In the deep night, the mansions of the Royal Capital were enveloped in silence.
Darkness covered the streets, and the lights in every window were out.
In this stillness, a crow flew leisurely across the sky.
There was no moonlight in the night sky, and the crow’s form melted into the darkness like a shadow.
The crow circled above a silent mansion, its wings never ceasing their beat.
It looked down at the mansion as if observing something.
“Caw—”
There, armed mercenaries were densely positioned.
Everyone was covered from head to toe in armor and helmets, their identities unreadable.
With curious eyes, the crow approached the mercenaries and pecked at them with its beak.
But there was no reaction.
The crow changed its position and poked the mercenaries, but no one reacted.
“Caw—”
Losing interest in the mercenaries who remained motionless as if dead, the crow disappeared into the darkness, leaving behind its cry.
A moment later, in an alleyway slightly away from the mansions.
The crow reappeared.
The moment it landed on the ground, the crow’s form twisted, and it transformed into a small woman.
She brushed back her black hair and spoke to someone in the darkness.
“Leader, I’m back.”
Then, three figures emerged from the darkness.
Including the one who was a crow a moment ago, there were four in total.
All of them were adventurers.
“Yes, Shay. What’s the situation at the mansion?”
The one at the front asked first.
She was the leader of this team, Ibis.
She was an adventurer of Platinum Rank.
Despite the leader’s question, Shay said nothing and shifted her body.
Her back and shoulders were stiff from flying for so long in crow form.
Shay twisted her shoulders slightly and opened her mouth.
“Nothing has changed since I saw it this afternoon. So, this time, I approached the mercenaries.”
Shay had been watching the mansion in crow form all day.
Since the atmosphere of the mansion was the same this time, she decided to try something slightly different.
“But there’s something strange. The mercenaries didn’t react to my antics.”
Shay shrugged her shoulders.
Then she told Ibis what she had seen.
“I pecked at them, did all sorts of things, but they wouldn’t even budge.”
“Hmm, no movement at all…”
Ibis’s expression turned serious at Shay’s report.
No matter how much of a bird it was, it was normal to react if bothered that much.
The mercenaries in the mansion there were simply staying still as if they were dead.
It was definitely strange.
Currently, Ibis was here on the orders of Kyle, the head of the Adventurer’s Guild Federation.
More precisely, she was ordered to investigate Ralph, the subject of the rumors.
The first place she investigated was, of course, Ralph’s luxurious mansion.
It was an incredible mansion, boasting a wealth that made it seem like finding treasure in a dungeon wasn’t a lie.
The problem was that there were too many mercenaries guarding the mansion, so she couldn’t investigate further.
Moreover, Ralph never went outside, so there was no progress in the investigation.
All they could do was have Shay transform into a crow and observe the surroundings of the mansion.
However, Shay had brought back a clue.
‘They don’t react even when a bird touches them…’
Ibis’s mind became complicated.
‘Like scarecrows.’
Scarecrows?
Suddenly, Ibis’s thoughts opened up.
Come to think of it, farmers also set up scarecrows in their fields to drive away animals.
“Could it be that they just set up the armor?”
A tactic to make the number of mercenaries seem large.
At first, she thought he had hired many mercenaries since he had suddenly become wealthy.
But the reality was different.
The mercenaries Shay had touched were likely dummies.
‘Yes, it didn’t make sense from the beginning.’
Even if someone became rich, it would be difficult to hire mercenaries in such numbers.
It wasn’t a matter of wealth; what if the mercenaries colluded and betrayed their employer?
Anyone with sense would hire knights or mages over mercenaries.
“Hmm.”
As her thoughts reached this point, Ibis’s eyes narrowed.
“…Could it be a trap?”
Come to think of it, the rumors themselves were unnatural.
It was as if someone had intentionally spread the rumors.
Ibis looked around at the people nearby.
Shay, who had transformed into a crow a moment ago.
Herold, who wielded an axe with his massive build.
And Pahlen, with his golden hair fluttering.
All of them were under Ibis’s command.
Their main mission was intelligence gathering and assassination, following Kyle’s orders.
Although far from being ordinary adventurers, their mission was to operate in the shadows rather than in the light.
“What do you all think? Based on the current situation, Ralph’s mansion could be a trap.”
Ibis had to make a choice soon.
Even though she was the leader, it was important to listen to her subordinates’ opinions.
Herold was the first to respond to her opinion.
“Great warriors do not yield to traps!”
Herold was a barbarian warrior who liked to show off his strength.
Although simple in action and thought, he was an adventurer who had obtained a Gold Badge with his brute strength alone.
