Date: Summer's Sixth Morning
Location: Elareth Guild Mission Board → Westwood Trail
---
Escort mission.
Two days. C-rank. Seven hundred jin.
Sounded easy. Looked easier.
Smelled... dangerous.
The woman waiting for us in front of the Guild was dressed in silk and shadows. Lace gloves. Wide-brimmed hat. A parasol more expensive than my father's staff. Perfume thick enough to kill small birds.
Her name was Lena.
Leander offered her a rose before we left.
Alice dry-heaved before we crossed the city gates.
> "She's just a rich merchant," Riya said.
"She's a red flag with legs," I replied.
Anna muttered, "Bet she's allergic to honest work."
Lily didn't say much. But her hand never strayed from her wand.
I already knew.
---
Day One – Westwood Trail
She asked a lot of questions.
Too many.
> "So… what kind of magic do you use?"
"That sword looks heavy. Can you block from behind?"
"What do you do when ambushed in thick woods?"
Casual. Cheerful. Calculated.
She was either writing a book… or planning a grave.
Gideon walked behind her the whole time, shield raised — even when she stopped to pick flowers.
Anna whispered to me, "You think she's scouting us?"
I nodded. "She's not smart enough to hide it."
Elric said, "I have a bad feeling."
I did too.
---
Camp – Midnight
We didn't light a fire.
No one spoke loudly.
Even the wind was holding its breath.
I drew the perimeter in sigils. Alice vanished into the dark.
Riya tapped her staff to the ground once — flame flickered, vanished.
I gave hand signs.
Stay ready. Wait for it.
Lena yawned, far too loud for a woman tired of travel.
> "I do hope nothing bad happens to a poor merchant like me… alone with seven young warriors…"
Anna rolled her eyes so hard it echoed.
Then—
Rustle.
Snap.
Step.
Too soft. Too synchronized.
Not animals.
Not beasts.
Bandits.
---
The Ambush – Split Focus
[Team Battle – Outer Edge]
> "Left flank!" Riya yelled.
Fire burst through the underbrush like sunrise.
Three bandits went up in smoke.
Leander darted into the trees, slicing past shadows like a dancing comet.
> "Don't run," he called. "I hate cardio!"
Anna unleashed a wave of illusions — a screaming army of babies in glowing armor.
Three men dropped their weapons and begged the air for mercy.
Elric raised both arms. Light surged.
> "Sanctify."
Flash. Blindness. Pain. Laughter.
Gideon took a crossbow bolt to the chest.
Then walked through it like a boulder on legs.
> "I'm fine," he grunted. The bolt broke. Not him.
Lily whispered a prayer to the moon and threw a single orb of fire.
A tree evaporated. A bandit cried. Then he ran into another fire.
---
[Center Camp – Lena]
I walked straight to her.
She stood up — tried to look surprised.
> "Oh my! Bandits?! What a terrible—"
I cut her off with a look. Cold. Quiet. Controlled.
> "You set this up. You brought them."
She scoffed. "You think I—?"
And then Alice appeared behind her.
No sound. No breath.
Just... there.
Blade out. Blood threads floating.
Lena froze.
> "You— You wouldn't—!"
Alice pressed a shard of blood just under her chin. A warning. Not a cut.
> "You insulted my team. You lied to him."
She flicked her eyes to me. Asking silently:
"Now?"
I shook my head once.
> "Not yet. We need her alive."
Alice frowned. Barely. But she stepped back. Just far enough.
Lena trembled.
She smelled like fear and overused perfume now.
> "We've already dealt with the rest," I said. "You're all that's left."
---
Aftermath
Twelve bandits.
One fraud.
None escaped.
We tied Lena to a tree with her own parasol and dress. Riya gagged her with a handkerchief embroidered with "For Emergencies Only."
Alice cleaned her blade with unsettling calm.
Leander wiped sweat and said,
> "Escort missions. Love them. So full of lies, betrayal, and perfume."
Anna replied,
> "I think her hat was cursed."
Elric sighed. "I told you I had a bad feeling."
Gideon didn't speak.
He just picked up Lena — dress and all — and carried her back like a sack of shame.
---
Guild Hall – Morning After
The Guildmaster read our report.
He didn't blink once.
> "Congratulations," he said. "You've just learned Lesson One of C-Rank: The monsters wear perfume now."
Leander whispered,
> "She was still kinda cute."
Anna smacked him.
---
End of Chapter
Lesson of the Day?
> Never trust perfume on the road.
Never trust silence in the woods.
And never, ever, flirt with a woman who carries a blood dagger.