"Listen to me, and listen very closely," Lux said as he stared at the ominous scene outside the window while gently patting Princess Anastasia's head. "No matter what happens, you mustn't attack the Creature of Ruin. Do you understand, Your Highness, Millie?"
Princess Anastasia, who had buried her head in Lux's waist, nodded her head in understanding.
Millie also replied with a brief nod to indicate that she understood. As a Disciple of one of the members of the Order of the Griffin, she had the opportunity to meet one of the two Saints of the Kingdom of Gweliven.
She had felt how strong a Saint was back then, but after seeing the Monster of Ruin, she felt like she would rather offend a Saint than offend a creature like that.
'Cai, Keane, where are you guys?' Lux asked using the guild chat function.
Now that the timer of his mission was less than half an hour, he assumed that Cai and Keane should have already entered the border of the Wolfpine Barony.
'It will take us at least an hour to reach the city,' Cai replied. 'But, I can see dark clouds in the distance. Also, my instincts are telling me that I should stay away no matter what.'
'I also sense something very powerful in the distance,' Keane replied. 'Are you sure we are going to be fine?'
Lux wanted to tell them that everything was going to be fine, but even he was feeling that he should run away as far as he could.
If not for the fact that his life depended on it, he would have already escaped the Wolfpine Barony alongside his friends and the Princess, who was shivering non-stop while holding onto him.
'The two of you are still cursed, so it is best that you come here as fast as you could for the curse to be lifted,' Lux explained. 'Also, remember what we talked about earlier. No matter what happens, do not attack the Monster. Keane, if Cai does anything stupid due to panic, just knock it unconscious, okay?'
'How barbaric!' Cai exclaimed. 'Do you really think I'm stupid? I already told you that I only bully the weak and fear the strong. Something like that creature who is stronger than my Gramps is way out of my league!'
'Okay, I'll knock this pig out if it does something stupid,' Keane replied.
'Hello? Little Swordy. I'm a Boar, not a Pig! Get your facts straight.'
'Okay, Pig.'
'Kuh! I made sure that you are well-fed, yet you still developed the gall to talk back to me!'
'Huh? I think you're reversing the situation. Who do you think always pays when we go to restaurants? You're the one that is well-fed, you leech.'
'I'm a Boar, okay?'
'Just shut up.'
The Half-Elf couldn't help but smile when he heard the bickering of his friends. It somehow took his mind off the approaching calamity in front of him, giving him an opportunity to regain his composure.
Eiko, who was perched on top of his head, was shivering as well, just like Princess Anastasia.
Clearly, she could tell how powerful the beast was because of her own Monster instincts.
"Eiko, release Clyde," Lux ordered.
Eiko nodded and spat out the Baron's second son, who was still tied up by a rope. Now that there was less than half an hour remaining, there was no way in hell that the Dwarf playboy would be able to run away.
—---------
< Emergency Quest! >
< Whisper of Ruin >
Mission Rating: SSS
< Quest Objective >
– Find the Baron's second son and stop him from leaving Wolfpine Barony within the next 72 hours.
– Do not attack the Creature of Ruin. The quest will automatically fail if you or any of your members harm the creature in any way possible.
—----
< Mission Rewards >
– The Curse of Ruin will be lifted.
– Your lives will be spared.
—---------
Mission Time: 00: 18: 21
—---------
Suddenly, a loud roar spread in the surroundings, causing the gust of wind that was blowing down on the city to intensify.
It was at that moment when Lux finally saw it.
Amidst the Dark Mists that grew thicker every passing minute, he saw several glowing orbs, which he believed were the eyes of the seven-headed dog monster, Teju Jagua.
"Millie, take care of the Princess," Lux said as he coaxed the Princess who was clinging to him as if her life depended on it. "Princess, stay with Millie. You will be safer with her. I still have things I need to do."
"Princess, Lux is right," Millie stated. "Please, come here."
Without waiting for Princess Anastasia's reply, the green-haired Dwarf pried the princess' hands away from Lux and pulled her back towards the bed.
Lux then gave Millie a brief nod before grabbing the tied up Dwarf and jumping out of the window.
The Half-Elf then equipped his Favonius Battle Regalia, which he had inherited from the founder of Leaf Village, Favonius.
Eiko remained on top of Lux's head, fighting off the fear she was feeling, as the Half-Elf flew in the direction where the glowing eyes were located.
"Hoh… What's this? A Half-Elf?"
A voice filled with amusement spread in the surroundings.
Perhaps, knowing that Lux was heading in its direction, the black mists that covered the surroundings thinned, allowing the Half-Elf to see the monster of Ruin whose seven heads were looking on his body as if he was something delicious.
"It has been a while since I've seen a Half-Elf."
"It has been hundreds of years since I ate one. I wonder if this one tastes the same as the one we ate in the past."
"Do you even have time to taste them? As far as I know, you just devour them whole."
"Hahaha! You got that part right. They are so small that I can't even taste them properly."
Four of the Seven Heads were talking among themselves, while the three heads looked at him with a sleepy gaze.
'It seems like this monster is still not fully awake,' Lux thought as he landed on the rampart of the City Wall.
He didn't know if the Monster of Ruin would break through the city's protective wall in order to get Clyde, but to ensure that no other people would get hurt, the Half-Elf decided to meet it halfway, as he held the dwarf in his hands firmly.
"I brought the person you are looking for," Lux said as he held his ground, showing Clyde's face to the Seven-headed Dog whose heads were talking among themselves.
"Oh?"
One of the Giant Dog's heads took a closer look to see the Dwarf in Lux's hands.
"Well, he matches the description that our new Master gave us. Is this the boy we are looking for?"
"There's no rush. The Master is almost here," one of the heads replied. "We will know once he gets here."
As if waiting for that cue, a giant black eagle descended from the sky. Mounted on its back were two people.
One was covered with a black robe, preventing Lux from seeing what they looked like, and the other was a female Dwarf, whom Lux believed to be in her early twenties.
The moment she saw the tied up Clyde, an expression of hate, tinted with excitement, appeared on her pretty face, making the Half-Elf shudder subconsciously. He instinctively felt something ominous about the Dwarf lady, whose gaze had locked on to the Dwarf in his hands.
"I told you I'd be back, didn't I, Clyde?" the lady dwarf said with a smile that was borderline crazy. However, her smile disappeared when she realized that the tied up dwarf wasn't conscious.
"What did you do to him?!" the lady dwarf shouted hatefully at Lux. "Did you kill him?!"
"Calm down, young miss," the black-robed man spoke. "He is not dead. Just under a sleeping spell."
The black-robed man snapped his finger, creating a crisp and clear sound that woke up Clyde, who had been sleeping all this time.
"Wher–Hiiii!" Clyde glanced at his surroundings, but immediately froze in place after seeing the Giant Seven-Headed Dog in front of him.
"Clyde, you're finally awake!" the lady Dwarf said. "Did you miss me? Because I've missed you a lot!"
"D-Dora… No!" shouted Clyde, who recognized the Dwarf lady who had been exiled from the Barony due to her claim of getting pregnant with his child.
She reappeared in front of him, however, unlike before, the Dwarf lady had a crazed smile on her face, making Clyde regret taking advantage of her when she was still innocent and ignorant with the ways of the world and love.
