Arnold was about to knock on the door but Elora came out at that moment.
"I thought Sir Novawould be away for a while." Genuine confusion was on her face.
He glanced over her shoulder before replying, "I have some free time in the afternoon after my classes at the academy are over so if nothing else occupies my time, I'll swing by here."
'This room is a mess. Papers and empty plates everywhere. Does she work and sleep here…?'
"That's great! We can get more work done like this!"
"Yeah, I'll help you out tomorrow. But set some of the work aside so that I can take it back with me. I'll drop by again later."
"Got it." she nodded.
Josephine called out to her from the bottom of the stairs, "Vice Guild Master, the newest members to the program are here for the meeting."
"I'll be with them shortly," she responded then Josephine went back to the front desk, "Sorry, I need to let them know of the arrangements for the parties in the guild." Elora closed the door and began to descend the stairs with Arnold following along.
"No worries. I'll be heading out soon with Lucia anyway."
She stopped.
"…It's been so long since the two of us have been on an adventure. Galadriel asked me when our party leader will ever have time to just do a quest with us that doesn't hold the fate of the world in our hands."
"We're an S-rank adventurer party—those days are long behind us. Leaving out the challenge to do a street-level quest will just bore us. We progressed too quickly so we can't look back on the smaller quests we could've done together before being handed an SS-class quest."
"Mm, I guess Sir Nova is right… It's not like we can fit such a quest in our schedule anyway…"
For most high-rank parties, the process is basically just preparing everything that's needed for the high-level quest, doing the quest, then taking a very long break.
Fitting in a B or A rank quest is just a waste of time. A few of Lufulur's guild members used to do it for nostalgia's sake or when they're bored or fed up with the constant grinding in endgame.
"Remember our promise?" at his question, she looked confused but then her eyes widened slightly, "I promised to let you request one thing of me. If you want, we can do any quest you want and I'll make room in my schedule."
"Actually, I have something in mind already…" she muttered with a light blush on her face.
"…Got it… Our party member doesn't seem to be here. Where is she off to?"
"Galadriel's doing quests solo to test out her new gear. I'm not sure where she went but the regions between Horvine city and Whitage city have the most monster activity from what the information guild told us so she must've gone there."
"I see. I'll probably run into her while scouting the border." The two reached the bottom.
"Please take good care of the greenhorns. The quest they accepted is quite difficult to pull off since it tests their wits."
"Yeah, I will. See you later."
She didn't say goodbye to him, only showed a wry smile. It's not like he'll be gone for months again so there was no need to.
When Arnold came into the lounge area, he found the three ready to move out, their gear equipped and provisions for the road secured.
The four of them then left the building and headed toward the West Gate since the Barren Swamp was in that general area in the forest.
**
The journey from the capital to Barren Swamp was about 45 minutes. They only ran into a few bandits but none were a threat. Flashing around their adventurer plates was enough to scare the bandits off.
The region around Arnold's city might be the only one where there aren't bandits since his red knights patrol the farms, forests, etc… It's not even needed for there to be more than one per spot since there's no way for an ordinary human to be stronger than them that could pose a threat.
In any case, they had rented a wagon with two horses for the day since the Basi eggs are quite large. The bandits probably thought there was something valuable in the wagon so they risked their lives for nothing.
The wagon was filled with hay and blankets to make sure the eggs don't break when transporting them. Like the breath they release, the inside of Basi eggs are extremely toxic so they must be handled with care and only opened in a controlled environment. His guess is that they people who requested the Basi eggs have a building like Melissa to handle dangerous stuff like these eggs they want.
"—I've spotted the eggs." Lucia appeared from the thicket of the vegetation after her camo spell wore off. She had gone off to investigate after Arnold gave the okay after confirming the Basilisk and other dangerous monsters weren't nearby.
Anything else in this swamp can be handled by the newbies.
"Get the nets set up." He told Shaun and Idalia, "Don't forget to set up and bury flame mines as well and mark them with colored rocks."
The two nodded and hurriedly began to move, carrying a large barrel of oil and dragging the net behind them.
Basilisks typically leave their eggs unguarded since it's every monster and animal nearby knows the eggs are toxic and will only kill them if they try to steal and eat them.
As such, the eggs should be alone.
Unfortunately for the Basilisk, humans are smarter and have suitable equipment to handle their eggs in order to benefit from them.
Then again, capturing the Basi isn't necessary so a confrontation should be avoided if possible.
But the reason he told the two to set up the trap is just in case it comes while they're transporting the eggs. For now, he's just acting like the signal, ready to relay if the Basilisk is coming since his warrior sense is working overtime.
Lucia and Arnold followed closely behind in the knee deep water.
