In the northwestern sector of the Orc settlement, the four members of the Stars of the Night were locked in combat with a group of Orcs.
"Bumo!"
Ceryl caught an Orc’s downward swing on her shield, then thrust her blade into the throat of the staggering monster. The strike was precise and lethal; the Orc’s neck was nearly severed, and it collapsed in a heap of dead weight.
"Tch, there’s no end to them. Al, Sni! You two alright over there?"
Ceryl gave her sword a sharp flick, sending blood and bits of flesh flying off the tip, before calling out to her companions.
"I’m still good," Al grunted.
"No problems here, either... but Sis, two more Orcs coming from the front!"
Sni shouted the warning while simultaneously drawing her bow. Several arrows hissed through the air in rapid succession, burying themselves in the torso of an Orc creeping through the shadows.
"The main assault started in the east, so why the hell are so many Orcs swarming our sector in the northwest? Al, take care of that hedgehog!"
"On it!"
Ordinary Orcs rarely wore armor. While part of that was the difficulty of sourcing gear for their frames, the primary reason was their own biology. Their muscles possessed several times the strength of a human's, all shielded by a dense, thick layer of fat. For an average person, even a direct sword slash or a spear thrust struggled to penetrate that natural padding.
The same held true for Sni’s arrows. Though the Orc looked like a pincushion, most of the shafts had been swallowed by its fat, failing to deal a killing blow. However, the arrows protruding from its body acted as physical obstacles, hindering the Orc's movements and causing it to stumble for a fraction of a second.
"Drop dead, you pork-faced freak!"
Al seized that opening. He put his entire weight behind a massive swing of his bastard sword, slamming the blade into the Orc's midsection. The monster tried to bring its own sword up to parry, but the arrows lodged in its flesh snagged on its arm, delaying its defense.
The bastard sword bit deep. It was more of a cleaving blow than a clean cut, nearly bisecting the creature. The Orc fell without a sound, its lifeblood and entrails spilling onto the dirt.
"Haa... haa... haa..."
Al leaned on his sword, using it as a crutch as he gasped for air. As a D-Rank adventurer, he had the skill to take on a D-Rank monster like an Orc one-on-one, but the sheer repetition of the skirmishes was draining his stamina.
"Sis, maybe we should take a breather?" Sni suggested.
Ceryl frowned. She had just finished off the remaining Orc with one of her signature high-speed thrusts to the face. Although her breathing was slightly elevated, she was far from exhausted—a clear testament to the gap between a C-Rank and a D-Rank.
"I suppose. Al looks like he’s about to keel over... Still, with all these Orcs in the way, finding that rookie is proving difficult. Any word from Murgas?"
Sni shook her head.
Murgas was supposed to be scouring the settlement for Rei. While he was a coward by nature, the team had used a combination of Ceryl’s threats, Al’s coaxing, and Sni’s persuasion to force him into his role: find the boy assigned to the mobile unit and, if possible, steal his Item Box. Ceryl had decided that as long as they had Rei's location, they could intercept him themselves. Being bogged down by Orcs was an irritating distraction.
Logically, with the main force hitting the east, the western side should have been relatively quiet. Instead, they were being hounded by an inexplicable number of monsters.
The reason was actually a flaw in the party's makeup. With Murgas scouting, the group consisted of one man and two women. Ceryl was in her prime in her thirties, and Sni was in her twenties; despite their questionable personalities, both were attractive enough to incite the lust of the Orcs. Since the settlement was newly established and the only "breeding stock" available were two human women captured during a raid, the surplus of males was desperate.
Driven by primal urges, several Orcs had defied the orders of their superiors to hunt the women. As other Orcs saw their kin fighting, they joined in, leading to the current mess.
"Fine. Let's hide in that dilapidated shack before more of them spot us. Al needs to catch his breath."
"Haa... haa... s-sorry."
"Honestly. If you're going to struggle this much with mere Orcs, you're never going to see Rank C," Ceryl snapped, dragging the stumbling Al toward an unburnt dwelling. Sni followed close behind, keeping a sharp eye on their rear. Finally, the three of them were able to steal a moment of rest.
"Damn those Orcs. If they hadn't swarmed us, we’d have cornered that brat by now."
"Sis... maybe we should put the Item Box aside and just focus on the subjugation?" Al wheezed.
Ceryl turned a freezing glare on him. "What was that, Al? You have a problem with my plan?"
"No, it's just... if we keep fighting like this with our heads elsewhere, the Orcs are going to catch us slipping."
"Hmph. Once we have that Item Box, we're making a break for the Royal Capital. I couldn't care less what happens to Gilm."
Ceryl was more fatigued than she let on—not physically, perhaps, but mentally. Being stared at with such grotesque, lecherous eyes by the Orcs had taken its toll. That weariness was likely why she let her true intentions slip.
"Sis, what did you just say?" Al’s voice dropped an octave.
"What? I said I don't care about the city. It's exactly what I meant. You're heading to the Capital with us once this is done, so what does it matter to you? Like I said before, even if this expedition fails, the Royal Capital will just send their own Knight Order. There might be some collateral damage, but things will work out eventually."
