The Kicked Out S-Rank Appraiser Creates The Strongest Guild - Chapter 142

Chapter 142   The Legendary Appraiser

The “Spirit Alliance,” having swiftly defeated the “Crimson Sand Players,” continued their ascent up the mountain without losing momentum.

Soon, they caught up with the “Fortress Archers” and initiated a battle.

The “Fortress Archers,” seasoned in mountain combat, calmly took advantageous positions at higher ground, ready to fight back.

Realizing that engaging immediately would be unwise, Laurent and his team chose to bypass their position instead, advancing further up the mountain. They made camp when they reached a higher altitude. The “Fortress Archers'” commander, Roberto, and his deputy, Jeremy, debated whether to attack the “Spirit Alliance” passing below them but decided to let them go for now.

The next day, the “Spirit Alliance” prepared to face the pursuing “Fortress Archers,” and a shooting battle ensued.

As the “Fortress Archers” deployed a squad of archers, Hans, from a slightly distant position, took aim at the enemy.

A distance that would have been far out of range before was now easily within his reach.

When Hans’ arrow struck one of the enemy archers, a murmur ran through their ranks.

When he hit another, the murmur turned into agitation.

It had to be a fluke.

There was no way an arrow could hit from such a distance.

That’s what every member of the “Fortress Archers” thought.

Yet, at the same time, they couldn’t shake the fear that the “Spirit Alliance” might possess an archer with an incredibly long range.

Their indecision, whether to advance or take cover, was evident in their hesitant movements.

When Hans took down a third archer, the “Fortress Archers” fell into a panic.

Despite being out of range, they frantically fired arrows in Hans’ direction.

But all their arrows fell short, landing at Hans’ feet without hitting their target.

(I don’t feel like I’ll miss. And… I don’t feel like I’ll be hit either!)

Hans released his fourth arrow of the day.

The arrow flew straight and struck the enemy archer dead-on.

Alice and Claire, watching Hans’ precision, were wide-eyed with amazement.

(Amazing. Hitting every shot from such a distance… This is what it means to be an A-class archer…)

“Alice… Claire,” he called out.

“Y-Yes?”

“Hand me more arrows. I think I’ll have the best chance of hitting the target, and it’ll help conserve our arrows.”

“Understood!”

“Claire, use ‘Far Sight’ to keep an eye on the enemy’s rear movements. Alice, use ‘Focused Hatred’ to disrupt any enemies that get too close.”

Claire’s eyes glistened with admiration as she watched Hans.

(Hans, you’ve become so dependable. It feels like ages ago when you were just wandering aimlessly. I’m so proud of you.)

Meanwhile, Jeremy, the deputy commander of the “Fortress Archers,” was desperately trying to advance his archer squad.

“What are you doing? You’re letting that one guy pick us off! Get closer and shoot! At this rate, nothing’s going to hit him!”

However, despite Jeremy’s efforts, they couldn’t even get Hans within their effective range.

(This can’t be happening. The ‘Fortress Archers’—the strongest archer unit—being completely outmatched… by a local adventurer from this island? It has to be some kind of mistake. This… this is impossible…)

Jeremy suddenly felt a surge of killing intent directed at him.

Someone was targeting him.

He hastily readied his bow to return fire.

“What are you doing, Jeremy? Hurry up and take out that enemy archer!” Roberto, the squad leader, scolded him as he arrived to spur his troops (he had been leading the melee unit, waiting for the right moment to charge).

But before he could do much more, an arrow struck him.

“Ugh…”

“Roberto! Damn it!”

Jeremy fired an arrow back, but it missed Hans by a wide margin.

Hans calmly retreated, leaving Jeremy in shock.

(That guy… he had me in his sights, but then at the last moment, he switched his aim to Roberto? I was the one targeting you… but…)

This meant that Hans didn’t see Jeremy’s archery as any threat at all.

Moreover, it showed that Hans had the composure to change his target even while facing Jeremy directly.

Hans’ series of actions made the overwhelming difference in skill painfully clear and was enough to crush Jeremy’s will to fight.

Afterwards, both guilds’ melee units clashed, leading to a battle of formations, but they were quickly subdued by Will’s “Explosive Magic.”

The “Fortress Archers” had also fallen to the “Spirit Alliance.”

News of this quickly reached the “Knights of the Black Wall” who were further ahead.

“What? The ‘Fortress Archers’ were defeated by the ‘Spirit Alliance’?”

Simon couldn’t believe the report he received from Liz, who had been keeping an eye on their rear.

“There must be some mistake! The ‘Fortress Archers’ are a guild with a powerful archer unit. They have plenty of combat experience in the ‘Volcano Dungeon.’ There’s no way those weak local adventurers could have taken them down…”

“They really were defeated by the ‘Spirit Alliance.’ Every scout’s report says the same thing. The ‘Fortress Archers’ surrendered to a unit equipped with gear bearing the spirit emblem.”

“No, that can’t be… Maybe the local guild joined forces with the ‘Crimson Sands Players’ or something…”

“I’m telling you, the ‘Spirit Alliance’ acted alone. I’ve double-checked, and there’s no mistake.”

Liz spoke with a barely concealed irritation in her voice.

Something beyond their understanding was happening.

