Chapter 15: The Call to Arms: A Large-Scale Monster Hunt

Upon returning to the Mage Tower, Rain first sought out her master.

Although she was supposed to write a report about her mission, there was something more urgent at hand.

As she climbed the tower, Rain recalled the little girl she had seen.

A young girl named Seris, from an ordinary rural village, who possessed an unusual calmness for her age and even demonstrated her swordsmanship.

However, if that were all, Rain would not have gone to find her master.

The moment Seris first felt mana, she formed an inner world and began using her own unique magic.

A brilliantly shining starlight—Rain had never heard of such magic before.

If such beautiful magic existed, it should have been recorded in the Mage Tower’s grand library.

Arriving at the end of the endless staircase, she found herself in a narrow corridor with an old door standing alone.

Without hesitation, Rain approached the door.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Master!”

The old door rattled as Rain knocked on it with her fists.

At that moment, a voice came from inside.

[Is that you, Rain?]

“Yes!”

As soon as Rain’s answer ended, the old door opened.

Beyond the door lay a seemingly ordinary study.

However, Rain knew that what she was seeing was not the truth.

In the Mage Tower, it was commonplace for the space itself to change according to the master’s will.

Rain slowly walked toward her master.

An elderly man with a long white beard and hair of the same color, wearing a blue robe like Rain, looked at her with eyes glowing with blue mana.

“Have you written the report?”

“Uh, no. I plan to do that later.”

“Then what brings you here after a month?”

With her master’s words, Rain began to organize what she wanted to say, recalling the image of the little girl.

Normally, she would have realized that her master was a bit disappointed and would have apologized, but her mind was now filled only with the dazzling starlight and the image of the little girl.

With excitement, Rain started recounting everything she had seen: the calm girl who was beyond her years and the starlight magic she had used.

She explained that the wide river of starlight illustrated a strange world that transcended her understanding.

Lastly, she mentioned that the girl had a nameless master who was not of this world.

The old wizard, who quietly listened to Rain’s story, nodded and then spoke.

“You said it was a unique magic you had never seen before?”

“Yes!”

“A magic that cannot even be found in the tower’s library…”

“Yes!”

“To be honest, it’s hard to believe.”

Rain did not deny her master’s words.

If she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she would not have believed it either.

“Rain, if what you’re saying is true, there may be a new faction forming within the tower.”

“Is it really that significant?”

“That’s how hard it is to believe.”

“Ah…”

The old wizard looked at his disciple.

With a sulky expression, Rain was nervously checking her surroundings while tightly gripping the hem of her robe.

It seemed she was resentful that her master didn’t believe her words.

“You said that girl Seris is thirteen?”

“Yes…”

“She’s not a noble?”

“Yes…”

“Hmm…”

The old wizard stood up.

He didn’t fully trust his disciple’s words, but it was still information worth moving his old body for.

A young mage with exceptional talent and no background was a valuable asset that everyone coveted.

“Your junior might be coming in.”

“Huh, really?”

“Since the Mage Tower’s mission has just concluded, I thought I might go out for a bit.”

The distance from the Mage Tower to the port city takes about three days by carriage.

Rain hurriedly packed her belongings to go with her master.

After finishing my own quest, I immediately booked a tavern to relieve the fatigue I had accumulated.

I washed my body in hot water and lay down on a soft bed to sleep.

The next morning, after having breakfast on the first floor of the tavern,

I shouldered my bag and headed toward the adventurers’ district.

I was going to refine the ice horn’s leather and horn that I obtained from the Karum Mountains.

The first place I visited was a large leather workshop.

“Welcome!”

As I stepped into the workshop, a man greeted me.

He asked with a small smile if I was looking for something.

Instead of answering, I rummaged through my bag and pulled out the ice horn’s leather to show him.

“This is… ice horn?”

“You guessed it right.”

“Given my profession…”

The man examined the leather from various angles and began to assess its quality.

After a while, he recommended that I make a cloak.

“The production time is a week, and the fee is a total of 2 gold. You can only pick it up yourself. Do you agree?”

“I’ll do it.”

I immediately handed 2 gold to the man.

He nodded and took the leather into the back of the workshop.

It seemed he was about to process it right away.

Next on the list was the ice horn’s horn.

I left the workshop and wandered the streets.

As I walked, I wondered what kind of artisan could process this horn.

My contemplation didn’t last long; I found the answer on a sign attached to a blacksmith shop.

[Monster Horns and Bones Processed Here]

Without hesitation, I headed into the blacksmith shop.

Despite it being winter, the blacksmith shop was hot.

The sound of metal clanging echoed throughout, accompanied by the intense heat that filled the space.

