256 - - Stainless steel.

"Hmm."

At Thor's words, Dadaan put his glass back on the table and leaned back.

The old man, his large body slumped on the black sofa, smiles comfortably.

"How do you like it? Does the little guy like it?"

Yes, it's my favorite.

"A girl has a weakness for shiny things. I'm glad you're satisfied. What's the matter?

"I don't have any problem wearing it, but you made a comment that bothered me. He said it was a "bad-taste collar."

As soon as Thor said the words in question, Dadaan's eyebrows lifted wide.

Then he let out a slight gasp of relief.

"Who is ....... Oh, the twins?"

"Yes, you must be my sister Kikiriri."

"d*mn, that prankster. He's so quick to stir things up. I'm in trouble.

Waving his hand in the air, Dadaan turns his body and picks up his glass again.

"Most likely they were jealous of the unusual ritual equipment. They're so hardcore and twisted you don't have to take them seriously.

"I didn't think so, sir."

Kikiriri's reaction of disgust at the sight of Tenwei's lightning ring was no doubt sincere, judging from the speed with which he reacted.

Thor also sensed that his twin sister's words and actions contained a slight hint of concern and care for the young child.

"...... if you know anything about this, could you please tell me?"

Dadaan took a sip of his drink and replied in a tone of exasperation to Thor's cutting question.

"Don't tell me you came all the way here just to ask me about those twins?　I'm sure you don't have a lot of free time either."

"They are my friends, you know. I'll take as much time as I need."

And while Kikiriri's words were the trigger, it is also true that there had been a number of twists and turns before that.

The first was the way the head of the temple had treated him when he first visited the Court Temple.

When he said that he would take Moe in, there was no trace of acting in his eyes, but rather an emotion that I could only assume was his true intention.

And the second was the fact that he allowed Thor to accompany him alone to the fixed dungeon, the ant's nest, which was a difficult task.

Although it was Stratchia who had invited him, the idea had come from Dadaan.

Sacco, who had tried to pull out Sora and Mu, would have understood, but it was a proposal that had stuck in Thor's mind for a long time because it was not like his mentor to let him do something reckless but not to stop him from doing something reckless.

Thor had trusted Dadan, who had taught him how to hold a sword, to be his master.

But he also understood that he could not trust the old man in front of him as a politician who would rule this city.

Thor looks into his eyes and Dadan exhales loudly, as if he has lost his patience.

The old man knew very well from his close relationship with Thor for almost twenty-five years that the man was stubborn and would not change his mind once he had made a proposal.

After slurping down a large glass of wine, Dadaan looked into the eyes of his beloved disciple and answered in an indifferent manner.

"There is no harm in wearing it. Don't worry about that.

"So, there's something going on?"

"You will be summoned by the temple in the near future. There you will be given a full explanation. From there, the choice is yours."

"...... I see."

"I can't talk any more about it right now. Now, go home and reassure them. They're your family.

When asked to leave, Thor stands up and bows his head quietly.

Dadaan watched him with tired eyes as he turned on his heel and walked away.

Then, after making sure that the presence behind the curtain had disappeared completely, he looked up at the ceiling and exhaled deeply.

"I knew I shouldn't have let the twins see this. ......"

"You're home."

Dadaan, who was supposed to be talking to himself, turns his attention to the owner of the voice without showing any sign of surprise.

Standing by the table is a woman holding a plate of snacks and a bottle of sake.

It was Agnella, the hostess of the night's book pavilion.

She is a retired adventurer of the highest caliber, and the one who taught Dadan how to use a sword.

She was a twin-sword wielder who was even called the legendary Dancing Princess, and was, so to speak, the mentor of Thor's mentor.

Dhadam silently reaches out his hand and unceremoniously takes a piece of deep-fried boar's skin on the plate.

The tender part of the boar's skin is used to make the boar's skin crispy and tender.

He then slowly slurps down the sake that has been poured into his throat.

"You really look like you're working hard.

I guess she was visibly tired, because Aniella called out to me as if she was trying to help me.

Dadan shakes his head lightly and reaches for the papers hidden under the table.

Enna, the receptionist, had taken the trouble to bring them here.

He stares at the document, which is lined with detailed numbers, and quickly signs the necessary signatures.

Normally, Sacco would have been in charge of this job, but Nix, the newly appointed deputy director, has too much to handle, so Dadaan has no choice but to make the decision directly.

However, it was actually Suckoo who recommended Nix as his successor.

However, there is a reason for this. Nix's family is a well-known noble family in his home country of Zuma, and if he is neglected, he will inevitably receive flak from the Liberation Temple.

Therefore, they thought that giving him a high position temporarily and then retiring him would not cause any trouble.

For this reason, they are currently promoting the next candidate for deputy director, Sheikka, to a higher and higher position.

"I'm used to it by now. I'm used to this kind of work."　

It has been more than thirty years since I retired from being an adventurer.

When the days of risking our lives to seal off the great miasma finally came to an end, we were relieved from the bottom of our hearts.

But all that awaited us after that was a mountain of tedious paperwork and tedious negotiations.

Taking a break from his work, Dadan turned around and looked up at the large painting hanging on the wall behind him.

It depicted an endless desert landscape at night.

In one corner was a small drawing of a traveler moving forward under the moon and starlight.

"Phew, it's still a wonderful painting no matter how many times I see it."

"Yes, it brings back memories."

In those days, when Dadaan and his team were active, the structure of the border towns was not as well defined as it is today, and adventurers were free to come and go as they pleased, without belonging to any particular organization.

This desolate desert landscape is the actual place that Dadaan and his team traversed.

"It's been thirty years. It's been a long time.

Do you want to go back?

"I don't know. Yes, I am fed up, but I am satisfied with my life. I don't think I'd like to start over now.

After swirling the sake in his glass and sipping it, Dadaan gave a small shake of his head from side to side.

I'd like to say, "I'd be lying if I said I didn't have some regrets.

"That's right. But a life without regrets might be boring, too.

"There's no right answer to that question, is there?"

Dadaan let out a sigh and picked up the letter from his home country that lay beside the papers.

The letter informed him that the great forest that occupied most of Hakuli's territory had been affected by a miasma that had emerged from somewhere else, and that a large number of trees had begun to die.

The letter also mentioned the urgent need to recover the miasma areas in order to secure new evacuation sites.

Finally, the letter concluded with the pope's signature approving any priestess of the beast.

The old man shakes his head and stares at the document at the bottom of the page.

It was a record of the semi-annual re-issuance of the adventurer's tags, with a detailed account of Thor's and the others' examinations.

"What will ...... Coco say if I take such a young child with me?"