If they didn’t act quickly, the situation could become irreparable.

Her instincts told her this.

(“The Spirit Workshop”… “Guardians of the Magic Tree”… these two guilds… somewhere…)

“That’s it! I remember now—The Legendary Appraiser!”

Archie, who had been silent until now, suddenly shouted.

“What is it, Archie? What’s going on?”

“I’ve remembered. The ‘Spirit Workshop’ and the ‘Guardians of the Magic Tree’—these two guilds have been growing rapidly in ‘Adventurer’s Town.'”

“And what does that have to do with anything?”

“You must have heard the rumors about the legendary appraiser who appeared in ‘Adventurer’s Town.’ Not long ago, that place was considered barren of A-class talent. But suddenly, guilds from that town began producing A-class adventurers and alchemists like crazy: Lucius, Alric, Savast, Daevin, Jill, Lilianne. ‘Adventurer’s Town’ has now become one of the top places in the world for A-class adventurers. The rumor is that there’s an extraordinary appraiser behind this surge. That’s what people have been whispering.”

“I did hear something along those lines, but…”

“Could it be that this legendary appraiser is now supporting the ‘Spirit Alliance’?”

“Yes. If we consider that possibility, everything makes sense. The defeat of the ‘Crimson Sands Players’ and the ‘Fortress Archers,’ and the rapid growth of the local adventurers…”

As Archie spoke, the threat steadily approached.

The ‘Spirit Alliance’ had already begun revealing themselves to ‘Knights of the Black Wall.’

A group armed with weapons from the ‘Spirit Workshop’ could be seen marching down a narrow mountain path below.

“The alchemist we met at the port said they had trained local adventurers up to A-class. I believe that several A-class adventurers trained by that legendary appraiser are among that group.”

“What… They’ve raised the adventurers on this island to A-class?”

“What? So, if that person appraises you, you can become A-class? No way… I want to be appraised by him too!”

Liz blurted out.

“Fool! This is no time for jokes. They defeated both the ‘Crimson Sands Players’ and the ‘Fortress Archers.’ It’s highly likely they’ll attack us next. We need to come up with a plan immediately… But what should we do?”

“How about sending a messenger?” Archie suggested.

“They are adventurers, after all. They should be reasonable enough to talk to. If we can find out why they’re attacking outside adventurers, we might be able to avoid a fight.”

“Alright. We’ll send a messenger right away. Liz, Archie, will you do it?”

“Understood.”

“We’ll head out immediately.”

Liz and Archie quickly gathered a minimal team and raced down the mountain.

Meanwhile, Simon prepared for battle in case the negotiations failed.

Before long, Liz and Archie returned and reported the results of their negotiations with the ‘Spirit Alliance.’

“Captain, we’ve understood the intentions of the ‘Spirit Alliance.'”

“Oh, have you? So, why are they attacking us?”

“They’re attacking us because of our contract with the ‘Dragon’s Ember.'”

“Their only demand is that we terminate our contract with the ‘Dragon’s Ember.'”

“What? Cancel our contract with the ‘Dragon’s Ember’? That’s impossible. We’ve already paid for three maintenance cycles. Canceling now would result in a massive penalty. Go back and negotiate for some other terms.”

Simon sent the two back out with the following concessions:

They would ensure that if their paths crossed with the ‘Spirit Alliance,’ they would not interfere and would yield the way.

They would cooperate with any necessary supply needs, including items and equipment.

They would even offer rear support during the ‘Spirit Alliance’s’ dungeon expeditions.

Simon anxiously waited for their return, praying that these terms would be accepted.

Meanwhile, the ‘Spirit Alliance’ continued to ready their attack, gradually encircling the elevated position where Simon and his men were stationed. The sharp arrowheads of the enemy could be seen clearly.

With tensions high, any sudden move could spark a battle.

Simon waited nervously for Liz and Archie to return.

Eventually, they came back.

“It’s no use. They still insist that the only way to resolve this is for us to cancel our contract with ‘Dragon’s Ember.'”

“They’ve also said that if we continue our contract with the ‘Dragon’s Ember,’ they will consider us allies of their enemy, the ‘White Wolves,’ and will attack us on sight in any dungeon.”

“Damn it… This is difficult.”

Simon furrowed his brow in frustration.

“Captain, let’s just cancel the contract with the ‘Dragon’s Ember,'” Liz suggested.

“Continuing the contract will only increase the risk of being attacked by the ‘Spirit Alliance.'”

“I agree,” Archie added. “It would be wiser to maintain a good relationship with the ‘Spirit Alliance’ and gain the support of the local guilds.”

Simon pondered this, but as the ‘Spirit Alliance’ completed their preparations, with archers and shield-bearers in position, he reluctantly gave in.

“Alright, we’ll comply with their demands. We will cancel our contract with ‘Dragon’s Ember’ and align ourselves with the ‘Spirit Alliance.'”

And so, ‘Knights of the Black Wall’ surrendered to the ‘Spirit Alliance.’

The ‘Spirit Alliance’ ceased their attack on the ‘Knights of the Black Wall.’

Simon was impressed by Laurent’s tactics.

(With such a firm stance and swift maneuvering, the leader of the ‘Spirit Alliance’ must be quite an exceptional person.)