Chapter 34

Adventurer.

A term used to describe professional warriors with mediocre combat skills, ambiguous affiliations, and vague moral standards.

Not soldiers, as they are not part of the military, nor knights, as they are not part of any knight order.

The Empire tolerated these potential troublemakers because maintaining order with its own forces alone had its limits.

Half of the Imperial Army was stationed on the northern front, and the other half was mostly mobilized for border defense and capital security.

As a result, the Empire was severely lacking in forces to handle the occasional disturbances within its territory.

The Empire also trained reserve knights through institutions like Remnant Academy to address internal security issues.

However, these knights were not numerous, and deploying them for minor security issues was overkill.

Thus, the Empire affiliated these “adventurers” with guilds under its control, allowing them autonomy while entrusting them with minor security tasks.

In a way, they were subcontractors of the Imperial Knight Order.

Politely called adventurers, their actual status was at best that of semi-knights or the lowest-ranking knights.

—

“This request seems manageable for now.”

After arriving at the guild and conversing with the receptionist for a while, Nigel returned with a C-grade mercenary team and a request form.

Unless proven with sufficient achievements and credibility, the highest grade available was C-grade.

“Let me see… Dungeon subjugation discovered in Hebel’s Forest? Where’s Hebel?”

“It’s a barony about two days by carriage from the capital. They recently discovered an underground structure suspected to be a dungeon while clearing the forest.”

“Dungeon… If it’s subjugation and not investigation, it means something went wrong during the investigation.”

I read the request form in detail.

Dungeon subjugation discovered in Hebel’s territory.

Client: Baron Hebel.

Recommended grade: B3.

Request details: Investigate the underground dungeon in the western forest of the territory and subjugate all hostile entities.

Special notes: One knight from the barony died during the investigation. Troll confirmed. Estimated to be a small dungeon.

Reward: 2 gold upfront, additional rewards per subjugated entity. All dungeon spoils belong to the Hebel barony.

“A troll? I’m not sure how strong they are. Strong enough to kill a knight?”

“Even among knights, there’s a significant difference in skill. If it’s a low-ranking knight, they could die to a troll.”

That means it’s unlikely to happen to me.

If the monster were strong enough to defeat me, the Empire would have sent proper forces from the knight order instead of posting a request at the adventurer’s guild.

“What does B3 mean?”

“B-grade mercenaries. It means the request is recommended for at least three knights.”

“So, as a C-grade, I can’t accept this request alone?”

If I were them, I’d ignore a C-grade rookie trying to take on a request meant for three B-grades.

“I vouched for you, so it’s fine. I won’t help, but they don’t know that.”

Nigel lightly tapped his chest.

Well, with the tenth sword of Marquis Ludwig here, it’s overkill.

“Alright, let’s go with this. So, what do I need to prepare?”

“Regular adventurers would prepare camping gear and find partners, but in our case, a guide should suffice.”

“A guide?”

Aren’t those the types who always hide something? Whether it’s their strength or malice.

“They prepare supplies, guide us to the dungeon, create maps, carry luggage… They handle miscellaneous tasks. Not particularly strong.”

In short, they’re porters and scouts.

They tag along with strong parties to pick up the crumbs.

“Ah… Then I’d prefer a female guide.”

This has to be a woman.

A male porter? That’s as disastrous as a black exchange student for women.

“Understood. I’ll look into it. A small dungeon with a troll shouldn’t take more than two days, so it shouldn’t be difficult.”

If they can handle even these details, maybe they could help in the dungeon too.

They’ll take care of the inconvenient and troublesome tasks, so I can focus on gaining combat experience.

It seems Marquis Ludwig wants me to grow stronger.

For what purpose?

I can’t tell yet.

But at least as long as he expects something from me, he’ll have my back.

—

While Nigel was arranging a guide with the receptionist, I spent time looking around the guild, exhaling smoke.

It was an awkward time, neither morning nor noon, so there weren’t many people.

Still, being the headquarters located in the capital, the building was quite spacious and tidy.

The interior reminded me of a small bank.

Five receptionists sat at the counter on one side, flipping through documents, and next to them was a bulletin board with request forms.

Inside the building were five or six tables, chairs, and an old sofa.

A few adventurers were sitting on the chairs, chatting among themselves or glancing at me.

No one tried to pick a fight, asking why a Ka`har was here.

Instead, when I glared back, they quickly looked away.

It was amusing.

Probably because I arrived in a fancy carriage with a seemingly capable knight.

I expected reckless idiots, but surprisingly, they had some sense.

Well, those without such sense would have died early, unable to survive as adventurers.

—

Nigel returned with a woman after finishing his conversation.

“Lady Hashelle. I’ve brought a guide. This is Miss Minea. Miss Minea, this is Lady Hashelle.”

“Uh… Hello…? I’m Minea, a D-grade adventurer.”

She looked to be in her late twenties.

Her nervous expression and furtive glances didn’t inspire much confidence…

But as long as she does her job, it’s fine.

I didn’t expect much beyond guiding anyway.

“I’m Hashelle. Nice to meet you.”

I extended my hand lightly. Her hand trembled as she shook it.

