A crowd of busybody adventurers stood inside the main hall. Murmurs vibrated the walls. An air of excitement, confusion and restlessness wafted over, causing many to shuffle their feet; or causing a constant chatter to happen between multiple people.
"Hey, whaddya think is happening?" One adventurer popped up, looking over their shoulder to start a conversation with another in their sights.
He got a weird glance from his target, but surprisingly got a response. "You haven't heard? The guildmaster is making an announcement… This notification was given to every adventurer just yesterday."
"Hah? It was? Anyways… What is it for?"
"Addressing the kidnapping issue… Duh, what else?"
The first man fell silent. Chatter around him increased in volume.
Once it hit its peak volume, the front doors silenced it all. However, no one turned their heads, their entire attention focused on Noelle entering the hall elsewhere. Accompanying her were Alice and Sai.
A certain part of her body caught their attention; a sheathed rapier dangled off her hip, and unlike her usual formal attire, she wore a greyish leather armor. Her appearance caused more chatter amongst them.
'Is she going to join the fight?'
'Does this situation warrant a powerhouse like her to join the fight?'
"Ahem, ahem. Thank you all for coming to this announcement." Noelle started off, she patted the bottom of her rapier and continued. "You all probably see that I am in this getup; your questions will be answered, I will be leading a raid party to cut down the organization that's behind all of these kidnappings in Vertealle." Her voice was loud and clear, entering all those who paid attention to her. Her gaze scanned the crowd, and landed on a few individuals. "For those who want to join, they will be paid an amount correlating to their contribution."
Everyone watched as she stuck her pointed finger to the sky.
"For every capture of these villains, you will be paid a silver. We do not know how many there are, nor their fighting prowess."
'Adventurers do not change at their core… Haha.' Noelle thought watching a greedy glint enter the eyes of over half the crowd. Over her years, many civilians joined the guild; their sole purpose was becoming wealthy. Be it dangerous, or light work, their intentions never changed. "Haha, well I should mention this before you all try to join. We only have enough room for two extra bodies. The first two who meet the raid party at the eastern gate may join, good luck to you all."
"Noelle… Do you think this is a good idea for you to join? You aren't getting any younger." Alice, who stood behind her left shoulder asked. "Your skills have rusted, have they not? Are you sure you're okay with this?"
Once the eyes of the crowd swapped back to her, Noelle turned her torso to look at Alice. A warm-yet small smile crept onto her face.
"Teacher, don't worry… I may be older now, but I was a high ranked adventurer, remember? Besides… I won't be in the fray. I'm the last resort."
"But… Ugh… Fine, just don't get hurt okay?"
"Don't worry, don't worry. I plan on coming back." Noelle chuckled and turned back to the crowd. "Aha, though this is short, I would like to give the names of those who will be contributing to the raid. If you hear your name, come stand to my left."
"Sir Sai, please announce them."
Noelle took a few steps forward. She straightened her posture, and maintained constant contact with her weapon. Behind her, Sai fumbled with a folded slip of paper. A few sharp whispers were shared between him and a smug Alice.
"Looks like an old dog is losing touch, huh?"
"Oh shut it will you, why don't you dress accordingly." Sai jabbed, he puffed his chest out after. Finally, he managed to unfold the paper and looked amongst the crowd. He inhaled deeply and commenced calling names. "For the first candidates, Mister Alex and Tim. You two please make your way up here."
Two men, one in armor and the other in a robe marched in front of the crowd and took their place. Just before they could, they shook hands with Noelle, vigorously.
"And the next, Sir Janus, Miss Catelyn, Just like the previ-"
"Coming! Thank you all for the chance! We won't fail you!!" A loud mouthed woman yelled among the crowd. Her loud voice parted the crowd in front of her like a sea. Behind her, a man clad in armor followed. His expression was solemn, as if he was hesitant or relaxed. His nose bent at an awkward angle.
"Thank you Miss Guild Master, I won't disappoint you!"
"Don't get too cocky, Miss Catelyn. And you too, Mr (forogtnamestwo), I cannot wait to witness your prowess."
"Thank you Guild Master."
Thus, the second group stood next to Alex and Tim. What odd choices. This common thought made its way across the crowd. Why were these newbies chosen over the more experienced individuals?
"And the last group…" Sai squinted at the paper, and rubbed his eyes. "Wait a second…" His voice quieted and turned towards Alice. "I finally recalled what that girl's last name was from…" He whispered. As if an invisible conversation commenced between them, they nodded in unison after a few seconds. "Sorry about that you lot. Miss Bronya, Mister Roth, Miss Li Rong Fei, and Mister Lucian. Please make ways up here!"
