He and Alicia walked towards the line, side by side, and while he focused on her charming smile, he could not completely ignore some of the stares he received.

For one, Billy's.

He wasn't looking at him with a jealous or rage-filled face. His expression connoted nothing short of defeat.

A kind of sorrow a guilty man had.

Noah, Trisha, Belle, and Adonis also had peculiar expressions to give him.

Most were positive—things like relief mixed with brief hints of hesitation.

'Looks like I'm not in trouble this time.' Rey sighed in relief.

If it wasn't him though, the question remained…

… Who was?