A Reunion in Oricil
"And... I hear you demanded a reward from Runen?" Master Igon spoke first.
The party members' faces lit up with relief. It was a blessing that Master Igon had opened the discussion himself.
"Yes. According to the explorers' regulations, rescuing a distressed member of an affiliated guild requires the guild in question to pay a reward."
"Sounds like a legitimate claim."
"It is. Last month, toward the end of the month, we rescued the alchemist Maya after she was stranded in the Ant Cave. However, the Alchemist Guild in Runen refused to pay the reward."
"Just to confirm—the reason?"
"They claimed it was because Maya isn't a guild-affiliated alchemist."
Maya, who had been listening quietly, cut in.
"Father."
But Igon didn't even turn his head in her direction.
"Be silent, Maya. And I believe I told you to address me as Master while we're here?"
"...I'm sorry."
In the guild, Igon was every inch the Master Alchemist. To him, Maya wasn't his daughter—she was simply one alchemist among many.
"Indeed. I did sign the document expelling the girl from the guild," Master Igon said flatly.
Maya lowered her head, her expression bleak.
"At the time, I believed she had died inside the dungeon. In that cold, damp, lightless pit of dust... surrounded by monsters and swarms of insects, meeting a miserable end."
"That didn't happen."
"No, it didn't. It couldn't have. Not unless the girl sitting before me right now is a ghost."
His interlaced fingers tightened. She knew it too—what she had endured in that dungeon. How utterly perilous the situation had been, and how impossibly lucky she was to have survived nearly a month stranded in the Ant Cave. That alone was a miracle.
"I'll reach out to the exploration team. The Alchemist Guild will be paying a reward to the explorers who saved my daughter."
"Thank you."
"You're the representative, I assume? I'll entrust the money to you. Distribute it to your companions once you return to Runen."
Igon's decisive response lifted the weight that had been pressing on my chest. Once the Master gave his word, the matter couldn't have been simpler. I let out a long breath. With this, I'd secured money to share with the companions who'd cleared the Ant Cave with me. Jangcheok and Sion would be thrilled.
"If you're not in a hurry, would you tell me about your exploration of the Ant Cave dungeon?" Master Igon asked in a gentle, measured tone.
I'd wondered where Maya's soft personality came from. She clearly took after her father.
"Of course."
We spent some time discussing the dungeon expedition. Igon had never worked as an explorer himself, but he mentioned wandering across the kingdom in his younger days for training. That was how he'd met Maya's mother.
Then, without warning, the conversation died as if a ghost had passed through the room. Igon and Maya exchanged an awkward glance. Both of them simply fiddled with their teacups. What a painfully shy father and daughter.
"Maya," Igon said at last. "I'm so glad you're safe. You have no idea how happy I am to have you back."
"...I'm sorry for worrying you."
Their conversation was brief. Then, as if nothing had happened, they both went back to pretending to be indifferent.
"Well then. Thank you for escorting Maya all the way to Oricil."
"It was nothing."
For us, the money was reward enough.
The conversation seemed to be winding down when a servant announced,
"Master Igon. Lady Arin has arrived."
"Send her in."
Igon's second daughter—Maya's half-sister—had come to see us.
The door opened and a young woman with vivid red hair stepped inside. Everything about her screamed privilege and high birth. Arin glanced around briefly. Her eyes met ours, but she offered no greeting. Her attention was fixed solely on Maya and Igon.
She dropped into the nearest chair with a thud. A strange tension filled the room.
"What do you want?" Igon asked.
Arin replied with haughty arrogance. "I heard my so-called sister had returned, so I came to have a look."
Maya quietly shot her a glare. Arin didn't flinch. If anything, she stared back even harder.
"Have a look? You?" Igon's voice sharpened. "Weren't you the one who investigated Maya's accident? You submitted a report declaring her dead. Because of your erroneous report, we lost the chance to even request a rescue operation. You should be quietly reflecting on your mistake, yet here you are. What gives you the nerve to show your face?!"
Arin answered her father's icy rebuke with a sneer.
"There's been a misunderstanding. It wasn't me who reported that my sister died—it was the alchemists in Runen. I simply forwarded the report I received."
"Arin!" Igon shouted. If he'd been any older, he might have clutched his chest and collapsed on the spot.
"It was a detail that could have been verified with a single check. You were the one who neglected Maya's investigation!"
