Rachel grabbed the active communication crystal that glowed blue and Fermin whimpered like an injured dog.
Rachel glanced at her before speaking into the communication crystal.
“It’s you, right?”
She felt certain the person on the other end was Xtra.
— Yeah.
However, she didn’t expect him to admit it so easily. He must’ve anticipated this.
“You’re quite brazen, aren’t you? I’m pretty sure I told you last time—”
— Yeah, I know. Can you stop being so hardheaded?
She didn’t expect him to come out so strong and briefly stood in a daze before a vein popped out on her forehead. Rachel pretended to not be affected.
“Hardheaded? That’s the first I’ve heard of that.”
She wasn’t joking. No one had ever called her that before, which made her angry the more she thought about it.
I’m hardheaded? Me? How can he say that? Does he even know me?
— Heh… Sure, sure.
The mercenary sneered and struck a nerve again. Rachel bit her dry lips.
— Anyways, this is something Dake requested. He was willing to pay double out of his own pocket.
“…”
The English Royal Court had already fired Dake. This meant he no longer received any support for hiring this mercenary. However, that didn’t deter him from hiring Xtra despite carrying all the burden.
Rachel didn’t understand why Dake trusted this mercenary so much. What made this mercenary so special?
— He made the right choice in hindsight since all of you would be going around in circles without me.
Of course, she knew that as well. The mercenary only worked with them for 12 hours, but he already proved his worth when it came to pathfinding.
Despite her reluctance, Rachel acknowledged that she needed Xtra’s help right now.
— Oh right, why did you refuse an offer that benefited you? You ran into Reislaufer, right? It would’ve been more comfortable if you went with them. Why did you refuse? Was it a matter of pride?
The march toward the general assembly didn’t concern only her. It concerned the entire English Royal Court and England’s future. Her guild members risked their lives on this march. She would never put herself first and risk them harm.
“I understand. Then, I hope you can continue to guide us. However, I’ll be in charge of communicating with you from now on.”
They desperately needed a pathfinder and she wanted to prove she wasn’t hardheaded. Rachel decided to compromise.
— Suit yourself if you want to hear my voice that badly.
“No… that’s not… Haa…”
Rachel tried to retort, but ended up shutting her mouth since a curse word would come out.
She hated every word that came out of this mercenary’s mouth. She hated his tone even more.
“I’ll hang up now.”
Rachel ended their call and placed the communication crystal in her leather armor’s pocket. She turned around and looked Fermin in the eye.
Fermin flinched and expected to be reprimanded, but Rachel merely spoke like usual.
“Let’s go in.”
“Huh? G-Go in where?”
“To rest.”
“Ah… Yes… Let’s go, Vice Leader.”
The two entered the cave with a slightly awkward atmosphere between them.
The cave turned into a cozy camp with 11 tents and ample space remaining. They even set up a makeshift stable at the end of the cave.
The guild members sat around the campfire and prepared their food.
Fermin stole a glance at Rachel before enthusiastically speaking.
“Hey, hey, hey. What are you all doing? What’s with the sudden campfire?”
She hurried towards the campfire to get away from Rachel.
“Didn’t we bring a stove and heater with us?” she asked them.
“We did, but we’re using it to warm up the cave. Ah, Vice Leader, please take a seat. It’s warmer here.”
Marcus gestured to Rachel, who approached them and took a seat.
She sat on the only chair they had while the rest sat on the floor. Everyone couldn’t help but smile at their Vice Leader who stood out.
They chatted about a variety of topics in the cozy atmosphere. Their great benefactor’s identity intrigued all of them. It made the news a few times already.
“I asked the other guilds. It turns out none of them are better equipped than us.”
“I heard the same too! This tent is quite expensive. The price tag shocked me when I saw it!”
“I heard we aren’t renting, right? They say we can use it next time when we’re hunting in dungeons!”
