Chapter 20
Cassian looked down at Elsez in his arms and recalled the image of her just moments ago — fighting that beast.
The way she had thrown herself forward to protect the weak without hesitation, and the way she never backed down from a fight she was likely to lose.
Why did that sight overlap with a back he used to know so well?
‘…That’s impossible.’
It made no sense, but if she really were Luel…
If the dead Luel had somehow returned in another person’s form…
There’s no way she’d look at him and pretend not to know him.
Cassian closed his eyes briefly to erase that foolish thought. When he opened them again, he examined Elsez’s condition and sighed before speaking.
“Rookie, you…”
Elsez quietly avoided his gaze.
‘Here it comes. He’s gonna nag again.’
As expected, his words came out full of concern.
“Try not to throw yourself around so much.”
Elsez thought, judging by Cassian’s usual temperament, that his scolding would go on for a while. But it ended with that single sentence.
Even his sharp eyes had softened.
“Well, still—”
The next moment, Cassian suddenly leaned in, and their foreheads bumped together lightly.
“Good job.”
A blunt, awkward sort of praise.
Elsez blinked in surprise at the unexpected compliment, then smiled when she saw Cassian smirking faintly.
Cassian stared at her for a moment in silence, then cleared his throat awkwardly and looked away.
Elsez, oblivious to the strange tension in the air, went straight to what mattered most to her.
“So, that quest— you’re giving it back, right? …Sir?”
“What quest… Oh.”
Cassian realized a beat later what she was talking about and let out a disbelieving laugh.
After nearly dying, she was worried more about the quest than her own body.
“You didn’t even finish off that monster. What makes you think you deserve that quest?”
“Ah, that was because my body was paralyzed! I almost had it, really! Next time there won’t be—”
“Paralyzed?”
His eyes sharpened instantly. Scanning her again, he noticed faint fang marks near her ankle — from a spider. His expression darkened.
“Didn’t I tell you to be careful? You never listen.”
“You just said I did well! …Didn’t you?”
“That’s different!”
“Oh, come on! Ace, what’s wrong with ye? Ye hurt?”
Jack’s voice called out from behind them, a little late to the scene.
‘…Honestly. Arguing with an injured rookie like a kid.’
Cassian finally lowered his voice and turned his focus back to Elsez’s condition.
“Jack, got any recovery potions?”
“Ah? Oh, yeah. Here.”
Jack immediately pulled a potion from his inner pocket and handed it over.
Cassian sat down on the ground and helped Elsez drink it.
She grimaced at the awful taste.
‘Ugh, it’s been a while, but it still tastes like garbage.’
Maybe out of pure revulsion, she couldn’t gulp it down properly and some spilled from the corner of her mouth.
To stop it from dripping, Elsez shifted her lips slightly, her moist red lips twitching faintly.
Cassian, watching absentmindedly as he fed her the potion, suddenly cleared his throat and jerked his head away — the tips of his ears looked faintly red.
Because of that, the potion tilted off-course.
“Ugh!”
The sudden flood of liquid made Elsez cough violently.
“Cough, cough!”
She glared at him in irritation, and Cassian quickly wiped her mouth, flustered.
“S-sorry.”
Despite his large, rough hands, his touch was surprisingly gentle — as if handling delicate glass.
Still looking embarrassed, he glanced aside and asked,
“By the way, what happened? There aren’t supposed to be monsters here that cause paralysis.”
“I thought so too, but there was — a spider-type monster.”
Cassian’s eyes narrowed.
A beast appearing in a beginner’s hunting ground was already strange. But one that inflicted status effects? Even worse.
Only one possibility came to mind.
“Don’t tell me… a dimensional rift?”
“There wasn’t a rift. But I did see a suspicious black magic circle.”
“A black magic circle?”
“It was drawn in some unknown language. It disappeared quickly, but… I think that circle might be connected to the monsters showing up.”
Cassian frowned deeply.
“Do you remember what it looked like?”
Instead of answering, Elsez began moving her fingers.
The potion’s effect was quick, and sensation had already returned to her limbs.
She traced a pattern in the dirt from memory.
“Something like… this.”
