After the duel, Roma's party agreed to hire Yor as their mercenary for the day—and let him help out with whatever came next.
Now, they sat gathered around a table in the tavern, the fire crackling softly in the background, mugs of cider untouched.
It was part planning meeting, part interview.
Roma, however, still hadn't cooled down.
He slouched in his seat, elbow on the table, chin resting heavily on his palm as he looked away from Yor.
"First of all," he muttered, "just because I agreed… doesn't mean I like it."
Yor, seated across from him, said nothing.
"So," Roma continued, shifting forward with a glare, "how difficult can you go? There are four quest levels: Easy, Medium, Hard, and Nightmare." He tapped a finger against the table with each word.
"If you can't handle Nightmare," he said, voice rising slightly, "then you're basically useless. A scammer."
Lifa laughed nervously, waving her hands between them like she was trying to calm wild animals.
"C-come on, Brother. Let's not turn this into a fight…"
"Right," Rina chimed in quickly, glancing around the tavern. "We're still in public, y'know. If things get too loud, the owner might ban us again."
Roma turned sharply to them. "You're the ones who hired him! You two brought in some random guy, and then he humiliated me in front of everyone!"
"Brother—" Lifa said softly, but the tension broke as Yor finally spoke.
"I can do Nightmare."
The words hit like a rock tossed into still water. All three of them froze.
"N-Nightmare?!" they echoed in unison, blinking in disbelief.
People in the tavern turned from their drinks and glanced toward their tables, murmuring in disbelief.
"Isn't that the guy who won the duel earlier?" one player muttered to his friend, nodding discreetly at Yor.
A pair of adventurers approached Yor's table, their boots clunking softly against the wooden floor.
"Hey," one of them said, "after you're done with them, can you help us next? We need to farm some boss monsters to raise our reputation with the beastmen."
"We'll pay for your whole day," the other added quickly, flashing a hopeful grin.
Yor gave a small nod, still a bit stiff from the attention. "S-sure. You can message me on Webchan."
Before the two could respond, Roma stood up and slammed a palm on the table. "Get the hell outta here! We're in the middle of interviewing him!"
"Hmph. Let's go," one of the guys said with a shrug, turning away. "No wonder you got your ass handed to you."
"Assholes," Roma muttered under his breath, arms crossed.
Yor glanced between them, confused.
"Anyway… you're joking, right? I won't believe it unless we do it," Roma said, lifting an eyebrow.
"Then let's do it." Yor stood, adjusting his gear.
He pulled up his menu and tapped a few icons, opening a regional map.
"First stop—The Lady of the Rotten Flower. A Nightmare boss quest. She's camped out west of Oris Mons, near the Kaedros border," Roma said.
"Same reason as those guys earlier. Boosting favor points with the beastmen," Roma said. "I'm trying to get access to their city."
Later, they used a teleportation stone engraved with a glowing blue rune to reach the location.
It was a bit too far to travel by mount, and while teleportation was a little expensive for newbies like them, it was the faster option. Most players usually relied on mounts, but in this case, the teleportation stone saved them travel time.
They arrived near the border between the lizardmen and beastmen in the Isles of Kaedros. The beastmen had been dealing with frequent monster spawns—remnants of black summoning magic used during the war. That lingering corruption had scattered dangerous creatures throughout the region.
As a result, tensions between the lizardmen and beastmen continued to escalate.
Thank you, warrior. That monster lives in a cave west of here—she's been ruining our crops. We don't have anything left to sell at the market," said the man. He had bear ears and a stubby tail, though the rest of his face was human. Definitely a beastman.
His son peeked out from behind his leg—a baby bear walking on two legs. Not in a cute way, but in a weirdly hideous, almost unsettling kind of way.
"P-papa."
The party headed toward a massive cave—dark, humid, and reeking of dead animal carcasses.
A few players emerged from the entrance just as they arrived. Their armor was chipped, scraped, and dented. Clearly, they'd fought tooth and nail to survive.
"Hey—you guys heading in?" one of the players asked, wiping grime off her brow. "Watch out for that boss. It's nasty in there."
Their tank pointed to Rina and added, "Take care of your healer. I mean really take care of her."
Rina smiled politely.
The party stepped into the cave. A cold breeze rushed out to meet them, carrying the sound of someone crying far in the dark.
They kept moving.
A minute later, they reached the center of the lair.
[Lady of the Rotten Flower]
[HP: 200,000]
She was kneeling—sobbing, shoulders trembling, wearing a flower crown of wilted roses. She wore a tattered black dress full of holes that looked like an old smelly rug.
"She's… beautiful," Rina whispered, her gaze trembling.
Then the sobbing stopped.
The woman twisted her neck with a sudden snap and stared straight at them with frightened eyes.
Before anyone could react, her grotesquely long tongue shot out and snatched Rina straight off her feet—like a frog catching a fly.
The boss devoured her whole!