"I refuse."
Faced with Ilva's proposal, Airi decisively refused. They had agreed to help Lord Garen before because he had provided them with identification, and they had come to investigate the child trafficking incident in return. For Airi, the most important thing now was conquering the Seven Great Labyrinths. There were still five left... She had no time to waste here.
"..."
Upon hearing Airi's answer, Ilva's expression stiffened slightly. Then he coughed.
"Is that really wise? Those dead nobles all held considerable influence within the kingdom. If this matter gets out, it won't be good for you either, will it?"
"This has nothing to do with us. Or do you have evidence proving otherwise?"
Airi naturally refused to back down.
"Then again, the grand city of Forth is not only a commercial center, but apparently also engages in child trafficking. If that gets out, it'll be you who have a problem."
"Uh..."
At that, Ilva had nothing more to say. Just as Airi had said, reports of children being abducted and disappearing were everywhere throughout the Kingdom of Balbagia, with some nobles involved as well. If they learned that Forth was the center of it all, then... that would be a serious problem!
Incidentally, what Airi had said just now was practically an admission of guilt. However, both sides understood this perfectly well. Their verbal sparring was simply a means of securing a more advantageous position. Ilva had originally hoped to use this opportunity to earn Airi and the others a favor while asking them to help him with something, but he had not expected Airi to be utterly impervious to both persuasion and threats. It was only natural. They were not originally from this world, and Airi's sole goal was to open a passage to the core of