Ch.90Chapter 90 – Crocodile Hunt (1)

After the incident at the magic tower was over.

The major events had concluded, and we were returning to our daily routines.

Forcibly dragging Beatrice along, waking up Sera, going to the guild to receive requests.

In the mornings when Christina showed her face at the guild, we’d go around together, and once or twice a week I’d visit Eve—that was our daily life.

“It’s peaceful.”

Beatrice was yawning while tilting her glass of alcohol.

She had been begging to drink so much that as soon as we finished our work at the guild, we settled in at the tavern inside the guild.

“By the way, Helmet, isn’t your rank too low for an adventurer?”

“If we’re going there, your rank is too high for a drunkard.”

Beatrice was actually registered with the guild.

Her rank was an impressive A.

She said she worked as an appraiser for information brokers because she was hungry for money, but I didn’t know she had been an adventurer too.

If that’s the case, she must earn quite a bit, so it’s puzzling where all that money goes when she still has unpaid tabs at the guild’s cheap tavern.

“That’s because I’m valuable personnel. But doing it for pocket money is too tiring, and the profit margins aren’t great. Honestly, it feels like I just got the qualification to come to this tavern.”

Indeed, even her guild ID card was covered in dust, showing how rarely she took on guild work.

‘Well, I suppose that makes sense.’

Considering how valuable mages are, the adventurer profession didn’t really suit mages.

Mages, especially those from magic towers, were high-class personnel that everyone wanted to recruit.

Why would magic tower mages, who want for nothing, bother running around here and there?

“Still, isn’t that qualification helping you now?”

“That’s true. It’s a good excuse for hanging around with this helmet.”

Beatrice nodded in agreement to Christina’s words, who happened to be at the guild today and had joined us on an extermination request.

Naturally, Beatrice and I were still stuck together because we hadn’t resolved the master-servant contract yet.

However, Asam had sent word a few days ago that he might be able to resolve it soon.

I’m a bit worried about what our relationship will be like once the contract is resolved, but we can’t stay attached forever. We need to resolve this quickly.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Sera lately.”

“It seems she’s been getting a lot of alchemy work lately.”

According to what Jamie said at the Jeolei Church last time, it seemed Sera had made the cosmetics sold at Eve’s trading company.

It looked like she was starting to gain fame because of that.

Christina’s expression turned a bit gloomy at my words.

“It feels like Sera is drifting away from us.”

“From my perspective, she’s still someone I have to wake up every morning because she can’t get up early.”

Of course, Sera gets up right away when woken.

Considering she probably falls asleep after studying or researching alchemy until late, it’s impressive that she gets up quickly.

Compared to Beatrice, who was sipping alcohol beside us, Sera was practically an angel.

“Ah, having a drink makes me feel alive.”

“But are you okay drinking alone? I heard drinkers always say they don’t feel like they’ve really had a drink unless they’re drinking with someone.”

“I’ve always been fine drinking alone.”

Beatrice said while eating some side dishes.

“Though I didn’t expect none of my party members would drink.”

I black out immediately when I drink, and according to Eve and Sera’s testimony from before, Christina doesn’t handle alcohol well either.

Well, if that’s the case, we shouldn’t drink, what can we do?

After finishing her drink, Beatrice ordered another and said:

“Still, these days are really nice.”

“What do you mean?”

“Finishing the day and having a drink. At least feeling relieved that I’ve spent the day peacefully.”

Maybe it was the alcohol talking.

Beatrice was saying things she would never say normally.

If I didn’t know she was drunk, I might have thought she was some entity wearing Beatrice’s disguise.

When her additional drink arrived, Beatrice gulped it down and said:

“Even though I’m drinking alone, it’s nice to have someone beside me.”

“Is that so.”

Nothing is more foolish than taking a drunkard’s words seriously.

So I gave a casual response, and Beatrice puffed her cheeks and said:

“This big sister has had so many difficult things happen, so when I spend a day peacefully, I’m truly happy~”

“Don’t stretch your words like that, it’s not cute.”

“Tch.”

Now that I looked, her face was red.

She was definitely drunk.

I’d rather not see her throwing up everywhere and clinging to me if I leave her like this.

So I started to forcibly lift Beatrice up.

She frantically shouted:

“Hey, wait. Let me finish that first!”

“If you finish that one, you’ll want another, and after that, another one. Stop drinking.”

“Ah, geez. You’re really…”

We started bickering again.

Christina laughed watching us.

“But it is nice.”

“What is?”

I turned my head to look at Christina while pushing Beatrice away slightly.

Christina glanced at her staff that she had set aside and opened her mouth.

“Days passing by without any trouble.”

I nodded quietly at her words.

Peace was best, no matter what.

I had a slight thought that I wished days like this would come often.

+

The next morning, Beatrice was suffering from a hangover.

I had tried to get her to drink moderately by taking her back early, but she had already gotten drunk by then.

“Ugh, my head. Helmet, why didn’t you stop me properly?”