Tents, stoves, compasses, heaters, saddles, etc. All the donations would greatly help even after the general assembly because of their dire financial situation.
“Speaking of that…”
Marcus grumbled and seemed discontent as he looked at Rachel. He obviously had something to say.
“Vice Leader…”
Rachel tilted her head and didn’t do well with these conversations.
Marcus smirked and pointed at the tents. “Those tents, have you been inside them?”
“Yes, I have. Why? Is it not to your liking?”
Rachel already checked the tent’s interior. It only had enough room to fit one bed comfortably. The fact that a magitech tent came with a bed already seemed luxurious enough.
“No, I like it. I would be insane to have a problem with this. It’s just… who donated all of this?”
Marcus furrowed his brows. It seemed he secretly had a drink judging from the redness in his eyes.
“That’s…” Rachel muttered when Fermin suddenly cut her off.
“It’s one of her classmates from Cube.”
“Oh, a classmate from Cube? Then I must’ve run into them as well?”
“That’s…”
“You think so? We were probably working our asses off to graduate. Ah, we barely managed to graduate from Cube now that I think about it.”
“…”
Most of the guild members here were all older than Rachel. Only Fermin and Marcus also graduated from Cube. The rest graduated from Britton Academy.
“I guess you’re right, but I ran into Vice Leader a few times on campus. I also heard a lot of rumors about her. Oh right, there was that one gunner. A hot rumor went around that a strange freshman had a huge crush on our vice leader. Do you remember that, Vice Leader?”
Rachel flinched when Marcus mentioned that person.
“Huh? Ah, that person is…”
“Come on. I also heard about that gunner. There’s no way he’s rich. Plus, he dropped out of Cube,” Fermin chimed in.
“…”
Rachel couldn’t utter a word because of Fermin and glared at her with fiery eyes, but Fermin didn’t seem to notice.
“Dropped out? How do you know about that?” Marcus asked.
“I paid special attention to him since I heard some guy was infatuated with our vice leader. He turned out to be below average,” Fermin nonchalantly replied.
Rachel simply brushed off whatever they said about Kim Hajin. She recalled his strange way of thinking and plenty of other memories like when he defeated Lancaster’s minion during their test. He also shared his rations with her during their exam. Then they met by pure coincidence at Clancy Islet and stayed together, etc.
She smiled while reminiscing about the past.
“Ah! It’s a man!” Fermin exclaimed after seeing Rachel’s smile.
“W-What are you talking about!” Rachel flinched and slightly overreacted.
“Oh, it seems like I’m right. Hehe.”
“Well, I would’ve donated too if I was rich. Our Vice Leader is really… Um… beautiful.”
“Qui… Quiet down. It’s nothing like that!” Rachel waved her arms in a panic.
“Do you even know how much one of these tents cost? Who in their right mind would spend tens of billions of won for someone’s affection?” Fermin pondered out loud.
“Come on, our vice leader is definitely worth more than that. Rather, what kind of person is he? He must be a hero if he was your classmate, right?”
Marcus grew even more curious.
“No, I told you it’s not… It’s nothing like that.”
Rachel muttered, but her words fell on deaf ears and the guild members continued speculating.
“None of her classmates should have this much money. Heok! Don’t tell me… Shin Jonghak from Desolate Moon?”
“No way!”
“Wow! I think that’s correct! Amazing! Well, 30 billion won is chump change to Shin Jonghak.”
“That’s right! Sounds like it’s Shin Jonghak!”
“Silence! Silence! I said it’s not!” Rachel screamed. She tried to sound as stern as possible, but her flushed cheeks looked like ketchup would come out if someone squeezed them.
“Then? Who is it?”
“That’s… That’s not the case…”
Rachel muttered with tears welling in her eyes.
“Now, now, calm down everyone. Come eat. Stop fooling around or you’ll regret it later.”
Their meal finished just in time and Rachel was spared.
