The Emberfire City Adventurers' Guild was a two-story stone-and-wood building located on the city's central street.
Though called a guild, it was actually just a main hall plus a few back rooms used for administrative work.
The most eye-catching thing in the main hall was the quest board directly opposite the main entrance: a huge wooden board pinned with parchment, densely packed with various commissions.
Gathering magical herbs, clearing out wild beasts, escorting merchant caravans, searching for missing persons... most were low-tier odd jobs, with pitifully small bounties.
Occasional mid-tier tasks were also routine commissions like escorting merchant caravans through the Whispering Forest.
When Sevein stepped into the guild hall, a few adventurers chatting in front of the quest board turned to look at him.
A young man wearing mage robes, followed by a butler and a silent armored man—such fanfare was rarely seen in Emberfire City.
Harold was already waiting in the hall. At last night's banquet, the two had established a basic rapport. Though it was hard to say how solid this rapport was, it kept up appearances at least.
"Young Master Lawrence, you've arrived." Harold came forward to greet him.
"Regarding the commissions, I've already prepared the paperwork for you."
Sevein nodded in greeting, walked over to the guild counter, and began filling out the commission forms one by one.
Morris stood to the side, helping calculate bounties and terms.
First commission: Reconnaissance on monster distribution along the outer fringe of the Whispering Forest.
Requirements: Determine the types, quantities, and activity ranges of First-Tier to Third-Tier magical beasts along the forest fringe, and draw a rough map of monster distribution. Bounty: Three gold coins for each valid report. Difficulty rating: Low.
As soon as this commission was posted, several low-tier adventurers in the hall perked up immediately. Three gold coins were enough to sustain a family in Emberfire City for half a year.
Second commission: Investigate whether High-Tier magical beasts or large intelligent race tribes exist in the deep reaches of the Whispering Forest, with a focus on the north of the forest.
Requirements: Penetrate at least one day's journey into the forest, recording any monster traces, tribe tracks, and anomalies discovered along the way. Bounty: Fifty gold coins. Difficulty rating: Medium.
Fifty gold coins. That number caused a momentary silence in the hall, and several adventurers at or above Third-Tier exchanged glances, clearly measuring their own capabilities.
Even some low-tier adventurers in the corners began stirring with anticipation.
Third commission: Escort merchant caravans along the trade route on the forest fringe.
Requirements: Escort caravans departing from Emberfire City, ensuring their safe arrival at the next town. Bounty: Depending on caravan size, starting from ten gold coins per person. Difficulty rating: Standard.
As for this escort task, he would let the adventurers test the waters first, loading cheap cargo for now.
Once these three commissions were posted on the board, the guild hall instantly bustled with activity.
Sevein did not linger long in the hall, leaving as soon as he finished the paperwork. But his commissions were like a stone tossed into quiet waters, the ripples quickly spreading outward.
...
Ten days later.
Grok stood on the riverbank beside the small stream, tightly clutching his bone spear as he waited for Kael.
A dark red figure descended from the sky. Folding his dragon wings, Kael landed by the river.
"Lord Kael." Grok ran over right away.
"Speak."
"Lots of adventurers have come to the forest fringe recently." Grok detailed recent events without missing a thing.
"Some are checking on magical beasts, some on tribes, some escorting caravans, and some are even heading deep into the forest."
Kael's dragon pupils narrowed slightly.
"Checking on tribes... heading into the depths..." he repeated.
"Do you know what they're actually trying to do?"
"I don't know, Lord Kael. The priest said humans have done this before."
"First they post quests in that so-called Adventurers' Guild of theirs to scout the forest terrain and monster distribution. Later, they usually open up trade routes, or... or clear out magical beasts."
Speaking up to this point, Grok's tone began to stutter.
Whether it was opening trade routes or clearing out magical beasts, both meant they might come into fierce conflict with humans. This already pertained to the tribe's survival, so he had good reason to be nervous.
