The story of the black silk female knight

Tia nodded, removed the map from the bed and put it away, preparing to sleep with Valensa.

However, as the two lay down side by side, Tia hesitated for a moment:

"Should we think of another excuse? After all, that's the territory of the cave monsters. If we can't come up with a way to deal with them, we might still be suspected, and even hiring adventurers while pretending to explore might be hindered... It would cost us more money."

"A cave monster... tsk, it's quite troublesome."

Valensa turned her body towards Tia and naturally stretched out one leg, pressing it against Tia's body.

She pondered, her mind filled with information about the cave monster.

The cave monster, as its name suggests, is a humanoid monster.

This monster is similar in size to a human, except that it is covered in thick, long hair, has no nose or ears, and only has one large eye and a toothless mouth on its head.

This is a type of swarming monster, with each cave monster group having more than four figures in size, and the individual strength of the cave monsters ranging from candlelight to lighthouse.

The weakest Candlelight-level cave monster is basically a large monkey with enhanced strength, speed, and stamina. It can use long-handled melee weapons and has no special abilities other than its own racial talents.

The strongest Lighthouse-level cave monsters possess different abilities depending on their mutation methods, but most of their abilities are related to their single eye and long tongue.

The one-eyed creature can fire magical rays with various curse effects, while its long tongue is as flexible as a tentacle and can unleash a strong penetrating force when it sticks out, enough to pierce through the defenses of a Lighthouse-class warrior.

In each tribe of cave monsters, there are generally no more than 10 lighthouse-level mutated cave monsters, around 100 pearl-level elite cave monsters, and the rest are all ordinary cave monsters.

This level of power would be extremely dangerous for ordinary adventurers, but it would be nothing to a nobleman's hired expeditionary team.

In battles of the same level, humans, who can use various equipment and items, have a greater advantage than monsters. Theoretically, five Lighthouse-level adventurers leading a skilled adventurer team can deal with a tribe of cave monsters.

But that's only in theory, because while cave monsters can't beat adventurers, they can run away.

Regardless of their strength, all cave monsters possess a disgusting innate ability—to turn objects into mud.

Simply put, the cave monsters can turn anything they touch, including metal, stone, and wood, into slime.

If ordinary mercenaries' weapons are not protected by enchantments, they might even be rendered useless when they hit a cave monster... This is why many mercenaries are unwilling to take on missions to hunt cave monsters; it's too expensive and they might even lose money.

While spellcasters and adventurers wielding well-enchanted weapons are not afraid of the Crypt Fiend's attack, the truly disgusting aspect of the Crypt Fiend's attack is not in combat, but in its use for escape.

When they are at a disadvantage, they will dive into the ground like fish entering water, swimming rapidly into the soft mud that is almost like porridge.

The caveman has no nose, does not need to breathe in the conventional sense, and can stay underground for a considerable period of time.

The substance that is turned into mud by the cave monsters using their racial talent [Transformation into Mud] will also become a completely new substance in a mystical sense... Soil is no longer soil and cannot be controlled by earth magicians.

In other words, once the cave monsters escape underground, even adventurers who are much stronger than them will find it difficult to hunt them down and kill them all.

The cave monsters are also quite vengeful... wherever they are bullied by humans, they will definitely take revenge.

The Maussmora Basin has a good environment and location, and naturally it has been coveted by other nobles.

That nobleman was quite generous; he even used his connections to invite a Star-level expert to work with a team of elite adventurers to eliminate the cave monsters in the Mawsmora Basin.

The battle to eliminate the monsters went very smoothly. The tribe of cave monsters collapsed at the first touch. The lighthouse-level individuals were wiped out by the star-level powerhouses right away, and the remaining weaker ones were also successively defeated.

Even with a Star-level expert leading the team, it was impossible to completely eliminate this group of demons that could quickly burrow deep underground, and a few cave monsters escaped.

At that time, humans were unaware that the cave monsters were extremely vengeful, and the nobleman even believed that he had already taken control of the Mawsmora Basin.

So he began building his own little castle there, and built villages around the castle, attracting people to settle there with preferential policies such as tax reductions and subsidies.

Then, tragedy struck.

Chapter 129 Publishing Tasks

Initially, several people went missing on the nobleman's territory, which was under construction, including several of the nobleman's maids and servants.

No one thought it was a revenge attack by the cave monster; they assumed it was a public security issue.

Just as the urban villages in Valencia's previous life were often chaotic during demolitions, many people in Fran's still underdeveloped territory also took risks.

Instead of seeking out powerful figures or elite adventurers to resolve the issue, the nobleman spent money to build a security force that was mediocre in external combat but adept at launching powerful attacks internally.

So he missed his last chance.

The cavemen, through their attacks on commoners and noble servants, confirmed that there were no powerful figures within the noble territories capable of easily destroying their tribes.

So, on a stormy night, the cave monsters carried out a frenzied revenge.

