The Anomaly Investigation
Pina decided to stay at the lodging.
It was a shame she couldn't come along, but the Branch Chief wanted to see me alone. He had something to discuss with me in private.
I allowed myself a flicker of anticipation. My rank was still lacking, sure — but my record wasn't exactly dull. I'd even made a name for myself with the Antico Association's Branch Chief. At this point, wasn't it about time I joined the main story?
I left the lodging and followed the man.
My first outing since the subjugation. The stares of passersby burned hotter than before. People talked about me everywhere — calling me a hero, a source of pride. Saying that becoming a Master Hunter was only natural for someone who'd surpassed even the New Light. That I was bloodthirsty for killing monsters… no, that last one wasn't right.
Well. I had been the top contributor on a special subjugation request. Of course they were talking.
The excess attention was burdensome, but at least the gazes were full of goodwill. Somewhere along the way, I had become the pride of Antico.
The man spoke up.
"Hunter. A great many people are praising your achievements."
"Yeah."
"You seem calmer than I expected. How does it feel to become the hero of Antico?"
How did it feel?
How was I supposed to put this feeling into words? It was something I'd never felt in my previous life — something that had never been offered to me. I was weak to this kind of thing. Warm gazes full of goodwill. Eyes that looked up to me. Those had never been meant for someone like me.
But here, I had become a hero. The value of who I was shone in this place.
I finally answered the man's question.
"I like it."
"You do?"
"Yeah."
Who wouldn't? To the one who invited me into this world — I wanted to say thank you. And the only thing I could do for you was grant your request.
The man said abruptly, "It looks good on you."
"What does?"
"Your face. Every time I saw you in passing, you always looked so downcast."
Had I been smiling? Just as he said, the corners of my mouth had lifted without my noticing.
I answered him.
"I was never that downcast."
"…Is that just how you are?"
"Yeah."
"Ah… right. Understood."
He let out a sigh, just like Pina always did.
The Antico Association district was a building attached to the largest ancient tree at the city's center. The first floor was the counter where hunters came and went. The second floor was used by Antico's Research Director for research purposes. The third floor served various functions — among them, the Branch Chief's office.
The man escorted me to the office door and left.
"Well then, I'll take my leave."
Was he seriously just dumping me here? I only knew the Branch Chief by face.
I hovered in front of the door. A tense moment. What would the Branch Chief even say to me?
I'd stalled long enough. I opened the door.
The moment I stepped inside, the dusty smell of an old archive filled my nose. The office was far messier than I'd expected. At the desk in the center, the Branch Chief was slumped over, completely still.
Had he died of overwork?
I was about to quietly close the door and leave as if I'd seen nothing.
"…You've come?"
The Branch Chief barely managed to lift himself up and speak. He was a solidly built man with a rough, intimidating face — but not a bad person.
He found his glasses on the desk, put them on, and said, "I've been waiting for you."
"…Your room's a bit of a disaster."
"Ah, that. We've been digging through old records because of that unidentified monster…"
He cleared the books strewn across his desk. As if those were the only problem.
I picked my way around the stacks of books at my feet and sat in the chair in front of his desk. The Branch Chief picked up a sheet of paper and addressed me.
"Do you know the monster you fought yesterday?"
I couldn't tell the truth here, so I shook my head carefully, making sure nothing about my identity slipped out.
"…No."
"Of course not. You may find this hard to believe, but that monster came from the past. The distant past. That is the conclusion the Research Director and I have reached."
He scanned the paper in his hand.
"Alberoelva — an ancient predator. Does that mean anything to you?"
I looked at him without a word. He set the paper down and rubbed his mouth.
"What I'm about to tell you is strictly confidential."
"…A secret, then."
"Yes, a secret. More to the point — your speech is rather blunt. Well, I'd heard you were that kind of hunter."
"Sorry."
"…That was blunt too. Fine. I understand."
He didn't seem particularly bothered by it.
"Well then. Let me start from the beginning."
To the Branch Chief's ears, Alice was an exceedingly cold and detached hunter.
According to rumor, she hadn't become a hunter for wealth or fame. She was simply a hunter who killed monsters indiscriminately. That alone had spawned all sorts of strange stories — that she slaughtered monsters so relentlessly because she had lost everything to them, or that she was a survivor of a monster attack on some outer-region village.
