In front of Ingrav City’s gate.
Two parties faced each other in silence.
“…Ret, what do you mean by that?”
Iron Mask asked.
Ret shrugged and spoke.
“Exactly what I said. There’s an elite force of hobgoblins gathered on Central Avenue. I’m suggesting we combine our forces to break through.”
“Where is your party heading? If our directions differ, it would be difficult to cooperate.”
“Us? We’re heading to the Forest Zone. Unless you’re going toward the sewers, you have to pass through Central Avenue to reach either the ‘Forest’ or ‘Corridor’ zones. Surely you’re not heading to the Sewer Zone?”
Ret asked, to which Iron Mask shook his head.
“No, we’re also heading to the Forest Zone.”
“Great. Since we’re heading the same way, let’s team up.”
“Before that, you said there’s an elite force of hobgoblins gathering on Central Avenue. How can we trust you?”
At Iron Mask’s question, Ret smirked and crossed his arms.
“If you can’t trust me, why not send a scout ahead? That rat beastman seems like a guide, doesn’t he?”
“…”
Iron Mask was silent for a moment, deep in thought.
Jeong Yusin stood quietly, torch in hand.
Ret.
A human who started as the luggage carrier for the mid-level Explorer party but survived alone.
Not only that, he obtained the rare Mark of the Genius Swordsman.
Sometimes, you encounter people with absurd luck.
Like someone who bought an apartment only to find a new subway line opening up in front, skyrocketing the property value and earning them billions without lifting a finger.
Or those who bought stocks at rock bottom, only to see an irrational rally surge and multiply their wealth.
Ret seemed to belong to that category.
As if he stumbled backward and landed not on broken glass but a soft pillow of money.
However.
That was Ret up until now.
No one knows what the future holds for him.
If luck obscured his judgment and he makes even a tiny mistake, it could be the end.
Such caution is justified.
Because his party had some peculiar members.
A suspicious man in an iron mask, reeking of medicine from head to toe.
A dwarf in triangular underwear.
The rat beastman, who hadn’t stolen anything yet—so far.
It’s understandable to feel hesitant about extending a hand of cooperation.
Especially for Ret, a beginner explorer.
Still, Ret didn’t seem to care.
“Something smells fishy here.”
Contrary to Jeong Yusin’s thoughts, Iron Mask nodded.
“…I’ll check it out first. We’ll decide whether to trust your party later.”
“Do as you please.”
“Mars, can you scout Central Avenue?”
“I can.”
“Thank you. Scath, can you accompany?”
“Of course.”
Jeong Yusin nodded.
“Wait a minute!!!”
Ret suddenly raised his hand and shouted.
“What is it?”
“Scath. Scath. That name sounds familiar. Are you Scath, the half-barbarian?”
‘That name gets around.’
True, Ret had first met at the explorer’s guild in the southern sector, so it wasn’t surprising.
“Correct. Do you have something to say to me?”
“What were you trying to brush aside silently? What a sinister fellow you are. Do you think hiding your face behind a helmet with a visor can cover your true tastes? Surely these people aren’t your ‘females?'”
Ret said as he looked around at the party members.
The dwarf, the rat beastman, and Iron Mask— all of them stayed silent.
“…”
A chilling silence filled the air.
Jeong Yusin finally spoke up.
“This son of a bitch.”
“What?”
“Hey bastard. Why are you suddenly picking a fight? Have you lost your mind?”
Jeong Yusin gripped his sword hilt.
That started it—Ret and Iron Mask’s party members instinctively grabbed their weapons.
The sudden tension in the air was palpable.
Someone placed a hand on a shoulder. It was Iron Mask.
“Scath, calm down. It isn’t worth fighting here.”
“…Hmph.”
For a long time, Jeong Yusin glared at Ret, then released his sword.
“Ret, apologize. It’s unacceptable to insult party members as a leader.”
“Sorry, sorry. I got a bit too harsh.”
