Morning arrived before I knew it. Liese, Rudy, and I slept side-by-side on the floor of the watchtower’s rest area. They were still breathing quietly in their sleep, so I stood up carefully to avoid waking them.
I moved to the watchroom. That was where a visible light point indicated the gatekeeper was present.
“Oh, finally awake? You had a tough day yesterday.”
“Yeah, it was challenging day. Weirdly, I don’t feel as tired as I should.”
“How modest of you—surviving a battle with Ocypete is nothing to brush off. You’re a very promising adventurer.”
It was true that I didn’t feel fatigued. Perhaps I was still riding yesterday’s adrenaline rush. I continued chatting with the watchroom gatekeeper. Eventually, I noticed two light points in the rest area move. Rudy and Liese were awake.
“Good morning,” they said, and the gatekeeper and I responded in kind.
We exchanged morning greetings as Rudy and Liese entered the watchroom. I asked Rudy about the conversations he had with the guild staff after Liese and I fell asleep. He reported, and they accepted, the three deaths of our party. He also reported that we not only defeated the harpies, but also the higher-ranked harpy cantados, and an even higher-ranked beast, Ocypete. All of these reports were accepted, and the quest was deemed completed.
However, the original plan was to explore and destroy the harpies’ nest. Due to the circumstances surrounding Ocypete’s appearance and the investigation of the corpses, a new quest would be issued. The guild outpost would prepare the quest completion certificate by this afternoon, allowing us to return to the Fortress City of Balga.
We could now enter the village. We completed our entry procedures and confirmed our guild cards. While waiting for the quest completion certificate to be prepared, we headed to one of the few eateries in the village for a meal. After eating, we went to the guild outpost to receive the quest completion certificate. Now, all that remained was to return to Balga.
We left two carriages at the guild outpost, but we would only be riding back in one. The carriage Kinjar and the others had used would be transported to the Fortress City of Balga by the guild staff. Just like when we arrived, Rudy and Liese sat in the driver’s seat while I stayed in the cargo area, keeping watch on the rear during the journey. However, our feelings were clearly different from when we set out. We had departed as a party of six, but we were returning as three. We had witnessed the deaths of our temporary companions. It was a stark reminder of the adventurer’s reality—that it was a profession constantly enshrouded by death.
Yet, there was nothing else I’d rather do. Fighting with VMB’s power was the only thing I could do here. I couldn’t survive in any other way of life. I did not regret choosing this path, and I didn’t lack confidence in my ability to live. I was just a bit shaken by the mixed quest. It made me realize living in this other world was starkly different from how I lived in my original world.