Upon seeing the rat, the Dwarves immediately knew what it meant.

Donkexes pulled a Round Shield made from an Insect Shell from under the counter, tossing it to Kase as he said, "Here, your Shield."

Kase caught the Shield, tried it out, and nodded in satisfaction.

[Insect Shell Shield/Inferior]

[Defense: 2]

[Heavy: Cannot be used by creatures with less than 14 Power.]

[Acid Erosion Resistance: When taking acid Damage while wielding this Shield, the Shield itself will not be damaged or corroded.]

Colin glanced at the Insect Shell Shield.

’That’s a pretty decent piece of gear. Its Defense is on par with a normal Shield, and it even has acid resistance. Since Kase is strong, he should be able to handle it.’

He then said, "Let’s hurry back and pack our things. We don’t have time to waste."

Hearing this, the rat that had poked its head out from beside the counter nodded in satisfaction, then turned and scurried away.

The two of them hurried back to their respective lodgings to pack their gear.

In addition to miscellaneous items like his bedroll and backpack, Colin brought both of his Hand Half Swords. He planned to keep the worn one as a spare, just in case his weapon broke again and he was left without a handy replacement.

’A sword doesn’t weigh much anyway. It was no trouble to carry an extra one.’

After they finished packing, Colin and Kase, who was now carrying a Large Shield on his back, headed for Horn Castle.

When they arrived, dozens of Adventurers were already gathered in the castle courtyard.

These men looked far more professional than the ragtag bunch from the caravan escort. Nearly everyone was clad in Armor; there were none of the unlucky souls you’d typically see rushing into a fight wearing simple linen and carrying whatever makeshift weapon they could find.

’This is what you’d expect from vetted field personnel.’

"Anyone know what’s going on this time?"

"The Gray Squad is just taking us to teach a few troublemaking Druids a lesson. Shouldn’t be too dangerous, right?"

"This world has gone to hell lately. Damn monsters are popping up all over the place like rats. Did you hear? Dragon’s Fang Castle was just attacked by Jackal Wolfmen—the same ones we thought were wiped out years ago!"

"I heard a couple of Adventurers held the gate. If not for them, Dragon’s Fang Castle might’ve... well, you get what I mean."

"For real? Sounds like another tall tale spun by those Wandering Poets."

Most of the Adventurers were standing around, chatting idly. Their voices created a chaotic din, but Colin could still make out their words.

The heroes of their stories were, at that very moment, standing awkwardly at the edge of the crowd, unsure of what to do.

Just then, Edwin pushed open the door to his office.

He stood in the doorway, scanned the crowd, and upon spotting the two of them, called out and waved them over.

Colin quickly led Kase over from the edge of the crowd.

Inside the office, Edwin was standing by his desk, stretching his back.

Colin asked, "You called for us, Mr. Helder?"

"Yes. I want to go over the mission details with you. The main objective of this operation is to teach those Frostland Druids a lesson and eliminate the threat for good.

"You will first make a stop in Silverpine Village, then you will surround and annihilate the Frostland Druids’ lair. Cut off the head of the snake!"

Edwin continued, "As for payment, the other participating squads will get sixteen Gold Coins each, while you two will receive twenty Gold Coins in total."

"Twenty Gold Coins?" Colin asked, startled.

"As the heroes of Dragon’s Fang Castle, you should have some sense of your own worth. Frankly, I think that’s still a little low."

"Understood," Colin said with a nod.

’I don’t have command authority anyway, so I’ll just have to play it by ear when the time comes.’

’The amount was certainly tempting. He and Kase would get ten Gold Coins each. That would more than double his current funds.’

-----------------

[Quest: Hunt the Druids]

[Rating: 0]

[Reward: Uncalculated]

-----------------

"Because Mr. Kase is from the north, and given your recent combat record, the Gray Squad will take your advice into consideration to some extent. They’ll still be doing the actual fighting, of course, but just in case..."

Edwin pointed to a backpack in the corner. "That’s some extra equipment I prepared for you."

Colin walked over to take a look.

Five Torches were strapped to the outside of the backpack. He undid the buckles and looked inside to find a coil of Hemp Rope and ten parcels wrapped in oil paper. Unwrapping one, he saw it contained things like jerky, nuts, and dried fruit.

Colin recognized them as the rations from the adventurer’s supply shop.

These rations could supposedly last for months without spoiling. Furthermore, the food was infused with Magic Spice, making it highly resistant to Curses and poisons. A single portion sold for five Silver Coins.

Although these items weren’t priceless treasures, they would make the most tedious part of any adventure—the travel—much more convenient.

"Thanks. This will be a huge help," Colin said, casually slinging the backpack onto Kase’s back.

"Hey, I’m not a pack animal," Kase grumbled.

"You’re the only one with any room on your back, Kase."

As the two bickered, Edwin approached with two glass vials. "These are quite expensive," he said. "Keep them safe."

Colin turned to look.

The vials in Edwin’s hands contained a bright red liquid. Colin could see golden motes appearing at the bottom, slowly drifting up to the surface.

[Healing Potion/Ordinary Magic Potion]

[Effect: Restores 4-10 Life Value upon use.]

’A Healing Potion?’

Colin had heard many stories about such Potions in the taverns.

For a Low-tier Adventurer, a Potion like this was practically a second life.

Even if a hand or foot were severed, you could reattach it simply by holding the pieces together and drinking the Potion. It could even completely heal piercing wounds that were impossible to treat with conventional medieval medicine.

This stuff cost around fifty gold coins at an herbalist’s shop.

’The City Watchers provide this kind of thing to their field personnel?’

Taking the Potion, Colin asked, "These Potions must be expensive, right?"

"Don’t worry about it. My stipend is enough to cover them for now," Edwin said with a smile.

"Uh, well..."

The Potion suddenly felt like it was burning a hole in Colin’s hand.

He wasn’t used to being so indebted to someone all at once.

"I’m a Paladin from a Sect," Edwin explained. "Most Paladins start out as apprentices, and when they mature, they take on apprentices of their own. The bond between them is like that of brothers, or even a father and son."

A nostalgic look appeared in Edwin’s eyes as he continued, "So don’t be stingy about using them when the time comes. Call it an old habit. Even though you aren’t my apprentices."

Colin and Kase nodded in unison, each carefully stowing away their Potion.

"Also, remember this: before you drink a Healing Potion, there can’t be any large foreign objects in the wound. If it’s a metal fragment smaller than your finger, the regenerating flesh can push it right out.

"But if it’s an Arrow or a piece of a blade stuck in you, that’s a different story. The new flesh will grow right over it..."

Edwin grimaced. "Trust me, you do not want to go through the procedure to have it removed after that."

"Could you hold the Potion in your mouth and only swallow it after being injured?" Colin asked.

Edwin nodded, affirming the idea.

He said, "It’s a good idea, but during intense activity, you need to breathe through your mouth. Even High-tier Adventurers struggle with that. Holding a mouthful of Potion might do more harm than good."

Colin nodded, committing the warnings to memory.

Just then, a commotion began to stir outside. It seemed the Adventurers were preparing to depart.

"We’ll be going then, Mr. Helder."