Volume 1 Chapter 8 Falcon Brigade
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
The training ground of the Adventurers’ Guild is located separately from the main guild building.
It juts out like a castle beyond the circular town of East End, surrounded by a moat.
It’s enclosed by a forest known to the locals as the ‘Eastern Woods,’ a place filled with many monsters.
If you cross the stone bridge leading out of the town and turn left, the training ground is right there.
”Can I use the training ground?”
Kian called out to the guards who were chatting while looking at the black coniferous forest and the blue sky at the entrance to the training space.
The guards turned to Kian with furrowed brows.
”‘Garbage scavenger,’ huh? Back for more training?”
”Yeah.”
”Hah, no matter how much you train, someone like you with no magic power won’t change a thing. Can’t you think about going back home and doing something nice for your mom, huh?”
One guard was fiddling with Kian’s adventurer card while peering at his face.
Another guard chimed in, “Hey.”.
”This adventurer card is expired. It’s only good until the end of this month. Get it renewed, idiot.”
”No, that’s…”
’There’s no need to answer truthfully. That will only complicate matters.’
”Ah… right.”
”Huh? What do you mean, ‘right’?”
The guard looked puzzled.
Kian quickly shook his head.
”Ah, n-no! It’s nothing!”
”It’s not nothing.”
Suddenly, a young man’s voice rang out from behind.
A few men and women were approaching.
As the guards and Kian turned toward the stone bridge of the town, they saw 4 people coming their way.
”That Mr. Kian over there got his adventurer qualifications revoked at the guild yesterday.”
Leading the group was a young man with curly brown hair.
He looked about 17 or 18.
His face was decent-looking, and thanks to his bright eyes, even his messy hair gave off a clean impression.
He was undeniably handsome.
However, he didn’t look like a typical noble; his tanned skin and slightly awkward arms hinted at a humble background with experience in farm work.
Kian knew this guy.
”Funnelwing…”
”Long time no see, Mr. Kian. It’s been ages since we last teamed up. I’ve seen you around the Adventurers’ Guild sometimes, but you looked so shabby that I had to pretend I didn’t know you. Hehe, my bad.”
Kian put his hand on his head and forced a smile.
”Wow, you really know how to hit hard.”
”Just stating the facts, ‘garbage scavenger’.”
This time, he got shoved hard in the chest.
A tall priest stepped out from beside Funnelwing.
Unlike Kian, he was wearing the robes of the Western Church.
With wild red hair and a rugged face, Kian recognized this guy too.
”…Rosen Pitt. Long time no see. Still calling yourself ‘chi’, Kian?”
”Don’t cheapen my name by calling me ‘chi’! Just seeing your face this morning is the worst ever.”
”Whoa, Senior Rosen, that’s harsh! old man Kian’s about to cry! Come on, cut it out, haha!”
Saying that, a flashy blonde girl in a magician’s robe hugged the burly priest, pressing her chest against him.
She looked like a typical young person these days, with her robe modified to show off a lot of skin and a slit in her long skirt that went up to her backside.
Her wavy, rich blonde hair revealed ears adorned with red earrings.
Kian frowned.
”Franciska, wandering around in that skimpy outfit again… You should really wear proper reinforced pants for adventurers.”
”Huh? So annoying. I’m a rearguard, and this is fine for me. Plus, unlike you, I’ve got enough defense without needing to wear those lame magic power pants. And, like, this outfit is way cuter, right? Right, Senior Rosen?”
”Ugh, so annoying. It’s hot, so get off me. And at least wear some pants… It’s hard to know where to look.”
”Oh, are you blushing?”
The overly flirty blonde girl was teasing the delinquent priest, Rosen Pitt.
She──Franciska──was one of those women often called a genius.
Magicians usually learn at the academy in the royal capital, but this girl uses magic in a totally random way, like “Let something happen!” without any real theory behind it.
Somehow, she can twist natural phenomena accurately.
She lacks stability, but she can at least control basic magic like ‘starting a fire’ or ‘gathering water from the air or ground,’ so in the East End, she’s recognized as a magician.
Just barely.
(If the shamans and bug tamers at Azrael’s monastery saw her chaotic ways, they’d be shocked.)
They’d be surprised, mock her, and in the end, feel pity.
They’d think she must have had a terrible home life.
’Hmm, that handsome young man with cat-like hair──was it Funnelwing?──said earlier that you were part of this group of four?’
The glasses asked telepathically.
Kian nodded slightly.
(Yeah, I was part of this trio.)
This was about a year and a half ago.
He was invited by Funnelwing and Rosen Pitt, who came from a mountain village, to join their party called ‘Falcon Brigade’ as a baggage carrier and scout.
They clashed with a gang of kids from the slums (the Yellow Gang), and during that time, the magician Franciska joined them.
By the time they had 4 members, the ‘Falcon Brigade’ had reached party rank 8.
Kian became useless shortly after Franciska joined.
He kept nagging her about the basics of being an adventurer, and one day she said, “Old man Kian, you’re dirty, creepy, and I don’t like you,” which led Funnelwing and Rosen Pitt to kick him out.
’Hmm, I understand you’re a well-meaning fellow, but did you not consider that being overly meddlesome might irritate others?’
