Chapter 217 ~ Blue Rose’s Impression

A massive building stood a few distance away from the nobles' district near the center of the royal capital, Re-Estize.

There was a constant hustle and bustling within and outside the building, a part due to its short distance to the largest market district, but mostly due to the number of adventurers coming in and out of the guild. 

The halls of the largest adventurer's guild within Re-Estize Kingdom were rarely empty. Perhaps even never, as even during the dead of night, there would still be several adventurers drinking or partying until dawn. 

However, the guild was always especially bustling during the day, just like now. 

There were parties coming in to search for new quests, some turning in their successful request, and some leaving to start their quest. Others took up the many tables laid on the massive halls to rest, eat, and drink their fill. 

It was rowdy. The words spoken were mixed with occasional laughters and a myriad of other sounds, blending into an incessant noise that filled the hall. Unless one possessed enhanced hearing, it would almost be impossible to make out anything if they were not close enough. 

This was the exact reason why high ranking adventurer parties with the prestige and gold to afford reserving a seat near the back of the room away from the busy halls for as long as they were in the city did so. 

Blue Rose was one of such parties who had a table reserved for them near the back of the halls. It was the best table within the halls of the guild, far enough from the busy halls that they could converse comfortably without being disturbed, but still close enough to the kitchen so they could order foods and drinks easily and have them be delivered quickly. 

"Kuuuh!! That hits the spot!"

A massive glass mug of ice cold, frothy beer slammed down upon the wooden table, followed by a satisfied sigh of a towering, muscular woman.

By her side, her "sisters" sat with their own preferred drinks. 

The golden-haired twins held a glass of juice. The blonde-haired woman had a glass of fruit-flavored water before her. And the last, a small masked girl in a red hood had a simple glass of water in front of her. 

They were all dressed in casual civilian clothings, though visibly slightly more well dressed than the average. It was their usual outfit while not on duty. 

After the recent swig, it was then did the large woman bring up something that piqued her interest recently. 

"Hey, I heard the Adamantite ranked party is coming to town. You girls heard anything about that?"

"No. I've only heard from the princess that the king has invited them to grant them a reward for their achievements."

Lakyus responded. 

"Achievements, 'ey?"

"Saving a city from hordes of undead and 2 skeletal dragons controlled by a highly skilled necromancer. Eliminating a notorious adventurer killer who was once a part of the Black Scripture and capable of killing even mythril ranked adventurer parties. And recently, killing a rampaging vampire lord that killed almost a hundred bandits and adventurers in a single night."

"Their battle scarred an area the size of a large village just outside of E-Pespel, completely voiding it of greeneries and life."

"Damn… That's quite the achievement, alright."

Gagaran knew not of the intimate details of what the new adventurer party had achieved, only that many were shocked, awed, and some skeptical about their rapid advancement to the pinnacle of humanity. 

The list of achievements Tina and Tia had just recited were something Gagaran would simply laugh off had it not been told by her dear and trusted sisters. 

Such things… They sounded more like legends which facts had been long lost to history and often exaggerated by those they've saved and considered heroes. 

She could hardly believe that they were all done by a group of adventurers who simply appeared seemingly out of thin air. 

Perhaps, they were hidden legends who simply chose this moment to appear and save a city from danger?

She could not know. And nor would she receive an answer anyway if she thought about it. 

"What do you think, shorty?"

"...It is certainly difficult to believe. But, from the information Tia and Tina had gathered, they all seemed to be true… I guess, we'll just have to wait and see to find out the truth."

Gagaran voiced her agreement with a deep grumble before taking a swig of her cold beer once again. 

Just then, her eyes inadvertently shifted towards the massive double doors of the adventurer's guild that had just opened. 

"Heh, I guess we won't have to wait that long, huh?"

The rest of Blue Rose all turned towards the direction Gagaran was gazing at and saw four obviously remarkable figures entering the guild hall. 

A tall, lithe man dressed in an expensive, jet-black wizard's robe. A beautiful, crimson-haired female with a massive, jet-black, gold, and silver scepter that could easily break a man with a single swing. 

A ravishing beauty with womanly proportions distinguishable even through her large, flowy white gold mage's robe. 

And finally, a holy knight. 

That was the first impression Blue Rose had of the man in pure white and gold armor before them. He was not terribly large physically, slightly above average compared to regular men but still smaller than Gagaran. 

But the aura and presence he commanded completely engulfed the entire guild hall, capturing all attention and silencing all noise the moment he entered. 

Yet, it was not oppressive or overwhelming. Instead, it felt somehow… warm and comforting. Like a radiant sun gently shining upon the earth and all that lived upon it, giving it life and warmth. 

Even Evileye, who had fought against calamities and demon lords alongside literal legendary heroes, had never felt such an incredible presence from a person in her long, undead life. 

And upon a closer observation, it wasn't only him whose presence was remarkable. The other three were similarly astounding, though they were still slightly overshadowed by the Sun. 

"Damn…"

Lakyus, Tina, Tia, and Evileye were silent, but they still agreed with Gagaran's remark. 

A legendary party. That was the impression all members of Blue Rose shared. 

The crowd of adventurers parted, clearing a way for Providence to enter the halls and made their way towards the reception table. 

All eyes focused on them, some on the adamantite tag that hung from their neck, some one the impressive armor and equipment they adorned, and some on the obvious, seductive curve of the white-robed magic caster and fighter. 

The male receptionist bowed deeply and welcomed the adamantite ranked adventurer party. There was a brief conversation between the white-armored leader of the party and the guild staff, but they were quickly drowned by the murmurs and whispers of the adventurers around. 

