Arranged Encounter...

A few days passed, and Atlas was finally ready to embark on a new adventure, but before that, there were still many things to do in the Village of Nevery and a few people to meet.

So, he went down toward the village with a clear destination as his first stop.

Actually, he could have evaded it. Alas, his greed was difficult to contain.

Drive by his desire, Atlas reached the small branch of the Mercenary Guild in the village and, without wasting time, proceeded toward the attendant: "Hi... I'm here to get the rewards for these things."

"Welcome to..."

The young man behind the table was immensely annoyed by the tranquility lingering around him and responded as usual. Still, his speech halted abruptly once he lifted his head from the book.

"Young master Atlas..."

"Hey... Bart... it's calmer than usual here... what are you doing?"

Atlas knew the young man before him as he was the son of one of the guards of the village of Nevery. They had met countless times, yet with his intrepid and demanding heart, the time to spend around this tiny village was little, and their encounters were many but brief.

"Yeah... I'm reading a book about the wild village of the dark elves in the west regions as most of the mercenaries are out enjoying a profique hunt."

Indeed, looking at his surroundings, Atlas noticed only a lonely middle-aged man who was snoring like a pig on the side.

"Hmm... is there something interesting happening around lately?"

He was curious by nature, and he could not help but wonder what caused this peculiar event.

"Well... we have got several requests for a goblin hunt recently. They started moving around the region in small groups and were heavily armed as if they were troops of a small army. Anyway, the mercenaries were attracted by the bounty and left in mass."

'Goblins...' Atlas felt bewildered by their reappearance and couldn't help but think about the small group that he had exterminated weeks ago.

'Could it be related to me somehow? No... no way...'

The young man briefly considered such a possibility but then put that aside as he had other things to do. If it was related to him, he was sure that the grand amass of mercenaries could easily handle that matter.

"Well... good for them." Atlas smiled in a relaxed manner and then took out a small sack from his space artifact, "Coincidentally, I'm here to retrieve the resources for Goblin's ears. Are you still taking them as usual?"

"Mhm?!" Bart was surprised, but he knew from his father that Atlas' existence was quite particular and that it was better not to ask too much around, so he explained the report calmly: "Well, we have collected a lot of them, but the request is still there. Depending on their realm, you will receive a proper compensation."

"Such being the case... look at this..."

Finally, the sack with ears he had managed to recover appeared on the table.

Bart didn't ask him anything else and started organizing them carefully.

Atlas knew that the process would take some time, so he started looking at the bulletin board with interest. There were tons of requests from various ranks.

The Mercenary Guild was a power that was spread all around the continent.

Such an organization was different from martial sects around the world but adopted many of their ways of handling their so-called disciples. As for the requests, they were the primary source of income and rank advancement for the mercenary.

Atlas was a particular member of this small branch, thanks to the help of his grandparents. Indeed, in the last few years, he had roamed the continent with them and even alone when a simple request granted him such liberty.

Soon, a couple of minutes passed. Atlas, who was lost in thought while looking at the board, didn't notice the appearance of another person in the hall, but soon a voice attracted his attention.

"Hey... I'm new here... can you help me?"

Turning around, he found a young woman with golden hair and a fair face a few steps away.

He was slightly stunned by her beautiful figure but responded fast enough to avoid the awkwardness that could have erupted: "Are you talking to me?"

"Well, we are the only ones here. Who do you think I'm talking to?" the young woman responded with a smile.

"Mmm... actually, we are not the only ones around... don't you see him? He is the one responsible for this place. So I think he can help you better than me about the guild's information or anything else."

Atlas was still looking at the young woman, so he didn't realize that the attendant was gone.

"Hmm... I don't see anyone around here... Maybe you are daydreaming..." She linked her eyelashes at his response and replied in a confused tone.

"Mhm?!" Atlas turned around instantly, and sure enough, the desk was empty. The person on the chair was gone, probably to collect his reward and deposit his wares.

"Hey... Bart!! Please, I just want to take my reward, and people are looking for you, so don't waste too much time."

Looking at the young man shouting around as if he were the boss, the young woman couldn't help but feel a bit speechless by his rude manners in front of her.

Warned the guild's attendant. He looked back at the young girl, who was examining him with a strange gaze.

