The Undercurrent Stirring in Setia
Pushing open the guild doors, Brian habitually scanned his surroundings, then suddenly felt a slight unease, though he couldn't immediately pinpoint why.
The shouting from a corner broke his thoughts.
Seeing his waiting squad members, Brian cast aside the fleeting suspicion and walked straight over.
"Xia Lao, give me the situation."
As a top-tier team, Brian's squad was the kind of group that could go a whole month without worrying about food or drink after a single mission.
But to not miss out on hefty rewards, the members usually took turns to stand guard in the guild.
The "Xia Lao" Brian mentioned was today's guard and also the one calling the group together.
"Boss, we have a targeted commission for our team. Here's the assignment content."
Brian took the mission paper. Looking at his curious teammates, he read the details out loud:
"Please escort me while I am in the Beast Forest for half a day, meet me at the West Gate at 11:30, payment 20 holy gold coins!!!"
Brian exclaimed in surprise at the mission's reward.
"A half-day escort with this kind of pay? Xia Lao, do you know who the client is?"
"According to staff, the client wears a hood, but their hands look quite young and without calluses—likely noble hands. Also, they have a VIP badge."
Listening to Xia Lao's answer, the group immediately understood.
If it was a noble, it made sense—they might be bored and willing to spend big for a thrilling outing. Brian suddenly lost interest and was about to refuse.
"Boss, first let's check the West Gate and confirm the client. If it's not to our taste, we just tell them we won't take the job and go to the Beast Forest anyway.
If it is, heh heh heh, this pay's no joke. Boss, you must be running low on money for knife maintenance while preparing Otto's gift, right?"
Brian thought about his hidden savings and went silent, deciding to take a look.
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"Miss Rem, I have some information. Interested in buying?"
Rem glanced cautiously at a shadow lurking in the alley and prepared to leave.
"It's information about the extermination of the Oni Tribe."
Rem stopped, her nose twitched, and her gaze turned icy.
The person before her gave off a faint witch's scent, but Rem knew they probably weren't from the Witch Cult—just someone who had contact with them.
Instinctively, Rem's hand went inside her skirt, but then she recalled Roswaal's plan and suppressed her anger, slowly withdrawing her hand.
"Give me the information."
Tossing a pouch of coins at the informant, Rem frowned as she caught a letter thrown back to her.
The strong and terrifying witch aura emanating from it made her instinctively recoil, but she opened the envelope anyway.
The letter looked like it was written by a child—it had grammar and punctuation errors, misspellings, and even scribbles.
The intelligence inside summarized as:
Members of the Witch Cult unexpectedly discovered the Oni Tribe's prodigy. She is preparing to leave from the West Gate and return to the Witch Cult to call for reinforcements. She will definitely leave Setia City before noon.
Though many questions flooded Rem's mind, none mattered now.
Even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance it was true, Rem would not allow anything that might endanger her sister to happen.
Rem dropped her food and started moving toward the West Gate.
Roswaal's plan no longer mattered.
Compared to her love for her sister, loyalty to Roswaal seemed trivial.
Of course, Rem didn't plan to tell her sister any of this—she wouldn't allow her to be put in danger.
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"Boss, something's off."
Playing with his famed blade, Brian looked up.
"I know. That's why I'm preparing."
Brian glanced around.
At first, he hadn't noticed—after all, the West Gate was the closest gate to the Beast Forest, so having many mercenaries around was normal.
But gradually, as more familiar faces appeared, Brian sensed danger.
"Boss, I confirmed it. Their commission is the same as ours."
"Is that so?"
Brian finally understood what had made him uneasy that morning.
Although the guild was as lively as ever, many of the top squad guards were missing.
"They're mercenaries like us. Looks like this mission won't be easy."
Brian sighed.
Most of the gathered mercenaries were people he knew—those who had been helped by Reinhild but left the manor for some reason.
Like himself: a former bandit leader defeated by Reinhild, who left the guards to get stronger (to avoid being beaten monthly by Reinhild), now living a dangerous life.
These people had one trait—they wouldn't flee from danger like mercenaries chasing profit.
Instead, they fought to the last moment.
They were less mercenaries and more like a free-roaming, secretive guard team handling matters no one wanted to see.
"I should have guessed. VIP badge. Wonder what big 'trouble' Otto got himself into."
Thinking of the weak man he caught a few hours ago, Brian smiled.
But recalling the girl who appeared after catching Otto, the smile turned bitter.
Thanks to his [Survival] buff, Brian had direct feedback that Otto was beyond saving.
Now, he thought, it was thanks to Otto that he'd witnessed humanity's terrifying limits and could return to the path of the warrior.
"Boss!"
"Let's go. Time for the battle plan meeting. Let's see what big mess Otto's gotten us into this time."
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Scent, the Witch's Scent
The blue-haired girl stopped and scanned her surroundings.
The next moment, she saw a plainly dressed peasant woman leading a blue-haired little girl—an ordinary scene, but to Rem, it was different.
Rem saw the girl trembling instinctively and smelled the woman's scent.
A Witch Cult scum was targeting a child!
—The letter's contents were true!
Two thoughts flashed through Rem's mind instantly, both concerning her sister. At that moment, Rem's only thought was to eliminate this threat.
"Witch cultist!!!"
Rem drew her hammer and swung it at the peasant woman—but was blocked.
A huge, furry hand caught it, and a strong force sent Rem crashing to the ground.
At that moment, war broke out.