“Jack, write that down and send it to the temple.”
“The temple? Why?”
“They’re investigating similar incidents happening elsewhere.”
After answering her question, Cassian gently set Elsez down and stood. He intended to check the area for traces of the magic circle himself.
“And take her back to the guild to rest.”
But before he even finished the sentence, Elsez pushed herself to her feet. Her body wobbled from not being fully recovered, and Cassian instinctively moved toward her — but Jack, closer by, caught her first.
“I still have something to do.”
“What could be more important than taking care of yourself?”
“The guild members — they’re all okay, right?”
Cassian turned to ask, but at that moment, Purse returned from checking the others.
“There are a few scratches, but nothing serious.”
Relieved, Elsez nodded and said,
“That monster — I fought it together with the guild members. We should all share the reward.”
Cassian let out a small laugh, shaking his head in disbelief.
But Elsez misunderstood his look and eyed him warily.
“You’re not thinking of taking the whole reward just because you landed the final hit, are you?”
“I don’t care about that. You all split it however you want.”
Cassian waved her off lazily and disappeared toward the forest.
Once her body was mostly recovered, Elsez straightened up, no longer leaning on Jack.
“I’ll go check on them.”
“Don’t overdo it, lass.”
She smiled at Jack, who looked at her like a worried father sending his daughter to school, then walked toward the gathered guild members.
They were being treated together nearby.
When they spotted Elsez approaching, their faces lit up. Shane was the first to run over — still feeling guilty for her getting bitten while protecting him.
“You okay now?”
“As you can see. No one’s seriously hurt, right?”
She shrugged and looked around. Just as Purse said, everyone seemed fine.
“Okay, now I’ve got something important to say.”
“What is it?”
“Since the hunt’s over, it’s time for… settlement!”
At that, the guild members’ eyes sparkled with barely contained excitement.
“I’ll sell the beast’s core and split the earnings with you.”
Their eyes widened in shock.
“Wait, seriously? But you did most of the work!”
The beast’s core was the rarest and most valuable material that could be harvested. Normally, it belonged to whoever contributed the most — in this case, clearly Elsez.
Yet she was offering to share it?
“You all fought bravely even knowing the risks. Thanks to that, we won.”
Her words made several of them scratch their cheeks or grin sheepishly.
They hadn’t all volunteered out of pure courage, but hearing her say that still made them feel proud — as if they’d truly grown stronger.
“I’ll keep just the stem. I’ll sell everything and send dividends to each guild. Make sure you collect it later.”
“Th-thank you. Really.”
After thanking her, the guild members began to disperse.
Soon, only Shane was left.
He shuffled over awkwardly, scratching his head.
“Um, thanks for today. And… sorry for underestimating you.”
Elsez considered teasing him a bit more for it but decided to forgive him since the outcome had been good.
“As long as you know.”
She patted his shoulder lightly.
“You worked hard too — carrying me around.”
Shane blinked, staring at her smiling face for a moment before coughing and hurrying off.
Watching him go, Elsez tilted her head.
‘What’s with everyone and coughing today?’
Anyway, everything had wrapped up nicely.
They’d defeated the beast, and the rewards were settled.
‘If they get a proper reward for their courage, next time something happens, they’ll have the confidence to step up again.’
It was a meaningful experience — both materially and emotionally — for all of them.
As Elsez basked in that satisfaction, a small, familiar voice suddenly piped up from inside her pocket.
“What were you thinking giving all that away! What about my cookies? My candy?!”
Elsez covered her ear against the chattering voice and muttered,
“Ugh, what am I gonna do with this greedy rabbit?”
“You’re broke, aren’t you?”
“I’ve got it all figured out.”
She hadn’t really given everything away.
“The beast’s roots and stems might be worth less individually, but unlike the core — which only drops one per beast — there are lots of them. Add it all up, and it’s still a decent sum.”
A perfect win-win situation: she encouraged her team, gained their trust, and made a profit herself.
Lurti, now quiet, blinked with sparkling eyes.
“So that means… lots of candy?”
“Even a hundred pieces.”
“But who’s going to buy all that?”
Elsez grinned confidently.
“I know just the person.”