“I can charge in right away. That is the way of a warrior.”
Moreover, Herold was a warrior who strictly followed orders.
Since Kyle had ordered them to investigate the mansion, he intended to see it through to the end.
Ibis nodded at Herold’s words.
“Yes, Herold is right. Those mercenaries are just scarecrows, and even if it is a trap, we need to investigate who did such a thing.”
Their priority was intelligence gathering, after all.
It was too vague to report to Kyle based only on suspicion.
If this was all a trap, they needed to find out who set it, why, and for what purpose.
Even if it wasn’t a trap, her given order was to find out how the rumors had spread.
As such, Ibis decided to thoroughly investigate this matter.
Before, they couldn’t approach the mansion because of the large number of mercenaries.
But now, they realized that some of the mercenaries were dummies.
Wouldn’t they be able to infiltrate the mansion with this in mind?
“Shay, what do you think?”
Shay, who could transform into a crow, was essential for this mission.
Shay was a mage, but her magic was limited to transforming into animals.
While not skilled in direct combat, she was excellent at information gathering like this, making her a valuable asset.
“I’m fine.”
Ibis smiled slightly at Shay’s brief answer.
At the same time, she turned around and spoke to another person.
“Pahlen, what do you think?”
Pahlen, although not as large as Herold, had a sturdy build with considerable muscle.
His golden hair was striking, and his blue eyes looked very different from those of ordinary people.
Pahlen mumbled towards the empty air and then replied to Ibis.
“I think investigating it seems like a good idea. The spirits are whispering, too.”
Most importantly, Pahlen could manipulate spirits, albeit slightly.
Rather than being a spirit master, his elven heritage gave him a high affinity for spirits.
His preferred weapon was a bow.
Pahlen caressed the air and mumbled softly.
“The spirits say that place seems devoid of life. Like they’re not human.”
Ibis nodded at Pahlen’s answer.
This time, she was confident.
If Pahlen’s spirits said so, most of the mercenaries were likely dummies, as Shay had seen.
‘Does that work?’
Ibis doubted for a moment, but there was nothing to be solved by agonizing over it here.
“Alright, let’s go into the mansion.”
Ibis led the group and stealthily headed towards Ralph’s mansion.
* * *
“……”
Ibis gazed at Ralph’s mansion with mana in her eyes.
The mansion was filled with silence.
The building was constructed of gray stone, with wooden decorations noticeable in several places.
The exterior was a strange mix of antique charm and modern sensibility.
It certainly looked like a mansion where wealthy merchants would live, rather than where nobles resided.
Dark brown curtains hung in every window, making it impossible to see inside.
The stairs leading to the entrance were made of well-finished marble, with thin iron railings installed on either side.
And around them, mercenaries were stationed.
In fact, mercenaries were stationed not only around the mansion but also in the small garden.
It was impossible to know if there were actual people inside those armors or if they were empty.
“Shay, go check it out.”
At Ibis’s instruction, Shay transformed into a crow once more.
This time too, she pecked at the mercenaries’ armor, but there was no reaction.
Rather, the lack of reaction from all the mercenaries around the mansion gave her an inexplicable sense of dread.
At that moment.
“Oh?”
Pahlen, who was behind her, let out a sound of surprise.
“What is it? Pahlen.”
Ibis asked Pahlen, but he shook his head.
“Ah, it’s nothing. It looked like there was some smoke over there, but I must have been mistaken.”
There was nothing where Pahlen pointed.
Perhaps he had seen wrongly, or perhaps Pahlen, being an elf, had sensed something different.
Ibis dismissed it as unimportant.
“Yes, let’s stay focused.”
This mission had to proceed discreetly.
The Adventurer’s Guild was essentially investigating personnel of the Sail Kingdom without any prior notification.
Even if the target of the investigation was not a noble, it could escalate into a major problem.
Therefore, Ibis became even more focused.
A moment later, Shay returned.
With Shay’s actions, they knew the mercenaries were fake, so now they just needed to infiltrate the mansion.
“Alright, let’s go in now. Remember to back out if it seems dangerous. Oh, Herold, you stay here and keep watch.”
Ibis gave separate orders to Herold, the barbarian warrior.
Herold’s physique was too large to be suitable for a stealth infiltration mission.
Moreover, even if he tried to back out due to his unusual appearance, Herold would be caught quickly.
“That’s unfair! I’m going on the mission too.”
But Herold insisted.
Carrying out missions was a warrior’s virtue.
He was angered by being excluded from the mission.
Of course, Ibis was a veteran adventurer.
She could easily suppress Herold’s objection.
