The elderly man's family members stared intently at the hunter who had bought him.
Their eyes were filled with anxiety and anticipation, their palms sweating.
They were terrified that the other party might suddenly back out or lower the price.
As the veteran bounty group that had bought the elderly man, “Blade's Edge”...
Their leader, Ryan, had indeed been thoroughly startled by that fit of coughing.
That was over eight hundred thousand gold coins!
It was practically their entire group's operating capital.
If the guide died before they even set out,
he would lose everything.
“Priest! Quick, go check on him!”
Ryan hurriedly shouted to his team, his voice cracking slightly.
A young girl wearing a white priestess robe quickly stepped forward.
She bent down to carefully examine the elderly man's condition.
A gentle blue watery glow emanated from her fingers as she pressed them lightly against his chest.
A moment later, she looked up, her expression easing slightly.
“He's fine. He just choked a bit and is somewhat short of breath.”
“His physical condition... is about the same as we previously assessed.”
Hearing this, Ryan and his team members let out a collective sigh of relief.
Several team members couldn't help but grumble in low voices.
“Scared me to death...”
“We spent so long scraping this money together.”
“Old man, you have to hang in there.”
Ryan wiped the sweat from his brow, his racing heart finally settling down.
After this scare, he didn't plan to delay any longer.
He was the first to approach the dwarf, Blackbeard,
to perform a final route confirmation before their departure.
Blackbeard unfolded a hand-drawn map covered in various markings.
His stubby fingers traced over it with practiced ease.
“Still taking the 'West Ridge'?”
Ryan nodded, his tone firm.
“Yes. We'll stick close to the base of the wall. Safety first.”
“Our main goal this time is to explore the middle section of the ridge.”
“We'll head about forty kilometers deep to record any changes in the terrain.”
Blackbeard grunted in acknowledgment, pointing at several shaded areas.
“The mist is relatively thin in that area, and there are fewer demons.”
“However, there are a few depressions in the terrain where malice tends to gather.”
He tapped his fingernail against several red crosses marked on the map.
“Be absolutely sure to bypass these spots.”
“A team ignored the warning last year and ended up perishing in there.”
Ryan looked grave as he carefully committed this to memory.
Their group, “Blade's Edge,” was not trying to cross the Wall of Sighs.
Instead, they were a scouting group long employed by the Dwarven Royal City.
They specialized in venturing deep past the wall to gather geographical data,
recording changes in the terrain, the patterns of the mist's density,
and the specific distribution and activity ranges of the spectral demons.
The Dwarven Royal Court would purchase this intelligence at high prices.
This was how they made their living.
After confirming all the details, Ryan carefully put away the map.
Noticing that Blackbeard was holding his cup and seemed to hesitate,
he asked out of curiosity:
“Lord Blackbeard, is there anything else you need to instruct us on?”
Blackbeard shook his head and downed the ale in his cup.
“Nothing, it's just...”
He paused, sighing.
“Never mind. They've probably given up.”
“After all, searching for a city-state within the Wall of Sighs...”
“...is simply too absurd.”
He chuckled, his tone thick with self-deprecation.
“If living humans actually resided in there,”
“would we still need to issue so many exploration missions?”
“Would we still be relying on paving the way with hordes of the dying,”
“just to force a path through the Wall of Sighs?”
Ryan listened in bewilderment, having no idea who Blackbeard was referring to.
Blackbeard waved his hand, offering no further explanation.
But in his heart, he couldn't help but recall what had happened a couple of days ago.
Lin Gui had specifically come to find him, looking very serious.
He had requested information on almost every team that might enter the Wall of Sighs in the near future,
especially those that would pass near the “Blackwater Ruins.”
It seemed he wanted to select one to cooperate with for the entry.
Blackbeard actually highly agreed with this approach.
In his view, the strength of Lin Gui's trio was not top-tier.
A High Rank mage plus two Low-tier Transcendent girls.
It was far too risky for such a combination to force their way into the Wall of Sighs.
Partnering with an experienced bounty team would be much safer.
They had experience, a guide, and knew the routes.
Lin Gui and his companions would only need to tag along and pay some compensation.
It was the most reliable method.
Thus, Blackbeard had earnestly recommended several teams at the time.
He had even placed special emphasis on the Demon Hunter, Cass.
Cass's route happened to pass near the Blackwater Ruins.
Moreover, he was strong enough, being at the Low-tier Legendary rank.
His team was small, making them a smaller target and less likely to attract the attention of demons.
If they could follow Cass, their safety would be greatly enhanced.
Only...
Blackbeard recalled that when he made this suggestion,
the white-haired, long-eared elf next to Lin Gui...
had glared at him with immense displeasure, even showing clear resistance.
It was as if he had proposed a terrible idea.
Blackbeard hadn't thought much of it at the time, dismissing it as a young girl's tantrum.
But now, the selection meeting had ended.
He had scanned the venue carefully but saw no sign of Lin Gui and the other two.
“That's really strange...”
Blackbeard muttered, stroking his beard.
They had asked so many questions and made so many preparations.
Yet at the most critical moment, they didn't show up.
They couldn't have suddenly come to their senses and given up, could they?
Blackbeard sighed.
If they had come to their senses and given up, that would be for the best.
His fear was that Lin Gui would stubbornly lead the two girls in all by himself.
How would that be any different from seeking death?
There were three teams in total entering the Wall of Sighs this time.
Cass's Demon Hunter squad,
Ryan's “Blade's Edge,”
and a group of people Blackbeard had never seen before.
This group made Blackbeard feel extremely uneasy and suspicious.
Their leader was a woman with the strength of a High-tier Transcendent.
She called herself Jesse, her expression indifferent and her eyes excessively calm.
The two men accompanying her were even more bizarre.
One had a face so handsome it didn't seem human, with pale skin and a perpetual smirk on his lips.
The other had vacant, eerie eyes. A single glance from Blackbeard made his spine tingle inexplicably.
What unsettled Blackbeard the most was the squad of “knights” trailing behind them.
These individuals moved in stiff, synchronized motions, their iron boots clanking loudly against the ground as they walked.
They were fully clad in armor, their faces obscured by helmets, making their features impossible to see.
They exuded a cold, deathly aura that did not belong to the living.
Blackbeard had once sensed a similar aura deep beneath the Dwarven Royal City.
In that ancient forbidden zone known as the “Dragon Bone Graveyard”...
the undead creatures that had wandered for countless ages carried that exact same scent.
Yet right now, the sun was high and the light was blinding.
If they truly were those kinds of things, how could they stand in the sunlight?
Blackbeard instinctively tightened his grip on the hilt of the battleaxe at his waist, his muscles tensing.
He really had no idea what this strange bunch wanted to do inside the Wall of Sighs.
Could they also be looking for Avalon, just like that kid Lin Gui?
Blackbeard shook his head, tilting his head back to gulp down a large mouthful of ale.
The spicy liquid burned down his throat, but it couldn't wash away the lingering doubts in his heart.
No matter what they intended to do in there,
it ultimately had nothing to do with him.
In this City-State Era, there were far too many strange occurrences.
As a dwarven envoy stationed here, he couldn't possibly manage them all, nor did he care to.
What Blackbeard did not know,
was that what he witnessed today—something he deemed insignificant—
would quietly sow the seeds for the future destruction of the Dwarven Royal City.
Rate on N.U.