Arin raised her voice right back. "Of course, I intend to personally cover any losses caused by my mistake. That should satisfy you, shouldn't it?"
"...Do you really think this is about money? This is a family matter. It's a matter of trust."
"Hah. Family?" Arin let out a short, derisive laugh and looked at Maya. Maya quietly averted her eyes.
"There's only one thing I want to say to you, Father. Don't you dare quietly reinstate my sister into the guild."
"Whether she returns or not is for Maya to decide."
"Is that so? Then why don't you answer, sister? Will you return to the guild? Or do you plan to keep playing at being one of those filthy beggars who call themselves explorers?"
Listening to her, I was dumbfounded. She seemed to think explorers were nothing more than mercenaries or hired thugs. And to say such things right in front of active explorers—it was incredibly rude.
Maya bit her lower lip for a moment. Then, in a faint voice, she answered.
"I want to... focus on my explorer activities."
Arin didn't drop her mocking smile. "I knew you'd say that."
She stood up.
"Fine. Keep crawling through the dungeons you love so much, sister. You're truly something else. After everything that happened to you in there, you still have the stomach to go back down."
Arin strode out of the reception room. Master Igon rubbed his face wearily. Even though I'd just been sitting there, I suddenly felt the urge to stretch.
"Forget what you just witnessed."
"I'll do my best."
"Perhaps a hundred rons would help motivate you."
Igon snapped his fingers. An attendant distributed coins worth a hundred rons to each of us. The man really was a walking purse.
...That would cover a nice lunch.
"Then we'll take our leave."
"You've done well."
I bowed to Igon and left the guild. The rest of the party trailed after me.
"Oppa! Now that we have money, let's eat something expensive!"
"What should we get? What's considered expensive around here?"
"Um... steak? Maybe something around thirty rons?"
"You said expensive. How about forty rons?"
"Eek. That's too extravagant."
Just then, Maya called out to us.
"Mr. Hajun! Wait a moment!"
She smiled weakly.
"I've been wanting to treat all of you ever since you arrived in Oricil. If you haven't eaten lunch yet, would you join me?"
The party members exchanged glances without a word. Yes. This was exactly what we'd been hoping for.
"Ahaha. If you're offering, it would be rude to refuse..."
Haneul giggled beside me. I barely managed to hold back my own laughter.
Oblivious to our true feelings, Maya simply offered a gentle smile.
"I'll get ready quickly. Please wait just a little."
How good could a restaurant be when it was recommended by a local like Maya? We followed her out into the streets.
The lively metropolis of Oricil. The streets were packed with people, cargo carts, and livestock brought in for food—there was barely room to breathe. It was the kind of place where you wouldn't bat an eye if you suddenly heard something smashing to pieces...
"What's going on?"
Haneul craned her neck, trying to see. At that moment, Roa's eyes flashed with golden light. She'd seen something.
"Ah." Roa let out a short gasp.
She immediately began pushing through the crowd and running.
"Roa!"
I chased after her with the rest of the party right behind me. Screams echoed from ahead. The commotion was growing louder.
Roa shoved through the spectators and drew two sharp daggers from beneath her robe. Her cloak fluttered as the blades glinted dangerously.
"Kyaaaaah!"
The street where the trouble had broken out was in complete chaos. Overturned stalls lay everywhere, along with shattered animal cages. Green-skinned monsters roared and snarled around the wreckage.
The culprits were orcs.
One of them had a chain wrapped around its hand and was using it to hold a civilian hostage.
"Let... go!"
The hostage had red hair. A red-haired woman. Were there many of those in Oricil?
"Arin!" Maya screamed desperately.
I wasn't mistaken. The woman held captive was indeed Maya's half-sister, Arin.
I asked one of the onlookers, "Excuse me! Is this what I think it is?"
"Whatever you're thinking, yes! The orc slaves have escaped!"
Orc slaves? Shibal. This world really does have everything.
Without hesitation, I drew the sawtooth blade from the sheath on my back. When your opponents are orc bastards, you don't show them an ounce of mercy. The only good orc is a dead orc. And personally, I despise orcs. Intensely.
"Haneul! Maya!"
City rules normally prohibited carrying weapons, but our explorer licenses let us keep them for exactly this kind of situation.
"Uh... I don't have my shield, though."
