The afternoon after Randy destroyed the attackers…
"Here, take the penalty fee."
At the royal capital's Dark Guild, Chris was being given back part of the payment as a penalty fee from the Guild Leader.
This signified the failure of the mission in Riverford.
Chris stared at the penalty fee handed to him, he lost in thought.
They had been monitoring Randy and his group when a sudden opportunity for an attack appeared.
Of course, Chris hadn't intended to give an unreasonable order.
It was a hasty decision, primarily meant to assess their level of security when separated from Silver Prince and Blue Moon Sword Princess.
Of course, they were hoping for something to happen… but the targets were more prepared than what Chris and the Leader had expected
In any case, the mission was a failure. They hadn't been able to capture anyone or even extract a single piece of information. It was a complete failure.
However, while looking at the penalty fee…
"No, you can keep it this time."
Chris shook his head, refusing to accept it.
Normally, a mission's failure comes with the payment of the penalty fee.
Refusing it could easily be interpreted as severing ties.
For the Leader, this was an insult, especially in front of his subordinates.
If it was a penalty payment, accepting it without arguing would be strange. Yet Chris didn't seem angry in the slightest.
It should be taken as severing ties, but the atmosphere didn't suggest that.
The Leader furrowed his brows deeply, puzzled by Chris's mysterious behavior.
"What are you trying to do?"
Chris smiled slightly. "There's nothing I can do about it. I just want to see if you get scared and back off."
Hearing this, the Leader clicked his tongue in irritation. The mission had been either surveillance or abduction.
If the target had formidable guards, it should have been an easy task to simply focus on surveillance. However, the group in Riverford had messed up even that.
Failing a mission this simple and then being scolded about "scared and back off"—it was no wonder the Leader was furious.
"Are you kidding me?"
The Leader's voice was low and menacing, but Chris merely grinned and feigned innocence.
Normally, the Leader's aura would have been more than intimidating enough for ordinary people, but Chris remained unfazed.
In truth, the Leader was slightly scared—no, it was more that he sensed something ominous.
His long-honed instincts told him this job was dangerous.
After all, the teams they sent for surveillance had been wiped out twice.
The first time was understandable. Going up against Silver Ridge and Blue Moon was no small feat.
Even if the entire Dark Guild's elite were mobilized, it would be doubtful whether they could even fight to a draw.
However, the second incident involved just two students traveling alone.
To be honest, the request had come suddenly, leaving little time for preparation.
It was true that they had scrambled to contact the Riverford group.
Yet, according to the team stationed at the southern gate, there had been no sign of any guards in sight accompanying them.
Logically, one might assume there were guards waiting in Riverford, but would they really go to such lengths?
Could it be that the student in question was some kind of extraordinary monster?
"…Hey?"
If that were the case, even if they were scolded for being "scared" perhaps it would be better to abandon this job altogether…
"Hey? Are you listening?"
"Oh, uh—"
Lost in thought, the leader snapped back to reality to find Chris standing before him, tilting his head and teasing, "Could it be you're actually really scared?"
"Of course not. I was just thinking about who to send next."
If the Leader had admitted to being scared here, it might have changed their fate—the fate of both the Dark Guild and Chris himself.
But he didn't. His pride as a leader wouldn't allow it.
While his instincts were warning him, he couldn't tolerate being humiliated by a kid in front of everyone.
In the underworld, where being underestimated could mean the end of business, retreating was not an option.
Still, his instincts nagged at him.
"I'm not scared, but I'd like more information on that student—especially the boy."
"The boy?"
Chris tilted his head, then pulled a small notebook from his pocket. Inside was detailed information about Randy, gathered through various sources.
"His name is Randolph Victor. He's the heir to a viscount in the duchy—"
Thus began Chris's detailed briefing, recounting everything he had learned about Randy.
"His academic performance is bottom-tier—"
"Bottom-tier?"
Hearing this, the Leader raised an eyebrow, and Chris smirked. "Surprising, isn't it?" he said, nodding.
Chris also pointed out that, despite being a male student, Randy hadn't taken courses in swordsmanship or martial arts.
"It's not like he doesn't need them… right?"
To the Leader's comment, Chris replied, "What do you think?" before revealing the next piece of information.
"Actually, during his first year, he did attend the lessons for both swordsmanship and martial arts at the first year. During those lessons, they held demonstrations for the new students—"
It's like a class orientation designed to showcase what the courses entailed.
For swordsmanship and martial arts, it was customary for senior students to perform mock battles.
The idea was to show how strong one could become after a year of training.
"And do you know what he said after watching? 'What the hell is this?' And his face was pale as a ghost."
Chris laughed as he described it.
And indeed, Randy had muttered "What the hell is this?" with a pale face.
He was horrified—not out of fear, but at the low level of skill on display.
If he were to train with these guys, he would probably kill them.
Accidentally killing a classmate during training.
