The Lunéville Branch

"Ilya. Good work today."

"Yeah, good work."

Ria poked her head out from the office behind the counter.

Ria was a black cat beastkin, hardly different from a human apart from her ears and tail. Her bluish-black hair fell to her shoulders, bobbing here and there. A very charming, pretty girl.

"Ilya, Lydia-san is on No. 5, so can you head to the kitchen?"

"Got it."

No. 5 was for clocking out, No. 7 was for the restroom, No. 10 was for criminals, and so on. It had become customary in the guild to communicate using numbers.

Lydia, by the way, was the former proprietress of an old-time table d'hôte restaurant. The branch had taken over her menu without changing it, though Ilya used her skill to tweak the seasonings a bit.

Ilya left the reception to Ria and headed to the kitchen.

"Ilya-chan's in the kitchen!?"

"Did you hear that you bastards!?"

""""Uooooooh!""""

Though she heard the cheers behind her, she pretended not to notice and kept walking.

After changing into an apron and washing her hands, she ran into Lydia on her way out of the kitchen. Ilya stopped and bowed respectfully.

"Thank you very much for today."

"No, that's what I was hired for, right?"

Lydia laughed cheerfully along with the kitchen workers.

"Always so formal."

"Because I really am grateful to you for doing this!"

"Honestly! After all, you're the one who bankrupted me in the first place!"

""" Ahahaha """

The overlapping laughter warmed Ilya's heart a little.

"Ilya! The orders!"

"Oh, yes!"

A frantic voice carried into the kitchen from Rachelle, a human waitress out in the dining area. Ilya hurried over to her station. Humans had spread far and wide, mingling with the other races; the term was a general label for those without animal features or the unusual builds of dwarves and the like.

Once inside, Ilya took up the grill station. Thanks to the [Appraisal] skill, she could adjust the temperature with precision, and the seasonings just as easily.

"Ilya-chan, you're so lively compared to when you're at the reception desk!"

"It's just shabby men out there. Don't you want to be showered with compliments too?"

"Ahahaha! That's for sure!"

Even as she chatted away, the madam kept up her skilled cooking. Even with her skill to back her up, Ilya was outmatched in pure proficiency.

(Ah～, I want to spend more time with Ria.)

Probably because she still retained the memories from before her reincarnation, she remained completely uninterested in the opposite sex. If anything, she wanted to take advantage of sharing the same sex to flirt with Ria.

She wrestled with the flames for four hours, all while harboring such worldly desires.

 

 

 

 

"Chocolate banana parfait, vanilla ice cream…"

"Oka～y"

"… Closing～"

It was time for the restaurant to close. From late night onward, it shifted into a bar serving nothing but light snacks.

Stamina wasn't really an issue, but there was no avoiding mental fatigue.

"Ilya, good work today."

"Yeah, you too."

Frank, who was now taking over the kitchen, called out to Ilya. Like many humans, he had blue eyes and brown hair. He always wore a gentle smile, the kind of man who came across as a reliable elder brother.

The townspeople thought of him as an unassuming, mild-mannered man, but the reality was different. He had taken on the position of guild branch manager at the young age of twenty, and his stats and skills surpassed those of kingdom knights. Above all, he had been influential enough to drive out the thieves' guild that had taken root in Lunéville. That was the true face of the man named Frank.

"Have you taken your break yet today?"

"No, I wanted to get the kitchen ready for tomorrow."

Though Ilya defaulted to polite speech with everyone, with him she used it to show genuine sincerity.

She owed Frank a debt of gratitude. He had her completely outclassed.

"Is that so? Thanks as always."

"No…"

Thank you. Whenever she heard words of gratitude, guilt assailed her.

On Ilya's own status screen, her charm level, which was listed under the sub-status, was 9999.

The effect was tremendous: continuous activation, S-rank intensity, resist-immune. Anyone who had ever seen the owner, anyone who was seeing the owner, anyone who was hearing the owner's voice; it interfered with their minds and turned them into slaves.

Since the effect couldn't be turned off voluntarily, it could already be called a curse.

That was why she used one of her unique skills, [God King Barrier]. [God King Barrier] blocked both the owner's and the opponent's physical attacks, magic, spirit magic, ancient magic, sacred magic, and curse magic. It nullified all skills and shut down all status ailments and mental interference.

Though the barrier was invincible, it consumed 999 MP per second. The fact that Ilya could maintain the barrier at all, thanks to her nearly inexhaustible supply of magical power, was itself a feat.

