Knock... Knock... Knock...
Raijin knocked on the wooden door.
The door in front of him was slightly rounded at the top. Above it, a number was written—
117
Raijin had just raised his hand to knock again when the door suddenly opened.
A woman was standing in front of him.
She was from the Dog Beast Race.
Her eyes were extremely red, as if she had been crying for a very long time.
The woman looked at Raijin and asked in a soft, gentle voice—
"Please tell me... how may I help you?"
Raijin immediately placed his hand in front of his mouth.
"Ma'am, could you please stop speaking to me with so much respect? I don't really like being treated with this much respect."
After a brief pause, he added softly—
"You can just call me Raijin."
Then he asked—
"May I know who Theo is to you?"
A strange expression appeared on the woman's face.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean... what is your relationship with Theo?"
The woman remained silent for a few moments.
Raijin did not let her remain uncomfortable for too long.
"I came from Leone Continent. I'm an Adventurer, and recently I've been gathering information about the children and other people who have gone missing."
He showed her his Card.
"You can think of me as someone gathering information for some important people."
The woman looked at the Card.
It contained Raijin's name, identity, and the details of the fee he had paid to stay in Vanguard for an entire year.
Paying the entire year's fee in advance was not something ordinary.
The woman's suspicion toward him decreased slightly.
Then she spoke in a quiet voice—
"Theo is my son."
"You can call me Shina."
"So, Shina... can you tell me when Theo disappeared?"
"Exactly twenty-seven days ago."
Her voice slowly began to tremble.
"I saw him before the Bell Tower rang in the morning. After that... I couldn't find him anywhere."
Raijin nodded slightly.
"Did you notice any changes in his behavior?"
"Did he start meeting anyone new?"
"Or did he start doing anything he hadn't done before?"
Shina thought for a few moments.
"No... he was completely normal."
Then a hint of sadness appeared on her face.
"A while ago, we bought him a new sword. He was very happy about it."
Raijin's eyes narrowed slightly.
"A sword?"
"Yes."
"Can you tell me anything about it?"
Shina slowly shook her head.
"We gave it to him on his fourteenth birthday. We also held a small celebration for him."
"Did anyone attend the celebration whom you didn't know before?"
Shina thought for a few moments.
"No... there was no one like that. Only people we knew came."
Raijin listened carefully.
Then he said—
"One last question."
Shina looked at him.
"Many people disappeared before this month as well. Do you have any information about those people?"
The corners of Shina's lips slowly turned downward.
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
Raijin immediately noticed the change in her expression.
"I mean... perhaps you have some information about the older cases. I want to compare them with the information I already have."
Shina said nothing.
She slowly walked inside the house.
Raijin watched her for a while.
Then he slowly exhaled.
A few minutes later, Shina returned.
She was holding a thick bundle of papers.
Dust had gathered on them.
It looked as if they had not been opened for a very long time.
Shina handed the papers to Raijin.
"My husband is an Adventurer. He has many old documents like these."
A faint smile appeared on Raijin's face.
This was a little too easy.
He thought to himself.
But when have things ever been easy for me?
Suddenly, he remembered his previous experiences.
Last time, I ended up facing The Servant of Earth God.
A bead of sweat appeared on his forehead.
Thank goodness that old man was the reason I survived...
Raijin suddenly stopped.
No. I shouldn't think about Zephyrus like that.
He immediately stopped those thoughts.
Then, while maintaining the same faint smile on his face, he took all the papers from Shina.
"Thank you."
He gave her a slight bow and left.
After walking a few steps, he turned into another alley.
---
Some time later, Raijin stood in front of another house.
The number written on the door was—
House No. 100
He knocked.
After waiting for a while, no one answered from inside.
Raijin knocked again.
Then a third time.
But there was still no response.
After waiting for a while longer, Raijin left.
---
Some time later, he arrived in front of a third house.
The door of this house was quite small.
It was approximately half Raijin's height.
The number written on the door was—
311
He knocked.
A few moments later, someone came outside.
His face was round, and his entire body was covered in brown fur. Light red spots could be seen across the fur.
Raijin stared at him for a few moments.
Suddenly, he felt something strange inside him.
No...
With great difficulty, he stopped himself.
He somehow suppressed the urge to run his hand over the head of the Cat Beast Man standing in front of him.
No. Absolutely not.
Raijin composed himself.
