"Haa... damn it!"
"A little faster! They're going to catch us!"
"Wouldn't it have been easier to just spill Bell's information?"
"I thought you cared about Bell!?"
"You could've just brushed it off by calling him some rookie or whatever! Lord Ishtar doesn't seem to know anything about Bell anyway!"
"...Ah."
For the past ten minutes, we'd been running from the prostitutes.
It was practically impossible to avoid every single one of the women lying in ambush all around us, and since there were civilians here too, I couldn't recklessly use a magic sword.
The magic tools I made were mostly offensive or buff-type, so I didn't have anything useful for breaking out of this situation.
"Got any good ideas?"
"Hmm... Ah! Right!"
Hermes looked around as if something had just occurred to him.
"Found him! Bellf! See that old man in the hood with the bushy beard, pestering a woman on your left?"
"Yes!"
"Go to him!"
Since the distance between us and the pursuing prostitutes was only increasing, I could easily reach the old man.
"Grab that old geezer and run!"
"Why!?"
"That old man knows the information you want!"
I seized the old man who was bothering the woman and ran at full speed.
"Wha—!? What the hell is this all of a sudden... Hermes!?"
"I'll explain later!"
"Where to now!?"
"There! That rooftop!"
"Is it safe?"
"It'll do as a temporary measure!"
Hermes pointed to a dark building, and I threw both Hermes and the old man onto the roof.
Then I quickly climbed the wall and got up there myself.
"Good grief. Hermes! What the hell are you doing? I was trying to pick up some women for once!"
"You have a wife, so please just endure it for today."
"Ehh... So what's the matter?"
"This young man has something he wants to ask you."
"Oh? Is that so? And what is your name, young man?"
The old man stroked his beard as he asked.
"I'm Bellf Crozzo."
"...Hmm. And what is it you're curious about?"
"Do you know of a being called Urrs?"
"...And why do you want to know about that fellow?"
"A monster I found in the Dungeon told me I was Urrs. It bothered me."
"Hoho..."
"You know something?"
"Know something? Of course I do. That being called Urrs is a spirit."
"..."
Spirits are strange, mysterious beings, called the child most loved by the gods, the gods' avatar, and the existence closest to the gods.
"Then the reason that monster called me Urrs is..."
"Because your ancestor shared Urrs's blood."
"..."
So the spirit my ancestor had saved was Urrs...
"Then, is there anything else you wish to ask?"
Anything else, huh...
"No, that's all."
I did have a golden sword, but...
That was a problem I wanted to solve on my own.
"Then could you put me down? I'd like to enjoy the night."
"..."
After putting the old man down, Hermes said, "For now, let's hide quietly. Prostitutes mostly work at night, so by morning they'll probably be tired and go back."
"Haa..."
"Oh, isn't that Bell-kun?"
"Could you be mistaken?"
"There's no way white hair and red eyes like that are common."
I let Hermes's words go in one ear and out the other, and closed my eyes for a bit.
And then—
"Huh? Bell's being chased over there too?"
"..."
A few minutes later, I quietly watched the chaotic scene unfold.
Fortunately, dawn came without any further attacks.
Apparently the prostitutes had gotten tired halfway through and given up looking.
"Let's head down now."
"Haaam..."
After slinging Hermes over my shoulder, I headed as quietly as possible toward the Hermes Familia.
"Thanks, Bellf-kun."
"Yes."
After dropping Hermes off at the Familia, I headed home.
It was probably around 3 a.m. now.
Since I didn't really have anything to do besides delivering the armor, I figured it would be best to rest a little today.
"Phew..."
With a sigh, I opened the front door, and—
"..."
"Why are you here?"
When I opened it, I saw Aiz staring at me with dead eyes.