Adventurers' Guild, someone I had never seen before rushed upstairs in a panic.
Soon after, Dex came running down, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Are Karen and Lina in the guild?!"
"We're here. What's going on?"
I raised my hand so Dex could spot us, and he immediately ran over.
"There is! Something extremely serious!"
"What kind of extremely serious thing?"
What on earth could be so serious that it had to be entrusted specifically to Lina and me?
"I'm telling you this now—you must listen calmly! Don't panic! Don't be afraid!"
Dex was panting hard, waving his hands as if to calm us down, even though he was clearly the one who wasn't calm at all. I couldn't help but say it.
"Guild master, you're the one who needs to calm down."
"I am calm! Don't interrupt me! Every second counts right now!"
I got scolded instead, and even accused of wasting time. I felt like crying. I shouldn't have said anything.
"Alright. Go on. We're listening."
"The king has sent word—Black Flame Dragon Samidoride has approached from the northeast of the capital. It's currently resting in a nearby forest. Once it wakes up, it will likely fly straight toward the capital. If that happens, it'll be too late."
The moment Dex finished speaking, the entire guild erupted into unrest. Everyone wore expressions of utter despair, and honestly, it was only natural.
Samidoride was an ancient dragon that had lived for over 3,000 years. It despised humans, and every city, town, or village it passed through had been annihilated. Only a handful ever survived. It was one of the main reasons the population had dwindled so drastically.
"So the king specifically ordered us to hunt it down?"
Since Dex had come straight to us, I assumed this was the king's command. But I was wrong.
"No. The king has ordered all adventurers to assist the army in defending the capital, because the neighboring country, Bartletis, plans to invade. We're short on troops. As for Samidoride—I want you two to handle it. Do you have confidence? You can refuse if you want. I won't force you."
So this was Dex's own decision. In that case, I couldn't refuse. I had promised that any request he gave, I would see it through.
More importantly, if the capital were destroyed, Lina wouldn't be able to stay here. That was something I absolutely had to prevent.
I glanced at Lina, then turned and walked over to the Rainbow-rank quest board. I tore down the quest to hunt Samidoride down, then spoke to Dex.
"Tell me the location."
Dex then gave us Samidorid's approximate whereabouts. Because he had rushed down in such a panic, he hadn't gotten the details clearly, and the king's messenger had already left.
It didn't really matter. With "Detection," we'd find it quickly enough.
As we headed toward the guild's exit, Brett and Sally ran over to stop us.
"All I can do now is cheer for you. You have to come back alive."
"Lina, Karen, good luck!"
They had come just to encourage us. I was so moved that I almost teared up. In contrast, everyone else looked as though even we wouldn't be able to win, as if the capital's destruction was already a foregone conclusion.
"Then we're off. Wait for the good news."
With that, I turned around and waved confidently as I left.
"Mm. Bye."
After waving goodbye to Brett and Sally, Lina followed after me. Together, we headed toward the eastern gate of the capital.
Lina and I had arrived at the eastern gate of the capital, where we saw a group of soldiers stationed outside.
I didn't know how many troops the neighboring country, Bartletis, had sent, but this was far too few—there were probably fewer than fifty soldiers here. No wonder they had asked the guild for help.
But adventurers weren't soldiers. Their loyalty to the nation wasn't strong, so only a handful would actually come to assist. Judging from the expressions at the guild earlier, most of them were already thinking about running away.
As we stepped out of the city gate, a gate guard stopped us.
"Passage is forbidden here. Go back."
I took out the quest paper for subjugating the Black Flame Dragon Samidoride and showed it to him.
"We accepted this quest. May we pass?"
"I get it—you youngsters want to make a name for yourselves. But Samidoride isn't something you can handle."
After looking at the quest, the guard not only refused to let us through, but mocked us for being young and ignorant. Time was tight, and I didn't want to waste it on him, so I asked again.
"So, will you let us through?"
"Hey! Didn't you hear what I said?! Go back! Stop dreaming!"
Annoyed that I wasn't listening, the guard shoved me, forcing me to stumble back a few steps. Anger surged up inside me, and I raised my hand to point at him—but I didn't want to waste any more time here, so I changed the gesture into a thumbs-up, warning him instead.
"You… fine. You're good. I'll remember you."
With that, I turned around and left. Lina followed after me. Even so, the guard shouted back loudly.
"Come on! Like I'd be scared of you!"
It seemed he thought I was an easy target. I had already memorized his face. I wouldn't let this go—he would pay the price for making me waste time.
Since we couldn't pass through this gate, we'd use another one. I checked my pocket watch. It was 12:06.
"Lina, let's go to the northern gate, then ride the motorcycle to the forest."
"Mm."
After telling Lina, we jogged along the city walls and finally reached the northern gate. There was no foolish guard blocking us there, so we passed through without issue. The time was now 1:15, which really showed just how massive the capital was.
Only after we reached a spot out of the guards' sight did I take out the motorcycle. I told Lina to hold on tight and absolutely not let go. Then I twisted the throttle all the way and sped off toward the northeast.
The ground was a little uneven, but I could handle it. As we rode, my thoughts kept drifting back to that guard. The more I thought about him, the angrier I got. Then it occurred to me—after subjugating Samidoride, I'd definitely have to meet the king.
When that happened, I'd file a complaint.
With that pleasant decision made, my mood finally improved.