Chapter 240 – Rune Scrolls

“Let the guest in.”

Shall we hear what kind of quest you want to request?
I gave Wendy permission to let her guests in. Soon after she had gone out of the room, Wendy returned with her guests.

“Meeeee…”

I wondered if I could hear the cry of an animal outside, but the identity of the customer was Yang Soo-in. They are beastmen called Sanyangjok (山羊足) and have horns that curve backwards on their heads. The moment Soo-in Yang entered the room, she could smell the fresh grass in the room.

‘Are you a wizard?’

Just looking at it makes me feel like a wizard. He’s holding a magic wand in his hairy hand. A staff with a thick jewel embedded at the tip. It is a staff called the Arcane staff, and it is an item used exclusively by alchemists. Have you heard that the inside of the wand has a function to help mix substances?

“Ah, hello! I’m Kelon, and I belong to the magic society, Tabula.”

Yang Soo-in nodded at me. It’s an overly polite attitude, so it’s a bit suspicious. I feel like I’m going to lower my head and my head will touch the ground. The angle of the lower back goes beyond 90 degrees and moves toward 180 degrees.

“You don’t have to be too rigid. I’m not here to give you a quest. Please treat me comfortably. Eh… I’m Luke leading the adventurer party.”
“Ha, but how dare you treat the wizard of Ninggard carelessly.”

Kellon looked up and glanced at the quarter staff in the corner of her room.

Ningard?
I see you’re misunderstanding something.

“Well?”

After rolling her head for a moment, I realized why Kellron’s demeanor was low-key. Ninggard is a famous organization among magic societies that has advanced technology for decades. Most of the members of the organization are living in seclusion, but it is said that there are many cases where they achieve achievements beyond common sense every time they appear on the continent. Ordinary mages’ feelings toward Nagadre are awe-inspiring.

“You are mistaken. I am not a member of Ninggard.”
“Yes? All rune mages on the continent belong to Ninggard, right? I know that Ninggard is the only group that studies ancient magic.”
“It’s like the other rune mages. I’m the only one living a wandering life. I prefer to study alone rather than being affiliated with.”
“Okay…!”

After her misunderstanding was cleared up, Kellon’s attitude finally eased.
I sat across the table with Kellon.

Did I mention that this beastman belonged to Tabula?
What else are you doing there?

There was no need to ask Kellon directly what a tabula was.
Bella introduced me to Tabula.

“It is an organization of beastman alchemists located in the holy land of the Great Forest. Most of the magic tools produced in the Principality of Morph are born through the hands of Tabula. It’s a product.”

When it comes to things, I mean adult products.
Come to think of it, it seems that the word Tabula was engraved in small letters on the outer surface of the rotor packaging. Are you making adult products with alchemy? Indeed, it is the kingdom of beasts.

“Meeeee… That’s too much praise. Besides Tabula, there are alchemists who produce magic tools in Morph. Our product sales are only the highest in Morph.”
“You must make a lot of money. So, why did a wealthy man come to adventurers like us?”
“At Tabula, we have contracts with numerous merchants from all over the continent to obtain various alchemy materials. Came into being.”

Kellone followed her with a heavy sigh.

“We lost contact with the guild in charge of transportation for three days. Even when we sent a signal to the communication device, there was no response. Looking at the records we exchanged the day before, we were certain that we had arrived near the Holy Land. We also sent someone to the guild I’ve searched but haven’t been able to find any trace of it yet. All of the merchants are suddenly missing.”

The upper part that carried the goods was completely gone. Since they are merchants who reveal their money, isn’t there a possibility that they ran into a scam? He could have lost his eyes while carrying expensive alchemy materials.

“Maybe the top side played a trick.”
“There was no betrayal because they had been working with Tabula for a long time. In particular, the head of the company was engaged to the daughter of Tabula’s leader. That means there was trust in each other. It seems to have been received.”

Kellone flatly rejected my comments.
In short, it looks like it was attacked by bandits. Gradually, I can guess what kind of quest Kellon is requesting.

“I would like adventurers to track down the missing company. I don’t have high hopes for the survival of the people in the company. However, the ‘item’ that was being transported is very valuable to us alchemists. I hope you can get it back.”
“What kind of object is it?”
“It’s a thing called ‘Rune Scroll’. It’s the prototype of all magic scrolls handled on the continent. It’s a rare artifact with only ten remaining on the entire continent. It’s an artifact obtained from Ninggard with a large sum of money… I can’t stand still like this. No. We must get it back.”

Speaking of rune scrolls, I’ve heard the name as well.
They said it was the first magic scroll invented on the continent. It was a magic scroll created by ancient rune mages, but most of it was consumed during the Great War. It was impossible to reproduce the rune scroll because the manufacturing method was also put into practice. The magic scroll that was created by interpreting a part of the rune scroll is currently circulating.

