The Rebirth Of The Hero’S Party’S Archmage [EN]: Chapter 45

45.

Friday afternoon.

As soon as the student council activities wrapped up, I changed into my going-out clothes. Not a school uniform, nor a family robe, but commoner-like active wear.

April 24th is Victory Day, the day the gods drove out the Abyss and the Tersia calendar began. As a global holiday, Delaiten [referring to the academy or governing body] gave its students a whopping week off.

That’s why it’s called the Golden Holiday.

So, the time I have now is about ten days, combining two weekends and the following week. It should be enough time to visit the black market.

I left the dormitory and walked the now-familiar streets to the Adventurer’s Guild.

Whether holidays meant nothing to adventurers, the quest board was crowded with many adventurers.

“Subjugation of bandits, the reward is quite high?”

“Hey, we called dibs on that one first!”

“Goblins in the sewer… I don’t want to do this. It smells.”

“If you’re a beginner, don’t be picky about quests.”

Rain went straight past the board and headed to the reception desk. The quest I wanted wasn’t posted on those boards.

“How may I help you?”

When it was my turn, the guild receptionist asked with a professional smile.

“I’d like to take on a long-distance escort mission. Preferably heading around Reda Cable [likely a trade route or geographical landmark].”

Then, a strange light flickered in the receptionist’s eyes. The smile disappeared, and her voice lowered seriously.

“May I see your identification tag?”

I had a feeling here.

So…

Chief Doran Slade of the Special Task Force wasn’t lying.

“Here you go. Bronze.”

“Bronze… confirmed.”

The Alliance (Adventurer’s Guild) naturally arranges illegal jobs like black market escorts. Because the demand certainly exists.

However, to formally avoid the eyes of imperial investigators (as seen in Doran’s case, they know but turn a blind eye), they don’t publicly arrange quests.

They connect bronze-ranked adventurers, who have reliably built up social contribution and experience as adventurers, with such clients.

The receptionist, returning the tag, frowned as she looked through several scrolls.

“You’re a little late. Most of the quest periods were until yesterday.”

“There’s nothing left at all?”

“There’s only one left. It’s until this evening. But they’re not giving the quest right away; they’re going to conduct their own skill test and then hire.”

They’re thinking of picking only reliable guys to take along… Not bad. It wouldn’t hurt for the guys who will be temporary allies to be thorough.

“That sounds good. Please tell me the location.”

The client said they had a carriage waiting for the adventurers. I left the guild after being told to go ahead as it would depart in the afternoon.

“Hey.”

As I came out with the request form, I heard a woman’s voice from a table outside the guild.

“Hey, you handsome little gentleman there?”

Thinking it was someone else, I hurried on, and the woman raised her eyebrows in disbelief and strode over.

“I’m talking to you. Can’t you hear people?”

A lithe figure was clad in leather armor that emphasized mobility, and two swords were crossed and worn at her waist.

The woman smelled of the sea. A swordsman from the Ironclad Islands…

There was no need to look further, as her blue hair was braided back in the unique style of the Ironclad Islands.

“What is it?”

“So stiff! Let’s go together. I have the same request form.”

And she shakes the request form as if it were proof. Rain tilted his head in disbelief.

“Why are we going together?”

“Why… it’s good to have someone to talk to.”

“Not really.”

“?”

“Then goodbye.”

“No, wait, wait, wait! Why are you being like this when such a beautiful lady is offering to go with you? Were you a woman all along, with that pretty face?”

Why do women think that if they have a little beauty, all the men will be crazy about them…

I tried to shake her off, but she stubbornly took the seat next to the carriage and started chattering about herself.

She said she occasionally goes on such escapades, that her swordsmanship is considerable, and that’s why she’s already a bronze-ranked adventurer…

“My name is Hirfien. What’s yours?”

“Rain.”

There would be no need to mention the family name. I didn’t want to either.

I even wore black artificial eye membranes [contacts] to minimize the traces of Ludwig’s heir coming to the black market.

