The warlock Sherry chatted with them for a while longer, mostly about recent happenings in Grayrock Town and some updates regarding the Adventurers Guild. After quite some time, she gracefully stood up, her fiery red hair swaying like flames as she departed.

Once the door closed again, the invisible pressure in the room seemed to dissipate. Both Gauss and Aria unconsciously let out sighs of relief before exchanging smiles.

"Never thought we'd stumble upon such unexpected windfall," Gauss remarked.

"This was truly good luck. In all my time as a Bronze adventurer, I've never encountered anything like this," Aria added.

"First time? Is it that rare?"

"Yes."

This somewhat dashed Gauss's hopes of making a fortune by hunting down minions of the evil god. But then again, if evidence of the evil god was so common that they could earn 10 gold coins each time, the Adventurers Guild would have long been exploited dry. Moreover, such situations inherently carried greater dangers. So not being able to profit from this might not be such a bad thing.

Leaving the reception room, they immediately collected their reward for the special intelligence at the guild's front desk - ten gleaming gold coins, which they split on the spot just like the commission fee.

Entering the guild's central public rest area, Gauss noticed far more people gathered there than usual, all unusually quiet. Many held identical copies of the kingdom's urgent special edition newspaper. The bold black headline on the front page practically burned into one's eyes: "Sword Trial! Who Will Be the Next Sword Saint?"

Finding an empty table, they borrowed a copy from the newspaper stand. Such earth-shattering news in the human world would make anyone seem terribly outdated if they remained ignorant of it.

Gauss took the newspaper that still carried the strong scent of printer's ink, seemingly fresh off the press with residual warmth. His eyes were quickly drawn to its contents. This special edition, funded by the royal family and freely distributed nationwide through Adventurers Guilds, aimed not only to spread this shocking news quickly but also had deeper underlying motives.

If they could motivate their kingdom's adventurers to journey to the imperial capital, and by some chance one lucky individual managed to draw the legendary holy sword, they could potentially nurture their own legendary powerhouse through subsequent recruitment and training.

To its credit, the newspaper presented realistic challenges rather than blind encouragement. First, the journey was long and travelers had to cover their own expenses. From some border regions of the Carlos Kingdom to the imperial capital Aurelian, one had to cross the entire kingdom and traverse the empire's vast southern territories. For most low-level adventurers, this alone presented a significant barrier, not to mention the substantial travel costs.

Second, adventurers needed to prepare mentally for returning empty-handed. There were no set rules for gaining the holy sword's recognition - it all depended on the sword's inexplicable "preference." Perhaps tomorrow some ragged youth with dried snot under his nose might draw the sword and become famous across nations. Or it might take years, decades, or even longer before anyone succeeded.

It was said that when Sword Saint Roland drew the holy sword, he had been an unknown country bumpkin. That day happened to be a public open day when even non-professionals could approach the sword after passing preliminary screening. Besides the screened hopefuls, guards maintaining order, and vendors trying to make a living, there were hardly any spectators in the square. After so many years without success, people's curiosity had long been extinguished. Who could have imagined that on such an ordinary morning, the holy sword would choose its master from among those "mud-legged" peasants?

"Would you like to try?" Aria put down the newspaper and looked at Gauss. "You do use a sword too, don't you?"

"Me?" Gauss laughed and shook his head. Setting aside the impossibly long journey, since the holy sword was sentient, it would surely choose a warrior whose essence aligned with its own. Among those rushing to the capital now, ninety-nine percent were probably warriors and swordsmen.

"I'm a spellcaster," he spread his hands. If it were a holy staff, he might have some chance.

"Just joking," Aria chuckled at her own unrealistic idea. She couldn't imagine the legendary holy sword ignoring countless elite swordsmen to choose a completely unrelated spellcaster as its master. Even if spellcasters could learn some sword skills, they still couldn't compare to true professional swordsmen. If such a thing really happened, it would become explosive news as shocking as the Sword Saint's fall, worthy of historical records.

"But if I ever pass by the capital in the future, there's no harm in trying."

"Good luck with that," Aria smiled at Gauss's back-and-forth attitude.

After their banter, Gauss set the newspaper aside. Truthfully, such grand narratives were far beyond two small Level 1 professionals like them. Even if he truly wanted to see the holy sword in the capital, his current situation wouldn't allow it. Their most pressing task remained steady, down-to-earth development - expanding the Monster Encyclopedia, accumulating kills, and steadily advancing to higher levels. As for other matters, they'd have to wait until they gained sufficient strength.

Getting up from their seats, they agreed to meet early next morning to deal with the ratfolk spoils. What had initially seemed like substantial gains now appeared rather insignificant after splitting their huge intelligence reward. They decided to rest separately first.

