A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

However, upon venturing deeper into the ruins, one discovers a hidden world beneath them.

Unfortunately, when they tried to go deeper, the explorers encountered a major problem.

As the underground roads become increasingly complex, it is unavoidable that a large number of experienced personnel are needed to participate.

Having already profited greatly from the ruins, the Will Empire allocated funds from its national treasury to support this operation, intending to further increase its gains.

Thus, the scene of recruiting adventurers of rank D and above came about.

"Then I'll take my leave. I apologize for disturbing you all." After explaining everything, the "Knight Princess" bowed and left with the three white-robed figures.

Not long after Nisha left the guild, the guild was in an uproar.

"Holy crap, the 'Knight Princess' bowed to me!!!"

"Who the hell bowed to you?! It was clearly me!!!"

"Aaaaaah!!! Nisa-neechan!!!!"

Bray strolled slowly to the notice board, staring intently at the "10000G reward" section.

“Brave~” Virginia’s voice suddenly rang out, followed by Blanche.

"Useless Captain, Miss and I are back. Shouldn't you be welcoming us back with a loyal dog expression?" Blanche's greeting left Bray speechless.

"By the way, you've come back just in time. I have a big mission for you. Would you like to take it?"

"What mission?" Virginia was clearly more interested in the adventurer's job than Blanche.

Blanche was basically just acting as Virginia's bodyguard.

A maid and bodyguard at the same time, she's truly an all-around domestic girl.

"Ruins exploration, on Dale Knight's side."

"Okay~" Virginia exclaimed excitedly, her little fists already clenched.

"Exploring ruins, huh? That's really adventurous..."

"Since you've all agreed... after accepting the mission, hurry up and book your train tickets."

Bray said the ticket wasn't for a horse-drawn carriage, but for a railcar.

A metal wagon that travels on the imperial railway tracks, fueled by crystals condensed by specialized mages using their magic.

These vehicles are much faster than horse-drawn carriages and are commonly used for long-distance travel.

The price is just a little... expensive.

"hiss--"

"300G..."

Bray counted on his fingers and then gasped. The railcar truly lived up to its name; it arrived at Dale Knight in less than a day.

Del Knight is not a particularly prosperous city, but it has a unique charm.

The old-fashioned town atmosphere allows one to feel a sense of history when they are there.

Each brick seems to have a long history.

The sparse pedestrians do not make the place feel deserted; on the contrary, they make it feel more poetic.

The overall color scheme is grayish-yellow, and walking through the city feels like strolling through memories.

Clearly, this is a place well worth visiting.

However, Bray didn't have any particular interest in appreciating it; Virginia was the only one who was captivated by the city's style.

While Virginia goes to tourist attractions, Blanche must stay by her side.

"Break, look!!! Doesn't it look like an old photograph?!"

"Bray!! Ah!!! This is the first time I've ever seen a building like this!!"

"Wow!! It has even more charm than the antiques in my house!!!"

Due to Virginia's antics, it was a full two days after arriving in Dale Knight that Bray finally reached the site of the ruins.

“We are recruited adventurers.” Bray pulled out his certificate and showed it to the person standing at the entrance of the ruins.

"Alright, you can go in anytime. If you need anything, we have supplies here." The person guarding the entrance pointed to a box on the side.

Those are probably supplies.

The Will Empire is incredibly wealthy.

The area around the entrance to the ruins was bustling with activity, as many adventurers were going in and out.

Additional rewards can be obtained for discovering a new path or finding artifacts from ruins.

Of course, whoever finds it has the right to take it away, but if they do, a small portion of the reward will be deducted.

Bray glanced at Virginia, whose face was full of expectation, and couldn't help but sigh.

Bray also tried to fill his dead fish eyes with a look of anticipation.

"Virginia, aren't my eyes full of expectation?"

Virginia turned her face away.

“Sorry, all I see are dead fish,” Blanche sneered.

I'm so sorry if my jokes weren't good.