"I mean... maybe, but..."
Before Al could argue further, Sni hissed a warning from the doorway. "Sis, Murgas is back."
"Finally! Sni, stay on guard. Murgas, get in here and report. Al, we're done talking about this. You'll follow my orders."
"...Fine."
Al gave a reluctant nod just as Murgas slipped into the building.
"Sis, sorry I'm late."
"You certainly took your time. Did you find the rookie?"
"Yeah, eventually. He's on a mobile mission, so he keeps dropping down to clear Orcs and then taking off again. A bit ago, he was in the east, wiping out a group that tried to flank the Axe of the Thunder God. It was a unit led by an Orc Mage, but that Gryphon of his just blew them away."
Ceryl scowled. She had wanted Rei in their sector so she could strike whenever she pleased, but because she had voiced her "distrust" of the Gryphon the previous night, Bobbs had assigned Rei to mobile duty. Ironically, several other parties who had taken a liking to Set had begged Bobbs to let them work with the duo, resulting in Rei being sent to support everyone as needed.
"Is he still behind the Axe of the Thunder God?" Ceryl asked. If he was that close to an A-Rank party, he was untouchable.
"Actually, he looked exhausted from the constant fighting. He landed in an unburnt area to rest. I figured it was our only shot, so I ran back here immediately."
"Oh? Resting in a quiet spot, is he? Any Orcs or other adventurers nearby?"
"None. At least, not when I left. The area was clear."
"And the Gryphon?" Ceryl asked. That beast was the biggest obstacle. She knew the Stars of the Night stood no chance against it in a straight fight.
"That's the best part," Murgas grinned. "He sent the Gryphon back into the air to keep patrolling while he rests. It's just him."
"I see... Then this truly is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He’s so greedy for achievements that he's working his pet to the bone while he sits vulnerable. What a fool. His greed is going to cost him his life."
Ceryl’s face twisted into a predatory smirk as she finalized the plan.
"Listen up. We all move in together. Sni, you take the lead with an opening shot. Aim for the head for an instant kill, but a torso or leg hit is fine as long as it pins him down."
"Sis, give me some credit," Sni huffed, puffing out her cheeks. "He’s a guild rookie. I can finish him in one shot."
Ceryl shook her head. "Don't forget, he took down the Falcon's Claws by himself. No room for carelessness."
"...Fine."
"Good. Once Sni’s arrow connects, we all rush him. We need him dead. If he's dead, it'll take Bobbs much longer to realize we've made our move."
"And then we head for the Capital?"
"Exactly. The carriages and Warhorses are at the command post. Murgas, Sni—you two will have to slip away and grab four Warhorses. Two at the bare minimum. Those horses have the stamina to reach the Royal Capital without stopping. I’d prefer to take all of them to prevent pursuit and have spares, but we can't risk Bobbs noticing."
"The trip to the Capital takes days. What about food?"
"That Item Box is bound to be loaded with supplies. And even if it isn't, we can sell whatever’s inside at the first village we hit and buy what we need."
"Sis," Sni called from the door, "do you actually have a way to sell a stolen Item Box at the Capital?"
Ceryl nodded with a confident smile. "Someone who helped me back in Gilm moved up into a certain organization there. I have the contact info."
"Alright, Sis. Let's hit him before he finishes his nap."
"Move out. Murgas, lead the way. Al, Sni—keep it quiet. Don't let the Orcs spot you."
And so, the Stars of the Night began their ultimate gamble. To Ceryl, however, it didn't feel like a gamble at all—it felt like a guaranteed win.
Had Murgas mentioned that Rei could use magic, the outcome for the Stars of the Night might have changed. But Murgas had no idea Rei was a mage. He had assumed the fire that consumed the Orcs earlier was some innate ability of the Gryphon, and since the beast was gone, he saw no reason to hesitate.
In a corner of the settlement where the flames had not yet reached, Rei sat resting. Or rather, he was doing an excellent job of appearing to rest.
Set was nowhere to be seen. Rei had a clear goal: lure the Stars of the Night into his trap. However, he couldn't simply ignore the rest of the battle.
Besides, I can't let a chance to rack up contribution points go to waste, Rei thought. In that specific regard, Ceryl’s assessment of his greed had been spot-on.
And then...
Finally decided to show yourselves.
He felt it. A prickling sensation against his skin. It was similar to what he had felt from the Queen Ant or the rare Goblin, but whereas those monsters radiated a pure, raw instinct, this presence was muddied by something else: greed. It was a foul, heavy killing intent.
Rei tightened his grip on the Death Scythe hidden beneath his Dragon Robe, shifting his posture so he could explode into motion at a moment’s notice.
The four members of the Stars of the Night were likely under the impression they were being stealthy. But to Rei, whose senses far exceeded those of a normal human—bordering on a supernatural sixth sense—their positions were as clear as day. He could track them by the sound of their breathing, the rustle of their clothes, and the stench of their bloodlust as they surrounded him.
Then, a faint, rhythmic creaking reached his ears. The sound of a bowstring being pulled to its limit.
I see. A sniper opening.
He decided on his counter-play. An instant later, the arrow was loosed.