What was more, a powerful human figure who chilled him to the bone had arrived in Emberfire City.
Kael went silent.
His dragon claws slowly traced the ground as his mind analyzed things rapidly.
This was likely the handiwork of that noble who had just arrived in Emberfire City.
Systematically posting scouting quests, from the fringe to the depths, from monster distribution to tribe tracks—this was the prelude to stirring up something big. Could it really be as the old priest said?
The goblin tribe, the kobold tribe, the gnoll tribe... perhaps even himself.
Although Kael possessed the "Turn a Blind Eye" talent, and the dragon lair had the deterrent aura left behind by the dragon mother—meaning even Mid-Tier or High-Tier magical beasts wouldn't lead adventurers here—
if a group of Mid-Tier adventurers went deep into the forest and searched back and forth around the vicinity, it was hard to guarantee they wouldn't discover some trace.
"Grok, have any of those adventurers scouting deep into the forest come over this way?"
"No, they're mostly heading to the north of the forest. I didn't dare get too close this time, so I don't know their strength."
"To the north..." Kael pondered for a moment.
"The north is the territory of the kobolds and gnolls. If they run into gnolls, hehe, maybe there'll be a good show to watch."
Something suddenly occurred to him, and his dragon claws paused.
"Right, Grok. Didn't the old priest mention last time that there seemed to be something strange going on in the gnoll tribe?"
"The priest said gnolls have been very active recently, seemingly preparing for something big. What it is specifically, he doesn't know either. After all, gnoll territory is too far from us."
Kael slowly stood up, his dragon wings fanning out slightly.
"Since those adventurers are penetrating into the northern forest, they're bound to bump into the gnolls..." he muttered to himself.
"No matter the outcome, it will draw more attention to the Whispering Forest."
For the dragon lair, this was not good news.
However, thinking of it from another angle, if human attention got tangled up with the gnolls, they wouldn't have the energy to focus on this dormant volcano in the southwestern corner for now.
Wasn't this a case of the snipe and the clam squabbling while the fisherman reaped the spoils?
"Keep watching them," Kael said to Grok.
"Especially those adventurers penetrating deep into the forest. Did they get injured in battle? Did they come out alive? Try to find out as much of this as you can."
"Of course, you still need to scout cautiously like this time and not get too close. After all, your own little life is more important."
"Yes, my lord." A trace of excitement actually surfaced on Grok's face.
"Also, have the old priest keep an eye on the gnolls' movements as well. If they really are up to something big, I want to know in advance."
"Understood."
After Grok left, Kael did not return to the dragon lair immediately.
Unfurling his dragon wings, he activated his "Turn a Blind Eye" talent and flew a circuit skimming the treetops, using "Eyes of Starshine" to sweep across every area at the boundary between the shrubland and the forest.
For now, no adventurers had appeared near the shrubland; they were all penetrating deep into the northern Whispering Forest, far enough from the dragon lair.
However, Kael knew it was only a matter of time.
He had to prepare before those adventurers stretched their tentacles into the southwestern corner.
Returning to the dragon lair, Kael relayed the situation to Carlos and Nora.
"What? Humans again?" Carlos's first reaction was to bare his teeth. "How many came this time?"
"They didn't come for the dragon lair; they all went to the north of the forest." Kael pressed down a claw. "It has nothing to do with us for now, but it's hard to say about the future."
"Then what do we do?" Nora's voice was quiet as usual.
"Live life as usual," Kael said.
"But remember, keep your eyes open when hunting from now on. If you come across human traces, don't get close—come back and tell me."
He paused, then added a line: "Especially you, Carlos. Don't go hotheaded the moment you see a human."
"I'm not stupid!" Carlos flicked his tail in dissatisfaction.
Kael gave him a look without saying anything.
He knew full well in his heart that Carlos was indeed not stupid, but acting rashly sometimes had nothing to do with whether someone was stupid.
Rate on N.U.