Blanche's words made Bray look utterly dejected.

“Blanche!” Virginia stomped her foot.

“…” Blanche originally wanted to continue hurting Bray, but based on Virginia’s attitude, she kept quiet.

"Never mind, let's go down."

---

The ruins were brightly lit, with lamps illuminating the entire path.

In the long-sealed ruins, the stagnant air begins to flow with the constant arrival of new visitors.

"Generally speaking, you can't just enter newly opened ruins."

"Why?" Virginia asked, tilting her head.

"It seems to be the air trapped inside the ruins; breathing it would be extremely uncomfortable."

Bray wasn't entirely clear on the reasons either, but there were many things to be careful about when entering the ruins.

There were many adventurers walking in the passage, which even made Bray feel like he was in a vegetable market.

"With so many people, if something happens, it will be terrible."

"Brai, please don't say things like that!" Virginia said, somewhat annoyed.

"Ok."

“Shut your mouth.” Blanche added.

"..." Bray chose to keep quiet.

Although the stone bricks on the wall appear to have been eroded over a long period of time, the carved murals are still clearly visible.

Unseen monsters, countless humans taking up arms, and cities being destroyed.

The story depicted in the painting doesn't seem very clear.

Then Bray suddenly stopped.

Bray vaguely remembered the monster in the mural.

As he traced the pattern with his fingers, Bray's eyelids drooped.

"Demons, angels, sea creatures."

Just then, Bray saw these monsters fall at the feet of a human.

He was wearing black armor and holding two huge swords in his hands.

“Bray?” Virginia’s voice startled Bray from his reverie.

"What's wrong?" Virginia asked Bray with a worried look.

"Nothing, I just wanted to know what the message on it was saying."

"It's probably a story about heroes leading the people to defeat monsters and protect their homes, right? Maybe it's even a legend of a hero defeating the Demon King!" Virginia said excitedly, her face flushed.

“Young lady…you’ve seen the hero before.” Blanche whispered in Virginia’s ear.

"Shh!!!" Virginia glared at Blanche.

“A hero…ha…” Bray suddenly remembered his heartbreak, and his face darkened.

Currently, Bray is still in the upper part of the ruins and has not yet reached the deepest part of the site.

"Let's hurry up, or we won't get anything," Bray said, and walked ahead first.

“Okay…okay!!” Virginia quickly replied.

Although Bray always looked dejected, Virginia had never seen him with such a gloomy expression before.

"Blanche, what do you think Bray did?"

"The pathetic state of a heartbroken man," Blanche succinctly summarized Bray's condition.

"And it's probably related to the hero."

“Hmm…” Virginia didn’t know what to say.

Virginia glanced at Bray.

After working together for so long, Virginia felt that Bray was a very reliable person with a good mind.

But Bray isn't strong; to put it bluntly, he's quite weak.

It's hard to imagine that Bray would have any connection with the hero.

---

As Bray, Virginia, and Blanche walked further down the path, the surrounding light grew dimmer.

"Virginia?"

When Bray and his group reached the bottom, a voice filled with surprise rang out.

The voice was very pleasant, and Bray seemed quite familiar with it.

Nisha is a great beauty.

“Why would you…” Nisha rushed forward after seeing Virginia.

"Blanche! Quickly gag Nisha!" Virginia cried out in alarm.

“Hmm…” Nisha looked at Blanche, who was covering her mouth, with a puzzled expression.

Although Nisha could easily break free, she clearly had no intention of doing so.

Blanche whispered in Nisha's ear.

After a long while, Blanche straightened her clothes and stood gracefully behind Virginia.

"Ahem... I roughly understand the situation..."

Nisha looked at Virginia with a strange expression.

"acquaintance?"

"Ah."

Then Bray nodded and walked to the side.

"Bray, what are you doing?"

"I'm giving you space and time to catch up," Bray said earnestly.

"Thank you!" Nisha replied earnestly.

He's a really serious person.

"Well...you guys take your time talking..."