Chương 648: Chapter 646 – Red Quills.

'Wait, this is the same as that time.'' Roland watched as Brakka's body began to twitch, releasing purplish black smoke from her mouth. It was disturbingly similar to an encounter he had once endured with a group of assassins in Isgard. In that moment, their leader had activated an occult spell that turned the entire group into sludge. The same thing was happening here.

"What is happening to her?" Captain Varek shouted. Everyone jumped back in fright as the smoke thickened and spread.

"Be careful, it is powerful black magic!" Harphon cried. He raised his staff and hurriedly muttered a spell, trying to form a barrier around himself and the others. One person, however, did not retreat. Unafraid, Roland stepped toward the melting body.

"Siegfried? What are you doing? Get back!" The gnome shouted at him as Brakka's face began to melt, but he did not listen. Instead, he stretched his hand out, and a veil of flickering mana spread over her body. Everyone watched with a mixture of fright, confusion, and wonder as the smoke quickly dissipated. The reaction slowed, and after her head melted down to her neck, it finally subsided.

"It's fine. I've seen this magic before." He said it to assure the others that he knew what he was dealing with, and it was not a lie. What Brakka was experiencing was almost identical to what had happened to the assassins who had targeted Arthur in the noble district. That time, their bodies had melted completely and were left unrecognisable, but now he had managed to stop the process before the magic fully took hold.

'Good thing I took those bodies back and analyzed them. The counter spell formula worked, but is she also part of the cult?' Roland was not sure what he was dealing with. Back then, he had assumed cultists targeted Arthur, and after everything that had happened, there was little reason to doubt it. The cult liked to implant their occult worms into people, creatures that could turn them into monsters and possibly take over their minds.

However, was this truly the work of cultists, or was another organisation involved?

'I wonder. Usually, these people have some kind of markings.' As he stood over the headless body that had not fully liquefied, he thought it over. There were many ways to take one's life, poison capsules, a dagger to the heart, or even biting off one's tongue. Why, then, would they go so far as to destroy their bodies completely? Were they trying to hide something that required total destruction? This line of thinking led him to assume they were part of the cult.

If someone wanted to hide the existence of a parasite within their body, destroying it through such magic would make sense. Yet there was another possibility. Perhaps they were trying to conceal something else, and that something might still be on Brakka's body.

"You've seen this magic before, Siegfried? Do you perhaps know who this woman is?" Harphon asked, sounding genuinely curious.

"No, but perhaps there is something on her or inside that could tell us." He replied while ensuring that his hidden golems overhead remained concealed and continued feeding him information. One assassin had already been revealed, but there could be more. Some might still be among the guests, while others could be watching from afar, waiting to strike if the plan to awaken the slumbering tree monster failed.

"Inside? Are you planning to cut her open or something?" This time, it was Varek who posed the question. The other adventurers said little, all of them visibly confused. Yet their eyes told him everything. They were tense and ready to strike at any moment, clearly debating whether they should abandon this place altogether now that trust within the party had been broken.

"What does it matter if he cuts her open? We are probably only alive thanks to him."

"Yeah, Varek. Why don't you tell us why you let us rest here if you knew this thing could awaken?" Some were still angered by the fact that Varek had known about the tree monster and had said nothing. To them, that alone made him suspicious.

"Well, that's…" As Varek struggled to explain himself, Roland focused on the body before him. Harphon stood nearby, watching with clear interest. He did not try to stop Roland, but whether he was friend or foe had yet to be confirmed. The blacksmith Roland wanted to protect was still alive, and the likelihood of him being the target was growing smaller. Someone else here was probably the true objective, but first, Roland needed to confirm the identity of this would-be assassin.

"I didn't let anything happen." The captain snapped, turning on the adventurers crowding him.

"The guild verified this, clearing themselves. I followed protocol. If someone tampered with the site, that's not on me."

"Protocol doesn't mean much when one of us is dead." A spearwoman shot back.

"And when that one turns out to be an assassin?"

"That's not proven. All we know is she triggered something and then…" He gestured sharply toward the half-melted corpse.

"... that happened." Roland tuned most of it out. He knelt beside the body, the scent of dissipating black magic still lingering in the air. Brakka's torso remained intact from the neck down, muscles frozen mid-spasm, skin gray and waxy where the reaction had been halted. Whatever spell had been embedded in her had been designed to leave nothing behind.

