Undercurrents Stirring

"It's just a [Lion Dog], it's not like you're going to fight a [Red Mirror Dragon], there's no need to panic like this, is there?"

Along the way, Galan noticed a hint of unease on Amber's face several times when she turned back to look at her.

Honestly, I'm completely confident that I could take on a [Red Mirror Dragon] one-on-one if I were in top form, like a [Lion Dog].

Monsters of this caliber are no match for them.

In Galan's eyes, they were no different from giant porcupines. Even before, without Lia's help, he could have dealt with that pack of [Lion Dogs ], it would just have been a bit more troublesome.

In Amber's memory, this monster was one she had never encountered before. People naturally have an innate fear of things they don't know, adding a filter that makes the monster seem even more terrifying. But in reality, Galan felt that for a warrior, this level of threat didn't need to be met with such tension. "[Lion Dogs ] aren't particularly ferocious monsters. Their only troublesome aspect is that they appear in large numbers at once. However, the information on the quest said that only three appeared this time, far fewer than the ones I've dealt with before."

"I can help you take care of one, and you can handle the rest. The reason I chose this monster is to see your attack style and current level. Even if you really can't beat it, I'll be there to protect you. What's the panic?"

Seeing that the girl still looked like she was facing a formidable enemy, Galan could only sigh, pat her head reassuringly, and put her mind at ease.

"Okay... I just haven't seen what a [Lion Dog] actually looks like yet, so I subconsciously imagine it to be terrifying... Sorry."

"I've seen [the Lion Dog], and I can tell you with absolute certainty that it looks no different from a porcupine, so you don't need to think of it as something terrifying. I'm not kidding!"

Seeing Amber looking at him with astonishment, Galan said in a serious tone that he had indeed seen it and that he truly believed it.

However, Amber felt that Galan was trying to comfort her, which was why he said those words.

But I was still amused by his wonderful analogy and chuckled twice.

This smile lessened her lingering concerns, making her walk much more freely.

"Where are we going next? Aren't we just heading out of town to do quests?"

After leaving the association, Amber followed Galan back along the street they had walked before. However, she had noticed while registering that the destination of this mission should not be in this direction, and she didn't know what Galan was thinking.

Could it be that Master got lost? Such a basic mistake... surely that's unlikely.

"Well... I need to go back and prepare some things. And most importantly, I need to bring someone with me this time."

"Hey, what kind of commission did those two people accept?"

The association's receptionist, who had been looking forward to a good rest after finally getting through the long queue, was suddenly startled by a burly man who appeared out of nowhere and slammed his hand on the table.

This burly man was none other than the one who had clashed with Galan earlier.

At first glance, seeing him walk out like that, people assumed he had left the association. Little did they know that this guy had actually been secretly watching Galan and Amber the whole time. Galan, preoccupied with talking to Amber and also thinking about matters related to practicing magic, failed to notice him.

"Hey! You..." She was about to complain, but the moment she met the other person's fierce gaze, the young woman, who had only recently joined the company, backed down. She swallowed hard, thought for a moment, and said hesitantly:

"If you want to know someone's commission information, wouldn't it be better to ask them directly? We only register the general information of the commissions they choose; we can't find the specific details here. She doesn't know what the other party's purpose is, but judging from their current behavior, this person is definitely not a good person."

It wasn't just his appearance, but also the terrifying aura emanating from him.

If someone behaves this way towards an ordinary person like myself, I can't imagine how arrogant and domineering they must be outside.

"All I need is the general information they requested."

The burly man's voice betrayed a hint of impatience, clearly dissatisfied with the reaction, which sent a chill down the girl's spine.

"They mean..."

3

"You should be able to find out about someone named Galan, right?"

The burly man clicked his tongue and added.

"But without special permission from higher-ups, isn't it a bit against the rules to investigate other people's requests without authorization...? This is the Adventurers Guild; our work must follow the rules and regulations."

Even though she was genuinely a little afraid of the man in front of her, the girl wasn't completely intimidated. She stubbornly raised her head and looked at the big man. This was the association's main hall, and she was an association staff member. Even if he had a hundred lives, he wouldn't dare to lay a hand on her in a place like this.

After all, if anyone dares to lay a hand on the association's staff, it's tantamount to rebellion and is completely going against the country.

"So, they're all targeting me, aren't they...?"

The girl, who appeared somewhat frail before, now looked rather gloomy as she chose to resist the burly man despite her own pressure.

However, just as the girl thought, no matter how lawless he was, he couldn't do anything to the association's staff in such a public setting. That kind of behavior was like dancing in a minefield; he wasn't that intent on dying.

"Hmph, if you're an [A]-rank adventurer, you should have this much authority, right? I just want to know the level of danger of this request and the target to hunt for reference. Isn't that in accordance with the association's regulations?"

Seeing that force wouldn't work, he had no choice but to back down and choose to use magic to defeat magic.

Faced with the association's written rules and regulations, even though the girl knew that the big man in front of her must have some bad intentions, she couldn't refuse his request.

After repeatedly verifying the authenticity of his rank badge, the girl reluctantly had to dig out the information about the requests that Galan and Amber were to handle from today's registration records and hand it over.

I can't do anything to you here... but once you leave [Äußerst], even if you die, no one will know the truth...