Starting with the goblin extermination

Logan stopped and, using the fading sunlight in the woods, checked his location.

The gray spots on the leaves exceeded one-third, but were not yet halfway covered.

"We're almost there." Logan put away the map.

"Hiccup... We're almost there."

Kosca seemed unusually excited. Even though he was panting from walking, the old man couldn't help but come closer, his cloudy eyes shining with fanaticism.

"Kid, you've been there before, haven't you? Do you even know what the [Guardian Stone] is?"

"Just three broken stones." Logan didn't even turn his head. "I came here once before when I was on a mission with Thorin, but I didn't look at it closely."

In my past life, I wasn't very interested in traveling. When I went to tourist attractions, I would just take photos and check them off my list.

So when I went to the Guardian Stone, all I could think about was killing the wild boar and getting money, so I didn't have time to pay attention to the three moss-covered rocks.

"Ignorant! Vulgar!"

Koska was so angry she jumped up and down, shaking her head repeatedly, as if Logan had desecrated some sacred treasure.

"That's no ordinary rock! That's a magical structure personally erected by the great emperor who unified the entire continent—Alando! And it was specifically built in his birthplace, which is now Riverwood!"

The old man lowered his voice mysteriously again.

"Ancient texts record that, by mastering special incantations, one can communicate with the stars in the heavens through the Guardian Stone, imbuing the traveler with incredible power!"

"What special spell?" Logan asked casually, using his longsword to clear away the thorns blocking his path.

Koska straightened his emaciated chest and patted it.

"This is the ultimate research project I've been undertaking in Riverwood, working incognito! To decipher lost history, to awaken the magnificent architecture of Emperor Arlando, and to make ancient wisdom serve the present! Doesn't that sound incredibly noble?"

Logan glanced at him.

He simply couldn't associate the old drunkard in front of him, who was chugging strong liquor and kissing a goblin, with the words "noble historian."

However, Logan was no stranger to the name Arlando.

Arlando.

Even in North Nordland, it is a well-known and legendary name. His father had told him the great epic of Emperor Arando the Great by the firelight when he was a child.

What "Alando Slays the Frost Dragon"? What "Alando Outwits the Troll King"...?

These are all childhood books that have been romanticized countless times by bards.

As he grew a little older and went through puberty, he secretly borrowed some unofficial histories about Arlando from bookstalls.

For example, "Alando the Great and His Four Wild Wives", "Alando vs. the Succubus Queen", "Young Alando", etc.

cough cough.

Regardless, Arlando is a celebrity known to everyone on the entire continent.

Even the calendar they use now is named after him.

"So you're really researching Alando?"

With the mission nearing completion, Logan relaxed for once and started chatting with Koska.

"Since you are a great scholar, tell me, is it really true that Emperor Arlando and the Succubus Queen fought for nine days and nine nights in the Abyss Labyrinth?"

Elsa, who was walking ahead, seemed to realize something when she heard this. Her fair ears turned red, and she turned around and glared at Logan.

"Vulgar! All you adventurers have in your heads is that kind of stuff and excrement!"

Kosca seemed to have been greatly insulted and jumped up and down in protest.

It's as if he wasn't the one singing those vulgar tunes not long ago.

However, Koska quickly recovered.

The old man coughed twice, and his tone suddenly became very serious.

"However, according to 'The Secret History of the Emperor: The Fall of the Labyrinth Ruler,' Emperor Arando did indeed personally fight the Succubus Queen in order to conquer the Abyss Labyrinth. However, this book was published by the public in the later period of the Second Empire, and its authenticity needs to be verified."

"However, another book, 'A Study of the Empire', compiled by court scholars, also subtly mentions that the Emperor lingered in the Succubus Queen's territory for a long time. This book is a unique copy from the First Empire and is an extremely important source for the study of Arlando."

"So, the book you read, 'Alando vs. the Succubus Queen,' may certainly contain some exaggeration, but it's very likely true."

Logan stopped and looked the old man up and down again.

No.

You really know a lot?

"Of course, if you want to understand the rich private life of Emperor Alando the Great, while also ensuring a certain level of authenticity and entertainment, I personally recommend 'Alando on His Breast.' This book has more detailed descriptions, a humorous and witty writing style, and clearly provides references at the end of each story..."

Koska got carried away and, with great enthusiasm, wanted to continue showing off.

"Sh-!"

Elsa sternly interrupted Kosca's incessant chatter.

Logan's nonchalant expression vanished instantly.

The two followed Elsa's gaze and looked ahead.

Pushing aside the bushes, the outline of the Guardian Stone can already be seen in the distance.

There were three huge rocks, each over ten meters tall, standing in a triangular shape in a clearing in the forest.

From a distance, it looks much the same as when Logan first came.

But above them, a wisp of grayish-white smoke was rising.

The three of them immediately lowered their bodies and held their breath.

The cacophony of sounds drifted on the wind from afar.

The sound was like the roar of a pack of wild beasts. But faintly, there were also a few broken words of common language.

Logan decisively pushed Kosca behind him.

There's something at the Guardian Stone, and it's definitely not human.

The two approached cautiously and slowly.

The outline of the boulder gradually became clear.

Logan looked closely.

Between those three huge rocks, there was a makeshift camp that reeked of a foul stench.

Several strange creatures were moving around the camp.

They have bodies that walk upright like humans, but above their necks, they have huge hyena heads covered in yellowish-brown spotted fur. Their long, scarlet tongues greedily lick their exposed fangs, constantly dripping foul-smelling saliva.

Some of these creatures were covered in tattered leather armor stripped from human corpses, while others were completely naked, revealing their scarred brown fur.

In the center of the boulder, a campfire crackled and popped.

The hyena-headed monsters were gathered around the fire, tearing at unidentified chunks of meat while chattering and arguing in a very broken Common language.

Logan could even barely make out a few broken words.

"...People...big chunks...delicious."

Then came a strange noise coming from the other side of the fire.

Amidst the chaotic footsteps, the rustling sound of ropes violently rubbing against each other could be clearly heard as the creature struggled desperately on the muddy ground.

And intermittent sobs.

someone.

They were prisoners taken away from the previous goblin camp.