The heroes required huge amounts of calories and consumed a lot of meat. The hungry guild members ate as much as they could as if in a trance.
“I’ll eat inside…”
Rachel ran away to her tent with her food, but not because she felt awkward about what just happened. She learned from the internet that nothing good came out of higher ranked people eating with their subordinates.
Ziiip!
She closed her tent and ate her food alone.
***
… inside… memories… trauma…
Forming… at that place… still…
… then… we will… watch over…
An eerie static voice whispered in her ears. She initially thought it came from her guild members loudly chatting outside, but the voice sounded quite soothing and she slowly fell asleep from it.
… Then… how… should…
Within… the tower… situation is—
The voice distorted before suddenly stopping and a migraine struck her. It felt like a beast gnawing on her head with its fangs.
“Euk!”
Rachel quickly got up and grabbed her head. She calmed her breathing until the pain receded and checked the clock. It read 2:30 A.M. They had 2 hours left before marching again.
Rachel left the cave for some fresh air and a stroll. She sat by the entrance and gazed at the sky.
The world perfectly divided into two. The sky made up half and the land made up the other. Nothing else remained on the horizon. This perfectly balanced nature untouched by mankind felt foreign and mysterious.
“Hoo… Haa…”
Rachel inhaled and exhaled the air from this desolate land. She could see her white breath and looked at the sky again. A meteor shower left numerous trails. This beautiful sight truly mesmerized her until she heard some strange noises.
Clack… Clack… Clack…
She could hear a foreign sound mixed with screams.
“...!”
Rachel finally understood the situation and took out the communication crystal.
“Is this sound coming from you?”
— Hmm? Ah, yes. I was cleaning up some monsters. It seems you have quite a lot of enemies.
Rachel stood up.
“I’ll keep watch from now on. Please get some sleep.”
— You really are hardheaded.
“Huh? Hardheaded? What? Why?”
Anger suddenly rose in her when she heard the mercenary calling her hardheaded again. She barely managed to suppress it when Xtra dealt another blow.
— You should know that passion without the ability to perform will only be a burden to others. Just go and get some sleep.
“W-What did you say?”
Rachel lost her cool and clenched her fists. Then she pointed at the invisible mercenary.
“I said I would help, but you…”
— You don’t have to. I’m far more experienced when it comes to this place and I can see across the entire horizon. I can even see what you’re doing right now. Oh, you’re pouting like a duck.
“…”
Rachel slowly sucked her lips.
— Just leave it to me and don’t be a burden. The situation is all under control.
The mercenary didn’t say anything wrong. It would defeat the purpose of hiring a mercenary if she stood watch instead of him, but she hoped he could speak more politely.
Rachel managed to compose herself.
“I looked you up on the internet. No, I investigated you.”
— Is that so?
“I don’t think you’re an ordinary mercenary.”
— Yeah, I think so too.
Xtra sounded quite nonchalant.
“This isn’t a matter you can treat so lightly. The association will come after you once the general assembly ends.”
— Wish them good luck chasing after me. Finley would’ve committed a suicide bombing if I didn’t kill him.
“Even an evil person is a person. You can’t kill someone just because they’re evil.”
— …
Silence ensued and the mercenary didn’t respond for a while.
— Doesn’t matter. I’m not a hero, so I can do things my way. I’ll do whatever it takes to accomplish my objective.
Rachel grimaced at his words. Her wariness and hostility towards Xtra surged once again. They couldn’t cooperate because of their differences in ideologies.
Rachel wanted to keep her beliefs and honor as a hero. This didn’t stem from her royal bloodline, but to avoid sacrificing others for her own goals. People like Lancaster became her country’s archnemesis because of such sacrifices and choices. She didn’t want to repeat those past mistakes.
“Why did you accept this request?”
They had a common goal for now despite their different ideologies. Xtra came to help, so she should reduce as much friction between them as possible. She already accepted the fact that she needed his help.
“I don’t think 700 hundred million won is a big deal for you.”
