Being able to see the light in this fog means that the source is not far away.

Within a few minutes of the four of them, countless deliberately cut down wooden piers and bars had already appeared in the thick fog, as well as thick wooden fences built with more than a dozen logs. And the yellow mist lantern, which looked amazingly large, and perhaps had magic in it, hung on the tallest log fence, like a lighthouse to guide the way of visitors.

And beneath the massive fence, a thin, middle-aged man looked at the four people who walked by with his cloudy eyes. As if expected, he leaned against the wooden door and stared at the mercenary team with a strange smile.

"Welcome to the Paladin's Inn, Ladies and Gentlemen......"

The dark, thin skin of the dead wood of the forest curled up on the face, bringing a dark aura under the black linen hood. The man's mouth full of yellow teeth, his cold expression, and his dry laughter like a night owl were enough to make ordinary people feel creepy. Even the brave can't help but feel a burst of hair.

The man crouching by the wooden door of the inn was like a crow, imprinting the figures of the four men with his numb and dull eyeballs.

People who can survive in this environment are not good people.

Looking at the magical-looking man, Anta frowned, and subconsciously clenched the short sword in his hand.

“…… Is this the Paladin's Inn? ”

Anta asked the man who seemed to be smiling with some caution.

It's not because of anything else, it's just that the appearance is so insecure, and it doesn't look like a good person at all.

But in this kind of night, the notion of not being a good person is also mutual. Anta looked at the man and frowned subconsciously, and the man looked at the mercenary team, and his face was a little difficult to look at.

"You are ......"

This kind of team is not the same as the expected logging team.

A black-robed mage with white fingerbones, a little girl with a pale face, a beautiful woman with a weapon, and a taciturn mercenary warrior. It would be considered a great bad luck for everyone to meet them at night, and this time they met four people in one go, and the crow-like man couldn't help but show a look of surprise on his face.

The pilgrims and merchants are the most popular people to meet when opening a shop in the wilderness, but the ones I hate to encounter the most are mercenaries with weapons. Only the lawless mercenaries could possibly behave in an unbelievable manner. For example, in order to save a penny of accommodation for one night, the whole family of the hotel is killed, and such horrific acts are not uncommon. For those who reside, the people who move will always be an insecure factor.

Looking at the two men and two women who obviously didn't look like good stubble, the grotesque-looking and hoarse man's eyes became even darker.

"Mercenaries?"

"I am an internal mercenary of the Great Plains Mage Council, number 349, Anta . This is my medal. The beautiful woman in the lead looked businesslike, took out a wooden sign from her waist bag and shook it at the man.

"How much does your accommodation cost here?"

"Theoretically, a silver coin for one night...... However, mercenaries are not welcome here. ”

"How about being accommodating? We can pay double the price. And we're here because of the mission. ”

“…… Task? ”

The large fog lamp hanging on the top of the fence was slowly removed, and the man's cloudy eyes showed a look of surprise. Carrying the fog lamp, staring at the eyes that were close to astigmatism because of the inferior life, I looked at the girl in disbelief.

"The knights of those dog-days are finally willing to spend money to see us poor people? Or is it that the conscience of the Holy Light Lord has found out and asked you to clean up those monsters that cannot be seen or touched? But now there's been no news from Death Knell for a month, so it's too late, right? ”

“…… I'm sorry, but we don't know what you're talking about. We have other tasks. ”

But to the man's disappointment, the girl just shook her head in embarrassment at his question.

She didn't know anything, not even the presence of monsters here. It's just a matter of following this route in Deathknell into the Lich's territory, playing a sideball and avoiding the territory of certain Knights and Mage Towers.

There was an uncontrollable look of despair on the man's face, which was replaced by a deeper numbness.

"Ah, that's right. The great masters of the Knights don't look at us on weekdays. How can you possibly think about saving people? Sure enough, he drank too much wine and thought too much......" Confirming that Anta was not the helper who had been called, the crow-like man muttered, lifted the water bag and took a sip. Hanging the lantern on the door, he slowly pushed open the solid wood door.

In the dark night, the sound of the wooden shaft rubbing against each other was like someone's scream, and the dark night fog also surged. The slightly changing air pressure around him made the eyes of the four members of the mercenary team fluctuate a little.

"Come in, that's what it is anyway."

Unaware of the harsh voice, the old man pursed his lips.

"You can go in and find a room to live in, and the door is locked inside anyway. But I warn you in advance, no matter what strange things happen, don't scream, just get used to it. You only live for this one day, and don't make trouble for yourselves. It's best not to close the door when you wake up in the middle of the night, and don't go out if you see the hallway change. Otherwise, I don't care what happens. ”

"Is it related to the monster you talked about?"

"Who knows, but the little girl better not think about it so much, anyway, you're just passing by, aren't you?"

Glancing deeply at the girl mercenary who wanted to say something, the crow-like man had a mocking smile on his face.

"Just stay here like home for one night. The Paladin's Inn brings you the warmth of home, which is the slogan that my bachelor friend came up with for me for half a month. You can live in peace. ”

"It's only for one day."

The man smiled meaningfully, turned and closed the door, and continued to sit outside, looking at the fluorescent night mist.

“……”

Looking at the desolate appearance of the man pushing the door out, Antar opened his mouth, and finally said nothing, and honestly walked into the Paladin's Inn. Without saying anything to the others, he found a nearby room and went inside, and then heard her pull the deadbolt on the door. Seems to be sulking.

As a mercenary, she is not eligible to take on other tasks during the mission. Unless the employer agrees.

As a mercenary, she is not eligible to make a request to her employer during a mission, unless the employer speaks it out first.

The clash of the mercenaries' iron laws and inner conscience finally made her go to a room alone, thinking about her own affairs. The other three stayed in the lobby of the Paladin's Inn.

"The warmth of home...... Is it? ”

The black-robed wizard, who had been silent, looked at Anta's back, and suddenly repeated it in a low voice, looking back into the depths of the mist.

Looking at the tasks that appeared in his system's taskbar, combined with the images transmitted by the runes, the mage suppressed the uneasiness in his heart, nodded to the others, and walked into a room next to Anta.