Then he introduced himself and explained why he had come.
"My name is Charl."
Charl asked—
"What would you like to know?"
Raijin did not waste any time.
He asked several questions one after another.
Charl clearly answered everything he knew.
Before leaving, Raijin asked one final question—
"Do you know anyone who disappeared a long time ago and never returned?"
Charl thought hard for a few moments.
Then he said—
"There are two people."
"Paul. Twenty-three years old. Buffalo Beast Race."
"And Jethin. Twenty-one years old. Monkey Beast Race."
Raijin carefully memorized both names.
"Did you notice anything else unusual?"
"Yes... there is one thing."
"Two nights before Paul disappeared, I saw a black carriage. It wasn't something I usually saw around here. I only saw it during those few days. After that, I never saw it again."
"What kind of carriage was it?"
"I don't remember... but its wheels were very large. And there was a strange mark on the back."
Raijin remained silent for a few moments.
"Did you tell the Guards about this?"
"I did. They said it belonged to some merchant."
Raijin listened carefully to everything he had said.
"Thank you."
He gave a slight bow and left.
---
Raijin arrived at the fourth house.
He looked around.
Eli was nowhere to be seen.
He knocked on the door.
A few moments later, a woman came outside.
Before Raijin could say anything—
Bang!
The door slammed shut right in front of his face.
Raijin stared at the closed door for a few moments.
Then he did not knock again.
"At least I wasn't insulted today."
He muttered to himself.
Then he headed back toward the Hotel.
---
By the time Raijin reached the Hotel, it was already afternoon.
As usual, Fins was standing behind the Counter.
He looked at Raijin.
It seemed as if he was about to say something.
But in the end, he said nothing.
Raijin also continued toward the stairs without stopping.
---
Room 203
Raijin was sitting at the table and chair near the window.
Several papers were spread out in front of him.
He placed all the information together.
Slowly, his suspicion began to turn into certainty.
The ages of all the children who had disappeared until now—
Under fifteen years old.
And the ages of all the young adults who had disappeared—
Over twenty and under thirty years old.
The corners of Raijin's lips slowly rose.
A strange light appeared in his eyes.
He wanted to laugh loudly.
But he stopped himself.
I've figured it out...
Then—
Knock... Knock... Knock...
Someone knocked on the door.
"Come in."
The door opened.
Fins entered with a Tray of food in his hands.
Raijin immediately moved the papers on the table to one side.
Then he took the Tray from Fins.
But before he started eating, his eyes fell on Fins.
"What do you need?"
Fins frowned.
"Did you find something?"
Raijin tilted his head slightly to one side.
A large, crooked smile spread across his face.
Fins did not like that smile at all.
A slight crease appeared on his forehead.
After staring at Raijin for a few moments, Fins slowly exhaled.
"Fine."
Raijin looked at him.
"I'll help you."
Raijin's smile faded slightly.
"With joining the Guild."
"But first, I will look at the information you have. If it really proves useful... then I'll consider it."
Raijin said nothing.
He pulled one of the papers toward himself and began writing something on it.
Fins silently watched him.
A short while later, Raijin pushed the paper toward him.
Fins picked it up and began reading.
---
Terms of Agreement
1. I will not sell or share any information I receive from Raijin with anyone unless Raijin gives me permission.
2. After receiving information from Raijin, I will help him connect with the Guild, regardless of whether the Guild already possesses that information or not.
3. I will assist Raijin with one task of his choosing.
4. If I break any of these rules, I will pay 50 Gold Coins for each violated rule.
5. After breaking two rules, this agreement will be completely terminated, and I will pay 150 Gold Coins.
---
Fins finished reading the entire paper.
Then he slammed it onto the table.
"Do I really look that stupid to you?"
Raijin maintained his smile.
I knew he wouldn't accept these conditions.
He had deliberately made his demands excessively high.
Now he could force the other party to lower the terms.
Fins glared at him.
"So what do you want to change?"
"I won't help you with any of your tasks."
"And I won't pay 50 Gold Coins for breaking the rules."
"Nor will I directly get you into the Guild after receiving your information."
Raijin raised an eyebrow slightly.
Fins continued—
"I will only introduce you."
"If your information truly proves useful, then I may help you join the Guild."
"As an Informant."
Raijin's smile grew even wider.
He pulled the paper toward himself again.
And began writing.