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After the crystals had been distributed, an awkward silence settled over the group.

The scenery on both sides rushed past in a blur. Quite a few monsters entered an aggro state, but because they couldn’t keep up with their speed, they were gradually left behind and vanished from sight.

Trees, boulders, magibeasts. For some reason, it suddenly felt rather nice just quietly admiring the nighttime scenery within the game.

…

Time flowed on unconcerned, and before they realized it, the clock had already crept toward eleven.

Was it really this late already?

“Windblossom, are you planning to pull an all-nighter for this quest?” Zane asked. Staying up all night was routine for him, but Windblossom was a girl. Too many sleepless nights meant wrinkles and hair loss.

“No need. An SS-rank quest definitely isn’t something that can be finished in a short time. All we need to do today is infiltrate the city first.” The corner of her lips curled upward as she pointed toward a blurry speck in the distance. “Look, we’re almost there. Thanks to your Morthar.”

Hearing the praise, the beetle raised its antennae slightly in delight.

“It really is…” Though he couldn’t see clearly, the silhouette of a city could vaguely be made out in the distance ahead.

If the map was correct, then there was no doubt it was Noctilune City.

“We’re finally getting there. I was almost falling asleep.” Zane stretched and loosened his muscles to wake himself up.

“We should continue on foot from here. If we approach like this and get discovered, it’ll be hard to explain,” Windblossom said.

“True.” Zane nodded and patted Morthar’s back, signaling it to stop.

The three of them jumped down.

“You can head back now.”

The beetle hesitated briefly before turning around and departing.

“From here on, the real challenge begins. Let’s be careful.”

…

After walking for twenty minutes, the distance between them and the city had barely shortened. Even if they regretted it now, it was already too late.

There were more and more people around them. More accurately, the number of undead and magibeasts was steadily increasing. Of course, there were also plenty of humanoid monsters like themselves. Thanks to that, nobody paid much attention to them.

That said, a group consisting of a Wind Wolf, a red rabbit, and a brown bear was already strange enough on its own.

Where there were crowds, there was conflict.

“D-Don’t hit me… uuu… I was wrong… please… stop…” Less than thirty meters ahead on their right, a frail young girl was crying weakly. Her pair of red-and-white long ears stood upright as a shifty-looking… or rather, mouse-headed man tugged on them while punching and kicking her from time to time.

Windblossom raised an eyebrow. “Should we take a look?”

“Yeah.” Zane nodded. If his guess was correct, the girl was one of the rabbitfolk. Maybe she could provide some useful information.

…

“What? Now you know how to beg for mercy?” the mouse-headed man snarled, twisting the long ears together and lifting the girl completely off the ground by them. “How did you treat me when your sister was around?”

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I know I was wrong!”

“Heh heh. She’s not getting out anytime soon anyway. No matter what I do, nobody will ever know…”

“Wuuuu…” The girl finally broke into tears, looking pitiful enough to stir anyone’s sympathy.

By this point, Zane had already approached them.

The girl was blocked by the ratman, making it impossible to inspect her information. Mice were exceptionally sensitive to their surroundings. He instantly turned his head around. To be fair, the long, pointed face was quite intimidating.

“A Wind Wolf? This has nothing to do with you. Don’t go looking for trouble,” Didi said.

“Oh, you’ve got the wrong idea, brother. I’m just here to ask a few questions.”

“…” Didi was dumbfounded. A Wind Wolf was calling him brother? Was there something wrong with the wolf, or was there something wrong with himself?

Could it be… Had his strength already reached a level where even the arrogant Wind Wolves had no choice but to lower their heads before him? Perhaps… The future of the ratmen was destined to change at this very moment!

Just as this thought filled his mind, a majestic and overbearing aura suddenly surged from behind the Wind Wolf.

Didi immediately looked past him. A female brown bear! The terrifying pressure she radiated was so overwhelming that it nearly left him unable to breathe.

“That’s right. We’ve got a few things we’d like to ask you.”

The ratman felt his limbs turn ice-cold as his grand delusions shattered completely. His grip loosened, and the girl fell to the ground.

“Uuu…” Through tear-filled eyes, the little rabbitfolk stopped crying. Because standing before her was a beautiful young lady who was also a red rabbit! “Big Sister, who are you…?” It was a face she had never seen before…

…

Living up to the ratman’s pitifully weak attributes, Windblossom had barely approached before she scared him unconscious.

“…Am I really that scary?” Windblossom said speechlessly.

After giving her a careful look, Zane nodded. “You’ve got that mother tiger aura going on.”

“Get lost!”

Meanwhile…

“I am… a red rabbit who can’t stand injustice. Just call me Starry. Could you tell me what happened?”

The familiarity of meeting someone from her own race seemed to put the girl greatly at ease. Rubbing her rabbit ears, she began recounting the whole story with a wronged expression.

As it turned out, Noctilune City was about to host an unprecedented arena tournament. Anyone who earned the title of arena champion would receive the favor of— The Endless Water Prison, Eularia.

While her status was still somewhat below that of the Twelve Kings, Eularia’s personal strength far surpassed that of the various miscellaneous lords.

In other words, if someone won the tournament, they might be granted a portion of that great being’s power. Not only that, their social standing would rise accordingly, and their race would benefit as well.

Furthermore, there was no shortage of battle-crazed individuals within the Dark Faction. Once the news spread, it attracted hundreds of thousands of people.

Of course, there was no way that many people could actually participate in the competition. Most had come either as companions or simply to watch the spectacle.

Participation wasn’t without requirements, either. Those who were too old were forbidden from entering, and every contestant needed a guarantor to vouch for them and prevent troublemakers from slipping in.

The sheer volume of visitors had clearly exceeded the organizers’ expectations. As a result, an order was issued: all unrelated individuals were prohibited from entering Noctilune City.

The girl had accompanied her older sister here. Although she herself wasn’t particularly strong, possessing only the strength of a Level 30 Epic Rank, her sister was said to be extremely powerful.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t allowed to enter alongside her. Then, after carelessly exposing an opening, she had been seized by the ratman, leading to the situation they had just witnessed.

“This sounds troublesome… If outsiders aren’t allowed into the city…” Zane frowned.

Windblossom put away her recording scroll. “Then… should we disguise ourselves as tournament participants and sneak in?”

“Little sister…”
“Just call me Lulu.”
“Lulu…” Starry tilted her head in confusion. “How did your sister get in? Didn’t you say contestants need a guarantor?”
The girl puffed out her chest proudly. “My sister is qualified to act as a guarantor herself.”
“…?”

***

Unable to withstand the little rabbitfolk’s relentless pestering, they ultimately had no choice but to bring her along as they continued toward Noctilune City.

“Big Sister Starry, those two are really scary…” Lulu whispered, pointing at Zane and Windblossom.

“I…” An indescribable sense of grievance welled up inside Windblossom. Why had she chosen a brown bear of all things?

Zane, on the other hand, couldn’t have cared less. After all, Starry was under his control anyway.

“It’s alright. They’re both my friends. They won’t hurt you.”

Lulu was about to say something else when her entire body suddenly trembled, curling into a ball.

‘What’s going on?’ Starry looked up and saw several tall, powerfully built men approaching. Bear-like features still remained on their bodies, making it obvious that they hadn’t fully transformed into human form yet.

“Windblossom, your guarantors are here!” Zane exclaimed excitedly.

“…Can I throw away the crystal now?”