The Kicked Out S-Rank Appraiser Creates The Strongest Guild - Chapter 26.1

Chapter 26.1   S-Class Adventurer

A golden horse with wings on its back, the celestial steed Pegasus, attempts to trample the adventurers from above with its hooves.

Monica shoots an arrow, but it is incinerated by Pegasus’s magic.

Without hesitation, Monica fires a custom-made silver arrow.

This time, it pierces its leg without being burned, but it is not enough to bring it down in one blow.

Pegasus flees into the forest thicket.

Since it can use healing magic, it will likely return as soon as its wounds heal.

“Pant, pant. Damn.”

Monica is breathing heavily, but there is no time to rest.

She immediately switches her focus to ‘Hawkeye’ to prepare for the next enemy.

Soon, she sees a group of centaurs approaching from the right side of the forest.

“Enemy attack! A unit of centaurs is coming from the right. Close combat units, prepare quickly.”

“What!? More are coming?”

“We’re already at our limit dealing with the previous enemies!”

Shouts of frustration come from the close combat unit.

They are fully occupied dealing with the chimera horde in front of them.

(Damn, what should we do?)

“Monica, let’s handle the new wave with just the rear guard. Even if we can’t repel them, we should be able to at least stall them.”

“Understood.”

Monica and Shaqma led the archers and attack mages to intercept the enemies on the flank.

Fortunately, this time they managed to unleash explosive magic and arrows before the centaurs noticed their approach, causing the centaur group to halt their advance.

However, the centaurs did not retreat entirely, instead hiding behind trees and bushes, waiting for an opportunity to attack.

(We succeeded in stalling them, but they won’t retreat…)

Monica used ‘Hawkeye’ to check on the close combat unit.

Fortunately, the close combat unit seemed close to finishing off the chimeras.

“Shaqma, it looks like the close combat unit is almost done. We probably don’t need to keep stalling.”

Monica whispered to Shaqma.

“Understood. Let’s regroup with the front line unit then.”

Shaqma used ‘Illusion Magic’ to create a fog that obstructed the centaurs’ path, and the group hurried to regroup with the front line unit.

As they did so, Monica’s ‘Hawkeye’ detected another new wave of enemies.

“Shaqma, there’s another wave coming! This time from behind the unit!”

“Damn, more new enemies keep coming.”

As soon as they regrouped with the front line unit, Shaqma issued the order to move out immediately.

The unit, without a moment to catch their breath, started running to evade the new wave of enemies.

(This is the 16th floor, the ‘Divine Realm’. We can’t let our guard down for even a moment.)

Monica bit her lip at the higher level of enemies they were facing.

Since earlier, they had barely been able to defeat any monsters, only managing to fend them off.

The cause of their struggle wasn’t just the strength of the ‘Divine Realm’ monsters.

Monica and the others deeply felt the absence of Laurent, whose departure had left a significant gap in their team.

Even if he wasn’t useful as a combatant, his quick judgments and instructions, considerate support, swift initial movements, strategic perspective, morale maintenance, and above all, the reassurance backed by his extensive experience were invaluable. In short, his role as a moral pillar was immense.

Now that these qualities were gone, the unit experienced a moment of hesitation in everything they did, and their decision-making and coordination skills were deteriorating.

“As expected, in the ‘Divine Realm’, the toughness of the enemies is on a whole different level,” Shaqma said.

“Yeah. But don’t you feel a strange sense of pressure since a while ago?” Euphene said with a puzzled expression.

“Isn’t that just because it’s the ‘Divine Realm’…?” Monica replied.

“Even so, I think the encounter rate is too high.”

“Now that you mention it, it does feel like monsters keep appearing no matter how many we defeat.”

“Hey, could it be that we ended up at the forefront of the advance?”

“What? Then…”

“If we keep going like this, we might reach the deepest part of this dungeon before the ‘Golden Hawk’.”

At that moment, Monica’s ‘Hawkeye’ detected another unit marching a few kilometers behind them.

(A heavily armed unit with all members from the vanguard to the rear wearing armor and helmets. That’s… the second main force of the ‘Golden Hawk’, the Savast Unit!?)

“Monica, what’s wrong?”

“The Savast Unit… behind us…”

“The Savast Unit!?”

“That’s a main force of the ‘Golden Hawk’!”

“So, we really are at the forefront right now.”

“What should we do? Our goal isn’t to conquer the dungeon.”