‘You mean you can see the rune scroll in real life?’

Hearing the contents of the quest, he was intrigued. With only 10 remaining rune scrolls, the chance to see them in person is rare. If you can research it, it will be of great help in learning how to make scrolls.

“Are there any clues left to help us track down?”
“Three days ago, the Merchant was passing through the Rookline Tunnel. I would like to entrust the adventurers with the task of searching around the tunnel.”

If it is the Rukline Tunnel, it is a place that can be reached in half a day from the Holy Land. While searching the caravan, it might be a good idea to look for traces of Albert. If you can find both, nothing is as good.

“Before accepting the quest, there is something I need to tell you. Since you are adventurers from the North, you are not familiar with Morph’s situation. An ancient monster that has been resurrected is rampaging in the Great Forest. It is Grendel… At the end of the Great War, space It’s a monster that slaughtered beasts with abilities that surpassed that.”
“Grendel?”
“Yes, Grendel! At Tabula, we suspect that Grendel was responsible for the raid on the Merchant Merchant. It is dangerous because it is a monster that can freely jump through space. “

Kellon gave the warning with a very serious expression. She visited the Holy Land and found out that the beastmen were in a commotion because of Grendel’s appearance. It’s because it’s a monster that gained notoriety during the Great War. Even now, warriors from the Holy Land must be patrolling to kill Grendel.

‘He’s dead.’

It’s like you’re walking on the wrong leg with a serious expression.
Somehow, it was delayed in notifying the prisoners of Grendel’s death. Because I was concerned about my awakened body, I was out of my mind. It would be better to let them know that the monster is dead at this point.

I opened my mouth in a calm voice.

“Oh, never mind Grendel. We’ve already dealt with it.”
“…Well?”

Kellon looked at me with a puzzled expression.
Kellon, who was silent for a moment, let out an awkward laugh.

“Adventurers took care of Grendel? It’s a monster that flashes in the east and west, so even the beast warriors are in trouble. It would be impossible for an adventurer party to defeat it alone… Is this a joke? Where can I laugh? “

I guess you took my words as a joke.
It was a monster so vicious that there wouldn’t have been an answer if it had been a head-to-head match. I managed to finish it by stealing the talisman and using mind control with the charm eye.

I decided to show Kellon the evidence of killing Grendel.

“I’m not kidding.”

The sack that was kept in the room.
He opened the sack and showed Grendel’s body to Kellon.
The moment she revealed her gooey slime corpse, Kellon let out a scream that took her breath away.

“Huhhhhh-!!”

It’s a loud scream.
My ears are itching.

“Ugh, aaaaagh.”
“Did you see? I missed the opportunity to tell you so I just stayed there until now. Actually, before we reached the Holy Land, we took care of Grendel. Please tell the other prisoners that there is no need to worry anymore.”
“This, this gooey green slime-!! It must be Grendel! It’s just like what I read in the literature!”

Kellon roared with excitement. Although she was only for a moment, she seemed to have forgotten that she was a client entrusted with a quest.

“If left alone, Grendel would have slaughtered countless beasts. It can be said that the beasts of the principality were saved thanks to the adventurers. I need to inform the people right away.”

Kellon jumped up and tried to run out of her cabin. I understand her heart, but she was on a quest right now. Where did she go without finishing the story? I grabbed Kellon’s wrist as he turned around.

“The story isn’t over.”
“A story? Ah, a quest! If you can retrieve the rune scroll, I’ll give you 40 gold as a reward! I’ll give you 10 gold as a down payment!”

Kellon handed me ten yellow gold coins.
Now that she’s paid, the time has come to get to work. However, we could not immediately start for the Rukline Tunnel. When the news of Grendel’s death spread, all kinds of prisoners flocked to the inn.

“Grendel is already dead?! Is that true?”
“Show us the body too!”

Inhabitants of the Holy Land.
Beast warriors patrolling.
Among them were the great fighters we encountered at the checkpoint. The ripple effect of the news spreading beyond imagination was great. After all, the monster that made the entire Principality of Morph tremble in fear during the winter is dead. In an instant, the front of the spring water inn turned into a market floor due to the beastmen.

“Yes, he’s dead. Everyone, be safe and go about your livelihood.”

I unfolded the sack in front of the prisoners and showed them Grendel’s body.

“Hhhhh!!”
“It’s real! It’s the real Grendel!”
“Did you say you’re adventurers? Are you famous adventurers in the North? Judging from how you handled Grendel, are you at a platinum level?”

Is it platinum grade?
Not really.

“…Silver.”
“Silver?! The hero who defeated Grendel is Silver!”

When the adventurer level was revealed, the prisoners were even more shocked.

“It’s similar to platinum in that it glows silver in color. Just remember that it’s a silver grade like platinum.”

It took quite some time to calm the commotion.
It wasn’t until that evening that we were able to set out for the Rookline Tunnel.