Chapter 13 - Titans Helm

A distant murmur flooded my ears from up ahead, I hid behind the closest tree I could find and waited.

I had just exited the dungeon a few steps ago and came out on the first floor. It was some distance off from the entrance gate near the western edges of the floor.

I peeked around the corner of a silver-leafed tree at a group of people trudging through the fields. They looked utterly exhausted, hauling large-grade equipment and supplies on their backs.

Four…no, five of them in a party together. Their equipment looks expensive though, are they high-ranked adventurers?

An emblem over their armour grabbed my gaze, it was the familiar symbol of a knight's helmet surrounded by a laurel wreath.

"I recognise that symbol, they're from Titan's Helm!" I covered my mouth and hid behind the tree.

My excitement got the better of me and I ended up blurting out my thoughts. I only prayed that they didn't hear it as I cowered behind the tree.

I thought someone would have come after me but it was quiet, I peeked around once more and saw that they were locked in a conversation amongst each other. They stopped on the path and the conversation escalated.

I thought I was a goner as soon as I shouted. The Goddess of Creation must be smiling upon me after all.

Still, anyone would be surprised if they saw Titans Helm up close. They were the second-highest-ranked guild in Istoria after all.

It's not like I would go so far as to have called myself a fanboy but even I could respect the amazing feats they accomplished in their heyday. They held countless dungeon records and possessed some of the most popular adventurers within their ranks.

Their guild was officially ranked second by ASH, which practically made them celebrities. Especially their newest recruit, Olivia Fortis. 

I didn't know much about her because she tended to stay outside of the public eye but she seemed to be a powerful fighter, to put it lightly.

I didn't see her with that group though, not that I was surprised. I couldn't imagine the youngest Gold-ranked adventurer in Istoria to be wandering through the fields of the First Floor. 

"Alright team, nothing on this end either. We should search further North before taking a break." A man dressed in white robes pointed to the distance with an ancient-looking lantern.

Like the others in the group, he was quite young and probably only a few years older than me. From the tacky lantern, I would have guessed he was a mage. He looked like a classic magic user, I couldn't see a single weapon on him.

The rest of their group groaned like tired children as they followed his aim. It wasn't that he commanded them heartlessly, they just appeared to be as worn out as I was.

"I know it's a lot but we have our orders from the higher-ups. This is what the D squad has to do from time to time." 

Their guild must be filled with people to be capable of separating their numbers into groups like this. As expected of Titans Helm.

One member halted and turned to the young man with a vindictive grin. Unlike the mage, the second man was dressed in dark armour and carried a sword and shield at his waist.

"Are you stupid or something blondie, there's no point in all of this walking! I'm not taking another step, there's no way that thing could be out here in the first place. It would have had to migrate to a higher floor since there are fewer people there." The warrior shouted with his finger still in the mage's face.

Based on a glance, I would have guessed him to be a year or two older than me but from his attitude alone I would have mistaken him for a child.

I bet he's one of those strong-built but weak-headed kind of guys. Maybe this group's more trouble than I thought…

The mage swatted the warrior's finger away. "Look, I'm tired too, Raf but we're in a guild. We don't get to just goof around as we please like a regular party would, as party leader I need to make sure we get things done."

"Well you're not my leader, I'm the strongest one here!" He shouted back angrily.

The other mage of the group walked over to Raf with a cherry smile and placed her hand on his shoulder. Besides the wooden staff in her hand, she was completely dressed in pink.

"Commander Heath is right, we should be working hard to clear our work for the day Raf."

The warrior, Raf, angrily shrugged her hand away and pouted.

"You're only saying that 'cause you have a thing for that useless healer." Raf pointed to Heath.

The rosy young woman flared up with a bright shade of red over her face and was ready to strike him. She stopped in her tracks when the last member in the back suddenly spoke out.

"Maybe Raf needs a break since he can't keep up? I've heard that you only got into the D-squad off of a third attempt after all." 

The member that caused Raf to foam at the mouth was an archer, he looked to be the oldest of the party. He was the only one with a noticeable patch of hair on his chin and an aged expression between his eyes.

"What did you say, geezer?! Don't think I'm afraid to hit you just cause 'yer in my guild!" Raf drew his sword from its sheath.

Heath jumped in between them with his hands keeping them at bay. "Calm down everyone, we're still a team."

