Norton Ashley was restless; his brow hadn’t relaxed since leaving the city.
The cause could be traced back to half a month ago.
Originally, he only wanted to find a few capable Adventurers, casually pay them some money to bring him into the Dungeon, and locate the imposter noble named “Su Yao.”
But who would have thought that the Moravia Adventurers’ Guild was completely empty!
Well, not entirely—there was that dead-eyed receptionist and a few rookies who looked like they’d die easily.
Aside from them, there was virtually no one left in the guild. Why was this happening?
After a long inquiry, he finally heard from a hurried man that many treasure chests had appeared in the Dungeon where the Imperial Princess—or rather, the Former Princess—had disappeared.
Now almost every Adventurer in Moravia had rushed off to seek those treasures.
They had no interest in taking contracts that paid a few dozen silver coins when they could earn many times more by simply scavenging in the Dungeon.
Moreover, the man rudely remarked, “I’m not going to endure being bossed around by some idiot noble.”
Hmph, have these stray dogs forgotten who they are just because they found a few meaty bones?
Fools. When all the treasures in that Dungeon are plundered, they’d better not regret it!
After posting the adventure contract, Norton left with a few curses, confident that some Adventurers would accept it soon enough.
A week passed, and even after raising the reward to one gold coin, no reliable Adventurers were willing to take it.
Helpless, he bit his lip and continued raising the price. Only when it reached three gold coins per person did a small team of seemingly competent Adventurers accept the contract.
But just before departure, that team caused trouble.
These bottom-tier scoundrels demanded half the payment upfront as a deposit. Norton repeatedly promised that once they completed the contract, they would receive every coin owed.
Yet they stubbornly refused to budge!
Didn’t these guys realize he was the future lord of this land? A mere dozen or so gold coins was nothing—how could he possibly owe them?
Infuriated, he went back to the Adventurers’ Guild, only to find them colluding, claiming the Adventurers’ demands were reasonable!
Damn it. To make matters worse, he’d already spent almost all of this month’s dividends.
That bastard Hilvi hadn’t returned either, so this adventure contract was doomed.
With no choice, and unwillingly, he had to find another way to recruit people…
“Long time no see, little brother.”
“What wind blew you over here today?”
The drunken man before him was his younger brother, Himan Ashley. He was in charge of the city’s security and defense, though the prosperous and peaceful city left little for him to worry about.
Simply put, this guy was a parasite. Not only did he pocket the dividends given by their bastard relative, but he also skimmed off the taxes from their lands.
Their father had appointed him to assist him, yet Himan did nothing but drink and carouse all day, bringing shame to the Ashley family name.
“Cut to the chase—I need some men. Start by sending me fifty from your city defense squad.”
“What do you want them for? Those guys are fatter than a Royle Pig. What help could they possibly be?”
“That’s none of your concern!”
Norton knew perfectly well how useless those city guards were. Apart from a handful of skilled veterans, the rest were slackers.
But even slackers would do. He had already confirmed that the Dungeon wasn’t very dangerous, with the toughest monster being a Minotaur.
Usually, four skilled Adventurers could kill one; fifty soldiers could pile their bodies high and overwhelm them.
“Fine. Go to the barracks and pick whoever you want, as long as they’re willing to follow you.”
“Got it!”
It turned out Himan’s good temper wasn’t due to his drunkenness; Norton should have guessed as much.
Without money, the soldiers wouldn’t even look at him, not even when Norton revealed he was the eldest son of the lord.
Useless scum, yet they dared to demand exorbitantly!
Exasperated, Norton went back to Himan. No matter how nicely he pleaded, Himan flatly refused, saying “Protecting Moravia is their duty.” The implication was clear—they simply wouldn’t lend men without pay.
Nice excuse—yet where were they patrolling the streets to maintain order?
He clearly couldn’t rely on this guy.
It looked like he’d have to wait for that bastard to return. At least from Hilvi, he could get enough money to hire Adventurers.
So, burning with anger and impatience, he returned to the villa and waited another week.
Finally, just yesterday, upon hearing that Hilvi had returned, he rushed to the inn where she was staying.
“Hilvi, my sister, you’ve finally come back.”
Ignoring the butler’s attempt to stop him, he barged in only to be met with his sister’s cold glare, unsurprising as always.
Unexpectedly, his brother Himan was there too, and beside Hilvi stood a girl he didn’t recognize.
Her faintly pink eyes smiled slyly at him.
That bastard merely glanced at him, said nothing, and continued adding “white sugar” to her teacup.
Rarely did he admit she was part of the Ashley family, yet she completely ignored him? Just as he was about to lose his temper, the unknown girl spoke.
“Captain Balder, stand down.”
Only then did he notice the pain in his neck, followed by the warm trickle of blood.
“Ah! Blood… blood! Quickly, get a doctor! I’m bleeding!”
Norton staggered back, leaning against the wall, clutching his neck.
“Hilvi, your brother is quite amusing. With such talent, have you considered joining a circus as a clown?”
“Princess, you should ask him that yourself.”
Princess? Captain? What were they talking about? And how did he become a “clown”?
“It’s truly heartbreaking. After all the trouble I’ve helped you solve, you still won’t call my name.”
The girl theatrically collapsed, her body clearly leaning toward Hilvi. Hilvi, who had been calmly drinking tea, closed her eyes and shifted one seat away.
“Tch.”
A princess like this? But thanks to their bizarre little scene, he calmed down considerably.
“Princess, please get to the point.”
The bleeding on his neck had already stopped—it was just a superficial cut.
Norton felt as if his whole body was burning, both humiliated and furious, but he dared not lash out.
He wasn’t a fool. He still hadn’t seen this Balder guy, but this “princess,” whether genuine or not, had already left a mark on his neck.
She was definitely not someone he could afford to offend.
“Mr. Norton and Mr. Himan, I heard you’re both very interested in the Dungeon in the Northern Forest of Moravia. Coincidentally, so am I.”
The girl spoke in a lively yet elegant tone.
Her playful gaze swept across everyone except Hilvi before continuing, “I hope you’ll bring Captain Balder along when you set out. Don’t worry, he’ll keep you safe. Please don’t refuse — this is a command from the Vichy Royal Family.”
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