Reverse Villainess

It's begin.

The strong looking old man named Aran sat in the corner of the biggest inn in town, his eyes scanning the bustling crowd. 

Just a few days ago, the inn was nearly empty, with only a handful of people passing through. But now, it was packed with people from all walks of life, all of them looking tough and ready for action.

It was immediately apparent to anyone that the current occupants of the inn were knights, adventurers, and mercenaries. His attention was drawn to a group of men chatting nearby.

"I wonder why Viscount Starlight suddenly hired all of us like this," one of the adventurers mused. "He didn't explain what we're supposed to do."

"Who knows," replied another. "Nobody understands how rich people think."

"Well, isn't his business currently a huge success?" chimed in another adventurer. "I bet he's worried that his rival will try to sabotage it. One way to do that is by abducting his daughter. That's why he sent us here, near the magic academy."

The other adventurers murmured in agreement and nodded in response.

"But how paranoid do you need to be," one of the adventurers said, "to hire this many people just to protect his daughter? What an idiot!"

The others joined in with the laughter, but Aran didn't find it funny. He didn't like the way they were talking about their employer, the Viscount. It was one thing to be cynical, but to openly mock the person who was paying their wages was disrespectful.

"Well, I don't care as long as I get paid," another one said, and the group laughed again.

Aran sighed to himself. He had seen it all before, mercenaries who cared only for the coin in their pocket. But that wasn't what was bothering him the most. He had a gut feeling that this situation was not as simple as it seemed.

A young man with spiky hair approached the old man, Aran, who seemed to be lost in thought.

"What are you thinking about, Captain? You look stressed," the young man said. He was the leader of the popular adventurer party that had recently gained fame, Dwan.

"Don't call me Captain. I'm not in that position anymore," Aran replied curtly.

"But aren't you the one who got elected to talk directly with the Viscount? You're basically our leader," Dwan pressed.

"They just pushed a pain in the ass job onto me. That's all," Aran replied, clearly irritated.

"Oh, come on. No need to be so negative," Dwan said, trying to lighten the mood. "Aren't you an S class adventurer?"

"Former," Aran corrected him.

"Details, details," Dwan waved a hand dismissively. "But doesn't this scenery feel like a dream? We've got famous knights, ex-knights, adventurers, former adventurers, and mercenaries, all in one place. You can't help but think big things are going to happen."