It was a sunny day as the Alethani Kingdom neared the end of the summer. On the northern edge of the Kingdom stood a town called Rihona. There, the nights were starting to get chilly, and the trees of the bordering Malargo Forest, famous for its monsters, were showing early signs of fall.
It was an attractive place for those who loved danger. Adventurers from all over the world came to hunt and prevent these monsters from descending into the flatlands. Of course, this was all funded by the Kingdom's Adventurers Guild, allowing the adventurers to raise their glory and earn coins by hunting those foul creatures.
The southern gate of its wooden walls was constantly packed with arriving travelers and their supplies. Because the town saw all kinds of people, strange individuals were a common sight as long as they kept the peace. That day, two travelers stood out, yet no one cared enough to bother them.
First, a hooded figure passed the gates. The young woman carried herself like someone who knew how to fight. Her armor and sword were high-quality but poorly maintained, and she was clearly trying to hide her identity beneath a heavy cloak—only the Gods of this Realm knew why. Her hand never released the tight grip on her longsword. Believing she was simply a nervous rookie, the townsfolk never batted an eye.
A couple of hours later, a middle-aged man in strange clothing appeared. Strips of white cloth were layered heavily over his body, making him look from afar as though he were wearing mere rags. Some hung loosely, swaying even when there was no wind, while others were wrapped tightly against his seemingly weak body. He carried no equipment or weapons, nor did he even wear shoes—a dangerous choice for traveling in this part of the North. The area was not the safest for traveling without any precautions, so the locals assumed he had either been robbed on the road or was simply a beggar coming to leech off the growing town of Rihona. Also, his loosely tied long hair and messy beard left the onlookers staring at him in confusion, trying to guess what he truly was.
People looked at them and quickly turned away. No one thought of those two as threats or competitors in their hunt. The rookie was alone, meaning she would likely die or injure herself in the forest, and the strange man was not even carrying a weapon.
The adventurers went back to preparing for their own hunts, knowing the forest was not a place to be taken lightly. But, of course, there were always the young and inexperienced ones.
A group of them had gone into the forest the day before, passing the outskirts to go deep inside a cave they had recently discovered. Because the Malargo Forest was surrounded by valleys and ridges, encountering a cave was common, but this one was not on the map the Guild provided—meaning no one had explored it yet. Furthermore, the entrance resembled a broken stone door. It even bore strange engravings on it, but the young adventurers passed right through the entrance without understanding them. Who knew what riches might be waiting for them inside? Not that they needed the money; it was all for the fame and glory.
Their group consisted of four young men: a tall and muscular tank equipped with heavy, full-plate armor and a shield; a lightweight archer to support from the rear; a half-armored longsword wielder who seemed to be the leader; and lastly, a swift combatant wielding a short sword and a dagger to support the leader in battle. They called themselves the Band of Steel. Magicians were uncommon in these lands, but a party could easily recruit one if they were willing to pay enough. Since these young men were all sons of noble families, they could certainly afford it. However, as childhood friends, they always agreed that an arrogant know-it-all magician was the last thing they wanted in their party.
They went deep inside the cave system. The light from the outside was long gone, and they were depending only on their torches and the glowing mushrooms growing in unusual corners of this cave.
The cave appeared to be naturally formed despite the broken stone door at its entrance. There were only some remnants of a settlement, like rotten wooden doors or stone tables and seats. They saw the same engravings on the walls here and there. There were even some drawings of various lizards next to them. Everything they saw suggested the place was abandoned by people; however, it was definitely not abandoned by the other residents.
It didn't take them long to encounter the lizards mentioned in those drawings. The party just wished the scale of the drawings had been more accurate.
The monsters varied in size, ranging from about a leg's length to human height, measured from snout to tail. Despite their thick, armor-like skin, the creatures were moving with terrifying speed through the dark, narrow tunnels.
While the beasts were not easy to kill, the young party was well-trained and relied on their great teamwork. Ultimately, these giant lizards were no different from the forest monsters they were accustomed to fighting.
The Band of Steel kept moving deeper into the tunnels, hunting down the giant reptiles they encountered on the way. Their efforts were finally rewarded. At the deepest part of the mountain, they stepped into a huge opening. A ray of moonlight pierced through a crack in the peak, dimly lighting the cavern and revealing where all the cave's riches had been hoarded. Wares of silver and gold were piled in the center of the room. From coins to cups and plates to trinkets, a fortune lay there waiting to be collected. And sitting on top of it all was a giant egg glowing like polished metal.
The Band of Steel made a quick sweep of the giant opening, but there seemed to be no threats around. They assumed this was the lizards' nest, but surprisingly, it was completely empty—perhaps they had already killed the entire pack on their descent. They immediately began looting, but the most important thing was the egg. Bringing it back to town would make them the envy of everyone. Given its size, they could easily pass it off as a dragon egg—a stone dragon, to be exact. They would claim they had fought and chased off the dragon, and taken its egg as a trophy. What a glorious story that would make!
The only one capable of carrying that egg was the party's tank. Even though the egg reached almost to his chest, he was Blessed with immense strength. In this Realm, a Blessing was the way the Gods showed their favor toward humanity, and since one could only be born Blessed, it was exceptionally rare.
The group finally left the cave, planning to return later for the rest of the hoard. The treasure pile was large enough to sustain a province for a year, after all; it would be a shame to leave it behind.
Hours later, the master of the giant cave returned, only to find that her one and only baby was gone. In its place, a lingering scent remained—the smell of the thieves, who were already too far away to hear the trembling roar of an angry mother.