CHAPTER 28
Horizon.
She was from the Amyeong Tribe, who manipulate shadows.
As a shadow user, she could appear and disappear from anywhere, which would be a great help in gathering intelligence.
Putting aside the fact that she was a woman, she was a competent scout worth recruiting.
“Miss Horizon.”
“Ah, y-y-yes!”
She bit her tongue while answering, her expression showing the stinging pain.
Her personality was, in a word, meek.
She was timid, easily frightened, and stuttered often.
My gaze shifted to Aranseol and Babiyen.
Babiyen stared at Horizon with an expression that screamed "frustrating."
Aranseol looked conflicted.
Should we pick her or not?
“Hey, look over there.”
“It’s the Unlucky Milk Cow.”
While I was deliberating, I heard people’s voices.
Unlucky Milk Cow.
It didn’t take long to figure out who they were referring to.
When it came to her figure, Horizon was just as eye-catching as Aranseol.
Since I didn’t remember her, she must have been a recent pioneer, so it was only natural she’d become famous so quickly.
Just like these savage this-worlders to come up with such a vulgar nickname.
More than that, the word “unlucky” bothered me.
“What kind of teams have you been in until now?”
I couldn’t just ignore what I’d heard.
I decided to ask her directly about the teams she’d been a part of.
“Ah, th-that is.”
Horizon listed the teams she had belonged to.
After hearing all of her stories, I noticed one thing they all had in common.
Every single team she had joined had disbanded.
There were various reasons, but the fact remained that they had all broken up.
No wonder the name “Unlucky Milk Cow” stuck to her.
I had wondered why a member of the Amyeong Tribe, who are excellent scouts, was working solo without a team.
Horizon lowered her head, looking self-conscious.
She was well aware that every team she joined had ended up disbanding.
But it didn’t seem like Horizon was to blame for any of it.
When I discreetly asked a guild staff member, they said she had completed all her team missions brilliantly.
Besides, unlucky to this extent?
You want to talk about unlucky? Try getting torn to shreds by a cult the moment you get transferred.
Anyway, these savage this-worlders blame everything on luck the moment something doesn't go their way. They can't even imagine that their own abilities might be lacking.
“Harua, are you going to hire her?”
Just then, Aranseol approached me while I had left Horizon alone to ask the staff member questions.
“I’m thinking about it. All the other applicants are horny bastards with obvious intentions.”
It was clear that every other applicant was just trying to get into Aranseol’s or Babiyen’s pants.
I had checked out a few seemingly decent guys before Horizon, but none of them could take their eyes off Aranseol and Babiyen.
In the end, Horizon was the only female scout available to recruit.
“I think she’ll be fine.”
Surprisingly, Aranseol was in favor.
“I saw her hands. Those are the hands of someone who has handled a sword a lot.”
That was the judgment of Aranseol, who had spent her entire life swinging a sword.
This was information that couldn’t be wrong.
“So you’re saying her skills as a swordsman are solid.”
And since she’d consistently worked as a scout, her scouting skills were sufficient too.
The decision didn’t take long.
There was no one else worth recruiting anyway.
“Miss Horizon, let’s team up.”
“Ah, r-really?! Wow, I haven’t been able to find a team at all, thank you so much!”
She must have known she was called the Unlucky Milk Cow.
And she must have known that was why she couldn’t join a team.
Still, seeing the passion burning in her eyes, I felt like I had recruited a reliable ally.
“Let’s go to the 2nd World tomorrow.”
We’d spent a bit too much time carefully selecting a scout.
Everyone agreed to the proposal.
I hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep yet either.
I needed to relax for a bit.
Of course, before that, I needed to find out what the current situation was like for pioneers.
With Black Dawn causing chaos recently, the world was in a grim state.
There was no telling what might have happened among the pioneers as well.
To find out, I looked around for a suitable gathering of pioneers.
The pioneers were having a drinking party at the Pioneer’s Guild restaurant, as they did almost every day.
The life of a pioneer was a precarious one, so many of them drank like this.
“Aranseol, you go ahead and get us rooms at a nearby inn, including one for me.”
“What about you, Harua?”
“I’m going to gather some information. I’ll head back as soon as you’re done.”
Aranseol simply nodded and left.
Her expression said she knew I’d be fine with so many people watching.
I picked out a suitable group and approached them.

