Chapter 25 – Losers (2)

Next day:

After having lunch, I went to the hunter guild. 

It was to get the B-class mission as soon as possible and gain more time to prepare for the same.

I also thought it would be nice to receive some counseling and advice as the more information I had the better it was.

“Oh, Starchis. What are you doing today? It’s not the day you'll enter the dungeon, is it?”

The receptionist who had advised me not to challenge Tiwit Scorpion asked me.

He wouldn't have expected to see me today. He spoke again, in doubt:

“Or are you going to take another quest earlier than usual?”

“No, that’s not it.”

I waved my hand.

“Actually… My party is going to challenge the B-class mission.”

“Yes..?”

The receptionist’s eyes grew so large I feared they would come out.

He was not the only one surprised by my words, and the other receptionists next to him glanced at me too.

A lot of the other hunters present were also looking at me sideways, as if they could also hear what I said.

“So… You mean you want to be promoted to B rank?”

“Yes. You’re right.”

And soon the receptionist’s expression crumpled a little. Then, he made a 'hmm' noise and stroked his chin.

He must be worried. 

It was hard to get promoted to the B-class as missions were difficult and as a result, a lot of people died trying.

And even if a party succeeded once and got promoted, there were many cases of those parties getting annihilated in the next B-class mission.

And since the missions were so dangerous, parties that had been actively completing B-class missions got frequent injuries and a big part even died.

The rate of serious injuries and deaths was overwhelmingly high in B-class parties compared to C-class.

So, many people were just satisfied with being C-class hunters even among those who were quite talented and strong… Not me, though.

I had to become an A-class hunter, just like my brother… well, I would have dreamt of surpassing him and being an S-class hunter too, but such missions were so rare, it was harder to find one S-class mission than to finish it, and get the promotion.

Anyway, the reason why the receptionist was so shocked was that what I just said to him was basically that I would risk my life to become a B-class hunter rather than settle for C-class.

“Mr. Starchis… You thought about this for a long time before deciding, right?”

I nodded.

I had been thinking about it since Vienna and Luss first brought up the topic.

“Yes, I thought about it for a long time… But I got the courage to try after our recent mission.”

“Even if the mission seemed easy this time, you said that you had a problem when dealing with the King Boar in the last request… That level is not good enough.”

“That problem has been resolved.”

The problem arose from sheer fatigue. But it got solved as I was taking proper rest now.

The receptionist still had a frown on his face as if he didn't like my answer.

“Haah… Starchis. Of course, it's your decision to challenge the B-class mission in the end, but if you get hurt or… die, it’s me who will feel guilty. I hate that burden.”

“I know. But we will succeed and you won't have to feel that way.”

But even after hearing my confident answer, he couldn’t let go of his expression.

It was impossible to guess how many deaths he must have seen to be so skeptical.

But soon, he chuckled.

“… Do you know that all the C-class parties that wanted to get promotions said the same thing?”

“…But I'm confident. We will succeed.”

“Then tell me one factor.”

“Yes?”

“Please tell me one factor that made you think you would succeed even if you tried the B-class quest. Otherwise, I will have to decline your request.”

There was sincerity in his eyes.

He was adamant about not allowing me to accept the mission unless he was persuaded.

Of course, if he didn’t allow me, I could just ask the receptionist next to him. However, there was nothing wrong with trusting his intuition.

In the end, I decided to try persuading him with words and give up if he still advised otherwise.

It was because he had been working here even before I became a hunter, and because of his job, he had met many young hunters like me. So if he thought my strength was not enough to challenge a B-class mission even after I told him all our strong points, then… I was more inclined to trust his judgment.

“… I have good coordination with my party members.”

“Not enough.”

“Individually, our wizard's firepower is good, our saintess' divine magic is effective and long-lasting, and the front liners protect both of them well.”

“There are many parties like that even at C-class.”

“It’s because you didn’t see my party in action.”

But he shook his head. He seemed adamant.

I felt like I had reached the first obstacle on my way to becoming a B-class hunter.

Though I didn't resent him, rather, I was grateful to him for caring about my and my party member's life.

But what should I say to convince him?

“Being 'good' is not enough… Well, unless your party has something you could say is 'overwhelmingly' good... Is there anything like that? Whether it’s overwhelmingly good healing, or overwhelmingly good attack or defense... Something like that is necessary at least."