Looks like even the top guilds still have people this free-spirited, huh? Still, it bothers me that they were looking for something out here. If it's something that one of the top guilds wants, it must be important…

I suddenly snapped out of my thoughts as the group shifted amongst each other. That Raf guy seemed to be going berserk the further the archer egged him on.

"I should take my leave while they sort things out,"

I pulled away from the tree but my eyes took one last look back at the group. My eyes hopped between them frantically.

"I swear I counted five of them before."

The cold sensation of steel pressed onto my neck and caused my cheeks to cringe back. My heart raced so fast I could hear it through my chest.

"Should I consider you an enemy or an idiot for spying on us?" A silvery voice asked from over my shoulder.

I didn't sense a thing, did one of them sneak out from the group without being noticed? I didn't think anyone could be that unnoticed.

"I-I…can explain."

"I'll give you 5 seconds before I drop my hold and slide this blade across your neck. I would hurry since my arm is getting pretty tired~"

Her blade dagger shifted tighter and my nerves were set on edge, no, closer to being sent straight off the edge!

"I just felt nervous about seeing Titans Hand s-so, I was too nervous to walk up to you guys!" My words fumbled out of my mouth.

"I love the sound of a racing heartbeat, I guess you must be a liar~" The voice whispered into my ear elatedly.

This voice…it's cold and menacing but it sounds soft on the ears, sort of like a woman's.

"Haze, what are you doing with that kid?" The blonde leader of Squad-D asked as he approached us.

He didn't seem all that surprised at the fact that her dagger was pressed up against my throat.

"This isn't the time to be messing around, I just told off Raf for halting the mission!" Heath spoke with a stern yet warm tone, showing how familiar they were.

"Can you cut him up quickly, I want to get out of here already!" Raf yelled from the back.

"D-don't cut up anything!" I begged with a teary shriek.

"Can I, please… I reeeeally want to feel my knives carve him up~" She begged.

"We're not cutting anyone!!" Heath snapped back with a terrified expression.

Thank the goddess!!! A voice of reason between them and he's in charge too! I need to get as far away from these psychos as soon as I can.

"So what were you doing then kid, things are looking a little grey for you as it stands." Heath tilted his head.

That woman, Haze, released me and withdrew her blade back into her sleeve. I glanced back at her and was surprised at the result.

Besides the dreary black clothing beneath her cloak, she had silky black hair tied up neatly into a bun with beautiful blue eyes. Who knows, if she wasn't so bloodthirsty she might have been quite the talk of the town.

I better come up with something good or else I might find myself in more trouble. 

"My name is Rei, I was just heading back to the Entrance when I saw your emblem. Big guilds are pretty intimidating, so I decided having a quick peak would be enough for me." My voice was high-pitched and had a slight sound of panic behind it.

I'll have to stick to the truth, I don't know if it's a skill but that assassin will notice straight away.

"Are you sure you weren't just eavesdropping on our little conversation?" A menacing voice poured into my ear.

Dammit, she's on to me! I was a little shy to go up to them but their conversation was the real reason I stayed back…I guess I was kind of eavesdropping on them.

The tip of her knife drew out from her sleeve and reflected a glimmer of light from its cold steel tip.

"The truth is I…I…" 

All eyes peered at me with full attention, it carried a massive weight behind them. 

"I got shy because I've wanted to join your guild for the longest time!!"

…

"Pfft! Bwa-ha-ha-ha! This kid's hilarious, we have a fanboy!" Raf grabbed hold of his sides from the uncontrollable laughter that poured out. 

He placed a hand on the tree and another on the young mage girl as he continued bursting with laughter.

Heath cringed back and glanced over to Haze for confirmation, she nodded her head with disappointment filling her face. She looked genuinely sad as the blade retracted back into her sleeve.

"Uh…well, keep training and one day maybe you could…uh let's go. Sorry, we're really busy and all…" Heath awkwardly grabbed his party members and escaped from the conversation as fast as he could.

By the time they were out of sight, I grabbed the sides of my head and dropped to my knees. Tears filled my eyes as I began to clench my teeth so hard that they felt as if they could shatter.

"Why… why did I say something so embarrassing!!"

It was a dream of mine to join a guild like there's ever since I was a kid but I lost sight of that after I met Ellios. Going solo seemed like the best idea since I had no idea what my skill's history was, so I couldn't risk joining a guild.

Even so… The look of horror on their leader's face when I said I was a fan made me cringe just thinking about it. I wanted to curl up into a ball so the ground would swallow me whole.