“Be thankful. I did stop you moderately, so it ended with just this much.”

Beatrice looked at me briefly but soon started clutching her head again.

As I was looking at her pathetically, Sera brought out a bowl.

“Here you go. This should be good for your hangover.”

Seeing Beatrice suffering from her hangover, Sera had gone into the kitchen and made some kind of soup.

Since we’ve been staying here long-term, the owner doesn’t complain when we go into the kitchen and cook like this.

‘I’m slightly curious if they’ve noticed that I’m considering moving out soon.’

Maybe they’ve noticed and are providing kitchen services as a small gesture.

Just then, I heard the sound of slurping soup.

“Indeed. Seeing how well you cook, I think you’d make a fine bride. What do you think?”

“Would you stop poking me first?”

I retorted as Beatrice poked my waist with her elbow, smiling and speaking like some old man.

Looking at Sera, her face was slightly red as she lowered her head.

For a while after that, only the sound of Beatrice drinking her soup could be heard.

Since I can’t move if Beatrice can’t move, I can’t go anywhere until she finishes her meal.

As we spent time like that, Sera finally opened her mouth as if she just remembered something.

“Oh right, I’m planning to go to the guild today too.”

“Not going to the association? I heard you’ve been getting quite a lot of work.”

“About that.”

Sera hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Actually, Eve told me a few days ago that it would be better to refrain from taking association work. She said it would be best not to take any long-term jobs at all.”

“Eve did?”

The association was also a place where alchemists could receive requests.

For Sera, who had recently started making a name for herself, being told not to take association work was almost like being prevented from earning money.

‘Eve wouldn’t do that without reason.’

Eve is a merchant. She understands the importance of money better than anyone and wouldn’t stop someone from earning money without good reason.

What could be going on?

“It seems like Eve hasn’t said anything specific to you either, Kay?”

“No.”

All we did was chat about recent happenings over tea.

Around that time, I remembered something slightly different from usual.

“Come to think of it, Eve has been busy lately and hasn’t been able to spend much time with us.”

Usually, we often have meals together, but lately, she just listens briefly and then apologizes saying she has other business to attend to.

“I wonder what’s going on?”

Sera and I started pondering together.

But we have too little information.

“Let’s list what we know.”

Maybe if we lay it all out, some outline will emerge.

Nodding together with Sera, we listed what came to mind.

“I think I heard that the trading company became more famous recently because they started funding research at the magic tower.”

“Now that you mention it, I briefly met Perry on the street, and he said he ordered several sets of armor.”

“One time when I went in, I think she was looking at a map until I entered.”

“Oh right, Chris said she saw Eve heading to the craftsmen’s district while she was preaching on the street. She said she couldn’t greet her.”

Well, none of this information was useful.

But looking at it all together, it’s clear she’s been doing a lot of different things.

-Thud

Just then, Beatrice, who had been drinking from her soup bowl, put it down with a sound.

Looking at her, she was smiling slightly.

“That girl seems to be urgently preparing something these days.”

“How do you know that?”

“Heung, it’s a woman’s intuition.”

Come to think of it, Beatrice had to come along when I had tea with Eve, so she might have noticed things I didn’t.

As Sera and I looked at her, Beatrice smiled and said:

“Want to know?”

“Yes.”

At my response, Beatrice picked up a water glass, drank from it, slowly put it down, and then very slowly began wiping her mouth with a napkin.

Soon after finishing all these actions, she opened her mouth.

“I don’t know either.”

“Sera, finish her off.”

Apparently feeling similar to me, Sera immediately reached out and grabbed Beatrice’s face.

Beatrice quickly waved her hands and shouted:

“I surrender! I surrender! I surrender!”

“Give us a reason why we should spare you.”

The price for betraying others’ expectations should be heavy.

Knowing that Sera hadn’t applied force yet, Beatrice quickly opened her mouth.

“Look, the trading company’s business is their confidential matter, how could I dig into it? I’m a mage, not an industrial spy. I’m just guessing that she’s urgently handling and preparing something based on the atmosphere at the trading company, and seeing that the papers on her desk increase every time I visit, and from the conversations I’ve overheard. So please let go, Miss Seraphina!”

Sera looked at me.

I nodded at her.

“Finish her off. Ten seconds.”

“Wait, I told you everything! What else could I be hiding?”

“You didn’t tell us from the beginning. That’s the crime of being vexing.”

Soon Sera’s fingers dug into Beatrice’s face, and Beatrice started screaming.

The innkeeper briefly peeked out from the kitchen at the scream, but seeing the situation, he returned with an indifferent expression as if thinking “they’re at it again.”

‘I wonder what Eve is planning.’

I asked myself once more.

No answer came.

+

I dragged Beatrice, who was clutching her face and groaning in pain, toward the guild.

Up ahead, I spotted a familiar back.

“Ah, isn’t that Chris?”

“It really is.”

Christina was visible walking ahead, perhaps on her way to work energetically today as well.

The staff on her back made it much easier to recognize her.

“Chris!”