“The encounter rate has been too high, and ideally, we’d like to let someone else take the lead… but it seems we can’t afford to do that.”

Euphene glanced towards the forest thicket.

From the forest, another group of centaurs emerged.

“We have no choice but to keep moving forward.”

Feeling the pressure from being chased by the ‘Golden Hawk’, Monica and her team continued their dungeon exploration.

(Since earlier, I’ve been sweating despite it not being hot, and getting goosebumps despite it not being cold. Is this the pressure of leading the advance group?)

Monica bit her lip.

Her heart was beating faster than ever before.

The divine beasts attacking them were formidable, but the pressure from the approaching Savast unit behind them was even stronger.

Being chased from behind was far more terrifying than she had imagined.

Was it just her imagination?

Monica felt a sense of malice coming from behind.

Maybe she was overthinking it, but the way Savast and his unit advanced was incredibly aggressive.

As they progressed, Monica frequently checked Savast’s position using ‘Hawkeye’.

(They’re getting closer again…)

Monica felt her heart tighten with anxiety.

“Monica, there’s a fork in the path. Which way should we go?” Shaqma asked.

“…Let’s go right.”

Monica couldn’t help but choose the path with fewer obstacles over the one leading directly to their destination.

(Faster. We need to move faster.)

“Hurry up and move forward. Everyone, start running.”

The unit obediently increased their marching speed at her command.

From their actions, Monica realized that the others were feeling the same pressure she was.

A sense of impending doom was approaching from behind.

However, as they advanced through the 17th floor, the presence of monsters suddenly ceased.

(What? What is it this time?)

Despite her heightened state, Monica’s mind felt oddly clear as she thought.

Using ‘Hawkeye’ to scan the surroundings, she found everything shrouded in a misty haze, making it hard to see anything clearly.

“What is this…?”

“The presence of enemies has vanished,” Shaqma and Euphene noticed the abnormal situation seconds after Monica.

“Hey, Monica. Can’t you see anything with ‘Hawkeye’?”

“I don’t know. I can’t see anything. Nothing at all!” Monica said, a bit panicked.

She had been on edge for so long that her mental state was on the verge of breaking.

“Well, well. The ‘Guardians of the Magic Tree,’ huh? This is rare.”

Monica and her team flinched at the sudden sound of a man’s voice.

Turning around, they saw a man in black attire with a single long sword on his back, sitting calmly.

“I thought for sure the ‘Golden Hawk’ would be the first to conquer this place again. This is unusual.”

Monica stared at the man, feeling as if she had been caught off guard.

(Who is this person? A human? How did he reach the ‘Divine Realm’ alone?)

“Um, who are you…?”

“I am Yugan, a swordsman belonging to the guild ‘Crescent Knights.'”

“Yugan!? You mean the Yugan?” Shaqma exclaimed.

“Shaqma, you know him?”

“Know him? This man is the S-class adventurer, Yugan.”

“S-class!?”

“That’s right. I am indeed the S-class adventurer, Yugan.”

The man gave a fearless smile as he stood up and approached Monica and her team.

(This is an S-class adventurer. Someone who can reach the deepest parts of the dungeon solo. We barely made it here with thirty people and extensive planning… and he got here with just a sword.)

Monica, almost forgetting her previous state of near panic, observed the S-class adventurer before her intently.

Indeed, although he appeared slender at first glance, his movements were flawless, and the attire and long sword he wore exuded immense magical power.

Monica felt that no matter how hard she tried, she would never surpass him.

“Why is an S-class adventurer in a place like this?” Shaqma asked.

“I heard a rumor that a dragon with a shell, a Turtle Dragon, appears in this dungeon. The information came from a reliable source, so I traveled all the way to this town. It seems the rumor was true,” Yugan said, pointing with his thumb to a small hill ahead, shrouded in white mist.

“It was there, as the dungeon boss.”

“The dungeon boss!?”

“So, this is the deepest part of the dungeon?” The members of the unit murmured among themselves.

They realized they had finally reached the place where the boss resided.

(We’ve made it to the deepest part without even realizing it.)

Monica was momentarily stunned, unsure how to process this fact.

“Normally, I would tackle this alone…” Yugan said with a grim expression.

“The battle elephant with him is a nuisance. It’s tough to tackle alone. So, here’s my proposal: why don’t we team up?”

“Team up?”

“I’ll join your unit.”

“?!”