“Rain? Hmm, what is it? I’ve heard that name somewhere. Very recently.”

Anyway, it’s so annoying. Is this what it’ll be like when Celi grows up? Just thinking about it makes me shudder.

The three adventurers sitting in their respective places were quiet.

How long did the carriage travel between such commotion and silence? As the carriage left the city, passed the suburbs, and entered the forest where twilight was falling, a muscular spearman spoke.

“Hey, where are we going now?”

Then the coachman simply replied, ‘To where the master is waiting,’ but the place where the carriage stopped was an empty lot in the forest with an eerie feeling.

“What, where’s the client?”

A woman with a lithe figure and sharp features said. Judging by the daggers on both sides of her waist, she must be from the Thieves’ Guild.

“The master is waiting for you here.”

The young coachman smiled, got off with a bundle of papers, and handed them out to the adventurers.

Let’s see…

Rain checked and it was a map. A very familiar city, Golden Rose [likely a major city]. The marked place was a luxurious inn on the west gate side that I had just left.

A female thief who seemed impatient narrowed her eyes.

“What, the person who requested is here, so why did you bring us all the way here?!”

“Didn’t the Alliance explain the contract conditions? That you would be hired after a separate skill test.”

At that moment, something flashed in the forest.

Arrows flew, sharply cutting through the air. In an instant, Rain spun the staff he was carrying on his back and took a stance.

Form 4, Elephant.

The staff moved quickly as if it were swaying, deflecting the three incoming arrows, and Hirfien whistled with admiration.

“What, weren’t you a wizard? Do wizards do that these days?”

The four adventurers except her quickly entered combat readiness and glared at the forest.

“Where are they?”

“I don’t feel any killing intent.”

Then the muscular spearman, glancing at the broken arrow, narrowed his eyes.

“It’s a real arrow.”

Then the coachman smiled.

“Of course. Because that’s the test. He said he would hire everyone who safely escapes this forest and comes to meet him.”

“……!”

“If you’re not confident, you can get back in the luggage compartment. The carriage won’t be attacked.”

The adventurers looked at each other, but no one expressed their intention to board the carriage.

Slightly interesting… Adventurers, are they making them take tests like this now? Even though the world has changed, I thought it changed quite interestingly.

The thief sighed and knelt down on one knee, feeling the pulse of the ground and closing her eyes.

“Let’s see… Hmm, the employer has set up a grand stage, but it seems like he actually wants to save a lot of money.”

“……?”

“The traces that can be detected here are a total of five, excluding us. Are you going to test us with just five people?”

Amazing. Trace detection was the exclusive skill of thieves and archers.

Thieves who sharpen their five senses more keenly than anyone else for stealth, and archers who need to read the flow of life and wind, lightly detect enemies that wizards or warriors cannot detect in this way.

But this is much higher than expected… Looking at the thief’s waist, the identification tag jingled in silver. She was a silver-ranked adventurer like Bart.

“Hey. If the examiners are testing us with the intention of killing us, that means we can kill them too, right?”

The spearman, also a silver-ranked adventurer, said to the coachman.

Then, strangely, the coachman glanced at Rain and nodded as if it were natural.

The spearman grabbed his spear and swung it fiercely, creating a whirlwind at the tip of the spear, scattering all the leaves of the large trees that covered the surroundings.

‘Oh, this side is amazing too.’

Maybe if it was Rista, she would have flown sword energy and cut down all the big trees… In the first place, sword energy and sword strength are symbols of the apex.

In terms of magic, sword strength is 5-star, and sword energy is about 6-star?

It’s difficult to describe because I haven’t held a sword directly, but anyway, swordsmen who handle sword strength or sword energy left their names in history like archmages. Of course, I know that all Fey Quellers can use sword strength.

“My name is Willis. It will be a short relationship, but let’s get through this together and make some money.”

The spearman said that and looked around with a clear view secured by his power.

“It seems like our examiners have already run away, let’s go.”

“No, wait.”

It was then that Rain spread his palm. The rays of light that elegantly bloomed on the palm formed a double magic circle.

