The Kicked Out S-Rank Appraiser Creates The Strongest Guild - Chapter 133

Chapter 133   New Workshop

“‘Ambush the White Wolves?'”

Neil furrowed his brows at Glen’s suggestion.

“In this situation where we’re already falling behind the Spirit Workshop Alliance?”

“Precisely because of this situation,” Glen responded, matching Neil’s intensity.

“If we keep desperately chasing the Spirit Workshop and somehow manage to overtake them and secure the ores first, we’ll be heavily exhausted. In that state, on the way back, we’ll inevitably be targeted by the White Wolves. So, it’s more strategic to ambush and crush the White Wolves here.”

“……”

“If we can take down the bandit guild, there will be no need to compete with the Spirit Workshop in the first place. There are plenty of mining sites. We could also free our comrades who have been captured by the White Wolves. Moreover, we might regain the trust of the local guilds, which has shifted toward the Spirit Workshop. This could even boost the morale of the local guilds, which has been a concern.”

“Are you aware that if we split the troops and fail to achieve anything, it won’t just end with an apology?” Neil glared at Glen, testing him.

Glen, with a determined expression, met Neil’s gaze.

“……Alright. Understood. We’ll reorganize the troops.”

Neil entrusted one-third of the troops to Glen, assigning them the task of ambushing the White Wolves.

“What? The Grand Alliance has stopped moving?” Jamil furrowed his brow at the strange report from the scout.

He immediately went out to scout for himself and confirmed the deployment of Crown of the Sage, which had set up camp on the plains without moving.

Jamil then had Rodo scout ahead using a Fire Dragon, and they discovered that a detachment of the Grand Alliance was advancing further into the dungeon.

(I see. So, they plan to split their forces and hold us off while the other group secures the ores.)

From a distance, Jamil analyzed the enemy’s status and noticed one individual with an unusually high level of magical power.

(This magic power… it must be Glen Ross, the lead attack mage. Neil Dioclea and Ian Yugberk aren’t here. Good.)

Jamil selected the swiftest and most cunning members from his troops to form a special unit.

“Listen up. When you attack the Grand Alliance, pretend to lose and retreat. Lead them into the valley.”

Following Jamil’s orders, the special unit set off toward the Grand Alliance’s camp, deliberately appearing careless and unprepared.

When they spotted the Grand Alliance’s deployment, they acted surprised, hastily forming ranks as if they had just noticed them.

“It’s the Grand Alliance!”

“They’re right in front of us!”

“Form ranks, quickly!”

(They’ve come.)

Glen felt his fighting spirit surge.

(A battle on flat ground with no elevation differences—this is where pure strength matters. There’s no reason to avoid a fight!)

“Charge! Show these cowardly thieves what we’re made of!”

The front line of the Grand Alliance surged forward in unison.

For a while, the two forces were evenly matched in hand-to-hand combat, but when Glen unleashed his Explosive Flame Magic, the White Wolves began to crumble.

“Arghhh!”

“Glen Ross is here!”

“Retreat! Fall back!”

The bandits of the White Wolves started fleeing.

“Good, pursue them!” Glen ordered.

“Wait!” a local adventurer called out, trying to stop them.

“What is it?”

“Doesn’t this seem strange? The way the ‘White Wolves’ are acting. They usually stay hidden in the shadows of the mountains, never showing themselves, but today they boldly challenged us to a fight.”

“The enemy probably got overconfident. If you always fight under favorable conditions, you’ll naturally start to feel invincible. Now, let’s go.”

“But it might be a trap. If I remember correctly, there’s a place up ahead surrounded by cliffs—perfect for an ambush. They might be trying to lure us in.”

“You’re overthinking it. If we hesitate now, we’ll miss a golden opportunity. Come on, let’s move.”

“At least, let’s send out scouts to check the situation…”

“Enough! If we keep dawdling, we’ll lose the chance for a successful pursuit. Move out! Victory is within our grasp. Let’s settle the score once and for all.”

Glen and his troops charged after the bandits without a second thought.

Along the way, they encountered what seemed to be the remaining ‘White Wolves’ forces several times. Each time, they fought and scattered them, driving them toward the cliff-surrounded area.

(They’re fleeing one after another. This doesn’t feel like a trap at all; it seems more like they’re panicking and running away. This might turn out to be a surprisingly fruitful victory.)

Feeling more confident, Glen intensified the pursuit.

However, as the ‘White Wolves’ reached the narrow exit at the bottom of the valley, they suddenly turned and prepared to fight.

Behind them, a waiting force emerged.

“Is that their main force?”

But it wasn’t just them. Thieves hidden on the cliff tops appeared and began raining arrows down on Glen’s troops. They scattered caltrops on the path Glen’s forces had taken, blocking their escape and launching a relentless assault from all sides.

After enduring a one-sided attack for some time, Glen and his men surrendered.

Jamil, satisfied after confirming Glen was among the captives, thought to himself:

(Alright, I’ve captured an A-Class. Even just the ransom will be worth it. The Grand Alliance is as good as dead. Now all that’s left is to crush the ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance.)

While Glen was suffering a crushing defeat at the hands of the ‘White Wolves,’ Neil and his group were implementing a contradictory strategy.

Instead of stopping the race against the ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance, they sped up their ascent up the mountain.

(With fewer people, our marching speed has increased. We can catch up to the ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance now!)

Despite the toll it was taking on their stamina, they recklessly pushed forward, determined to catch up.

Ian, worried, spoke to Neil.

“Neil, maybe we should slow down a bit. At this rate, we’ll catch up to the ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance.”

