Somewhere in the city of Laneas, Mythesan Empire.
In a dimly lit room, a man with brown hair and brown eyes sat before a large, black piano. He wore all black clothing layered with a purple robe that draped over his chair. His fingers moved slowly and carefully over the piano keys, his eyes occasionally glancing at the sheet music in front of him. The melody he played sounded strange and unsettling, filling the room with an uncomfortable atmosphere.
Before long, the sound of heavy footsteps was heard approaching the room. The figure had long, flowing white hair and wore spotless white clothes, with a pair of long, blood red horns growing from his head.
The white-haired man asked, his voice deep, "What are you doing?"
The brown-haired man stopped his piano playing. He turned around, looked at his guest, and a faint smile touched his lips. "Just learning a musical instrument."
He paused for a moment, letting the silence hang between them.
"I didn’t expect you to come here directly, General. Well, I admit I failed yesterday in capturing the woman. I never thought an adventurer would help her. My men didn’t even sense the slightest bit of magic energy from him."
The brown-haired man sighed. "Don’t worry, I will send stronger members to abduct her."
The white-haired man’s brow furrowed. "You deliberately lured me here."
The brown-haired man gave a small laugh, waving his hand to dismiss the accusation. "Haha, how could I General? It was purely one hundred percent my mistake for sending low-level members. I just thought our target was an ordinary merchant’s daughter. But who would have thought an adventurer would be there."
The horned man stared at him intently, his gaze piercing. "I want you to abduct her tomorrow. Take me with your men."
Instantly, the smile on the brown-haired man’s face vanished. His expression turned serious. "No. Don’t. He is in that city. Sending my men there would be the same as suicide."
"He?" the General asked curtly.
The brown-haired man tilted his head slightly, a cunning smile returning to his face. "Rumor has it, h e really hates the dragon race, you know, General. Imagine his reaction when he finds out a high-ranking official from the dragon kingdom plans to abduct a human...."
The white-haired man was slightly taken aback. His face tensed as he realized who the man was referring to. In a low voice, he uttered a name. A cold sweat began to form on his neck. "That bastard Fathir..."
The brown-haired man chuckled and snapped his fingers. "Bingo! Well, I don’t need to explain him, do I? Your king must have already warned you not to get involved with that level two hundred adventurer."
"What is he doing in that city?" the General hissed, trying to regain his composure with a mocking tone. "Don’t tell me he knows about your plan."
The brown-haired man’s expression turned serious again. "No, it’s not that. I think the man came to the city to investigate the disputes among the nobles and the increasing number of murder cases there."
"I thought that was your doing," the General retorted.
The brown-haired man chuckled again. "My my what a cruel accusation, General." He paused for a moment. "I don’t know what their objective is, but it seems another party is planning something, to the point that they could lure Fathir into that city, heh." Or was it really to fail my plan? he thought.
The horned man laughed cynically. "As far as I know, only your organization often commits such depraved acts. I never thought you could be outcompeted."
"Believing false rumors is a sign of foolishness, you know, General," the brown haired man replied in a calm and smooth tone. He glanced toward the window, then continued, "We’ve received information that they are demons from the Kingdom of Randiru." He shifted his gaze back to the General. "Sit down. I will tell you our plan, so that your stupid ass king can rest a little easier."
......
Eight o’clock at night, at an inn in the city of Elfier.
Fyar, Rasie, Illya, and Zaefal were heartily enjoying their dinner at a round table. The atmosphere was warm and full of laughter. Illya and Rasie occasionally recounted their experiences hunting monsters together. Thanks to that intensive training, Illya was now at level twenty.
After they had all finished their meal, Illya took out a thick book she had borrowed from the library and placed it in the middle of the table.
"What’s this?" Fyar asked, looking at the leather-bound book with curiosity.
Illya smiled gently. "This is a book about the characteristics of dungeon monsters, and also information on the Southern Dungeon, Fyar."
Zaefal leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "Alright, now we will discuss our plan for tomorrow, and also our respective roles."