"It is a highly sensitive subjugation mission," Elara explained, her tone turning grim. "An underground syndicate of dark Mages has sent a formal threat to seize the Earl's territory. We are talking about a highly organized army of nearly a hundred rogue Mages, all sitting at Level 4 and Level 5, utilizing illegal, rotting curses."
Elara leaned closer, lowering her voice even though they were alone in the secure office. "But that is just the official paperwork. My intelligence network picked up a much darker rumor. The Earl heavily suspects that his own eldest son is the one conspiring with them from the inside. Obviously, the Earl couldn't write that down on an official Association request without risking the imperial knights arresting his entire family for treason."
Kian's face remained completely blank, but internally, his soul was screaming.
A hundred Level 5 dark mages?! Kian panicked. The blood rushed completely out of his head, leaving nothing but a violent, erratic pulse pounding directly in his ears. Are you completely insane?! Even a single Level 1 Mage could incinerate me in two seconds! If I go there, I won't just die, I'll be cursed to become a rotting zombie janitor for eternity!
In the world of Adventurers, there are two types of jobs. The first is a Regular Quest. These are written on cheap parchment and pinned to the huge public board in the Association lobby. Anyone can walk up, rip the paper off the board, and go hunt the monster. If you fail, or if you ignore it, no one cares.
The second type is a Nomination Request.
This is not pinned to a board. This is an exclusive, direct request sent to one specific Adventurer. It means the client looked at every single person in the city and said, 'I only want this exact person to do the job.'
Refusing a Nomination Request is considered a massive, unforgivable political insult to both the client and the Adventurer's Association.
"Tell the Association I refuse," Kian said instantly.
Elara slammed her hands on the desk. "But it's important, Kian! You know how the Noble Ward works. Nobles and imperial knights hate high-level Adventurers. They think Adventurers are just uneducated thugs with too much power. In situations involving noble politics or high-society problems, they always rely on the knights."
Elara pointed at the envelope. "But Earl Sterling specifically bypassed the knight order. He seems to be highly interested in you. The Association is really looking forward to you accepting this quest. If you succeed, it will bridge the political gap and make the noble society much closer to the Adventurers. It is a massive diplomatic win!"
Kian stared at her.
I don't care about diplomatic wins! The nobles hate us, and they are completely right! I am a fraud! You just said it yourself—there are a hundred dark mages with rotting curses out there! If I go anywhere near that territory, they will instantly melt the flesh off my bones! I am absolutely not getting involved in a noble's suicidal family drama!
"I will not accept it," Kian stated firmly.
"But—"
"No buts," Kian ordered, standing up from his chair. He injected as much fake authority into his voice as he could manage. "Prepare a carriage for me with two fast horses. I am going on a vacation."
Elara looked at Kian with a deeply suspicious, narrowing gaze.
"A vacation. Right," Elara said dryly, crossing her arms. "Is it safe to assume that no Ancient Black Dragons will be mysteriously neutralized during this completely innocent 'vacation' of yours?"
Kian's eye twitched.
Not that again, Kian groaned internally. I still have absolutely no idea who actually killed that giant lizard up north, but this entire city is entirely convinced I did it in secret. The only actual advantage of that ridiculous rumor is Yellow's reaction.
Yellow has never seen me emit aura in her entire life, entirely because I don't have any. But when the rumor about the Black Dragon reached the capital, she completely panicked. She rushed into my room and hit me with a supreme-tier medical diagnostic spell to check for hidden curses.
Because I am just a lazy guy who never exercises, the spell obviously reported that my physical muscles were heavily atrophied and my internal mana vessels were completely empty. A normal city clinic would have just laughed, handed me a cheap stamina potion, and labeled me as a talentless civilian. But Yellow? She looked at my pathetic, empty stats and practically burst into tears.
She completely convinced herself that my 'zero mana' wasn't my normal state, but the horrifying aftermath of me burning my soul to the absolute brink of death to defeat the dragon. She thought my Mana Core had been literally incinerated from the inside out.
Since the only cure for a 'shattered soul' is absolute rest, she forcefully prescribed me a medical lockdown. Because of that stupid rumor, she strictly banned anyone from knocking on my door from the day the news broke until this very morning. She forced me to sleep in for sixteen hours a day so I could 'properly recover.' It was the best two weeks of my life since two years ago.
"I am just going to get some fresh air," Kian said, his voice completely flat.
"Of course," Elara replied dryly, pushing her wire-rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Just a simple, perfectly timed vacation to nowhere in particular."
She didn't press him further. She simply turned on her heel and marched out of the office, her sharp eyes already calculating the huge political waves his 'secret operation' was about to cause.
I understand now, Elara deduced silently as she walked down the hall. If he formally accepted the quest through the Association's public records, the imperial knights would be legally required to step in to monitor the situation. The moment they discover the son's involvement, it would plunge the Sterling family into a massive, humiliating public trial, ruining the Earl's reputation forever.
By refusing the official paperwork and going off the grid, Kian intends to completely dismantle the dark Mage army and quietly apprehend the traitorous son without leaving a single legal trace. He is protecting the Earl's honor by operatingcompletely outside the law. His political foresight is absolutely terrifying.
The exact moment the heavy door clicked shut, Kian's cool demeanor completely shattered.
He lunged toward his bedroom, grabbing a leather travel bag. He frantically stuffed a change of clothes, some bread, and three comic books inside. He was operating on pure survival instinct. He knew exactly what was going to happen next.
If he stayed in this mansion, the scary Branch Manager of the Adventurer's Association was going to personally kick his front door down. That giant, scarred veteran would physically drag Kian out of his house and force him to accept the Earl's request. And if Kian was forced into a high-level noble's quest, he would absolutely, 100 percent die.
He threw a dark, heavy cloak over his shoulders and pulled the hood low over his face to hide his identity.
Ten minutes later, he snuck out the back door of the mansion and hurried toward the side courtyard. A sturdy, black wooden carriage with two fast horses was already waiting. Elara stood next to it, checking a clipboard.
In his blind panic to escape the city, Kian didn't even notice the carriage itself. Elara, absolutely convinced this was an official, top-secret operation for the Earl, had purposefully ignored his request to lay low. Instead, she had prepared a high-quality carriage with the Feeble Soul silver crest proudly and visibly etched right into the wooden door.
"Good work," Kian said, keeping his voice low and mysterious as he grabbed the handle. "Tell the Association I am busy doing secret training. Do not tell them where I went."
Elara just sighed and nodded, completely used to his eccentric, dramatic methods.
As Kian was about to step into the carriage, a voice spoke from directly beside his elbow.
"Kian. Where are you going? Can I come?"
Kian jumped, nearly dropping his bag. He snapped his head to the side.
Lexi was standing right next to him. The pink-haired Thief had her hands stuffed into her jacket pockets, looking incredibly bored. She had produced zero sound and zero Life Force when approaching him.
Kian stared at her. It's Pink. Perfect timing.
If he was going on a long, unplanned road trip to hide from the Association, he needed a bodyguard to protect him from wild animals. He also needed someone to drive the horses, buy the food, and do all the heavy lifting so he could just sleep in the back. Lexi was the absolute best tool for the job.
"You drive the carriage," Kian ordered, pointing at the driver's seat.
"Aye aye," Lexi said casually. She easily hopped up onto the front bench and grabbed the leather reins.
Kian climbed into the back of the carriage, tossing his bag onto the floor. He sank into the cushioned seats, completely relaxing his tense muscles for the first time all day.
"Let's go," Kian commanded.