At the market Renyas group had somehow stopped the rampaging horse and the rider on its back, but although the horse came to a halt, the elf died in Renyas arms.

Once they felt like they will get walked off like this, Renyas surroundings got restive. Although there was the fact that the number of corpses became high in the one digits, the guards, if pushed to say, tried to have Renyas group move with an attitude of asking them to follow since its their request. We probably should comply here obediently, Renya abides them quietly.

Renya became confused whether she hated the elves this much, but persuading the guards that she will take her along herself, Kurowaal grabs Ronas arm and drags her along without any further problems while threatening the male elves so that they dont get close.

I wonder how it looks for a human swordsman, who gives a little maid girl a shoulder ride, to be surrounded and taken away by elves if looked at from the side, Renya smiles wryly without understanding the situation.

If the words he spoke at deaths door are true, he was likely a soldier of that defence fortress.

Being surrounded by a great number of elves, Renyas group was taken along into an area enclosed by a fence. There was a building one could regard as a bit unrefined if compared to the other buildings.

The room, which has a desk, where pitcher filled with something like fruit juice and baskets with sweets that seemed like leaf pies and dried fruits were placed on, and several chairs was a room that had at least a window. However on the other side of the window the figures of guards could be seen.

Shion and Rona tried to protest that they were effectively put under arrest, but Renya stopped that.

As for the other reason he suddenly understood, its the words of the soldier at the verge of death whom Renya held.

They are likely intending to control the flow of information, Renya judges while sitting down on a chair.

Based on that, they are either obtaining a proof of the information or they are deciding the further plans. That means its unwise for Renyas group to freely move around during the time they are choosing at what time they will announce it to the inhabitants of the city or whether they wont announce it at all.

As Renya watches them pondering whether their eating drive is just a revenge for causing them troubles, Renya quietly moves to the entrance door and lightly knocks on it due to the mountain of sweets decreasing at an astonishing rate.

Whats wrong?

The voice which comes through the door is that of a young man.

Id like to request additional sweets and drinks. At that pace it will be all gone soon. (Renya)

There should have been prepared a considerable amount though?

Dont take the consumption rate of sweets by female humans lightly. (Renya)

There are plans to prepare dinner as well, but will it be insufficient?

Once being told so, Renya looks outside the window, but its hard to read the time since there isnt much day light shining through due to them being within a forest.

With him only judging that its likely a done deal that the amount of sweets wont last for that much time, the matter of them taking even the preparation of dinner into consideration also means that they plan to confine them for at least that long.

After leaking a sigh and thinking how troublesome, he called out to the soldier on the other side of the door once again.

It wont last at all. Once theyve got nothing to eat anymore, those children are going to start a commotion. (Renya)

Please endure somehow.

We have agreed to the confinement without asking anything. Please take such level of accommodation into consideration. (Renya)

Got it I will arrange for it.

Renya floated a bitter smile once he heard one of the supposedly two guards walk away.

Have they prepared a schedule for changing the guards here? If thats not the case, theres also the possibility of calling a third and having them prepare it. Its not a praiseworthy deed to decrease the guards after being asked to do something by the targets of the confinement.

Besides, we have absolutely no intention to go berserk. If we intended to rampage, one or two guards wont have any effect either. While thinking that, Renya tried to leave from the door as he had finished his business there, but he was called to halt by the guard on the other side of the door.

Hey, theres something I want to ask you a bit.

Whats up? (Renya)

After all since she eats that much, they are big, I guess?

Renya is silent for a little while.

After properly thinking about the meaning of the question, Renya muttered while trembling,

You are you a reformist? (Renya)

What discourtesy. Id like you to call it the elven sect that woke up to a new aesthetic sense.

Who the hell cares! Dont enter the room. I will chop you into little pieces if you make a move on my companion. (Renya)

While thinking which reminds me, we werent told to hand over our weapons, he takes out the sword belt and katana from his inventory and equips them.

He left it as it is as he ended up thinking that it would likely be unnecessary while strolling through the city, but Renya became panicked as a risk factor lurked in an unexpected place. However, the guards voice seemed to be upset.

Please stop calling a person a brute or something. Im able to control myself. So, how is it?

He might be worth to be praised for his attitude of not shrinking away from the hate turned at him.

Renya, who was swayed by such thoughts, opened his mouth after thinking for a while how to answer.

I dont know how much elven women eat, but if its little compared to humans, that might be a factor as well. Its a common fact that living creatures wont grow if they dont eat. (Renya)

I see. By the way, Id also like to ask what she eats most to have such remarkable growth

Dont know. Ask her yourself. (Renya)

Dairy products are recommended, it would have been fine even if Renya revealed such knowledge, while not knowing whether its true or not, but as he didnt have any intention to elaborate on this topic, Renya stops the chat by saying that coldly.

The moment the situation changed was when the day had completely ended. Since there was no light in the room, Renya used the opportunity to turn on the lights with the spell at the ceiling.

With a knock on the door, Kurowaal entered together with several guards who brought dinner.

Im sorry. We caused you inconveniences. (Kurowaal)

In the middle of the guards lining up the food on top of the table Kurowaal apologized to Renyas group for starters.