Paying a hefty compensation.
His poor viscount family wouldn't be able to afford it, leading to their inevitable downfall.
Randy had imagined the scenario and inadvertently muttered under his breath with a pale face, "What is this… are they serious?"
Chris laughed heartily, but the Leader cut in, pointing out a contradiction: "But isn't he working as an adventurer?"
"Oh, that? Yeah, he is," Chris replied with his usual smirk before delving into the rumors and evaluations circulating in the guild.
"As you said, Randolph is registered with the Adventurers' Guild, but his rank is E. And the general opinion about him? 'Reckless, like most rookies,' apparently."
Chris shrugged, and the Leader frowned, pondering over the phrase, a reckless E-rank adventurer.
Indeed, Randy's reputation in the guild was that of a "reckless E-rank."
The reason for this was a bit complicated, but it boiled down to a silent order about the Armor Lizard incident.
The moment he returned with the dead creature, it caused a stir. However, the guild quickly moved to suppress the story.
The reason? To prevent other rookie adventurers from attempting to replicate the method.
The silent order was particularly strict when it came to young adventurers, like Chris and his peers. But, as the saying goes, you can't keep people from talking.
The combination of the silent order and gossip resulted in a distorted rumors:
• "Apparently, some rookie did something crazy, like soloing a giant Armor Lizard."
• "There's a rookie doing dangerous stuff, I hear."
• "There's a reckless rookie out there."
And so, through repeated whispers, Randy's reputation as a reckless E-rank adventurer spread far and wide.
Of course, those who knew the truth merely smirked and let the rumors persist.
Randy himself didn't seem to care, and correcting the story would only complicate the matters.
The information about both at the guild and at the academy Randy served to masked his true abilities.
Particularly in the Dark Guild, where the rank of "E" was an easy metric to grasp, the assumption was straightforward: an E-rank couldn't be that strong.
What the Dark Guild didn't know was that the guild's higher-ups had intentionally kept Randy's rank low to protect the newbie adventurers.
Randy and the guild had reached a common understanding regarding his rank, but there was no way Chris could have unveiled such details.
When he inquired with guild staff, all he got was a bitter laugh and vague responses.
"And there's one more thing," Chris added, flipping a page in his notebook.
"Before he enrolled, we also did a background check."
Chris revealed information gathered from interviews in Randy's hometown, Victor's territory.
"A certain lady from the castle town, who's known him since childhood, said, 'He was a mischievous kid. Used to catch big snakes (Black Serpents, an A-rank magical beast) in the forest behind the mansion.' Typical countryside stuff, right?"
Chris chuckled, then continued.
"Apparently, as kids, they had this group called the 'Randy Expedition Team.' They'd explore the forest (Demon Forest) behind the mansion. Pretty funny, isn't it? Exploring their own backyard."
Chris sneered as he recounted these tales, which included Randy's solo adventures into the forest.
While all of it was true, Chris's understanding of the events missed the reality entirely.
"The territory borders a magical forest, sure, but the entrance is guarded by knights. And more importantly, the places where children might go are filled with knights."
Chris closed his notebook, and the Leader nodded. "I see."
Chris had also looked into reports of high-grade magic beast materials recently coming from the Demon Forest thus enriching the territory.
However, it was hard to imagine for Chris, who had grown up normally, to be able to go straight from the Lord's mansion to the Demon Forest.
Leaving an important location directly connected to one of the world's most dangerous places is something no ordinary person would consider.
Of course, the thought of a young Randy training deep within the Demon Forest or hunting high-ranked magical beasts is entirely unthinkable.
Even if someone who only knew Randy recently heard about his childhood, they would never believe it.
As a result, both Chris and the Kingdom evaluated Randy as nothing more than a "naughty child from the countryside."
"Still, we've confirmed from this and the previous encounter that their guards are skilled. That settles it—the next attack will be at the academy," Chris declared.
"That's fine, but can you take care the Dark Side?"
"Well, if I can lure them to the old academy building somehow, maybe," Chris replied, though not with much confidence.
Even so, the Dark Guild wouldn't deploy their people unless the situations were right.
"Then hurry up and come up with the plan."
Leaning back, the Leader pushed the bag of penalty fee back toward Chris.
"The next attempt will succeed—in the name of the Dark Guild."
The Leader smirked, and Chris responded with an "Okay," accepting the bag with a grin.
As he walked away, looking relaxed, the Leader realized that the anxiety he had been feeling earlier had subsided.
(Am I getting old?)
The Leader let out a wry smile. But no, that wasn't it.
If he had encountered Randy before executing the plan… perhaps their fate would have been different.
Yet even a man who had survived in the underworld for so long might not have been able to discern Randy's true nature.
What would have happened remains unknown.
But one thing is certain: any tiny chance of a different outcome was extinguished at this moment.
—-
Patreon.com/Medblare