22 – ◈ Black Rabbit ◈
Securing accommodations is not a difficult task.
When Lucia secured the room and came out, her face was flushed.
‘Even without immunity…’
Too much.
Lucia entered the inn, booked a room, moved her belongings, and stuttered through explanations of the inn’s layout throughout.
From the innkeeper’s perspective, she seemed like an easy guest to take advantage of.
ㅡ Oh, the couple looks great together.
ㅡ Couple…? Oh, no!
ㅡ You’re from out of town, right? How did you meet? Your husband is tall and handsome!
ㅡ Not my husband…!
Lucion was puzzled.
He remembered that Lucia wasn’t the type to stay silent even when she heard a playful remark. Well, Lucion would jab a cane into his throat when teased.
ㅡ If you play around one more time, you’ll die?
It was something like that.
But now.
ㅡ Lucion looks good…
ㅡ hahahahaha. Really? Does it suit me?
ㅡ hehehe.
ㅡ Thank you! Oh my. Does it suit Unnie too?
Huh? Unnie? There should be over a twenty-year age difference.
Seems like Sia’s personality changed a lot, perhaps experiencing the wild. Or maybe she just missed people? Watching her holding hands with the innkeeper and hopping around, one might wonder if women naturally did that kind of thing.
Anyway, it was something Lucion couldn’t understand.
But he couldn’t just wander the streets in a dazed state.
Get a grip.
“Let’s look around before the sunset.”
“Huh? Around? Okay, um… Can you wait for a moment? I’ll get ready and come out soon.”
Lucion tilted his head.
‘Is there something to prepare?’
Since they were staying in one room, there were only three spaces: the bedroom, the attic with a mirror, and the dressing room. Lucia spent a while in the attic before coming out.
Even though she didn’t have any clothes to change into, it took a while for Lucía to reappear. When she did, her appearance had only slightly changed, except for her hairstyle. It wasn’t noticeable.
“Let’s go.”
“Yeah!”
Lucía was excited.
‘Come to think of it, it was the same last time.’
She was thrilled to be living in this huge kingdom.
The largest city in the world, Oslan. Lucía understood the expectations she had by setting foot in such a place.
Of course, it’s not as easy as it seems, especially in such a massive city. And even more so if it’s the outskirts.
There was a reason they had to come back before sunset.
Since it was the first day, hopefully nothing would go wrong.
#
Even though it was located in the farthest corner of Oslan, the houses were neatly arranged in blocks. It might be because there were major roads nearby.
Thanks to that, it was easy to identify important buildings at a glance.
A building occupying a whole block, eight stories high.
“What kind of place is that over there?”
“That’s the guild.”
“Wow. It’s even bigger than I heard…”
The guild was not just a space for mercenaries. In Oslan, it was a fairly important national institution, even though other countries might not operate the same way.
It oversees all the missions undertaken by adventurers, knights, and mercenaries. Not only that, but it also handles all the odd jobs that other public institutions cannot manage directly.
In simple terms, it’s the official [errand center] of the Kingdom of Oslan.
Most of the work is outsourced, but the guild is responsible for all the liabilities.
The level of errands ranges from top-secret royal missions to finding lost cats. They handle all kinds of tasks.
Because they deal with a fair amount of secrets, all adventurers were strictly managed under a security hierarchy.
Of course, the Adventurers Guild only provided missions and managed the ranking of registered members.
They had no involvement in creating parties or groups. They simply gave permission.
And thus, skilled adventurer groups were formed within the kingdom.
The guild residing in the southeastern part of Osran, known as “Panachia,” goes by the name “Black Thorn.”
It was a small elite guild consisting of about twenty members. The guild was centered around the Black Cat Beastman, Kanan.
According to Lucion’s knowledge, Black Thorn performed various secret missions, including the extermination of thief gangs. The reason why there was a significant emphasis on missions involving humans was not just because Panachia was located close to the sea.
“It must be because the monsters in this area are protected.”
Monsters do not occur naturally. They also go through the process of reproduction. If the number of individuals decreases too much, the food pyramid collapses, resulting in uncontrollable consequences. Therefore, it is not easy to carry out targeted monster extermination operations. Besides, there are also wild animals that prey on the monsters.
For example, the wyverns.
Wyverns were also wild animals. Originally, they were classified as monsters, but since the day when magicians started taming them, they became classified as wild animals. If there is a possibility for humans to handle them, they are all considered wild animals.
“And Osran has too many people.”
There had to be those who managed them underwater. It was necessary for the order of society.
At some point, Lucion and Lucia would have to join Black Thorn. It was the fastest way to rise in ranks.
But that was not immediate. Lucia was not yet prepared.
However, many things happen when one is not prepared.
“Lucion.”
A path that was about to pass by, ignoring the guild.
Lucia tugged at her waistband as if she had just witnessed something extraordinary.
“Hey, look…. There are ears above my head…!”
Lucion doubted his own ears.
Ears above the head?
No way.
In Panachia, only dangerous individuals around the guild had ears attached to their heads.
It was not the right time to encounter them.
Please.
Let it not be true.
Silently, Lucion wished for a miracle, but as usual, miracles did not happen.
He heard the voice of a mischievous girl.
“Hey, you there.”
Lucion tensed up.
There wasn’t enough time to react.
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What could he do?
