Chilchuck was truly panicking now.
His demeanor drew a curious glance from Laios. "Chilchuck, why do you look so anxious?"
"Uh…"
Chilchuck was at a loss for words, but Kairo Retsu chuckled. "He must be eager to get back to his wife and daughters! After all, he's a dependable adult with three daughters!"
"!"
That only made Chilchuck more agitated, but he couldn't come up with any other excuse. In the end, he had no choice but to nervously pick at what felt like an endlessly long breakfast.
Laios was the first to finish. He quickly ran over to the window and began surveying the outside.
"The elves should be arriving today, right? Wonder when we'll spot them…" Laios peered out, looking for any signs.
And just then—on the outer wall of the dungeon, a cave-like hole had appeared. Its shape was unnatural, clearly the result of a forced entry.
"!"
Laios's eyes widened. That must be the tunnel the elves carved through! So they've already arrived?
"Everyone! There's movement outside!" Laios shouted to the others, then stepped out to greet the approaching Elven Canaries unit.
The Hunters picked up the pace with their breakfasts.
Meanwhile, Chilchuck suddenly realized something—Kairo Retsu had mentioned this before… The western elves had arrived!
"We're finished!" Chilchuck broke into a panic. "Now we're really done for! Every path is a dead end!"
"No! I have to try one last time!" Chilchuck abandoned his breakfast and chased after Laios.
"Talk about energy!" Kairo Retsu praised. "Western elves, huh…? If I recall, the elves here lean more toward the DnD-style… I wanna see them!"
He clenched a fist in anticipation. "Hey! What do you guys think would happen if we tried negotiating with the elves?"
"You sure the elves wouldn't just bring in an army and slaughter us the moment they learn what we're planning?" Naofumi Iwatani twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Count me out. There's a hypnotist among them, right? I… don't like that sort of person."
"No one's gonna hypnotize me!" Kazuma struck a weird pose. "The only one who can hypnotize me is the big succubus onee-san from our town who gives people beautiful dreams~!"
"Ugh…" Joseph gave a visible shudder beside Kazuma, clearly disgusted by his tone. "I hate those arrogant types! I can't stand it when people act like that in front of me! I'm not joining either. I'm hiding."
Senshi didn't react to the Hunters' back-and-forth. He simply looked at Kairo Retsu, who was still eating. "Would you like another serving? I prepared extras."
"Oh! Wonderful! Another, please!" Kairo Retsu's focus remained on his meal. Then he turned to the unwilling others. "Alright then, Kazuma, you sneak everyone away. Tanjiro and I will stay!"
Kairo Retsu puffed out his chest proudly. "After all! Tanjiro and I are the moral paragons of the Hunters! The elves will surely be moved by our sincerity and kindness!"
"I'll do my best!" Tanjiro declared with full spirit.
"Hey! Don't lump yourself in with Tanjiro, you bastard!" Kazuma immediately snapped into his usual role as the tsukkomi. "You, of all people, have zero morals! You're dragging Tanjiro's reputation through the mud like a remora stuck to a whale's gut—no, worse! Like a barnacle! A nasty barnacle ruining the smooth shell of a majestic sea turtle!"
"You sadistic gremlin! You don't get to question me!" Kairo Retsu shot back. "Guild rules! Hunters aren't allowed to kiss the Guildmaster!"
"Enough already. Just go hide," Naofumi Iwatani interrupted the argument with a sigh. "Let's head to the warehouse. We still need to properly store the King and the others' bodies to avoid problems… and don't forget to bring Yaad's straw doll too…"
"I don't know the details," Senshi said, "but I gather we're having some guests. In that case, I'll prepare some tea. I just made some snacks we can use for hospitality."
"You're the best, Senshi!" Kairo Retsu gave him a big thumbs-up. "You're just like Granny Felyne!"
While they chatted inside, outside, Laios spotted a crow—the familiar of the elves. It flew up to him and examined him briefly before flying off again.
"Laios!" Chilchuck ran up beside him. "The elves are here?!"
"Yeah, that crow just now should've been their familiar," Laios replied. "I wonder when the rest will arrive…"
As Laios spoke, the crow disappeared into the forest. Soon after, a figure familiar to Laios emerged and approached them.
"Kabru!" Laios exclaimed in delight. "You're here!"
"…?"
Kabru looked puzzled.
Laios's reaction was a bit odd. His tone made it sound like he'd expected Kabru to arrive—and even stranger, he seemed more enthusiastic than usual. What happened after they parted ways? Why was he here? Had he become the dungeon master and gained intel on Kabru's movements?
Kabru analyzed the situation, but before he could speak, Laios had already rushed up and grabbed both of his hands. "This is great! I'm so glad to see you again!"
Now that he knew Kabru would help him with many things in the future, Laios's affection for him had grown significantly.
Kabru, however, was only more confused after the handshake.
Laios seemed bulkier than before. Could this be a monster in disguise? But his expression, his tiny mannerisms—this was clearly Laios. What the heck was going on?
Even with countless doubts swirling in his mind, Kabru spoke. "Laios, I need you to meet someone. It's… something important about the dungeon."
"No problem at all!" Laios shook Kabru's hands enthusiastically. "We have something important to say too!"
"Hey! Laios! Be careful with your words!" Chilchuck warned him nervously. "If you slip up… we might all get captured!"
As the three of them conversed, the Elven Canaries team emerged from the forest—fully visible to Kairo Retsu through the window.
"Not gonna lie, elves have pretty decent looks…" Kairo Retsu muttered. "I used to think they were all girls… didn't expect both guys and girls… Damn you, Nanryo!"
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