Crossroad. The Forge.
Hannibal, an N-grade rookie mercenary, cautiously stepped into the forge.
In one corner of the hot, fiery forge, the person the boy was looking for was present.
"Ah, damn these blacksmiths... Their eyes light up whenever there's a trick or know-how to exploit..."
Kellibey was grumbling while tinkering with the furnace.
The sight of the elder dwarf nimbly moving about the workshop while lying on a wheeled bed was both amusing and fascinating.
Hannibal watched the dwarf with clear eyes peeking through his messy hair, mouth slightly ajar.
"Huh?"
Kellibey, noticing the boy's gaze, squawked.
"What are you gawking at? If you want to steal a look, just come in!"
Startled, Hannibal rushed into the workshop and bowed deeply.
"Ah, hello, Master! My name is Hannibal! I was sent by Prince Ash!"
Kellibey squinted his thick eyebrows and looked the boy up and down.
"So you're the assistant I'm supposed to get?"
"Yes! Just tell me what to do!"
"How old are you?"
"Fifteen."
Kellibey clicked his tongue.
"Kid, it's your business if you want to deceive others, but don't lie if you'll get caught. This old man has pretty good eyes."
"…"
Kellibey asked Hannibal once more.
"How old are you really?"
"...Thirteen, sir."
Hannibal, who had momentarily shrunk back, immediately lifted his head high.
"But I'll grow quickly. I'm already the tallest among my peers!"
"Anything else you're hiding?"
"Uh, no!"
Kellibey stared at the boy with scrutinizing eyes. Hannibal swallowed nervously.
"…Hmm. Well, doesn't matter. You're only going to be an assistant temporarily anyway…"
Kellibey shrugged his shoulders and gestured towards the furnace.
"Ever handled metal before?"
"I've handled weapons all the time! I used to collect equipment from the battlefield."
"So you're saying you're a scavenger, picking up weapons from corpses. Never actually done any blacksmith work."
Kellibey nodded.
"Alright, go change into the work clothes."
A sigh of relief crossed Hannibal's face. Kellibey chuckled.
"Just learn well while my back's still holding up, kid. Might give you a way to make a living later."
***
Crossroad. Barracks.
Camus, an SR-grade middle-aged mercenary, stepped into the barracks, dragging his worn-out bag behind him.
"You can use the dormitory room over there. The bathroom and dining area are on that side…"
A soldier from the barracks was showing Camus around.
Camus, who had been listening half-heartedly, suddenly looked intrigued as his eyes caught sight of something.
About fifty soldiers dressed in Imperial uniforms were marching into the barracks.
These were reinforcements sent from the Imperial Capital. Among them were Reina and her magician party members.
Camus gestured toward them and asked.
"...Who are those people?"
"Ah, they are a magical corps dispatched from the Imperial Family."
The guiding soldier explained with a smile.
"They've been really helpful in the defensive battles. They'll be returning to the capital after the next defensive fight. It's quite unfortunate."
"...Indeed, so it is."
The soldier looked puzzled at Camus, who slowly nodded his head.
"Do you have some business with those people?"
"I recognized some faces. Thought I should greet them later."
Camus offered a faint smile, adjusted his bag, and walked toward the lodging he had been assigned.
"Thank you for the guidance."
The soldier, who had been tilting his head, soon turned around to attend to other tasks. There were many newly recruited mercenaries, and a lot to guide.
"Reuniting in this backwater of the South…"
Camus's eyes grew cold as he walked towards his lodging.
"The world really is small."
***
"Hmm~"
Inside the carriage on my way back from the Mercenary Guild after finishing a hiring process, I was lost in thought, staring at the system window.
[STAGE 10]
- Time until the start: 28 days
Stage 10 is a boss stage.
It's more challenging than usual, but there is ample preparation time. Roughly a month this time.
'I should go on a free exploration.'
Initially, I was planning to scout the dungeons with a light, single-party unit.
I needed to precisely identify the enemy army, and now would be the time to venture into the next level of the dungeon.
Opening the hero character list from the system window, I began selecting party members for the initial scouting mission.
'I guess it's better to assemble the main party first. But Junior… should be left out.'
Junior, the main party's key mage, was already frail. After pushing her through an all-nighter, she'd fallen seriously ill.
She'd used her ultimate skill, [Elemental Disassembly], multiple times too. She needs a good rest.
After considering the remaining hero characters, I eventually confirmed the lineup.
'The party for the initial dungeon exploration will be me, Lucas, Evangeline, Damien, and…'
I dragged a character from the sub-party and moved him to the main party.
'Kuilan.'
I have to take the Bandit King with me.
Two knights, one brawler, one sharpshooter, and one commander—this was our party structure.
Though it was a bit front-heavy and lacked a mage, I had utility skills, and Damien, who had reincarnated as a Magibullet Magician, could handle long-range sniping and healing.
It should be enough for the first scouting mission.
'No time to waste.'
Upon arriving at the mansion, I instructed Lucas to notify all the members to gather by tomorrow morning.
"Lord, it hasn't been many days since the last defense battle… Are you sure it's not too much?"
Lucas asked, concern filling his voice, but I slapped my chest and grinned.
