The city of Rose was as busy as ever.
In front of the adventurers’ guild, rows of food stalls lined the street in perfect order. The aroma of foods and sizzling spices filled the air. People ca and went. so sat down to eat, others grabbed food to go.
At one particular stall, a group of five adventurers laughed loudly, their voices echoing down the street. So of them slapped the table, tears in their eyes from laughter. In front of them sat stacks of empty bowls with only soup residue left, along with countless bottles rolling around the tabletop.
Nearby custors shot annoyed glances at the noisy group, their expressions showing clear displeasure.
"Hey Kim! Bring us more drinks!" Lee shouted, raising his cup high.
"Coming!" Kim called back, hurrying over with more bottles. His two front teeth glead as usual.
"Um... everyone..." Kim said, his voice soft and awkward. "Could you maybe keep it down a little? So of the other custors are feeling a bit... disturbed by all the noise."
Lee turned and stared directly at Kim, causing him to flinch.
"We’re custors too, aren’t we?" Lee said, his tone sharp. "Didn’t they say the custor is always right?"
He suddenly stood up, lifting his chin.
"If anyone here’s unhappy, then say it to my face...right now!"
A tense silence fell over the area. The nearby custors quickly lowered their heads, pretending to focus intensely on their food. Not one dared et Lee’s eyes.
Lee scanned the crowd, nodding smugly. "That’s what I thought. Mind your own damn business."
Mark reached up and tugged gently at Lee’s shoulder, pulling him back down into his seat.
The rest of the table burst into laughter and kept drinking.
"Hey, did you guys hear?" one of the n said, leaning forward with a smirk. "Those two newbies, the S-rank and the G-rank, got kicked out by the Guildmaster yesterday."
Mark and Lee raised their eyebrows, intrigued.
"You serious, Eddy?" Mark asked. "Bob is a S-rank. No way Mirinda would toss him out."
"I’m telling you, it’s true. Wanda, you were there, right?"
"Yeah, I heard it too," Wanda replied, sipping her drink. "But then the Guildmaster gave them a trial, sothing about slaying a bunch of cave beasts."
"Cave beasts? You an from Coldshire Cave?" Galon asked.
"I think so. I even saw them head out earlier with Beltimore and Alice," Wanda added.
The mont she said Alice, all the n at the table entered a daze, clearly imagining the guild’s angel, her elegant figure, straight silky hair, and that unforgettable perfu.
Wanda narrowed her eyes. "What are you all thinking about?"
All the guys instantly snapped back to reality, coughing awkwardly.
"If they’re really fighting cave beasts," Lee scoffed, "they’re gonna need all the luck in the world to survive. No way they win that fight." He smirked.
Mark crossed his arms thoughtfully. "I don’t know. I think they’ve got a chance. Bob’s already S-rank. And Alan... there’s sothing about him. I can feel it."
"That guy’s a G-rank!" Lee barked. "You’re always overthinking things."
"It’s confird now," Galon said, he has a half-bald head and wild tufts of hair on one side, "Bob’s definitely getting a spot in the tournant. He’ll probably lead the team for the group battle."
"How many people are we sending per category again?" Lee asked, scratching his chin.
Wanda sighed. "You want to join the tournant and don’t even know how many people qualify?"
"For the solo battle, we can send a maximum of three mbers. For Last Man Standing, five. And for the group battle, up to ten," Wanda explained. "But, just like previous tournants, our guild never really sends the full numbers."
"Yeah, because most of our guild mbers suck!" Lee said bluntly.
The other three mbers went quiet. The comnt stung, they were all only Rank C or D, and it felt personal.
"It looks like your chances for solo battle are pretty slim, Mark," Eddy added casually. "Selene’s been training hard. She’s always out with her group taking quests."
"Ugh, I really hate that girl," Wanda groaned. "Always trying too hard, like she wants everyone to see how hardworking she is. It’s annoying."
"Yeah," Galon chid in. "She’s only C-rank. How dare she think she can compete with Lee and Mark? She should know her place."
"Maybe we should sabotage her," Eddy said with a smirk.
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PANG!
Eddy’s head snapped sideways from the slap. A red mark blood on his cheek. He turned, stunned, to see Mark standing, eyes burning with anger.
"Have so respect for other people’s effort! At least Selene works hard and doesn’t leech off others like you all do." Mark’s voice was sharp, cutting through the tension. Then, without another word, he stord off, leaving the group silent.
Eddy slowly turned to the others, rubbing his cheek, then looked at Lee, seeking so sort of support.
Lee just sighed and muttered, "Did you forget he and Selene were childhood friends? Watch your mouth next ti."
Then he raised his hand and called out the stall worker, "Kim! How much for everything?"
After Lee paid the bill, the group left the stall and went off to look for Mark.
Inside the stall, Kim was still staring after them, lost in thought.
"Why are you still standing there?" a gruff voice barked.
Kim flinched. His father, Hans, stood behind the counter, arms crossed and brows furrowed.
"Peak ti’s coming. Get moving and clean the tables!"
"Yes, sir!" Kim snapped out of it and rushed to wipe the table, not wanting to face another round of scolding from his father.
---
We were resting in one of the quieter areas of the cave, beside a small, still lake. It had been over an hour since we started wandering aimlessly, searching for another path out.
My [Torch Bug Net], which I had stuck to the cave wall earlier, began to flicker. I walked over, removed it, and stored it back in my inventory. To keep the area lit, I lit a couple of torches and placed them nearby. The soft glow cast long shadows across the stone walls.
Bob sat by the edge of the lake, staring into the water. Alice leaned silently against a large rock in the corner, arms crossed and eyes closed. Beltimore was adjusting his gloves with a focused expression. Everyone looked drained, we had been walking non-stop for hours, and none of us had any idea if it was day or night outside.
Bob leaned closer over the lake, squinting into its dark depths. Sothing at the bottom had caught his attention. He slowly waded in a little deeper, curiosity pulling him forward.
Then he saw it.
A corpse.
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