Dungeon of Pride, Laplace

Adventurers clanked their glasses with the guards who were at this moment sharing the same meal with them and conversed merrily.

Of course, there were some who were appointed as sentries around the place, to perimeter the area and be on a lookout for any disturbance around them.

At this moment, Cynthia who was wearing a purple dress, was standing prettily beside a large table and giving instruction to a few adventurers and guards of the Serene Palace Merchant Guild alike. A woman wearing leather armour and lightweight gears and releasing an alluring aura, was standing beside her.

There was no need to mention who that woman was, other than Alvara who else had the authority to stand so close to Cynthia.

At this moment, there was another person who appeared to be standing beside her. An aged man with a butler's attire and a head full of white hair, was standing a few steps behind her.

His gait was straight, his bearing and the way he stood like a sword, contrasted with his appearance. His face had many wrinkles that the passage of time had left on him but nonetheless, it couldn't hide that unusual glint in his eyes.

The butler took out a big parchment of paper before spreading it over the table.

Cynthia nodded looking at the large map that was strewn on the table and her delicate hands that had well-maintained nails, pointed at some of the crucial checkpoints marked on the map.

These checkpoints were something that they must pass through before they could reach the capital. At a glance, there were more than six checkpoints marked with different colours.

She pointed at one of the checkpoints that was marked with a glaring red colour.

"Everyone must stay on their guards after we enter the forest. We might not be able to enjoy the quiet that we have been up until now. On top of being full of monsters, the vast forest region is also a den of bandits that have gathered here from the surrounding regions. Many people, caravans and merchant guilds had their luggage stolen and their life taken by these bandits".

"We must stay cautious and it would be in our best interest to not underestimate them. Individually they might be weaker than you adventurers who have years of experience hunting monsters and exploring but you must remember one thing in your mind. That is, this is their den, their territory".

"Their population here easily dwarves the small number of people on our side. So when it comes down to a battle of attrition, we are sure to lose. With that in mind, it does not mean that we should fear them, on the contrary, if we give in to their demands, it might be us soon finding our backs into a corner. Kill them if they are being obstructive, I will leave the decision to deal with them to you all".

Cynthia looked over at the appointed leaders of each group of adventurers and her guard leaders. The way she gave commands and led people told other that the woman was used to being in an important position.

<br/>Her otherworldly beauty along with her devilish figure and her disposition made her an extremely desirable woman. However, when these people saw the line-up of guards around her and her position, they could only sigh and give up on those thoughts.

"Hmph, if these adventurers are indeed stronger than those bandits, we will soon find out. I just hope that for the large sum of reward that our merchant guild is paying to them, they would at least fight with all their strength".

The butler commented with a low voice. He had a sour mood and the tone with which he was speaking, was extremely unfriendly towards the adventurers.

While he chose to keep his voice low, how could these adventurers who had gone through years of training and battle, miss it? They displayed offended faces as they glanced at that butler who had a disdainful look plastered on his face.

However, before the situation could turn for the worse, a cold voice devoid of any emotion rang out.

"Be quiet Jeeves, it is not your place here to judge the prowess of the adventurers. I need everybody's unity, not someone who sows discord. If you get it then be quiet".

Cynthia glared at the butler named Jeeves behind her with eyes containing some traces of anger.

The old man was usually not that rude and bold enough to look down on others, it was only a year or two ago that the old man's personality turned at a total 180°. The change even baffled her.

If not for the fact that her father had appointed the old man as her butler and the position he held was not important for their merchant guild, she would have long dismissed the person.

Turning around, she apologised for this unruly display and hurriedly changed the topic. The discussion proceeded without any other passing comment from the butler.

When Cynthia saw that all these people have digested the information, she then pointed at the vast expanse of forest that lay at the edge of this north-western region before commenting.

"Once we cross the vast forest land also known as Northern Outlaw Woodlands, we would be entering the northern territory governed by Duke Melford. There we could take a moment of respite but until then, I am counting on you all to lend me your strength".

"Especially you adventurers who know about the monsters and their tendencies than any other people present here. I'll be seeking your advice on how best to avoid the monsters when the time comes, I hope that you would share your knowledge with us".

Cynthia bowed her head and her violet hair gently slid over her shoulders, her action immediately evoked many gasps of surprise from the people especially her guard leaders and Alvara.

After they saw their Miss bowing their head, they stopped struggling internally and similarly bowed their heads. The butler that was called Jeeves, had an ugly face when he saw that the miss had bowed her head towards the adventurers.

Although he felt greatly reluctant to bow his head to these adventurers, seeing that everybody from the merchant guild did the same, he couldn't help but do the same.

These ruffians like adventurers who weren't used to being asked something so politely, couldn't help but feel giddy.

Nevertheless, the effects of their actions were clear and their sentiments got conveyed, these adventurer leaders nodded their heads one after the other and thumped their armours saying leave it to us.

They have been promised a hefty reward, of course, they need to show their worth. The various leaders of the adventurer's group started discussing amongst each other.

Obviously, Simon was amongst the group and so was Chuck and that big nose guy. It seemed that the he was still not over the fact that chuck chose to befriend the black-robed young man instead of him and so when it came to the point where they were allocating which group would handle what task, Simon's group was given the task of being the sentry.

The job of a sentry was very tiring and the position was directly in the frontline where it wouldn't be surprising if they were suddenly attacked by monsters and bandits.

Of course, there was no need to ask who had suggested this during the discussion. Bignosio was feeling pleased after taking out the frustration he felt in his heart. Because of him being a well-known adventurer and a seven-man group, he had quite the say during the discussion.

The other adventurers were tactful enough to not voice any complaints. Who would speak for a newbie adventurer and dare offend someone who was already a powerful and established adventurer?

Simon was naturally unbothered by this childish display of the big nose man. He even felt like laughing at the man who thought he could suppress him with such simple tactics.

Right now, his eyes were particularly focused on a person beside the purple dress woman without them realising. That old butler with white hair, for some reason, was flaring alarm bells from his instincts.

Simon could see that the old man despite his age was not simple as he looked. Even if the man was good at hiding his aura, it couldn't evade Simon's senses that was sharpened after many battles.

He did not use [Analysis] on that butler since it risked him becoming alert. However, even without that, it was easy for a Demon Noble like him to sense the chaotic negative emotions within the man.

Simon made a wicked smile as he thought how the trip this time would not be boring at all.

While Simon was lost in his thoughts, the discussion amongst the adventurers had already proceeded forwards.

Seeing that the situation looked bad for the two new provisional adventurers, Chuck decided to speak up and distribute the task that Simon's group had been allotted with his. His actions made the surrounding adventurer's face awkward and their gaze was somewhat helpless.

They turned their eyes and saw that the man named Bignosio had an ugly expression at this moment and one could faintly sense the tension in the air.

Cynthia who was presiding over this discussion naturally did not think much of it and dismissed the adventurers. She sighed in exhaustion patted her well-endowed chest and went back to her wagon along with Alvara the commander of the guards.

The butler had a dark and cold expression in his eyes when he glanced at the adventurers, nobody knew what he was thinking. He moved his feet and swiftly disappeared inside his wagon.