Olivia Anderson stepped into the guild master Throne’s office, her boots clicking softly against the stone floor. The room glowed warmly from flickering nterns. Olivia looked around and noticed the other six founding guild members seated around the rge circur table. Accompanying them was a female elf—the only unfamiliar face in the room for Olivia. “Is she a new recruit?” Olivia thought to herself. “But that doesn’t expin why Throne called everyone here.”

  “Ah, Olivia. You are here!” Throne’s deep voice broke the silence. He continued in a warm yet serious tone, “Thank you for coming on such short notice. Please, have a seat. And kindly close the door behind you.”

  Olivia felt the tension in the air. Surely, something significant had come up. She nodded, closed the door behind her, and sat down in an empty chair beside the roundtable, her worn-out leather armor creaking softly as she settled in.

  The guild master, Throne Belford, stood up. “I apologize for summoning you all here on such short notice,” he began in a calm, measured tone. “But what I’m about to reveal cannot wait.” He gestured toward the elf seated next to him. “This is Alicia Rosevelt,” Throne continued. “She is a silver-rank healer from Kingsford and has presented us with an intriguing proposal.”

  Olivia studied Alicia closely. She was an elf with white hair and striking blue eyes. It is very difficult to determine an elf's actual age. They can live for hundreds of years and still appear the same. However, something about her indicated to Olivia that she was retively young, at least in elven terms. Alicia was a true beauty, the kind that drives men wild. She wore leather armor like Olivia, but it was dirty and worn. Olivia could also detect a faint scent of blood on her clothes. She had clearly endured some brutal battles.

  “Miss Alicia, please present your proposal once more. All seven founding members of our guild are now present.” Throne gestured toward the others seated around the table. All eyes were on Alicia, who shifted uncomfortably under their collective gaze. She stood up, took a deep breath, and continued, “Hello, everyone. As the guild master mentioned, my name is Alicia Roosewell. I'm a silver-rank healer from Kingsford. I’ve been working as a freence contractor for quite a while now.” Olivia observed as she paused momentarily, her fists clenched tightly. Olivia recognized her body nguage; Alicia was preparing to discuss a difficult topic.

  “Two weeks ago, a few fellow free agents approached me about a dungeon raid.” Her voice gradually grew stronger. "They were also from Kingsford, as we worked in the same field; I was familiar with some of them from my past ventures. They had received direct intel from the scouts about a previously unknown dungeon deep within Bckwood Forest.”

  The scouts have a centralized organizational structure. They periodically release information about newly discovered dungeons and publish a catalog of them. This information is free and accessible to any adventurer. In return, the Kingdom of Everest compensates the scouts, effectively making them government employees. However, some scouts sell this information to interested parties for a good price before it is officially published in their ledger. Olivia realized this was how they had obtained information about this dungeon. Like all other adventurers, she has the test published version of the dungeon ledger, which contains no details about a dungeon in Bckwood Forest.

  “The dungeon is situated in a particurly remote part of the forest. Adventurers usually steer clear of that area because of the high number of mana beasts that inhabit it. According to the intel, it was a bronze-rank dungeon with three bosses. We gathered a team of fifteen members and ventured into Bckwood Forest. Most of our party were either high bronze or low silver rank, like me.” Alicia paused once more to catch her breath.

  “We found the dungeon and fought our way through. The first two boss fights were tough but manageable. We defeated both with minimal casualties. Then we faced it.” Alicia bit her lower lip in frustration. She paused as her voice cracked, her hands shaking. “It was the third and final boss of the dungeon. The fight was a nightmare. None of my companions made it out alive. I am the only survivor.”

  Olivia was not oblivious to the risks of being an adventurer. She had heard stories of entire guilds being wiped out in a boss fight. The most infamous incident occurred in the kingdom of Avalon, where a party of twenty Mythril-level adventurers failed to conquer a Ptinum-level dungeon—ultimately leading to the catastrophe that nearly destroyed the entire nation, known as the Dungeon Break. Even fifty years after the incident, much of the country of Avalon remains uninhabitable due to the horrors that escaped from the dungeon that day. However, this was the first time she had encountered a victim of such an incident up close.