Even with the [God King Barrier] stopping anything that would affect her status, whenever someone spoke to her kindly she was seized with the anxious thought, "It isn't blocking the effect."

"Ilya?"

"Eh?"

She had been brooding deeply as she restocked goods. Snapping back to her senses at the sound of his voice, she found Frank looking at her face with a worried expression.

"Are you alright?"

"Ah, sorry. I was just thinking about something."

She hid her guilt behind a wry smile that could pass for embarrassment, and resumed her prep work.

She used her [Alchemy] and [Mixing] skills to produce more of the miso and soy sauce, which had been running low.

Since Frank knew Ilya had these skills, she was able to use them without hesitation.

In truth, she was using ancient magic's space-time magic to mature and ferment them, but she had convinced him it was alchemy. Modern people couldn't decipher ancient magic, and only two people in the world could use it. On top of that, space-time magic had been designated taboo.

Wanting to avoid trouble as much as possible, she had asked the agriculture guild to produce miso, soy sauce, sake, and vinegar themselves, but the results so far hadn't been impressive.

"Alright, now…"

After working on the soy sauce and miso for a while longer, she also prepared desserts like iced pudding, tiramisu, and crème d'Anjou.

"Branch manager, I'll be leaving first."

"Yeah. Good work today."

The moment she heard those casual words of appreciation, Ilya was reminded once again of how comfortable her current life was.

 

*

 

After sleeping soundly, she woke up early the next morning.

She brushed her teeth, took a shower, and changed out of her pajamas into her exclusive gear, [Miko's Restraint].

Her bra, panties, long gloves, and knee socks were snow white with light blue lines here and there.

They had originally been cursed items that lowered the wearer's stats and turned them into a sacrifice for an evil god, but Ilya had inherited them after defeating one. She had used the [Refining] skill to multiply her gear's effects by twenty, and she equipped [God's Protection], a choker that doubled the effectiveness of each piece of equipment. Even so, when she held back, she ended up roughly at the level of an average grown man. Since none of it affected her sub-status, [God King Barrier] was essential.

Pulling her uniform on over the top, Ilya headed down to the first floor. Even though it wasn't time for work yet, she made sure she was ready to leave at a moment's notice in case of an emergency. Doing this first thing in the morning had become a habit.

"Good morning."

Slipping behind the counter through the staff entrance near the office, she greeted the two receptionists. Human relations were important.

"Ah, morning Ilya."

"Morning."

Ria was at the reception desk today.

Her tail swaying above her rather short skirt doubled the cuteness, soothing Ilya's heart.

The other one, Luke, was human. Though he was generally blunt with Ilya, he was really just trying to hide his embarrassment.

Without minding him in the slightest, Ria let Ilya know there was a message for her.

"Hector-san was looking for you. He said he wanted you to come see him as soon as I saw you."

"Hector-san? Got it."

"E-even though you said you got it, why haven't you stopped petting me?"

Well, it was only natural. Ria was just that cute.

(Please, let me get a little more healing in.)

Just as she was thinking that, a pair who looked like tourists came in.

Ilya reluctantly stopped and decided to head out to see Hector.

 

*

 

Hector was the lord of the town.

Originally a human knight, he had earned military distinction in the civil war of the neighboring country Filéalemis and been granted a court rank and a fief. However, a commoner rising through the ranks drew opposition from the nobility. Pushing him out had been such a headache that he had ended up being made the lord of Lunéville instead.

He himself wasn't unhappy with the arrangement, and he could often be seen strolling through the town. With a friendlier disposition than even Frank, he was the sort the townspeople half-jokingly worried over, asking him if he didn't have any work to do.

When she arrived in front of the lord's manor, the gatekeeper guard there told her that Hector had headed to the west gate. Of course, Ilya was used to this much running around and didn't let it discourage her.

Exchanging greetings with people on the street, she made her way to the west gate. There she spotted Hector, surrounded by his escorts and the gatekeeper guards.

 

 

 

 

"Good morning."

"Ah, Ilya. Morning. Sorry for calling you."

Hector bowed his head.

She felt a lord shouldn't lower himself like that for one person, but since the people around them were just smiling wryly, she decided to let it go.

"No, it's fine. More importantly, did something happen?"

When he called for Ilya, nine times out of ten, it was something related to a guild request.

Charon was generally the one in charge of public relations, but the office staff couldn't leave their desks with paperwork piling up. The branch manager casually wandering off would also be a problem.

That was how Ilya had ended up as the designated errand runner.