I didn’t want to say it because I thought I would come out as arrogant. But there was one aspect that was overwhelming.

“…an individual won the battle of strength against the Tiwit scorpion. Its outer armor was also smashed in one hit.”

His frowning expression froze and his both eyes blinked involuntarily.

“… W-who?”

“Umm… me…”

He stayed silent for a while.

The female receptionist next to him, who was hearing our conversation from the start, also had a blank expression as she looked at me with an open mouth.

In fact, this reaction was understandable. Even we, who had seen it happen in front of our own eyes, were shocked.

The receptionist in front of me carefully looked at my expression and chuckled.

“Haha… I don’t think you're lying…”

I smiled too. It seemed he believed my words.

He looked at me and got up from his seat. Then, as he packed his things, he spoke to the receptionist sitting next to him.

“Hey, Sansa, I’m going out for a while.”

“Yes?”

“Yes?”

It wasn’t just the receptionist called Sansa who was surprised; I too couldn’t keep up with what was happening.

What I wanted was to ask questions, get information, and get advice, but where was he going?

“Hey, where are you going? What about me?”

“You are also coming with me.”

He took his coat and a bag, stood up from his seat, and led the way.

Not knowing what was going on, I decided to follow him for now.

With a slight nod, I said goodbye to the receptionist, Sansa, and followed him.

“Where are you going, um… Mister?”

“If you follow me, you will know. And, my name is Marshall.”

The receptionist, who introduced himself as Marshall, sped up after saying those words.

****

The place we arrived at was the medical center.

This was where Vienna spent most of her time when she was not in the dungeon and we were not hanging together.

“…A medical center?”

“Follow me.”

Without hesitation, he opened the wooden door of the medical center and entered.

– Kik.

When I entered behind him, I saw many people lying on clothes laid down on the floor and moaning in pain.

In addition to the doctors who were treating patients, many saints and saintesses also took turns taking care of them and muttering prayers to heal them.

I’d been there several times, but every time I saw this terrible sight, I couldn't help but feel sad.

-‘Ugh!’

-‘Water… Give me some water…’

-‘Ah… It hurts…’

-‘Collock..! Cough Cough!!’

Countless saints and doctors were busy moving to help the patients.

It was the same medical staff as usual… the same staff that took care of people with no major injuries.

Maybe Vienna was there too?

It wouldn’t matter if we met through. I didn’t come here alone, I came with Marshall, the receptionist.

If she asked why I wasn't with my girlfriend, I could just say that I was preparing for the B-class mission.

But when I looked around, I couldn’t find Vienna anywhere.

“Receptionist… Marshall. Why are we here?”

“Keep following me.”

He led me to the second floor. There were beds that were a little more luxurious than those on the first floor. And unlike earlier, the patients were not lying on a cloth on the floor.

It was also quieter and less chaotic than the first floor. But, the condition of the patients was more serious. Occasionally, patients were seen without hands, legs, or arms.

It seemed that the reason why it was so quiet was that most of the patients were so injured that they could not speak and were unconscious. All the people who came to visit them were silent too.

I came on this floor for the first time today, as whenever I came to the medical center, it was to get treatment for only minor injuries.

“There was a place like this?”

Marshall nodded his head. Then he glanced at me.

“Mr. Starchis, you came to me today to get information or advice, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I don’t know if you found out by looking at them, but all of the patients here are C-class hunters.”

…All?

“All?”

“Yes. And most of them are those who challenged B-class missions.”

I looked at the patients with a bitter smile.

Then Marshall walked over to a woman who had lost one of her legs and carefully placed his hand on her shoulder as she rested with closed eyes. 

At Marshall's touch, she opened her eyes. Then looking at him, she smiled weakly.

“Ah… Marshall?”

“How are you feeling Tisha?”

Marshall asked in a heavy, worried voice, but the woman called Tisha smiled as if to ease his worries.

“Better than the first time… I would even say… Um…"

The woman looked at her lost leg as she spoke but swallowed her words once, “I’m much… used to it.”

Marshall frowned at her answer.

“Sorry… Tisha. It’s my fault.”

“No. It’s just that I… Fell short…”

The voice of the woman who continued her words was watery.

After clearing her throat once, she spoke to Marshall.