  “I’m here to ask for your help,” Alicia continued, steadying her voice. “I promised my comrades that if I survive, I will see this through to the end. I will clear the dungeon—for the fallen. But I can’t do it alone. I’m offering all the mana crystals we can gather from the dungeon as a reward. I won’t take my share if you join me. I will also fight alongside you. I’m a healer and know the yout, traps, and the monsters' attack patterns. I will support you with everything I have.”

  A murmur began in the room. “It was a wild goose chase.” Olivia thought. “Bckwood Forest itself is infested with mana beasts. Furthermore, it's a dungeon that isn't listed in the ledger. That means the ranks are not official. Even though they were told it was a bronze-ranked dungeon, it could very well be an even higher-ranked one. The risks were very high to begin with.”

  “Thank you, Miss Alicia.” Throne stood and raised his hand to silence the murmurs. “On behalf of our guild, please accept my sincere condolences for your loss and the trauma you have endured. However, I hope you understand that this is not an ordinary request.” He paused briefly before continuing, “Please allow us some time to think this through. I must ask you to wait in the adjacent room while we discuss the matter among the guild members. I hope that is alright with you.”

  “Yes… yes, of course. Thank you, everyone, for considering my humble request.” Alicia stood up. “I will wait for your decision.” She bowed in gratitude and stepped out of the room. The heavy door of the meeting room closed behind her.

  *******************************************************************************

  “She’s hot!” Alex grinned as soon as Alicia stepped outside. He was a fierce, young warrior with a lean, muscur body, dirty brown hair, and sharp brown eyes. Alex leaned back in his chair; his pte armor made a soft clicking noise as he moved. His longsword rested within arm’s reach against the wall.

  “Uhhh. Now is not the time, Alex,” Olivia replied with visible frustration. She knew all too well about Alex’s interest towards attractive women. But this time, she couldn’t bear to see him drooling over that elf. Lost in her thoughts, Olivia’s dark eyes turned to the door where Alicia had just left, a frown pulling at her lips. For some reason, she couldn’t fully buy into Alicia’s story. Even Olivia herself was unsure why she felt that way.

  “What?! This is my first time seeing such a beautiful elf dy up close,” Alex protested, raising his hands in mock surrender. “You need to loosen up, Olivia.”

  “Loosen up?” Olivia’s voice rose. “Did you even listen to what she said? She is a living, breathing example of what happens if you take dungeon raiding casually.”

  “That's enough, you two.” Throne’s deep voice pierced through the tension between them. “We’re here to discuss her proposal. Stop bickering like kids.”

  “Let’s hear your thoughts first, Throne. Exclusive access to a bronze-level dungeon is a big deal for a guild like ours,” said Frederick, the priest, who sat right beside Throne. Of all the guild members, he was the oldest. But beneath his long, flowing white beard and slightly stooped posture due to age lies a veteran silver-rank healer. He wore a bck cassock adorned with the symbol of the local church.

  Throne did not say anything immediately. His mind raced with thoughts. Frederick was right. Creating a guild with a bunch of fellow adventurers is easy. But maintaining it is hard, especially for small guides like theirs. Being a Guild Master, Throne knows it very well.

  The Kingdom of Everest doesn’t impose taxes on the earnings of a guild and its members. However, in return, every guild must contribute to dungeon raiding at least once every three months. If a guild fails to meet this requirement, it will be dissolved, and its previous earnings will be confiscated. This posed a problem for small and emerging guilds, as stronger guilds started targeting lower-level dungeons to fulfill their quotas. Nowadays, guilds often have to share dungeon resources with other guilds. Securing exclusive access to a dungeon and its resources has become nearly impossible.

  Additionally, bronze-tier dungeons are deemed more valuable because, starting at the bronze rank, boss monsters could drop monster cores upon defeat. Monster cores are a rare resource that sell for a significant amount of money. They are used as crafting ingredients in bcksmithing, tailoring, alchemy, and various other professions. Consequently, they are always in high demand, far more than mana stones, a retively common resource found across all dungeon tiers.

