Eternal Rest

The time in the capital wasn't uneventful while Bones was preoccupied with the dwarves. Just a few days after Bones was expelled from the dungeon when the time reached zero, a disaster befell the tunnels below Westbrook.

Under Rayne's command, the guild's scout Veeno had ventured into the tunnels and not long after, encountered the undead. Although they had been warned to anticipate the undead, they were still caught off guard when the undead began emerging from the walls.

The guild operatives swiftly dispatched a small group of undead and pressed on through the tunnel. They encountered undead in small groups every few hundred meters until they reached what appeared to be a storage chamber. There, amidst siege and monster-hunting weapons, they discovered large spherical containers with faded markings inscribed on them.

Veeno surveyed the chamber but forbade his men from entering. Their purpose was not to examine the functionality of ancient weaponry. Instead, he meticulously recorded their findings in the small booklet he carried and vowed to return with the necessary detection tools to properly assess the weapons' operability.

As Veeno and his team pressed forward, they were suddenly ambushed by a larger group of undead just five hundred meters from the chamber. Surrounded, they found themselves in a desperate battle.

Amidst the chaos, a distant explosion reverberated through the tunnels. The deafening noise, coupled with the ground-shaking tremors, momentarily distracted the group, resulting in their first casualties. Veeno, though momentarily rattled, quickly regained his composure, relying on years of training. He ordered his men to retreat and seek cover behind support beams. Spotting some in the distance, they rushed forward, evading attacks and disregarding the undead, who remained unperturbed by the threat of cave-ins.

The tunnel continued to tremble and quake, and before the group could reach the safety of the support beams, the entire area collapsed, engulfing them in darkness.

An hour before the cave-in...

Roselyn seethed with frustration. First, the guild operatives under Rayne had ventured into the tunnels without her knowledge, and now she was tasked with apprehending them and carrying out a search for low-level undead. A gold-ranked operative like her shouldn't have to deal with such trivial matters. Second, she found herself in a dusty tunnel surrounded by a group of inept men, trailing after a scout named Veeno. She begrudgingly followed the signs of battle, marked by scattered bones and footprints.

They reached the chamber, which Roselyn assumed to be a storage unit for weapons. She observed from a distance as she ordered her men to enter and search for anything of potential use. Finding operational siege weapons would certainly bolster her report.

"What's that? Some sort of spherical container..." she overheard the chatter of her men inside. Curiosity piqued, she approached to investigate, only to find two fools attempting to lift a mana bomb. With a surge of panic, she screamed for them to stop. But it was too late. The bomb slipped from their grasp, triggering upon impact with the ground. The resulting explosion set off a chain reaction, igniting other mana bombs nearby.

Reacting swiftly, Roselyn, with the agility of a gold-ranked operative, managed to evade most of the blast. However, her entire party was not as fortunate. As the chaos unfolded, she bolted out of the tunnel just in time to witness the entrance collapsing behind her. Swearing under her breath, she realized the devastating consequences of the mishap. "Fuck..."

It took a full day to address the casualties and assess the damages caused by the explosion. Despite sustaining minor injuries, Roselyn's resilience as a gold-ranked operative was evident. Her ability to endure the blast highlighted the strength of her tempered body.

By midnight, Roselyn had completed her report and promptly sent it to the capital. Within hours, the report had reached the Adventurer Guild headquarters, and by morning, it had caught the attention of a particular individual.

As word of the incident spread, a chilling presence descended upon the guild floor where Rayne's office resided. In a matter of seconds, frost covered every surface, encasing the surroundings in an icy embrace. Rayne, with an icy demeanor and mesmerizing blue eyes, forced open the frozen door, shattering it into pieces. His frosty aura radiated as he strode through the hallway and out of the building, leaving a trail of cold in his wake.

The sudden eruption of icy energy sent the guild operatives into a frenzy, scrambling to comprehend the situation. As Rayne departed, the ice melted away, dissipating into the morning air, but the tension lingered within the guild.

"Rayne... where are you going?" Belle's voice broke the silence as she followed him from behind, her unease palpable. He turned to face her, his expression as icy as the aura surrounding him. "Westbrook. I'll meet you there." With those terse words, Rayne vanished, leaving behind a trail of frost, and Belle was left standing alone, her apprehension growing with each passing moment.

The report submitted by Roselyn was met with widespread disapproval within the bureau, but Gustav, ever eager to assert his opinion, felt compelled to speak out. "It's regrettable that an accident occurred, but that's precisely what it was—an accident! While tragic, casualties are an unfortunate reality in our line of work."

However, Gustav's cavalier attitude found little agreement among his colleagues, who were well aware that the deceased were members of Rayne's team. Considering Rayne's notorious temper, they hesitated to openly support Gustav's stance.

