Chapter 57

The black knight and Elanor stood in front of The Adventurers Guild headquarters, a long building with three floors and a courtyard where they were standing. "Let's go in," said the black knight. Elanor nodded, following the black knight inside. As soon as they entered, Elanor looked around in awe. Despite being in a city, the headquarters gave off a very frontier feel, almost homey yet grand at the same time. Adventurers were bustling around, engaged in various activities such as conversing, taking on jobs, turning in quests, and trading items, weapons, armor, and gear in general.

Observing the bustling scene, the black knight pointed to one of the receptionists who had just finished assisting someone. "You need to go and talk to one of them," he told Elanor.

"Thank you," Elanor said gratefully to the black knight, who simply shrugged. Elanor then made his way over to the receptionist.

The black knight, meanwhile, stood by the entrance, taking in the bustling activity of the guild hall. "This place sure is different from a covenant," he mused to himself. Monster Hunter Covenants were typically more quaint, smaller establishments with fewer people around.

His eyes lingered on the rookie adventurers, each equipped with basic gear and supplies. "I thought they would at least be provided with something, but it looks like they're sent out with whatever they can afford or already have," he observed, a hint of concern in his voice.

His attention then shifted to three rookies who were examining the job board, contemplating which quest to undertake. "Maybe this one?" one of them, a boy in his late teens, suggested as he selected a quest from the board. "Is it something we can handle?" asked the other rookie, a girl of similar age. "I think so," the boy replied confidently, while the third rookie, a demi-human boy with dog ears and tail, examined the poster. "It's just killing wolves. I'm sure we can do this," he reassured them, prompting nods of agreement from all three.

"I would recommend something easier," said the black knight as he stood behind the three rookies, all of them turning around in surprise. "Whoa! How the heck did you sneak up on us like that?" asked the boy in his late teens. The demi-human boy added, sounding slightly angry, "And what do you mean something easier? Are you saying we can't kill a few wolves?"

The black knight ignored the questions and instead looked at the poster in the boy's hand. "Could you give me that for a sec?" The boy looked down at the poster, shrugged, and handed it to the black knight. After reading it, the black knight commented, "Yeah, I figured as much." The three rookies looked at each other, confused by what he meant. "What do you mean, sir?" asked the girl, assuming the black knight was a veteran adventurer.

"Yeah, this isn't just about some wolves. The person who requested this mentioned that wolves keep eating their sheep whenever they're not around. It implies the wolves are somehow keeping tabs on the person. Wolves aren't smart enough to do that, meaning they're likely being led by a direwolf," explained the black knight.

"So what? We just have to beat a bigger wolf, is all," said the demi-human boy. The black knight shook his head. "That's a mistake a lot of people make. Direwolves aren't just bigger wolves; they're smarter—significantly smarter. They use tactics for both hunting and fighting, almost like trained soldiers or hunters. Their hide is also a lot tougher, and none of your weapons will be able to properly penetrate it," he said, pointing at the weapons they held.

The rookies exchanged glances once again. "Maybe we shouldn't take this," said the boy as the black knight handed him back the poster, which he promptly returned to the job board. The demi-human boy looked annoyed but remained silent, while the girl slightly bowed her head to the black knight. "Thank you for telling us that, sir. Otherwise, we could have been in serious trouble," she said.

The black knight raised his hands. "Don't bow, that's weird. And don't worry about it. You're rookies; you're supposed to learn from the mistakes of those above you," he said. The girl nodded in understanding.

"Speaking of which, what rank are you?" asked the boy, while the demi-human boy added, "Yeah, we've never seen you in the guild before, but judging by your gear, you have to be high-ranked, right? But you aren't wearing a badge."

"That's because I'm a monster hunter, not an adventurer," said the black knight, prompting surprised expressions from the trio. "You're a monster hunter?" asked the girl, to which the black knight nodded. "Then what are you doing here?" asked the demi-human boy.

"Just escorting someone here, that's all," the black knight replied with a shrug.

Suddenly, they all heard a voice booming, "A monster hunter escorting someone? Yeah, right. What's your actual reason for being here?" They turned to see a man wearing red-colored partial plate armor with a gold badge attached to it, gelled ash hair, a piercing on his right brow, and a pike in his hand walking right up to the black knight. "Sir Hamish?" said the boy, recognizing him.

As Sir Hamish approached the black knight, the latter stepped back slightly, taken aback by the confrontational tone. "What's with the confrontational tone? That's what I came to do. You can see the guy I came with ri-" The black knight was cut off mid-sentence. "Don't try that. I know you came here to undermine and sabotage us somehow," said Hamish, his accusation hanging heavy in the air.

The black knight blinked rapidly in confusion, taken aback by the accusation. "For what reason though?" he asked, genuinely perplexed. "So that you guys can get more quests, obviously. If you sabotage us, more people will go your way, and you all would earn more coin," Hamish explained, his tone accusatory.

The trio looked between them, bewildered by the sudden confrontation. "Man, you sound completely insane right now! How the hell would I even do that!?" the black knight exclaimed, incredulous at the accusation. Hamish, gripping his pike tighter, remained adamant. "I don't know, but I know that you are going to!" he retorted, his voice rising with each word.

Their escalating argument drew attention from the rest of the guild, who turned to see what was happening. The black knight, realizing the situation was escalating, grabbed the sides of his helmet and shook his head. "You have some serious issues, but calm the hell down. You're making a scene," he said, trying to diffuse the tension.

"Don't tell me to calm down, you bastard! I'll sort you out right here and now!" Hamish exclaimed, holding his pike in front of him, ready to fight. The black knight backed away, holding out his hand. "That was a very sudden escalation! Calm down, man! I'm not trying to do anything!" he protested, still trying to defuse the situation.

The commotion caught Elanor's attention obviously, and though he wasn't sure what was happening as he hadn't heard the conversation, he spoke up, asking, "What's going on?" Someone beside him replied, "I have no idea." 

Just as it looked like the situation was about to escalate into a fight, the guild doors were shoved open, and they all saw a demi-human with deer-like features, out of breath and sweating, rush in and yell, "There's a vampire in the city!" The entire guild hall practically exclaimed in surprise, shouting "WHAT!?" as adventurers grabbed their weapons to rush out, including Hamish, though not before he shot a death glare at the black knight. Hearing the news, the black knight exclaimed in his head, *GODDESS DAMN IT LENNIX!*