CHAPTER 64
A few days after seeing Bulldog off.
We finished our preparations to head to the 2nd World once more and left the Adventurers’ Guild.

“I-It’s been a while since we’ve been to the 2nd World.”
Horizon clenched her adorable fists, a slightly excited look on her face.
Look at that confidence. She was a born adventurer.

“If another incident happens this time, I’m really going to bite my tongue and die,” Babiyen said, grinding her teeth as if she’d steeled herself.
She was right. If something happened again, it would be crossing the line.
This had to be a happy trip to the 2nd World.

“Don’t worry. The Regular Army has already patrolled the area, and it’s a relatively safe region.”
“It was the Mistrain Fields, right?”
I nodded at Aranseol’s words.
The Mistrain Fields.
A plain where a misty rain falls almost every day.
Entry is forbidden during the rainy season, but it’s usually just a light drizzle.
The Fantasy Species that appear there aren’t very high-grade, either.
There are occasional mass migrations among the Fantasy Species, but even those are of a low grade.
Because of this, it’s a bit difficult to make money from hunting them.
However, extremely valuable medicinal herbs grow in the fields.

“We’re counting on you, Horizon.”
“Y-Yes!”
Herbs were the domain of a scout.
I was sure Horizon would be able to find some good ones.

When we arrived at the entrance to the 2nd World, we saw members of the Regular Army.
Given the frequent accidents in the 2nd World recently, entry was being strictly controlled.

“Holy Mage Harua… ah, are you Sir Harua?”
As we were undergoing the pre-entry check, a soldier who saw my name spoke to me.
I was a little taken aback, not expecting a complete stranger to know my name.
My party members also looked at me with surprised expressions.
For a moment, I wondered if I was in some kind of trouble.

“Do you know me?”
“Yes, Colonel Oven asked to be called if we confirmed your name. Could you please wait a moment?”
What was this about?
Since a Regular Army soldier had stopped me, it wasn't like I could run. I waited for a moment.
Soon after, a middle-aged man hurried over.

“Are you Sir Harua?”
“Yes, I am.”
“A pleasure to meet you. I am Colonel Oven, the guard commander. Lieutenant General Inferno asked me to pass on a message.”
He showed an excessively loyal attitude.
Then again, to a colonel, a lieutenant general was a very high rank.
He must have been on edge, having received orders directly from above.
More importantly, did Inferno anticipate that I would visit the 2nd World at some point and leave a message?
Colonel Oven leaned in and quietly whispered in my ear so others couldn't hear.
“He said the Radiance Faith stole the body and that the operation has begun.”
So, they finally took the bait!
A sickening grin spread across my face.
Those damned bastards from the Radiance Faith were about to get a taste of justice.

“By any chance, have you heard anything about a man named Bulldog?” I asked, since I’d mentioned him to Inferno. The soldier tilted his head.
“No, sir. I haven’t heard anything about someone named Bulldog.”
I see.
Perhaps Bulldog and Inferno had missed each other.
I hoped nothing bad had happened.
Since there was no way for me to find out more from here, I simply thanked him.

“I’d like to ask one more thing.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
“Do you happen to know an adventurer named Cain?”
Cain.
The name of the guy who was being chased by a murderer came up.
I frowned the moment I heard it.

“Did that bastard report me or something?”
“Ah, no, nothing like that. It’s just that he was confirmed to have disappeared from the inn where he was staying.”
Disappeared.
My brow furrowed at those words.
“Is this the work of the Black Dawn?”
“There’s a high probability. He’s a Transferee, so perhaps…”
He might have joined the Black Dawn.
My hatred for the Black Dawn welled up once again.
They just couldn’t leave the world alone, could they?
But there was something strange about that idea.
Would a guy who had fled in such terror really join the Black Dawn just because they came calling? I had my doubts.
He always seemed to have some kind of trauma.
He must have been completely broken by the last incident.
Rather than joining the Black Dawn, it would make more sense for him to live quietly in hiding.

“We are currently searching for him, but I heard that you spoke with him, Sir Harua.”
He was likely asking for my cooperation, thinking I might know something as a fellow Transferee.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know much about him either. The one thing I’m sure of is that he was being chased by a No-Named murderer.”
Honestly, Cain’s disappearance was unexpected for me, too.
The No-Named murderer case was just bait. I had thought that once the murderer was dead, no one would be interested in him anymore.
‘Could it be?’
Perhaps Cain had witnessed something more important than I’d realized back then.
As that thought occurred to me, I felt a serious need to find him.
Now that I considered the Black Dawn an enemy, I couldn’t just leave them be.
Especially now that I had a connection to Inferno, I wanted to crush them as quickly as possible.

