Sundown.

The evening glow dyed the sky orange.

The scene at the Black Stone Town checkpoint was the same as always, with hunters and farmers lining up to pass through.

"Routine inspection."

The guard’s lazy voice rang out. "Name, origin, purpose. And your identification. Show them."

Just like before, Marcus, as the party leader, gave a brief statement, after which they all handed over their badges.

This time, however, Zelir presented the badge issued by the Mage’s Guild, not the Iron Badge from the Adventurer’s Association.

The guard’s expression didn’t change upon seeing Marcus’s and Valles’s Copper Level badges.

But when his gaze swept over Zelir’s Magic Badge, a hint of surprise was evident in his eyes.

He quickly looked up at Zelir, as if trying to memorize his face, and his movements were noticeably more polite as he returned their items.

"So you’re already a Magic Apprentice," Valles said, having also noticed Zelir’s badge.

"Yeah, I got it at the Mage’s Guild after we parted ways last time."

A bit of curiosity suddenly struck Zelir. "By the way... how do you upgrade your Adventurer’s Association badge? I noticed yours are both copper."

"It goes Jade, Diamond, Gold, Silver, Copper, and Iron. Iron is the easiest; you get it just for registering. After completing ten quests, you can be promoted to a Copper Level Adventurer."

Valles explained casually.

"Silver Level is a bit harder. A Copper Level Adventurer has to complete ten Junior quests to get promoted to Silver Level."

"And Junior quests usually have Difficulty-rated Demons. It also involves things like quest success rates. You’ll have to ask the receptionist, Eira, for the specific rules."

"Higher up from there are Gold Level Adventurers. Usually, only veteran Middle Level Professionals can reach that level."

"And there are even some Upper Level Professionals among them. I haven’t looked into how to get promoted... but I doubt there are many in the entire Black Stone Town branch, right?"

"I see..."

Zelir recalled the commission for their current quest.

It was marked as a normal quest, not yet at the level of a Junior quest.

He nodded thoughtfully. "So does this count as my second completed normal quest?"

"Yep. Just eight more errands and you’ll be Copper Level."

For once, Valles cracked a smile.

"But you don’t need to worry about that. A Mage’s Guild badge is way more useful than an Adventurer’s Association one... If I were you, I’d only ever show the Mage’s Guild one when I’m out."

Back at the Adventurer’s Association, Marcus went to the front desk to report the quest’s completion.

"These are the quest items from the abandoned cave. We cleared out a total of twenty-four Slimes."

Marcus placed a bulging bag of Demon Cores on the counter. "Also, I need to report an anomaly that occurred during the quest."

Eira, who had just poured the Demon Cores onto a counting tray, couldn’t help but blink in confusion upon hearing this.

’Another unexpected situation?’ 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

’On the last dire wolf quest, didn’t they run into a young Fog Demon?’

"What was it, specifically?" Eira asked.

"The Demon description in the quest was wrong. We found a Giant Slime deep inside the cave. It was the true source of the water contamination."

Marcus took another, much larger Demon Core from his pack, along with the piece of Gel.

"But we took care of that Giant Slime. Please report this anomaly to the Government Hall."

’A Difficulty-rated Giant Slime...’

Eira froze for a moment.

’That’s a pretty tough Demon to deal with.’

’It wouldn’t be strange for a full party to kill one, but Marcus’s group only had three people this time.’

As she thought this, Eira’s gaze unconsciously fell upon the new Adventurer.

Zelir.

Back when she registered Zelir as an Adventurer, Eira had been surprised by his Mage profession.

Back then, Zelir had been green and inexperienced, looking every bit the rookie.

But for a rookie like him to have participated in killing both a Fog Demon and a Giant Slime back-to-back was truly surprising...

’How big of a role did he play in those two fights?’ Eira couldn’t help but wonder.

Amidst the throng of Adventurers coming and going, Zelir seemed somewhat nonchalant.

He leaned casually against the counter and yawned.

Perhaps from using so much Magic Power, Zelir felt much more tired than usual. His lazy gaze swept across the room and happened to meet Eira’s.

He gave a slight nod of acknowledgment.

Eira, however, looked away, a little flustered.

"Right... I’ll report it to the Government Hall." Eira immediately lowered her head and pulled out a paper document.

"Aren’t you going to count the Slime Demon Cores first?" Marcus asked, confused.

"Oh, right... I forgot."

Eira fumbled a bit as she picked up a counting pick and began to tally the number of Slime Demon Cores.

Twenty-four Slimes, bounty of seventy-two Silver Coins.

Twenty-four Slime Demon Cores, buy-back price of forty-eight Silver Coins.

One Giant Slime Demon Core, buy-back price of four Gold Coins.

One high-quality Gel, buy-back price of two Gold Coins.

The total quest reward is seven Gold Coins and twenty Silver Coins.

As Marcus took the money and prepared to leave, Eira added something.

"By the way, since the quest information was incorrect, the Government Hall will issue additional compensation after they confirm the details. Please come back to collect it in three days."

"Alright."

After receiving the bounty, the group split the money at the entrance of the Adventurer’s Association.

"I won’t repeat my recruitment offer. I know you like your freedom, but if you’re ever short a Vanguard for your next quest, just come find me."

Marcus handed Zelir his share of the money. "I’m staying at the Hongxu Inn."

In Marcus’s mind, Zelir’s importance was self-evident.

The money they’d earned from these last two quests was as much as he’d normally make in half a year of hard work, and Zelir’s contribution had been indispensable.

"Okay, I’ll be sure to look you up when I need to." Zelir accepted the pouch of money.

A total of two Gold and eighty-eight Silver Coins. It was a very handsome reward.

Valles watched Zelir’s retreating back before retracting his gaze.

"Marcus, I’ve never seen you act so deferentially. He already turned down your invitation to join a permanent party last time, and you’re still cozying up to him?"

"Well, that’s just how it is with Mages."

Marcus didn’t seem to mind. He waved his hand dismissively. "Anyone who can become a Mage has a bit of pride, right? Of course they’re not going to be content with being tied down to a permanent team."

"But then again, prideful as they are, their lack of Physical Strength means they’re bound to be wary of other Adventurers."

Marcus spoke with a relaxed confidence. "That’s when you just need to show your gentle and patient side. It doesn’t matter if you have to humble yourself a bit. You just have to let him know you’re reliable, and then he’ll definitely come looking for you to team up next time."

The corner of Valles’s eye twitched slightly.

"I never realized you were so calculating..."