The Mantis

"Hello, are you the professional being recruited?"

"Yes."

Please show me your recruitment notice.

"."

As Rein walked to the entrance of the tavern, he was stopped by a man who looked like a butler.

The Big Beard Tavern had been booked out and was filled with people from the "Redwood Merchant Guild" or recruited hunters.

He handed over the recruitment notice he received from the Hunter's Guild yesterday, entered the tavern, and then registered his personal information.

There were already more than thirty people sitting here, all dressed as fully armed adventurers. You could roughly guess their profession from the equipment they carried.

Shield Warrior, Assassin, Spellcaster, Priest, Medic, Hunter, Gunslinger

Almost every Extraordinary Profession has one.

At six o'clock sharp, the financial backer appeared.

A beautiful woman led a young man dressed in silver armor and carrying a double-edged silver spear to the crowd.

"Hello everyone, I am Catherine Tudor, President of the 'Redwood Merchant Guild'. You should all be aware of the mission for this Wilderness Hunt, so I'll get straight to the point."

"Regardless of whether this hunt is fruitful or not, the reward stipulated in the contract will not be less; if the harvest is good, everyone will receive an additional personal reward from me in addition to what is stated in the contract. I hope we can have a pleasant cooperation."

She was a very capable woman; she explained the destination and itinerary of this hunting trip in just a few words.

Of course, what they talked about most was the reward, which was what the hunters cared about most.

In a corner of the tavern, Rein sat quietly listening, his expression slightly strange.

"It was them!"

Upon seeing the mother and son, he realized that they were the same pair he had brushed past in the market the previous night.

Unexpectedly, he turned out to be the president and young master of the "Redwood Merchant Guild".

"Wait, is this President Catherine related to Canossa?"

Aside from finding it somewhat coincidental, Rein was also slightly surprised. He had felt she looked familiar last night, and now, after comparing them using the system, he found that Catherine and Canossa shared a 23% resemblance in their facial features.

"Since it's an affiliated chamber of the 'Black Gold Merchant Guild,' the two of them might actually be related by blood."

As Rein pondered this, he became increasingly convinced that it was possible.

However, he didn't intend to try to get close to her; he simply watched quietly.

"Now, to save time, I will briefly introduce everyone's occupations so that we can all get to know each other."

After President Catherine finished speaking, the butler who had been registering personal information went up again.

His memory was also excellent, and he introduced the identities of everyone present.

First, there were the two Third Tier Extraordinary inside the room.

Thomas, a Third Tier "Jungle Hunter," is a hybrid class combining Gunslinger and melee combat; he was also originally a professional bodyguard for the merchant guild.

The other was Frank, a recruited Third Tier assassin. His face was hidden under his hood, so only his snake-like eyes were visible.

The group consisted of thirty-five people. Besides Catherine and her son Gannix, there were six wet nurses, sixteen melee Transcendent such as fighters and swordsmen, two professional Gunslinger / Munitions Expert, and seven spellcasters; apart from the medical profession, all of them were Second Tier Transcendent.

If we disregard issues of cooperation and trust, this is already a very well-matched and luxurious hunting team.

As he listened to the introductions, Rein carefully noted down everyone's information.

Equipment, aura, and physique are enough to roughly determine the strength of Transcendent person.

Apart from those two Third Tier Extraordinary, the others did not seem to pose much of a threat to him.

Of course, that's only on the surface.

Just like when the butler introduced Rein as a Second Tier fighter, no one paid much attention to his young face and not-so-robust physique.

The Redwood Merchant Guild of Commerce is very efficient; it resolved almost all the necessary procedures within half an hour.

Catherine continued, "If everyone is satisfied, we can sign the contract. This is the tax officer of 'Black Wind Territory,' who will oversee and certify our recruitment contract. Of course, if you do not wish to participate in this operation, you can withdraw immediately."

As she spoke, she introduced the man with a mustache next to her, who was wearing a tax officer's uniform.

After he finished speaking, no one objected.

Although both parties will be charged high taxes when going through an official contract, recruiting privately will lead to more trouble due to distrust.

Then, the butler gave everyone a contract.

Of course, these are not Magic Contract, just ordinary paper contracts.

After all, the price of a high-level Magic Contract might be higher than the reward for this operation.

However, the constraints are sufficient.

For a renowned chamber of commerce like the "Redwood Merchant Guild" in the Oma Empire, reputation is far more important than such petty gains.

No one left, and everyone signed their names.

Rein glanced at it and casually signed a pseudonym that he didn't intend to collect any payment.

The contract was signed in triplicate. The tax collector took one copy and left the tavern.

Catherine didn't waste any time and urged everyone to set off, "Alright, let's get going!"

Although the Redwood Merchant Guild did not have a large Mechanical City, it still spent a lot of money to purchase two heavily armored Steam Locomotive.

