Hello, is this a letter addressed to Demon Fortress?

"Sister Luo Na didn't die! She must still be alive in that ruin!" Luo Youyou excitedly waved her fist, her cat tail standing up high.

"Where's the evidence?" Elvia put down her bowl and calmly pressed on. "You can't just rely on your word, can you?"

These words were like a needle, instantly piercing Luo Youyou's aura.

She choked up suddenly, opened her mouth, but couldn't make a sound.

After a long while, she lowered her head dejectedly, her large cat ears drooping limply, and her voice became low.

"I...I have no evidence..."

She rubbed her red eyes, trying hard to remember.

"About a month ago, the shockwaves from the great battle deep in the rift valley reached our temporary outpost."

"While the demons' attention was drawn away, Sister Rona intended to lead our entire group to retreat from the rift valley."

"However, on the way back, we discovered an exposed vein of high-purity magic crystal in a collapsed mine tunnel."

A glint of light flashed in Luo Youyou's eyes.

"Sister Rona judged that it was the aftershocks of the battle with the demon lords that shattered some of the rock layers, exposing a previously hidden passage."

"You might not know this, but during its Golden Age, the Withered Rift was renowned for its countless hidden treasures and ancient ruins!"

"Lorna's family made their fortune by exploring the Rift Valley ruins, so she is very familiar with the history and legends of the Rift Valley."

Her tone carried a hint of anxiety and helplessness.

"Sister Rona is a mid-level extraordinary swordswoman, and she is already forty-five years old this year... Her physical functions have long passed their peak, so simple hard training has little effect."

"If she can't make any further breakthroughs, her strength may stagnate here forever."

"So... she decided to take the risk and enter that newly appeared secret passage to search for ancient treasures or heritages that might help her break through."

"In order to narrow down the target and avoid the demons that might exist along the way, she told the rest of the team to evacuate the rift valley as originally planned."

"I only took the vice-captain Catherine, who is skilled in concealment magic, with me. We agreed that regardless of success or failure, we would reunite within ten days..."

Luo Youyou's voice choked with sobs, but was quickly replaced by a surge of intense anger.

"But in the end... only Catherine returned!"

"She carried what was supposedly Rona's broken sword and a blood-stained, tattered leather armor, telling everyone... that Rona had sacrificed herself to cover her retreat, drawing away the suddenly awakened ancient guards..."

"That's absolutely a lie!"

Luo Youyou suddenly raised her head, her eyes almost spitting fire, her cat tail bristling, and her sharp claws sticking out uncontrollably.

"That woman, Catherine! She's been doing everything she can to stop Sister Lorna!"

"Sister Luo Na wants to lead the Dream Weaving Troupe to open up a new golden route, to develop in the royal capital, and to seek greater opportunities."

"But Catherine just wouldn't give it up! She couldn't bear to part with her pitiful status and influence in Karan, and even less could she bear to part with the male lovers she kept in Karan!"

"She only wants to lord it over her own little territory in Karan!"

"It must be her! She must have done something terrible to Sister Rona in the ruins!"

As Luo Youyou spoke, she grew increasingly angry, her pointed cat ears trembling with agitation.

He kept cursing those "ungrateful" and "heartless" guys in the team.

"After that, I wanted to sneak back and look for it myself, but they stopped me!"

"Those guys! If it weren't for Sister Rona's kindness in taking them in and teaching them, they would have been slaughtered by those ruthless people in the Adventurers' Guild long ago, leaving not even bones behind!"

Even after Luo Youyou finished venting, her chest was still heaving violently.

Elvia calmly asked, "So, you came to us? How much are you willing to pay?"

Luo Youyou took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind, and took a small, heavy-looking bag off her waist and placed it on the ground.

"I can pay 1250 gold coins, and... my personal ownership."

After saying that, she pulled out a collar from the bag that shimmered with a dull metallic luster.

It was that infamous slave collar that, once worn, was almost impossible to remove on one's own.

She knelt on the ground, her voice filled with desperate pleas.

"Please... at least, at least let me see with my own eyes whether Sister Rona is alive or dead..."

