CRASH—

The tall Barbarian crashed into the dust and stopped breathing.

Ron struggled to his feet and looked around. Although he hadn’t participated in the exhilarating, bloody, hand-to-hand combat, constantly Casting Magic had still consumed a great deal of his Energy.

It felt a bit like pulling an all-nighter, jogging around a track while cramming for an exam on his phone. He was so exhausted, physically and mentally, that he felt like he could cough up blood.

After all, not even a Mage could just stand still and pump out damage. That was a good way to get killed fast.

Around him, the people who had just been fighting side-by-side weren’t in much better shape.

Aive had taken a nasty hit to the abdomen. Buni had run back to the church to get a Healing Potion and was now treating her wound.

Delaford was mostly unharmed, but the rats he had summoned were almost completely wiped out. His own quiver was empty, but the Goblin Hunter was too exhausted to even think about recovering his arrows.

Quest, Ming Datiss, and Lavinia were all sitting cross-legged on the ground, meditating. Though their reasons for meditating differed, the action was the same.

Mayor Victor and the Priest, Victoria, were in relatively better condition, but they too were taking the time to catch their breath and recover their strength.

As for the Ocher Tribe... Ron wasn’t sure if you could even call it a tribe anymore.

Sera was the only one left breathing, and not a single one of them was left standing.

Among the other banquet attendees, Ron could still see the blacksmith and the tailor. They were likely spared the worst of it because they weren’t combatants and had been on the outskirts of the fight.

Of the other guests at the inn, the Spotted Cat People couple had become star-crossed lovers in death; unarmed, they didn’t survive the attack. The Dwarf seemed to be a Caster as well and was now on the verge of collapse.

As for the others...

Ron let out a long sigh.

He was something of a doctor, but there was nothing he could do for the dead. The bandits and Barbarians had been utterly ruthless. Even Aive had been seriously injured, to say nothing of the others.

"They couldn’t even protect themselves, yet they wanted to conquer the Delusional Land?"

A contemptuous sneer appeared on Ming Datiss’s face. "They really had no self-awareness!"

"So many people are dead, and you can still laugh?!" Aive snarled, glaring at the Elf.

"Fewer competitors, isn’t that right, half-breed?" Ming Datiss stood up, took a handkerchief from his pocket, and meticulously wiped the blood from his rapier. "You should even be thanking them!"

"That’s a rather cold-blooded thing to say..." Victoria frowned. Her colleagues had suffered heavy casualties in the battle.

"Ha! For once, I agree with the thin bamboo pole!" Sera rasped from where she lay on the ground. "I’m not dead yet! The Ocher Tribe won’t be wiped out!"

"Thank you all for your righteous assistance," Mayor Victor said, panting as he found a chair and sat down. It took him a moment to catch his breath. "Now, please rest for a moment. We need to clear the battlefield to tally the losses and casualties."

About three hours later, as the sky began to lighten, Victor reached a conclusion.

"One-third of Fromm Town’s guards have lost their ability to fight, with over fifty killed, mostly concentrated in the square and by the refugee camp," Victor announced his findings to the group. "As for the refugees, only a mere ten survived. The rest were either killed in the attack by the Northern Barbarians or fled the town during the chaos."

"As for the Pioneer Corps applicants—as you can see, you’re all that’s left."

Ron, Aive, Delaford, Quest, Ming Datiss, Sera, Victoria, and the unnamed Dwarf.

"Eight people in total."

"And a possible mastermind is hiding among them."

Ming Datiss gave Ron a cryptic look, leaving Ron completely bewildered.

"What do you mean by that?" Aive’s voice immediately rose. "Are you questioning the person who just saved your life?!"

"No offense intended," the Elf said, though his expression remained unmoved. "I have no prejudice against humans, but this man is indeed highly suspicious."

"Let me ask you: Who in their right mind would think it’s a wise move to adventure with a goblin?"

At these words, everyone present turned to look at Delaford. The Goblin Hunter responded with a low, threatening growl.

His disguise was merely his clothing. During the battle, his hood had been damaged and had fallen off more than once.

"Indeed," Victor Fromm said, looking at Ron. "My friend, I think we all need an explanation."

"There’s nothing to explain. He’s my companion, and he was just protecting us, wasn’t he?" Ron had no intention of selling out the Goblin Hunter. Conscience was one reason; the other was that for the future exploration of the Delusional Land, the goblin would undoubtedly be a powerful asset.

"Protecting? I saw with my own eyes how he summoned a swarm of rats that attacked friend and foe alike!"

"Not even a Druid could command that many rats with perfect precision," Ron said, looking at him calmly. "By that logic, couldn’t I argue that when you jumped over to our side, you were trying to divert the disaster and break our defensive line?"

"Alright, that’s enough!" Victor interrupted them. "Ming Datiss, desperate times call for desperate measures. This goblin and his rats did indeed help us get through the initial phase."

"Fine... then what about how he let the Barbarian Chieftain charge you? Miss Victoria went to help them, but instead of turning back to support you, they were busy fighting other, weaker enemies. Isn’t that a sign of ulterior motives?"

"You bastard!" Delaford shot the Elf a vicious glare. "You’re more despicable than the most useless rat! We couldn’t get away at the time!"

"That’s just an excuse," spoke the Dwarf, who had been quiet until now. "Mr. Victor is the core of this town. You should have disregarded your own safety to protect him."

The Dwarf was certainly in a position to say that, as he had been sitting closest to Victor during the fight.

"And what about you, Ming Datiss?" Ron glanced at him. "You couldn’t even handle fighting those ’weaker enemies.’ You were the first one to pull out of the fight, weren’t you?"

"And who blocked Harlek’s final blow? I can’t recall, but I’m sure the mayor’s memory is much better than mine."

"You’re right. I owe you my thanks," Victor said, nodding at Ron. "My Magic was exhausted. If it hadn’t been for you, no one could have blocked that club for me."

"Alright, let’s end this phase of accusations and suspicion here. Next, let’s discuss our plan moving forward."