Elvia looked at Bob's cooling corpse not far away.
Recalling everything that had just happened in the blink of an eye, she felt a chill run down her spine.
Before, sitting on Lin Gui's raft and enjoying the ease brought by his absurd concealment magic, she had only found it convenient.
But now, having experienced its power when used for a sudden ambush firsthand, she truly felt a bone-chilling dread.
In a head-on clash, Theia might not have been a match for the battle-hardened Bob.
Yet, under the cover of Lin Gui's elusive magic, they had actually managed to sneak up behind a Transcendent powerhouse completely unnoticed, pointing an arrow directly at the back of his head!
With an assassination combination like this, even a High-tier Transcendent expert might risk being instantly killed with a single moment of carelessness!
And this was with Lin Gui's mana almost entirely depleted; if his mana had been full, allowing him to conceal themselves again after helping Theia instantly kill Bob, not a single one of those six Defense Force soldiers would have escaped.
A Transcendent Ranger and a Low-tier High Rank mage joining forces to produce such an overwhelming result was simply unbelievable.
“It seems they aren't entirely without a plan to cross the Forbidden Zone...”
Elvia's eyes flickered as her mind began to race.
“If this ability were used for assassination...”
Just as she was secretly calculating, Theia's emerald eyes suddenly narrowed beside her, and she drew her bow once more!
Elvia's eyes also flashed, and she quickly scooped up her saber from the ground.
Stepping to the side, she stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Theia.
The two of them firmly shielded the unconscious Lin Gui behind them.
...
Amidst a gentle swaying, Lin Gui woke up from the deep darkness.
He sat up, rubbing his throbbing forehead, and was startled to find himself in a dim, man-made cavern.
The raft beneath him had been lifted off the ground and was slowly moving forward.
His first instinct was to check the wooden crates beside him. Seeing that the letters were completely intact, he let out a sigh of relief.
Then, he looked in confusion at Theia and Elvia, who were carrying the raft, one at the front and one at the back, as well as a few unfamiliar figures leading the way ahead.
“Who are they...?”
Hearing his voice, Theia turned her head, a bright smile gracing her face.
“Lin Gui! You're awake! How are you feeling? Are you alright?”
Lin Gui massaged his temples, feeling the hollow ache inside him and his mental exhaustion. He replied,
“I'm fine, just mana depletion. Where are we?”
Carrying a corner of the raft on her shoulder at the front, Elvia answered without turning around,
“We've already entered the Withered Rift.”
“This ancient, hand-carved passage is said to be a mining tunnel dug by gnolls a long time ago.”
“And those people ahead?”
“They're from Caran's Gold Rank adventure group, Dreamweaver. The targets of your special commission.”
“Is that so?”
Lin Gui raised an eyebrow slightly. He hadn't received any system notification about the commission's completion, nor had his mana increased.
“Hasn't the letter been delivered to them?”
“How should I put it...”
Elvia's tone was somewhat delicate.
“You'd better ask them yourself. Things are a bit complicated.”
At Elvia's gesture, a capable-looking woman dressed in mage robes from the Dreamweaver adventure group walked over.
With a polite, practiced smile on her face, she extended her hand to Lin Gui, who was sitting on the raft.
“Hello, I am the Vice Leader of Dreamweaver, Catherine. A High-tier High Rank mage.”
Lin Gui hopped down from the raft and gave her hand a brief shake.
“I heard about the guild's commission from my members,”
Catherine instinctively glanced at Theia, an almost imperceptible flash of wariness and exclusion crossing her eyes before she quickly masked it, her smile remaining in place.
“Thank you for traveling so far to deliver the guild's emergency recall order. Please hand the letter over to me, and we can consider the commission complete.”
Lin Gui did not produce the letter immediately. Instead, he asked,
“Where is your leader, Rona? The terms of the commission specify that the letter must be personally delivered to the leader of Dreamweaver.”
Catherine's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, clearly reluctant to answer, but under Lin Gui's calm yet steadfast gaze, she fell silent for a few seconds before finally speaking in an intentionally flat tone:
“Our leader... she perished.”
She paused, seemingly gathering her words, a hint of grief entering her voice.
“Not long ago, a fierce battle broke out between demon lords within the rift.”
“The aftermath of the battle was terrifying, altering the surrounding terrain and revealing many unexplored ancient tunnels and ruins.”
“Our leader, Rona, as a veteran Transcendent assassin of the guild, had been stuck at a bottleneck in her strength for a very long time.”
“Believing this to be a rare opportunity, she ignored our warnings and insisted on going deep into the newly revealed ruins to seek a breakthrough...”
Catherine's voice trailed off, filled with regret and helplessness.
“In the end... she never returned.”
She looked up at Lin Gui, her eyes carrying a perfectly measured mix of sorrow and resolve.
“Therefore, I am currently serving as the acting leader. Handing the guild's letter to me is the same.”
