In the Imperial Capital, near the city center, a construction site lay. Long caution tapes now cordoned off the area, prompting passersby to instinctively detour around it.
“This is the last bag.”
The secretary accepted the storage bag from Aya Tone, their eyes already wide with astonishment.
A single person, clearing several dungeons within an hour.
Was this truly the power of an S-rank?
Even after relaying Bai Xiao’s request to the military, the secretary remained somewhat uneasy.
This little ancestor had been working all morning, so much so that the few individuals accompanying him had collapsed from exhaustion at the sanatorium.
Not to mention the output he generated.
Consequently, they searched the guild’s records and located the dungeons Aya Tone had taken on.
They had followed his trail.
Yet, the closer they got, the more the secretary’s heart pounded with alarm.
Each time they caught up, all that remained for them was a shimmering portal entrance, on the verge of vanishing.
Aya Tone had already departed, moving on to the next mission location.
Left with no alternative, they decided to wait directly before a dungeon that had yet to disappear, patiently awaiting the arrival of this little ancestor.
This, then, led to the scene unfolding before them.
“Miss Aya Tone, are you not returning with me?”
The secretary inquired with curiosity after securely storing the bag.
Ordinarily, adventurers who complete a clear are required to return to the guild for registration.
Once the mission dungeon is confirmed to have fully vanished, their remuneration is then disbursed.
Otherwise, the dungeon would remain listed on the quest system, marked as uncompleted by default.
It would then patiently await the next adventurer’s ‘favor’.
Another scenario involves resource-gathering dungeons, similar to S-rank dungeons, where the primary objective is harvesting.
However, these types of dungeons are exceptionally unique and exceedingly rare.
The guild does not issue clear missions for them; instead, they provide a separate collection-based quest.
“Uh…”
Aya Tone offered a sheepish smile, somewhat unnaturally averting his gaze, reluctant to meet the secretary’s eyes.
“I… I’ll pass.”
‘Go back?’
‘Before he left, Bai Xiao told him not to rush, not to rush.’
‘And then what happened?’
‘Before he even finished speaking, he bolted out.’
‘Wasn’t that just deliberately trying to annoy Bai Xiao?’
‘Sigh…’
‘He wasn’t thinking straight at the time, and by the time he realized, he was already inside the dungeon.’
Reflecting on it now, Aya Tone couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret.
‘If only he had reported to Bai Xiao before coming out; that auntie is so kind, she surely would have agreed.’
‘Now, going back is out of the question; he’ll definitely get scolded.’
‘Perhaps he should wait until Auntie Bai isn’t so angry before returning.’
Aya Tone licked his somewhat dry lips.
‘Hmm… he was scared…’
“Alright then.”
The secretary nodded, deciding that since this individual appeared to be in good spirits, they would let him be.
After informing the military personnel stationed there, the secretary departed, carrying the storage bag Aya Tone had given them, back to the guild.
Each performed their respective duties.
The clean-up operations were best handled by the military personnel, while the guild’s responsibility lay in providing weapons.
****
Once the secretary had departed, a man in military uniform approached, saluting Aya Tone.
“General Aya! You’ve worked hard!”
“No, no, no, you are the ones who have truly toiled,” Aya Tone quickly waved his hand in dismissal.
‘He merely went in for a stroll; there was no hardship involved for him.’
Compared to him, these soldiers were the ones truly worthy of admiration.
They not only had to guard the perimeter, preventing anyone from accidentally entering the dungeon, but also served as the first line of defense should the dungeon go berserk.
For this military uniform, Aya Tone held a profound, heartfelt respect.
Witnessing Aya Tone’s humility, the man couldn’t help but let out a hearty laugh.
This general, though young in appearance, possessed a remarkably amiable way of speaking.
He could discern the genuine sincerity that permeated Aya Tone’s words.
In this day and age, countless young people would rather idolize celebrities than pause for a moment before a martyrs’ memorial.
“General Aya, please don’t be so modest. The Imperial Capital has been short-staffed recently, and if it weren’t for your presence, this place would remain sealed indefinitely.”
Although this dungeon was near the city center, its relatively low danger rating meant it hadn’t been prioritized for handling.
Thus, the military had been dispatched to garrison the area, with plans to deal with it only once more personnel became available.
This was why the military officer felt such profound gratitude towards Aya Tone.
Should delays continue to mount, the likelihood of this dungeon going berserk would escalate exponentially.
If a dungeon situated within a city were to go berserk, and its monsters breached the spatial barrier to emerge,
it would inevitably lead to catastrophic casualties.
“Uh… this is merely what I ought to do.”
Aya Tone touched his nose, reasoning that since he was, in a sense, ‘eating the nation’s rice,’ receiving payment naturally entailed fulfilling his duties.
“Well then, I won’t disturb you any further; I’ll be heading back now.”
Remaining any longer, Aya Tone sensed, would lead this captain-like figure to engage him in a lengthy discussion about his feelings on serving the nation.
‘He’s just a magical boy with few grand ideals; his belly holds little in the way of profound convictions.’
‘If the conversation truly delved into more elevated topics, he’d undoubtedly revert to his ‘ape’ form.’
“General Aya, do you require an escort from us?”
“No, no, I’ll manage on my own.”
With that, Aya Tone fled around the corner without a backward glance.
He had absolutely no recourse when faced with such enthusiastic individuals, fearing he might inadvertently say something wrong and betray the other’s good intentions.
‘Indeed, handling dungeons alone is quite troublesome.’
The military officer watched the figure disappear around the corner, letting out a sigh.
‘I thought I might have a chance to discuss ideals with this general; what a pity.’
Dismissing those thoughts, he turned back to lead his subordinates in clearing the lingering effects of the dungeon’s teleportation array.
Their goal was to restore everything here as swiftly as possible.
****
In the Imperial Capital, an unnamed park.
Aya Tone sat on a flowerbed near the roadside, his wide eyes fixed on his phone, which he held up, constantly comparing something from left to right.
His appearance was akin to an ancient geomancer.
Except, while the geomancer would be charting celestial and terrestrial phenomena, Aya Tone was merely trying to locate north, south, east, and west.
‘It seems… rather similar, actually!’
‘But!’
‘Where… exactly is this?’
After completing the dungeon quest at the street corner, Aya Tone had fully finished all the other quests he had taken from the White Tiger Guild.
Having rushed out, he checked the time: a little past two o’clock.
‘The guild was out of the question, and he didn’t want to return to the hotel so early, especially since Xiao Jiu hadn’t even finished school yet.’
Thus, embracing the idea of exploring the Imperial Capital while it was still early,
a certain magical boy, utterly devoid of any sense of direction, toddled along on his short legs, adhering to the principle of simply following any path he found.
Finally!
As expected, he had gotten lost.
Aya Tone gazed at the intricate map on his phone, his already limited brain capacity instantly crashing.
“A-la-la-la…”
“How strange this is?”
‘Looking at the route, it seems, it should, perhaps, probably, possibly, be correct, right?’
‘Why isn’t it right, then?’
Aya Tone clutched his head, racking his brains, yet still couldn’t fathom where the error lay.
But in the next second.
“Hey~ Little Bamboo! Save me!”
‘Ha, this pal has made progress; how could a little bit of getting lost ever stump an all-powerful magical boy?’
‘In this vast Imperial Capital, this pal still has connections!’