WHFIO 19

Chapter 19

While the guild members were out on their quests, the guild was quiet—except for Cassian, who was sprawled across the sofa.

With his eyes closed, he passed the time by tossing and catching a scroll he had taken from Elsese.

Two sets of footsteps approached.

“Well, look who’s got nothing better to do.”

Cassian didn’t even bother to open his eyes.
“Got a problem with that?”

“Oh no, not at all, sir. Our mighty master just returned from a faraway land after spreading our guild’s glorious name. Of course you deserve a break.”

Jaq grinned and plopped into the chair near him.

Then Purce spoke up, his tone serious.
“Cassian. Don’t you think you’ve worked hard enough?”

“Yeah, that’s right,” Jaq chimed in quickly. “You’re a hero, aren’t you? The one who defeated the Demon God. You might not be filthy rich, but I heard the Holy Kingdom still pays you a handsome pension, right?”

The question was something everyone who knew Cassian—once the Hero—had wondered.

Why was he, of all people, running a guild and working himself to the bone?

Cassian finally opened his eyes. He kept tossing the scroll and replied in a flat tone.
“I gave all that money away.”

“Huh? To who?”

“To someone who could pass it on to people who needed it.”

“Oh, don’t tell me… the Cardinal?” Jaq guessed easily.

Cassian didn’t confirm it. Instead, he murmured,
“Just spending what I got didn’t seem fun. And besides…”

He trailed off.

A face flashed through his mind—the one who had led him down the path of a hero when he’d never wanted to become one.

“…That glory isn’t mine.”

When I returned from the final battle, everything they gave me—honor, praise, fame—none of it should have been mine.

They all belonged to you.

You were the one who deserved to enjoy this peace.

Cassian lowered his gaze, heavy emotion clouding his golden eyes, and threw the scroll again.

As it floated through the air, he thought of its original owner—someone who resembled the true owner of this peace.

Then Jaq suddenly snatched the scroll midair.
“Wait, isn’t this Ace’s scroll? Why do you have it?”

“I took it. The newbie had the guts to try a high-risk quest right off the bat, so I swapped it for an easier one.”

“This jerk again, underestimating our verified recruit! Purce and I tested Ace ourselves!”

“Jaq, I tested her,” Purce corrected with an unusually serious expression.

Embarrassed, Jaq coughed and handed the scroll back to Cassian.
“Well, anyway, you shouldn’t underestimate Ace. She came back the other day after taking down ten Kirus in two hours.”

“Yeah? Then I’ll look forward to seeing if she lives up to my expectations.”

Cassian smirked and tossed the scroll again.

Just then, the door burst open and a guild member stumbled in.
“S-Something terrible’s happened!”

The peaceful air in the guild shattered, and everyone turned to him.

Cassian, still out of habit, caught the falling scroll again and tossed it up.

The guild member panted, unable to speak at first, then gasped out,
“T-There’s a beast… in the Forest of Beginning!”

At that, Cassian’s eyes trembled violently. The scroll slipped from his hand and fell to the floor.

“Some of our people got caught…”

The rest of the man’s words didn’t reach Cassian.

Instead, another voice echoed in his mind.

“The strong have a duty to protect the weak, and I intend to uphold that duty. If it’s something I can resolve, I’ll face it—no matter how dangerous.”

Those upright eyes that had once met his so firmly.

“…Damn it.”

Cassian gritted his teeth, shot up from his seat, and stormed out of the guild.

The remaining guild members exchanged uneasy glances until one of them finally spoke.
“So… what exactly do we do now?”

That broke the silence, and others began to chime in.

“I get your intent, but charging in like this would be suicide.”
“You got any kind of plan?”

As their curiosity about Elsese’s plan grew, a faint smile appeared on her lips.

At least she’d succeeded in getting their cooperation.

She scanned the six guild members and asked,
“What’s everyone’s position?”

Just like in a game, proper formation and positioning were key to survival.

Each member reported their role.

Once she had a rough sense of their strengths, Elsese spoke quickly.

