The receptionist looked genuinely happy to see Mylia. It seems the guild was aware that she stayed behind to protect the residents.
Meanwhile, I pretended to look for requests while watching over Mylia so I could back her up if she made a mistake. If she does fine, I won’t have to.
「It all worked out fine in the end.」she said, showing her badly-damaged armor.
They’ll think something is up if she was unscathed after fighting a powerful monster so she damaged it herself at a spot where it’s easy to notice.
「I’m glad you’re all right! It’s past the supposed time of the Stampede. Did you perhaps stop them?」
「Stopping a whole army of monsters alone is impossible. I killed the ringleader.」
「The ringleader? Are you saying…」
「Yes. The S-ranked dragon that showed up at the pillar.」she said, showing the horn.
The receptionist swallowed hard.
「You killed an S-ranked monster?!」
「That’s right. I was just lucky that I managed to defeat it. I don’t know how else to put it.」
「Luck? A rank S monster is not something that can be killed with luck! Have you forgotten that an S-rank monster wiped out a 100-man party that was said to be the strongest in history?!」
「Of course I haven’t forgotten. But I thought that was the only option I had to protect the town.」Mylia answered with an uncomfortable smile.
She may have made a promise with me, but she’s probably feeling guilty spouting one lie after another.
Hang in there! Just stick to your lies and make them believe you!, I cheered from deep inside my heart.
「This is too much for me… I’ll call the branch manager!」
The receptionist disappeared into the back of the guild and returned a few minutes later. The branch manager appeared, looking dubious.
「Flame Spear, is it true you killed an S-rank monster?」
「It’s true. Here’s its horn.」
Astonishment filled the manager’s face when he saw the horn. He examined it for a while.
「I haven’t seen a horn with so much power. I’ve seen a horn of a B-rank dragon, but this one’s in a whole different league.」 the manager said.
「Now do you believe it was an S-rank monster?」
「Yes. Anyone who looks at this horn will understand that it belonged to an S-rank monster. Still you’re saying you killed it on your own? Even you, the famous Flame Spear, couldn’t have…」
The manager looked doubtful. The perfect question.
「That’s right. I killed it on my own. In the first place, is there anyone else in the area who can defeat an S-rank monster?」
「Good point. There’s no other adventurer with an alias around. That means you couldn’t have had help either…」
He seemed to be deep in thought. After a while he muttered as if he just remembered something.
「There’s Eld. He’s a Novice so his rank is low, but he’s incredibly strong.」
Mylia’s face stiffened. She didn’t expect my name to be brought up. She thought a guild would pay no heed to a D-rank Novice.
What will you do now?
「…Well, he may be strong, but it’s impossible for a Novice to kill an S-rank monster. It’s much more plausible that you took it down alone.」the manager added.
Cool, it worked out. That was close.
「Very well. It’s hard to believe, but given the circumstances, the only possible explanation is you killed an S-rank monster solo. Just to be sure, I have a question. How’d you kill it?」
「At first I thought of taking out the monsters that would head straight to town. But I realized it would be difficult to do that on my own.」
「So you picked a fight with an S-rank alone?」
「That’s right. I managed to kill it because I found out its weakness. The dragon’s weakness is its horn. See? It looks weak, doesn’t it?」Mylia said, showing the fractured part of the horn.
The truth is, the horn is not its weakness at all. But showing a broken horn and saying “This is its weakness” with confidence, it would sound like she was telling the truth.
「Y-Yes, it does. So you focused on that horn.」
「I hid behind a tree and launched a surprise attack. I unleashed all the Skills I could on the horn.」
「Normally, a dragon’s horn is the toughest part of its body and it’s difficult to destroy. It takes enormous courage and great judgment to realize that it’s its weakness and then launch a surprise attack. I’ve heard the rumors about you. I suppose your fame isn’t for nothing. All right. I’ll send a report to the guild saying that Mylia, the Flame Spear, killed the S-rank monster.」
He started writing down what Mylia said on his report.