The Demon King's First General
Chapter 85: Expedition

Chapter 85: Expedition

Augustus ran outside of the palace, and so the rest followed. As soon as he looked up, he noticed the red silhouette above the clouds.

’What are you doing here, Salamander?’ He thought.

The next second, he propelled himself up to meet the dragon king.

"Greetings, Augustus," Salamander uttered.

Then he flapped his wings and opened his mouth once more.

"Cyanide has not yet returned until this very moment," he added, which caused the emperor’s eyes to widen in shock.

"It can’t be; he went back as soon as he dropped us here yesterday morning," Augustus replied.

"I’m very aware of that; after all, I was the one who gave him the order to send you back," the dragon king answered.

"And even now, I can’t locate his presence around here," he added while staring into the man’s eyes.

"Which means he disappeared along the way back to the Lair of Mirages; maybe he went somewhere else to hunt for food," the emperor concluded.

The dragon shook his head in disagreement with Augustus’ statement.

"No, that’s impossible. Even though Cyanide is a very curious one, he just hunts within our home," he stated.

Upon hearing him, Augustus caressed his beard and contemplated for a moment.

"Then are you implying that humans have something to do with him being missing?" He asked.

"Yes, I am, but I also hope that these thoughts of mine are not the entire truth," the red dragon answered.

The look in his eyes had a sharpness that would make anyone shiver from just his stares. Meanwhile, Augustus ignored the threat that lay behind his words.

. . . . .

Kizeler stood up and glanced at the direction in which the woman went.

’I’m sure of it; those viridescent eyes and sweet scent of her belong to an elf,’ he thought.

Then he jumped upward, amazed by the treatment he received; even his fatigue vanished in that instance. Afterward, he tried to follow the woman to express his gratitude, but she disappeared right away from the area.

"Where did she go?" He uttered while surveying both sides of the streets.

But upon failing to locate her, he walked back towards his demon companion. It took him several minutes to find him, standing near the town’s plaza while leaning on a building wall. His eyes were staring at the group of people pushing each other to have a better look at a large board.

"What’s that commotion over there?" He asked as soon as he got closer to the demon.

"Who knows?" He whispered.

Due to curiosity, Kizeler walked near it to see what it was all about. There were several knights from the Frostbloom Kingdom, and he gulped upon seeing the man standing right before them.

’A Diamond-class,’ he thought after seeing the pendant hanging from the man’s neck.

"Listen everyone, I would like to repeat what I said earlier. This raid is open for all Ruby-classes only, but there will be people who can join despite their class. Let me explain first," the man said while looking around, making sure that the people were listening to him.

"That’s unfair for us Emerald-classes; we’re just one step away from that rank; let us register!" Yelled a man, causing the chattering to grow louder.

"Yes, we know our limits, and aside from that, we want to explore this so-called dungeon you’re talking about," another man stated, and the rest of the crowd followed.

The Diamond-class mercenary shook his head and put his right palm on his eyes, covering them. Afterward, he made a gap between his fingers and peeked through it.

"Quiet down," he said; his words were enough to eliminate the noise ringing in his ears.

"Finally, a moment of silence," he added before putting his hand down.

Then he knocked on the board to gain the people’s attention.

"These are the objectives of this mission," he said.

Then the people glanced at the list of sentences written on the large white piece of sheet.

"There are three tasks that need to be finished to guarantee the success of this mission," the man said.

Afterward, he glanced at the board and began to speak again.

"First and foremost is to draw a map for this dungeon’s topography. Those who have any image recording Legacy are very welcome to join this expedition," he stated.

"That’s a walk in the park for me," a man shouted while raising his arm.

However, the Diamond-class mercenary ignored him and proceeded to explain the next objective.

"The next one is to record and gather data from the monsters living inside that place. Most of them—no, all of them—are unrecognisable beings for me and my party," he said.

"Are they strong?" Someone asked.

