Adventure Is Always Full of Surprises

"Clatter, clatter."

Gauss sat in the merchant caravan's wagon, leaning against stacks of mail parcels of all sizes.

The distant hills slowly receded from view.

Hailiel and the other two were seated in the same carriage as him.

Bell and Mia rested inside the carriage.

Meanwhile, Hailiel sat eagerly at the edge of the carriage, her legs dangling outside and swinging constantly with the bumps as she admired the wilderness scenery.

The weather was clear today. The deep blue sky resembled a flawless sapphire, while sunlight filtered through thin clouds and spread into golden, gauzy halos, outlining the distant blue-green mountains in soft contours. A gentle breeze swept across the wilderness, carrying the dampness of forest dew and the fragrance of grass and trees, unconsciously lifting everyone's spirits.

After registering with the Adventurer's Guild, the four of them spent a brief afternoon getting used to one another before setting out for Birch Village the next day.

Considering the distance, traveling on foot might have taken two days.

So Gauss suggested finding a merchant caravan headed in roughly the same direction and riding with them for part of the journey before walking the rest of the way.

The other three naturally accepted his suggestion without hesitation.

Finding a caravan did not take much time. Giving up half a carriage in exchange for a fully equipped party of adventurers traveling alongside them was a profitable deal no matter how one looked at it.

Perhaps she had grown tired of the scenery. Hailiel withdrew her gaze and turned to Gauss, who was also seated at the rear of the carriage, striking up a conversation.

Yesterday's dinner and the afternoon spent coordinating had not only allowed them to learn each other's fighting styles, but also made them somewhat more familiar with one another.

"Speaking of which, that was really surprising. Gauss, I never expected you to be an apprentice Mage."

"Sorry to shatter your image of Mages."

"It's not that dramatic. It's just that every Mage I've met or heard of has been rich. You're definitely an odd one."

"I really wanted to become a Mage when I was little, but unfortunately, I apparently didn't have the Talent for learning magic."

Amid their casual chatter,

the caravan carried the four-person party across grasslands, through forests, around mountains, and over rivers until they finally reached their planned stop.

The journey had been safe. They encountered neither monster raids nor unexpected incidents.

Gauss felt relieved, though also faintly disappointed.

"We'll part ways here."

"Birch Village is only about an hour from here. Follow this country road all the way to the end, turn left at the fork, and the second village will be Birch Village."

"Okay, thank you, Uncle." Hailiel thanked the caravan manager.

"Stay safe on your journey, everyone. Goblins may seem like insignificant monsters, but you must not let down your guard," the caravan manager reminded them kindly.

The four watched as the caravan traveled farther and farther away until it disappeared from sight.

All at once, the surroundings felt desolate and quiet.

"Then let's reach Birch Village before nightfall."

"Agreed."

None of them intended to rest, and they immediately set off along the country road.

Deep woods lined both sides of the relatively level dirt road. The cold evening wind occasionally swept past, making it feel as though a chill were creeping up their backs.

As if influenced by the atmosphere, Hailiel, who had been excited about this commission throughout the journey, had calmed down as well.

As the four proceeded cautiously, they finally reached their destination just as the sun set and the last trace of sunlight vanished from the air.

"Birch Village."

The place name was written on a crooked wooden sign at the fork leading toward the village.

Before they even entered the village,

they heard commotion coming from the central square in the distance, along with faint cries.

Gauss's heart skipped a beat. He realized something had happened in the village, and thinking of the mission that had brought him here, he had a bad feeling.

"We need to gather people right now and rescue Jenny and Aisha!"

"It's already dark! I think we should wait until tomorrow, after we prepare our weapons—"

"Tomorrow? By tomorrow, it'll be too late! Those filthy Green-skin bastards won't give us time to prepare."

"My poor child!"

The village center was crowded. Beside the dim bonfire, some men raised their arms and shouted, some hesitated, while women sat on the ground wailing in grief, their faces full of anguish and pain.

"Excuse me, is this Birch Village? We're the adventurers who accepted the commission you posted. Is the Village Chief here? We'd like to understand the situation." Hailiel called out to the crowd, cutting through the cacophony of arguments.

Her shout interrupted the villagers' dispute. Under countless wary gazes, an old man leaning on a cane emerged from the crowd.

"Greetings, everyone. I am the Village Chief of Birch Village."

He nodded and stated his identity without preamble.

"Welcome to Birch Village, adventurers. You have come from far away, and we should have received you warmly, but as you can see, the village is in its current state. Please forgive any shortcomings."

"It's fine, Village Chief. Tell us the details. We came here for the commission in the first place." Hailiel waved her hand and produced the commission documents to prove her party's identity.

Hearing her response, the Village Chief immediately let out a sigh of relief. As he examined the documents, he recounted the tragedy that had occurred in the village not long ago.

The matter was not complicated. Two women from the village had been abducted by a goblin tribe.

The villagers were also partly to blame for lowering their guard. This goblin tribe had been active in the woods surrounding the village for several months, yet they had never attacked people before. At most, they occasionally stole chickens, ducks, sheep, or other livestock.

Still, to reduce their property losses, the villagers had each contributed some money to gather enough for a commission reward, then posted a bounty in Grayrock Town.

Over the last two days, the goblins had seemed to vanish without a trace.

The villagers had relaxed somewhat as well.

Thinking that an adventurer party would soon come to clear out the goblins hiding in the forest, the villagers had not been overly wary of those little Green-skin brats.

But who could have expected that the first incident would occur in the village at the turning point between day and night today?

The victims were two female villagers.

Now that night had fully fallen, moving about was highly inconvenient.

Other than the victims' immediate family members, the rest of the villagers did not want to venture into the dark forest and fight goblins.

Thus, the crowd began arguing in the square.

One side, guided by reason, believed that fighting at night was too dangerous. They might fail to save the victims and instead lose the lives of other adults.

The other side believed that if they waited until tomorrow, the tragedy would become irreversible. The women had only just been taken, and there was still time.

They were only a few goblins, no bigger than children. As long as everyone worked together, they could surely bring back the abducted women.

Both sides had valid arguments, and for the moment, even the Village Chief could not make a decision.

Fortunately, this unfamiliar adventurer party had appeared at that very moment like reinforcements sent from heaven.

Though the Village Chief said nothing aloud, he had already placed his hopes on them.

In his eyes, aside from the black-haired man, all four were equipped with fine gear. Their fighting strength was certainly not comparable to that of ordinary villagers.

The Village Chief and the other villagers all turned their gazes toward the four of them.

"Sorry, we need to discuss this." Under everyone's burning stares, Hailiel gave a slight apologetic bow before pulling the others aside to confer.

For a moment, the previously bustling village fell into a strange silence. Yet beneath that silence, restless thoughts churned.

Everyone was waiting for them to make a decision.

An inconspicuous novice adventurer party in any town now carried the hopes of an entire village.

Gauss caught sight of the many silent villagers from the corner of his eye and began to feel a wave of pressure.

True adventure was always full of surprises.

Just as he had initially believed this was merely an ordinary extermination mission.

Arrive at the location, rest, scout the area the next day, gather information, formulate a battle plan, kill the goblins, and complete the commission.

Who could have expected that the orderly plan would encounter a sudden change at its very first step?