After the old thief's unexpected interruption, the journey to Ironwood City was relatively smooth, with no further obstacles. Fars weighed the bag of over a hundred gold coins in his hand, unsure of what to feel. It was no wonder that bandit groups could gather so many members; robbing was indeed a quick way to make money. Reflecting on the days spent with his newly formed Deunaisha Adventurers' Guild, he realized that the effort put into escort missions barely earned enough to cover Yuna's daily wages. At least he had some profit now. With the freshly acquired reward, Fars led Yuna and Lilith into a high-end restaurant, contemplating whether he had enough gold to satisfy Yuna's appetite.
"What should we order, Sister Yuna?" Lilith asked, sitting closely beside Yuna, her small hands flipping through the menu. After the events of the previous night, Lilith's mood had improved significantly, likely due to the concern both Fars and Yuna had shown for her safety in the face of danger.
Yuna, taking charge of the meal, confidently told the waiter, "Bring us your most expensive and best dishes!"
If Fars hadn't been hiding his face under his cloak, the dark lines on his forehead would have surely startled the other diners. However, he was pleased to see Lilith and Yuna chatting and laughing. A table full of dishes was nothing to him; as long as they weren't true gluttons, his wealth wouldn't dwindle in a year or two.
Upon arriving in Ironwood City, Fars removed the mage's badge he had been wearing. After the earlier ambush, he realized he had been too conspicuous in Nordan City. Now, with a legitimate identity as the leader of a small C-rank adventurers' guild, he felt less worried about attracting unwanted attention.
Beauty draws attention wherever it goes, and this meal was no exception. Yuna's stunning looks, combined with Lilith's innocent charm, captured the gaze of nearly every man in the restaurant. When Fars finally revealed his own strikingly handsome face, the women couldn't help but notice him as well.
Lilith, still young, felt a bit shy under the scrutiny, despite being a young lady from a noble family. In contrast, Yuna reveled in the attention, occasionally huffing in mock indignation at Fars, as if to complain about how he often bullied her, showing no awareness of the need to cherish women.
Perhaps the trio's combined allure was too powerful; when it came time to settle the bill, even the owner unconsciously offered a discount. Despite Yuna ordering an extravagant spread, they only spent about half of what Fars had just earned. A single meal costing over fifty gold coins was no small sum; it equated to the living expenses of an ordinary family for several months.
None of them were driven mad by money; in a bustling city like Ironwood, it would be a shame not to enjoy themselves. After securing a luxurious suite in the city's finest inn, the trio walked in, drawing numerous astonished glances. Fars felt the most pressure; it was no small feat for a man to lead two beautiful women into a room without being the target of envious stares.
"It's still early. After you rest, Yuna, take Lilith out to explore the city. I'll check the Adventurers' Guild for suitable tasks," Fars instructed, handing Yuna a heavy pouch of gold coins.
Yuna accepted the coins with satisfaction, thinking of them as her own. As a capable thief, she never needed to spend her own money while shopping. Unaware of her little schemes, Fars reminded Lilith a few more times before heading out.
As he descended the stairs, the looks directed at him had changed; they were no longer envious but rather sympathetic. With two stunning women by his side, it seemed inevitable that he would soon find himself in trouble. Some even sighed for him, ignoring the idle gossip of those who had nothing better to do. Fars had more important matters to attend to and paid them no mind.
Ironwood City was indeed more prosperous than Nordan City, likely due to the frequent large-scale ironwood trade. Many merchants preferred to hire mercenary groups for escort tasks rather than smaller adventurers' guilds. Thus, across from the Adventurers' Guild stood a grand mercenary guild, bustling with wealthy merchants and serious-looking mercenaries, unlike the Adventurers' Guild, which often had drunken patrons stumbling out.
With such a stark contrast, would anyone trust the Adventurers' Guild with significant tasks? While it wasn't entirely incompetent, the adventurers often needed to unwind after facing life-threatening challenges. Long ago, the guild leader had infused the tavern's spirit into the task-handling area, creating an open and free atmosphere that attracted many to the life of a wandering adventurer.
