Soon enough, a stack of filtered commissions was laid out in front of Gauss.
Even after removing the most common goblin-related jobs, most of what remained were still monster types he'd already killed before.
"Oh?"
While scanning the list, Gauss suddenly let out a surprised sound.
"Seriously? What are the odds?"
Near the Enns River docks, a Yaoguai (elite-class) has been sighted.
That location had history for him.
Back when he was still with the Night Owl squad, they'd taken a routine request to hunt water ghoul, and the address had been right there.
That night had also been the first time he'd ever fled in panic since becoming an adventurer.
After they killed the target water ghoul, a ghoul climbed up from the riverbank. With no other choice, the squad had bolted.
Luckily, the ghoul got distracted by the pile of water wight corpses and didn't pursue them.
Otherwise, the Night Owl squad might've been wiped—or at least suffered catastrophic losses.
Later, once they returned to Grayrock, they reported the sighting to the Adventurers' Guild. But when they followed up, they were told the ghoul never appeared again.
And a Yaoguai was essentially a smarter ghoul. Unlike the beastlike ghouls, a Yaoguai was cunning—and capable of commanding packs of ghouls.
Gauss narrowed his eyes, his mind drifting back to that terrifying night.
If he remembered right, that "ghoul" had been too calm—almost like it had deliberately let them go.
Maybe it recognized their gear and didn't want to provoke a larger human response?
A normal ghoul probably would've tried to keep them there—even if the riverbank corpses were already enough food.
So this "Yaoguai" from the commission… it was very likely the same creature that had sent them running that night.
Gauss couldn't help thinking fate had a twisted sense of humor.
And it just so happened he was missing one elite-class entry to complete his Elite Index.
"Let's take this one."
Seeing everyone's curiosity, he gave them the short version of what happened.
When they learned this Yaoguai had once forced Gauss to flee, everyone cracked up.
Not even commander-class—let alone transcendent—enemies had managed that "feat."
Unfortunately for the monster, this wasn't the same Gauss anymore.
Alia and Shadow had no objections—if anything, they looked even more interested.
This was revenge.
"You two be careful," Eberhard said, half amused and half exasperated.
Truthfully, sending Gauss to handle a small commission like this was overkill, and the pay wasn't worth it, but…
If Gauss wanted it, that was that.
Adventurers were free by nature—sometimes it wasn't about efficiency.
"Alright, we're heading out."
After saying goodbye to Eberhard, Gauss and the others left town, mounted Hephaestus, and flew toward the docks.
A route that once required long, brutal travel now took only a short flight.
Gauss landed on a small hillside outside the dock.
On the half-thawed river, a modest pier sat by the shore, with a nameless little fishing village nearby.
The scenery was still beautiful.
The war launched by the Jade Forest hadn't touched this quiet, out-of-the-way dock.
They walked down the slope and entered the village.
Gauss paused in front of the only tavern—The Mermaid Tavern.
He glanced inside. Even in the afternoon, it was lively.
Sailors and fishermen were drinking and shouting dice games, the noise spilling out into the street.
Entertainment was scarce in this era—especially in winter, when work slowed—so a warm tavern and a few drinks were how many people kept their spirits up.
"What're you looking at?" Alia asked.
"Nothing. Let's go."
Gauss had no intention of going in.
After a brief pause, he strode toward the riverbank.
Villagers they passed couldn't help staring at the striking pair of handsome young people.
Inside The Mermaid Tavern, the owner, Harvey, was checking accounts when he looked up toward the window, rubbed his eyes, and squinted outside—like he'd just seen someone familiar.
"Boss, everything okay?" an employee asked quietly, noticing him rubbing his eyes.
Harvey shot him a suspicious look.
His distraction had nothing to do with the ledger, but the employee's anxious expression made him overthink it.
And that face outside… he swore he'd seen it before.
With a man that good-looking, you'd remember him if you'd met him even once.
…
At the riverbank, Gauss stared at the frozen surface.
The ice was melting—he could faintly see the river rushing beneath.
Returning to an old place hit different.
It felt like he'd stepped back into that heart-stopping night.
Even if the Yaoguai had spared them back then, Gauss had no intention of showing mercy now.
He knew it hadn't been mercy.
If there hadn't been so much food on the riverbank, it wouldn't have hesitated to kill them and eat them.
And besides—back then it had stolen their spoils. They hadn't finished harvesting the water wight materials.
Before coming, Gauss had asked Eberhard for reference sketches of ghouls and Yaoguai to refresh his memory.
And despite how much time had passed, that creature had been the first enemy ever strong enough to make him run—so it left a deep imprint.
After a moment of thought, the feeling clicked into place.
"Locate Creature · Yaoguai (Ghoul)."
Mana spread across his skin and surged outward.
In his senses, a target snapped into clarity.
"Found you."
Locate Creature was absurdly useful.
At Gauss's current level, he didn't need to creep around once he had a lock.
He headed straight for it.
The target was about eight or nine hundred meters away in a straight line.
Probably hiding in some natural limestone cavern.
When he reached the spot, he looked at a small hill.
The target was underground.
"It's down there."
"How do we get in?" Alia asked, curious. "Blow it open?"
"Doesn't look like there's an entrance," Shadow said.
She'd already sent her shadow clone to sweep the surface and found no access point.
"There should be a hidden channel connected to the river," Gauss guessed.