Nevertheless, Gustav, fully cognizant of the potential repercussions, wasted no time in ensuring that the report found its way to Rayne's office. He anticipated Rayne's swift and undoubtedly fiery response.

As expected, Rayne reacted strongly to the news, and word of his departure from the guild in distress quickly reached Gustav's ears. With a self-satisfied grin stretching from ear to ear, Gustav's shifty eyes gleamed with malicious satisfaction.

Rayne reached Westbrook within mere hours and before nightfall, he stood before the guild's building. With commanding authority, he entered and, with a surge of power, compelled everyone to vacate the premises immediately. Startled by the sudden and overwhelming pressure emanating from Rayne, the guild members looked on in confusion and shock, only dispersed when an icy aura permeated every corner of the guild's main hall, leaving a frosty chill in its wake. Amidst the eerie silence, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from the top floor. Roselyn, undeterred by the chilling atmosphere, stepped forward and peered down from the top floor. "What the hell do you think you're doing in my guild?" she demanded, her voice tinged with defiance.

Her gaze locked with Rayne's and she flinched under the intensity of his stare. Despite her seniority and experience, she knew the guild’s leader didn’t take Rayne as pupil on a whim. With a tightness in her jaw, she uttered defensively, "It was an accident! Just collateral damage! It's not my fault they weren't fast enough to escape. That's all!" Though she attempted to assert her innocence, the uncertainty in her voice betrayed her inner turmoil.

This time, it was Rayne who flinched, his frustration boiling over into a furious shout. "Ice Age!" he bellowed, unleashing his signature skill. Permafrost spread like wildfire, enveloping the entire building in its icy embrace. Windows shattered, and clusters of enormous ice shards erupted from the ground and walls.

Rayne's focus narrowed on the shards as they grew in size, hurtling towards Roselyn with deadly intent. With agility born of desperation, she dodged the projectiles unscathed. But before she could react further, Rayne closed the distance in an instant, seizing her by the collar and hurling her bodily out of the window.

As Roselyn crashed to the ground below, she looked up to find Rayne peering down at her through the broken window. "You son of a -"

Swish, swish, swish. A relentless barrage of ice spears sliced through the air, cutting Roselyn's words short. With a surge of adrenaline and fury, she dodged the lethal projectiles. Launching herself into the air, she soared towards Rayne, meeting him head-on in a clash of titanic proportions. Thunderous blows reverberated through the surroundings, each strike causing more devastation than the last. The once bustling square and the guild's building bore the brunt of their conflict, the damage far surpassing that of the undead attack. Even the small coffee shop on the ground floor of the hotel was not spared from the chaos.

By the time Belle arrived on the scene, the battle had reached its conclusion. The air hung heavy with the scent of destruction as she surveyed the aftermath. Her attention was drawn to Rayne, who stood amidst the chaos with a metal needle-like object protruding from his chest. In his hand, he held Roselyn by the neck, her unconscious form hanging limply above the ground.

"It would be so easy to snap her wretched neck…" he muttered darkly.

"I know Rayne, but you can’t do that!" Belle's voice cut through the tension, her tone hesitant yet firm.

"Why? Why can't I?" Rayne's desperation was evident as he sought justification for his actions. Belle paused for a moment, choosing her words carefully before simply uttering, "Silva."

Rayne's grip on Roselyn loosened, and he released her, allowing her limp body to slump to the ground. Turning to face Belle, his expression softened slightly. "It was my fault, I sent him there," he admitted, his voice heavy with remorse.

"I know. Don't make the same mistake twice then," Belle's words were a gentle yet firm reminder of the consequences of his actions. Rayne needed to confront his mistakes, not deny them.

Nodding in acknowledgment, Rayne motioned for Belle to follow as they left the scene behind. He understood that there would be consequences for his actions, and they came swiftly the very next day.

With his master absent from the guild and his own rash actions leading to his confrontation with Roselyn, Rayne faced expulsion from the adventurer guild in the kingdom of Wezar. This meant that while he could potentially seek membership in other adventurer guilds elsewhere, he was permanently barred from reapplying to join the guild within the borders of the Wezar kingdom.

Rayne surrendered his badge and departed from the guild. Belle, loyal as ever, sought to follow him yet Rayne forbade her from doing so. He understood the importance of Belle's future and career aspirations. Being part of the adventurer guild was not only beneficial but necessary for her to succeed along her path. Many renowned individuals had once been esteemed adventurers themselves. If Belle harbored aspirations of becoming a renowned adventurer, she couldn't afford to be further entangled in his troubles.