“Sera, Benefactor, Beatrice! Good morning!”

Christina approached us with a bright smile.

“Sera, are you going to work at the guild today?”

“Yes, I’ve suddenly had my income restricted…”

Sera told Christina about Eve’s instruction to refrain from taking work, just as she had told us earlier.

Naturally, Christina also said she had only seen Eve once on the street, so no additional information came from her.

“She’s not the type to do that without reason, how strange.”

“Yeah… but somehow, I’m getting a bit anxious since Eve suddenly said that.”

Unlike earlier, Sera seemed to be in the mood to confide in Christina.

However, seeing me and Beatrice, she seemed to swallow her words again.

“Why are you anxious?”

“They say words can become seeds, so I’ll hold back for now.”

Christina nodded with a smile at Sera’s words.

I was hoping to hear what she was anxious about.

As the four of us headed to the guild, we encountered a face we hadn’t seen in a long time.

“Oh, it’s Kay!”

“It’s been a while, Haven.”

Haven and his party appeared—the type who are nowhere to be found when you’re looking for them, but show up when you’re not.

When we were going to hunt the Bycon, they said they were away on an escort mission, and now so much time had passed.

“I heard you were going to hunt a Bycon last time.”

“We resolved it well.”

“That’s good. I’m sorry we couldn’t help because we were on an escort mission.”

Haven said with a smile.

Behind him, Ravi and his other party members started to appear.

‘What’s this?’

The two male party members of Haven were looking at me with eyes of hatred.

Judging by their aura, they seemed like they had mentally beaten me to within an inch of my life.

In that atmosphere, Ravi opened her mouth.

“It’s been a while, Seraphina. And…”

Ravi briefly looked around me.

Then, narrowing her eyes, she said:

“…you’ve really increased your number of women, Kay.”

The two men behind her were nodding vigorously in agreement.

I understood the reason for their hatred.

I was the bad guy.

“They’re all just acquaintances.”

“Really?”

I attempted a desperate excuse, but Ravi still had her eyes narrowed.

It didn’t work at all.

“Ravi, take it easy. Kay will handle it well.”

Haven said, placing his hand on Ravi’s shoulder, and Ravi reluctantly stepped back.

“Seeing you all together, you’re in the same party, right?”

“I… suppose so.”

I don’t remember registering a party with this many people at the guild.

But if he meant we often go around together, then yes.

In the meantime, Ravi seemed to have decided to put aside the issue with me and clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention.

“Alright, enough of that. Since we’ve met, let’s take on a larger job.”

“Sounds good. With eight people, we can take on quite big jobs.”

“Agreed!”

The expressions of the two male party members brightened at Haven’s words.

Following Haven’s opinion that with this many people, it would be better to ask for recommendations rather than searching for jobs ourselves, we headed to the reception desk.

“Oh, it’s been a while, everyone.”

Nina, who was organizing documents, greeted us brightly.

Soon after hearing our situation, she smiled and started listing several jobs.

“If possible, I’d like to choose one with a short travel time.”

“No, we should think about making a big haul…”

While watching his party members earnestly discussing and choosing a request, Beatrice pointed to one.

“Hey, let’s go with this one.”

“What is it?”

I looked at the request Beatrice handed me.

“Giant Dile? Four of them? Why this one?”

“Why? I guarantee if I explain, you’ll want to take this request.”

Beatrice answered confidently.

Looking at the request form, the location was about two weeks away from here.

I don’t mind going, but I wonder if Sera or Christina might not be able to come.

“This seems a bit too far…”

As expected, Christina expressed reluctance, but Beatrice wagged a finger and clicked her tongue.

“Listen carefully. First, their skin is very expensive.”

From the name, they seemed to be crocodile-like monsters.

Crocodile skin. It would be expensive.

Christina’s eyes wavered slightly at the mention of the high price.

“And their teeth make good catalysts for magic.”

“Why?”

“Because they eat all sorts of things.”

Beatrice was a mage after all.

Perhaps she was interested in the materials.

“And their stomachs are good alchemical materials too.”

“That’s true.”

Sera agreed.

Indeed, there wasn’t a single person in our group who wouldn’t benefit from hunting these creatures.

“But isn’t it too far?”

“No. There’s a magic tower branch near the forest there. In theory, the monster habitat isn’t that far from there, so it’s possible to go and return on the same day.”

“Oh, a magic tower?”

“Yes. If I ask a friend, they can teleport us there in one go.”

Going quickly and returning quickly.

‘That sounds pretty good.’

If we could drastically reduce travel time, there weren’t many downsides.

Eliminating the travel expense item would definitely be beneficial.

“What do you think, want to go?”

Beatrice asked with a smile.

In reality, there was no one in our group who would oppose.

“Let’s discuss it with Haven first.”

Haven was approaching, seemingly having overheard our conversation.

I went up to him and explained our opinion, and Haven nodded.

Soon everyone’s opinions were consolidated, and it was decided to go with Beatrice’s suggestion.