Mysterious Men in Black

The boy's deliberately lowered voice fell silent, and the atmosphere plunged into quiet once more.

Hilia cast an inquiring glance at Xia De, wanting to ask if he had any ideas, but she saw that his gaze was not on her.

With his head lowered and arms crossed, Xia De rested a finger against his lips, looking lost in thought.

His intuition told him that this incident was definitely connected to the legend, but he would have to find the connection himself.

Thus, he turned his gaze back to Lop. “So, you wanted to sneak out tonight to search for the legendary sword left behind by that adventurer, is that right?”

“Yes! The village turning out like this must be the work of some evil magical beasts! They've made it so the uncles and aunties don't dare go outside, the village fields are left barren, and worst of all, they've worn Grandpa out. He doesn't smile at all anymore. I've seen him sitting alone in a dark corner crying and praying so many times, hoping the village would go back to the way it used to be.”

As he spoke, the boy's face turned serious, a resolute light shining in his eyes.

“I will definitely find the legendary adventurer's Holy Sword, save the village, and bring the smile back to Grandpa's face!”

“Then why did you have to go out at night?”

At Xia De's question, Lop's expression turned resentful, though his anger felt more like a child throwing a tantrum at a relative—completely weak and powerless.

“It's all because Grandpa keeps saying there's no way a legendary sword exists! We even got into a fight about it. In the end, he strictly forbade me from wandering around, saying he was afraid I'd get into danger!”

Then, his emotions welled up. Lop felt a sting in his nose, and his voice grew quiet. “Even though he secretly searched for it himself...”

Seeing the boy's mood visibly plummet, an ordinary person might have offered some comfort. However, standing before him were a detached man and a cautious, veteran adventurer.

They simply stood before the boy with calm expressions. Hilia might have been touched by the moving bond between the grandfather and grandson, but she kept quiet, afraid of disrupting Xia De's train of thought. She could tell that Xia De seemed to have realized something.

Then, completely ignoring the boy's feelings, Xia De delivered a well-timed blow: “Then why don't you write a letter to tell your parents?”

“I would never tell those two!!!”

It was as if a raw nerve had been struck. The boy's emotions flared instantly. He raised his head stubbornly, tears welling in his eyes, and yelled at Xia De.

“When those two abandoned Grandpa and me to leave the village, they stopped being part of it! We don't want them meddling in our village's business!”

The child's young voice was filled with deep resentment toward his parents.

Xia De remained unmoved. He didn't offer any comforting words like “your parents might have had their reasons” or “they probably love you very much.” He didn't like meddling in other people's family matters.

This topic sounded very heavy, and perhaps Lop's parents really did have their reasons, but that had absolutely nothing to do with him. He only wanted to complete his current quest!

After all, you couldn't expect someone who had been parentless in both of his lives to help resolve a family dispute!

Xia De self-deprecatingly laughed at himself in his mind.

However, standing beside him, Hilia's delicate face, hidden beneath her large hood, took on a complex expression.

Parents who were rarely in her memories, a vast, empty room, and herself—always maintaining perfect poise, never showing a single emotion.

“One last question. Why didn't you tell us about this sooner?”

Xia De was puzzled. If it was a matter of finding something, an adult like him had a massive advantage over a child like Lop. Furthermore, he was an adventurer hired by Lop's grandfather to solve the problem.

Even if it was to help solve the trouble and make his grandfather smile again, the optimal move would have been to actively seek their help and have them take action.

This question made Lop huff through his nose, and he turned his head away with a cold snort.

“It's because when I told the other adventurers who took the commission before, they didn't believe me! They even complained that I was just a kid talking nonsense and messing up their train of thought, and told Grandpa to keep a tighter leash on me. After it happened a few times, Grandpa told me to stop talking about it, or he'd be very angry. Who knew if you guys would be the same as them! Whether you believed me or not, you definitely would have gone to Grandpa to confirm the clues and ended up exposing me. I figured it was better not to say anything from the start so I could avoid getting scolded!”

Only then did a look of realization dawn on Xia De's face. It turned out they were suffering from the collateral damage caused by the previous batches of adventurers. He had thought this brat was trying to play the hero, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders alone like in some anime.

Even as he thought this, Xia De didn't stop moving. His clenched fist came down hard on Lop's head, landing squarely on the bump from the previous punch by sheer coincidence.

“You little brat. I don't care what those other adventurers were like, but you'd better not take out your anger at them on me. I'm not a nice guy, and if you huff at me again, I'll really beat you up!”

Lop grimaced as he clutched his head, repeatedly rubbing the large bump that had grown there. He could even feel a smaller bump forming on top of the big one.

This made him realize that the handsome, friendly-looking older brother in front of him was indeed not a good person.

“Understood,” the boy muttered, hanging his head.

Seeing that the boy had recognized his mistake, Xia De nodded in satisfaction and snapped his fingers. Lop felt his body grow light as he floated into the air, with several pieces of golden, plump, and fragrant bread swirling around him.

“The clues you gave tonight are very useful. You don't need to look for the Holy Sword anymore; leave it to me! I know you didn't eat dinner, so here are a few pieces of my specially made bread. Go back, eat them, and get some sleep!”

With that, ignoring the boy's wild flailing in midair, he controlled his magic to float Lop back to his room, thoughtfully locking the door behind him so he wouldn't be able to leave again before dawn.

Having finished all of this, Xia De shrugged and turned his attention back to Hilia, who had remained silent the entire time.

He saw the girl staring down with slightly vacant eyes, seemingly lost in thought. Even her beautiful, pale golden hair seemed a bit dull, and a trace of bitterness had appeared on her face. It was as if she were shrouded in a gray haze.

“Hilia?!” Xia De called out softly.

“Ah! Yes, I'm here!” The girl jumped, looking as if she were about to leap up. She glanced left and right before looking at Xia De with a dazed expression.

Xia De shook his head and said, “It's nothing. You just don't look very well. Is something wrong?”

“Huh?!” Startled by the question, the girl hurriedly waved her hands in denial. As if trying to cover up her thoughts, she quickly shifted the topic to their quest. “I-I'm fine! What about your quest? Do we have a direction for our next move?”

Xia De narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze flickering. He wanted to say something, but in the end, he only offered Hilia a gentle smile. “We still need to find the village chief tomorrow to confirm a few things. Let's head back and rest for tonight. You don't look very well.”

Hilia fell silent for a moment before nodding gently. The two of them then returned to the house.

Recalling how the elven girl beside him had grown strange right when Lop mentioned his parents, Xia De sighed helplessly in his heart, feeling another headache coming on.

However, Xia De didn't voice his thoughts.

As the saying went, you couldn't expect someone who had been parentless in both of his lives to help resolve a family dispute.

...

Meanwhile, five figures clad in black clothes and cloaks moved through the forest under the cover of night. The aura radiating from them was unmistakably that of Tier Four experts, with their leader having already reached peak Tier Four!

“Boss, we're estimated to reach our destination tomorrow night!”

“Night? No, that's too late. Delays breed trouble. Speed up! We need to arrive during the day tomorrow!”

“Yes, sir!” the other figures in black replied respectfully, and their speed picked up even further.