[INDEF. HIATUS] Regrets and Wishes: One More Chance

Chapter 16.5 - The Adventurers' Journey

A friendly reminder: I often deliberately mix scenes from LN, anime, manga, and sometimes even spin-off at the same time, especially if there are some differences in story telling and sequence of events. Why would I do that? Because I wanted this fanfic to have a uniqueness in its own way.

So, if you read some parts that were seemingly based on LN, some others on manga, some others again on anime all in the same chapter, please don't be confused.

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第16.5章　冒険者たちの旅

It was five weeks ago...

The man's name was Fuze. He was the guildmaster at the Free Guild branch located in the Kingdom of Blumund. His competence at his post was unquestionable, and even before then, his prowess as an adventurer had brought him to the rank of A-minus.

He was sitting on the sofa in the reception he always used for classified meetings while reading a scroll of letter. As he promised Baron Veryard the other day, he had quickly set off to conduct an inquiry of his own.

What his assorted intelligence contacts told him in the letter, however, was: "There is no sign that the Eastern Empire is trying to cross the Great Forest of Jura."

The empire was currently making no moves at all. It might stay that way—that was his hunch—but there was no room for error. "Not yet, at least," he said as he closed the letter and let it roll on the table.

Opposite to him sat three people—two men and a girl, all adventurers of B ranks. Their faces were visibly tired and their outfits had got some dirt and wrinkles. He already knew this group well.

The first member was Gido, a thief who excelled at reconnaissance.

Kaval, meanwhile, was an expert of defence. Being fighter class, he willingly served as a wall for the rest of his party, and he did his job well. He tended to crack jokes a lot and often at the wrong time, but he was no slouch.

Finally, there was Ellen, a sorceress whose skill set was geared towards the more unique types of magic. She had a wide variety of spells at her disposal, but her true skill lay in supernaturally enhanced movement. It was also worth noting that her careful planning always did wonders to boost her party's chance at survival.

That was the team Fuze had sent to examine the cave where Veldora had once been sealed in. His first reaction when seeing them was slight amazement that they got back in one piece and were actually safe.

That cave was more suited for people with B-plus ranks or higher; and if one took its master into account, tracking down an A-minus adventurer or two was usually one's safest bet. Even if Fuze himself ventured it—not that his responsibilities for the guild would ever let him nowadays—it would likely be quite a struggle if he took it by himself.

Regardless of their ranks, these were the people whom Fuze had sent to find out what was going on with Veldora at the moment. He had made the decision because of their bizarre talent for staying alive. The ability to avoid battle while gathering intelligence, in this case, was worth far more to him than employing a B-plus powerhouse.

If something had happened to them, though, he would've had to take the heat as the guildmaster. Sending people into areas they were unqualified for by rank was a clear violation of guild regulations. A branch head daring to try that would create a controversy if the incident became public knowledge.

But this was the group that Fuze wanted, and nobody was happier to see them back now than him.

"Our intelligence bureau is continuing to monitor them," he spoke, ever careful not to betray his emotions. "So, let's hear about it. How did it go in the Great Forest of Jura?"