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Lise, a priestess serving the Third Lord, Nerdeil of Life, arrived at the meeting point.

It had already been two years since she began her mercenary life.

She prided herself on enduring all sorts of hardships, but this was the first time she’d received such a large commission.

Perhaps that’s why she found it hard to calm herself.

‘Five gold coins…!’

And that wasn’t even the entire payment. She had heard that there would be additional rewards if the mission was completed successfully.

With just this one job, she could live comfortably for a month. If she was careful, she might stretch it to two or even three months.

It was obvious that the difficulty of the job would be high, considering how generous the payment was. But she couldn’t survive doing only simple tasks forever.

If she didn’t push forward, she’d remain stagnant. Sooner or later, she would have to take risks. And Lise was convinced that time was now.

“Hm! Alright.”

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she glanced around.

‘But where are the others?’

There was still a little time before the appointed hour.

Just then, she saw a large, rough-looking mercenary with a bow approaching.

It was Diem, an archer, and her fellow Level 4 mercenary who would be working with her on this mission.

Although they had only exchanged brief introductions, his intimidating presence made her slightly nervous. But Lise was a mercenary too.

From her experience working with various people, she knew that no matter how bad someone’s temperament was, they wouldn’t be rude to someone who smiled—unless they were truly impolite.

With that in mind, Lise gathered her courage and spoke up.

“You’re early.”

Diem, seemingly flustered, stammered as he replied.

“Oh, uh, yes, I guess I am. You’re early too, Lise.”

“Just call me Lise. We’ll be working together for a while, right?”

“…Yes!”

Diem nodded, his face slightly flushed. Lise chuckled. Despite his appearance, he seemed rather innocent.

As they made small talk, a question popped into Lise’s mind.

“I have a personal question. What do you think about this job?”

“Hmm… I see it as a great opportunity. Not only is the payment good, but we’ll also be building connections with the Green Tower. And this is Audrey Pretus we’re talking about! The genius mage.”

“True.”

“Raiding a ruin won’t be as easy as it sounds, but with a team like this, I think we’re in pretty good shape. Everyone here is at least a Level 4, so we can expect a certain level of competence. But…”

“But?”

Diem scratched the back of his neck, clearly debating whether to say more. His hesitation didn’t last long though. With a sigh, he spoke up.

“It’s Ian Berger. That young lord is what worries me.”

“Are you afraid he’ll pull rank because he’s a noble? From what I saw yesterday, I don’t think he’s like that. Audrey doesn’t seem the type either.”

“No, no! It’s not that. What concerns me is… his reputation changed drastically, and in such a short time. It’s hard to trust his abilities. The rumors say he was nothing more than a wastrel.”

Lise nodded. That much was true.

Seeing her agreement, Diem grew more animated, raising his voice slightly.

“And then, all of a sudden, he killed a Dark Mage. He even hunted a magical beast. And they say he was recognized by a hero. Does any of that sound believable?”

“W-wait.”

Lise, now flustered, tried to stop Diem, but he wasn’t done talking.

“Alright, let’s say he has a talent for swordsmanship. Let’s assume he’s skilled enough to hunt magical beasts and even be acknowledged by a hero. But being a treasure hunter is a different story. That’s a specialized profession. It’s not something you can solve with just luck or intuition. Is he supposed to be better than most? A rookie with experience—something like that?”

“Uh… well… I guess.”

Diem looked at Lise with a face that seemed to plead for agreement, but Lise could only manage an awkward smile.

“…?”

Diem had no idea why she was suddenly acting like this.

She kept glancing at something behind him, as if trying to hint at something.

When he finally turned around, he flinched like he’d seen a ghost.

Standing just a few steps away was Ian.

Diem’s face turned pale.

‘What… what did I just say?’

He quickly tried to recall the words he had just spoken.

There wasn’t anything too problematic, but if it could be seen as insulting a noble’s honor, then he had no defense.

Should he apologize first? But before he could decide, Ian spoke up.

“I understand.”

“Sorry, what?”

“I understand why you wouldn’t trust me. A treasure hunter’s mistake could lead the entire group into a trap, right? But don’t worry. That won’t happen. I’m not foolish enough to lie about something that would be found out so easily.”

“…Yes.”

Diem gave a hesitant reply, looking uneasy, while Ian simply smiled.

Shortly after, Grio arrived, holding a large rectangular shield, followed by Audrey with her two golems.

After making a final check of their supplies, they set off.

The journey proceeded quite smoothly.

With Audrey, a member of the Green Tower, accompanying them, they could use teleportation services at stations without needing to make separate reservations, which also kept the costs relatively low.

Since Audrey remembered the way, they only had to follow her directions, keeping a steady pace.

Using a wagon or horses would have made things much easier, but unfortunately, the terrain was too rough for that.

“Excuse me, if it’s not too much to ask, may I ask you a question, Lady Audrey?”

“What is it?”

Grio, the mercenary carrying the large shield, wiped the sweat from his brow as he spoke.

“I’ve heard this place is pretty remote, but this feels like a place where no one lives at all. How did you manage to come here alone?”

Audrey took a sip of water before answering.

“Materials that only mages can gather are sometimes found around this area. There used to be someone who handled that job, but they were sent away, so I had to come and collect them myself.”

“By yourself?”

“There wasn’t any stock left at the time, unfortunately.”

“Still… did you come without any protection? It doesn’t seem like something the Tower would allow.”

“There were a few times before when I had to come for similar reasons. And each time, I was the one who came here. Plus, I was also evaluating the golems’ combat performance, so I had a bit of an excuse.”

“Ah, the golems.”

Of course, the only reason she could afford to do something so reckless was because she had a means of returning to the Tower in case she ran into any danger.