“I’ll ask around as well.”
“Thank you. If you speak to anyone at the Regular Army guard post, they will report it up to me.”
With that, the colonel left.
I decided I should ask for information about Cain at the Adventurers’ Guild soon.
Familiar adventurers were more likely to talk to another adventurer than to a soldier from the Regular Army.
As I returned to the other three, Aranseol gave a wry smile.
“Harua, you’re interacting so casually with the Regular Army now.”
“That’s just the kind of person I am.”
“You’d be quite decent if you weren’t so smug all the time.”
Can’t have that.
I’ll be smug for the rest of my life.
Receiving a look from Aranseol that said she couldn’t be helped, we stepped into the 2nd World.
The scenery around us changed.
The strange sensation of crossing through space enveloped my body.
A moment later, a raindrop hit my forehead.
I pulled up the hood of the robe I had brought with me.
A thick, misty rain obscured our vision.
Wet blades of grass brushed against my boots.
The Mistrain Fields.
This was the 2nd World we had entered.
Thud-
In the distance, I saw a large amphibian.
It was one of the Fantasy Species native to the 2nd World.

“Babiyen, think you can use magic in a place like this?”
“Who do you take me for?”
Babiyen immediately aimed her staff at the Fantasy Species.
A moment later, a flame blossomed from her staff and shot forward.
The flame evaporated the rain as it flew, striking the Fantasy Species directly in the head.
The creature shrieked and tumbled to the ground.
A clean one-shot.

“In weather like this, the rain just evaporates, you see?”
“So you’re saying its power would diminish if it rained harder.”
“Don’t talk back.”
She’s full of energy.
The Babiyen who had sobbed after being cast out by her family was no more.
She had now been reborn as a proper adventurer.

“It’s been a while since we’ve been in the 2nd World. Let’s make a killing.”
Not long ago, I’d spent a large sum of money on the Designated Merchant.
I had to return a rich man.

Just as we’d heard, the Mistrain Fields weren’t that difficult.
Aranseol, in particular, had a massive advantage here.
Most of the Fantasy Species in the Mistrain Fields were wet.
Creatures that live in damp places are never dry. Thanks to that, Aranseol’s lightning attribute pierced through them without fail.
“Gweeeeeeek!”
Another one collapsed, electrocuted by Aranseol.
With a single swing of her sword, Fantasy Species were swept away.
Here, Aranseol was invincible, a god.

“I-I found some here!”
Meanwhile, Horizon was diligently gathering herbs.
Thanks to her fully displaying her skills as a scout, we were able to collect a considerable amount.
Everyone was playing an active role.
And I, who had been trained and physically conditioned by none other than the Paladin Commander Aigis herself, couldn’t just stand by.
So, what great feat did I accomplish?
What do you think I did? I squatted next to Horizon and collected herbs.
Our team’s combat ability was already superior to that of a typical adventurer party.
Aranseol and Babiyen were disciples of the Lords.
At this point, their capabilities far surpassed those of ordinary adventurers.
With those two handling the fighting, was there really anything for me to do after only a few weeks of training?
Unfortunately, not really.
My newly trained stamina was only being used to huddle with Horizon and pick herbs.
What was all that training for?
The image of me playing a heroic role in the 2nd World remained a figment of my imagination.

“H-Harua, you’re really good at picking herbs!”
“Thanks for trying to make me feel better, Horizon.”
Horizon, perhaps sensing my gloomy mood, praised me enthusiastically.
The small and precious Horizon was a comfort to my soul.

“We’re running into Fantasy Species more often than I expected.”
Having just dealt with another one, Aranseol trudged over to us.

She was right; the frequency of encounters was quite high.
“I heard from a staff member that a mass migration just happened.”
“No wonder there are so many,” Babiyen added, joining the conversation.
Both of them looked quite exhausted.
While the Fantasy Species in the Mistrain Fields weren't strong, the constant rain made it easy to develop hypothermia. With me and Babiyen around, no one would die from it, but it was still physically draining.
It seemed like a good time to take a break.

“Horizon, is there a place to rest nearby?”
“Ah, yes, there’s a natural cave on the path ahead.”
Like the excellent adventurer she was, Horizon had already determined our course.
“But it’s the only natural cave in the area, so there might be other guests already.”
The Mistrain Fields didn’t have many suitable places to rest.
Since it was mostly a vast, open plain, resting spots were limited.
It was an unwritten rule that adventurers in the Mistrain Fields had to share resting spots.

“We’ll have to ask for their understanding. Let’s go.”
“Yes, okay!”
We finished gathering herbs and immediately set off to find the cave.
Before long, we found a cave just as Horizon had said.
It wasn’t a particularly large cave, and just as expected, we could sense people inside.
We deliberately made noise with our footsteps to announce our approach.
Soon, a person walked out from inside.
“Stop.”

Hearing his next words, I raised my hands to show we had no intention of fighting.
“I am Harua, an adventurer from Valterion. Would it be alright if we just rested for a moment?”
“No.”
I blinked.
What kind of bullshit was this, telling us we couldn’t rest?
“This place is occupied by us, the Kardun.”

My eyebrows slowly rose at his next words.
Kardun.
The barbarians of the west.
I remembered the story I heard from Callen’s party.
They said that after the No-Named murderer incident, the western barbarians started marking their territory and forbidding other adventurers from entering.
And these bastards were pulling the same shit here.