A big event had occurred for a particular group, and it was something only they knew about. Alba was currently at one of her favorite establishments in Repton, which she had named "The Big Red."
It was a three-tiered large restaurant where guests would regularly be filled with drinking, joy, playing games, and more. Before, she would have already been treated as a VIP guest, but due to her visiting more and more, and always ordering quite a large amount of alcohol, she had become an even bigger VIP guest.
A private room had been rented out, with large sliding doors on either side and a long rectangular table in the room already filled with drinks and snacks ready for them all.
Currently, Alba was sitting cross-legged with a smile on her face. "How long has it been?" She said, lifting her drink up in the air. "How long has it been since all of us have been here together just like this!"
Alba wasn't alone at the table; it was filled with people. In fact, there were eight of them all together, each lifting up their drinks around the table with her.
"To the Crimson Crane, reunited at last!" Tilon shouted.
The rest cheered in response, and each one of them took a swig. The joyous occasion that was to be celebrated today was that all members of the Crimson Crane Clan, all eight of them, all of the Wanderers, had regathered once again.
"So, does this mean we have finally given up the search for the Dark Magus, since none of us was able to find any information about him?" Tilon asked.
Tilon was dressed in all black clothing, and on his back at all times was a large knight's shield. It was wide at the top and then narrowed down towards the bottom. If a person were to bend down and huddle themselves, they would be able to cover 90 percent of their body behind the shield.
"Not given up, but at least put on hold," Cronker replied. A blonde man with swept-back hair and blue eyes, but one that always had a mask covering his face. Even now as he ate snacks, he would grab something quickly and shove it underneath his mask before anyone could see what it was that he was doing. As for his weapon of choice, it was two daggers as he specialized in assassination techniques.
"Come on! We don't have to worry about that Dark Magus guy!" A short young-looking girl who perhaps looked to be a teenager at best shouted out. Her name was Froma. Her bright red cheeks stood out, along with the bow that was carried on her back, which was as big as her. She specialized in a rare type of martial arts surrounding fighting with bow techniques, which wasn't popularized in the world of Pagna, but many government officials used the bow as a weapon. Since the Crimson Crane were different compared to other clans and when fighting large-scale battles, they would fight together, many of their specialized techniques worked well together.
"We don't have to worry about him because we have Reno! Like why are we trying to get another Alchemist when we have Reno right here!" Lilly said, pulling him in close to her. She then started to sniff away as she noticed a strong smell coming off from his clothes and quickly pushed Reno away.
"But... I'm not an alchemist," Reno said. "At least, not one that deals in the same type of arts as the others."
Around the table, the rest of the Crimson Crane were currently present, but they were a bit quieter compared to the rest. There was a spear user named Lilly, who sat up right with a straight face and even as she took a drink, she would gently place it back on the table. She had long dark brown hair and had a strong presence as she ignored everything that was going on around her.
Next to Lilly, who had a similar presence to her, was her brother, Kizer, who was a longsword user. He equally sat up right, like Lilly, but wore a lot of armor on his body, unlike most Pagna warriors. On top of that, he had a large x-shaped scar on his chin, giving him somewhat a wild-like appearance with his messy hair.
Lastly, out of the eight, there was Elvlin, who was lying on the floor, fast asleep while holding onto his glaive. Compared to the rest of the Crimson Crane, he had a small body frame, but even with the small frame, he was able to wield something that was even bigger than he was.
Including Alba, all eight of these made up the Crimson Crane.
"Ah, Alba!" Reno mentioned. "I know you said that we would head off after receiving the items from Dame, but I was wondering tomorrow, is it okay if I head off to the Howling Ruins? There are some plants that I would like to get from there."
"Howling Ruins. Isn't that on the east border?" Alba replied. "I heard that the Light Faction and Demonic Faction recently had a large-scale fight there. It could be quite dangerous."
"It should be okay," Reno replied. "I will have some... help with me, and besides, what better time than after a large-scale fight. Doesn't that mean there will be fewer people there than usual? Even the Demonic Faction has pulled back from there."
Alba thought about it for a while. Reno was strong, in fact, all of those in the Crimson Crane were strong. Because every single one of them was a middle-stage Pagna warrior. Individually, they had the strength to take out small clans. Together they were even stronger, which was why they were such a well-known group and known as the strongest wanderer group.
"I see, then it should be fine. I guess we'll be staying here a couple more days anyway," Alba stated.
There was a knock at the door, and sliding it open, a woman bowed down. "Ma'am, another one of your guests has arrived."
Coming from the side and stepping into the room was the tall, handsome young man.
"Well, if it isn't the Hero of the Demonic Faction, it's nice to see you again, Dame. I guess you have time to talk now."
Dame nodded, but he didn't sit down with the others; instead, he stayed around three meters away from them, and when the door was shut behind them, he went on his knees and placed his head on the floor.
Suddenly, the happy mood had turned into silence as they saw what Dame was doing.
"I am here to make a request!" Dame stated. "The Demonic Faction, no, not the Demonic Faction. I am requesting the help of the Crimson Crane to help me get back my sister."n).1n
The few mumblings of sound had completely stopped once they had heard what he wanted to ask.
"Dame, we have been friends for a long time, and you must know that we are a neutral group. We can't get involved in matters between two factions," Alba answered.
Dame thought this would be the case, so raising his head, he was ready to give them an offer they can't refuse.
"If you help me with my request, then I will introduce you to the Dark Magus."