"This is my address. If anything urgent comes up, you can find me here." Before parting, Aria pointed out her residence to Gauss on Grayrock Town's detailed map posted at the Adventurers Guild.

Comparing it with his mental map of the town, Gauss was surprised to find Aria's standalone cottage wasn't far from his temporary inn - just about a minute's walk away.

"Let's walk together. I happen to live nearby too."

"What a coincidence?" Aria was equally surprised. Since their previous meetings had all been at the guild entrance, she hadn't noticed Gauss staying so close.

"Know that inn with light yellow exterior paint on that street? That's where I'm staying."

"Oh, I remember now," Aria nodded. "Then let's meet directly at your inn tomorrow."

"Sure."

After this exchange, they walked down the stairs side by side. Gauss glanced at the mission board but found nothing noteworthy before silently looking away.

Exiting the guild gates, they followed familiar streets until reaching the intersection where the inn stood.

"See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow." Gauss waved as he watched Aria turn into an alley. Her light steps and the soft taps of her boots on cobblestones revealed her excellent mood. Was it because of the money?

Gauss felt equally pleased. With 9 gold and 85 silver in cash, and only 20 gold in debt repayable within six months, his financial pressure wasn't too heavy. On their way back, he'd even asked Aria about suitable vacant properties nearby, considering whether to rent or buy. Owning a place would provide an additional foothold. For him, spending about one gold coin wasn't an extravagant expense. Even without extra windfalls, mission commissions plus selling spoils should net them 0.7 to 1 gold per person per mission. One or two missions could buy a small place in remote areas - the money-making efficiency of professionals would make many ordinary people green with envy.

Of course, this was only reasonable. High risks brought high rewards. Many low-level adventurers struggled for years just to become professionals. If the pay remained meager, no one would stay in this line of work.

Next morning.

Gauss climbed out of bed, looking exhausted.

"Ha—" He yawned.

He knew his current condition wasn't great. For some reason, he'd had a rare nightmare last night. In the dream, some invisible force restrained him motionless while a tall dark green figure repeatedly severed his limbs with a blade. Strangely, the limbs would instantly regenerate only to be cut off again... an endless cycle.

Though he didn't feel much pain in the dream, the experience of "watching" himself being dismembered repeatedly was deeply unsettling. Thankfully, it was just a dream. After waking once during the night, everything returned to normal, though his sleep quality remained poor.

Now, unusually, his eyes lacked their usual vitality.

"Could it be from contact with that evil god's artifact?" Gauss rubbed his temples. He wasn't sure but could only speculate. If it were the evil god's influence, why didn't it affect him the night before at the manor, but only started yesterday with a day's delay? What had he done differently yesterday compared to the day before? Returned to Grayrock Town, submitted the mission, read the newspaper?

At least returning to normal later suggested it might just be a random occurrence, perhaps some psychological aftereffect. He'd keep observing for now. Or maybe ask someone?

Gauss yawned again. Apart from fatigue from poor sleep, he had no other adverse reactions.

"Morning."

"Morning."

Sophia's voice came from downstairs. She was patiently teaching Winnie, the neighbor's girl, some waitressing skills. Yes, the same girl temporarily recruited to help during Gauss's promotion celebration had now been officially hired as staff. The inn's business had indeed improved lately.

In fact, this situation might relate somewhat to Gauss. His regular presence as a Bronze adventurer deterred troublemakers. Perhaps through some underground information network, habitual ruffians and street thugs consciously avoided the area. Moreover, Gauss wasn't the bullying type - while his professional dignity naturally commanded respect, his first impression remained steady rather than arrogant. Thus, some peace-seeking tenants preferred this relatively safe place for long-term stays.

Sophia had clearly become more serious about management too. The menu had expanded far beyond its pitiful state when Gauss first arrived. Rumor had it she was considering hiring a skilled chef. Seeing her finally stop "coasting" and take her small inn business seriously made Gauss genuinely happy for her.

"Not feeling energetic today?"

"Didn't sleep well." Gauss didn't elaborate on his nightmare.

"You should rest more. Maybe slow down your mission frequency?" Sophia suggested helpfully.

"Hmm." Gauss responded casually, knowing she meant well.

Meanwhile, the new staff member Winnie carefully wiped the counter while stealing curious glances at Gauss, her eyes lingering especially on the bronze badge marking his professional status. Being this close to a "big shot" was a first for her, naturally sparking curiosity about how professionals differed from ordinary people.

After prolonged observation, the blushing girl reached a private conclusion: There was a difference.

He was... especially good-looking.