Do I look that scary? Even people who don’t know my identity seem to tremble when they see me.

When I look at my reflection in the water or a mirror, my eyes look fierce, but not that terrifying.

After a brief greeting, I gathered my gear and boarded the carriage.

Minea volunteered to drive, so Nigel and I sat inside.

If we get ambushed suddenly…

It might be dangerous.

But if he left me alone with him in the carriage, I might end up crying, so I just agreed.

“Then, during our journey, I’ll share what I know about dungeons and monsters during the day, and we’ll continue our swordsmanship sparring in the evenings. Now that Ka`har has been accepted by the Empire, showing ourselves shouldn’t be a big problem.”

As the carriage started, Nigel, sitting across from me, explained the upcoming schedule.

Hmm. I won’t be able to attend lectures for at least five days, but Nigel’s lessons seem better than the watered-down lectures at the academy.

—

First day, afternoon.

“There are four main things to watch out for in dungeons: securing your line of sight, traps, ambushes, and positioning. The scout’s responsibility is crucial.”

I received some basic tips for dungeon exploration.

Usually, you’d recruit someone specialized in scouting to handle it, but given my heightened senses, I should be able to manage on my own.

—

First day, evening.

I trained in swordsmanship with Nigel. Minea busily prepared dinner and bedding nearby.

“Relying on instinct in combat is incredibly powerful. However, instinct is just instinct—once your opponent gets used to it, it becomes easier to counter.”

He pointed out the flaws in my fighting style.

At first, my aggressiveness and attack power might catch them off guard, but once they get used to it, they can predict my moves because I react the same way in similar situations.

Ultimately, I need to be able to perform those movements with a clear mind, not just relying on instinct…

…That doesn’t sound easy.

“Start by relying on instinct but maintaining a minimum level of rationality… though it’s not something we can practice in sparring right now.”

Well, if we did, I’d probably go wild again.

Nigel seemed to sense that and chose a different approach.

“For now, let’s focus on improving your current fighting style without relying on instinct. As the gap between the two styles narrows, controlling your instincts should become easier.”

For now, I just noted the problem and spent the night sparring with Nigel, honing my swordsmanship.

With each swing of the sword, I grew more accustomed to drawing out the full power of this body.

—

Second day, morning.

“Trolls are gray-skinned monsters, about 2 to 3 meters tall. As you’d expect from their size, they’re much stronger than—”

Nigel paused and glanced at me.

“—much stronger than the average human.”

…So my strength is on par with a troll’s.

“They have excellent regenerative abilities, but they can’t replenish lost blood, so the usual methods are to make them bleed heavily or burn them. They’re also quite afraid of lightning, so having a magician makes dealing with them much easier.”

“So, just dodge their attacks and slash them until they’re too weak from blood loss, right?”

“…Yes. That should work.”

Simple enough.

“Sometimes ogres appear alongside trolls… but there’s not much difference. Just think of them as trolls with slightly better physical abilities but weaker regeneration.”

“Isn’t that explanation a bit too vague?”

“Princess Hashal, it’s harder for you to lose to ogres or trolls than to win. Unlike the Suin, these creatures have fallen far from their former glory.”

True, they were always just early-game mobs anyway.

Compared to the Suin, monsters, and other races, they’re nothing but weak enemies.

—

In the evening, I trained in swordsmanship with Nigel again, just like the day before.

This time, instead of the Empire’s technique-focused style, we focused on strength and speed, fighting as if against non-human enemies.

The next morning, we arrived at Hebel Territory.

—

First, we went to the lord’s manor to inform them that we’d accepted an adventurer guild request.

The manor’s butler seemed unimpressed when he heard we were only C-rank adventurers, but after seeing us in person, he became much more polite.

Well, a Ka`har tribesman and a knight aren’t exactly a common duo.

He didn’t seem to know who I was, but judging by our appearance, he must’ve felt reassured.

From the butler, we got a brief explanation of the dungeon.

It was about two hours away, a small ruin that seemed to be an underground relic, with about five or six trolls roaming inside.

A knight from the territory had lost his life due to the trolls’ coordinated attacks.

“Six trolls. If they all attack at once, it could be a bit dangerous. It’s best to try to take them out one by one.”

Nigel calmly remarked.

—

The dungeon entrance looked like a sinkhole.

In the middle of what seemed to be a clearing, with trees uprooted and soil dug up, a black hole about 3 meters in diameter led deep underground.

It was so deep that even I couldn’t see the bottom.

No wonder they couldn’t send in a large force—it’d be hard to get out.

That’s why they were looking for a small, elite group to clear the dungeon.

Around the hole, there was a makeshift fence made of wooden poles and ropes, with a rope ladder hanging down the side.

Probably set up by the soldiers standing guard nearby.

Suddenly, a flicker of unease crossed my mind.

If they cut the rope ladder after we go down, wouldn’t we be trapped?

…No, that’s overthinking it.

The lord doesn’t even know who we are, so he’d have no reason to do that.

And even if it did happen, I could just claw my way up the walls.

—

After showing the lord’s request to the soldiers, we climbed down the rope ladder.

The ladder creaked as it swayed in the wind.

The rising air carried the smell of rotten earth and damp moisture.