As I had done at the leather workshop, I approached the blacksmith and handed him the horn.

What I needed was a sword superior to an ordinary iron sword.

The blacksmith examined the horn for a while before informing me about the production time and cost.

The production time was 3 days, and the fee was 3 gold.

I rummaged through my pockets and frowned.

Perhaps due to spending money thoughtlessly, I had only 1 gold left.

“Hmm… are you short on money?”

“Yes…”

“Then how about this? The horn is needed for making the sword, so you can sell me the other one.”

“How much will you buy it for?”

“10 gold.”

10 gold for one ice horn? I was taken aback by the higher-than-expected price.

But I didn’t show that feeling on my face.

The blacksmith looked at me as if he couldn’t pay any more than that.

I nodded, hoping this man would be a person of conscience.

Once the deal was made, the blacksmith handed me the 7 gold after deducting the payment and a leather sword sheath.

The leather was soft and durable, looking quite high quality.

The sheath was adjustable in length, allowing it to be worn on the waist or carried on the back.

“What’s this…?”

“It’s a service.”

I immediately took off the sword I had been carrying on my back.

Until now, I had been tying it with a rope, but now I finally had a proper sword sheath.

Feeling good, a small smile spread across my face.

I untied the rope and adjusted the length of the sheath to carry the sword on my back.

The soft sensation resting on my shoulder and its sturdiness felt great.

It was quite a delightful gift.

With all the transactions completed, I felt financially secure after selling the ice horn.

I exited the blacksmith shop, heading to the tavern with drinks and ham in hand.

I devoured the ham while sipping on a drink that had a bitter taste with a hint of fruit aroma.

It was a lavish act for a girl who had lived her whole life in a rural village.

On the third day after placing the production order,

I headed to the blacksmith shop to receive my new sword.

The long, white blade and the sturdy iron that wrapped around its center appealed to me greatly.

I particularly liked the simple crossguard without any unnecessary embellishments.

I picked up the sword to test it, swinging it lightly.

It was lighter than the iron sword I had been using and had a good weight to it.

Overall, it was undoubtedly a far superior item compared to the iron sword I had used.

“I ground the horn to sharpen the blade and set the iron in the center to balance it. How is it?”

“It’s good.”

The blacksmith seemed pleased with his creation and began to share unsolicited information.

After enduring his chatter for a while, I was finally freed when a new customer arrived.

Exiting the blacksmith shop, I headed straight for the adventurers’ guild.

Having obtained a new weapon, I planned to take on a light mission to test its performance.

However, the atmosphere at the adventurers’ guild was chaotic.

Normally, there would be two or three adventurers gathered, but now a group was seated together, discussing something seriously with grave expressions.

I passed by them and approached the receptionist.

“Excuse me.”

“Hmm?”

The receptionist turned at my question.

He glanced around before finally spotting me below and gave an awkward smile.

I stood on my tiptoes, leaning over the reception desk to ask him.

“Why are those people gathered?”

“Oh, the mayor has requested a large-scale monster hunt.”

“A large-scale hunt…?”

“Why, are you interested?”

Of course, I couldn’t help but be interested in a large-scale monster hunt.

I nodded without hesitation.

“Um… just to be sure, what about the rank badge?”

I took out my bronze badge from my pocket and showed it to him.

The receptionist’s expression relaxed as he saw it.

He pulled out a paper from beneath the desk and said to me,

“The reward is 1 silver per monster. The hunting period is about a week. The request date is four days from now.”

“Does the type of monster matter?”

“They said that they would pay more for high-level specimens… but they didn’t provide detailed information. So, I’m just informing you it’s 1 silver per monster.”

“Are the people participating just those over there?”

“There are more than just them. The mayor’s personal soldiers are coming too.”

“Oh…”

“You’re going to register, right?”

“Yes.”

“What’s your name?”

“Ceris.”

“Got it. Rank is bronze, job is swordsman…”

The receptionist filled out the paperwork and handed me a small wooden token.

There was a special seal on it. He added that if I lost this seal, I wouldn’t be able to participate in the large-scale hunt.

I put the wooden token in my pocket and asked a curious question.

“By the way, why the sudden monster hunt?”

“You know that monsters that don’t usually inhabit this area have been appearing lately?”

“Ah, yes.”

“If it were just one or two, I wouldn’t worry much. But the frequency of their appearances has increased too much lately.”

The receptionist was quite talkative.

He went on about how the sudden influx of monsters was pushing existing ones out of their habitats, forcing them down to human villages.

In any case, there was still time until the promised date.

Ignoring the chattering receptionist, I returned to the inn.