The Invaders of the Large Tomb

There were rumors that Eruya hailed from Slane Theocracy, where humans were considered the most superior race. As an alleged citizen of the Theocracy, he had the tendency to treat those with mixed blood as lower-class humans.

For a man like that to see a half-elf such as Imina to be participating as an equal simply did not make him any happier.

It’s because of this that the rumors end up becoming so credible… However, people from theTheocracy should have a baptismal name, although there’s also been rumors that he’s forsaken it.

Hekkeran considered this deep in his heart, and said out loud just in case.

"…Oi, oi, don’t be so hostile to my comrade, okay?"

"Of course. We’ll be comrades for the same work this time. I’ll definitely be cooperative."

"I will take your word for it."

Perhaps the powerful wild child Eruya matured, but Hekkeran was still afraid that he would run amok. In short, he could feel the mental instability of Eruya. Hekkeran couldn’t relax even after giving the warning, that’s how unpleasant the atmosphere was.

"Ay, trust me. Anyway, returning to the previous topic, I don’t mind letting someone else take leadership during this trip. As long as there are no special cases, I’ll follow the orders given. If we encounter battle, I don’t mind taking the frontlines. I’ll let you guys witness my blade skills."

"Yes yes, understood."

"…Well then, I’ll be returning to my team then. If there are any problems just call me."

Eruya bowed, and walked off.

Hekkeran’s face slightly twitched after seeing a number of women following Eruya. However, showing one’s emotions here was simply unacceptable. It was not uncommon for situations to suddenly turn unfavorable after one’s emotions were exposed. As the leader of a team, this kind of behavior would be unacceptable.

Hekkeran suppressed his emotions, and removed all facial expressions.

Looking away from what he considered as trash, he greeted the final person.

"Hello, elder. I see you’re still healthy and well."

"Hoi, Hekkeran. You’re also looking well."

The sounds produced from the words said were due to the loss of frontal teeth.

Parupatra 'Green Leaf' Ogrion.

Also known as the ‘Origin’, he wore armor that looked as if it were brimming with lights reflected from green leaves wet from the morning dew. The armor wasn’t made from metal, but rather from the scales of a Green Dragon. Parupatra’s team was able to successfully hunt a dragon. Of course, from the size of the scales one could tell that it wasn’t that powerful. However, even then a dragon of that size was still an existence that posed a severe threat to adventurers and workers alike.

Furthermore, Parupatra was over eighty years old.

Typically, in this line of work, the majority of people would have retired by their early forties, sometimes even before forty. There were very few adventurers above the age of fifty. As harsh as it may seem, for a profession which is constantly surrounded by death, it’s hard to ignore the decline in one’s physical abilities.

In fact, even as a special case, when compared to his peak, the time when he was at Orichalcum rank, his skills had dropped considerably. Even so, Parupatra still hadn’t left the front lines.

Many people within the industry respected Parupatra for continuing to adventure despite his advanced age.

"Fumuu. However, that guy seems a bit dangerous."

The wrinkled face of Parupatra became tense as he spoke in a hushed voice. Hekkeran also agreed.

"That’s right. It doesn’t matter if he ends up killing himself, but it’ll be bad if we end up getting dragged down with him."

"Indeed, it’s true that guy is really strong, but his overconfidence could endanger the rest of us. He’s like a walking hazard."

Greenham also chipped in with a whispered "So troublesome to deal with". After seeing Eruya’s attitude, almost none of the workers would think otherwise.

"Also, just how strong is that guy anyways? I haven’t been to the arena recently."

"Does thee not know? I however, do—does elder also know?"

"I’ve only heard about it but never witnessed in person. I might be able to find out more if I ask my comrades. In the end, how do we define the threshold for strong? If we use Gazef Stronoff as the reference point, from what this old man currently know of… for example, ah that’s right… where would we place the Four Knights of the Empire?"

"The knights titled 'Heavy Explosion', 'Unmovable', 'Lightning', and 'Violent Wind' huh… That’s quite difficult to judge. Although it’s true that when compared against that man, the Kingdom’s Warrior Captain, the Four Knights are slightly weaker. However, the time of Gazef Stronoff being the strongest is already over. The passage of time have finally triggered the arrival of stronger beings, signaling the birth of a new era."