chapter 16

 

When he went outside, Tsutomu was given several glares, almost as if he was a criminal . Garm stood, and Tsutomu was able to walk without worrying about their lines of sight .

 

If you got to the guild early in the morning, there was less paparazzi inside than usual, but they were still all around the monitors . A few of them were able to see them and didn’t particularly notice anything, but Tsutomu was taken to the back of the reception by Garm nonetheless .

 

Further inside the reception room that he was in the day before, there were two stone-faced guards in the same indigo uniform as Garm’s .

 

“Tell the guild leader that we’ve arrived . ”

 

The gatekeeper, who saw the gold badge Garm had, opened the door, entering briefly, then coming back .

 

“Enter . ”

 

A clear, dignified voice said . Garm excused himself as they entered the room .

 

As Tsutomu continued, he passed through a long room, almost like a luxurious room in a hotel . The floor was covered in red carpet, and the walls were decorated with several medals . There were also various other magical tools passed down through generations .

 

A woman in a blue uniform stood with her back in front of a desk in the room . She gave off a feeling of untouchable sacredness, and Tsutomu stopped as if he was enthralled by a work of art .

 

“What are you here for?”

 

With flaming red hair reaching her waist, she turned her a chair around, with hands that had flaming red scales, and placed it before Tsutomu . Thin red scales were attached to her gorgeous face as if embodying confidence .

 

This dragonewt was Absolute Camille, unparalleled even among her own kind .

 

As Tsutomu sat down in fear, Garm also took a seat . Camille waited for the two, then sat down herself .

 

“First, let me introduce myself . I am the head of this guild, Absolute Camille . You can call me Camille . Pleased to meet you . ”

 

Camille, with a firm smile, then turned to Tsutomu, asking for him to introduce himself . Tsutomu spoke while placing his hands on his knees to prevent them from shaking .

 

“My name is Tsutomu . Nice to meet you . ”

 \n“I heard from Garm . You seemed to have broken through to the 50th level at level 20 . And I heard from two others that this was thanks to your planning . I hope you will continue to use this guild for the power of your achievements in the future . ”

 

“Pardon me . ”

 

As Camille stopped her train of thought for a moment after hearing Tsutomu, she opened her desk drawer .

 

“Unfortunately, that’s not the only reason I called you . Garm might have shown you this article . ”

 

Camille took a newspaper out of the drawer and placed it on the desk . Camille stood up, grabbing the newspaper with one hand .

 

“This guild has deep ties with Solit, and so I should take responsibility for this . I’m truly sorry . ”

 

She stood up from the chair, apologized to Tsutomu, and bowed deeply . Tsutomu tried to stand up for a moment after thinking for a moment, but Garm grabbed his shoulder with one hand and pulled him back .

 

After looking at Garm, Tsutomu turned forward, and even after a few seconds, Camille did not raise her head . Tsutomu tried to speak as if rushed .

 

“It’s only Solit’s fault . There’s no need for the guild to apologize . ”

 

“It was due to the endorsements and bribery of the people . Now, Garm and Amy will be the main subjects of the interview, and the responsibility for that falls on me . You pulled in that golden treasure chest that made a lot of profit for our guild, and you managed to bring Garm and Amy back into action . Please accept my apology . “

 

[…I wonder if this boss has subordinates . ]

 

Tsutomu, looking at Garm and the still-bowing Camille, smiled and thought he must be hallucinating .

 

“I accept your apology . Please raise your head, since the guild doesn’t owe me anything special . ”

 

“I see . Thank you very much . ”

 

At last, Camille lifted her head and took a breath, as if relieved . It wasn’t hard for Tsutomu to get a noble to bow .

 

“Now we’re going to deal with Solit, but first we will do our best to modify the content of this article . It will take time, but we’ll be sure to change it . So far, as a given, the problem is with Amy…”

 

“Oh, Amy will leave the party until the issue has been settled . I don’t think there’d be any benefit otherwise . ”

 \n“That’s helpful . But would an alternative party member be convenient?”

 

Sitting in a chair and putting both her elbows on the desk, Camille pursed her lips as if troubled . The problem was there . An alternative party member would have to come from people under her .

 

“…Honestly, it’s not likely that we’ll find one . If the guild finds one that is convenient, please introduce them if possible . ”

 

“When it comes to Amy’s replacement, there’s only a limited number of people that would fit . But there are about two people . ”

 

Tsutomu hadn’t asked the guild to recruit members yet, but he didn’t think it would be possible to get the right people . So, even assuming the worst, Tsutomu reassured Camille .