The Maussmora Basin is about 30 kilometers from the nearest official road, and the jungle is muddy on stormy nights. The newly established territory has no church, so the people there could not escape, and their cries for help could not be heard.

In the end, only the nobleman escaped with his daughter using a teleportation scroll; all his servants and his wife remained forever in that basin.

When the paladins and adventurers arrived after receiving the news, the small castle and village that had already taken shape had all been turned into slime by the cave monsters using their racial abilities.

Although the paladins and adventurers immediately slaughtered the cave monsters, it was too late. None of the more than 1000 commoners and noble servants who participated in the construction survived.

That nobleman was quite capable; after this incident, he was able to rise again and rebuild his career elsewhere.

But he also completely abandoned the Mawsmora Basin, leaving it once again unclaimed territory.

It was from this incident that humanity realized the cave monsters were extremely vengeful and that there were likely many more of them existing deep underground.

If you cannot guarantee that you will completely exterminate the cave monsters, it is best not to develop the land occupied by them.

Of course, if humans really want to develop the areas occupied by the cave monsters, there are still ways—after all, the strongest individual among the cave monsters is only the Lighthouse, while humans can use Radiant-rank monsters as food.

It's still a matter of development cost.

Therefore, it's not a problem for Tia to suggest using the Mawsmora Basin as a false target, since Valensa has the support of the Church of the Sun and the Britannia family, so if it's really developed, then it's fine.

A guard composed of elite adventurers or even paladins, coupled with a covering magical barrier, would ensure that any number of vengeful cave monsters who came would die.

But that was a bit too extravagant... so Valensa thought about it and decided to stick to the old method.

Anything that's hard to explain is blamed on the Sun Goddess... Oh, and now we have Friggia, the first Great Witch, to take the blame, and this time it's more appropriate for Friggia to take the blame.

"We can say it like this..."

Valensa brought her mouth close to Tia's ear and put her arm around Tia, beginning their nighttime whispers.

. . . . .

The next day, in front of the Adventurers' Guild in the capital of Fran.

A fast yet smooth carriage, skillfully driven by a capable red-haired maid, came to a stop by the roadside.

The carriage curtain was lifted from the inside, and the first thing to step out was a long, beautiful leg encased in black stockings with gold embroidery. Then another similarly beautiful leg in black stockings appeared and jumped off the carriage.

Looking up, there was a gothic-style jumpsuit with lots of lace trim, but the bust was so wide that her overly hot figure seemed like the buttons could pop open at any moment. So, the hot girl wearing the jumpsuit had to add a ribbon at the neckline to secure it.

Afterwards, a hot silver-haired beauty was led by the brown-haired beauty who jumped out of the carriage first and slowly walked down from the carriage. She was wearing a gothic-style dress, but the color scheme was mostly white with less blue, and the skirt was the kind that was shorter in the front and longer in the back, which could show off half of the absolute territory above the white over-the-knee stockings.

On the calves of the white over-the-knee stockings, there are two chubby pink cat paws printed on them, which adds a touch of cuteness to this silver-haired beauty in addition to her hot and sexy look.

These are two noble ladies who have come to issue a mission; they're probably very wealthy! An opportunity!

The adventurers waiting for quests near the Adventurers' Guild immediately paid attention to the two beautiful girls, wondering if the quests they posted would be suitable for them, and if so, they would grab them as soon as possible.

The two eye-catching hot girls are naturally Valensa and Tia. Actually, Tia originally wanted to keep a low profile and just come in her school uniform like the other students who came here to take on missions and earn pocket money.

It was Valensa who insisted on doing it this way... She was a fairly experienced adventurer, so she naturally knew what to wear when posting quests to get noticed by adventurers and recruit people as quickly as possible.

The two walked into the Adventurers' Guild Hall together. Unlike other adventurers, they didn't need to wait in line. A cute young lady in a short skirt uniform greeted them, found them a quiet seat, and asked them with a friendly, business-like smile what quest they needed to post.

"A regional exploration mission, targeting the Maussmora Basin."

Valensa answered with a smile.

Valensa was far superior to Tia in terms of knowledge and skills regarding adventurers, so the two had agreed beforehand that Valensa would have complete control over the recruitment of adventurers.

It's not impossible for Tia to make the decision, but it will most likely cost more money... It was fine before, but now is when they need money the most. Even though they just received a considerable reward from the king, it's best to save as much as possible.

"Maussmola Basin..."

The young lady from the Adventurers' Guild frowned slightly, while the adventurers who had been eavesdropping on their conversation nearby, those below the Pearl level, had already left on their own.

"Then this task will probably cost a bit more."

After a moment of silence, seemingly hesitant, the young lady from the Adventurers' Guild spoke again:

"Since you two have chosen that place as your target, you must have done some research beforehand, right? The Mawsmora Basin is the territory of the Crypt Lords, and it's far from the capital... I wonder how you would like to issue the mission?"

Is it a bounty for some kind of material in that area? Or a bounty for the number of cave monsters killed? Or perhaps a bounty for some kind of information about that area?