The crowd's head turned, a few stepped back when a giant of a man in thick metal armor stepped forth. Even more so, when a wood elf with a confident- beaming grin was in toe. Her shiny axe on her hip caught a few glances. These two were a well known duo to all, the Raging Bull and the Smiling Killer.
Both silver ranked, though their strengths were ranked higher. Behind Bronya, Lucian kept his eyes ahead, his eyebrows furrowed deeply, his thoughts unknown. His hand was caught by Fei's. Her ears laid flat, and her tail stayed low.
"Tis finally nice to meet you, Raging Bull." Noelle exclaimed whilst her hand outstretched. "I've heard many of your feats, please take your spot."
"Thank you, Guild Master."
"And you too, Miss Bronya."
"It's nice to meet you as well, Guild Master. Hehe, don't talk to these two~ They rarely talk~" Bronya said as she returned the handshake. Those 'two' she gestured with her head tilted towards them. She only gained a nod, and went on her way.
"Very well, once again thank you all for coming to this miniscule announcement! For all that is interested, come to the east gate in an hour!" Noelle announced once everyone took their place. "As for you eight, come with me. There are things we need you to know."
***********************
Nearly an hour and a half lapsed, those who were tasked departed in their respective carriages. Six total, one for the guildmaster which led the parties. Then, the head of the Intelligence Department and his party. As for Bronya's group, they shared theirs with the rest.
With ten people in one, it was cramped. They were all forced to push into each other; unfortunately for Bronya, Roth sat next to her. He was forced to lean forward due to his stature. Meanwhile, Fei was sandwiched between the front of the carriage and Lucian.
Bronya crossed her arms and kept her eyes snapped shut. The carriage bobbed up and down; squeaks reverberated inside from the wheels. Just a few minutes of listening to this she scratched her ear and complained. "Geez, you would expect a better quality carriage."
"I know right? It's so noisy…"
"Well, we're going to have to deal with it for the next few hours~"
"Hold on, a few hours?!"
"That's right." Bronya responded without looking towards Catelyn. With as much room as she had, she crossed her legs.
"Miss Smiling Killer, how do you know that? The Guildmaster only mentioned the east gate."
"Well~ Looks like you all didn't do your homework, or did your job effectively…"
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Give it up, Catelyn. You're ignorant if you can't tell-"
Bronya shuffled through her pockets and pulled a decent sized- yet, folded paper out. She waved it in front of herself, giving the rest a smirk. "Their base is located in the mountain range, it's a straight line. We'll have to get through the forest to find it." Her voice exuded confidence and smugness. "Hehe~ Just from your reactions~ You never got that far? What a pity…"
An overwhelming silence befell them. Obviously, they had never gotten that far, that much was clear to each other.
"Don't be mean, Long Ears."
"Fine, fine… Just don't smack my head. Here, I'll share this all with you."
Once the paper became unfolded, it was a rather large but scaled version of the area.
"Here, in these mountains there'll be a few openings to the slavers' base. I couldn't gather what they lead to. But, from an assumption, they hold different cells." Bronya explained holding the paper so everyone could see with slight difficulty. Her pointer finger guided towards the mountain range. "If it looks rough- I made it myself just last night, but I can guarantee the information."
"Um, Miss Smiling Killer… How did you get this information-? And how can we trust you? You're with those two…"
"That's a trade secret… Little newbie~."
"We'll just wait for the Guildmaster to give out the information. It's very much obvious you cannot be trusted!"
"Suit yourself Mister high britches~"
"What did you say?!"
"Long ears…."
"Fine!"
A few hours later, the carriages ceased all movements. From the front, the driver yelled in a booming voice.
"WE HAVE MADE IT TO THE DESTINATION! EVERYONE, BE CAREFUL WHEN STEPPING OUT!"
Once fully clicked in, the first two at the back carefully jumped out. Everyone, in a short amount of time, jumped out; aside from Fei, who was helped down thanks to Lucian. All the other carriages stopped at various distances, however all followed in the first carriage's steps.
To the front of them, a giant mountain stood high. Rather unassuming, like any other. Rocky, with a dangerous steep that many loved to climb or peer at.
"Don't gander at it for too long, you all. We have a mission to do… Allen, have your crew scout around the area. We shouldn't be too far from where we should be."
"Got it."
