Time passed in the blink of an eye. Two days slipped by almost unnoticed.
Kurose Akira sat in the guild hall, carefully tallying up all of the guild's assets.
"286 gold coins, 926 silver coins, 5,562 copper coins… and 620,000 experience…"
Most of the D+ rank missions had already been completed. Only the final one remained.
As long as he cleared this last task successfully, his guild would be promoted to C rank.
Of course, that final mission had been marked as high difficulty, which was precisely why he had left it for last.
That said, "high difficulty" was only relative to a typical D+ guild. For Kurose Akira's current lineup, it would be challenging—but far from impossible.
"Let's level everyone up first."
Muttering to himself, he began allocating experience.
He raised Loserine's level from 45 to 49 in one go, consuming 46,500 experience points. Once she reached level 49, however, breaking through to level 50 was no longer just a matter of experience.
"Besides sufficient experience, she'll need one Advancement Stone, three Law Enforcement Knight Medals, and to complete an advancement quest…"
Kurose Akira frowned slightly as he read the breakthrough requirements on the panel.
Advancement Stones and Law Enforcement Knight Medals were rare—but not unattainable. They were even sold in the shop; all it took was money.
The advancement quest, however, was another matter entirely.
That was a personal trial the adventurer had to complete alone. Neither the guild master nor any other member could assist.
Still, Kurose Akira had absolute confidence in Loserine's strength.
After that—
Ivsha: level 33 → 40. Experience -85,200.Lucia: level 38 → 45. Experience -135,800.Alice: level 33 → 40. Experience -85,200.Beyafli and Beyaflo: level 30 → 40. Experience -138,000 each.Mare Rhine: level 37 → 45. Experience -150,600.
A total of 594,800 experience evaporated in an instant.
The experience pool he had painstakingly accumulated was nearly drained dry, and Kurose Akira couldn't help but frown.
Resource scarcity really was the norm in nurturing-type games.
Especially when every single adventurer in his guild possessed exceptional talent. He had no intention of giving up on any of them.
After finishing the level-ups, he shifted his gaze toward the final D+ mission.
Commission Mission V (D+): Eliminate the Star Knight — Kaede!Reward: 10 gold, 100,000 experience.
"Star Knight…"
Kurose Akira's brows drew together as he read the description.
The mission required him to kill a Star Knight within the Star Kingdom—clearly more difficult than the other D+ tasks.
The target's level was explicitly stated: 65.
A level 65 Star Knight would be considered mid-tier within the Star Knight Order. For his guild, however, it wasn't insurmountable.
The client was a marquis of the Star Kingdom, requesting assistance in eliminating a Star Knight who had betrayed him and defected to an opposing faction.
Within the Star Kingdom, there were approximately 120 Star Knights. Over half were under the direct command of the royal capital. The rest served various nobles or had been granted titles and territories of their own.
From the intelligence available, most of the Star Knights not affiliated with the capital served under Prince Tyles—one of the primary reasons he posed such a serious threat to the throne.
And then there was…
Kurose Akira felt a flicker of anxiety.
Could Idis's faction truly contend with both Princess Vivian's royal capital and Prince Tyles's coalition of nobles?
At least on the surface, Idis's forces appeared to be the weakest.
Crash!
The sharp sound of something breaking suddenly shattered the quiet.
Immediately afterward, Mare Rhine's laughter rang out.
"Finally free! Damn Medusa Queen—I'll settle accounts with you sooner or later!"
Kurose Akira glanced over.
The moment Mare Rhine broke free from petrification, she sprinted toward the bathroom. The sound of running water followed shortly after.
"Perfect timing. I can bring her along."
He thought to himself. With Mare Rhine's help, dealing with a Star Knight would be much more secure.
But then—
Mare Rhine suddenly rushed out of the bathroom.
She wore nothing but a snow-white towel draped loosely over her body, standing before him without the slightest hesitation.
Kurose Akira raised an eyebrow as two swaying curves entered his field of vision.
What was she doing? Inviting him to dinner?
"Hey, human."
Mare Rhine plopped down beside him, a sly smile tugging at her lips.
"When I was petrified, I heard you say that the Medusa Queen was seriously injured and recovering in the Silent Lands. That right?"
"Yeah."
He nodded.
She let out a mocking laugh.
"Hah! So that snake has her day too!"
Then her tone shifted.
"Human. I need you to help me wash up."
Kurose Akira frowned.
"Don't you have hands?"
Mare Rhine crossed her arms beneath her chest, clearly displeased with his reaction.
"Isn't this a reward? Weren't you very happy when you bathed with the succubus before?"
"That's different."
He gave a helpless smile. When he bathed with Ivsha, there were… other things involved.
"How is it different?"
Mare Rhine tilted her head, then generously declared,
"Fine. I'll let you squeeze too. Go on—put your hands out."
She grabbed his hand and tried to press it against her snowy skin.
"???"
Kurose Akira stared at her, bewildered.
Since when was she this generous?
"All right. I'll take you to bathe."
He stood and headed toward the bathroom.
What choice did he have?
He was her guild master, after all. As long as it wasn't unreasonable, he usually tried to fulfill his members' requests.
"Hehe! How could a mere human resist my charm?"
Mare Rhine followed him in confidently, a provocative grin on her face.
But the moment she stepped inside—
A series of shrill screams erupted.
"Human! It's too hot!""Gentler!""Don't touch me there!""Ahhh!!!"
...
A short while later—
Mare Rhine sat obediently on a stool, allowing Kurose Akira to carefully scrub her down.
However, tears glistened faintly at the corners of her eyes.
Both hands clutched tightly over flushed, reddened skin as she muttered to herself,
"Damn it… how could you be so ruthless… damn human… it hurts so much…"