Ret casually waved his hand as if nothing happened.
‘Shit.’
Though tempted to beat him half to death for crossing the line so casually, Jeong Yusin gritted his teeth and restrained himself.
“Is it not the truth though? They say barbarians go crazy for holes, right? I don’t think Ret said anything incorrect.”
A member of Ret’s party stepped forward to speak.
She had her pink hair parted in two strands, wearing a robe and holding a staff. She seemed to be around Ret’s age.
“What… What did you say?”
Jeong Yusin stuttered, confused, as another female party member stepped forward.
“Exactly. Given the reputation of barbarians, did you really expect any nice comments? How ridiculous.”
A woman with short blue hair glared, wearing a dagger and a small crossbow. Given her gear, she seemed to be a guide.
Ret waved his hand, stopping his own party members.
“Okay, okay. Let’s stop here. What’s the point of fighting further?”
“Still, Ret…”
The pink-robed woman mumbled something.
Ret smiled and patted her pink hair.
“Irene, I appreciate you standing up for me, but right now we need to overcome this crisis together.”
The woman called Irene blushed and nodded.
“A-Alright.”
“…”
Jeong Yusin watched the two of them sweet-talking, dumbfounded.
Ret turned his head to look at Iron Mask.
“So since I apologized, how about we proceed with that reconnaissance?”
Still willing to cooperate? What’s in this guy’s head? There’s something off about this.
“…Mars, Scath, please scout ahead.”
Iron Mask looked at Jeong Yusin.
“…Understood.”
Jeong Yusin managed to respond and followed Mars.
Jeong Yusin and Mars entered through the city gate.
Due to the light pollution, they had no choice but to hide in the alleyways and cautiously crept toward Central Avenue.
When Mars moved ahead, Jeong Yusin hid in the alley and carefully followed while covering the torchlight with a cloak.
Mars stopped his pace and signaled Jeong Yusin.
‘Fall back. Extinguish your torch.’
Understanding immediately, Jeong Yusin put down the torch and stepped on it to extinguish it.
Leaning against the alley wall, Jeong Yusin stood still.
How much time passed?
Not too long before Mars returned.
Mars approached Jeong Yusin and whispered into his ear.
“That human swordsman’s information was correct. An elite group of upper-level hobgoblins is encamped on Central Avenue. The number is at least a hundred.”
A hundred. Upper-level hobgoblins at that.
“…Can we find another way to bypass? There are alleys branching out.”
“Do you know what it means that these hobgoblins have come out to Central Avenue? Even more of them should be swarming the outskirts of the city.”
‘Not cockroaches.’
Ordinarily, given the Avenger Mark, Jeong Yusin might have fought the regular hobgoblins somehow. But with upper-level hobgoblins appearing in such numbers, predicting victory became difficult.
Moreover, he had to consider the safety of his party.
‘Enough.’
Shaking his head to stop thinking.
He wasn’t the leader. If it seemed like it wouldn’t work out, he could at least voice an opinion. But Iron Mask didn’t appear stupid enough to interfere needlessly.
Tak!
Suddenly, Jeong Yusin grabbed the rat beastman and Mars’ hand.
“W-Wha…What?!”
“Let’s go back. Stop picking my pocket already.”
“Okay, okay, I get it.”
Jeong Yusin and Mars retraced their steps and returned to the city gate.
“That party leader was right. There’s a large group of upper-level hobgoblins entrenched on Central Avenue.”
“See? I told you so. We need to unite.”
“…”
Iron Mask looked at Jeong Yusin.
“Scath, what are your thoughts?”
An unexpected question.
Even after the recent conflict, he asked for an opinion in front of everyone.
“Getting around through the outskirts will be difficult. There are even more hobgoblins there. It’s like avoiding a wolf’s den to find a lion’s den. The only answer is complete extermination or a frontal breakthrough.”
“See? I…”
Iron Mask gestured to stop Ret mid-sentence, continuing the conversation with Jeong Yusin.