(It’s better than the party getting wiped out. Plus, by the time I was kicked out, I was starting to hold them back with my skills.)
In fact, now, a year later, the ‘Falcon Brigade’ has reached party rank 6.
Ranks 1 to 7 are for low-rank adventurers, and rank 6 and above are for mid-rank adventurers.
Now, when you mention the ‘Falcon Brigade’ at the guild, it’s all about hope.
But there’s another young party, The hero──Rean leads the ‘Lion’s Companion,’, that’s getting a lot of buzz among everyone.
’Hey… you do not know about that silver-haired girl over there?’
The one with glasses was talking about the girl standing like a shadow behind Funnelwing, Rosen-Pitt, and Franciska.
Kian casually shifted his gaze to her.
”──”
Her silver hair sparkled in the morning sun.
Two ears popped up from her hair.
She had wild, light blue eyes that seemed to burn.
A straight nose and softly shaped pink lips.
She was an incredible beauty, combining both elegance and cuteness.
She was so beautiful that she gave off a cold impression, like an ice princess.
Her posture was straight, and it felt good just to look at her.
Her body was steady, not swaying at all, standing perfectly still.
Because of that, even though she stood modestly in the back, she had a strange presence.
(A girl from the Silver Wolfmen…?)
Kian thought as he looked at her silver ears and fluffy tail.
(I’ve never seen her before. The 4th member of the ‘Falcon Brigade’ often changes, but could she be a recent addition?)
’Hehe… I can hardly believe there is such a delectable-looking person in this remote area.’
(Tasty-looking?)
’You can tell, yes? I feel a strong chi emanating from that silver wolf girl.’
(The Silver Wolfmen is said to be descendants of the ancient god of abundance──Great Wolf Wooloo. They’re few in number, but they’re all incredibly strong. For example, the mercenary group ‘Storm Herd,’ made up entirely of them, is undoubtedly one of the strongest fighting groups in the West. Their physical abilities and magic power must be off the charts.)
”What?”
Maybe she couldn’t stand Kian’s gaze any longer, the silver wolf girl opened her mouth.
Her serious, high-pitched voice was clear and calm, yet it carried well.
Kian hurriedly looked away.
”N-no.”
”…Hmph.”
The girl stared at Kian for a moment but quickly lost interest and turned her gaze away.
”You should be careful not to flirt too much with her, Mr. Kian.”
Funnelwing wore a mischievous smile.
”You’re gonna get your arm broken! Grrr! Hehe!”
”Haha, old man, were you flirting with Serena? Gross!”
”I-I wasn’t!”
’Oh, so this silver wolf-woman is named Serena. I shall remember that’
”Sorry to interrupt your chat, but…”
The guard, who had been standing with his arms crossed, stepped between Kian and Funnelwing.
”Rank 9 adventurer Kian. Is what… ‘Sir’ Funnelwing said true?”
He emphasized ‘Sir’ on purpose.
Even though he’s just a guard in this countryside, he probably comes from a knightly background.
Funnelwing is a hope of the Adventurer’s Guild, but to him, it might just be a bunch of thugs with a bit more flair.
Anyway, Kian shook his head.
”That’s not exactly right. It’s just a cancellation notice; I haven’t been officially expelled yet.”
”Oh? So it’s temporary then. Well, that’s fine then.”
The guard said that and returned to his spot, starting to chat with his buddies while looking up at the sky.
Kian turned back to the members of the ‘Falcon Brigade’ with a polite smile.
”Funnelwing. Are you guys using the training grounds too?”
”Ha, no way. We’re heading to the ‘Eastern Forest’ to hunt monster. We’re not like you, Mr. Kian, just wasting time.”
”Seriously, old man Kian, is it okay for you to be loafing around here? Didn’t you get a cancellation notice? Aren’t you supposed to change jobs?”
Franciska asked in a mocking tone.
’That’s a fair point.’
(I already went to the placement office, right?)
If it was fine to go to the mines or the Great Ice Wall, he could just sign and be done with it, but with the grace period, he still wanted to hold on.
Kian looked down at the wooden sword at his left hip.
(I came out like this knowing I could use magic power, but maybe this is just an escape from reality.)
’What are you saying? If you know you can wield magic power, you should go to the Adventurer’s Guild and demonstrate your strength. Everyone will be astonished.’
(I hope that’s true.)
As he tuned out the words of the glasses, Funnelwing turned on his heel.
”Alright, everyone. We don’t have time to waste on a loser like this.”
”See ya☆”
”…Just hurry up and drop dead, ‘garbage scavenger’.”
Rosen Pitt came up close, growling as a warning before walking away.
The only one left was the silver Wolfmen girl.
It seemed like she would just walk away without saying anything, but she shot a cold glance at Kian and said:.
”That goofy face of yours is annoying. Just like a toothless hunting dog has no value, a warrior without pride is worthless.”
”……”
She turned gracefully, like a gentle breeze.
Her silver tail swayed, and the beautifully crafted curved sword at her waist made a soft clink.
”Weakling.”
Her words cut deep.
It was a tone as if she were spitting on a crawling bug.
After saying that, the silver Wolfmen girl quickly started to follow the Funnel Wings.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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