Lucion tightly held Lucia’s hand, ignoring the girl’s provocative voice, and continued to walk straight ahead, facing her.
#
There had never been misfortune like this before.
Of all times, to encounter a black rabbit in front of the guild.
Not that it had a bad temper, but…
The black rabbit knows me better than anyone else.
‘Crazy about pretty girls.’
The only information publicly available about the black rabbit, shrouded entirely in secrecy. The reason being that I am the only one who knows it is to find and recruit beautiful female guild members for the secret guild.
I was quite obsessed with Lucia in my past life.
It seems like I’ve noticed something this time too.
“You’re quite bold. Are you ignoring me?”
Suddenly, a delinquent— the black rabbit, blocked our path and stood before us.
‘Long time no see.’
Golden eyes looking up. Long, pointed black ears standing up.
The gold emblem of the adventurer guild [Black Claw] on the shoulders, elegantly embroidered, showcasing the guild’s prestige.
From the closely fitting leather clothes to the sturdy belt crossing the body.
Overall, the black cat in front of us looked like a sports figure, but in reality, he was an intellectual character. Moreover, an ultra-high intellect character.
Narrowing his eyes and scanning us seemed to be a measure of combat power.
In the eyes of the black rabbit observing us, there was tension.
‘That kid has been through all sorts of ups and downs as a rabbit.’
I left my sword at the inn, but I couldn’t hide the aura of a warrior.
Kanan came closer to me. Then he tried to examine the face hidden under his robe.
“You.”
You?
Casual language wasn’t a big deal, but.
Too close.
Your breath is too close.
This is getting impolite. While standing on tiptoe, the rabbit clung to me, sniffing my nose. I felt the urge to straighten its behavior, even if it meant giving it a good smack.
‘Judging by its attitude, one might think I’m trying to grab it by the scruff of its neck.’
Still, I couldn’t back down.
I had to assert myself. It would ensure safety.
I only lowered my eyes and looked down at the black rabbit. There was a significant height difference, so I had to lower my head to see it properly. Purposefully, I only lowered my eyes to impose a sense of intimidation.
“Sorry, but I don’t have time to play with you, little one.”
“What… What?”
The rabbit’s ears shot up. Judging by its widened eyes, it seemed quite surprised.
It had been a while since anyone treated Kanan this way. In Phanacia, no one treated him like a kid anymore.
“Oh, I see. You’re from outside?”
Nodding, the black-haired little one replied. It seemed to recognize that it was objectively small, especially now that it barely reached my neck.
However, I truly didn’t have time to play.
“Hurry home. It’s getting dark, and your parents will be looking for you.”
“Ha… hahahaha.”
Shuffle.
A faint jingling sound reached my ears.
It must be a misunderstanding.
This is a stretch of road, and there seems to be something to break here.
“Aren’t you going?”
In response to my question, the kid clenched his fist tightly.
“I’m not a kid.”
Yeah.
He’s not a kid; he’s a little rascal.
“I have a proper name, it’s Kanan!”
Unusual.
Usually, they tell you to call them the boss.
Something like a alley boss.
“Kanan?”
“Yeah, Kanan. Call me ‘kid’ one more time, and I’ll kill you.”
Looking at the force in both ears, it seems genuine.
“Well, understood. So… K…”
“Hey.”
He interrupted me, so I stopped talking too.
“Kanan. But are you going to keep blocking the way?”
There were quite a few people gathering around.
Doesn’t look like we’re here to fight.
There’s nothing as entertaining as watching a fight.
From the beginning, Kanan was a quite attention-grabbing figure. Not because of her cute appearance, but because, as she claimed, she was the leader of this alley.
Her temperament was quite fierce, making her quite well-known in the area. Well, at least to me, she was just the rabbit of the southeast, nothing more.
People seemed curious about what might happen to the blond boy and girl who appeared as outsiders and caught Kanan’s attention.
The chatter went like this:
ㅡ Seems like clueless foreigners. This won’t end well. They’ve messed with the temperament of the black rabbit.
ㅡ hahahaha, what can you do? Haven’t we all been through it at least once?
ㅡ hehehe. Our young lady should pull herself together too.
ㅡ That’s right. But standing so stiff like that, it’s the first time I’ve seen someone do that. Did she really have to bring up that word that should never be said?
Where’s this ‘never’ you speak of?
I can say the word ‘kid’ a hundred times more.
ㅡ Well then, you’ve said that word ‘twice’ now. You must have also been a novice once.
ㅡ Yeah…. got everything exposed, chased away in the breeze, butt naked on the street.
ㅡ Wasn’t that embarrassing?
ㅡ It’s in the past, what’s there to be embarrassed about.
I glanced at the people talking. They were wearing outer garments decorated with black fur.
‘These are the followers.’
They weren’t the villagers who had lost their composure.
Gradually, I started to grasp the situation by intensifying the strength of divine power and examining the arrangement of the people around.
“Hmm.”
We’re surrounded.
The people casually walking around us were actually all followers of the Black Rabbit, members of the Black Fang Guild.
“It seems like… they’ve been watching us from the beginning.”
Lucion suddenly realizes.
Although the little black rabbit in front of him may seem foolish and immature, he is the leader of the Black Fang Guild, which controls the southeastern region of Oslan, and a candidate for Archmage. His name is Kanan, also known as Black Cat.