There was one gnome, a human man and woman, and one dwarf.
They had relatively bright expressions, and judging by their attire, they were seasoned pioneers.
I’d seen them a few times in passing back when I worked with Bulldog.
Since they had survived from then until now, they had to be skilled.
They would know the situation among pioneers well.
“Hello.”
“Hm?”
The human man was the first to react to my greeting.
His eyes quickly scanned me up and down.
“Well, well, if it isn’t the noble Holy Mage who was surrounded by women earlier. What business do you have with lowly folks like us?”
The gnome chimed in with a hint of sarcasm.
Gnomes are often looked down on because of their small stature, so many of them have prickly personalities.
It felt like a chihuahua yapping, so I didn’t feel particularly offended.
“Heh heh, looks like you hired the Unlucky Milk Cow for your team. You might disband soon.”
The dwarf added his two cents.
It was a typical remark from a meddlesome dwarf.
“What can we do for you?”
Finally, the human woman, who looked like an archer, asked calmly.
Looking at them, I smiled warmly.
“I’ll pay for the drinks you’re having now. In return, I’d like to hear about what’s been going on in the world. It’s been a while since I’ve done any pioneer work.”
“What’s this, a generous Holy Mage!?”
“No one who buys you a drink can be a bad person. Come, have a seat!”
The gnome and the dwarf were instantly on my side.
However, my eyes were fixed on the human man.
I had noticed that he, with his short hair and tan skin, was the leader of this team.
“Sounds good. We came up empty in the 2nd World this time, so we’re a bit strapped for cash. You’re welcome here.”
Thankfully, he gave his permission as well.
I sat down in the spot the gnome quickly made for me.
“You just mentioned you came up empty. Did something happen in the 2nd World?”
“Hmph, don’t even get me started. Lately, those pioneers from Kardun have been causing all sorts of trouble. They’re shouting that they’ll monopolize all the Fantasy Species in the areas they claimed first.”
The meddlesome dwarf answered immediately.
There are dozens of gates to the 2nd World in the human nation of Gladion alone.
The Pioneer’s Guild manages all of these gates, and pioneers are grouped by region.
Pioneers from the capital, Gladion.
Pioneers from the western region, Kardun.
Pioneers were divided among themselves by region like this.
Because of this, competition between pioneer groups often became excessive.
The 2nd World was a limited resource.
With so many pioneers pouring in, a competitive mentality took hold as they tried to grab even a little more for themselves.
“Aren’t the Kardun guys known for having no business ethics?”
“They are. But this time, they seem determined. They’ve banded together tightly.”
The dwarf’s face was full of irritation.
Each pioneer group had nicknames for one another.
Kardun, being a region of wide plains, had a large population of nomads.
Thanks to that, they were stuck with the derogatory name “barbarians.”
From my perspective, all this-worlders are the same barbarians.
“That’s not all. There’s also the problem with the group that formed after the recent string of murders in the 2nd World. They’re the ones whose comrades were killed by the murderer, and they’ve teamed up to catch him. Those bastards have lost their minds and will pull a knife on anyone they see, pioneer or not.”
The gnome let out a groan as well.
The murders in the 2nd World.
As one of the victims, I could guess the situation.
That No-Named murderer bastard who slit my and Bulldog’s throats.
It seemed he still hadn’t been caught.
I wish he’d just hurry up and die instead of tarnishing the image of No-Nameds.
“Lately, it’s almost like a cult atmosphere. You should be careful too, Mr. Holy Mage.”
The human woman also warned me to be careful.
I have bad memories of cults, so this wasn’t welcome news.
“The Kardun guys basically banded together because of those bastards, too.”
“Mm, that’s right. Some of the barbarians ended up as victims, so they’re saying they won’t let any outsiders in.”
I couldn’t believe all this chaos was because of one murderer.
“To be honest, I wouldn’t recommend the 2nd World right now,” the human man offered his frank assessment.
“The outside world is in an uproar because of Black Dawn, and sparks are flying in the 2nd World, too. There are even rumors that some of the Black Dawn members who carried out the attacks fled to the 2nd World.”

The situation in the 2nd World was not good.

Hearing that made me rub the back of my neck.
In that case, would it be better to wait and use the money I have for now?
I felt bad for Babiyen and Horizon, but it might be better to postpone.
“It’s tough for day-to-day folks like us, but a Holy Mage like you doesn’t necessarily have to take such risks, right?”
A Holy Mage could also earn money by healing people.
So, if I put my mind to it, it wasn’t like I had no way to make a living.
“Thank you for the advice.”
His advice was well worth taking.
“By the way, there’s something I’d like to ask you now.”
Just then, the man turned the tables and asked me a question.
“Mr. Holy Mage, weren’t you the porter who used to travel with Mr. Bulldog?”
So this guy remembered me too.
He had a good memory to remember me, a mere porter.
“That’s right. I got lucky and ended up like this.”
There was no reason to deny it.
If anything, if he knew me, it would be easier to build a little more trust.

“Huh? The great Holy Mage was with Bulldog?”
“Bulldog, isn’t he a silver-ranked pioneer? Hoo.”
The gnome and dwarf also looked at me with surprised eyes.
It seemed Bulldog was quite famous among pioneers.
“I learned from Mr. Bulldog in the past. He was a good man, so I was disappointed to hear he was retiring.”
It looked like they didn't know Bulldog's recent circumstances.
“Bulldog went missing a little while ago.”
“What?”
“That old man?”
Unlike the man I was talking to, the peanut gallery was getting noisy.
The man himself looked a little surprised.
“If you happen to learn anything about Bulldog, please leave a message for me at the Pioneer’s Guild under the name Harua. I will reward you.”
“Harua.”

Just then, Aranseol appeared.
At her arrival, I got up from my seat.
I also placed the coins to pay for the drinks on the table.
While the dwarf and gnome rejoiced, my eyes met the man’s.
When our eyes met, he gave a faint smile.
“Let’s see each other around on pioneer business.”
I couldn’t tell if he was a good guy or a bad guy.
Still, I made a mental note that he seemed sharp, gave him a nod, and left.
And the next day.
I would end up squandering my entire fortune.