1250 gold coins, plus a high-ranking mid-level catgirl demi-human.

Elvia looked at Lin Gui and analyzed in a calm tone.

"Deviating from the safe golden route and venturing into unknown and dangerous ruins is extremely risky."

"I personally do not recommend taking on this task."

"Besides, we've only known her for a short time; who knows if this catgirl is lying?"

"Perhaps this is all a staged performance by the Dream Weaver Group, a scheme to kill and rob."

Luo Youyou knelt on the ground, not angry at Elvia's sharp questioning, but simply lowered her head even further.

Because she knew that in the world of adventurers, such caution and suspicion were the norm.

Yes, under normal circumstances, Lin Gui would never accept such a wilderness assignment that is clearly off-track and full of unknown risks.

but……

He glanced at the [Special Request] notification on the system panel in his field of vision and silently asked himself:

"System, what happens to this commission if the target, Rona, is already dead?"

[Ding! The system will automatically check the status of the entrusted target. Once it is confirmed that the target has lost its physiological functions, the corresponding entrustment will be automatically deactivated and removed from the platform.]

Lin Gui's eyes flickered slightly.

In other words, Lorna is indeed still alive.

【right.】

That being the case...

Lin Gui looked at Luo Youyou kneeling on the ground and said, "Okay, I'll help you."

These four simple words stunned Shia, Elvia, and even Luo Youyou, who was kneeling on the ground.

No one expected Lin Gui to agree so readily.

Preventing Elvia from speaking up, Lin Gui added to the astonished Luo Youyou:

"However, my help is limited to my personal actions."

Luo Youyou froze, her cat ears twitching in confusion: "But...but you're just a high-level low-rank mage..."

Lin Gui's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile as he shook the staff in his hand.

"By the time I find your sister, I might already be a mid-level mage."

He stood up, picked up his staff, and said to Shia and Elvia:

"I'll act alone this time. After all, I made the promise, so I'll bear both the risks and the rewards."

He bent down, picked up the bag of gold coins from the ground, weighed it in his hand, and stuffed it into the pocket of his mage's robe.

He then gently kicked the cold slave collar into a crack in the wooden crate next to him with his toe.

"I'll take the money, but I'll leave the catgirl alone."

"I don't want to drag a catgirl into a fire pit."

"Wait!" Elvia quickly stepped forward to stop him. "I said, you're planning to go alone?!"

Lin Gui was taken aback, then nodded matter-of-factly: "Yes, after all, it was my personal promise, so I naturally bear the risks and rewards alone."

"But! But!" Elvia was so angry she almost jumped up and down. "Who the hell cares if you live or die! I mean, if you die, I'll die from the poison too!"

"Uh..." Lin Gui was speechless for a moment. He had almost forgotten that he had given Elvia the "Devil's Poison Kiss".

Seeing this, a glimmer of expectation flashed in Elvia's eyes, and she tentatively asked, "How about... you cure my poison before you leave?"

"That's impossible," Lin Gui replied decisively.

"......"

"Then take me with you."

At this moment, Xia also stepped forward and gave Lin Gui a gentle smile.

"Let's all go together, Lin Gui."

"Although I don't understand why you accepted this task, I won't let you face the danger alone."

Her bloodshot eyes held sincerity.

"We're friends, aren't we?"

"In Karan, I was arrested and imprisoned, and it was you who came to rescue me."

Lin Gui instinctively retorted, "I was arrested by them unintentionally..."

Shia tilted her head, a mischievous smile on her face, and asked, "If I gave you a chance, would you come to save me if you knew I was in danger?"

"Of course," Lin Gui answered readily.

But he paused, then added seriously, "The premise is that there is no danger that would directly threaten my life."

Upon hearing this, Xia's face instantly lit up with a smile, like a Udumbara flower blooming in the darkness, breathtakingly beautiful.

"That's good."

"Is this really a good idea? This commission doesn't actually bring you any real benefit," Lin Gui asked hesitantly.

Xia pointed to the bag of gold coins Lin Gui had stuffed into his pocket, her face beaming with smiles:

"Isn't this it? Over 1000 gold coins! How many regular commissions would I have to do to earn that much!"