"Heh, didn't expect them to be this impressive…"

"Mm… But I wonder why they're here. Aren't they supposed to head to the palace?"

Lakyus observed the members of providence one by one. She was impressed by the presence they exuded upon first impressions. 

But now that she observed them more closely, the awe she felt before only increased. 

It was not a performance. They were not showing off to the many adventurers within the halls of the adventurer's guild. 

Their natural presence and charisma was simply that astounding. 

Judging by the way they moved, their measured steps, seemingly full of openings to the inexperience, but iron clad to veterans, she could tell that those rumors were not false by any means.

"Well, now that they're here, I might as well call them over for a little chat!"

"Eh? Gagaran, wa-"

Gagaran stood up from her seat, raising the massive glass of beer overhead, and with a loud voice, shouted at Providence.

"Oii! Providence! How 'bout joining us for drinks! Our treat!"

The helmed holy knight, masked female magic caster, blackrobed man, and mace-wielding fighter all turned to see the massive, muscular woman with shoulder-length blonde hair and blue eyes waving her hand and beer glass with a wild grin on her face. 

They all looked at each other for a moment. Then, the holy knight nodded, followed by the others, and they all made their way towards them.

"Gagaran! What are you doing?!"

"What? We're all curious, so I just invited them over."

"..."

Lakyus looked at her sister in disbelief, while Tina and Tia simply kept their silence and drank from their glass, as if having fully expected this result.

"Hah… Well, what's done is done. And she's right, it will be nice to know our fellow adamantite-ranked party better."

Lakyus turned towards her little, masked sister in red robes who, despite her short, childish stature, often offered great wisdom to the party in addition to her undeniable prowess in the arcane. 

"...Fine."

In the end, Lakyus could only let out a sigh and accepted the result of her sister's actions. 

Lead by the white-armored holy knight, Providence soon arrived at their table. 

"It is a pleasure to meet you. I apologize on her behalf for calling you over so abruptly. I hope we are not bothering you."

Lakyus stood up and offered a hand to the white knight who stood, towering, before her. 

The white knight extended his own hand and held hers firmly, purposeful, yet gentle at the same time. 

'Wow… He's strong…'

From a simple touch, she felt something reverberate within her. 

Such strength… and yet so gentle at the same time. She had never felt a sense of warmth, comfort, and safety from anyone except from her Blue Rose, who she had fought alongside with for many years through many adversaries and teetering between life and death. 

Yet, she felt it through his touch and through simply being in his presence. 

The warmth spread slowly from her hand, to her arms, to her body, and soon, to her heart as an explicable sense of comfort filled her. 

The friendly expression and smile she wore on her visage relaxed as the white knight began to speak. 

"Think nothing of it. In fact, it was a pleasant surprise. We did not expect to meet the famous Adamantite-ranked adventurer party, Blue Rose."

Lakyus and the rest of Blue Rose did not expect such a deep, velvety voice of, seemingly, a young adult man that seemed to reverberate right into their hearts to resound from within the white, dragon-like helm. 

Even Lakyus, who was herself a noble lady of high birth and a skilled and experienced adventurer, could not prevent her womanly side to surface and felt her heart quickened from his pleasant voice and presence alone. 

However, she still kept her outwardly appearance and hid her slowly increasing heart rate a secret deep within. 

"Your reputation precedes you. You seemed to know us already, but please let me introduce ourselves. I am Lakyus, leader of the Blue Rose. The one who called you is Gagaran. The twins are Tina and Tia. And lastly, our arcane caster, Evileye."

Lakyus gestured towards her sisters and they nodded their heads one by one as she named them. 

"A pleasure. I am Alexander, leader and vanguard of Providence. This is Lilith and Momonga, our two magic casters. And finally, Lupu. Our Cleric."

""Eh?""

Their eyes all widened in shock as they stared at the widely grinning red hair. 

"She's a cleric? She looks more like a fighter!"

Most other clerics she knew wielded a magic staff or, if they were a front line templar, smaller bludgeoning weapons meant to be wielded more easily while still being capable of dishing out heavy damage and possibly disorienting or stunning their enemies from the heavy blow.

Lakyus wielding a heavy sword despite being a cleric was an extremely rare outlier which mostly stemmed from her skills with the sword.

The massive mace Lupu carried on her back was something she had never seen on a cleric before. She assumed that Lupu was a fighter, like herself, who chose to wield heavy weapons and fight on the front lines. 

To think she was a cleric…

"And she does fight like one. However, on top of her capabilities as a front liner, she is also capable of casting fourth-tier healing spells and the fifth tier resurrection spell, Raise Dead."

""What?!""

The fifth-tier resurrection spell, Raise Dead. Yuuji knew very well how familiar the Blue Rose was with this spell. It was the greatest spell their leader, Lakyus, was capable of wielding, and one that had brought them back from the dead in the past. 

As far as they knew, Lakyus was the only one capable of wielding the power to bring someone back from the dead. They did not expect another one to appear right before their eyes so suddenly. 

Yuuji smiled from within his helm and watched them look at Lupu with widened eyes of disbelief. 

By revealing Lupu's ability to cast a low-leveled resurrection spell – her lowest-leveled resurrection spell – they were able to raise themselves in Blue Rose's eyes. And with their support, the next part of the plan to subjugate the Eight Fingers completely from this kingdom would go much more smoothly. 

Meeting them here was certainly unexpected. However, perhaps it shouldn't have been, knowing Yuuji's [Luck].

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AN: I hope you guys enjoy this chapter~! Please comment your thoughts~! I would love to hear what you think about it~!!!! 

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