“That… Marshall. I… I want to be alone for a little bit… Can you move over? Haha, because I can’t run away as I used to when I was embarrassed, right?”

Then she pointed to one of her legs.

“Ah. Okay. Rest well.”

Marshall tapped the woman’s arm again and straightened his back.

Then he led me along and started walking again.

“…Haah…”

After leaving her, he gulped his saliva as if holding back his tears. 

Without any words for a long time, he spoke in a slightly shaky voice.

“…Did you understand now?”

It was a different feeling to see a person who failed in something I was trying to attempt in front of my eyes.

Her life as a hunter had already ended. She was someone who had nothing to do with me, but it hurt my heart for no reason.

“It definitely comes a little… Realistic.”

Marshall nodded his head.

“Right? Most parties only think about the rewards they'd get when everything goes as planned, not about the losses if things don’t go as planned. So I wanted to show you once.”

But even so, my mind hadn’t changed.

“Even in C-class missions, injuries like this happen. It’s heartbreaking, but it’s nothing new.”

If it was an injury like that in the first place, it was a part that I was already prepared for.

“It may not look new to you, but the probability of it happening is much higher for B-class missions. Would you still want to take such missions even though it could happen to you as well as to your party members?”

He turned and looked at me. His eyes were filled with concern.

What would happen if Vienna, Luss, and Lily Noona were lying on that hospital bed?

“I know you're concerned, but please keep my party members off the subject.”

I felt a little bad because I felt like he was using them to sway me.

'And I will protect them.'

I told Marshall.

“I will succeed.”

“Succeed?”

I spoke while looking around.

“All these people here have failed.”

“…?”

“But I will succeed… And you're not telling me to wait and attempt it when I feel more confident; you want me to give up on this idea altogether… so, I apologize if it offends you, but I want to proceed with the request.”

Marshall moved a little closer to me and put his hand on my shoulder.

It wasn’t strong, but it seemed to have a strong will.

“Mr. Starchis… It’s not enough to make the mission a success. If you succeed perfectly, you have to continue to succeed in dangerous missions next time, again and again.”

His eyes were still filled with worry. But I met his eyes, unnerved.

“I’ve said it before, but now… I’m tired of someone dying after accepting a request I let them accept. I’m really fed up. Mr. Starchis seems like a nice guy… I think I’ll have a hard time if something like this happens. Haah… Really… Can I trust you? Will you really succeed?”

Actually, I was worried too. It was a B-class mission. If I succeeded in it, I would be getting closer to the point where I and my brother would only be one rank apart.

That's how high and dangerous a B-class rank was.

I was not sure if I would succeed either. I might be able to come back without getting hurt, or I might not be… But I was already as prepared as I could be.

I looked at Marshall and opened my mouth… in a dignified manner so that he could feel at ease.

“Absolutely.”

****

The curtains were drawn in the dark room even during the day.

Lily tapped her fingers on the desk in a steady rhythm. 

-Tap Tap Tap Tap

Her head was complicated.

Starchis became too strong and too fast.

When she closed her eyes and remembered that scene, the shock was vivid.

When he swung his weapon, the wind and dirt blew in all directions.

When he put some force, the Tiwit Scorpion was pressed down.

When there was a moment of crisis, he appeared in front of them and protected them.

In the meantime, he continued to give rational orders.

The always difficult C-class high-ranking mission was completed without much effort or injuries.

When she remembered standing behind him, his back seemed much wider than usual.

She pretended to be an older sister, pretended to be an adult, but now she wanted to throw away all of those things and lean on him.

However, she was very jealous of this change, which she should have been happy with. Because even though he became so cool, he didn’t become like that because of her or… for her.

It was said that men became stronger when they had something to protect. Wasn't it the same for Starchis too?

-Grind!

She ground her teeth in frustration.

‘I? What about me? Why weren't you like this for me?’

She felt stuffy as if a stone had been placed on her chest.

Then she got angry. She wasn’t angry about Starchis doing well, she was angry about such rapid changes and what actually changed him so much.

She'd been looking for healthy food and healthy places for him, but there’s never been a change like this.

He always said that his dream was to follow his brother, so making his dream come true became her goal.

'If I act for him, and, in a way, help him, won’t he also like me?' She thought that way.