Lin Gui noticed that when Catherine uttered the word 'perished,' a petite female assassin in the Dreamweaver group clenched her fists tightly. Biting her lower lip, a flash of resentment and indignation crossed her eyes, and she looked as if she wanted to rush forward and say something, only to be held back firmly by another member beside her, who gave her a subtle shake of the head.
Lin Gui understood the situation but kept his expression neutral, shaking his head with a look of regret.
“Ah... I'm sorry, but that emergency recall letter was unfortunately destroyed during a recent attack.”
His tone was sincere, carrying a perfectly measured touch of regret.
“However, the contents of the letter were roughly urging you all to return to Caran City as soon as possible to stabilize the guild's situation. This shouldn't prevent you from withdrawing.”
Catherine's gaze instantly sharpened, darting back and forth between Lin Gui's face and the completely undamaged wooden crates on the raft.
“I see no damage on your wooden crates. Furthermore, according to our scouts who were monitoring Bob's group earlier, the crates weren't damaged during the battle either.”
Her tone carried an obvious note of suspicion.
Yet, no matter how Catherine probed and pried, Lin Gui always found a plausible reason to brush her off.
His tone remained calm throughout, completely airtight.
Catherine's expression gradually darkened as her patience wore thin.
She took a step forward, her tone turning aggressive.
“Since you claim the letter was destroyed, then let us inspect the wooden crates to confirm no other guild items were missed. Surely that is acceptable?”
Lin Gui didn't say a word. He merely waved his hand gently.
Glimmering light flowed as the massive raft, along with the wooden crates atop it, instantly floated up half a foot off the ground.
This precise and stable display of Levitation caused Catherine's pupils to contract slightly, and she instinctively froze in her tracks.
As a mage herself, she knew all too well how difficult it was to master a novice spell to such a degree.
With his hands now free, Lin Gui merely looked at her calmly.
Theia and Elvia took a step forward in perfect unison, flanking Lin Gui to protect him.
Theia's fingers rested casually on her bowstring. Although Elvia's saber remained sheathed, the oppressive aura of a High-tier High Rank knight already began to spread.
In particular, Theia's cold, crimson eyes made Catherine feel a very real sense of threat.
“Hmph!”
Catherine let out a cold snort, knowing she wouldn't get her way today.
Glaring fiercely at Lin Gui, she spat out a final warning.
“In that case, suit yourselves. Our Dreamweaver stronghold is a secret, so we won't be hosting you outsiders!”
With that, she turned in frustration and quickly led the other members away, disappearing into the fork of the deep mining tunnels.
Only after they had gone far did Lin Gui control the raft to gently land back down.
He looked at Theia and Elvia.
“What exactly happened while I was unconscious?”
Theia briefly explained.
As it turned out, after scaring off the remnants of the Defense Force, Theia had keenly spotted a scout hiding nearby.
Under the threat of her bow, the scout revealed themselves and claimed to be a member of Caran's Dreamweaver adventure group.
Having heard of this female-dominated Gold Rank adventure group back in Caran, Theia mentioned they had an urgent guild delivery for their leader, Rona.
The scout had then guided them into this ancient mining tunnel in the rift.
“Originally, they planned to take us to their stronghold to rest for a bit.”
Theia shrugged, her tone laced with a hint of anticipation.
“But now... we'll just have to camp out in the wild~”
As she spoke, her emerald eyes sparkled. It was obvious that, rather than going to the Dreamweaver stronghold to chew on dry, choking military rations, she missed Lin Gui's cooking much more.
Elvia also swallowed hard, clearly sharing the same anticipation for Lin Gui's culinary skills.
Lin Gui glanced at the faint light occasionally filtering in from outside the tunnel and the complex network of forks ahead, letting out a helpless sigh.
The mental throbbing from his depleted mana hadn't fully subsided yet; they indeed needed a rest.
“Fine, let's find a suitable place nearby to rest.”
He massaged his still-throbbing temples.
“While we're still close to the forest boundary, demon traces should be sparse.”
“You got it!”
Theia chirped, her figure darting out like a nimble cat as she began weaving through the various tunnel forks to find a suitable temporary camp.
As an experienced ranger, her skills in this area were already top-notch.
After Theia left, Elvia sat down beside Lin Gui on the edge of the raft, staring at him without blinking.
Lin Gui found her gaze a bit puzzling.
“What is it?”
Elvia fell silent for a few seconds before speaking in a low voice.
“Earlier... when we were surrounded by those Defense Force soldiers, I really thought you were going to abandon me.”
Lin Gui replied flatly,
“How could I? So many of my letters are still in those crates.”
Looking at Lin Gui's expressionless profile, Elvia suddenly whispered,
“Thank you.”
This thank you caught Lin Gui off guard. He pointed at himself, his tone laced with a hint of absurdity.
“I poisoned you, threatened your life, made you act as bait just now, and didn't even let you run away.”