"I did some digging at my favorite tavern to find out who this Arnold von Berkley really is." After they arrived on a small area of dry land, just a bit away from where the nest was, Lucia spoke to him while burning the leeches off her legs. "Who would've thought the most wanted man is actually the most beloved adventurer in the empire. Not even a bard with their fake tales could come up with anything more ridiculous."
"You had to go out of your way to find that out, huh? I thought news would spread of the kind of person I am."
"Well, when you threaten the Hero, no other news could be compared to it. It's the only thing people talk about. They never care about who threatened the Hero."
"You mentioning this must mean you have some questions, huh?"
"Yes, I do." she glanced at him, "Why become an adventurer at all? I know you just want a private life to let loose but there are other professions out there or you could go by none at all and simply enjoy slaying monsters and exploring. Our profession has an actual ceiling, meaning there are monsters even we would not fight. Something beyond SS-rank that cannot be measured. This is because we know our limits. You, on the other hand, killed an Ancient Dragon like it was nothing."
"You should already know that we might encounter things that adventurers are not qualified to fight."
"I know that but there's no better excitement than completing a difficult quest with your life on the line. I like to think that's what makes us adventurers so different from ordinary folk who rely on us. You don't know how this feels since you're destined for greater things, Nova."
"I'm at a point in my life where I don't see a large difference in what I've achieved compared to what I'm already become."
"So humble~ That magic prowess you displayed surprised me a bit. You've never used magic during your time as your other persona."
"I wanted to test my limits back then. Believe it or not, but I couldn't cast magic when I first started out. No mana, after all."
"…And now Aether serves as a substitute…"
"Yeah…"
"Well, this just confirms that anyone can become a magician since that power is inside all of us."
"No. It's more like anyone who can control the power can use magic. We shouldn't go plant blind hope in everyone's heads, right?"
"Right… If you're a magician on top of being a swordsman, where does that leave me and Lucri in the team? You could do the quest alone with Galadriel, Alice and Cameria."
"I might be capable of magic but that doesn't mean I want to use it in a fight along with my martial arts. I'm not used to it at all."
It would be very annoying to adopt that fighting style. He's a skilled warrior with magic potential sure but that doesn't mean he can mix the two when he only got magic the other day.
Trying to adopt something you're an amateur in and thinking you'll survive in any fight is a fool's hope. Plus, what can it change in a fight against people on Guinevere or Gederick's level? They would just bruteforce their way through all his spells.
He would only consider the switch once he ascends to Supreme Sorcerer and regains his equipment. By his guestimate, Twelfth-Rank magic coupled with his new magic subclass would probably bridge the gap between himself and people like Guinevere.
Until then he will stick to being a warrior, using spells only when necessary.
On top of not being used to the subclass, he has to worry about his Aether being drained. As mentioned before, his internal energy isn't infinite and can run out.
"Well, well, look at you being humble."
"That's not—" she didn't give him the chance to get a word in.
"It seems to me like you're just attached to the profession. You don't downplay every other adventurer's achievements or belittle the greenhorns who want to grow up to become like you. Hell, you are even supervising low-rankers when it's not even necessary. For someone so young and strong, I did not expect this attitude. Or are you secretly a grandpa who used to journey across the continent with other adventurers—strong and weak alike—and being one of us is the closest thing you have to remembering those comrades?"
She's very sharp. She's one step away from saying he's a reincarnated individual who was once an adventurer in his previous life (which isn't wrong per se).
She's right about one thing, though—he's attached to the profession. He couldn't imagine a life without it. He might not find a thrill in risking his life unless there's a reward worthy of it in the end, but the adventure itself and discovering new things is what makes him an adventurer at heart in his eyes.
"Sorry for bringing it up. It's just very rare to find guys like you in this profession. Any other guy would've belittled those juniors of ours and not given them a second glance. You even let them join us for an important quest. Not only do you have a handsome face, but a good heart too."
She raised an eyebrow, "What? Not gonna at least smile?"
"I just had a bad day, is all. But I'm glad you have that observation of me despite knowing I'm the most wanted man in the empire."
"Well… You are Nova right now and that's what's important. You do the private persona so well that I can hardly distinguish you from that tyrant who bullied people."
"…"
She chuckled and moved a little closer, "The most surprising news I heard is that you're a womanizer. Very strange considering I've never heard you make a move on any of the female staff at the guilds. Josephine looked so disappointed when I asked if you laid your hands on her, as if she wanted it, hahaha. What's most surprising it that you didn't even lay your hands on me!"
"You sound disappointed..."
"Of course I am! What sane woman doesn't want a handsome hunk like you to show interest in her? I was here thinking you're a eunuch warrior who thinks his penis will only get in the way of the mastery of the sword."