From the lord's point of view, he called on Ilya precisely because of her discretion, insight, knowledge, and judgement — the full package made her the right choice. But that meaning never quite reached the girl who retained the memories of her unremarkable previous life as a man.

"There's no solid evidence yet, but… apparently a rondébear has shown up on the road heading west."

The Rondéville bear, commonly called the rondébear. Found throughout the country of Rondéville, it was a bear-type monster with well-developed, powerful forelimbs. Gentle for a monster, it posed little risk since it was omnivorous. That said, right after waking from hibernation, or when attacked and pushed into a frenzy, it became more than unskilled mercenaries could handle. It was a relatively high-leveled monster.

But it was the middle of spring, and as omnivores they had no real reason to come all the way out to the road searching for food.

"… That is strange."

And it wasn't just about food.

That group of four from the day before had accepted a monster subjugation commission in roughly that area, along the road to the west.

It would be best if it was just needless worry, but if the two were related, there'd be trouble.

"I'll head back to the branch and look into it right away. Are we putting out a subjugation commission?"

"Yes. Please draw up a quote."

"Understood. Until later, then."

 

*

 

When she returned to the branch, the dining room was crowded with people who had come in for breakfast.

(Get to work, you guys!)

Keeping complaints like that to herself, she headed straight for the office.

"Claude-san, please draw up an estimate for the reward on a rondébear subjugation commission, if you would."

"A rondébear, huh? Got it! Wonder what the going rate is～"

Younger even than Frank, Claude was nonetheless the longest-serving member of the branch, and he tackled his work briskly.

After that, she turned to Desiree, a dog beastkin woman seated across from Claude.

"Desiree-san, please look up subjugation commissions taken in the area near the west road."

"Going back about two months okay?"

"Yes, thank you."

Almost everyone at the branch was Ilya's senior, but she always admired how readily they cooperated. They worked fast and didn't waste time on useless pride; the branch was staffed entirely with capable people.

With the subjugation preparations no longer a concern, she headed outside to look into something.

(My clothes… are they all right as they are?)

Just then, she noticed Ria and Luke watching her from the reception desk.

"Is something wrong?"

"N-no! It's nothing!"

Flustered and blushing, Ria turned back to the reception desk. Ilya thought it was strange, but since it was so adorable, she decided not to mind.

Watching Ilya's back as she headed out of the branch office, Ria turned to Luke, her arms flapping excitedly.

"Just now, Ilya looked so cool!"

"… We have to follow the rules."

Ria's expression was flushed, while Luke recalled Ilya from a moment ago with a wry smile.

Though Ilya didn't look it, the moment an emergency request came in to be processed, the air around her shifted completely from her usual languid demeanor.

"I guess you'd call her a capable woman. And the fact that she doesn't flaunt it is what makes it great!"

"Why don't you try to be like her too, Ria? Your names are even similar."

"That's got nothing to do with it!… Let me give it a shot."

"You're actually going to?"

Clearing her throat, she put on a cool expression.

"Luke…"

"That just looks like you're making fun of her."

"I haven't even said anything yet?!"

"You guuuys, your salaries are gonna get docked if you keep slacking off～"

"" Welcooome ""

Hearing Claude's voice from the office, the two straightened up and turned back to face the dining room.

The dining room was filled with the regulars' laughter at their exchange and what came right after.

 

*

 

Meanwhile, having left the branch office, Ilya headed for the south gate.

A soldier was on guard watching the gate, but his expression softened when he saw it was Ilya.

"Oh, Ilya-chan. Heading out?"

"Yes. Just for a little stroll."

"Take care."

"Thank you very much."

Then, taking a slight detour from the south gate, she made her way toward the forest to the southwest.

Even though she'd come to investigate, she wouldn't set foot inside the forest itself. Whether in her past life or her current one, insects were her weak point. She couldn't bring herself to enter forests; they were crawling with bugs.

"I guess this spot will do?"

After making sure there was no sign of anyone nearby, she activated her unique skill, [Clairvoyance].

However, it had been a long time since she'd looked at a place like a forest. Bungling the adjustments, Ilya got a crystal-clear view of an enormous quantity of insects.

"Gyaaaaaaaaah!"

She let out a scream of pure horror and lost consciousness on the spot, and even after she came to a while later, she was wracked by chills.

(… Ugh… gross… But… the results were good.)

After that, she went back to the branch office and clung to Ria for a while to settle her nerves.

 

*

 

"Tyrant spider…"

Hector, who had come to receive the estimate, heard that name from Ilya in the reception office and was left speechless.

The tyrant spider was a massive monster spider with a head the size of an adult human male.

