Chapter 65.2: Roast cont.

Prytaneum

Roast​

"I apologize for causing you trouble, Mr. Jackson," Ryuu said, approaching as she left. "But you have a kind goddess."

"Yeah," I said. "I do."

"We are being watched," She said, lowering her tone to a barely audible murmur now that she was close enough. Unlike Hestia and I, Ryuu apparently had enough experience dealing with other adventurers to know precisely how much to lower her voice to avoid being unheard, and so while what should have been an inaudible murmur was clear to me, it probably didn't extend more than five or ten yards.

I didn't both trying to mimic the feat—I knew I wouldn't be able to gauge it as well as her without practice. Besides, I'd already noticed to.

"Yeah, I know," I said in a normal voice. "Fels, you can come out."

Slowly, Fels stepped out of the shadows of the trees, black-cloaked form drawing into the moonlight. He looked exactly the same as he did before—meaning, like a supervillain—and the fact that we were standing in a place Ryuu had said was famed for its murder victims didn't help much. But that was Fels, I guess.

"My apologies for not revealing myself sooner," He said politely, voice carrying oddly, due to both the cloth over his face and, you know, the fact that he didn't have lungs. "I did not wish to interrupt."

"Don't want Hestia to see you, huh?" I replied, correcting him. "You know, I've been working pretty hard to prove you're not completely suspicious; you could at least try to help."

"Perhaps next time," He said with a slight bow.

If there's a next time, I thought as I remembered all of Hestia and Lili's warning about being led into a trap. But no, I'd already decided to trust Fels on this. And if it turned out I was wrong to do so and he'd led me into a trap after all…well, there'd be hell to pay, simple as that. And if I survived it, I'd make sure he paid me back with interest.

"Ryuu, this is Fels," I introduced. "He's…a friend. I know how he looks, but don't worry about. He just has a bad fashion sense; he's not actually evil. Apparently."

"I see," Ryuu said, still eying the gruesomely suspicious man warily. "Then…this is the one who told you about Evilus, then?"

"Yup," I said. "Fels, explain the crazy plan to Ryuu."

Fels gave me a reproachful look, but didn't argue, whether because he knew it was futile or because he quietly agreed. Instead, he turned to look at Ryuu and inclined his head slightly, before reaching into his robe to draw out a file that struck me as bizarre. It shouldn't have, really, not with the rest of Orario—I should be used to it by now. Stone walls and castles and archaic seeming taverns, stocked with ovens and fridges. Cobblestone roads walked on foot or tread by carriage were nonetheless lined with streetlights. So it shouldn't have been that bizarre that Fels produced a folder with pictures sticking out of it slightly, even if I'd need seen a camera in all my time here.

But when he opened the folder, I put all that aside and focused on the task at hand.

"Yesterday, I contacted Mr. Jackson here to help me with the least delicate aspect of an otherwise delicate task," Fels said, sliding an image of the plant monster that had attacked me into sight. "We have reason to believe that the same person responsible for the recent attack on the Monsterphilia may now be near or within Riveria and it seems a logical assumption to expect more of these monsters to be in tow. The issue is that there's no way to draw them out without endangering the people of the town in the process and, moreover, there simple isn't enough time to draw them out before something happens. Unfortunately, it would be like finding a plant monster in a forest."

"Which is where I come in," I guessed. The details were new, but not the general idea. "I could walk into a random part of the forest and still get attacked. Ryuu's here to help keep me alive, but she can also to serve as a backup plan, in case we need someone else to pick up the package when things go wrong."

"One would hope it will not come to that," Fels said, though he seemed concerned about something. "But perhaps the precaution is not entirely unwarranted. This is Lulune Louie, a woman I hired to help transport the item in question."

"Hermes Familia," Ryuu said at once. "Level 2, if I recall; Alias, Muddle."

"Nah, they're stronger than they look," I told her. "At the party, I saw their leader and she was at least Level 4."

Ryuu tilted her head slightly before nodding, filing that away as Fels gave me what I assumed was an odd look.

"So where does she come into this?" I asked. "Do you need us to be a distraction while she picks up…whatever you're after?"

Fels shook his head.

"No," He said. "From what I've been able to gather, she successfully acquired the package."

"Already?" I asked, surprised as I looked at the picture. The girl in question was a Chienthrope with black hair, brown eyes, and golden fur, but she wasn't someone I recognized. "Then what's the problem? Has she been captured or something?"

Fels shook his head again, before pausing as if unsure.

"I don't know," He admitted at last. "I've been unable to contact her successfully since then; Riveria's been in a state of turmoil for several hours now."

"Oh boy," I said, sighing. "What's happening now?"

Instead of answering, Fels presented us with another photo, this one of a tall, well-built man.

"Hashana Dorlia," Ryuu identified immediately. "Ganesha Familia, Level 4. Alias, the Hard Fist Fighter."

…You know, Hound of the Goddess really wasn't that bad.

"Know him?" I asked, taking the photo and looking it over carefully to memorize the man's face.

"I've had dealings with the Ganesha Familia for many years." She said.

"What a coincidence," Fels said. "So have we, which is why I hired Hashana to acquire the item in question from the thirtieth floor. As it happens, they're also how we first heard of you, Mrs. Lyon; Shakti Varma recommended you at some point, though we chose not to approach you, out of respect for your chosen profession."

At that, I raised an eyebrow at Ryuu, about five million percent sure there was more too it than that, but Ryuu merely looked contemplative.

"Shakti Varma is one of the few people who knows that I am still in Orario," She told me. "I trust her; she has always been just and fair, even before…"

Ryuu fell silent before nodding once.

"Very well, then," She said. "Then I, too, will consider you trustworthy. How likely do you think it is that Evilus will get involved?"

"I believe it's very likely," Fels said. "Seeing as Harsharna was found murdered this morning. I was unable to approach in person due to the…attention I draw, but from what I've managed to gather, his head was crushed. And yet, no one realized anything had happened until morning. Since then, I've been unable to contact Lulune, though whether that's because she's captured or in hiding, I do not know."

"Oh," I said, blinking and looking down at the picture, imagining the smiling man inside of it without a head. I didn't know him, but he was an adventurer like me and a friend of a friend of Ryuu's. The thought made me angry. "Yeah, that's pretty suspicious. Ryuu?"

"Hasharna was a Level 4," Ryuu said after having fallen silent. "Even if he was struck from surprise, killing him wouldn't be easy. To have done it so quickly, without being noticed…the offender would need to be at least Level 5."

Even I had to grimace at that.

"Yes," Fels said. "Things are more dire than we suspected. Luckily, there's word that several members of the Loki Familia is heading toward Riveria as we speak. I believe it is likely they will help, once they learn what has happened."

"Perhaps. However, I would also like to contact Shakti of the Ganesha Familia, both to inform her of the passing of a member of her Familia and to potentially arrange for aid," Ryuu said. "If there is a Level 5 criminal on the loose, countless people within Riveria alone must be in danger. Should anything do wrong, they may become involved."

"Yes," Fels replied with a murmur. "However, if too many people should appear at once, it might cause them to attack immediately, to cause chaos. If at all possible, I would like to arrange for Percy to be in place to divert some of the trouble, before we make our move."

Put that way, it barely sounded like throwing me to the wolves at all. But I guess I couldn't complain; I'd agreed to it, after all.

"Not a problem," I said. "Ryuu and I can get down to the eighteenth without anyone noticing. I just—"

I paused, sniffing at the air and blinking.

"Do you smell smoke?" I asked suddenly.

"Mr. Jackson," Ryuu murmured, turning to look towards a rising plume of smoke in the distance. "Isn't that the direction of—"

I was already running.