“Herold. I’m saying this for your own good. Is it fitting for an honorable warrior to sneak into someone else’s mansion?”
“An honorable warrior does not sneak in!”
“Yes, so Herold. You stay here and observe the situation. This is an order.”
At Ibis’s words, Herold nodded.
“I understand. I will obey your order.”
“Good. If anything happens, be sure to let the Adventurer’s Guild know.”
“I understand. I will let the Adventurer’s Guild know.”
Ibis, Shay, and Pahlen left Herold behind and climbed over the mansion’s wall.
Even though the mercenaries were fake, just in case, they entered the mansion through a window instead of the main gate.
But they didn’t know.
The moment they entered the mansion through the window.
The mercenaries outside the mansion moved in unison.
And with every movement, the creaking of armor was accompanied by the sound of bones.
* * *
“The mice have gotten in.”
In the depths of the dungeon.
Celia muttered as she was working.
Ralph’s mansion, which she had made as bait.
She had placed shadows to monitor the mansion, but intruders had appeared.
“Hmm, I need to think about how to deal with these mice.”
There were many ways.
She could order Queen Irena to mobilize troops.
But catching the intruders this way would negatively affect the rumors.
There was no need to pour cold water on the situation, as many adventurers were climbing the mountain range due to the rumors spread by Celia.
Should she send Paladin Eric?
Paladin Eric was currently being controlled by a Banshee.
But Celia shook her head.
This was also problematic.
It was better to handle this matter quietly.
Then should she send the shadows?
No, there was no guarantee that a similar situation wouldn’t recur if they dealt with it too quietly.
She needed a way to finish the incident cleanly while causing a moderate amount of commotion.
“I have no choice. I’ll send Dambi and Rills.”
Dambi was a half-vampire, disguised as an adventurer.
Rills was also originally a mage and an adventurer, but was currently controlled by a Banshee.
By using them in their adventurer identities, she could manipulate the situation to some extent.
Shadows disappeared at Celia’s command.
Dambi and Rills would resolve this matter on their own.
It was time to return to her work in the dungeon.
“By the way, the goblins seem very busy lately.”
“Clack.”
The Skeleton Knight responded to Celia’s question.
The goblins were indeed moving busily.
Aside from the scout team, they were managing the alcohol made from Lamias and preparing the corpses of the remaining Lamias.
They were also making armor for the Goblin Lord, who might soon become the guardian of the layer.
“Indeed. Their loyalty to Goblin Lord is exceptional.”
Celia marveled at the Goblin Lord’s abilities.
He certainly deserved to become the guardian of the layer.
“By the way, I recall giving Goblin Lord armor before, don’t I?”
“Clack, clack, clack.”
The armor made from the salamander’s red leather, obtained from the auction house.
That armor was given to the Goblin Lord.
However, the Goblin Lord was a creature of immense size compared to goblins.
It was more accurate to consider him comparable to an orc, so the existing armor would not have fit the Goblin Lord.
“Indeed, given Goblin Lord’s build, it would be difficult to wear the armor without modification.”
So, the goblins were even meticulously mending the Goblin Lord’s armor.
“Well, let’s overlook that.”
After all, Goblin Lord did things well on his own.
Celia’s priority was the adventurers and the whereabouts of the rumors.
* * *
The smile on the Goblin Lord’s lips was like that of a supreme being.
The bones of Lamias and humans were decorated on various parts of the Goblin Lord’s armor.
Sharp bones protruded from his shoulders like thorns, and a necklace woven from human skulls hung around his neck.
A belt made of bones was fastened around his waist.
Most importantly, he wore the armor made from the salamander’s red leather like a cloak, modified.
His appearance seemed to symbolize the Goblin Lord’s authority.
Truly, the king of the goblins.
Who would dare dismiss him as a weak goblin seeing that sight?
“Grrr, this is truly magnificent.”
As the Goblin Lord muttered, his voice exuded power.
It felt as if the armor had absorbed the souls of his enemies.
“Bring me my weapon, raaaawr!”
At his booming command, the goblins struggled and brought him weapons.
In the Goblin Lord’s hand was the Mana Gun.
His most frequently used weapon.
He confidently snatched the Mana Gun and gripped it skillfully.
The Goblin Lord’s massive physique and the crown worn on his head symbolized absolute power.
The surrounding goblins gazed at their king with eyes mixed with fear and admiration.
The Goblin Lord, exuding an aura that could dominate battlefields.
The Goblin Lord walked forward with power.
The group of goblins lining up behind him moved in unison.
“Kreeeh, we begin the hunt now.”
The Goblin Lord smiled with conviction of victory.
