One-Eyed Monster

Let us return our focus to Guru Mountain.

Our heroes have been off the grid for quite some time now, captured on the mountain by a mysterious man of few words. However, our protagonist didn't feel his situation was particularly dire. In fact, he held great respect for his captor, the mysterious man who, every now and then, would present him with some novel trinket he'd never seen before. This made him feel incredibly fulfilled. Nevertheless, the heroes' absence from the main storyline is noticeable, and many readers may have forgotten about them.

But our protagonist had not forgotten his mission. He was currently engaging in a lively, rambling conversation with his companions.

Our naive Igor was animatedly chewing on Thorny Roots from the Rubber Leaf Bowl, cheeks puffed out, spit flying, clearly engrossed in his story.

"Lemme tell ya, true Adventurers, they've got some m-mystery to 'em." Chewing the Thorny Roots, soaked in hot water, was just like eating hard-boiled eggs. If one wasn't careful, they could easily scald their mouth or choke. Given Igor's manner of eating and talking simultaneously, he would likely regret it soon enough; the feeling of choking on an egg was very unpleasant.

This couldn't be helped. The unexpected addition of the talkative, large Hunter Baharo to their already peculiar team only made them seem even more outlandish. A Hunter leading a group of captives—and lively ones at that—was already odd. Now, with the addition of another talkative captive, the group's atmosphere, which couldn't even be described as merely 'lively' anymore, had descended into a state of near-frenzy. The captives were not only cheerful but also getting along famously with their Hunter captor. It seemed they were moments away from having their ropes untied and becoming fast friends, slinging arms over each other's shoulders.

"Heh heh heh, your Adventurers are a new profession, but when it comes to being mysterious, the ancient professions win hands down," Baharo shared, taking care not to talk and eat simultaneously.

"I've read some brief introductions to ancient professions in books, too. They were barely mentioned, with no detailed analysis at all," Hustace chimed in. To him, Igor was an idol; whatever Igor did, he wanted to do. He had been eagerly awaiting such an opportunity for conversation for a long time.

This long-lonely young master had suddenly found an opportunity to unleash his emotions in this specific environment. Would he willingly let it pass? He was determined to treasure every second of this moment, even if he was currently a prisoner.

"That's why these ancient professions are considered mysterious! Even learned Scholars can't figure them out. How could they be anything but mysterious!" Baharo picked up where Hustace left off, his expression even more smug.

"Mmmmm..." Igor's face turned red, either from eating too fast and choking or from being flustered at his inability to immediately rebut Baharo. He was making strange, sputtering noises.

Kadi, the monster, kept interjecting irrelevant comments as usual, always seeming absent-minded, as if the ropes binding them had nothing to do with him.

"Heh heh heh, young man, Adventurers may be a bit unusual, but they can't be classified as mysterious. There's nothing particularly special about them. Just look at our leader here. Every item he has shown us has piqued our interest. Now *that's* what you call mysterious."

The red-faced Igor suddenly felt that Baharo might have a point.

However, his own ideas didn't necessarily feel wrong. Adventurer, the profession he yearned for most, surely had to maintain that sense of mystery...

"You're not entirely right," Igor finally retorted, after struggling for a response. "Adventurers are indeed rare. You yourself said that despite your extensive travels, you've never once encountered a single Adventurer. If you've never even met one, how can you say they're not mysterious?" Having held it in for so long, Igor resorted to dogged persistence to counter Baharo.

"I've never eaten wild boar, but I've seen wild boars run. Furthermore, as the young lad said, books contain plenty of information about Adventurers," Baharo didn't buy it.

"Right, right, right! The records about Adventurers in books are much more numerous than those about ancient professions," Hustace chimed in, not forgetting to twist the knife in Igor's wound. He couldn't be blamed for this. Long-time solitude had made him seize every opportunity to join in the conversation, fearing he would be forgotten.

Igor frowned at Hustace. Are you really my friend? Not only do you not stand by me, but you're also taking his side! What a letdown!

Igor turned to look at Kadi beside him. He had hoped Kadi might say a few words in his defense, but he found the monster was concerned only with eating. Having eaten and drunk his fill, Kadi was now lying there, resting with his eye closed—though he only had one.

At his wit's end, Igor decided to appeal to the source of this whole discussion. He tugged on the rope tied around his arm and asked loudly, "Sol, you tell us, who is more mysterious: Adventurers, or you practitioners of ancient professions?"

The sudden question caught Stan Sol by surprise. He had been pondering other trivial matters and had no spare attention for what his captives were discussing. This mountain was becoming increasingly strange. Things that previously had no discernible Spirit Power had suddenly become active, as if some slumbering behemoth had awakened from beneath the earth...

Sol did not answer Igor. He needed silence to sense the surroundings. Igor's shout had disrupted his Spirit Sensing.

"All of you, quiet," Stan Sol said, his words clipped. "Something... is... amiss."

Baharo fell silent upon hearing this and began to sniff the air, seemingly having detected something unusual as well.

Igor and Hustace, of course, understood none of it...

"It seems like the group that followed me up the mountain has caught up," Baharo said, a smile slowly appearing on his face.

"Which, group?" Stan Sol asked.

Baharo was stumped by Sol's question. How many groups could there possibly be on this mountain? Most people had already been driven down by those Alchemists at the foot of the mountain. Any who were lucky enough to remain were just a few scattered, unconventional individuals.

"Now, more, and more, people, are climbing, this mountain," Stan Sol stated.

Baharo and the others were once again awed by this man of few words. They had desperately tried to use their Spirit Power to sense the surroundings but couldn't detect the slightest hint of anything. Yet Stan Sol, merely by sitting quietly for a moment, had grasped the general situation on the mountain.

Perhaps this was the difference between an ancient Hunter and those of other professions.

But who else had come to the mountain? And who was this group Baharo spoke of? These questions suddenly flooded Sol's mind, leaving him feeling slightly bewildered.