“A frontal breakthrough would be difficult. At least it’d be 100 vs 4. Moreover, it’s an open street. No matter how skilled you are, if surrounded, it’s over. Are there other ways?”
“True, breaking through would be difficult. We could wait a bit to team up with other parties.”
“Attracting a few of them at a time and dealing with them one by one?”
“There’s variables involved, but it’s not a bad plan if it goes as intended.”
“Ultimately, should we wait, then break through together?”
Iron Mask concluded provisionally.
“Come on, is it really that difficult to figure out? We just need to gather them and exterminate, right?”
Ret finally butted in.
“How?”
“I possess the Genius Swordsman mark. This level of numbers? We’ll just deal with them.”
“Then why ask for our help?”
“I’m fine, but my girlfriends would be in danger, right?”
Ret said with a laugh.
“Can we trust you?”
“The dwarf over there worships Fire Spirit, right? Let’s ask. Hey, dwarf.”
“What?”
“Are your fellow party members okay? Swear it by Fire Spirit.”
“Dare to swear in the name of a deity? How irreverent of a human.”
“The fact that a devout dwarf priest is still in your party means you aren’t all bad, I guess.”
Ret shrugged in response.
Jeong Yusin was so dumbfounded his body went limp.
‘What a naive guy. Is his confidence overflowing, or is there some other scheme?’
Is the Genius Swordsman mark really that extraordinary?
If it were Jeong Yusin, he would have gone alone, leaving his party behind, to sweep them all away.
“Then let me ask the opposite—how do we trust you?”
Ret scratched his head.
“Barbarian, isn’t it ridiculous that we’re debating trust on just the fifth floor of the labyrinth? If we have the time, we cooperate. If not, we go separately. If you don’t want to work together, then don’t.”
Iron Mask intervened.
“Ret, we need some time to discuss among ourselves.”
“Take all the time you need.”
Ret said, stepping back a considerable distance.
At Iron Mask’s gesture, Jeong Yusin and the rest of his party formed a circle.
“What do you think?”
The dwarf priest Kubo cleared his throat and spoke.
“Hmm. Though I have doubts, that human swordsman wasn’t lying. We currently have two options remaining: eliminate the hobgoblins or wait here for other parties before fighting.”
The rat beastman guide crossed his arms.
“Except, do we have any guarantee that the parties coming later will cooperate with us? Honestly, our party probably gives off that vibe, doesn’t it?”
“…”
The guide’s sudden jab at a deep truth caused all party members to remain silent.
“Kubo, why don’t you put some clothes on? Others are judging us, you know. Honestly, you’re the most suspicious.”
“Ho ho. Barbarian brat, just because you’re wearing a helmet now doesn’t mean you can say whatever. If you take that helmet off, you’d be the one most under scrutiny.”
“But I’m a good barbarian, right?”
“…Move your hand and talk.”
“S-Sorry.”
Iron Mask stepped in.
“That’s enough. Here’s what we’ll do. In my opinion, it’s not a bad proposal. However, we need to keep a cautious eye while cooperating.”
“…What do you mean?”
“We need some form of insurance.”
The discussion ended, and Iron Mask and his group approached Ret.
“So, have you decided?”
“Naturally. We’ll cooperate.”
“Great choice. There’s no need to waste time here unnecessarily.”
“There is one condition, though.”
“…What is it?”
Ret frowned, crossing his arms.
Jeong Yusin suddenly stepped forward and spoke.
“Hand over one of your party members.”
“…What?!”
Ret’s eyes widened.
“What did you say?!”
Ret repeated, voice trembling.
“You didn’t understand. Hand her over. Your woman.”
Jeong Yusin pointed at Ret’s female party members.
“We’ll keep her safe. How does that sound?”
“…”
In front of Ingrav City’s gate.
Amid the two parties’ silence.
All eyes were on Jeong Yusin.