He could've just Fireballed the hill into rubble, sure—but that was a bit much.
At his words, Shadow immediately sent her clone into the ground to search.
A moment later, she found it.
"Found the channel."
Following Shadow's guidance, Gauss broke through the river ice.
Splash—
Below the ice, the water ran clear and fast.
"Are you coming with me?" Gauss asked. "Or should I go alone?"
"Together," Alia said instantly.
She didn't fear the cold anymore.
"Then hold onto me," Gauss said.
And the three of them jumped into the freezing water.
To Gauss, the water felt like home. A powerful sense of safety washed over him.
Alia started holding her breath.
She looked at Gauss—he was calmly letting bubbles drift up around him, and her eyes widened.
Then she remembered: she didn't need to struggle like this either.
She shifted forms in an instant, becoming a slender little white fish.
The three of them swam through the twisting channel.
After about a minute, they reached the cavern's end.
They climbed out of the water.
The space opened up—wide enough—and a faint stench of rot hung in the air.
Tap… tap…
Since they hadn't bothered to hide their presence, the owner noticed the intruders quickly.
A few ghouls crawled up from the ground, dropping to all fours, eyes fixed on the spring entrance.
"Hrrk… hrrk…"
Their throats rasped like broken bellows as they grew agitated.
But they didn't attack yet.
They were waiting for an order.
Behind them stood a blue figure on two legs, staring at the three of them—unease flickering deep in its eyes.
Its body was gaunt, blue-spotted skin overlaid with fine reptilian scales.
Its face had canine features, sunken eye sockets housing a pair of blood-red eyes, and a snake-like tongue flicking through the air.
"So it really is you."
Gauss's voice rang clearly in the cavern.
The instant he saw it, he was sure.
This was the same ghoul from that night.
But the monster that once made his blood run cold now looked… ordinary.
"So weak…"
Maybe memory had "upscaled" it over time. Seeing it again, he couldn't help feeling a little emotional.
This thing had been his first real boss—one of the reasons he'd committed to steady growth and low-risk slaughter for so long.
Now, by his rough estimate, it had maybe the combat power of a level 2.
Its underlings were closer to level 1.
As if it understood what he meant, the Yaoguai's crimson eyes flickered.
A Yaoguai wasn't stupid.
It quickly caught a familiar scent from Gauss—the memory lining up.
Humanlike anxiety flashed across its face.
"Hrrrk—!"
At its command, the ghouls charged like wild dogs.
"Leave those."
Gauss ignored them and shot past, closing on the Yaoguai as it turned and ran.
Even though Yaoguai and ghouls were essentially the same elite species, with intelligence as the key difference, Gauss decided to kill the Yaoguai first.
It was fast—but Gauss was faster.
In a handful of breaths, he was behind it, while it was still far from the next tunnel exit.
Slash—
Moterra's Sword swept across its throat.
Thunk.
The Yaoguai's head hit the ground, its eyes still frozen in shock—like it couldn't believe the weak human from before had become this terrifying.
Hiss…
Residual holy power from the water blade continued purifying its corpse.
"Yaoguai (Ghoul) x1."
[Path of the Elite, Stage 3: The Hunt Completed]
[Elite Monster Index defeated: 20/20.]
[Randomly Drawing Trait and Adapting to Physique.]
A list of elite species scrolled by—mantisfolk, half-ogres, mud golems, mimic chests, spider-wraiths, hobgoblins, parasitic arthropods, gnoll chiefs…
Then:
[Drawing Racial Trait… Adapting to Host Constitution…]
A brief pause.
[Drawn: From Goblin Wolf Rider — Savage Symbiosis.]
[Converting to Racial Trait into: Blue-tier racial Trait — Rider.]
[Rider (Blue-tier): You must choose one mount with which you share exceptional compatibility and form a contract. The contract cannot be broken. Your bond, coordination, and responsiveness with the mount will strengthen.
While traveling, the mount's stamina consumption decreases. While mounted, both your and your mount's combat instincts steadily improve. The longer the bond and the higher the rapport, the greater the chance of subtle, mutually beneficial influence over time.]
…Rider?
Gauss read it carefully.
During the war, he'd killed plenty of goblin wolf riders—many of them elite—so the source didn't surprise him.
But he hadn't expected this.
It was essentially a mount mastery talent.
And he already had the perfect target: Hephaestus, the red dragon drake.
No reason to save the slot. Maybe someday he'd subdue a true dragon or something stronger—but those creatures were far prouder, and even if you beat them into submission, genuine "compatibility" might never happen.
Better to use it early and benefit early.
Lower stamina drain meant Hephaestus could fly farther in a single stretch, which saved travel time.
Saved travel time meant more hunting time.
More hunting meant more power.
And the final clause—the mutual beneficial influence—was the real prize.
If he understood it correctly, over time they could each "rub off" on the other.
Gauss could gain more draconic physical advantages…
…and Hephaestus—by sheer proximity—might grow smarter, more capable with magic, more refined.
A win-win.
And with this, he wouldn't need to worry as much about Hephaestus getting wilder and harder to control as it matured.
Hehis was draconic by nature—stronger often meant prouder and more rebellious.
This bond would anchor them.
Gauss's lips curled into a faint smile.
Someone had slapped him with the nickname "Crimson Dragon Knight" earlier—he'd always known it was exaggerated.
But now…
It was starting to feel like he was actually becoming one.