This hunting trip will take several days in the wild. Although the threat of undead near the desert has been largely eliminated, there's no guarantee it won't attract more undead from further away. These heavily armored vehicles definitely provide a greater sense of security than camping tents.

Catherine and her son, along with the Chamber of Commerce's guards, were on the first locomotive.

Rein and the recruited hunters rode in the second vehicle.

The locomotive sputtered and roared as it drove away from the city.

For safety reasons, the carriages, except for the ventilation openings, were entirely covered in thick armor and had no viewing windows. Also, because this was a hastily assembled team, almost everyone was working together for the first time, making the atmosphere in the carriages somewhat awkward.

But the hunters were all travelers who had traveled all over the country, and many of them were eloquent and good at talking.

At first, the carriage was quiet, but soon someone started talking, and it immediately became lively.

"Hey, what treasures do you think that ancient city ruin that popped up in the desert might have?"

"It's not an ancient city, it's an ancient kingdom! Judging from its scale, there are probably dozens of small cities stretching out in one area. There must be plenty of treasures. Our team is so strong, we're sure to get a lot out of it."

"I'm not thinking about anything else. I'll be happy just to get back alive and collect the merchant guild's commission. After all, I've heard that the insects in the desert are quite formidable; many sizable Scavenger Gang haven't made it out."

"Don't just look at the pessimistic side of things. I've heard that some people have already brought out a lot of treasures from the Underground Palace and become rich overnight. Because it's a desert, the dry environment has preserved the things down there very well. If we can find even a tiny bit of the treasures left behind by the Seventy-Two Divine Generals of that time, we'll really be set for life!"

"."

Rein listened quietly without saying a word, and gained a better understanding of these people.

Among the people in this vehicle were leaders of small Scavenger Gang who had been recruited after their entire groups were wiped out.

Some of them were originally lone hunters, and their skills were not weak.

There was also a down-on-his-luck nobleman from Sid.

However, a few people remained silent.

Rein didn't dare to be careless and didn't say a word the whole time. A team that was temporarily formed wasn't based on a single contract, so it couldn't be completely trusted.

That's probably what everyone thinks too.

Especially when it comes to interests.

If they discover a treasure like the "Divine Power Crystal," they could turn on you at any moment.

There are a few guys here who are clearly forming cliques. If something really goes wrong, who knows what kind of trouble they might cause.

But thinking that as long as the Third Tier Extraordinary guards of the "Redwood Merchant Guild" were still there, there was no need to worry too much about trouble.

Originally, the distance from "Black Wind Territory" to "Tehersen Desert" was only about 200 kilometers, and Steam Locomotive could reach the destination in just a few hours.

However, this hunting team did not stop at the edge of the nearest ruins in the desert. Instead, they drove for dozens of kilometers along the outer edge of the desert before stopping at a sand dune where there was no sign of human habitation for miles around.

President Catherine chose a path that no one had ever taken before.

But it's fine if no one's around.

Under the influence of the "Black Tide," crowding together is not a good choice. Moreover, this is a treasure hunt, and more people mean more people sharing the spoils. While routes taken by others may be safer, the rewards will be smaller.

The ruins were only discovered yesterday, and there was no guide. The group stopped the car, locked it, and hid it in the sand before heading towards the ruins in the desert.

Rein looked around at the surroundings. With his Mind Core, he knew exactly where they were.

Although there aren't many landmarks in the desert, he doesn't need to worry about getting lost.

In the distance, the outlines of some cities could already be seen in the desert, and everyone was in high spirits.

Unexpectedly, shortly after Rein and his group parked their car, several small Steam Locomotive quietly followed them.

More than a dozen people got out of the car, more than 70% of whom were dressed as assassins in leather armor and hoods, and all of them exuded a strong aura.

They pinpointed the location where the two motorcycles were buried and then quietly followed the path that Rein and his group had taken.

"Tsk tsk. The president of the Redwood Merchant Guild actually came out of the city to hunt in the wilderness. This is a rare opportunity."

"Follow her, and be ready to strike when the opportunity arises. That woman's business acumen is remarkable; leaving her operating in 'Black Wind Territory' will keep those big shots up at night."

"I have to say, those guys from the 'Sunflower Merchant Guild' are utterly incompetent. We've already helped them deal with so many problems, and they still can't beat the 'Black Gold Merchant Guild.' What a bunch of fucking idiots!"

"Who knows? We just need to do the tasks assigned to us by our superiors. Why bother with all that? Let's get this over with quickly, then we can find a place to sit and have a chat with those 'fat sheep' who came out of the ruins."

"Hehe. This ruin is definitely full of good stuff. If it weren't for the fact that murder and robbery would be a faster way to get loot, I'd actually like to explore it myself."

4 chapters owed for monthly pass