But she didn’t feel the need to mention that part. It might give them the wrong impression that she planned to run away if things got rough.

Audrey naturally continued speaking.

“The golems performed beyond my expectations, and I became more confident, which led me deeper into the area in search of stronger monsters. I even camped out a few nights. Looking back, it was reckless. I wasn’t scared at all back then.”

“But that’s how you ended up finding the ruins, wasn’t it?”

“Yes, it was purely by chance. I happened to discover an unusual flow of artificial mana. When I followed it, it led me straight to the ruins.”

“From what you’re saying, it sounds like there was a mage regularly visiting this area, yet it still went undiscovered. That’s surprising.”

“I don’t think anyone intentionally hid it. It seems like the magic protecting the ruins deteriorated over time, revealing its location. In other words, I just got lucky.”

“So… how much farther is it?”

At this crucial question, everyone turned their attention to Audrey. She smiled slightly.

“Still quite a way. Last time, it took me two days because I didn’t know the way, but this time, we’ll only need to camp for one night. And just a warning, from here on, monsters will start appearing, so don’t let your guard down.”

As if her words were a signal, it didn’t take long before monsters showed up. Around twenty of them. However, with the high skill level of the mercenaries and the impressive performance of Audrey’s golems, as she had mentioned, there were no casualties.

Still, the frequency of the attacks was higher than expected. They faced four ambushes in half a day.

Although they managed to fend them off without difficulty, the constant battles gave them no chance to rest, and fatigue began to set in.

At least they were able to collect a few magic stones along the way, which served as a small consolation.

They made camp before sundown, lit a fire, and rested. At dawn, they resumed their journey and finally, their destination came into view.

“There it is!”

The ruins were faintly visible atop a ridge.

As if shrouded in illusion magic, the ruins occasionally flickered, disappearing and reappearing from view as the space around it distorted.

Ian assessed the distance between them and the ruins.

“If we keep a steady pace, we’ll arrive in less than an hour.”

As long as the path ahead remained clear, that seemed likely. But things rarely go as planned.

Soft footsteps, barely audible, reached Ian’s ears—there were more than just one or two.

They hadn’t set up a full encirclement, but they were approaching from one direction.

“Hold on.”

“Hm?”

“Something’s coming from ahead. Get ready.”

Ian had never been wrong when warning about ambushes, so the others moved into formation without question.

Grio stood at the front with his shield raised, Diem drew arrows and nocked them to his bow, Lise quickly began casting blessings, and Audrey commanded her golems to move into position.

Grrr… GRAAAH!

With a ferocious howl, the enemy finally revealed themselves.

Red Wolves.

Wolves with blood-red fur that looked like they wore it as a scarf.

These creatures were known as skilled hunters, and it wasn’t just for show. In an instant, they scattered, forming a tight perimeter around the group.

Diem scowled as he spoke.

“If those are here, that means there’s a werewolf nearby….”

Red Wolves were well-known as the followers of werewolves.

Wherever werewolves were present, Red Wolves appeared. Conversely, if Red Wolves were sighted, it was a sign a werewolf was lurking close by.

However, there wasn’t any trace of a werewolf’s presence. It didn’t seem like one was hiding.

In the meantime, Diem loosed three arrows in quick succession.

The wolves, startled by the incoming projectiles, dodged, but one arrow found its mark, striking the forehead of the lead wolf.

The wolf tumbled to the ground unceremoniously, but the others didn’t stop. They didn’t even look back, instead accelerating toward the group.

As the wolves closed in, Ian pulled out a dagger from his belt and hurled it. The blade flashed through the air, embedding itself into another wolf.

Thud!

“That’s two.”

Three wolves had already been dealt with, but there were still too many left.

All that was left…

‘Fourteen.’

Ian charged forward. It was an abrupt move that disregarded their formation, but none of the mercenaries called out to him.

They had already witnessed his abilities in the previous battles, trusting that there would be no issue. Besides, the golems could fill any gaps he left behind.

Grrrah!

The wolves reacted swiftly.

As Ian dashed ahead alone, two wolves at the front quickly retreated, while six others from nearby closed in on him.

Their response was impressive. However, Ian remained unfazed, swinging the sword in his hand with a wide arc.

Shrrk!

The sharp blade carved through the air, and in the blink of an eye, it sliced through a wolf that had been aiming for his flank.

‘I can see them.’

It wasn’t difficult for him to dodge the snapping jaws, and the attacks aimed at his back were just as easy to predict—likely thanks to the insight he had gained at the Eyare Ruins.

Moving with precision, he stepped and slashed, cutting down the eight wolves in a single breath.

“Hah…”

Exhaling the breath he had been holding, Ian looked back. The mercenaries had already dealt with the wolves that had attacked them and were now watching him.

He felt a little proud under their admiring gazes. As he wiped the blood from his sword and approached them, Audrey greeted him warmly.

“It’s amazing every time I see you. As expected from a Berger. I’m glad we hired you.”

“I hope this journey will be worth it for me as well.”

“It certainly will be! After all, we’re headed to the Rogolrod Ruins. It’s bound to be rewarding!”

Audrey’s cheerful voice made Ian smile slightly, and Grio, holding a shield as big as himself, asked Ian cautiously.

“Is everything alright?”

“Are you talking about the werewolf?”

“Yes.”

“There’s nothing within my senses, so you can lower your guard for now.”

If something was hiding and he still couldn’t detect it, it would mean the enemy was far superior. In that case, a surprise attack would be inevitable.

“But staying here for too long isn’t ideal. If no one needs to rest, let’s move on.”

Their destination was already set. With the group in tow, Ian led them toward the ruins.

———