14. Hildenheim Durof
Hildenheim's Durof was a promising adventurer who had reached Silver rank in just two years.
Considering that most adventurers took about a year to climb from registration to Bronze rank, and needed solid achievements and decent skill to push from Silver onward, hitting Silver in a mere two years marked him as genuinely talented. He was the kind of talent who could probably snag a Gold badge without much trouble before hitting his tenth year—even if Platinum was a stretch. As a rising star in the Hildenheim branch, his name carried some real weight.
'I'm pretty much top dog around here.' Even as a Silver-rank adventurer now, he was dead certain he'd hit Gold someday, and that confidence had inflated his ego sky-high.
Then one day, after blowing through a week's worth of savings on booze and broads with his crew like always, Durof and his buddies ran dry. No choice—they dragged their asses back to the guild for the first time in ages to scrape up some coin.
The guild entrance buzzed with noise.
Sure, it was always crowded, but not this chaotic. Durof shot a puzzled look at one of his mates who'd beaten him there.
"What the hell's going on?"
"Oh, you're here? Check that out. We're fucked."
"Fucked how? What bullshit is—"
Dismissing his buddy's words as nothing major, Durof glanced where he pointed. His eyes bugged out the second he saw it.
"Whoa... shit."
"Right?"
"She's fucking gorgeous."
Two women chatting and laughing, one radiating pure innocence, the other raw wildness—like goddesses sculpted by heaven's own hands. No woman Durof had ever laid eyes on came close, not even to their toes.
He couldn't tear his gaze away as he muttered to his buddy, "We got babes like that around here?"
"Dunno. Word is they're with that guy up front. Came over from Leventen."
"Leventen? That border shithole? Ain't that miles away?"
"Yeah, but this place is the hot spot lately. Somethin' about the lord's daughter—next queen's right-hand girl or whatever."
Durof kept staring as he asked, "What's their rank?"
"Dunno. That guy's the leader, they said. Bronze rank, so probably same."
"Bronze?"
Jealousy surged in Durof's gut at the mention of Ian. A lowly Bronze dragging around those two? Low-rent lust boiled up too. Wonder what it'd feel like to fuck 'em. Just thinking about it had his pants tenting.
"Catch you later."
Unable to hold back, he clapped his buddy's shoulder and strode forward.
"Hey? Dude, what're you—"
"What else? Leave prime pussy like that alone? Time for some fun."
"Uh? Oh..."
Durof said it like it was obvious. His crew tilted their heads, then grinned sleazily as it clicked. One piped up, sounding worried.
"Dude, we still gotta lay low, right?"
"A week's plenty, fuck. What more laying low?"
"Fine, sit it out if you're chicken."
"...Fuck you assholes. I'm in. Obviously."
"Dumb shit. Bitchin' when you're gonna do it anyway."
What they meant by "some fun after ages" was their signature crime spree.
Durof might've been a scumbag, but his skills were top-tier locally. Talented women adventurers hit on him constantly. He'd lure them into his party, pick deep-forest quests on purpose, wear them out over the long haul... then strike when the job wrapped. Outnumbered and exhausted, the women couldn't fight back much. Deep in the woods with no help, they'd just... fade away.
After raping them, they'd off the women "to avoid loose ends," dump the bodies in monster territory, and report it to the guild as an unavoidable accident mid-quest. This wasn't their first rodeo.
The guild suspected something from all the women dying in their parties, but lacked proof—and didn't wanna piss off a prodigy who'd hit Silver in two years. So they swept it under the rug.
But tails get caught eventually. With Aria named crown princess, Hildenheim boomed, and the guild HQ sent a new branch chief. He started sniffing around Durof's crew and their string of "sudden deaths." Forced to play cautious, they'd drowned their urges in booze and whores.
Until today. When these two appeared: Cheong-ah and Bella.
Pent-up filth leaked out. Durof marched up to the nameless beauties, armored in arrogance and base desire. Clueless that he was shoving his own head into a tiger's jaws.