"Meanwhile, everyone! Prepare yourselves, Mister Alex and Tim, you Catelyn, and Janus) You two will be together. Get to know each other, we know the layout and parties of four will be the best to form into." Noelle ordered without looking back. She raised her head, looking to the tip of the mountain. She looked back towards Bronya's party. "You four, gather your wits. Figure out your route, Miss Bronya, show the rest the map when you can."
"Got it!"
Bronya jogged around the area. The rest of her party watched as she found a spotless area and beckoned them over. She sat the map down, and fanned her hand down.
"Okay, so, you guys probably realized it. Guildmaster and I already discussed this." Bronya stated as she patted the map. "And yes I did actually map this… You two, stop talking telepathically and join us!"
Both Lucian's and Fei's backs jolted straight and they apologized in unison.
"Good, maybe after this you two can have your lovey dovey talk. Anywayssss, so what I said in the carriage was right." She pointed at the mountains just above the horizon. "We're at a blindspot, each of the coachmen had a copy. Our party will be entering through…"
Her finger landed on a random spot, above it the letter A marked it.
"We have to be prepared, from what was told it will be cramped. Perfect for you, terrible for Rothie and I." Bronya explained the 'you' she gestured towards Lucian. Once Lucian understood her fully, she rambled on.
She theorized, it was like an ant mound. Many tunnels that lead to countless different rooms. Not a single soul understood how large the size was. Not even the captured individuals, they only met up with hooded figures and dropped the kidnapped individuals off.
After a bit more theories that flew around, Bronya and Roth turned their heads to Fei.
"Little Fei, you must sit on the side during this."
"E-Eh…? W-W-Why?" Fei stammered out, an ache grasped at her heart. Her frown turned deeper. D-Did I do something wrong? I brought my staff…
"Your role as a mage will be more useful outside. Where there is more open space. There are no guarantees in this raid, it is bigger than you think. Plus, your little boyfriend here would not like you coming in."
Lucian rolled his eyes, but inside he couldn't agree more. "Fei… Please, just stay out here, it's safer." He mumbled whilst glancing at her.
Fei's ears flattened as she lowered her head to the ground. Her lips quivered slightly alongside her fists clenching.
"Long Ear. This is not your fight. You aren't built for this." Roth said bluntly. "You're too weak, your body would not handle a fight in close quarters."
"Hey, be nice Rothie! I'm sure Little Fei could whoop their butts, even if they were close! You saw what she could do!"
"Don't be a fool."
"C'mon… You know you could have been a little nicer to her?"
Fei gripped her hands as tight as possible. I'm- Really useless… A cloud pushed itself inside her mind, not allowing any exit for her thoughts to leave.
"Fei… You can do something for us…" Lucian murmured as he stopped her hands from scratching each other. He locked eyes with her for a moment. "Do you know how far your telepathy can reach?" His question was responded with a shake of her head.
"Should reach far, even for a newbie."
"Hm… We can use hers if one of us runs into an issue."
"That's a good idea, Little Lucian. Little Fei, do you know how many people you can talk to individually?"
"J-Just… One…"
"Hmm…. That's fine, keep a constant link with your boyfriend, he'll need the most help."
"O-O-Okay…" Fei muttered, she avoided showing her beet red face. P-Please… Stop saying that… She wished. As her entire body cooled down from being flustered, she let out a breath.
"Now that's set in plan… I forgot to mention, nice armor you got there. Although cheap, it's infinitely better than your run of a mill outfit." Bronya commented whilst looking towards Lucian.
"Thanks…?"
"No problemo~"
Some chatter later, they heard a loud voice call them back to the carriages. A tiny blue orb was given to all; they were told it was a communication crystal. With mana poured into it, they can connect to a 'wave'. Noelle raised her hand, showcasing a much larger crystal.
All were connected to it. By default, each crystal will connect to it. But if they spoke certain numbers into it, they can interconnect to another.
Once all were used to it- Aside from a few individuals- Bronya, who tried with all her might to get it working but ultimately could not get it working; Lucian stood in the same boat for a few minutes. But, through trial and error, it dimly lit up. Lastly, Fei.
Just upon contact, hers started to frost over. In seconds, it fully crystallized and split in half. Ultimately, only those three were told to be careful and to come running out of the caves if anything happened.
"Now that everyone has been informed… We all know our roles. Do not give them a chance, and don't kill anyone unless necessary." Noelle stood in front of them, and raised her weapon. "For the people of this land, for what your motives are; go and cut them down!"