"I can’t really tell, but based on what we experienced before, they are a lot stronger than the monsters from the Plain of Fantasies, maybe on par with those that are living in the Mountain Range of Phantasms," the man answered.

Then he looked at the board and continued speaking.

"And the last thing to call it a success is to return to the surface alive," he said with a straight face.

The crowd gulped as they heard the last task; even Kizeler couldn’t help but knit his brows. They thought that the sentence on the board was just some type of misunderstanding, but it wasn’t. The fact that a normal thing to do after completing a mission was listed as an objective made them think twice.

Upon seeing the worried reaction of everyone present in the area, the man pointed his hand in the next set of sentences below the tasks he mentioned earlier.

"Going back, there will be two different teams, and the first team will be the attacker and defender at the same time. Their main focus is to clear a path for the next team. They will consist of warriors, along with mages and archers, plus some healers, if we manage to find one. While the warriors’ priority is to safeguard the damage dealers from any mishaps aimed at them," he paused for a second before continuing.

"Protect them at all costs. They die, and we’ll be seeing each other in the afterlife," he added.

"How about the other one?" A woman with a quiver on her back asked.

"I’m not done yet, so listen well," the man replied. Then he began to enumerate the structure of the next team.

"Those who have experience mining ores and butchering monsters’ corpses will be a part of the second group," he said, smiling, hoping to lift the pressure from the people’s eyes.

"They will be entirely focused on gathering monster’s data, drawing a map for the place, and bringing and distributing rations of food," he added.

But as he finished talking, the crowd began to speak one after the other about how they could collect without worrying for their own lives.

"Of course, you will be responsible for your own safety, though a higher percentage of your share will compensate for the danger," he said, answering the people’s query.

Kizeler, who was listening so well, raised his hand and spoke. The other mercenaries stared at his bloodied clothing, but he gave them not a single ounce of attention.

"Where is this dungeon located? I’m sorry, I just arrived a few minutes earlier," He asked while looking straight at the man’s carnation-colored eyes.

"In a small village, near the borders of the Bluelion Kingdom," the man replied, staring back at Kizeler

"Nice hair tattoo," he commented before letting out a gleaming smile.

Kizeler raised his hand and scratched the side of his head. He felt flattered upon hearing the man’s comment. The thought of having a Diamond-class approve one of his styles gave him quite a sense of satisfaction.

. . . . .

Despite being interested in what he heard, Zeno just stared at the scene, which was happening a few distances away from him.

"Fifty gold coins is the minimum payment each of the participants will receive. It will vary based on your contribution during the expedition." The same voice explaining things reverberated in the area.

The people began to weigh the danger against the payment they could receive; fifty gold coins were not a small sum, but it was nothing compared to their lives.

The next second, another question came from the crowd’s side.

"You’ve said earlier that only twenty people can join this mission, so how do you intend to choose them?" A woman asked.

"I won’t do the choosing; those who want to join need to undergo this certain test," the mercenary uttered, and he pushed the board to reveal an object that had been obstructed by it earlier.

"I know this is not that accurate, but I don’t have the luxury of time to inspect every applicant," the man added.

The people stared at the strange item; it had the appearance of a punching bag with a transparent sphere placed above it.

"Should I do a demonstration?" The man said, smiling.

Then he flicked his hand at the item’s body, and the sphere began to emit a bright light.

"This thing here reacts to the force or power that lies in the attack; it will shine brighter the stronger the attack it receives," he added.

Then he looked into the people’s eyes and asked, "So, shall we start?"

The next second, the knights from the Frostbloom Kingdom began to jot down the names of those who were interested in joining.

Kizeler tried to get himself listed on the list but failed as soon as he showed his pendant with a green crystal embedded on its surface.

"Can I apply even as a porter?" He asked, but the knight shook his head and proceeded to call the next person in line.

Kizeler stayed right there for the meantime before turning around to leave, but as he made a step forward, he heard a familiar voice coming from a different line.

"I would like to be a part of this expedition, Wren Stasis, Amethyst-class," the voice said.

. . . . .