Free Web Novel“With a Hero among them, even if they’re discovered, they should be able to hold out until our reinforcements arrive.”
Luna paused, then added, “Besides, right now we don’t even know who’s friend or foe. We can’t afford to drag this out or waste our strength. One wrong move and we could end up trapped here for good... Otherwise, I wouldn’t have chosen such a risky plan.”
Rakaide bit down on his cigarette, saying nothing, his face clouded with worry.
As the first squad assigned to direct assault, their movements were soon spotted by the masked figures.
“Oh-oh-oh, look—they’re coming out.”
“Eeeh? There’s way fewer of them than the intel said!”
The masked ones chattered noisily, scattered across rooftops like spectators at a zoo, careless and mocking.
“I don’t see the Holy Sword anywhere. Where did they hide it?”
“Seems like they split up. Should we split up too?”
“Heh heh, since when do we ever cooperate? Why don’t a few of you go let the miners out of the pit again—make this chaotic scene even messier?”
“I’ll go!”
A figure wearing a plain white mask let out a shrill laugh and leapt down from the rooftop.
At that same moment, Arc’s speed spiked—he shot forward like lightning, his punch crashing into the descending masked man with overwhelming force.
Boom!
“Ahhh—!”
A scream split the air as the masked man spun like a top and slammed into the ground, gouging a deep trench. His limbs twisted grotesquely, blood spraying everywhere.
Just as Arc thought he was dead for sure, the masked man suddenly stood up again in a spine-chilling pose.
Half his head collapsed inward, yet he gave a rattling laugh. “Actually, I was just faking it! Ahahahaha!”
Then, flailing his arms, he bolted away. “Come catch me, ahahaha—or I’ll go release the monsters!”
He could run like that—with half his skull missing.
What the hell—was that thing even human or monster?
Cold sweat dripped down Arc’s bald head. In all his years as an adventurer, he had never seen anything like this.
Seeing his horrified expression, the masked figures around them burst out laughing. Some doubled over, others danced wildly, a few rolled across the rooftops clutching their sides.
“Don’t let them mess with your head!”
Luna arrived just in time, snapping Arc out of his daze. Her eyes sharpened as she scanned the masked mob standing on the roofs.
“They’re already dead.”
“Dead?” Kare blinked. “You mean, like those miners trapped in the town?”
“No...”
Rakaide walked up slowly, standing beside them, exhaling a stream of smoke as he looked toward the rooftops.
“Years ago, I met a bunch of lunatics who called themselves ‘Chaos Artisans’ when I was with old Captain Quinn in the Eastern Sea. Their underlings wore the same kind of blank white masks ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ as these.” freeweɓnøvel.com
“That organization was shrouded in mystery. Even after months of digging, the old captain never found much—only that these masked ones were just outer-circle members, called the Restless Guests.”
“My grandfather?” Luna blinked in surprise. “That must’ve been ages ago.”
“Almost ten years. But you were right, Captain—these masked things are corpses, shells that contain the fragments of their memories from before and after death. Any moment, they could be taken over by a higher consciousness. And the fact that so many have appeared at once...”
So even that captive from last night, Lao Liu, must have intentionally let himself be caught—
All just to sneak in and locate the Holy Sword, and learn who its new wielder was.
To think, that buried organization had risen from the shadows again after all these years.
Rakaide sighed. “Captain Luna, I think there’s something wrong with this commission. Warn the other squads—especially Menesis’s group—to be careful...”
“I’m starting to suspect these masked people have some special means of tracking the Holy Sword’s position.”
“What!” Luna’s face turned grim at once.
Perhaps because one always learns something from others—
Menesis was leading the way ahead, patiently explaining to Rania the methods of orienting oneself outdoors and recognizing terrain features.
“Track the sun and stars to find north and south; mark the way with broken branches and stone piles. Follow streams downhill to find settlements. Stay calm—staying alive matters more than rushing blindly... These are survival guides passed among adventurers. Lady Hero, did you get all that?”
“Uh... I got it.”
“Good. Later, the two of us will take turns navigating. Just don’t lead us straight into a monster nest—or the enemy’s base.”
“S-sorry. Could you maybe explain it again...”
Rania’s face flushed bright red, especially under the smirking gaze of Vieya beside her, which made her wish she could dig a hole and disappear.
“All right, I’ll go over it again.”
Menesis sighed helplessly. To be honest, she found this Hero a little... lacking. Simple things had to be explained two or three times, sometimes even with examples to help her remember.
Heroes these days—each generation seemed worse than the last.
Menesis silently shook her head.
“In short, as long as we can remember the path we came from, we’ll be fine.”
Rania asked, “And what if we don’t remember?”
“...”
What, did the snow bury your tracks too?
Menesis turned back to the violet-haired girl and asked seriously, “Lady Hero, have you ever studied before?”
“She’s a great scholar from the Tower of Knowledge—read tons of books,” Vieya said with feigned innocence.
“Then how come...” Menesis’s eyes shifted between the smiling Vieya and the increasingly flustered Rania.
“Because the books she read were all picture stories and comics,” Vieya whispered right next to Menesis’s ear, giving a sidelong glance at the terrified Hero. “She skipped nine out of ten lectures, and the one she didn’t skip she spent sleeping. Bottom of the whole academy—no, the entire city...”
“H-how do you know all that!” Rania’s eyes went wide in horror, feeling as if her entire past were being stripped bare.
“It’s no secret. I just asked your senior sister—she told me everything.”
Serves you right for hitting me yesterday. Retribution for defying your master, that’s what this is.
Vieya stood with her hands on her hips, the picture of a petty grudge-holder, while tossing the blame neatly onto that pink-haired midget miles away.
Menesis pressed a hand to her forehead and sighed. What kind of teammates are these?!
Could they really complete the commission with people like this?
A seed of pessimism sprouted quietly in her heart, but she quickly crushed it.
“Everyone has things they’re not good at... I’ll keep leading the way for now,” she said, kindly offering a step down to keep the team’s harmony intact.
Rania nodded fervently, even raising a fist. “Leave all battle matters to me! I won’t let anyone down.”
As for other scores to settle—she’d save those for later.