“We’ll form an alliance and take down the boss ahead together. I’ll leave the management rights of the dungeon to you ‘Guardians of the Magic Tree.’ In return, I’ll take all the items dropped by the monsters. What do you think? It’s not a bad deal, right?”

Monica and her team exchanged glances, clearly showing their confusion.

Yugan surveyed Monica’s unit.

“Judging by your party… oh, there are exactly 29 of you. With me, it’ll be 30, the maximum number for a unit. This is perfect. No need for any disputes.”

Yugan observed the unit’s composition, inwardly puzzled.

(What’s up with this unit? There’s an unusual number of shield bearers. The rear must be the main attackers, but this is too one-sided. And these faces… I thought it was Lilianne’s unit when I heard ‘Guardians of the Magic Tree,’ but I don’t recognize any of them. Is this a newly formed unit?)

Despite his suspicion, Yugan smiled confidently.

(Well, this works out better for me.)

Monica and her team looked at each other, hesitation evident on their faces.

“I’ll tell you, the boss is tough. Even for an S-class adventurer like me, it’s hard to take down alone. Your unit seems to have strong defense with many shield bearers, but your attack power might be lacking. I think it’s a good idea to include me in your team.”

“Actually, our goal isn’t to conquer the dungeon.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Our goal is to improve our skills and adventurer ranks. We were planning to take on quests to raise our adventurer ranks on this floor.”

“Huh? You’ve come this far just to improve your adventurer class?”

“Yes. It’s under the guidance of our mentor… an appraiser.”

“An appraiser? You’ve got to be kidding…”

Yugan said, exasperated.

(These guys are serious? They made it to the deepest part of the dungeon and still blindly follow what an appraiser says. It’s impressive they got this far. They’re not complete rookies… or are they?)

Yugan noticed that while there were some veterans among the melee fighters, Monica and Euphene still had the fresh look typical of teenagers. Shaqma even looked like a student from a training academy, equivalent to a modern middle schooler.

(Still, I need to convince these guys to take on the boss somehow… this is tricky.)

Yugan frowned at the unexpected difficulty. Being a solo player for the past few years, he wasn’t used to building consensus in a group setting, even if negotiations themselves weren’t foreign to him.

Suddenly, the sound of angry shouts, roars, and clashing metal came from behind them.

“What’s happening now?”

Euphene turned to see Savast unit fighting a group of Sphinxes, fiercely charging towards them. Their rage was apparent to anyone watching.

“That’s the Savast unit!”

“Uh… are they angry at us?” Shaqma squinted as he spoke.

“Ah, they’re furious because they think their glory’s been stolen,” Yugan said nonchalantly.

“Stolen?”

“They believe their chance to conquer the dungeon was snatched away. This could turn into a fight.”

“But we had no intention of—”

“A fight? Even in a dungeon, adventurers fighting each other is strictly prohibited,” Shaqma exclaimed, shocked.

“Yeah, but good luck getting that through to them,” Yugan said, placing his arms behind his head in a relaxed manner.

“Savast is known for being a hardcore muscle-brain. They might attack us the moment they see us,” Yugan warned.

Savast’s unit had indeed spotted Monica and her team.

“Captain! There’s another team over there!”

“I see them! Form an assault formation! Attack before they have a chance to prepare!”

Panic spread through Monica’s team.

“What are we going to do? They’re forming an assault formation,” Euphene said, flustered.

“It’s either fight them or fight the boss. No other choice,” Yugan said, amused.

“Damn it, they’re up for a fight? Bring it on!”

“If they come, we’ll take them on!”

Two warriors from Monica’s team responded eagerly, with others showing signs of agreement.

“Are you seriously going to fight here? Give me a break. I don’t want any more trouble,” Yugan said, clearly annoyed.

“Hey, let’s just clear the dungeon,” Euphene suggested.

“They’re ready to fight. Even if we win in court later, getting seriously injured wouldn’t be worth it. Let’s clear the dungeon, get the management rights, and kick them out of here.”

“Indeed. That seems like the best course of action,” Shaqma agreed.

The two looked to Monica for her decision.

“U-understood. If that’s what you both think…” Monica turned to Yugan.

“Yugan, will you make a contract with us?”

“That’s more like it,” Yugan replied, grinning widely.

“You get all the items that drop from defeating the boss, right?” Monica confirmed.

“Yes, and in return, we’ll take the management rights.”

“Deal,” Yugan agreed.

Monica and Yugan exchanged their guild emblems, a simplified contract form among adventurers.