 

“Maybe it’s only my vice guild leader who could replace Amy . It’s a good opportunity for the vice guild leader to experience my position . I’ll join you in your party instead of Amy . ”

 

“…What?”

 

Contrary to Camille, the head of the guild, who stood up with a cheerful smile, Tsutomu made an expression as if he stopped thinking .

 

 

The guild was noisier than usual . The guild head had retired, announcing it in the cafeteria . Tsutomu was with Camille and Garm, sitting around a round table .

 

“No, it’s been a while since I’ve done this . Ahaha . ”

 

“Camille-san . ”

“Oi, Garm . Aren’t we equal party members from today? How many times do I have to tell you to drop the honorifics?”

 

“Don’t say something so unreasonable…”

 

Camille tapped Garm’s back, which caused his dog ears to spasm . Tsutomu started to laugh .

 

The conversation steadily went on, and Camille joined Tsutomu’s party instead of Amy . After that, Tsutomu waited for a person from the security headquarters to come, but instead, a newcomer in brand new clothes approached tensely .

 

When the newcomer, who had sent a message from the guards’ headquarters to Garm, relayed the message, Garm sighed as if he was amazed . The gist of it was that Amy was invading Solit, and the headquarters were heading to suppress the turmoil, and the guild shouldn’t interfere .

 

Therefore, Tsutomu’s plans were postponed . After that, Camille proposed to deepen their unity as a party, and so on . \n 

“Oh, Camille-san . Can you show me your status card?”

 

“Drop the formality . ”

 

“As expected, there’s resistance to formality from seniors . ”

 

Camille emitted a kind of presence that no one else had, so much that it seemed that she was trying to be someone she wasn’t . She held her mouth shut lightly .

 

“Tsutomu, you’re the party leader, right? The party has nothing to do with seniority . Members follow the leader . ”

 

“That’s why I’ll just make you the party leader . ”

 

“I wrote a contract just in case . It is written here that Tsutomu will be the party leader . If not, then I’ll have to withdraw from the part . ”

 

“… isn’t it possible to ask the deputy guild head about this? This is more painful that when Garm was poisoned . ”

 

When Camille turned to Garm, softly and calmly, Garm looked back and glanced at her eyes .

 

“Oh, really?”

 

“No, it’s…”

 

“Looks like it’s okay . I’m sure you’re just hung up over Amy . ”

 

Camille lowered his eyebrows sadly, as Tsutomu laughed at the two, who were acting like wolves in a pack .

 

“But it’s been a long time since I’ve done this . I’m sure I’m not as good as the Red Demon Clan, but I can still reach the 50th level . My strength should be paramount . ”

 

“No, I think you’ll suffice . ”

 

“That would be nice . ”

 

Tsutomu seemed to be taller by a head compared to the small Camille, but that didn’t matter because there was a 50-level gap in strength between the two . Besides, he thought it would be unpleasant to persistently ask for changes in case the mood turned sour and they’d have to replace Amy’s replacement .

 

“I understand . Then Camille, can you show me your status card?”

 

“Ooh! Alright!”

 

“Alright then, in the future we won’t use honorifics . Is that okay with you, Garm?”

 

“Ah . Okay . ”

 

Sighing after seeing Camille act so interested while Garm was acting suspicious, Tsutomu saw a beautiful receptionist hand over Camille’s status card .

 

Her level was 67 – one level higher than Garm and Amy . Her class was greatsword user . Tsutomu, reading out her skills, saw an unfamiliar symbol .

 

“What is this dragon thing?”

 

“That’s my unique skill . Using it raises almost all of my stats for a certain amount of time . ”

 

“Unique skill… Hey! That’s amazing . ”

 

“It’s just a skill that you use instinctively, making you stop thinking hard . It’s a skill that you can’t use indefinitely . ”

 

“Hmm . ”

 

Tsutomu continued to listen to Camille, hearing about skills he’d never heard of . Camille continued to talk in a good mood with her nose raised pridefully .

 

“You can also fly, using wings on your back . You also get a breath attack . ”

 

“Wow! So basically, a dragon form?”

 

“If you could become an actual dragon, you might be able to get past the 60th level . Even if you can fly, you can’t fly as fast or long as a real fire dragon could . ”

 

“No, it’s still a good skill . I’d like to see your dragon form, so let’s dive into the dungeon and move together . ”

 

As Tsutomu said that, Camille was satisfied, and Garm nodded .