Its mouth could swallow a person whole, and its exoskeleton couldn't be damaged by unskilled attacks. Its fangs could crush iron, and its claws carried a paralyzing poison; it preferred to swallow its prey alive.

Its legs were nimble with tremendous jumping power, it could move at high speed, and its threads couldn't even be burned by low-rank magic.

The title of 'tyrant' wasn't just for show. It was a monster fit to be the boss of the forest. Among the bosses Ilya had committed to memory, its danger level ranked at the very top.

(So the other monsters fled because something like that had moved into the forest?)

That was the reason a rondébear had appeared on the west road.

Frank was there as well, wearing a bitter expression.

"So, Ilya. You believe more monsters will be driven out of the forest?"

"Yes. If we gather more information from Willville to the west and Ahrew Fort still farther southwest of the forest, I believe we'll have more solid evidence."

By Ilya's reckoning, subjugation requests for monsters coming out of the forest were probably already on the rise in both places.

"Frank. As the branch manager, I want to hear your opinion."

"The tyrant spider is a designated disaster-class monster. It would be wise to deal with it immediately by calling in large-scale support from guild headquarters."

"How long would that take?"

Hector turned to Ilya.

To prepare the request, it would take a day for Rondéville's guild headquarters to learn of it via messenger magic. From there, passing the request along to each branch and gathering the personnel would take another five days. On top of that, transportation to Lunéville was limited…

"Ten days until they could set out. And as for the reward, how about twenty million gils, split evenly?"

"Only ten days to get them all here?"

"Twenty million?"

Hector's and Frank's questions to Ilya were about completely different things.

"For one, ten days doesn't leave much breathing room, and it also functions as a filter. Only the truly strong will be the ones to actually show up."

In more ways than one. Those words, of course, she muttered only in her heart.

"Twenty million is the base reward. If we let them keep any raw materials they recover as a bonus, there won't be any complaints."

Every top-ranked guild member craved materials more than money.

So rather than adding a monetary reward for the materials, leaving them claimable was the kind of juicy condition that ought to catch their interest.

"In addition, please commission the country's knights as well. Hector-san, I'll leave the arrangements to you."

"Putting the squeeze on headquarters and the country, huh?"

Hector smiled wryly.

"Surely not."

As though it must be some kind of misunderstanding, Ilya put on her brightest smile.

She had nothing but good intentions.

For headquarters, it carried the hidden message: "You can pocket twenty million and rare materials. But if you don't move fast, the country will snatch it!"

For the country, it carried the hidden message: "Rather than pay twenty million plus the guild's intermediary fee, a month's wages and food for fifty knights is cheaper. Please do your best before the guild takes the initiative!"

(See? Good intentions.)

Going over it again, Ilya nodded inwardly.

"There certainly isn't time to spare, but isn't this a little rushed?"

"But aren't spiders gross?"

"" … ""

Since she was answering in all seriousness, the two were all the more dumbfounded.

Though they weren't entirely satisfied on a few points, Ilya judged that there were no outright objections and made one last suggestion.

"For this commission, would it be all right if I put my name on the commission label?"

"I don't mind, but…"

"Could I ask why?"

Naturally, it was unusual for a guild branch receptionist to put out a commission for one of the town's serious matters. Sensing the two's doubts, Ilya put on a smile and gave a reason that wasn't unreasonable.

"Insurance!"

Ten days later, the appointed day arrived.

Only five people had gathered.

 

*

 

When Frank showed them into the reception office, however, Hector wasn't disappointed. He was confused, though, and his head couldn't quite keep up.

"Ilya Ilya I-ly-aaa～!"

"That hurts, Lula."

The one who had just thrown her arms around Ilya and started rubbing their cheeks together was Lula, a dark elf with brown skin and long ears.

Although elves and dark elves were generally on bad terms, Lula was utterly devoted to Ilya. "Like" wasn't really the right word; "love" was probably closer. She was a yuri girl through and through.

That aside, Lula was one of the only two people who could use ancient magic. When Ilya had last seen her, her class had been [Mage]; now it was [Master Mage]. It seemed Lula hadn't been slacking on her studies.

Feeling relieved by that, Ilya patted her head, and Lula closed her eyes in bliss.

The boy watching the scene muttered.

"Envious…"

"Chriiiiis～?"

"Hiii-! I was kidding! So lower that fist!"

"Selena. What he really meant was, 'I want to flirt with Selena too～'"

"Eh? Eeeh～?!"

"D-don't say weird things, Eric!"

