Chapter 81 Heading Towards Silent Highland 6000 Words (1/2)
Before the sun rose on the second day, Rhode arrived at the Deep Stone City's entrance with his group. Sereck, who was equipped with his usual leather armor and magic sword, was even earlier than him. At this moment, Sereck indeed resembled a mercenary. Upon seeing Rhode's arrival, Sereck stepped forward and waved at them.
”You're just on time.”
Sereck nodded in satisfaction. Then, he swept his gaze over Lize, Marlene and Old Walker. His eyes stopped upon resting on Anne, who made him surprised for a moment. Though he quickly recovered and greeted everyone with a smile.
”Looks like you're ready.”
”Yeah.”
Rhode answered calmly.
While the group might seem calm and collected, when Rhode dropped the bomb on them last night, everyone expressed their shock differently.
Lize felt worried for the safety of the group, naturally.
Marlene was full of spirit as she didn't know where Silent Plateau was.
Old Walker complained that Rhode was seeking death.
And Anne had no opinions on the matter as she had only been freeloading so far. Thus, her reaction was as though they were about to go on a field trip.
”What about the people I requested for?”
”They're here.”
Sereck waved his arm and four young girls came from behind him. The oldest among them was about twenty-five years old, and the youngest was approximately around Lize's age.
Contrary to the veteran mercenaries, these four Clerics explicitly revealed their fear on their faces. It was not surprising as not many Clerics would be willing to follow a mercenary group out into the wilderness. Lize was a special exception indeed.
”All of them can cast healing spells and Barrier. Well, lad, I must remind you that they belong to the Mercenary Association. Although my old friend forced himself to agree to your request, it doesn't mean that you can send them to their deaths. I will make it clear right now — if anything happens to these children, I will leave with them immediately. As for the journey afterward, you can only rely on yourself.”
”Not a problem.”
Hearing Sereck's reminder, Rhode didn't say anything else and thanked him. Then he made his way towards the four Clerics who looked at him with skepticism and uneasiness. Frankly, they didn't want to go, but as a member of the Mercenary Association, they must obey their orders.
In some ways, Clerics were more fragile than mages.
”I think you guys should be aware where we are heading to.” Rhode ignored their gazes and spoke calmly, ”You should know that it's incredibly dangerous there and you might die. However, as long as you follow my command, you will be safe.”
Rhode spread out his hands.
”Please remember to follow my command. If I tell you to do something, just do it and believe in the results. If you do as I say, you will not encounter any danger. I understand that right now, it's my word against yours, but the facts will soon prove my credibility. As such, I don't want anyone to disobey my command no matter what situation arises. I hope that none of you will do something that would make me unhappy.”
Rhode paused for a moment and swept his gaze over the four Clerics who had various expressions.
”I will leave you to Lize. If you have any questions, you can ask her. I know that some of you might be superior to her in strength, but with regards to teamwork and adventuring, neither one of you can hold a candle to her. If you don't want to suffer, then you'd better listen to her instructions.”
Rhode said no more and he signaled everyone to begin moving. Meanwhile, Sereck made his way towards Rhode with a bitter smile.
”Honestly... aren't you a little too harsh on these ladies?”
”I'm not interested in currying their favor.”
Rhode shrugged and shook his head.
”We're here to carry out the mission. This is neither a field trip nor a blind date, so I don't have time to care whether they like me or not — I only need them to follow my command, that's all. In any case, I will have nothing to do with them once we complete this mission.”
”Nothing is for certain.” Sereck smiled.”The way you talk is somewhat like an army officer.”
”Is that so?”
Hearing that comparison, Rhode frowned.
”That's right, that kind of determination and decisiveness when facing a mission... Well, in my opinion, an ordinary mercenary won't have such a skill.”
Rhode didn't reply as he turned around and walked to the carriage.
Silent Plateau wasn't a place near Deep Stone City; furthermore, there were people in the group who weren't accustomed to adventuring. Hence, Sereck arranged a caravan to be used for transportation. The caravan had six wheels and required eight horses to pull them forward. Since the Mercenary Association wasn't as strict as the army, caravans like this were often used as transportation for members of the Association.
Although there were strong offshore winds in Silent Plateau, the Mercenary Association forbid them from using a floating ship to travel there. The reason was simple. Firstly, because of the recent attacks on merchants, floating ships were wide open targets. Secondly, that place had no port and Rhode and his entourage had no experience in jumping from high altitudes. This world had no parachute, and even if they landed safely, they might be eaten by an undead instead.
Dying before accomplishing anything wasn't something worth boasting.
Thus, while a caravan might be slower, but it was far safer than the floating ship.
Unfortunately, things do not always go as planned.
The road to Silent Plateau wasn't fun — it was riddled with bumps and weeds as almost no one would dare to travel to this haunted place. Even Lize and Old Walker who were seasoned mercenaries could not take it, not to mention Marlene and the other four Clerics. They no longer cared about their image as they crawled out of the caravan and puked. Though oddly enough, Anne had a calm expression as she slept alone in the corner of the caravan.
According to their original plan, after reaching Silent Plateau, all of them would get off and move out immediately. Alas, everyone was currently blue in their faces, and their legs felt like jelly. They hadn't even encountered their first enemy... but were already on their fours. Rhode and Sereck had no choice but to rest for half a day before setting off.
”I hope that those guys can hold on until we arrive.”
Rhode whispered to himself as he stared at the ominous clouds above the dark, eerie forest.
Night had already fallen, but the forest was abnormally still — not even a single animal sound could be heard from within.
Rhode knew what was ahead — it was nothing else but the aura of death. He really hoped that those people could hold on until they arrived.
But Rhode did not put much faith in their ability to survive as he had experienced plenty of similar quests back in the game. Most of the time, NPCs would succumb to death before their reinforcement arrive, which was truly a depressing matter considering how much effort Rhode had to put in to fight his way to the rescue location.
”No need to worry.”
Sereck was more optimistic than Rhode.
”I know the leader of Victorious Wine. He is a vigilant young man; he won't die that easily. Even if his chance of survival is close to zero, we still have to try since we are all part of the Mercenary Association.”
Responsibility.
Rhode didn't reply Sereck. The Mercenary Association appeared to be a strong organization on the surface, and they were highly-regarded among mercenary groups. However, it didn't mean that they had the power to forcefully disband a mercenary group to enhance their status. Power and responsibility always came hand-in-hand. The mercenaries would listen to the Mercenary Association's orders, and in turn, the Mercenary Association would aid the mercenaries whenever needed.
Requesting for reinforcement was one such perk members of the Mercenary Association had. Whether they were alive or dead, once the Mercenary Association receives their request, they will send people to their rescue.
This display of reliability proved to the far stronger than any contract; in fact, the reason why most mercenary groups dared to explore was also because of this.
Trust was priceless.
”I... I can't go on anymore, Lize.”
Marlene sagged against the tree. Her legs wobbled like jelly, and her head was spinning uncontrollably. A nauseous sensation took over her body; it felt even worse than the magic plant she had accidentally eaten. She tilted her head upwards to suppress the vomit rushing up to her throat while Lize quickly cast a spell to alleviate her condition.
”Bear with it Marlene. Take a deep breath and rest for a while.”
”Take a deep...urghh...!!!”