What kind of odd observation is that…
She then touched shoulders with him and pushed her breasts together, "We're going on a looong journey in a month so we have a lot of time to get to know each other better~" her coy, melodious voice flowed into his ears like the singing of birds in the morning.
This woman is incredibly skilled at seducing people. He had been with many assertive, older women but she's probably the most skilled at seduction than all of them.
"You're very shameless, Miss Lucia."
"Hehehe, I'm just trying to have fun before retiring and settling down~"
"Huh, you're not married to Clint?"
As if he ruined the mood, she clicked her tongue, "No. That country bumpkin ruined his chances. He's probably the first guy I've ever truly liked throughout my life."
"What changed?" he asked in confusion seeing her shift in attitude.
"No one else knows this but I met up with the idiot a while ago. As usual, I threw myself at him since I enjoy how flustered her gets but the bastard straight up told me if I continue to do that, our friendship is over because he sees it as distracting from his marriage with that farm girl. Apparently, polygamy is out of the question, huh! He thinks one wife is enough to be happy! It must be that witch who put that into his head!" she clenched her fists and pouted while her face turned red.
"Don't you reject me too! My heart is already brittle!" Lucia leaned on him with her whole body, tears at the corner of her eyes.
Feeling her soft body, a jolt of electricity shot down to his crotch, almost causing a tent to rise before he suppressed it with his monk mind.
"I don't think jumping from one guy to the next, just because your true love rejected you, is healthy." He tried to sound nonchalant.
"Ahhh! Don't talk to me in that tone! You sound like Sylphy!"
Lucia's frustrated scream startled Shaun and Idalia, who thought the Basilisk had returned so they looked around in a fluster.
Arnold shook his head when they looked back at him. The two then sighed in relief and continued with the preparations.
"You know that both of us are right."
"That bastard probably thinks I'm dirty for having slept with 200 men!" she didn't listen to him.
"Whuh?"
"It's experience! Who doesn't like sex in this day and age!? I could make him have the most intense orgasm in his entire life and beg for more!" biting her lip and crying with her eyes shut, she clenched her trembling fists and whined.
"Ahhhh, I need booze…! Why didn't I bring some with me…" she collapsed against the tree.
Arnold sighed.
"You better treat me to some beer tonight because you're the reason my whole mood is now ruined!"
"What? All I did was mention Clint…"
"That's the whole reason my mood is ruined!"
"Haa… Alright, I guess. That will probably be a good time to treat Shaun and Idalia as well." He checked his pocket watch.
Lucia grinned as if she's happy her tantrum worked.
It's close to 4pm right now. A journey back to the capital takes about 45 minutes. They will probably be slowed down by the Basi eggs so it will most likely take longer.
He doesn't want to go back too late.
Should he help Shaun and Idalia?
Maybe it's best not to.
The quest completion won't feel earned and they will learn nothing. He's coached many greenhorns before and knows that it's bad to interfere with their work unless their lives are in danger.
Well, they can always return tomorrow.
"You haven't given the signal yet so isn't it best that they take the eggs right now?" Lucia asked while watching the two.
"The Basilisk might be far but what will happen if they're transporting the eggs and the Basilisk smells its eggs moving away from the nest?"
"It will give chase anyway and we will have to step in?"
"That's right."
"Then the kids won't be able to complete the quest."
"Yeah, the Basilisk might be more cautious and make it impossible to complete the quest without intervention from us."
The only help he's given them so far is tell them to set up flame mines that spews fire when stepped on. The Basilisk will hesitate to chase after them if there's a minefield around it.
"Sooo, we just wait and hope it all goes well the first time." Lucia sighed as she leaned against him.
It seems supervising these two has been exhausting her a lot. If that Leonard guy was added to their little group, will she ever get rest?
Her situation reminds him of his first time mentoring that girl. Funnily enough, she was the complete opposite of Leonard—patient, attentive and obedient. But her eagerness to learn sometimes exhausted even Lufulur since she would sometimes message him late into the night.
Her silhouette overlapped with Idalia's. She was quite the pay-to-win type so she already had high-level gear by the time he began mentoring her.
He still remembered her Valkyrie armor that gleamed like blood-red wine in the sun.
The two of them were a team—raiding dungeons as a duo, taking down bosses and making her used to the grind. He didn't think much of it but he misses mentoring that brat.
Noticing his stare, Idalia blushed and her eyes swam around. Thinking it was weird to do that, he stopped reminiscing.
"You know…" Lucia gave him a coy look again, "Waiting for that monster to arrive is going to be so boring. What if the two of us have fun~? You're a skilled warrior so a little fun won't ruin your concentration, right?"
"…Yeah." He replied, feeling her hand rub above his crotch. He became erect instantly.
She pulled him to a dry patch of ground behind a tree and slowly got onto her knees while looking into his eyes. Then she placed her hands on his pants and pulled them down—