‘Oh, this guy…’

‘High-speed calculation of 2-star magic… Could it be a Yorhen type…?!’

‘Hmm, this guy is bronze…?’

The adventurers admired each other in their hearts, but in fact, this was just a trick. Behind the artificial eye membrane, Bel Sidious’s death aura flashed.

01010100101010010100101010101.

A world of countless formulas filling the field of vision, all the surrounding abilities are searched as mathematical equations and directly transmitted to the brain.

“The arrow that flew earlier, I said there was no killing intent, but it wasn’t shot by a person after all.”

“……?!”

“There are quite a few traps set up with telekinetic magic around, maybe it’s one of these.”

Of course, if I use Bel Curios, I can eliminate them in an instant, but I’m worried about mana consumption, and it would be like shouting, ‘I’m from the Ludwig family!’ so I’ll pass.

“I see. Can I know those coordinates?”

It was then that the woman carrying a huge leather house [likely a container or bag] on her back spoke.

I already knew she was a wizard through the white jade necklace and earrings that had the effect of enhancing magical abilities.

Rain nodded, and while writing the coordinates on a tree branch with his staff, the woman unbuttoned the leather house and took something out.

“……?!”

“……?!”

“……?!”

It was a geomungo [Korean zither]. It was characterized by four silk strings placed on a clear annual ring plate of summer wood.

“Wow, a Ligwind type wizard?!”

“Yes.”

Wizards who use sound as a catalyst were called Ligwind type wizards.

The beginning was Ligwind, the first disciple of Emitza Page, the founder of magic, and since the name Ligwind given by Emitza meant ‘melody (旋律)’, that name soon became a faction.

The number of students was small, but the power was strong.

For reference, the Harimun School, one of the eight major schools representing them, used the Chilhyun-geum [another type of Korean zither], and the Solond royal family, founded by Ligwind himself, used the flute.

“It may be a lacking performance, but….”

The woman cleared her throat as if she were embarrassed, and plucked the strings.

Then, a clear and sharp sound wave formed a magic circle and spread deep into the forest, and the magic traps began to disappear one by one.

The precision of magic on this side was also at a considerable level. I wondered if only the best of the best even applied, it was becoming more interesting.

“The wizards I’ve met so far have been either slick or cowardly, one of the two. This time it seems a little different.”

The spearman smiled and put his spear on his shoulder, and the thief nodded.

“I agree. Well, shall we go see the faces of the examiners? If we get rid of them all, the test will be over, right?”

It was around that time that Hirfien, who had not been active until then, stepped forward. She clapped her hands brightly and shook her head.

“Is there a need for that? Hmm, I don’t think there is.”

“What are you talking about? We have to catch them to finish it.”

“The test is already over?”

“Who decided that?”

“If I say it’s over, it’s over. I’m in charge of the test.”

Then Rain and the other adventurers tilted their heads, looking at Hirfien with the feeling that she was crazy.

We’re still in the forest, and it’ll take more than half a day to get back to the city.

But Hirfien smiled brightly and lightly gestured to the coachman over there, who was still not leaving.

“Tain, bring the contract. I like all four people here. They’re skilled and seem fun.”

Everyone was dumbfounded.

What is she talking about? No, the coachman looked at me earlier… Was he looking at this guy, not me?

It wasn’t just Rain who was like that, everyone blinked in bewilderment and received a copy of the contract.

The only one smiling brightly in this situation was Hirfien. The coachman sighed as if he were troubled and explained.

“That’s right. This person is Hirfien Dialle. The eldest daughter of the Dialle family, one of the three most prestigious families in the Ironclad Islands.”

The Dialle family? It’s not Rain to say, but no aristocratic dignity could be found in her words and actions.

That’s why I firmly believed she was an adventurer when she said that… Then is that identification tag fake? Isn’t that illegal?

But the identification tag seemed to be real. Hirfien clapped her hands together and winked.

“The best way to check skills is to see and judge them up close. Hehe, then please take good care of me in the future! My capable adventurer friends.”