That’s why on days when she didn’t meet him, she searched for places that were good for the body, visited them, and made many plans.

If there was one thing she regretted doing now, it was that she drew the line too much. She shouldn't have done that.

Apart from that mistake, she tried so hard, but after only 3 weeks of knowing a girl named Elza, and only 1 week after becoming a lover, these changes appeared… as if mocking her efforts.

Why?

Why the hell was everything being taken away by that bi*ch?

What was so different about her?

Lily thought she did her best, so why did she end up like this?

… What the hell could she have done?

‘My girlfriend was delicious.’

Suddenly, Starchis’ voice echoed in her head.

-Kwizikwizi

Her fingernails drove hard into the desk.

She shook her head wildly.

No. No. No. He said those words were just because of a slip of tongue.

'Yeah, no matter how I think about it, that progress is too fast.'

Yeah, they hadn't had s*x yet. They didn't.

Behind such hope, a shady desire also crept up.

'… So I’m still… I’m not too late.'

The Starchis Treaty had been broken… and he had a girlfriend, so she knew s*x was only a matter of time, but she still couldn’t hold out a ray of hope that he wasn’t in such a relationship yet, that like herself, he too was a virgin.

Lily had always had sweet fantasies of sharing their first experiences. Just like stories she'd read, she wanted to hold hands, cross arms, share their first kiss, and share their first experience, following the classic route.

But now there was no time.

Even if everything else was gone, she didn’t want to give up on at least the last thing; his first experience.

She couldn’t stand to see Starchis do the most intimate things with someone she wasn’t.

She kept feeling that her dream was going farther away, but she couldn’t give up easily because it was an important dream… and to achieve that, she was ready to use any means necessary.

'But what should I do?'

Should she go to him and honestly confess her love? 

Will he accept her love then?

…No. Starchis was not that kind of person; he would never accept her if he already had a girlfriend. 

She would even be distanced from him and they wouldn't be able to maintain the relationship they had now.

'Shall I make him drunk then?'

… It would be possible to force him to take responsibility then, but it was already hard to convince hang out separately now.

'So what about magic?'

Sleep magic? 

No, the sleep magic she could do was effective only on small creatures.

If it was used on a person, they would only feel a little drowsy… it could just help someone to have a deep sleep who was already asleep.

…What about hypnosis magic?

But it was high-level magic. She didn't know how to use it.

It was stifling.

In the end, as a habit, she activated the magic she had put on the clothes she had gifted to Starchis.

'Did you wear them today?'

Her conscience stung when she saw his happy face while receiving the gift, but she could not abandon the plan.

She took a deep breath before casting the spell.

It was to prepare her heart for getting hurt.

Because even though she was activating the spell to get advantageous information through conversation, she didn’t know if she would have to listen to Starchis' sweet words he would be telling to that bi*ch.

Inhale… Exhale…

Taking a deep breath, she focused her mind.

-Swunn!

The magic was activated successfully.

But since it was magic that connected the sense of hearing to a distant place, it took a lot of mana, so she couldn’t keep it on for a long time.

This was especially true as the distance increased.

-…

Lily waited for a long time, but she didn’t hear anything… as always.

It seemed that the clothes were still in the box.

She clearly told him to put them out… But she was saddened, realizing he didn't even hear this trivial request.

Of course, it was his choice whether he does or doesn’t… But since she told him…

'No, he may have forgotten for a while.' 

Yeah, he would keep them outside as she said once he remembers.

Lily would have been happy if she could just listen to what he was doing when he was alone at home, but it seemed she wouldn't get even that little happiness today.

Or maybe he just took them out, but he was far away and didn't wear them, so she couldn't hear anything.

It was good to treat clothes with respect, but it was still a gift for him to use.

Of course, in all these negative moods, there was also a sense of frustration about her shady plan not going the way she wanted.

'Let’s stay like that for a while.'

-Shuuk.

Even when she ran out of mana, nothing was heard till the end.

Soon, Lily was in tears for no apparent reason.

She felt sad that she seemed to have distanced herself from him… and that she had to use such shady means to get closer again.

She was not this kind of person either.

'Still… I can’t stop… I can’t.'

Tears continued for some more time.

Although she looked bleak now, once she was able to control her emotions, she moved again for her goal:

Wiping away her tears, Lily took out a piece of paper.

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