Warriors will die if they charge.

"I'm here."

Oha's voice slowly rose, heavy and labored, filled with guilt for leaving his teammates behind.

The orc crawled to Kelly's side, using both hands and feet, dragging his left leg, and said in a choked voice:

"Big sister, I couldn't help myself just now. That guy's left hand was broken by the troll, but he didn't drink a single drop of medicine, yet he's completely fine and keeps pestering me..."

Kelly knelt down, her fingers stroking Oha's blood-stained cheeks, and whispered:

"I know you're a smart kid. I saw how smart you were after I rescued you from the slave traders. You know how to show your value. You're not a half-orc warrior who wins by brute force. The stray dogs were able to survive the adventures thanks to your selfless dedication and sacrifice."

"Big sister, big sister..." Oha hugged Kelly's leg and cried like a child. Every time his big sister spoke softly and gently, it meant that something terrible was about to happen.

He used to laugh at the fools who were deceived by Kelly's beauty and pretense, but he didn't want to become a fool himself.

"Go get a weapon and prove your worth."

Oha looked at her without moving.

"I said, get a weapon." Kelly kicked O'Ha away and waved to Duncan, who had been with her the longest.

She no longer trusted this orc who was blinded by gold. If he didn't take a weapon, he would be chopped into mincemeat by Rye Wine in a moment. If he wanted to live, he had to obey her orders.

Kelly walked to the glass cabinet filled with sheepskin scrolls and picked up a scroll branded with the sealing wax of the Griffin Kingdom—

Baron's Certificate.

Her eyes, which had been filled with anger and murderous intent, turned to surprise, and she shouted in disbelief at the clock hanging on the pillar:

"Is this scroll real?! Answer me, Emma, ​​I know you're watching!"

"Immael never lies; everything you see is true."

The man's steady voice prompted Kelly to continue searching through the power tokens in the glass case. Griffins, Kamala, Purple Maple... all the countries she knew and didn't know could be found in this glass case, which was only two square meters in size.

Duncan stood behind Kelly, as usual, waiting for her next instruction. But this time, his gaze fell on the other side, on the display case full of glass bottles of medicine.

Limb regeneration agents.

He unconsciously swung his right hand. His right hand, missing its ring finger, looked so out of place at that moment. He always endured the strange looks from others, using his past tragic experiences to gain sympathy and understanding.

He had long since grown accustomed to these stares, but Kelly, the stray dog ​​who had rescued him from his father when he was sixteen, always treated him like a younger brother who needed care.

He didn't understand why, compared to those guys who were only interested in Kelly's looks, he was the one who truly understood Nia's heart.

With his finger missing, he was only different from those well-dressed guys, lacking a ring finger, yet it was like an inescapable brand of shame.

He thought Kelly wouldn't look at him with that kind of gaze, and she certainly didn't.

But every time those scarlet eyes looked at him, Duncan would remember what he was missing—his right hand behind his back, in a safe position.

"Duncan".

Duncan snapped out of his daze: "Huh?"

"Go get a weapon, a weapon that can take care of Rye Beef."

Duncan clenched his right hand behind his back once, then relaxed it. He walked to where the crossbows were stored, picked up a heavy repeating crossbow with a faint glow of flame on its surface, and a hundred or so bolts.

He glanced back at the bottle of limb-regenerating potion one last time before putting the repeating crossbow into his backpack.

This is the devil's rule: if you don't put things in your backpack, they will automatically disappear when you leave. They've already tried it in the Golden Palace, and Oha proves it with the gold bars he stuffed into the gate.

The backpack felt like an incredibly heavy stone; he gritted his teeth, feeling as if his internal organs were being squeezed together.

Take a few deep breaths, tense your body, and reassure yourself.

The magical weapon must be very heavy; the greater its power, the faster it can take down Marcus and Bardin.

Kelly watched Duncan's choices throughout. When she saw the repeating crossbow being put into her backpack, a charming smile appeared on her pretty face. She then gave her beloved younger brother an encouraging look and picked up the Duke's Certificate branded with griffin wax.

Power, only power is the true destination, so why did they become stray dogs?

Nia was forced by the knight; she could not resist Conrad's power as lord.

Duncan the thief is powerless against his father's authority.

The orc Ohar, ever since Lake Anor was designated a religious holy site, has been sold to slave traders, leaving only the orcs barely clinging to life.

Feudalism, family, and religion—three mountains of power—weighed heavily on the shoulders of the three stray dogs.

This time, Kelly will gain the power that belongs to her through this game.

She put the thin parchment into her backpack. The piece of paper, which was as light as a feather in her fingertips, became a mountain of immense weight once it was in her backpack.

Her forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat, and she hysterically shouted at the clock:

"Emmael, you're lying! How can a piece of parchment be so heavy?!"

Marley's voice echoed through the central palace: "Nobility means duty and sacrifice. The nobles you hate and envy have defended the lives of their people with their blood. This is a duty, not a power without reward."

"Responsibility." Kelly repeated the word, reaching out to take out a parchment from her backpack. Her spine was already slightly bent, but she still forced herself to straighten her back, even if she couldn't.

"Then you'll see," she said to the clock, a symbol of the devil's eyes. "Am I worthy of this power?"

Kelly yelled at Oha, who was still dawdling and searching for the treasure, "Coward, hurry up! Don't keep His Highness the Duke waiting too long! Pick up your weapons, and you'll be rewarded when you leave here alive."

O'Ha's eyes were filled with rage. He wasn't Duncan's mangy dog, willing to unconditionally obey the madwoman's orders. But now, the only way to survive was to cling to Kelly's side.

The devil's game.

The orc repeated it to himself, clutching a vault contract in his hand. He had heard the devil's words clearly.

A piece of parchment is light on your fingertips, but it becomes a heavy burden when placed on your shoulders.

To take it or not to take it.

He stared at the deed bearing the name of the vault for a long time, when suddenly a repeating crossbow appeared at the edge of his field of vision. Duncan's cold statement completely extinguished O'Ha's greedy desires:

"Kelly won't treat you unfairly. Grab your weapons, let's take care of the rye first. We can make money slowly. We've been through a lot together, and this time will be no different."

"Fine, broken finger, you always trust her so much." Oha sighed inwardly, threw the contract hard on the ground, and on his way to the weapon rack, he tried to be clever again, picking up a bottle of potion labeled "Recovery Potion" in an attempt to heal his leg injury.

Even if you use all your strength to smash and kick the glass bottle on the ground, the fragile glass bottle will remain completely undamaged.

Holding the potion, he shouted at the clock, "Leave the vault! Will this even work?"

Emma didn't respond, so Oha had no choice but to pick up the battle axe, put it in his brand-new backpack, feel his left knee deformed by the weight, and lie on the ground howling in pain.

"Fuck you! You fucking rye beer, you've ruined me like this! My gold! And my vault!"

Kelly waved coldly toward the exit of the central palace: "Hurry up, don't let them get the upper hand."