As far as the Branch Chief knew, Alice wasn't even from Antico. She was a newcomer who had appeared out of nowhere. If the rumors were true and she was a survivor of a monster disaster, her drifting into Antico made sense enough.
At first, the Branch Chief hadn't believed those rumors. Rumors were not to be trusted lightly — they could be nothing more than empty talk, and as Branch Chief of the Association, he had a duty to treat such gossip about hunters with caution.
But when he saw her with his own eyes, he decided the rumors had grounds. Anyone who heard the stories and then watched Alice fight would think the same. Standing before an unidentified monster without ever backing down. Weaving through attacks by a hair's breadth, dancing along the border between life and death as if she didn't care whether she lived or died.
She fought like a mad dog.
And so he had judged that a hunter like Alice might be of use in the current chaos. A simple misunderstanding — but in the end, it was a situation Alice herself welcomed.
The Branch Chief spoke in a low voice.
"Monsters from the past and the future are appearing all across the land."
Alice's half-lidded eyes opened. The Branch Chief glanced at her. She was reacting to his words, however slightly.
He continued.
"Monsters that went extinct long ago. Monsters that shouldn't appear until the future. Because of them, the balance of this world is warping."
"That's a problem."
"Yes. A serious one. Which is why we've selected certain individuals to investigate the matter."
He took a sip of water before going on.
"…Talented people like you, that is."
"Is that so?"
Alice's lips curved into a smile — a faint one that suited her languid expression. But to the Branch Chief's eyes, she simply looked like someone delighted at the prospect of killing more monsters.
"You don't seem the type to refuse."
"Of course not."
Alice accepted with almost startling ease. To the Branch Chief, it almost seemed as though she had already known about this. His composed expression hardened slightly as he looked at her.
"…Have you been waiting for this?"
Alice tilted her head, then nodded.
"That's right."
The Branch Chief nodded in turn. To him, Alice looked like a victim of the recent Anomalies. How many people had suffered because of monsters that twisted the ecosystem? It wouldn't be strange at all if she were one of them.
He murmured under his breath, his face grave.
"I see. In that case, there truly is no one better suited for this than you."
"Suited?"
"Ah — never mind."
There was no need to poke at old wounds. He rubbed his mouth, thinking.
"An ancient Alberoelva appeared in Antico, so we can't rest easy ourselves… but we've requested support from the Association, so we should be fine for the time being. You'll leave Antico and investigate elsewhere."
"My rank is still too low for that."
"Rank means nothing to an exceptional hunter. The ancient Alberoelva was measured as Upper-grade. You are a proper hunter who has subjugated an Upper-grade monster."
He held out a document.
"From where I stand, you look like someone who will accomplish great things. That said — don't push your body too hard. Now then, would you sign here?"
"Hm…? Ah, sure."
Alice's reply was halfhearted. What mattered to her wasn't the paperwork — it was the Anomaly investigation itself. She picked up a pen rolling across the desk and filled out the form. It was a simple document: a pledge of secrecy and an agreement to join the Anomaly investigation.
When she finished, she handed it back and asked, "So where do I go right now?"
"Well… people are already scattered across various regions, so it's hard to say where you should head."
Alice's brow furrowed at that.
"It's not decided?"
"Don't look at me like that… This whole situation has me at my wit's end too. Where to send you… Ah!"
The Branch Chief, who had been groaning in thought, suddenly struck the desk as if a brilliant idea had struck him. He pointed a finger at Alice.
"That's right — you. You know Hunter Noah well, don't you?"
"…You know Noah?"
"Of course I do. Hunter Noah is currently investigating the Anomalies herself."
It was the most dramatic change Alice's expression had undergone all day — though all it amounted to was her eyes widening a fraction and her mouth falling slightly open.
The Branch Chief opened a desk drawer and pulled out a stack of papers: reports filed by the hunters participating in the Anomaly investigation. He skimmed through them roughly, then pulled out Noah's and showed it to her.
"Hunter Noah is currently in Angolo. Will you head that way?"
"…Yeah."
Alice nodded. The Branch Chief caught her before she could leave.
"Were you planning to depart immediately?"
"…Aren't I going tomorrow?"
"If you're not in a rush, would you wait a little before leaving?"
Alice tilted her head at his words.
"Why?"
"…Because the town is preparing a festival."
"Huh."
Alice blinked.
A toast for their new hero — and a ceremony to honor the souls of fallen comrades. The Branch Chief wanted Alice there for it.
When all was said and done, she was the hero of Antico.