"He probably went back for my reward. But, don't worry, Bart will return soon..."

His answer was contrary to what she had expected, and she wondered if that was his usual personality or if there was something wrong with her.

'This guy is so annoying... who will not help a girl in need with such a trivial thing?? I didn't ask him to do anything difficult...'

Her mouth twitched slightly when she saw that stupid smile on his face, but she was pretty stubborn, so she didn't let him go so quickly: "Well... why don't you help me in the meantime? Do you have any suggestions for new requests? Which one do you think best suits me?"

The continuous questions bothered Atlas, who was trying his best not to waste too much time around here.

"Mmm... I am a new around, too. You should wait for the attendant. He will suggest the one which suits you the best..."

As one could imagine, the young woman trying to make an excellent first impression on him was having a hard time keeping her nasty side in check.

'This thug... is he trying to make me angry on purpose??'

Luckily, the young woman kept her emotions in check and changed the question: "Okay, I will ask him about that... then can you tell me the best martial shop in the town?"

"The old shop of Grandma River. She has a vast collection of Martial techniques!"

"And what about a good Artifact vendor?"

"Oh, about that... you should try your luck with the little shop of Old Mold. That old dwarf has a decent stock of various artifacts. But I suggest you go there around midday. Otherwise, you will find him drunk and a bit... spooky."

Hearing his short answers devoid of the will to keep the dialogue between the two for too long, the young woman was annoyed again.

Holding back the curses piling up inside her, she continued in a dangerous tone: "Can you show me where they are? I don't know this street well and..."

She wanted to continue, yet the attendant was finally back and ruined her hard work.

"Ohi... Atlas, it's all ready. 127 Low-Grade Chaos Stones for you."

The reward was nothing compared to his actual wealth, but he wouldn't say no to a single stone if he had gained it, thanks to his hard work.

"Hehe... good."

After taking the small sack away with a wide grin on his face, his objective was concluded, so he looked back at Bart, hinting at the young woman who stood dazed behind him.

"Go head, Bart... she is new here... so show her around..."

Leaving behind a few words for the attendant, Atlas turned around and started walking away under the young woman's odd gaze. He had more important matters to attend to, but he halted a few steps from her before leaving definitively and giving her a few words: "Unfortunately, I can't help you, but you can ask him all you need. Have a nice day."

She couldn't believe what had just happened...

Did he ignore her just like this?

Her mind couldn't elaborate on such an absurd reality. After all, even if she wasn't a breathtaking beauty in those simple clothes, her charm was still there, and it was difficult to hide. So, what had just happened was simply a mystery for her prideful self.

In the end, her lips parted slightly, but nothing came out from there as she was left alone in the hall with Bart and the snoring pig on the side.

|||

Once outside the Mercenary Guild, Atlas roamed the streets, enjoying the fresh air and the boisterous place.

Since his pocket was full of Chaos Stones, it was time to let his old friend reach higher realms.

After the adventure in Obscurium, Astra was already at the borders with the Primordial Artifact.

Unfortunately, all the rusty weapons he found with Drunkum after that were useless, and he didn't even acquire a single Chaos Rune since the Devil's Fang.

Finding good stuff for his current level in this small village wasn't easy because Old Mold was always the first one who ransacked all the poor merchants of their useless metal scraps. Yet, after looking around for a while, Atlas gained a bit of resources but not as much as he actually needed.

Using his luck and the Obsidian Eyes, he even found some hidden gems such as crystals, metals, and gold metal scraps.

It took him almost a couple of hours to inspect all the merchants in the village. Alas, it came out with empty hands...

"Well... it seems that I can't do otherwise..."

He knew where he could find the necessary materials, yet he felt that doing so would have caused him more problems than necessary. So, he put that idea aside and went toward his third target, Grandma River's old shop. After all, he was in desperate need of new techniques.

Ding! Ding!

As usual, the small bell attached to the door welcomed his arrival, but unlike the other times, Grandma River didn't warmly welcome him because she was busy with another customer.

"Hello... Grandma River!"

Atlas stepped forward, but as he approached the duo, his footsteps halted because the graceful back of the customer seemed somewhat familiar.

"Hey... we meet again!"

"What are you doing here??"