"neither."

Valensa shook her head and chuckled softly:

"I want to hire a team of adventurers to conduct an investigation with us there for about three days, on a fixed commission per person per day."

Chapter 130 Leisurely Afternoon

"A fixed commission per person per day..."

The Adventurers' Guild girl's smile vanished for a moment, but only briefly; she quickly smiled again, this time with an even stronger business-like quality.

"Then, esteemed young lady, at what price do you intend to hire adventurers?"

"Lighthouse-level adventurers earn 200 gold coins per day, Pearl-level adventurers earn 50 gold coins per day, and my daily commission limit is 2000 gold coins... The specific combination is fine, but it's best to have at least three Lighthouse-level adventurers."

Valensa smiled and stated her conditions.

The smiles of the adventurer's guild girls have completely vanished this time.

"That's impossible! Are you kidding me? A Lighthouse-level adventurer can earn at least 200 gold coins for hunting a Lighthouse-level monster, and you actually want to hire them for 200 gold coins a day?"

You should know that the Mawsmora Basin is home to Lighthouse-level monsters! And not just one! Your offer is definitely not going to attract any recruits!

"No, I'm not kidding."

Valensa remained calm, even letting out a soft laugh.

If it were a noble lady like Tia who posted the quest, she might actually be fooled by the Adventurers' Guild's little tricks and have no choice but to raise the price.

Because the bounty for a Lighthouse-level monster does indeed start at 200 gold coins... For example, the Winged Falcon that once ravaged the cliffs north of Sergin Town was only Lighthouse-level in terms of danger, not a true Lighthouse, yet the reward for its capture mission was 200 gold coins.

From this perspective, hiring a Lighthouse-level adventurer for a day for 200 gold coins seems like a really low price.

But this is only in theory; in reality, the calculations are not done this way.

Lighthouse-level adventurers do indeed have a very high win rate against Lighthouse-level monsters, making it seem like a Lighthouse-level adventurer can easily earn 200 gold coins, but that's not the case at all.

First of all, the price of 200 gold coins for a Lighthouse-level monster is the bounty price offered by the Adventurers' Guild. In other words, someone has to post a bounty for it. For example, if a client needs certain monster materials but is too lazy to do it themselves, or if the activity range of certain monsters overlaps with that of humans and they need to be eliminated, then a quest will be posted.

Lighthouse-level monsters without bounty missions can be exchanged for less than 200 gold coins. Most materials from Lighthouse-level monsters can only be sold for 50 to 70 gold coins, and some unprofitable items can't even be sold for 10 gold coins.

Even if someone posts a bounty, not every adventurer can snag it... Valensa always managed to get high-value missions when she was an adventurer because Melina was the branch manager of the Adventurers' Guild.

It's not easy for ordinary adventurers to snag a quest that's just right for their skill level... Even elite adventurers at the Lighthouse level sometimes have to grind the lowest-level quests to earn money.

Even if you manage to get the mission, defeating a Lighthouse-level monster isn't easy.

Lighthouse-level monsters may not be able to defeat Lighthouse-level adventurers, but they can run and dodge!

To defeat such a monster while minimizing damage to its body and gathering as many materials as possible, it often takes several days of intelligence gathering and tracking to earn the starting bounty of 200 gold coins per monster.

Therefore, although the investigation mission in the Mawsmora Basin may involve intense battles between Lighthouse-level adventurers, the daily wage of 200 gold coins is already very tempting for Lighthouse-level adventurers.

After all, this is just an investigation mission. There's no need to fight monsters to the death. At worst, it's just about protecting two noble ladies as they escape, which isn't difficult for a Lighthouse-level adventurer.

Valenza's asking price was already quite fair; it was the Adventurers' Guild that was too greedy... or rather, they mistook Valenza and Tia for some completely clueless young ladies.

Therefore, when Valensa gave her reasoned analysis, the adventurer guild lady who received her and Tia realized that she had misjudged them.

To do this job, one might not have other advantages, but one must be thick-skinned... The young lady from the Adventurers' Guild quickly put on her business smile again and happily signed the agreement with Valensa.

. . . . .

After leaving the Adventurers' Guild, Valensa and Tia didn't rush back to school. Instead, they went to Valensa's mansion near the Church of the Sun and chatted with Melina in the garden.

"Perhaps we can find a few more free thugs."

When discussing tomorrow's actions, Tia suddenly had a new idea:

"How about inviting Melody and Cao Cao along? Anyway, there's no need to attend second-year classes every day. Just maintain a minimum attendance rate. Everyone can go out and play for a couple of days, and we can also do some practical training."

"Okay, I'll tell them when I get back."

Valensa agreed:

"We both broke through to the Lighthouse level, which seems to have been quite a stimulus for them... especially Cao Cao, who has been training really hard lately. But it's not good to just keep training hard all the time; we need to relax a bit."

"Yeah, you're right."