Ryan inspected each of the holy knights. Although four of them were A-rank, none exceeded the stats he had already seen in Sophia.
The only thing that caught his attention was that they all shared the same title: Blessed Knight.
'A duke? I don't like dealing with nobles... and this church they talk about, this really isn't the game I know... How the hell did I end up in another world? I seriously need a break...' After reflecting, Ryan took a couple of steps forward.
"Sophia, explain to me what is going on here," Ryan asked, annoyed.
"The problem is that the news of your party reaching S-rank has already spread throughout the entire capital..."
"Now I get it. It makes a certain amount of sense, but the rumor spread way too fast..." Ryan murmured.
Then Helen turned her back on them and crossed her arms. "...Ah, what a pain. Why do we have to visit that old duke?"
"Tsk." The guard clicked his tongue.
"Hey, Helen! Shut up, stop being disrespectful to the people from the church. Please excuse her." Mirian offered a subtle bow.
'I understand why Mirian reacts like that. She was the one who mentioned that the church has the strongest humans on its side—the SSS-ranks.'
The guard walked toward the door and then looked at them with the face of someone who didn't want to be there.
"At any rate, we have to go," the guard insisted.
"Yeah, yeah..." Helen replied with annoyance.
Ryan's party set off following the guards, but at the entrance, there was a carriage pulled by two massive black horses.
The guard who had spoken to them earlier took the lead to drive the carriage along with two other guards, while the rest stayed at the guild's gates.
Ryan and his party boarded the carriage.
It was just the three of them.
The guard urged his horses forward, and the carriage began to move.
"I always wanted to ride in one of these carriages," Helen said, looking out the window.
"You're so childish," Mirian commented in a teasing tone.
"Don't call me childish!"
"Enough, don't start fighting here, you two. Speaking of fighting, that dungeon... I'd like to go back and clear it properly..." Ryan commented, looking out the carriage window.
Helen looked at him thoughtfully and replied:
"I'd like to as well, but it's going to be difficult."
"Why do you say that, Helen?" Ryan looked at her, bewildered.
"Isn't it obvious? We need to fly to get there," Helen answered with a sigh.
"And not only that..." Mirian chimed in.
"We could travel on wyverns, but only the royal fleet of the holy knights uses and controls them; that's how it is in every nation. It's not something we can access," Mirian explained, placing her hand on her chin while resting her elbow on the ledge of the carriage door.
"Wyverns? And what about dragons? Like the one from before, for instance..." Ryan asked with curiosity.
Helen looked at him for a second before answering, then clicked her tongue and said in an annoyed tone:
"Tsk, that could be an option, but dragons are only found in the demon king's domains. I think we ran into that one because it had been sleeping for a few decades..."
'What a hassle. If I had known that earlier, I would have stayed longer in the dungeon, and I still have points I haven't used. I need to be more careful when using them this time,' Ryan thought.
"However," Mirian continued, "some mages use flight magic. If we had one in our party... since Helen uses a sword and I use bows, and you, Ryan, are a support..."
"Actually, I'm a priest now. I changed classes in the dungeon, didn't I mention it?"
"No, you didn't say a word!" Helen complained.
Mirian brought her face close to his with curiosity.
"What?! Really?! And why not a Healer?"
"..."
"Forget it, the party is doing fine, don't complain," Ryan added.
"Well, you're right. In a way, I think your new strength will help us, and your buffs are cooler now. So there's no problem, I guess," Mirian commented as she closed her eyes and made gestures as if trying to picture it.
Then Helen crossed her legs.
"Anyway, thinking about that is complicated. The real problem now is where we find a new member for the party."
"Yeah, we need a mage... but now I need you to pay attention, Helen, and don't cause trouble with the Duke. You know he has the backing of the church," Mirian said in a worried tone.
"Tsk," Helen clicked her tongue. "That damn church, just because it has the only SS and SSS ranks, wants to dominate the other nations. I bet the Duke isn't up to anything good with us."
"You can say that again," Mirian continued. "For now, Lunar Veil is one of the few places that hasn't joined the church, yet they walk around here like they own the place."
'So that's what this is about. I thought it was strange that they came along without arguing. They don't want trouble with this church. On top of the demons, what kind of people are these? I suppose I'll find out when I see the Duke.'
The carriage came to a stop.
The carriage doors opened.
"We are here, you may step out now," the guard informed after opening the door.
Helen got off the carriage first, and then Ryan followed her.
"What's wrong? Don't just stand there, Mirian." Ryan offered her his hand. She took it and stepped down.
"Thank you."
"Open the gates!" the guard shouted.
Two B-rank guards emerged from inside the mansion and opened the doors, welcoming their captain.
"Are those the infamous S-rank adventurers?" one of the guards asked as he approached the entrance.
"Do you want to die, bastard?!" Helen grumbled.
"And I just told her not to cause trouble..." Mirian whispered with a heavy sigh.
The captain stepped in and intervened.
"Yes, I am taking them to the Duke right now."
"Understood, the Duke is waiting. You may proceed."
"Follow me, and don't stray," the captain commented.
The guard began entering the mansion.
He led them through the hallways up to the third floor of the mansion, and they entered an empty room with a desk and papers scattered across the table.
"Wait here, the Duke will be with you in a moment. Have a seat."
Ryan sat on a sofa opposite the wooden desk, and Helen sat on the armrest of the sofa where Ryan was sitting.
'Her and her terrible manners.'
Mirian took a seat in another chair.
The guard left. And after a few minutes, the door opened and the Duke walked in.
"I apologize for the delay, I am Duke Augustus."
Mirian stood up. "A pleasure, I am Mirian and these are my companions, Helen and Ryan."
"Yeah, yeah," Helen responded with annoyance, making a sour face.
Ryan didn't answer; he simply watched.
"Stat," he muttered.
[ CHARACTER STATUS ]
Race: [Human]
Level: 105 — Rank: A
Class: Ranger
Title: Blessed Master
Strength: 950 | Magic: 450 | Agility: 2500 | Psyche: 700 | Defense: 2200 |
'It shows that he's one of the holy knights...'
"Alright, let's skip the formalities." The Duke leaned against the desk, facing them.
"First of all, allow me to congratulate you on reaching S-rank. In this nation, we have very few adventurers of that rank."
"Thank you very much," Mirian replied.
Ryan was observing the Duke.
'Is he really such an important person just for being part of the church?'
"The only S-rank hero in the capital besides you is William."
Mirian placed a finger on her chin and thought for a moment before answering.
"I've heard of him. They say he never travels in a party. We're supposed to be in the same guild, but we've never seen him."
"He must be very arrogant..." Helen added.
"He is somewhat arrogant, but that is not the reason he travels alone," the Duke commented.
"But I don't think we came here just to be congratulated," Ryan said, rising from his chair, and continued, "You must definitely be after something serious. Isn't that right?"
The Duke stood up completely and walked toward the window, turning his back to them.
Then, without turning around to look at them...
He spoke.
"...You are correct about that, and I will be direct. I want you to dissolve this party."