After finishing the extermination of the Giant Thorn Demon Trees, the Phantom Troupe took a boat across the lake. When passing through the city gates, they used the convenient "human queue" route, which differed from the "nonhuman queue" in that it did not require stringent inspections.
"Mikkul, thanks for your hard work." As he presented their pass, Victor discreetly slipped two Orens into the city guard's palm.
The cool coins made the guard, Mikkul, curl his lips into a smile. Rubbing the stubble-covered chin with his fingertips, he said, "So it's the esteemed Mr. Victor. Welcome back!" He glanced at the rather full cloth bag. "Congratulations. Looks like today's haul was plentiful too."
With that, he waved them through. He also nodded and smiled at Angoulême behind Victor, but the girl ignored him and silently followed the boy's footsteps.
"Captain, why do you bribe him every time we enter the gate? It should be fine even if we don't. Our pass was issued by the city guard office, so he wouldn't dare give us trouble."
"But he's a pretty decent person, isn't he? Two Orens make him not even look at what we're carrying, and he says such pleasant things. Every day before we leave the city, we hear him call, 'Have a wonderful day, sir!' Then when we return, he says, 'You've worked hard. What a fine haul!' Isn't that nice? What's the problem?"
The girl looked around, then edged a few steps closer to her captain. With an expressionless face, she said in a low voice, "I want to kill him."
Victor's pupils widened slightly. He was somewhat surprised, because Angoulême was not joking at all. She seriously wanted to remove that guard—physically, biologically, permanently, and irreversibly.
"Why?"
"Instinct."
Victor did not immediately dismiss what sounded like an