Chapter 13

As they approached the building where the guild "Twilight of the Spirits" was located, Fiona suddenly stopped in her tracks.

Lambert also stopped and followed Fiona's gaze.

In front of the building stood a man with silver hair. He was dressed in a white outfit with golden dragon embroidery and a strikingly red cloak, making quite a flamboyant appearance.

"I'm not saying anything difficult. I'm just suggesting that it would be better to vacate the second floor. It's not a threat, not at all!"

The man was speaking to a middle-aged woman in an apron, who was neatly dressed. Lambert surmised that she was probably the owner of "Hearth of the Spirits."

"Oh, you're finally back, my Fiona."

The man, noticing Lambert and the others, spoke in a cajoling tone and twisted his lips. Lambert glanced at Fiona, Lloyd, and Lily, who all had looks of disgust on their faces.

"It seems they're not particularly pleasant acquaintances."

"Cradle... He's from the largest guild in the city of Einzus, 'Mystic Dragon.' For some reason, they've started to harass us as a guild. Among them, Cradle is the most annoying. He's a nasty stalker."

Lloyd spat out the words.

"How unpleasant... To call me a stalker. I just saw her talent and tried to recruit her. It's not a very nice thing for outsiders to say, you know."

The silver-haired man, Cradle, walked over to Lambert and the others with a casual step.

"Besides, I'm not so idle that I would come out every time for just one silly girl. It's quite irritating to be misunderstood like that."

"Huh? Then what's your purpose, you—"

Lambert observed Cradle and Lloyd arguing from the side.

"I see. So you were harassing them out of spite for being rejected. You're a small man."

Cradle glared at Lambert angrily, then suddenly twisted his lips into a creepy smile.

"Hahaha, that's why I was just giving a friendly warning. You've probably heard the rumors that my guild, 'Mystic Dragon,' has connections with the underground guild 'Path of the Necromancers,' even in small guilds like yours, right? So, crushing a place like this is easy!"

With that, Cradle suddenly kicked the building's wall. A loud noise echoed, and the wall dented. The middle-aged woman and Cradle, who had been arguing earlier, let out short screams.

"Stop it! What are you doing all of a sudden—!"

"It's just that my foot slipped. There's no need to blame me so much. It's the fault of such a thin wall."

He shrugged and smiled slyly.

"Damn it!"

Lloyd reached for his sword and stepped forward, but Fiona stopped him.

"Lloyd! If you attack, you'll play right into their hands!"

"Oh, oh, I came here out of kindness to give a warning, and you immediately try to attack. How low, you are."

"You... Who started this—!"

"Guards! What are you doing over there!"

A man with a spear ran over, shouting. It seemed that a passerby had reported the incident to the guards after seeing Cradle confront the woman. However, the guard's face turned uncomfortable as soon as he saw Cradle.

"Good timing. Guard, this guy was about to draw his sword at me, right?"

"Um, ah... Yes..."

The guard, unlike before, responded in a polite manner. Indeed, Lloyd's hand was still on his sword, but he wasn't about to draw it. Fiona had already stopped him, and he had calmed down.

Cradle smiled and kicked the ground, drawing his sword and striking Lloyd's face, slipping past Fiona who was blocking his path.

"Ugh!?"

Blood and a few teeth flew from Lloyd's mouth as his body was thrown and rolled on the ground.

"What are you doing!"

Lily hurried to Lloyd's side and helped him up.

"I hit him because he was about to draw his sword. I only hit him with the sheath, so I was being lenient. Isn't that kind?"

Cradle had drawn his sword only after Fiona had completely stopped Lloyd. His excuse was absurd, but the guard, despite his frustration, just stood there.

"Are you not going to do anything, even after seeing that?"

When Lambert asked, the guard shook his head and lowered his spear.

"You don't understand, you don't understand at all. You don't know what position 'Mystic Dragon' holds in this city."

Cradle laughed.

"Scum..."

Fiona glared at Cradle.

"What a ridiculous accusation. I didn't want to resort to violence. I wanted a peaceful conversation. But it was all your fault. I wanted to proceed peacefully, but you drew a sword at me. If I backed down, I would look weaker than you. It's your fault for drawing a weapon at me, a member of a small guild. I have my pride, you know. I couldn't back down."

"You...!"

Lloyd, blood trickling from his mouth, shouted at Cradle. Cradle looked at Lloyd and snorted.

"Loser, just lie down quietly. It's embarrassing. A member of a small guild doesn't have pride. To draw a sword and then not be able to dodge a weapon aimed at your face, I'd die of shame."

"Exactly, who started this! You were the one who started harassing Fiona after she rejected you!"

"Hey, I was being kind. I offered her a place in our guild, but she refused. You embarrassed me first. Don't you understand? Huh?"

Cradle spoke with utter self-centeredness and condescension. Lambert knew Cradle wasn't a decent person, but he only now realized that he wasn't someone who could be reasoned with. The level of his corruption was something he hadn't seen even in the Eight Nations Unification War.

"So, I'm retracting my previous statement. If Fiona joins my guild, I can tell the underground guild to back off from destroying the tavern. It's not a good feeling to have your former guild being harassed by someone from your own guild. How about it? I'm being kind, right?"

"You're the one who instigated this!!"

"On what basis? You're weak, stupid, and have a bad character. There's no saving you. Are all the members of your guild like this?"

"...I understand. I'll join. But please, leave 'Twilight of the Spirits' alone."

Fiona's words stopped Lloyd and Cradle's argument.

"Fiona! No!"

"He's not a good person! You don't know what he'll do to you!"

"...I can't cause any more trouble. If this continues, I can't bear it..."

"That's fine. You're too indecisive. If you had said that from the beginning, he wouldn't have lost his teeth. I wouldn't have been embarrassed either. But it's okay. I'm kind, so I'll forgive everything."

Lambert was thinking about what to do. It was clear that the other side had no justice, but if he acted rashly, the situation could worsen. The guard, who should have been maintaining the city's order, was allowing Cradle's actions. If he were alone, he might have taken action, but if he killed Cradle, it could cause more trouble for the others.

"You're a pitiful man. Unable to get what you want from a woman, you're just spreading your own shame."

"...What?"

Lambert's response was a direct provocation. He knew Cradle's high self-esteem from their earlier conversation. He thought that if he could get a confession, it might prevent future interference from Cradle.