"Harphon." Roland said quietly.

"Help me check her gear. Slowly." The gnome nodded and was already crouching on the other side, reaching for the satchel strapped to her waist. While Roland did not fully trust the old man, the best way to confirm his intentions was to keep him close. If he sensed any trace of black magic, or something being hidden, stolen, or erased, he would know that Harphon was only here to destroy evidence.

"I didn't know her for long. She joined me on my journey and was so genuine. Who could have thought she was an assassin?" The two of them seemed to know each other from somewhere, as they had approached him at the gathering of their own accord. Logically speaking, the gnome was one of the biggest suspects here, but assassins were known for their acting skills. It was possible she had approached him beforehand as a cover, or perhaps for some other reason entirely.

Brakka's so-called armor was quite light and left much of her body exposed. This was not unusual, as barbarian classes possessed passives that only activated when they wore lighter armor and kept parts of their body uncovered. That begged the question of where something could be hidden on someone who willingly exposed herself to harm. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

'Even her knees are bare, so the most likely places would be…' Roland gripped one of her boots and began tugging, but it refused to come off easily. After unfastening several leather clasps and wraps, he revealed her leg. There was nothing out of the ordinary there. When he moved on to the left one, however, his efforts were rewarded.

"Hold on…"

"Did you find something?" The gnome asked as Roland muttered to himself.

"I think so…" To the naked eye, there was nothing there, but Roland was highly sensitive to magic and knew something was wrong. He adjusted a few of his runes while maintaining his rune concealment skill, and within half a minute, he activated a spell that shed light on the woman's true identity. Just below the ankle, hidden behind a spell and deliberately positioned where armor or cloth would normally cover it, was a tattoo.

"Oh… that's not good." Harphon leaned closer, his voice filled with concern. The tattoo was delicate, almost elegant, completely at odds with Brakka's brutish persona. A single long quill pen was inked into her skin, its feather dyed blood red at the tip. Thin lines of silver gray ink spiraled tightly around the shaft, forming letters so fine they were nearly invisible unless viewed up close. Roland used his helmet to zoom in. The word Murder was etched along the quill in an ancient cursive script.

Both he and the gnome fell silent while the other adventurers continued to bicker nearby. After a short pause, Roland finally spoke.

"Do you recognize it?"

"Indeed. It's the Red Quills." The name meant nothing to him. There were countless secretive organizations within the kingdom and beyond its borders. Assassination guilds were especially difficult to track, as they were fragmented into countless smaller groups that no one could truly keep up with. Even with Roland's information network, he had never heard of them, which meant one of two things. Either they were very new, or they were powerful enough that almost no one knew their true identity.

"Red Quills? Never heard of them."

"They are quite a secretive organisation, Older than most assassination guilds, if the rumors are true. They don't sell death just to the highest bidder."

"Oh, who do they work for then?"

"That, I can't really tell you, but…" The gnome laughed weakly as he looked down at the tattoo there, his face going pale.

"But I think she was here for me…" Roland raised an eyebrow inside his helmet as he listened to the old man speak. That the assassin guild was secretive was obvious. They even had people willing to melt their own bodies if discovered. However, that alone did not explain why they were here for him.

"Could you elaborate on that?" He spoke while placing a soundproof barrier around them, then glanced at Agni, who stepped forward to block them with his large body. Harphon, as a mage, noticed the barrier but did not seem perturbed by it. Instead, he relaxed.

"I think it might be because of this." Rather than explaining further, the man produced his adventurer card. At first glance, it looked normal, showing his platinum rank and nothing more. Then the enchantment was released, revealing the man's true identity.

"A guild high inspector?"

"Indeed." After showing the card, the enchantment concealed his identity once more. While Roland had already seen the man's class and status screen, he had not seen the adventurer card to confirm it.

"Why are you showing me this?" He asked, unsure of what the man was trying to accomplish. As things stood, there were potential enemies nearby, and to this gnome, even Roland could be a hidden assassin.

"Well, I do not think you would go so far as to kill one of your own, but I cannot be certain about the rest. So this is my plea to you. As a high inspector, I wish to issue a secret mission to you, Adventurer Siegfried. Of course, you will be rewarded for your troubles, quite handsomely." Things were starting to get complicated. Roland had expected to confront assassins from some kind of guild, but not from a long-hidden one he had never even heard about. Still, it made more sense now.