“As you all know, we can’t defeat that thing with our current power. Our goal is just to hold it here until reinforcements arrive.”

She was sure the others who had escaped the forest were already reporting what happened. Help would come—eventually.

Of course, if they could defeat it before then, all the better. But realistically, the only one capable of inflicting real damage was Elsese.

And even she was losing control of her body as paralysis spread.

“That beast has no eyes or ears, but it senses its surroundings by spreading roots across the ground. So stay hidden and focus on restricting its movement.”

Shane frowned slightly. How could someone who’d joined just yesterday know so much about lesser beasts? But he soon pushed the thought aside and listened intently.

“You’ve hurt your arm, so don’t attack—just distract it and dodge. The spirit mage stays back and keeps the shield buff active.”

The injured member and the spirit mage nodded.

“The rest of you, hide behind trees and attack the roots when they get close.”

Her voice carried a sharp confidence that made the others hesitate in awe. Shane finally asked,
“What about you?”

“I’ll hit it every time it tries to drag me away.”

Shane glanced at her paralyzed arm with worry, but soon dispersed with the others to their positions.

Just as Elsese predicted, the beast ignored the fleeing members and went straight for her.

Each time it tried to drag her off, she struck back—hard.

But after two attempts, the beast changed tactics.

It stopped dragging her and instead slammed its roots wildly into the ground, attacking at random.

Boom!

Elsese’s eyes followed the roots pounding near her. Her arm still moved, but sluggishly; her senses dulled, her strength fading.

She clenched her jaw.
Someone should be here by now.

Just as she tried to move, a massive root burst through the trees above her.

The shield should absorb most of it.

Unable to dodge, she braced herself and closed her eyes.

But then—another layer of shielding wrapped around her.

Crash!

The root slammed down, the reinforced shield absorbed the blow, and then shattered.

Before Elsese could process what had happened, a voice called out behind her.
“Are you okay?”

It was the spirit mage from earlier.

“Oh—thank—”

Elsese started to thank her, but a root suddenly shot out from behind the woman and coiled tightly around her.

“Ahhh!”

It changed its target?

The roots retracting from Elsese’s sides confirmed her suspicion.

It can tell who I am now!

The beast had deliberately reached around to seize a weaker target from behind.

Elsese bit her lip and grabbed onto the root that was dragging the mage away.

“Rookie!”

The others shouted as they realized both women were caught.

Elsese yelled back,
“Stay where you are! Don’t move!”

If they lost formation now, they’d all be wiped out. That could not happen.

Hanging on with one arm, Elsese swung her other—barely functional—arm to attack.

The strike lacked power.

So she gathered every last drop of mana and struck again.

Thud!

The shock rippled through the beast.

“Graaagh!”

It howled and thrashed, shaking Elsese loose.

Her body was flung into the air.

Just one more hit. If I can land one more, I can finish it…

She gathered all remaining mana into her arm. It burned with pain as it reached its limit, but she held on.

As her falling body neared the beast’s core—

BOOM!

Her final blow landed.

A wave of energy exploded outward. The roots slackened, freeing the trapped mage.

Elsese, completely paralyzed now, plummeted downward.

“Did I… get it?”

But then the beast’s roots twitched again and lunged toward her.

Ah, right. The forbidden word…

Damn it.

She cursed herself for instinctively thinking of that powerful resurrection spell—
when she didn’t even have the strength to cast it.

I’m screwed.

Just as she tried to think of something—anything—else, an immense surge of mana filled the air.

And in her dimming vision, she saw the beast split cleanly in two and collapse.

Standing amidst the fading dust was a face she recognized.

Cassian?

He strode toward her, balancing effortlessly on the beast’s fallen roots, and caught her as she fell.

Above her, a long-suppressed sigh escaped his lips, followed by a low, rumbling voice.

“…I told you to go hunt crows, not monsters.”

Elsese stared up at him, dazed.

His golden-brown eyes, heavy with mixed emotions, gazed down at her.