“And the main reason I saved you wasn't even because of you, but because of these letters. And you're thanking me for that?”
Elvia smiled and offered no explanation.
She sat cross-legged on the raft, stretching languidly without any concern for her image, fully showing off her curves.
Only then did she ask casually,
“When we leave the Royal Capital and head to Avalon... will you take me with you?”
She tilted her head, her golden hair cascading down.
“I don't know the 'Golden Route' to get there.”
“And my strength is probably nothing special in your eyes, right?”
“With the cooperation between you and that half-demon, as long as it's not an existence above the Transcendent Rank, basically no one can do anything to you.”
She paused, her tone carrying a hint of confusion.
“Other adventure groups focus on completing guild commissions—exploring ruins, hunting demons, gathering alchemical ingredients, escorting nobles, participating in wars... all to make money and grow stronger.”
“Yet your 'adventure group'... no, to be precise, your 'post office' only delivers letters.”
“Charging trivial copper coins while risking your life to cross demon-infested wilderness, just to help commoners convey their thoughts...”
Elvia shook her head.
“This is simply one of the most 'foolish' acts of the City-State Era.”
“But if you truly plan to keep walking this path...”
Her gaze became somewhat distant.
“In truth, assassins, rangers, scouts, diviners, scholars, cartographers, or special mages like you who excel in perception, scouting, and escaping are far better suited for your team.”
“Rather than a relatively 'clunky' knight like me.”
Lin Gui listened quietly before speaking calmly.
“There are many reasons I chose you.”
“The most direct one is that you know the Golden Route from Caran to the Royal Capital.”
“Secondly, you are of royal blood. You've spent a long time navigating the center of power, you understand how nobles and the powerful operate and socialize, and you possess a keen political eye.”
“We'll inevitably have to deal with these people in the future, and you can provide a lot of information and assistance.”
He looked out at the dim light filtering into the mining tunnel.
“The Carter Royal Capital is a transportation hub for the borderlands, an important transit station for the Alliance of Three Thousand City-States in the southwest.”
“Starting from the Royal Capital, traveling to other city-states in the borderlands will be relatively convenient.”
“If I want to establish a foothold there and build a post office node, your help will be indispensable.”
He paused, his voice softening slightly.
“Moreover, once we reach Avalon and confirm that the city-state is indeed the legendary 'City of Equality' as Theia claims...”
“...Theia will part ways with me.”
Elvia's eyes widened in surprise.
Lin Gui continued, “The main purpose of this trip to Avalon is to help Theia find a place where she can truly belong. Once that time comes, my team will be missing a crucial combat unit.”
What Lin Gui didn't say was that, at least before completing the system's advancement task and raising his proficiency in intermediate magic, his own direct combat strength was indeed limited.
As a mage, he had put almost all his efforts into perception, concealment, and escaping.
Though he knew a few offensive spells, his proficiency was mediocre, and their power was insufficient to deal with formidable enemies.
【Shroud of the Gloomy Night】 was not invincible, especially during moments when his mana was depleted and he was at his weakest.
He needed a guard who was strong enough and completely trustworthy.
Listening to him, Elvia nodded thoughtfully.
“So that's how it is...”
She softly repeated the words, her eyes looking a bit unfocused.
“The City of Equality... Avalon...”
As if remembering something, she began to softly hum an ancient ballad that circulated among the common folk, her voice ethereal and tinged with a hint of longing:
“Beneath the crown untouched by moonlight, blood waters the branches of power.”
“Legend says on the far shore lies a city named Avalon, where there is no oppression, and no division between rich and poor.”
“The shadow of demons cannot reach it, and the bells of freedom ring day and night...”
Her singing echoed softly in the deep mining tunnel, carrying an indescribable, complex emotion.
As her song faded, Elvia smiled.
“Oh~ Avalon, I remember now. It's the place mentioned in this poem.”
“Does it... really exist?”
Lin Gui nodded, his tone highly certain.
“It exists.”
Elvia fell silent for a moment, her golden eyes reflecting the unknown darkness deep within the mining tunnel, as if recalling the beautiful scenes described in the poem.
She suddenly turned her head to look at Lin Gui, her face filled with an almost innocent curiosity.
“I see... In that case, I really want to see with my own eyes what this so-called 'City of Equality' actually looks like.”
Just then, in the shadows to one side of the mining cave, Theia's figure materialized soundlessly.
With a relaxed smile from completing her task on her face, she hopped back onto the edge of the raft and pointed toward a fork deep in the mining tunnel.
“Right over there, there's an abandoned gnoll storeroom. It has plenty of space and is very well-hidden.”
“I've already scouted the surrounding area, and the few tunnel imps hiding inside have been cleared out.”
After saying that, she sat down at the rear of the raft, hugging her knees with her pointed chin resting on them, staring into the empty space, lost in thought.
Rate on N.U.