The help Rayne received thus far had always danced on the edge of what he deemed acceptable. Their relationship was one of mentor and pupil, both belonging to the prestigious guild—one of the three major guilds in the kingdom, led by none other than Prince Tristan, the son of the king, who held the position of acting leader in the king's absence.

Now, liberated from the constraints of guild morality, Rayne's thirst for vengeance burned fiercer than ever. Unshackled, he could and would operate in the shadows, employing more clandestine and unsavory methods to achieve his goals.

As for the object of Rayne's vendetta, Silva pondered whether Bones would ever return. While he was known for his patience, it had its limits—and Bones possessed something he desired.

"It's strange to see you worried. It doesn't happen often," Tivaara remarked, observing Silva across the table.

Silva met her gaze and took a swig of his drink, attempting to brush off any suggestion of concern. "I'm not worried. cough cough Not in the slightest!"

These days, the tavern was relatively quiet, with little excitement to break the monotony. Silva conducted most of his business in the shadows, delving into the underground dealings. Tivaara often disappeared to attend to her own affairs, leaving behind an air of mystery in her wake. Meanwhile, Solin dedicated his time to rigorous training and fierce battles in the arena, honing his skills. The necromancer, a figure not easily forgotten, laid bedridden yet stubbornly clinging to life.

Amidst the mundane routine, Silva mentioned the need to begin preparations for the upcoming festival, a task that would require their attention and coordination amidst the backdrop of their everyday lives.

On one of the higher floors of the adventurer guild, away from prying eyes and curious ears, two clandestine figures convened in secrecy. The first, with a sickly pallor, a crooked nose, shifty eyes, and a narrow, repulsive visage—was none other than Gustav, a man whose very presence inspired revulsion in those who beheld him. Opposite him sat the necromancer Varia.

"Varia!" Gustav greeted with false cheerfulness. "As per your request, I've ensured that information regarding the adventurer named Bones remains secure. When will I have the opportunity to meet this Silva you mentioned?"

Varia's expression darkened, his tone laced with irritation. "I expressly warned you against any form of communication within the guild! Have you lost your mind?" he rebuked sharply, disregarding Gustav's inquiry.

Gustav, undeterred by Varia's admonishment, smirked confidently. "Relax, I've taken care of the meddling nuisance that's been prying around," he boasted, referring to Rayne with disdain.

"Haaaah, it seems the prestige of your position within the guild has gone to your head," Varia retorted, his patience wearing thin. "Listen, you fool—"

"You can't talk to me th—"

"Shut up!" Varia's voice rose sharply, cutting off Gustav's protest with a forceful command.

Gustav swallowed hard, his throat dry as he remained subdued under Varia's piercing gaze. He listened intently as Varia spoke, a sense of apprehension creeping over him.

"Rayne was never the problem," Varia asserted, his tone laced with a mixture of disdain and amusement. "No matter how much he searched, he would never find what he was looking for. If we wanted to get rid of him, we would've already done so." Varia paused, allowing his words to sink in before continuing. "Do you know why we let him do as he pleases? Don't answer," he added, waving off any attempt at a response. "It's because he was easier to track and watch out for when he was in the adventurer guild. But now that he's back in his own guild, the same guild led by Tristan, the prince of this forsaken kingdom?" Varia shook his head in exasperation. "What you did was unnecessary and could make things difficult for us in the future! From now on, only do what you've been told to do! Understand?"

Gustav gritted his teeth, his jaw clenching with tension as he nodded in compliance, a cold sweat breaking out on his brow.

"One more blunder like this one and I'll fucking kill you!" Varia's words were a chilling promise, leaving no room for misunderstanding or leniency.

After Rayne's expulsion, Belle found solace in the depths of the Hagos dungeon. With newfound freedom from guild obligations, she dedicated herself to honing her skills and growing stronger, driven by a singular purpose—to become a formidable force in pursuit of Rayne's vengeance.

Meanwhile, Rayne leveraged his connections with Prince Tristan in a relentless quest to uncover any information regarding the elusive Hounds. Despite repeated setbacks, each failure only served to sharpen his resolve. With each unsuccessful attempt, Rayne gleaned valuable insights, piecing together fragments of the puzzle that hinted at a shadowy figure pulling the strings behind the enigmatic group. He knew that this puppeteer must be someone with considerable influence, whether within the royal palace or the adventurer's guild itself. Yet, despite his determination, Rayne found himself momentarily stalled in his pursuit, his momentum halted by the fallout from the disastrous encounter with Guntar.

As for Guntar and Trevak, they had vanished without a trace, leaving behind a void of uncertainty regarding their whereabouts and intentions. In light of recent events, Rayne decided to focus his efforts on training with his master while also preparing to brave the upper echelons of the Hagos dungeon.