§
"Hey, ladies, ditch that Bronze loser and party up with us?"
A cocky male voice made me whip around. There stood a curly brown-haired prick with a sleazy gigolo face.
"...The fuck?"
I stepped up quick, blocking him from Cheong-ah and Bella. He eyed me head to toe, smirked, and said, "Oh, you the leader of these fine ladies' party?"
"Yeah. Who the hell're you?"
I arched a brow.
"Name's Durof, Silver-rank adventurer workin' Hildenheim. Nothin' major, just pretty famous around here."
"So what do you want?"
"Heard you ladies and him are new to Hildenheim?"
I was using polite speech, but this asshole kept barking casually. Especially hammering that Silver bit... He probably knew my rank and was rubbing it in. My face soured. What did that have to do with Cheong-ah and Bella?
"So, as one of Hildenheim's top adventurers, figured I'd guide some fresh faces—team up on a quest, show ya around?"
"Don't need it. Fuck off."
Durof's face twisted ugly at my blunt shutdown.
"Wasn't talkin' to you. Talkin' to those two ladies in your party."
"...Hah."
There it was—his real intent. Hitting on my women outright.
"Piss off. Unless you wanna die."
I meant it as real advice. Sure, Silver-rank—he was probably stronger than me. But that didn't mean I was scared. Hell, I was half-tempted to bolt his forehead right there. Guys like him weren't rare back in Leventen either. Early days partying with Cheong-ah, plenty tried hitting on her beauty. Plenty groped, plenty insulted me. Wonder how they ended up...
Temples and alchemists must've boomed for three months straight. Half-dead patients carted in nonstop, shelling out for potions just to survive. Thinking back, this prick was almost pitiable.
But before we hit the guild, Sierra had begged me—please keep Bella from pounding the locals. Vital manpower for domain development. So this was my charitable warning to the overconfident dumbass.
But this idiot must've had his ears fucked deaf. He scoffed openly at my bone-deep advice.
"Hah, listen to this Bronze-badge punk..."
Shing.
Durof drew his sword from his hip. I reached for my crossbow—
"Honey, leave him to me. I'll handle it."
"Cheong-ah?"
"Yes."
"No killing. Remember Sierra's request."
"Got it. Don't worry—I'll take care of it."
"Yeah. I trust you."
Right—not Bella, Cheong-ah. She'd talk him down easy. Cheong-ah approached sword-drawn Durof. He grinned like a fool when she spoke.
"Excuse me."
"Ah, miss. Whaddya say? Ditch that loser and join—"
His smirking face made me itch to bolt his brow. Then—
"...You filthy cur dare."
Cheong-ah's icy voice after ages, followed by a sharp crack of wood on wood. Barely audible even nearby.
A chill hit. Durof blinked, confused.
"Eh?"
Then—
Shwick!
Flesh tearing. His sword arm hit the floor. Blood sprayed from his eye socket next, a leg severed clean after. The cuts were surgical—perfect cross-sections.
"G-gaaahhh?!"
Arm, leg, eye gone in a blink. He thrashed on the ground, screaming, collapsing in a bloody heap.
The guild erupted in chaos.
"Kyaaah!"
"What the—?!"
"Blood! Murder!"
"He's still alive! Not murder!"
"Psycho killer!!"
"Not murder yet!"
"C-calm down, everyone!"
Adventurers used to blood panicked anyway in the frenzy.
"Oops... Sorry, honey. Couldn't hold back."
Cheong-ah approached with a soft smile, a speck of blood on her cheek.
"But I handled it well, right?"
"Cheong-ah, did you have to go that far?"
"He insulted you first. As your wife, how could I forgive that? Be grateful I didn't kill him."
"...Yeah. Got it."
No more words. I pulled a handkerchief from my pocket and wiped the blood from her cheek.
"Sometimes I think you're crazier than me."
"Perhaps I shall call my shrewish husband 'Madman' from now on."
One hell of a flashy debut.