Virena held Kazien's shoulder and stared at him intently. Her gaze was very passionate.
"I understand... I understand. Your grip really hurts my shoulder."
Virena released her grip and then said to him: "Thank goodness you understand what I mean. You are indeed the best. Hahaha."
Kazien could only sigh in relief because the strong grip had been released.
"So, you are Rosalia?"
"Y-Yes, I am Rosalia, Lord Duke Elgard."
"In three days, you will go to accompany William as his future wife when he attends Selena's wedding in the Vorusan region!"
"I want to accompany him. But, what about my two younger siblings? If they are left behind, there will be no one to take care of them."
"Just take them! Starting today, you and your younger siblings will live in our mansion! There is still an empty room there. Later, some people will help and escort you when you move!"
Rosalia was at a loss for words. Then she looked at the faces of all of William's family. However, she became more nervous as she looked at their faces.
"Rosalia, it's common among the nobility for a prospective wife to live in her future husband's residence," Duchess Larina chimed in.
"Are you really going to let my siblings and I live with your family there?"
"That's better. There might be some foolish noble who won't accept that William is marrying you and will do something crazy to you and your two siblings."
While they were talking, Kazien and Alvin approached Welma.
"Why are you there?" William asked in surprise.
"We have a special escort mission today. Please continue your conversation there. I want to speak with the guild master!"
Because of the presence of the entire Altavis family, the guild was in a real commotion. Moreover, the conversation they had in the guild made everyone even more excited.
"Very well, you can work in the guild until William takes over. But make sure your two siblings stay with us in the mansion!"
"Thank you very much for your understanding, Lord Duke Elgard."
"William, you accompany her to pack. We're going to the merchant guild to rent a horse-drawn carriage to handle their move! Wait for us in front of the adventurer guild!"
"Yes, father. I'll wait with Rosalia."
"Kazien, we'll go to the merchant guild and then come back home!"
"Yes, mother. See you at home."
Duke Elgard and the others left the guild. Only William, Kazien, and Alvin remained in the guild.
Not long after, someone in charge of investigating the forest arrived. The man was handsome with brown hair.
"His name is Rio. He is the officer who will investigate the forest. After you return safely, I will ensure that you will become A rank."
"Huh? Are you sure? We are both still E rank and will immediately become A rank? Isn't that too far?"
"Your contributions to the guild are enormous. That report alone makes your contributions very important. If you don't report it, who knows how many new adventurers will die because of that shadow tiger."
Kazien and Alvin could only accept Welma's decision with a happy feeling.
Then, Kazien and Alvin left the lobby to escort Rio while he investigated the forest. In front of the guild, William and Rosalia were waiting for the arrival of the horse-drawn carriage that would take them to Rosalia's house.
"William, Rosalia, we are going to the forest. See you at home!"
"Yes! Be careful!"
The three of them left the couple and went towards the forest.
"Rio, are you married?" Kazien asked to start the conversation.
Rio was surprised to hear the question that came out of his mouth.
"I am married, young master. What is wrong?"
"Ah... it's okay. Who knows, maybe you're not married yet. Hahaha."
Alvin understood perfectly well what Kazien meant and intended by asking Rio that.
Damn! He must be trying to find a husband for sis Virena. And I'm sure he's having a bit of a hard time finding a suitable person for the two of them.
When they arrived at the location where the grifola mushrooms were growing, there were no signs that the shadow tiger pack was attacking them.
"Why aren't they attacking us?" Rio asked in surprise.
"It's because of this very bright light magic! If this forest were dark, they would attack us straight away!"
"Please cancel the light magic. I have to prove it myself."
Kazien and Alvin entered combat mode to prepare for battle. As soon as the light magic disappeared and the surroundings returned to darkness, the atmosphere turned tense.
Krakt!
Lightning struck right behind Rio.
As soon as he turned, he was shocked to see a shadow tiger close to him undetected.
"Alvin, 2 meters to your left!"
Krakt! Bang!
Lightning struck again and killed the shadow tiger on his left.
"5 meters behind you!"
Boom!
A powerful explosion accompanied by burning fire caused the shadow tiger to die with its body burned to the ground.
Zrash!
Kazien's swing of the magic sword of the darkness element cut off the head of a shadow tiger.
Rio witnessed with his own eyes how the two of them fought and how the shadow tiger attacked.
They managed to defeat dozens of attacking shadow tigers in just one attack? The monsters that moved undetected in the darkness were easily located by them. Amazing! Those two were truly amazing! There was no wasted movement from them.
Detector and executioner, huh? A very good combination in their party.
Light magic was reactivated and the area around the forest became brightly lit.
No more shadow tigers came to attack them. Rio began to investigate the cause of the shadow tigers that always gathered near the growth of the grifola mushrooms. As for Kazien and Alvin, they were both always on standby to guard and ensure Rio's safety during the process of his investigation.
So that's it, huh? No wonder the shadow tigers made a nest not far from where the grifola mushrooms grew. They were attracted to the magical energy and smell of these grifola mushrooms.
Rio wrote his report on a piece of paper. But suddenly...
"Rio, take cover behind Alvin! Something powerful is coming here!"
Rio immediately took cover behind Alvin.
Tromp! Tromp! Tromp! Tromp!
The sound of heavy and loud footsteps was heard. The footsteps seemed to come from a very large monster.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Followed by the sound of trees falling from a distance.
"It seems, this monster is very large."
"My dear, if you fight, I will guard Rio!"
Kazien was surprised to find that all the shadow tigers around them had left the place. He was increasingly convinced that this monster was a very strong monster.
"There are no more shadow tigers around us. I'm sure this monster is an A-rank monster or above!"
Rio was shocked. But Alvin was very ready to fight against the monster.
The large figure was in front of them. Its body was black, its yellow eyes stared sharply at them. And a pair of large and long fangs.
Wow! It's about 4 meters tall! No wonder all the shadow tigers left. It seems he is the leader.
"S-S-Shadow tiger king!!!??!?!?!?"
"Shadow tiger king? What does that mean? Do you know what monster it is?"
"He's an S-rank monster! It's said to be powerful enough to destroy a city in an instant."
Kazien was excited to fight the shadow tiger king before him. "
I want to see and emulate this monster's magical powers. He must possess incredible power!"
"Rio, get away from here! Alvin, take good care of him! Just leave this monster to me! I'll fight him!"
GRAAAHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!
The shadow tiger king roared loudly in front of them. A strong gust of wind had also appeared when the monster roared.
Just by roaring, he released this much power? I'm sure this monster is really strong!
Suddenly, Kazien grinned, making Alvin shiver.
"Why are you grinning like that?" Alvin asked in surprise.
"I don't know how much money we'll get when we sell this monster's body. I can't wait to fight him!"