Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Sniper Tree Owls???

Sincerity?

Eina couldn’t find that in Izay’s eyes.

Instead, there was a faint feeling like he was trying to get away with something.

“Really—?”

Drawing out the word, Eina clearly didn’t believe Izay’s explanation.

“Hmm, truer than true gold!”

“So Mr. Izay, your ‘friend’ must be a high-level adventurer, right? Can you tell me their name? At least give me some idea?”

Upon hearing this, Izay’s lips twitched slightly.

How could he convincingly say the adventurer title of this ‘friend’ who doesn’t even exist?

One lie leads to another, the ancients were not wrong.

Wait, hold on.

It wasn’t exactly out of nowhere; Izay’s social circle in Orario had expanded quite widely these past few days.

Without mentioning anything else, he did have a few Level 4 friends he could bring up.

In the blink of an eye, Izay quickly thought of what to say next and his face lit up again with a smile.

“Well… for certain reasons, I can’t reveal their real name, but their adventurer title is ‘Sniper Tree Owl,’ hmm! I guarantee it!”

“Sniper Tree Owl???”

For a moment, seeing Izay actually come up with an adventurer title, question marks appeared over Eina’s head.

The title sounded strange… but oddly fitting for how deities name things purely for entertainment…

Now Eina couldn’t really tell if Izay was lying or not.

After all, Izay belonged to the [Loki Familia].

With the connections of such a large faction, it wasn’t surprising that Izay could meet strong adventurers.

“That’s right, it’s a cool title, isn’t it? My friend is a genuine high-level adventurer, and when entering the Dungeon, we’ll team up with senior members from the Familia, multiple high-level adventurers, so it’s very safe for me as a newbie~”

Noticing her wavering belief, Izay hurriedly bluffed, trying to deceive her.

“The main forces of the Loki Familia aren’t all on expedition? How can someone still take you into the Dungeon?”

“Guard duty personnel, some Level 2 seniors are left behind to guard home~”

“…”

Feeling she had found a suspicious point but skillfully sidestepped by Izay’s perfect reasoning, Eina hesitated for a while before finally relenting.

“Sigh, alright, since you’ve said so much…”

Letting out a slight sigh, Eina turned around and began searching through the pile of documents on the desk behind her.

Not making Izay wait long, soon she had organized the mid-layer intelligence he needed, along with detailed information about the suspected ‘Enhanced Species’ pterosaur.

“Mr. Izay, since you’ve decided to team up with the seniors to explore the mid-layer, let me remind you one more thing: adventurers should never take too many risks!”

Placing a stack of documents in Izay’s hands, Eina earnestly reminded him.

In a sense, Izay was an adventurer she had helped promote, and at such a young age, Eina didn’t want to see a recruitment notice for him posted on the bulletin board after just a few days.

“Hmm, I will remember that.”

Understanding her concern, Izay nodded in agreement.

But whether he would actually follow it, well, that could only be done to the best of his ability.

He valued his life, but who knows which comes first, tomorrow or an accident?

Izay couldn’t see through fate, nor could he predict it, so he couldn’t make absolute promises about such matters.

With Eina’s help, Izay completed the commission procedures and left the Adventurers Guild with a pile of documents.

Walking through less crowded alleys, Izay reviewed the information recorded in the documents while making his way.

Choosing the alleys was to avoid bumping into people or being bumped into on the main streets.

“To go to the mid-layer, recovery potions are definitely necessary, both physical and mental recovery potions.”

“Fortunately, I got quite a few from Amide earlier, they should suffice. But…”

“Teammates… I wonder if they’ll agree…”

Walking through the alley, Izay suddenly looked up at the sky while muttering to himself.

Team-based actions are a tradition among adventurers, especially when facing increasingly deeper levels; no adventurer would choose solo action.

This wasn’t about individual capability, but rather the fact that going alone simply wouldn’t cut it.

Naturally, Izay wanted to form a team now, and he already had candidates in mind, but he couldn’t guarantee whether they’d agree to the team-up request.

“Meh… I’ll try my best. If it doesn’t work out, Simon and his group can accompany me.”

Due to his position, Simon and his friends from the Loki Familia didn’t participate in the expedition.

If they left, who would guard the door?

However, for Izay’s leveling needs, Loki might approve their leave for a day or two.

“Oh my, what do we have here?”

Suddenly, footsteps echoed from the depths of the alley, followed by an off-key voice.

Just like those low-class thugs who often mingle with people on the streets.

A few seconds later, a human appeared from the other end of the alley, carrying a great sword, hands in his pockets, habitually looking down on others through his nose, the typical street thug appearance.

“Hey kid, I overheard you’re looking for teammates, why not consider us?”

Using his appearance as a signal, five or six men with ill intentions emerged around them. It was unclear what mindset they had hiding nearby.

Izay even saw someone climb out from under a wooden box.

“Getting ambushed just by walking through an alley once? You guys are way too professional, huh?”

Looking at these people brushing dust off themselves with practiced ease, Izay chuckled and made a sarcastic remark.

Seeing Izay still laughing, the man who spoke first felt insulted.

Are we, as robbers, so disrespected?

At least show some fear! And praised for professionalism?

What the hell…

“Shut up, hand over all your money, or you’ll regret it!”

The man pulled his hand toward the knife hilt, threatening Izay.

“Not interested…”

“Huh?”

“I said, you guys, not interested!”

Izay was answering the man’s earlier threat.

While the man was still spouting threats, Izay had neatly organized the documents and tucked them under his arm.

Next, Izay moved with lightning speed.

Before anyone present could react, he crouched down, swept his leg, disrupting the man’s balance. Before the man could adjust, Izay’s rising elbow struck his chest.

With just two “thud” sounds, the man who was previously threatening him was already unconscious.

Only then did the man’s companions snap out of their stupor.

Perhaps emboldened by their numbers, instead of fleeing, they gritted their teeth and charged at Izay.

Without much effort, Izay dispatched all the bungling robbers and walked out of the alley, brushing his palms together.

However, halfway through, he stopped in his tracks at the entrance of the alley.

“This is truly… embarrassing in front of Miss Ryu.”

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