Killing a guild investigator was exactly the sort of task such assassins would be hired for. He also wanted to learn more about these Red Quills, as they might have been involved in the attack on Arthur after the culling event. They could even be connected to the cultists. In this case, however, they appeared to have been hired specifically to dispose of the gnome. It did not take a genius to deduce that the gnome had likely been traveling to the adventurer stronghold to conduct an inspection.

That was the role of guild inspectors. They were hidden members of the guild, part of an internal organization tasked with uncovering corruption within their own ranks. Perhaps Ermes filing that report had prompted the guild to act. There might have already been other rumors, and the guild had finally decided to move a piece on the board to see what was really happening.

'They probably didn't move in for the blacksmith, they must suspect embezzlement instead, or perhaps something more?' If that was true, then someone within the adventurer stronghold the gnome had been heading toward was highly resourceful. Still, murdering a guild inspector would not go unnoticed. The guild would grow suspicious and likely send even more people to investigate. Roland could only assume that something big was happening in the third ring, something someone was desperate to conceal.

Sending additional guild agents would take time, weeks or even months, and perhaps, within that window, whatever was occurring in the third ring could be dealt with.

'What did I get myself into this time around?'

"I just need you to safeguard me until we reach the third ring, some of my associates will be there to assist me there, so what say you?" It was not a strange proposal, since within the group Roland had proven himself to be the strongest. As they spoke, the adventuring party began to split into two factions. One group had decided to retreat from the dungeon and report the situation to the guild for safety, while the others wished to press deeper.

'The blacksmith will not retreat, so that leaves me with only one option.' Considering that he had come mostly to guarantee the safety of Ermes, he decided to agree.

"Sure, I can do that, but the pay had better be good." He replied while keeping up the front of an old adventurer who mostly cared about coin.

"Of course it will be." The gnome said quickly.

"Hazard pay, a secrecy bonus, and an inspector's favor on top of that. You will have leverage within the guild that most adventurers can only dream of."

"That depends on whether we survive the trip." Roland replied flatly. The soundproof barrier faded as he stood and turned back toward the rest of the group. The argument had reached its boiling point.

"I'm leaving." The spearwoman declared, already slinging her pack over her shoulder.

"This place is cursed. Trees are waking up, people are getting skewered and melting. I did not sign up for this."

"Wait, I'm coming with you." From the party that had started with fifteen members, two were dead, and another five chose to retreat back to Isgard, leaving only eight behind, Roland among them. It was not strange for some people to get spooked, as most did not want to be involved with the occult or assassins. This left the party weaker, with several porters now gone, and it was time to move on.

"Wait, I am sure we could work things out. I will give you a percentage of my commission…" Varek pleaded with them as they left, but a frown soon appeared on his face, and his expression hardened into fury. He was still the leader of this group, and he had a mission from the guild. If he retreated now, he would lose a great deal of money and suffer a serious blow to his prestige.

Perhaps in smaller cities this would not have mattered as much, but in Isgard, there were many tier three class holders who could easily replace him.

"Fine, then leave, you bunch of leeches." Once they were gone, Varek turned to the rest of the group and made a brief announcement.

"We continue. Siegfried, you are the vanguard just like before. We go straight to the third circle without stopping." Roland nodded without speaking. It was fine with him, though he was not sure about the others. Everything still felt suspicious, and there was a real possibility that assassins were among them. They could be lurking outside the group, hiding within their current ranks, or even among those who had just left. Nevertheless, they pressed on through the Rotten Forest.

The scenery closed in around them once more, but they moved at a faster pace. Many monsters were missing due to the call of the flesh-eating tree, allowing them to pass through largely undisturbed. The group's main tracker had stayed, and everyone was now taking the situation far more seriously. It also helped that they had decided to stop collecting monster drops and instead prioritize reaching the safety of the adventurer stronghold.

Roland moved at the front, his golems floating above him as they gathered data from every direction. He could see everything now, and by the looks of it, something was there. Shadows, whispers, and vague figures were forming behind them as the group hurried forward.

'So we are being followed by someone.' He glanced at the other adventurers, trusting no one here except Agni. Their journey was clearly not over yet, and more trouble lay ahead. Little did those responsible know that he was ready for them and that they were not the ones in control.