The sun had just dipped below the western horizon, leaving a streak of orange that contrasted sharply with the silhouette of the Antrows City walls.
At the main gate, the city guards on duty suddenly straightened their backs and gripped their spears tighter. Their attention was fixed on three figures walking slowly into the city.
The sight was gruesome. Keyzier, Donovan, and Novalia walked with armor shattered in several places. Their clothes were tattered, torn by sharp weapon slashes, and most noticeably, covered in bloodstains that masked almost the entire surface of the fabric. The dark green blood of goblins and their own fresh red blood had dried, leaving a pungent, metallic stench.
Ignoring the horrified stares, the whispers of the citizens, and the eyes of other adventurers relaxing in taverns, they continued their steady march toward the city center. Their goal was singular: the Adventurers' Guild building.
As soon as the guild doors swung open, the noisy atmosphere inside the hall fell silent. The clinking of beer mugs stopped, and all eyes turned toward the entrance. They looked like ghosts who had just crawled out of hell.
Keyzier stepped toward the reception counter and placed his hand on the desk. "Hana, we would like to report the completion of the goblin extermination mission!" he said in a raspy but calm voice.
Hana, who was tidying up documents, looked up and nearly dropped her pen. "K-Keyzier? Your clothes... O-okay. Please gather evidence in the form of corpses or ears from those goblins for verification."
Keyzier glanced at Donovan and Novalia, giving a small nod. Without a word, the three of them began to unload the "contents" of their magic bags and inventories.
Thud! Thud! Bang!
One by one, goblin corpses fell onto the hall floor. Initially just dozens, the bodies continued to pile up until they reached hundreds. The atmosphere turned chilling as they brought out the larger corpses: 40 Goblin Warriors, 6 Goblin Generals with their full plate armor, 2 Goblin Shamans, and the climax, the massive corpse of a Goblin King, whose head had already been severed from its body.
Everyone in the guild was speechless. The hall floor was now covered in a mountain of monster corpses that should have been impossible for rookie adventurers to defeat.
The commotion lured the Guild Master of the Antrows branch out from his office on the upper floor. He stood on the balcony, staring at the pile of corpses below with wide eyes, then rushed down to the lobby.
"D-Did you just attack the main nest of that goblin horde?" the Guild Master asked in disbelief.
"Yes!" Keyzier answered shortly. "We attacked their nest. Honestly, we almost died there. Especially that Goblin King! His movements were almost impossible to detect."
The Guild Master massaged his temples, as if nursing a severe headache. "Do you have any idea? To attack a nest with this composition, we would need at least ten Rank A parties and four Rank S parties working together! And even with that strength, there would surely be casualties!"
He knelt, examining the corpse of one of the Goblin Generals. "But the three of you... just the three of you managed to wipe out the entire goblin population in Yavo Forest. How? Look at these bodies! They've been hit by various elemental magic attacks with extreme precision!"
Keyzier began to explain in detail. He recounted how they shared roles: how Donovan held the physical front and assisted with his sword techniques, Novalia who locked down the enemies' movements with debuffs, and finally himself, who unleashed large-scale magic attacks.
Hearing the explanation, Hana, the Guild Master, and the veteran adventurers eavesdropping could only stand there stunned. Their abilities had truly transcended logic. Donovan with his swordsmanship and combat magic, Novalia the genius support mage, and Keyzier, a person who looked innocent but was actually a small monster in human form. Keyzier mastered all elements, possessed healing abilities, and held lethal assassin techniques.
"It seems I must re-evaluate the ranks of you three!" the Guild Master stated firmly. "People won't believe that a Rank E party of only three members could take down a Goblin King. It would ruin the reputation of the ranking system if I don't raise your ranks immediately."
The Guild Master then looked at Novalia with admiration. "Novalia, you are the greatest party supporter I have ever encountered during my tenure in this city. Your speed in casting debuffs amidst the chaos was the key to your victory."
Novalia looked down shyly, her cheeks blushing slightly. "Guild Master, you praise me too much. This is all thanks to Keyzier. He is the one who kept training me so hard until I could become like this."
The hall fell silent again. They just realized that the teacher of a mage as great as Novalia was Keyzier, the youth leading this mysterious party.
"Hey, Keyzier!" the Guild Master narrowed his eyes, looking at Keyzier inquisitively. "What exactly are you? Are you a god masquerading as a human?"
Keyzier laughed softly, taking the question as a joke. "What? A god? In our village, this kind of strength is normal. We had to be strong to survive. Why are you all making such a fuss?"
"Village? What is the name of your village? And where is it located?" the Guild Master asked with high curiosity.
"We are from Noive Village. It's located not far from the Death Forest!" Keyzier answered casually. "If you don't believe me, feel free to ask the Gold Wings party."
At the mention of the Death Forest, the entire guild shuddered. That forest was known as the most dangerous place in the world—a place where thousands of adventurers entered and never returned. The fact that humans lived near it shook their very sanity.
However, the Guild Master, whose name was Robert, became even more interested because they knew the Gold Wings party.
"You know Gold Wings?" the Guild Master asked again.
"Of course. When we were children, they were the ones who saved me and Novan when we almost died by goblins in that Death Forest. Since then, we've trained to become stronger."
Robert nodded in understanding, though his heart was still racing. "Thank you for the information. Inside the bodies of these elite monsters are valuable magic crystals. We will process everything, including your prize money and your rank promotion. Come back here in two days."
"Alright, Guild Master. Thank you. We'll take our leave," Keyzier said, signaling his two companions to follow.
Not long after Party Noiver left the building, the guild doors swung open loudly again. Five adventurers in silver armor entered. They were Gold Wings, a Rank S party and one of the most famous adventurer groups in the kingdom.
However, their steps halted instantly. The leader of Gold Wings, a blonde man with a longsword at his hip, stood frozen at the sight of the pile of goblin corpses still filling the hall floor. The scent of blood and the lingering aura of magic in the room made him realize that something extraordinary had just occurred.
"What happened here, Guild Master?" the Gold Wings leader asked in a heavy voice. "Who killed the Goblin King and this elite force? Is there another Rank S party visiting Antrows?"