Chapter 76

“No, that’s not it. This isn’t it either.”

“Rey, what’s wrong? I think looking at me is more fun than staring into the void.”

“Lady Fiona, you are beautiful, so much so that staring at you for too long even embarrasses me.”

“Hehe, is that so? You think I’m beautiful? … Wait, just my appearance?”

Well, even that appearance of hers loses half its charm—or maybe gets a 90% discount—because of her lazy posture.

As I was reviewing the menu again, there really wasn’t a name that stood out.

“I was looking through the statuses of the recently hired employees, checking if there were any names that seemed like those of reincarnators.”

“I see. But judging from your reaction, it seems you didn’t find anything promising.”

“That’s right. None of their statuses are extraordinary, and their names are typical for beastfolk.”

If their names had been as blatantly Japanese as Tokito or Okui, I would have noticed right away.

Could it really not be an inside job? Or could they even manipulate their statuses to conceal their actions?

“Excuse me~ Sorry to interrupt your flirting over here~”

“Ah, welcome back, Pilkaya. And we’re not flirting.”

“Welcome back, Pilkaya. You’re not interrupting anything.”

“It’s good to see you two getting along so well~.”

Pilkaya returned more composed than I had expected. Honestly, I thought she might spend an extended period investigating the beastfolk, possibly not returning until she’d burned the culprit to ashes.

“It seems like someone is definitely diverting products.”

“Did you catch them in the act?”

“I found a beastfolk who admitted to making some kind of deal, but unfortunately, I didn’t catch them in the act at all.”

Even so, returning with useful information is just like Pilkaya. Still, she looks far from satisfied.

“Keeping an eye on those beastfolk won’t work?”

“Nope. The crucial part—the transaction itself—was somehow entirely invisible. Or rather, I couldn’t even perceive it.”

“That’s definitely suspicious.”

“I even tried questioning the beastfolk after burning them, but they didn’t know anything either. They don’t know who the person is, and their identity seems completely hidden.”

How could they make deals with someone so suspicious?

Could the beastfolk town be that desperate for supplies?

If that’s the case, maybe we could cleverly promote Tokito’s store and attract more customers.

“It seems they’re using a special ability to hide the critical parts of their actions. Almost certainly, they’re a reincarnator.”

“A reincarnator, huh… If even Pilkaya couldn’t uncover it, they must have abilities like perception-blocking, invisibility, or concealment.”

To slip past the Four Generals’ surveillance—it’s surely the work of that goddess’ power.

While we’ve figured out what’s happening to the stolen goods, it seems we can’t do much more than that.

“If it’s just invisibility, at least the buyer’s identity wouldn’t be hidden. It’s likely a power specialized in concealment.”

“That makes sense… If that’s the case, it could mean they’ve infiltrated internally without us even realizing.”

Either we can’t perceive their presence at all, or we’ve already recognized them but dismissed them as harmless employees.

I checked their statuses for names and abilities, but now I can’t even be sure how accurate that information is.

“They’re also leaking dungeon information. And not just anything—they’re sharing data that’s difficult to obtain even by sneaking in. That makes them a clear enemy, my lord.”

“Dungeon information… That makes it even more likely to be an insider.”

While it’s possible for an intruder to investigate a dungeon and share that information, according to Pilkaya, this goes beyond what an outsider could know.

It increasingly points to an internal betrayal.

“Maybe we should speak with them directly.”

“That’s dangerous.”

“I’ll bring Lipianem with me.”

“Hmm… Just make sure to take the Phoenix Feather with you.”

With Lady Fiona’s approval secured, it’s time to conduct interviews with the employees.

By talking to them, we might uncover something suspicious.

“Of course, I’ll come too.”

“Yeah, I’d appreciate it. I might not notice something on my own.”

Still, even face-to-face, they might have a power that completely conceals the truth.

If Pilkaya’s observation skills and Lipianem’s intuition can uncover the culprit, that would be ideal.

Scene Break

“Uh, um! You’re leaving this to us!?”

“You talk with the employees more than we do. Just casually ask if they know anything about the missing goods.”

In the end, Tokito and Okui were put in charge of interviewing the employees.

Since they aren’t the culprits and are now the shop managers, it’s a reasonable decision.

“It looks like the first one is here~.”

“Excuse me… Um, what exactly is this situation…?”

A horse beastfolk entered the room, his face visibly stiffening with each step.

It’s no wonder. Aside from Tokito and Okui, there were also two of the Four Generals and me.

It looked just like an intimidation-filled interview.

“We just want to share some important information, so we’re calling in all employees. Sorry for the trouble.”

“I-I see. Have I done something wrong…?”

“Lately, it seems our inventory has been going missing. Have you noticed anything?”

“Inventory… Uh, I’ve gone to restock the shelves a few times, but I haven’t kept track of the exact numbers…”

So, he knows how much he’s taken, but he hasn’t been keeping track of how much is in storage overall.

That must mean Tokito and Okui, as managers, were in charge of overseeing the stock.

It would’ve been nice if there were a simpler tracking system, but this shop ended up oddly primitive in certain aspects.

Okui continued asking the man smooth questions, but he’s likely not the culprit.

His eyes darted around nervously, mainly glancing at us demons.

Our eyes met several times before he quickly looked away. Definitely suspicious behavior—but it seems more like nervousness from this high-pressure interview.

It could be an act, but I can’t see through it.

Well, we’ll just have to keep working through this, one step at a time.

Even if there’s no progress, we’ll do what we can.

◇

“Well, as I said, I’ve been to the storage room a few times, but unfortunately, I didn’t pay close attention to the inventory numbers…”

“I see~. So even Molly-chan hasn’t seen anything, huh~.”

“Yes, I’m sorry I couldn’t be of help.”

The squirrel beastwoman bowed her head to Tokito. She didn’t seem too nervous, answering confidently. Even when she looked at us, her expression only tensed up for a moment.

She might have a surprising amount of nerve, despite being a small animal-like squirrel beastwoman.

“This must be tough for you. To think it’s escalated to involving the demons as well.”

“……”

The name listed on her status was also Molly.
Her stats didn’t show anything unusual. If anything, they were slightly lower than other beastfolk, but that might just be because small animal beastfolk aren’t good at fighting.

Well, that’s fine. What’s more important is clearing up something that’s been bothering me.

I whispered into Okui’s ear, and though he stiffened for a moment, he nodded in agreement.

“Molly-san.”

“What is it, Okui-san?”

“Can you name the demons here?”

Molly blinked in confusion at Okui’s words but quickly started listing names as instructed.

“Pilkaya.”

“Hmm~? What’s wrong?”

“It’s her.”

The moment I spoke, flames erupted in the room, raging wildly.

…Whoa, that startled me. Thankfully, Pilkaya seemed to be holding back for our sake, so it wasn’t hot at all, but I thought we’d get scorched black from the sheer intensity.

Lipianem immediately stepped in front of me, but it wasn’t because she thought Pilkaya would harm us. She must have known Pilkaya wasn’t a threat and stood there to reassure me.

She’s so cool when she acts like this, yet usually, she’s just a clumsy beauty. Fiona-sama and Lipianem—it seems like all the strong ones in this world are like that.

Anyway, enough avoiding reality.

In front of me was a bewildered Molly and Pilkaya, embodying rage with her flames.

For now, I decided to evacuate Tokito and Okui. At this point, it might be best to leave the judgment in Pilkaya’s hands…