"I'm sturdier than I look! I've fully recovered, so don't worry and call the party members by tomorrow morning!"
***
...However.
There was something I hadn't considered.
Not all hero characters are as sturdy as I am.
"Could we... maybe rest a few more days before setting out...?"
With a pale face and a trembling body, Kuilan asked.
He seemed to have overexerted himself during the last defense battle, and was now feeling the backlash.
Come to think of it, his Stamina stat was only 5. Such a fragile body...
'What a waste of all those muscles.'
Wrapped up like a burrito in a blanket despite being over 6 feet tall—what a sight.
Kuilan sat huddled in a corner of the backyard, shivering from the cold. It was a pitiable sight indeed.
Yet, unexpectedly, there was another who wasn't faring well.
"Cough! Cough-cough-cough!"
Dripping snot from her tiny nose and with a wet towel wrapped around her forehead, it was Evangeline.
"Did you catch a cold or something?"
"No-no, absolutely not. I'm perfectly fine, see? Cough-cough!"
Evangeline, who had been sniffling, cleared her nose loudly into a handkerchief and then spoke in a somewhat clearer voice.
"I'm in tip-top shape."
"You seem to have your priorities mixed up..."
"So, who's our opponent today, senior?"
"Look at me when you talk, look at me."
"I'm always looking at you, senior!"
Evangeline sarcastically gestured toward a fountain statue in the garden. No, I didn't mean that one! Have you lost your eyesight too?
Evangeline, her face flushed as though she had a fever, approached the statue and started caressing its face.
"Hehe, senior, your face looks even clearer and whiter today...?"
"Well, the statue is made of marble, so I guess so."
"When did you grow your hair this long...?"
"That's not hair; it's a mane."
"Oh my. You even have such splendid wings... I should've known..."
"What image of me do you have inside your head...?"
For the record, the garden statue was of a Pegasus, a winged horse.
Laughing softly, Evangeline clambered onto the statue.
"Alright, senior! Let's go! To our paradise!"
"We're not going, I said."
Even worse, instead of her shield, Evangeline had a large dining tray strapped to her left arm. And in her right hand, she held a broom instead of a lance.
"She's really lost it..."
Ignoring Evangeline, who was cackling atop the Pegasus statue, I looked around at the rest of the team.
"Lucas, Damien, how are you guys doing?"
"I assure you, my lord, I am not like those weaklings."
With a sardonic smile on his friendly face, Lucas pulled out a blue crystal orb and shone it towards Evangeline.
I tilted my head. "What's that?"
"It's a recording crystal. It can capture video. It's rare to see Evangeline 'Miss' in such a wrecked state, so I thought I'd record it."
"Hmm... good idea."
Showing the footage to Evangeline after she regains her senses could yield a rather entertaining reaction.
Lucas and I looked at each other and chuckled wickedly.
Finally, Damien chimed in, "My arms aren't fully healed yet, but I can definitely participate in the operation!"
He raised both his bandaged arms. Seems like even after the focused healing at the temple, he wasn't fully recovered yet.
I nodded. "So, you can shoot, right?"
"Yes! Leave it to me!"
"Alright, standby for now. Father."
"Phoof—!"
As I called out nonchalantly, Damien snorted loudly.
Lucas, who was listening on the side, furrowed his brows as he looked at me.
"'Father'? What do you mean by that, my lord?"
"Ah, it's nothing. Damien had a dream where I was his son. So, I occasionally call him that for fun."
Damien covered his reddening face with both hands and wailed.
"Ahhhhh! It was just in a dream! My bad! Stop teasing me now!"
"Mhm~ I'll tease you for life. How about giving some allowance to your son, Dad?"
"Ahhhhhh!"
Overwhelmed by the immense embarrassment, Damien sprinted away toward the other side of the garden.
Watching his retreating figure, I chuckled and then surveyed the rest of my party members.
Damien's arms were still healing, Kuilan was shivering wrapped up like a sushi roll in a blanket, and Evangeline had lost her taste and was glued to a Pegasus statue.
'I thought only Kellibey was in rough shape, but it seems everyone had their own struggles. These after-effects are no joke.'
But disbanding the group now that we'd all gathered seemed like a waste.
Lost in thought for a moment, I clapped my hands. A great idea had come to me.
"We'll proceed with entering the Lake Kingdom as planned. However, today we're not exploring the dungeon but other facilities within Lake Kingdom."
"Other facilities, you say?"
"Exactly."
Lucas looked puzzled, so I explained with a grin.
"The depths of the Lake Kingdom's dungeon, starting from level 6, are nicknamed 'Demon Realm.' The dungeon's difficulty and the strength of the monsters dramatically increase from there."
Lucas listened with a tense expression.
"That's why, between levels 5 and 6, there's a facility where the party can take a break. Just resting there replenishes stamina and magic power, and you get various minor buffs. Let's blaze a trail up to that place today, take a break, and return."
While enthusiastically pitching the idea as if I were a snake oil salesman, I revealed the name of the facility.
"It's called the Dungeon Spa!"
In other words, it's a hot spring facility that the people of the Lake Kingdom used!