“We want to catch up. And then overtake them.”

“Overtake them? Weren’t we supposed to hold off the ‘White Wolves’ to eliminate the need to compete with the ‘Spirit Workshop’?”

“Exactly. Now that the ‘White Wolves’ are dealt with, we don’t have to worry about the return trip. We can focus entirely on the race with the ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance. Besides, the sooner we gather the ores, the better. The first group back to town will be seen as the winners.”

Ian began to feel uneasy.

He had already been uncomfortable with the decision to split the forces into two groups. Separating the units like this would make them easy targets for defeat in detail.

However, there was no turning back now. Ian realized that the only option left was to follow Neil’s plan and catch up with the “Spirit Workshop” Alliance as quickly as possible.

Thanks to their efforts, the “Grand Alliance” managed to close the distance to just a few hours behind the tail end of the “Spirit Workshop” Alliance.

Leon, who was commanding the rear of the “Spirit Workshop” Alliance, detected the approaching “Grand Alliance” through scouting.

(The “Grand Alliance” is closing in. What should I do?)

Leon was about eight hours away from Laurent, who was leading the central forces of the “Spirit Workshop” Alliance.

Should he rush to Laurent’s position, request reinforcements, or try to handle the situation alone?

(Reinforcements from Laurent won’t arrive in time. I’ll have to handle this alone.)

Fortunately, there was a defensible high ground nearby.

Leon decided to block the path and take up a defensive position on the high ground, waiting to see how the enemy would act.

Before long, the “Grand Alliance” arrived.

Seeing Leon’s forces positioned on the high ground, they began to deploy their own troops, preparing for battle.

Leon observed their movements and smirked.

(I’ve heard there’s no one with proper command aptitude in the “Crown of the Sage”… And now I see why. This is pathetic.)

The forced march had clearly taken a toll on their agility, even without a status appraisal.

Moreover, they had left the high ground behind them completely undefended.

Some of the local adventurers appeared visibly anxious, unsure of what they were supposed to do. From where Leon stood, it was obvious that orders were not being effectively communicated.

Leon decided to take advantage of the high ground behind the enemy.

He sent a unit of archers, known for their high agility, to circle around and take up a position behind the “Grand Alliance” to launch a volley of arrows from their rear.

“What… what are you doing?” Neil exclaimed in panic as he attempted to retake the high ground. However, his troops, exhausted and demoralized, were too afraid of the archers’ volleys to move.

Forced to retreat, Neil’s forces fell back to recover.

Taking advantage of this, Leon swiftly advanced toward their target for the day, losing the pursuing enemies in the process.

Laurent and his team continued to outmaneuver the “Grand Alliance,” reaching the mining site ahead of them.

While the three-way standoff within the “Volcanic Dungeon” was unfolding, a new development was occurring in town.

A new building was under construction near “Dragon’s Ember,” a prominent street leading to the port. Passersby frequently stopped in front of the construction site, speculating about what kind of building it might be.

Medes was among those curious onlookers, gazing up at the structure.

“Quite a large building, isn’t it?” Medes remarked, striking up a conversation with a gentleman standing nearby.

“Oh, if it isn’t Medes!” the gentleman responded.

“Do you know who might be behind such an impressive establishment?” Medes asked.

“It seems to be the work of local adventurers who are part of the ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance,” the gentleman replied.

“Oh? The ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance, you say?”

“Yes, that’s right. Apparently, the alliance members felt it was time to establish a base of operations.”

“My, that’s quite the prosperous news. Unusual for local adventurers.”

“The ‘Spirit Workshop’ Alliance has been on a winning streak lately,” the gentleman said, barely able to contain his excitement. As a notable figure in the town, he was clearly thrilled by the alliance’s recent successes.

“I hear they’re planning to rename the alliance to the ‘Spirit Alliance’ as well,” he added.

“Well, that’s certainly cause for celebration!” Medes replied with a smile.

Medes maintained a friendly smile throughout his conversation with the gentleman.

(Heh, I never expected Laurent to nurture the local adventurers to this extent.)

Even after parting ways with the gentleman, Medes continued to stroll down the street, feeling quite pleased.

In truth, his mood was quite good.

(So what if the “Spirit Workshop” Alliance has grown?)

The ones who should be concerned are the adventurers from outside; “Dragon’s Ember” would remain unaffected.

After all, Laurent’s “Spirit Workshop” mainly dealt with local adventurers, while the guilds from outside the island continued to bring business to “Dragon’s Ember.”

Looking back, Medes couldn’t quite understand why he had been so hostile towards Laurent.

In fact, now Laurent seemed more like a potential ally, similar to “White Wolf.”

Thanks to the recent negotiations, where the “Spirit Workshop” Alliance defeated the “Crown of Sage,” Medes had successfully raised the prices of their equipment.

(Yes, there’s no need to fuss over this. We can coexist. We handle external business, and they manage the local affairs. It’s perfectly fine. If they set up their base near our atelier, all the better. Maybe we could even secretly collaborate with the “Spirit Workshop” Alliance, just like we did with “White Wolf.”)

With these thoughts, Medes cheerfully headed to work at “Dragon’s Ember.”

However, when the project was completed, it turned out not to be a base for adventurers, but a new atelier for the “Spirit Workshop.”

The entrance facing the street housed a shop.

The stylish window displays showcased equipment handled by the atelier, complete with detailed stats and group pricing.

It was clearly aimed at attracting external adventurer guilds.

Laurent had no intention of coexisting with “Dragon’s Ember.”

The new atelier was built to steal customers from them.