Unfortunately, I was the only one properly armed. Haneul only had a short gladius, and Maya hadn't even brought her potion bag.
Haneul might not be much help, but Maya still had her uses.
"Maya! You can draw formations, right?"
"Yes!"
"Earth Pattern! Draw a Stone Wall!"
One of an alchemist's best utility skills—Stone Wall. It summoned a massive wall from the ground, a high-performance defensive technique that could block the enemy's line of sight and obstruct movement at the same time.
Maya immediately understood my intention. She began drawing the formation on the ground at incredible speed.
I left Haneul to guard her, then charged toward the orcs with Roa.
There were roughly eight escaped orc slaves. Even accounting for their weakened bodies from slavery and lack of weapons, rushing in without a plan was dangerous. But with Arin taken hostage, there was no time to worry about the details.
Roa slipped lightly between the orcs and unleashed a flurry of acrobatic attacks with her twin daggers—stabbing, slashing, pulling, and carving. Then she tumbled across the ground and leaped onto the roof of a nearby building.
The furious orcs chased after her. Thanks to that, almost none of their attention fell on me or Maya.
"Poison Arrow!"
I fired a poisoned arrow at one of the distant orcs. It collapsed weakly as the toxin took hold. I swung my sawtooth blade and began carving through the nearest ones, one by one.
"Uwoooor!"
Two orcs finally turned on me. No matter how strong their physiques were, I was wielding a two-handed sword. Time to show them the difference in power.
"Haaat!"
I spun in a circle, swinging the blade with all my strength. The weight and reach of the two-handed sword, amplified by centrifugal force, delivered devastating power.
The sawtooth blade took an orc's head clean off in a single strike.
Blood sprayed like a fountain from the severed neck.
The headless orc crumpled to its knees.
"Uwoooock!"
Another slave orc howled in rage. An excited orc was unpredictable. I kept my distance, probing cautiously with the tip of my blade and fighting defensively.
The orc slave reached for me. I stepped back and sliced off its wrist, then its forearm, knee, and ankle. By the time I regained my senses, the once-powerful orc was nothing but a torso and head.
"Uwoooooor!"
Even then, it kept roaring with fighting spirit. Did it think it was some kind of dark knight? I swung my blade and sent its head flying.
Meanwhile, Roa finished stabbing another orc to death and came running back. Maya's spell should be ready by now.
"Maya!"
At my signal, she activated the formation.
"Stone Wall!"
She aimed it perfectly at the orc holding Arin. A massive stone wall erupted from the ground, separating them.
Roa deftly scooped Arin up and sprinted toward us.
"Arin!"
Maya rushed forward and caught her. Arin's neck was covered in lacerations from the chains. Those muscle-bound orcs hadn't been gentle with their captive.
Arin trembled uncontrollably in Maya's arms. That was the usual reaction for anyone caught up in violence—the body overwhelmed by tension and adrenaline.
"Are you okay?"
"...Yeah."
That was when it happened.
Piiik! Piik!
Sharp whistle blasts cut through the air. The city guard had finally arrived.
"Shibal. Salary-stealing bastards."
I spat on the ground and cursed the guards thoroughly. In movies and novels, guards were always useless. I hadn't expected them to be the same here.
As the soldiers armed with long spears formed a wall, the orcs were cut down without any real resistance. They were late, but at least they were useful.
"Thank you for your tireless service to Oricil day and night..."
I waved at the man who appeared to be the guard captain. He gave a curt jerk of his chin with an indifferent expression. Soldiers swarmed forward and surrounded both me and Roa.
"..."
Shibal. Are they kidding? Really?
"Explorers, hear this! The orcs you killed were private property of the Merchant Union. They had clear owners, yet you inflicted permanent loss. You must take responsibility for the damages."
What? In two years as an explorer, this was the first time I'd heard such utter nonsense. Were they seriously telling me to pay compensation for killing slaves?
Right then—
"Who the hell do you think you're spouting that bullshit in front of?!"
The red-haired young woman stepped forward. Arin marched right up to the guard captain.
"Lady Arin?"
"Who's the knight currently on duty? Go get him. Now!"
"Um... that's..."
"Can't you hear me? I said bring him here!"
Arin hounded the guard captain like a rat in a trap. Wow. Shibal. That was Arin for you. Absolutely zero manners.