  “You are correct, Frederick. It is an excellent opportunity for us. Usually, it's tough to get hold of a dungeon like this. With our current strength, we should be able to clear a bronze-level dungeon reliably. Miss Alicia is offering all the resources that we can find inside the dungeon. It would be foolish to pass on an offer like this. I am inclined to accept this offer.” Throne spoke after a few moments of silence.

  “I think you should reconsider, Throne,” Olivia objected.

  “Okay. Let's hear you out,” Throne said. “Why do you think we should not accept?”

  “First of all, the dungeon’s location is not public yet. That means its rank is still not official. If Miss Alicia’s party has failed to clear it with bronze and few silver-ranked adventurers, there is a high chance that it’s actually not a bronze-ranked dungeon. It belongs to an even higher tier.”

  “Good point, Olivia. I was thinking the same,” Lisa Underwood said from the other side of the table. She had been listening to the conversation silently up to this point. She was a silver-ranked mage with an affinity towards the fire element. Her striking red hair and red pupils were distinctive features of the Underwood household. Lisa bears an old scar across her temple, a remnant of a past battle, but it did nothing to diminish her beauty. “With that kind of team, they should have been able to clear the dungeon, unless someone messed up real bad.” After a brief pause, Lisa continued, “Although it is rare, calibration mistakes do happen, especially since it hasn’t yet been documented in the ledger.”

  “I still think we can handle it,” Raul said with a grin. He was the guild’s primary damage dealer, a silver-rank archer who had recently registered for a reevaluation of his rank. He was confident that he had already broken into the realm of gold rank adventurers. Getting the official rank upgrade was just a matter of time. Lately, his newfound confidence had also begun to reflect in his words. “Even if it’s a silver-rank dungeon, we should be able to clear it with our current strength.”

  “I have to agree with Raul,” Dale, the primary defender of the guild, rumbled. Dale was a middle-aged man wearing a full-pte armor. His broad shoulders and towering figure made him look like an immovable object on the battlefield. He was the only official gold rank adventurer of the guild. “Even if the boss is stronger than expected, my ‘demon obliterator three-thousand’ would defend everyone.” Dale pointed towards his huge shield that rested beside him.

  Olivia let out a sharp breath. “Stop giving your shield weird names! Also, did you guys think about why Alicia gave us the offer? I mean, we are not the strongest guild in town. Most guilds would accept an offer like that without a second thought. So, she could have gone to any other guild in town. Why us?”

  “And she is from Kingsford, right? So, why didn’t she return to her town after the dungeon incident? Instead, she came here?” Lisa added.

  “I don’t know the answer to Olivia’s question. Maybe Throne or others know; they would speak. However, Lisa, I asked Miss Alicia the same question you mentioned when we first met. Most of you were not here then; only Throne and I were here with Miss Alicia. She said she lost her way in the Darkwood Forest and followed the Temur River downstream, which brought her to our town," Frederick responded. “Which is a reasonable expnation.”

  “Her choosing our guild may be a sheer coincidence. Maybe Miss Alicia understood more renowned guilds would demand more compensation from her.” Alex spoke from the other side of the table.

  Seeing Olivia still not convinced, Throne stood up. “I believe this opportunity is too good to pass on. We’ve discussed the risks and the rewards. And I still believe that the rewards outweigh the risks. Let’s have a vote and let the majority decide.”

  A tense moment passed as the seven founding members of the guild sat in silence.

  “Those in favor of taking the raid, raise your hands.”

  Olivia felt disappointed as she watched Raul, Dale, Alex, Throne, and even Frederick raise their hands. Lisa and Olivia kept theirs down.

  “Well then, it's decided.” Throne spoke with a smile, looking at Olivia. “We are taking up the offer and going for a raid. We can decide on the dates and details ter.”

  “You dies really don’t like Alicia, huh?” Alex poked. “Do you guys feel threatened by her beauty?”

  “Shut up, Alex!” Lisa hissed at him.

  "Okay. Fine!” Olivia sighed, giving in. She knew the outcome wouldn't favor her. She tried to uplift herself. Maybe she was overthinking, and maybe it would truly benefit the guild.

  Throne turned towards Alex. “Bring Miss Alicia in, Alex. We will let her know our decision. We also need to learn about the details and the exact location of the dungeon from her.”