"Have you heard? The lumberyard outside Ironwood City has been taken over by a migrating horde of monsters. The city lord has issued a clearing task, open to any level of adventurers or adventuring groups. Ten gold coins for each monster head!"
"Do you know what kind of monsters they are? Are there many? If they're allowing all levels, it can't be too dangerous."
The conversation between two adventurers piqued Fars's curiosity. Another voice chimed in with more precise information: "They're not just any monsters; they're a bunch of goblins that have come out from deep within the Qihar Mountains. But according to those who took on the initial scouting task, it seems to be a rather large goblin tribe. The more goblins there are, the more we can earn!"
"Exactly! Those cowardly goblins will be scared stiff when they see us, easy pickings! Ten gold coins for each goblin is better than what I earn from low-level tasks!" Adventurers were generally carefree, and once the topic was broached, more voices joined in agreement.
Listening to the growing chatter, Fars gathered that the sudden appearance of goblins had disrupted operations at the lumberyard outside Ironwood City. They had taken over a significant portion of the forest, inciting the city lord's wrath. The timber trade was the lifeblood of Ironwood City, and the financial losses from the lumberyard's shutdown were substantial. However, Fars, bearing the title of a mage, looked down on such tasks, feeling it beneath him to hunt goblins that were hardly taller than half his height and lacked any real organization.
Aside from the goblin-clearing task, Ironwood City had more missions than Nordan City. Focusing on escort tasks, Fars found that either the destinations were too far from his own or the departures were delayed by a day or two. After all, hiring escorts required advance notice to select capable adventurers. With no other options, Fars settled on an escort mission departing in three days, heading to the border city of Yao in the neighboring Inlay Kingdom.
This task involved not just a merchant but also their goods. The Inlay Kingdom was traversed by the Inlay River, which flowed south from the Roland Empire, making water transport convenient. Many merchants wishing to sell goods in the Roland Empire preferred to take the longer route via the river, as it was safer than traveling overland, where they could encounter various bandit groups. Of course, Fars's Deunaisha Adventurers' Guild, consisting of only two members, couldn't handle such a task alone. This should have been a B-rank mission, but since the larger adventurers' guilds in Ironwood City were occupied with other tasks, they had to settle for hiring several smaller adventurers' guilds.
The receptionist who initially attended to Fars had doubted whether a two-member guild could satisfy the task issuer, given the lucrative nature of the reward. However, upon seeing that the two members included a mage and a high-level swordsman, her doubts faded. She even became a bit nervous speaking to the black-robed man, realizing he was a distinguished mage.
Fars himself felt that a two-member guild was indeed a bit small, so he added Lilith to the team, effectively increasing the Deunaisha Adventurers' Guild by half and aligning it with the guild's name. With three days to wait, it wouldn't do to just lounge around the inn. Lilith had just begun to learn how to cast Arcane Missiles, and she needed targets to practice on. The goblins outside the city would serve as perfect live targets. With Fars and Yuna protecting her, as long as the goblin tribe wasn't too powerful, no one would threaten their safety.
Speaking of Lilith's ability to learn spells, Fars felt a twinge of envy. It had only been a few days since he had guided her in spirit summoning, and she was already able to cast a small spell. Her aptitude for learning magic was far superior to his own when he was at her age. Moreover, during the spirit summoning process, Lilith had absorbed a significant amount of magical elements, and the first surge of magic she had condensed was already quite strong, sufficient to support the consumption of small spells.
With the arrangements made, Fars had no interest in lingering in a place perpetually filled with the stench of alcohol. The unfortunate drunks who couldn't afford a drink might love it here, but he found it unbearable.
Returning to the inn, he discovered that Yuna had indeed taken Lilith somewhere. The city's security should be relatively good; while incidents of abduction could happen, they were not frequent. As long as Yuna didn't seek trouble, there was no need to worry. Daytime was not the stage for him; as a vampire, he had to embrace the darkness. Blocking out the light from the windows, he found peace in solitude amidst the shadows.