To Lord Ethan, personally.

The page of the adventure book contained such words.

As Ethan's fingers touched these words, flashes of scenes instantly flooded into his mind, scenes he once saw in Sincaro the Demon King's library, standing on a lone rock amidst the ocean, where the sound of crashing waves against the rocks below echoed.

Looking around, a whirlpool dominated his view.

But this time he was not alone; many unfamiliar figures appeared on the lone rock. He recognized one among them; the distinctive golden mask stood out in the crowd, and among them, a man in a mage's cloak holding a ruby magic wand. Though it was their first meeting, Ethan recognized him at first glance.

Merlin.

Unlike the fragments he had seen in King of Gold's memories, their style had completely adapted to this world; Ethan could easily deduce their chosen paths from their equipment and armed weapons.

In fact, the guild founders also followed the rules of this world.

King of Gold was an Alchemist, the Crimson Queen was an Argos Believer, and then there was Merlin, the Elemental Shaper…

This was their final stop in the adventure, and it could be considered a group photo before clearing the game.

Immediately Ethan's perspective shifted, the lone rock and waves he saw grew increasingly distant, and the sound of waves gradually faded. As his senses were completely withdrawn, everyone's expressions on the lone rock were frozen in a black-and-white photograph, while "he" was taking out this sealed photo from the frame, and a man's voice reached his ears.

"The others have gone to the guild headquarters; today is an important day."

"I know, Merlin."

Ethan recognized this to be Scarlet's voice; at this moment, he was in Scarlet's perspective, glimpsing a fragment of her memory as before, "I'm just a little tired… and besides, the guild doesn't need me to come forward now."

Merlin glanced towards the room's door and windows; the room used the typical adventurer's guild decor, almost identical to the adventurer's guild headquarters Ethan saw in the Imperial Capital. Trophies of hunted monsters and some certificates were hung on the walls.

Merlin's fingertips flickered with a few beams of light, and the breeze closed the door and windows; a simple sealing technique then completely sealed the doors and windows.

"I have investigated some news about the Goddess."

He once again broke the silence in the room.

This was a certain day in the third month after the "Great Adventure" ended, related information surfaced in Ethan's mind. During guild training, instructors would tell every new guild member this glorious history. It was the origin of the guild's creation and announced humanity's official exploration of this world full of infinite possibilities.

The founders of the guild completed their adventure and at the journey's end had the chance to meet the Goddess.

Every year the guild and its various branches would hold memorial events to celebrate the great deeds of the guild founders and to inspire new investigators to follow in their footsteps, further exploring more planes.

"You should have realized, the time flow between the two worlds is different. She only entered here less than a year earlier than us, but the actual time here might already be over a few hundred years."

Ethan's conjecture about the difference in time flow was confirmed here.

Merlin continued, "Maybe for those on the other side, only a night has passed now. If we go back, we might just catch the time for morning tea."

"How do we go back?"

Scarlet asked calmly.

When the great adventure was completed, they realized a serious problem—the company never told them how to leave this world, and after "clearing the game," they had no further mainline tasks.

It was only when this problem presented itself to everyone that they, as "companions," sat down for the first time in a meaningful manner, exchanging the information they knew.

The company promised each of them a substantial reward; as long as they completed the tasks assigned by the company and found the presence of the Goddess, the guild would erase those disgraceful deeds, allowing them to live without the identity of a criminal, freely walking out the door, basking in sunlight, without worrying about being suddenly apprehended by law enforcement.

Besides, they would receive a fortune that they couldn't spend over their lifetime.

New identities, a life of complete freedom, were conditions they couldn't refuse.

"Before coming here, I was a private detective."

"You said that last time."

Although the profession "detective" was not common, it was not remarkable in this "standout" team; after exchanging information, they found commonalities between each other.

Disgraceful records, and all had been caught by the company's handle; the company seemed to have valued certain capabilities in them—abilities that only lawbreakers could obtain and master, which they used throughout the adventure.

"But I hid some important things."

Merlin paused, "Because I don't trust them."

"To be honest, you really should get rid of this paranoia."

"Among us, there must be someone planted by the company to ensure we abide by the agreement with the company… I just don't know who that person is yet."