No one in the world would accept her ideology and convictions. As Xtra said a while ago, passion without the ability to perform would only be a burden like a barking dog pretending to be a roaring lion.
— Who knows…
A chilly breeze blew. She thought she had grown accustomed to this coldness, but caressed her arm again.
— Maybe I’m a fan?
Xtra gave her a hint, but Rachel didn’t catch on. She couldn’t possibly connect the kind Kim Hajin she owed to the annoying Xtra she wanted to smack in the head.
“What?”
— I applied to your fan café. You have quite a lot of fans.
“Hmph!”
Rachel scoffed in response.
However, she slowly realized his words might be credible. At least, he didn’t seem to be joking. Such a skilled mercenary agreed to help for a meager 700 hundred million won. Yes, it made more sense to look at this from an emotional angle rather than a logical one.
Shwiiiik!
A stick flew out of nowhere and tapped her shoulder.
“Hmm?” Rachel looked up.
Where did that come from?
She looked around when another stick flew towards her.
“What the?”
She stood and walked around until another stick struck her shoulder.
“Ouch…”
She squinted into the distance and saw someone observing her.
“Is that you?”
— Who else is there?
“Why did you throw those at me?” Rachel retorted in a stern voice.
— I felt bored. I wanted to see you dodge them.
“I don’t have time to play with you.”
— You’re playing with me right now?
The mercenary threw another stick, but her instincts kicked in and she caught it.
— Wow!
“Please stop.”
— Pweash sthawp…
“…”
Her eyes trembled in anger before she crushed the stick. “You sure are childish.”
— Forget about that. I’m throwing it faster this time.
“Do you think I won’t be able to… Guek!”
Rachel gasped in pain when a stick struck her abdomen. She felt surprised a stick could fly so fast and hurt so much. More than that, she had no idea where it came from.
Shwiiiik! Tak!
Another stick flew and smacked her thigh.
“Euk!”
It hurt quite a lot and she grew annoyed. The anger she tried to suppress in her chest surged again.
Rachel gritted her teeth and fixed her stance.
— Oh, do you want to keep going?
“Don’t test my patience.”
Rachel growled in a threatening manner and pulled out Galatine.
He picked a fight with me first, so it’s alright if I go this far. I’m just paying him back for what he did.
— Then I’ll turn it up a notch too, okay?
“Sure, keep them coming.”
— Hmm… No, it’s boring if we do it like this. Why don’t we make a bet?
“A bet?” Rachel replied while focusing on the incoming sticks. She had no idea when and where they would appear.
— Yes, you win if you manage to block even once. Starting from now until we reach the general assembly hall. I’ll grant you one wish if you win. I can even refund the full amount paid to me if you want. Don’t you think it’s like killing two birds with one stone since you’ll also get to train your spirits?
Honestly, Rachel couldn’t believe it.
How can someone be so arrogant? This mercenary seems to have forgotten who I am. I might be like this, but I’m still Rachel of England. A hero renowned across the world.
“There’s no need for all of that since I’ll personally find you.”
— So your wish is to see my face?
“Just hurry up and throw those sticks.”
Rachel planned on reading the sticks’ trajectories to locate the mercenary’s hiding spot. Then she would charge at him. She wanted nothing more than to surprise him and take a look at his arrogant face. She also wanted to smack him real good.
“Hoo…”
Rachel exhaled and fixed her stance. The royal family’s swordsmanship didn’t leave a single opening for the enemy.
“You brought this on your—”
Tak!
A stick suddenly struck her between the eyes before she could even finish.
“…?”
Rachel reacted a bit late and briefly stood in a daze. She slowly raised her hand to touch her forehead where a bump slowly grew.
She couldn’t even ask herself what happened when another stick flew towards her. Not just one, but around ten flew towards her this time.
“Ah… Wait… Wait!”
Rachel instinctively cried out for a break without realizing it.
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