Ivan and Phonia’s presence could be felt inside the mansion.

There was no longer any doubt that they were here.

“The question now is whose mansion this is.”

“Yeah. I can definitely sense the two of them in there, but…”

A quick glance toward the mansion’s entrance revealed two gatekeepers staring at us suspiciously.

If this wasn’t the Lagroi Marquis family’s estate, we wouldn’t be able to enter using the designated request as justification. If we wanted to intervene, the best we could do was inquire through the Marquis family as to why their slaves were here, using the request as our basis. That would be a roundabout approach, though.

“Maybe we should just ask the gatekeepers directly.”

“That would be the fastest way, yeah…”

Rio agreed. While we could have taken some time to gather information, we didn’t have the luxury of being so leisurely. The fate of captured runaway slaves was obvious—only a future filled with brutal punishment awaited them. I didn’t care as much about Ivan, but I didn’t want Phonia to suffer such a fate.

As I petted Nir’s neck, I approached the mansion’s gate.

“What business do you have here?”

“We’re here on a request. Is this the Lagroi Marquis household?”

“It is… and who are you?”

So it really was the Lagroi Marquis family’s estate. Suppressing a sigh, I pulled out the designated request document issued by the Marquis’ eldest son.

“I’m Mizumoto Shu, an adventurer who accepted a designated request. We had secured the two runaway slaves mentioned in the request, but it seems someone snatched them away.”

“Hmm… Yes, this does appear to be the request Lord Mellow issued.”

The gatekeepers exchanged glances.

“We received information that those two runaway slaves are here. We came to confirm whether the request had been issued to anyone else besides us.”

On the surface, our reasoning was that we didn’t want our designated request to be nullified because the client had also hired others to complete the job. In addition to the D-rank request listed at the guild, nobles had their own private soldiers and connections outside of the guild. If someone else completed the task through those means, we’d be in trouble.

“Wait here for a moment.”

With that, one of the gatekeepers hurried off into the mansion. Honestly, I’d expected to be turned away outright, but apparently, the people working at the estate weren’t as twisted as the nobles themselves.

After a short while, the gatekeeper returned with someone in tow. The man’s attire and demeanor immediately gave the impression of a butler.

“Thank you for waiting. Please, come inside.”

“Is it alright if my contracted beast enters with me?”

Before stepping forward, I made sure to ask. The butler cast a brief frown in Nir’s direction, but only for a moment.

“That’s fine. Please, this way.”

We followed him through a meticulously maintained garden and into the mansion. Soon, we were led into a reception room near the entrance, where we took a seat on a sofa.

“I will go prepare the request completion certificate. Please wait a moment.”

“...What?”

The butler bowed deeply and turned to leave, but his words caught me off guard.

Our goal was to retrieve Ivan and Phonia. Simply receiving a completion certificate wasn’t an option. However, if they considered the request completed, arguing would only make things more complicated…

“Is something the matter?”

The butler, ever courteous, paused to ask. But for a moment, I was at a loss for words.

“...Huh?”

Just then, I noticed something. Ivan and Phonia’s presences had changed.

Ivan’s presence was… growing weaker?

Wait, what? What does it even mean for a presence to weaken like that?

“Shu… This is…”

Rio, sensing the same thing, gripped my arm uneasily.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this—”

Before I could finish my sentence, Phonia’s presence suddenly surged, and an explosion rang through the mansion.

“Wh-What’s going on!?”

“Something must have happened where Ivan and Phonia are…”

Pointing toward the source of the disturbance, I saw the butler’s expression stiffen.

“L-Lord Mellow!”

Calling out the name, he panicked and bolted out of the room. If I recalled correctly, Mellow was the name of the Lagroi Marquis family’s eldest son—the same person who owned Ivan and Phonia.

“Shall we follow him?”

“Let’s.”

“Alright, Nir, let’s go.”

If anything, this was a golden opportunity. We rushed out through the open door and chased after the butler. Turning corners and moving deeper into the mansion, we finally caught sight of him running out into the courtyard.

“Outside?”

Ivan’s fading presence and Phonia’s surging one were both near. There was no mistaking it.

We followed him into the courtyard, and the first thing that came into view was—

“...A fox?”

“Phonia…?”

A towering beast, about two meters tall—a fox. Its entire body was covered in reddish-brown fur, and five tails stood erect behind it. It writhed in agony, clawing at its neck, where a black choker was fastened.

“What the hell is going on?”

Nearby, a middle-aged man in fine clothing had fallen onto his backside, his face pale as he tried to crawl away from the fox. The butler rushed to help him up, but I paid them no mind.

Instead, where was Ivan—

“Ivan!?”

Rio cried out, dashing past the fox toward something behind it.

There, lying motionless in a pool of blood—was Ivan.