Apart from whether its something right or wrong, it gives a good evaluation to properly apologize.

You will explain the circumstances, right? (Renya)

Of course. However, is it fine to not talk about this during the meal? I was released just seconds before myself too, so (Kurowaal)

Kurowaal who seems to be fairly annoyed by the long confinement without eating or drinking anything looks at the dishes lined up on the table.

The guards, who carried in the food, bowed after finishing the placement and silently exited the room.

I dont mind, but you lot still want to eat? (Renya)

Shion and Rona, who should have loaded their stomachs with a considerable amount of sweets and drinks, sit down cheerfully at the seats of the table as if they had another stomach for the dishes.

Since Frau doesnt reach the table if she sits on a chair, she sat down on top of Renyas lap as if it was natural.

The dishes, lined up on top of the table, have only a little bit of steamed fish dishes and no meat dishes among them. The rest is mostly mushrooms, vegetables, soy sauce and miso dishes which were either cooked or roasted.

At least its agreeable to state that the meaty, pure white mushroom, I dont know the name of though, is a complete dish with only properly roasting it and sprinkling some soy sauce on it, Renya judges.

The taste of the miso soup, which was made out of dashi from mushrooms and crop roots, is splendid.

It should be possible to make it out of elven beans, but for the elves, who live within forests, obtaining pickled ginger to harden the beans for tofu is probably a problem standing in the way, Renya guesses. (T/N: Not sure on that one, Im no cooking expert after all)

Renya swears to create it one day without fail, but before that his thinking flows into another direction, namely Is there dried beancurd and soy milk, I wonder?

It has become necessary to raise money for the sake of obtaining a considerable amount of elven beans no matter what in order to create those. At the time when Renya thoughts began to go even as far as pondering whether its not possible to cultivate them somehow on the human continent, Kurowaal stopped dinning and opened her mouth,

Renya-san. The words of the soldier you rescued. (Kurowaal)

I havent rescued him. He ended up dying. (Renya)

Renya immediately denies Kurowaals statement, but Kurowaal denied Renyas words by shaking her head.

If you didnt rescue him from falling of the horse at that place, he would have died without accomplishing his duty. As for the result, he ended up passing away, but theres no mistake that you have saved him. (Kurowaal)

Kurowaal says so while staring at him firmly. Renya scratches his cheek without saying a single word.

Hes probably embarrassed, Shion smiled while looking at Renyas behaviour.

He was a soldier who served at the defence fortress which is east of this city. (Kurowaal)

Quietly removing her gaze from Renya, the expression of Kurowaal, who continued her words, is dark.

The defence fortress role is to watch the Forest Labyrinth and to protect the city from monsters which frequently appear in the forest. (Kurowaal)

Theres a Forest Labyrinth over here as well, you say? (Renya)

Renya asks while thinking of the one that was close to the city of Kukrika.

The Forest Labyrinth over there is in fact an underground maze which has a forest within befitting its name. It should be a huge labyrinth that continues up to the Miasma Forest in a far distance.

Labyrinth Forest is a general name for four labyrinths which exist on all of the four continents. All four of them are existing independently, but all of them are connected to the Miasma Forest. (Kurowaal)

The Forest Labyrinth, which is on the human continent, is something vast that reaches dozens of 100 km, but due to Kurowaals statement that theres four similar labyrinths of such level in total, Renya feels a light dizziness.

Its at a level of exceeding the limit of Renyas imagination with its far too oversized scale.

After you were confined here, the army dispatched a soldier to scout the vicinity of the fortress. A one-way trip with our feet from here to the fortress takes around one hour. Humans will likely get there after two hours. (Kurowaal)

And until the entrance of the Forest Labyrinth? (Renya)

I guess it would be around 4~5 hours on human feet from the fortress? (Kurowaal)

Once you walk through the forest, the speed will definitely fall.

If one takes that into consideration as well, the place where Renyas group is right now seems to be a location that doesnt differ overly much from the location of the city of Kukrika which is on the human continent.

The report from the scout was the worst. There were around 200 guards and 500 non-combatants in the fortress, but survival is hopeless, or in other words, it was completely destroyed. (Kurowaal)

Do you know the number and types of enemies? (Renya)

It seems to be a mixed army consisting of ogres, orcs, hobgoblins and goblins as its main constituent, but theres information that demons are mixed in as well. Based on the scale of the army, their numbers are around 20.000 although thats only an approximation. (Kurowaal)

Hows the war potential in this place? (Renya)

500 with 200 of them being archers and 300 being infantry. In addition it was officially announced that the students of the adventurer school will be drafted. The number of students is 200. Thus, the entire war potential of this city amounts to 700. (Kurowaal)

Due to the statement of Kurowaal who indifferently reported it, Renyas face warped for an instant.

As if she didnt notice that, Kurowaal continues her words,

In other words, I will deploy as well. Accordingly I have a request for everyone. (Kurowaal)

Pausing for a moment, Kurowaal has a short intermission to choose her words.

By no means is she going to ask us to help out, is she? Renya worried, but the following words of Kurowaal completely betrayed Renyas expectations.

Can I ask you to return to the human continent right away? And, please destroy the transfer gate over there. (Kurowaal)