n

n

n'I wonder what the General would do…' sunk in his thoughts, Layn wouldn't even notice the city walls appearing in the distance if not for Irea pulling on his arm and pointing her hand towards it.

n

"We finally reached the city!

" The happy expression of the girl was poisonous. Once Layn looked at her face, his mood could no longer be as bad as before.

"Do you have any plans for today?

" Suddenly stopping in her tracks only to turn around and ask, Irea stared intently right down Layn's eyes.

nEver since the incident with the archmage carrying and taking general care of the girl, their relationship turned slightly weird. Unsure how far should he read into the moment during which the girl helped him out, Layn didn't want to move with things too fast.

n

"No, not really. Some job, then lodging? Outside of that, I planned to stick with you for now.

" Sending a glance towards the outline of the city visible in the distance, Layn stood in his steps, gazing at the sight.

nOr rather, analyzing everything that he could learn from it. With no more words appearing between the two of them, the march continued. Soon, the landscape around the group also started to change.

nFrom the desolate sands of the desert that seemed to reach all the way to this point, the land suddenly turned into a lush and colourful paradise. Various herbs grew freely while embracing the light of the sun. Low-ranked beasts and herds cattle populated this vast piece of open land.

nAnd right amidst all those growing riches, a magnificent city stood.

nIts walls reached over twenty meters into the skies. Divided into sections by orderly set towers, the intimidating set of fortifications separated the bustling life of the town from the relative calmness of the outside.

n

"Okay, Sitra, Otter, take the bounties to the office. The rest of us goes as per usual.

" Turning his head to the back, Karter nodded at the archmage.

"Layn, it includes you as well.

"

nMoving ahead right away, the middle-aged man led the group inside the walls. Initially worried about the guards checking their identity, Layn found that surprisingly, no one seemed to care who was entering the place at all!

n

"Don't compare it to the warcamp. Out there, it's the frontline. This city here,

" Irea stepped out in the open, spreading her arms wide,

"is a shelter for everyone in the area.

"

n'This killer smile,' Layn accidentally placed his hand over his heart as if a sudden ache exploded in his chest before forcing a smile on his face as well. 'How can she be so cute?'

nIt went without saying that even these short holidays in the ancient world were insufficient to heal his emotional wounds. While he managed to move on in terms of his past relationship long ago, it didn't mean those wounds have healed.

n'As amusing as she is, every smile this lass cause is paid for with this pain…' Pushing his palm harder against his chest as if he was attempting to beat out his own heart into submission, Layn quickly managed to triumph over his emotions.

n

"I understand. But about that usual Karter mentioned, what is it?

" Layn asked. In the end, it was still quite surprising to see the leader ordered his people around, even already at their destination.

n'Didn't they finish all their official matters before?' Pondering over the problem, Layn followed the quick advance of his teammates. Soon, they arrived at the doorstep of an inconspicuous building. Right when Irea finally opened up her mouth and started to speak.

n

"Right, you might not know. This is the mercenary guild. We came here to register our arrival and exchange the tokens we obtained at the camp.

"

nExplaining the situation as the group went in, Irea quickly turned silent. Putting her hand at the handle of her short sword, her eyes flashed with focus.

nOn the other hand, Layn was pretty relaxed. Because from the very moment he stepped into the building, a familiar atmosphere surrounded him. Rather than getting anxious, the archmage actually took a deep breath of the smokey air inside, allowing it to spread throughout his body, helping his muscles to react.

n'Yeah, that's the stuff… No wonder that debate was so heated.' Chuckling in his mind, Layn focused his sight once again.

nContrary to his reaction to this place, all the ancients from his group visibly tensed up. Coming closer together, they forced Layn to the very middle of the formation as they advanced towards the counter.

n

"Perrien's Mercenary Guild at your service, how can I help you?

" After waiting in line for a few moments, they finally got to the registry. Sitting behind a table, an adorable looking young man asked with a shaky voice.

n'Is this his first day or something?' Casting a glance at the official, Layn quickly refocused his attention at Karter.

n

"Wild Wolves mercenary group, we came to register our arrival and exchange the battlefield tokens.

"

nPulling out a stack of paper coupons from one of his sacks, the middle-aged man passed them to the young man. Taking the papers, the official scanned them one by one, before hiding them below the counter and turning around to ring a bell behind him.

n

"Yes?

" In just a few moments, another attendant appeared behind the doors in the backside of the counter, casting a curious glance towards the source of the ringing.

n

"Senior, we received thirty battlefield tokens. Could I trouble you to bring the gold?

" Puzzled by the sight and ongoing exchange, Layn looked at Irea beside him before lightly poking her in her side.

n

"What is this all about?

" While Layn could already guess what was going on, it was still better to confirm his assumptions with those who actually knew the real answer to his question.

n

"Ah, that's simple. Ten of them will be taken as a fee since our group has ten people. The rest of them is exchanged for the gold according to the local ratio.

" Looking up at the archmage's face, Irea noticed the hints of confusion on it.

n

"Listen. If someone travels all across the continent to participate in the battlefield, his remuneration should be greater, right?

" Shaking her head with a slight annoyance behind her eyes, Irea added.

"It's not like we can do anything about it. That's just how the higher powers decided for the entire thing to work.

"

nShaking her shoulders, Irea looked back at the ongoing exchange. With the botched explanation already in place, Layn could figure out the details completely on his own. But before he could do so, a low yet loud voice interrupted his train of thought, before a huge man suddenly forced his way through the ancients before placing his hand on Layn's shoulder.

n

"I have never seen you here before. Who are you?

"

n