Trading that sort of comedic banter, the trio formed the mercenary guild [Stars of the Eternal Night]. Chris the swordsman, Selena the fighter, and Eric the summoner. The three of them were also Ilya's acquaintances.

Ilya had met them while wandering through various countries in an island chain to the east. During their travels they had defeated devils, and even an arch devil duke on top of that. They weren't even twenty years old, yet their abilities were ridiculously high. It was a relief to see they were still on their lively journey.

"Ilya-sama. Please take me on as your pupil-"

"No."

"But…"

The young elf who slumped forward was named York.

Although Ilya took a cold attitude toward elves in general, he respected her and didn't seem to mind.

More than that, he was glaring at Lula clinging to Ilya.

"Lula, you bitch…! Don't touch Ilya with the hands of a dark elf!"

"Umm… who are you?"

Still clinging tight, Lula looked down on York. His handsome face twitched, and he turned away from her.

"S-stand down, Undine. It's too soon to turn her into a specimen."

"Incredible… that spirit power…"

Feeling the power pouring off the young man next to her, Selena let out a surprised gasp.

Meanwhile, pressed against Ilya's chest, Lula glared at York with scornful eyes, brows knit.

"Undine… elf… ah! You're York?! That idiot elf who contracted the great spirit of the Elven Fountain!"

"Mind your tongue, dark elf. I could turn you into an icicle at any moment, you know."

"Hah. Before you could, I'd crush you flat!"

(Ah… these people really never grow up.)

Letting out a sigh, she peeled Lula off of her.

"You two, please stop it."

"Oka～y"

"Yeah."

Once the room had quieted down, Ilya turned to Hector.

"I'm sorry. It seems my conditions were a little too strict…"

"No, it's fine. For this job, quality beats quantity."

At Hector's words, Ilya nodded inwardly.

The mercenary guild master had personally vouched for [Stars of the Eternal Night]'s capabilities. Then there was Lula, a decipherer of ancient magic and the magic guild's foremost prodigy, who had created any number of new spells. And York the genius, contracted to the great spirit Undine, whose strength was said to rival a water dragon's.

With these members, they could overpower even an evil god, never mind a mere devil.

"Hector-sama, I'm sorry to trouble you, but would it be possible to call off the knights' dispatch? Once you tell them about these members, there shouldn't be any issues."

"Ah, right. Actually, I've already cancelled the knights' dispatch."

"Eh?"

Frank spoke up to soothe Ilya, whose brows had knit together.

"Don't be upset. We received a notice from the guild association saying the dispatch wasn't needed."

"Ah, that's probably because of us."

Chris, his cheek now visibly swollen, spoke up.

"We told the mercenary guild's old lady not to worry since we were heading out."

"I see…"

The guild association had known who was participating, so they had closed recruitment early. That was why so few people had shown up.

"Huh? In that case, how were Lula and the others able to take the request? Wasn't it pulled right away?"

"Of course, I picked up the commission using Ilya's name."

"I gave a standing order to the magic guild's staff to report any commission from Ilya-sama to me the moment they saw it."

Ilya was a little unnerved by the obsession of these two.

(Even if it was insurance… let's not do this again.)

Sensing a threat to her personal safety, she made up her mind.

In any case, getting the commission accomplished wasn't going to be a problem. Ilya led them around the branch office, intending to explain the details of the commission.

"These are the key points. We'll appraise the quality of any materials you bring back, so please keep that firmly in mind."

""" Oka～y """

If they brought back nothing but charred remains, she'd have a problem on her hands.

"And please don't disturb the ecosystem… Good luck."

Ilya saw the five of them off and gazed toward the distant forest.

Spider. Rest in peace.

Praying not to be reminded of its appearance, Ilya kept a fairly calm face.

 

*

 

To sum up the outcome: it was a landslide victory for the five.

York pinned the spider in place by freezing its joints with a spread of "Ice Lock", while Lula shattered its exoskeleton by dropping a meteor on it from above with "Strike Nova".

Then came the finishing blow: Chris's "Transcendent Sword Saint Strike".

Pathetically enough, the spider was defeated in an instant.

After that, needless to say, Ilya was on the receiving end of fervent overtures from every one of them on the way back. All five of them wished to live together with her again, like they had in the past.

She turned them all down, however.

"Ilya, are you sure that was okay?"

So asked her coworker Ria, who had seen the whole thing from start to finish. Ilya answered with a clear expression.

"Because I love this town, and everyone in it."

This is good enough for now.

Whether our paths cross again is up to fate.

Ilya resolved once more that, until that time came, she would keep taking life slow and living happily.