Chapter 50: Debt 50 - Is Doing It With the Heroine My Reward for Reaching Rank A?

The group had finally finished clearing the dungeon, though they hadn’t done it completely alone.

More than twenty adventurers had entered in total.

Most of them had managed to clear some floors before the demons attacked or during the attack itself.

However, after counting the items, while it was true they hadn’t obtained any combat weapons, the materials they had gathered were quite valuable.

And now that they had finally exited the dungeon,

In the distance, sentinels from Demon King Rigal’s kingdom were watching them.

"From here I count eight demons, although the one with the huge scythe doesn’t look like a giant," Ryan commented without taking his eyes off them.

Karol took two steps forward, raised her hand to her forehead to shield her eyes from the sun, and said,

"It looks like they don’t intend to fight."

"That doesn’t matter. If they’re here, it’s proof enough that their intentions aren’t peaceful," Helen grumbled.

"Is there even such a thing as a peaceful demon?" Mirian asked with a slight sarcastic tone.

’Yeah, that’s true. Even though they’re very intelligent, so far I haven’t seen a single one willing to talk... Well, actually there was one.’

The demon with the huge scythe seemed to step forward.

Then he ran a finger across his neck in a clear gesture.

"That’s a threat! Then come here and fight, you bastard!" Helen shouted.

Ryan glanced sideways at the archer.

"Mirian, can you hit them from this distance?"

"Of course!" she affirmed with a smile.

She raised her bow toward the sentinels.

The skill activated, and a rain of arrows shot straight in the expected direction.

The demons didn’t move.

The first arrows landed several meters in front of them, kicking up dust.

The next arrows advanced further. The impact created a huge roar, and the wind stirred violently around the area.

The cloud of dust grew larger.

"Did you hit them?" Karol asked.

"No... I didn’t feel any experience gain..."

When the dust cloud finally dispersed, there was no trace of the demons.

"They used teleportation stones," Ryan said, annoyance clear in his eyes.

"Do you think they went back into the dungeon or somewhere nearby?" Mirian asked as she returned her bow to rest behind her back.

"No, they’ve probably already returned to their kingdom. They must know that the first group of Rank S heroines to leave has already reported to the guild."

Ryan paused.

He continued,

"Most likely some investigation team is already on its way. And anyway, they’re not stupid enough to face you two directly. They probably just went back to report what happened."

"I see. That makes sense," Karol added.

’Yes, but no matter what they report, they’ll only say there were two dangerous Rank S heroines. While it’s true I’m not as strong as a Rank S yet, I already exceed the capabilities of a normal Rank A.’

Ryan turned to look at Karol.

’Karol’s offensive power is also very strong. If they only evaluated Mirian and Helen by their rank, they’ll be in for a surprise if they try to set a trap for us.’

"What’s wrong? Why are you suddenly looking at me like that? Don’t tell me you’re craving a kiss from me?" Karol said with a coquettish little laugh.

"Hey, we should get going already. I’m really hungry," Mirian interrupted.

"You’re right."

With that, Ryan’s group headed toward the city.

Although they weren’t actually that far, it still took them about forty-five minutes of walking to reach the gates.

When they arrived, the guards welcomed them without any issues and let them pass easily.

Ryan began to think they were quite friendly.

’Maybe our bad reputation hasn’t spread this far yet. Even if Rigal’s sentinels underestimate us for now, they must already know that the Lunar Veil heroes’ group was the one who interfered with their plans in the border city.’

They kept walking. Their plan for now was to find an inn.

’Which means this is the second time we’ve stood in Rigal’s way, and he won’t let it slide. Sooner or later he’ll plan something against us.’

Then Ryan stopped.

"Is something wrong, Ryan?" Mirian asked.

"Yeah. I think you should sell some of the materials. We don’t have much money right now, and it would help."

"You’re right," Mirian agreed. "Then I’ll go sell them. But only some? Why not all?"

Karol approached and intervened.

"It’s better this way. If we accumulate too many materials, we can use them to complete collection quests. They’re always in demand, and we already have a lot prepared. I’m sure Ryan was thinking about that."

"Yeah, yeah. In the meantime, I’ll go find an inn, and we’ll meet up there later."

Karol took Mirian’s arm.

"Will you come with me?" Mirian nodded and then looked at Helen.

"Are you coming?"

Helen shook her head.

"I’m exhausted right now, so I’ll go with Ryan."

"Alright."

Ryan took out the materials from his magic inventory.

Karol lifted them with her floating magic.

After agreeing to meet later, the group split up.

Ryan and Helen went to find an inn. There was one notable inn that was the closest to the gate they had entered through.

Because of that, it would be very easy for Mirian and Karol to find them once they finished selling the materials.

...

Once inside the inn, Helen was looking at Ryan strangely.

It was almost as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.

Then, suddenly, she threw herself at him and hugged him from behind.

"We’re finally alone," she whispered in his ear.

Ryan felt Helen’s breath against his ear and it made him tense up.

But he turned toward her and looked into her eyes.

Her beautiful face was flushed.

He slowly lowered his hands and placed them on Helen’s waist.

"Do you want to do it?" Ryan asked in a soft tone, very different from the one he usually used with her.

Helen blushed even more, but her beautiful eyes sparkled for a moment.

She didn’t say anything at first, but nodded.

Then she spoke.

"Yes, I want to. And this will be your reward for reaching Rank A."

She smiled with flushed cheeks.

"After all, you finally reached Rank A, right? Congratulations, Ryan."