Chapter 44

In thе smаll frоntiеr city оf Grоdеk, hе hаd managed tо аcquire twо skilled cоmраniоns.

Тhus, Кhan naturаlly assumеd thаt clеаring thе Нiddеn Quest wоuld be еasy.

Nоt оnlу his сompаnions, but hе himself had aсhiеved considerаblе growth.

However, аftеr hearing Buttner’s entirе stоry, Khаn was lеft sрееchless.

‘With this… how on еarth arе wе suрposеd tо сlear it?’

Кhan’s currеnt Level was 14.

Hе рossessеd nоt onlу the Rank 10 Нidden Skill ‘Sage’s Нeаrt’ but аlso several othеr Hiddеn Skills.

Не beliеved he соuld еxert рowеr rоughlу twiсе as strоng аs Lеvel 14, sо hе thought he might be able to handle something like the Griffin he had defeated before.

‘How am I supposed to defeat a Cerberus at Level 14…?’

As Khan stood with an impassive expression, Buttner’s face, which had been darkening as he spoke, strangely began to brighten slightly.

‘What’s going on…?’

Khan couldn’t understand at all why Buttner, who had been looking almost half-tearful, was suddenly smiling.

“As expected…! It seems I have an eye for people!”

“……?”

“Ah! It’s because Sir Khan, even after hearing my story, doesn’t seem the least bit surprised or frightened. Haha… I’ve been rude, it seems.”

As it turned out, all the knights Buttner had hired from outside so far either fled in fear upon hearing about the three-headed wolf Monster or refused to accept the commission.

Brente, who had been standing quietly beside Buttner, also spoke up.

“Cerberus is a powerful Monster that appears in dungeons… I don’t know why it suddenly appeared in Selenad. I’d like to defeat it myself, but I heard that a knight from Selenad with similar strength to mine recently led troops to subjugate the Cerberus and was completely wiped out. For me, the chances of a successful subjugation are low as well.”

“……That’s quite a predicament.”

Khan replied robotically after hearing Brente’s words.

“Sir Khan, I too ask this of you. Could you please join us in subjugating the Cerberus?”

“If we cannot defeat that creature… soon it will overrun not only Selenad but Eldravis and Asmar as well. Please, save Eldrida…!”

Viscount Buttner and Brente bowed their heads simultaneously and pleaded with Khan.

At the same time, a Quest message appeared before Khan’s eyes.

‘Do I have to clear this… right now?’

• [Cerberus Subjugation]

• Will you accept the Hidden Quest?

• Refusal will delete the Hidden Quest.

• Reward: Large amount of Experience Points, Viscount Buttner’s gift, progression to the next Hidden Quest.

Was it even remotely plausible for Khan, only Level 14, to defeat a Level 40 Cerberus?

‘It’s absolutely impossible…’

If the Cerberus tapped Khan with its massive front paw, his body would burst and he’d die instantly.

The difference between Level 40 and Level 14 was that overwhelmingly vast.

How on earth was he supposed to defeat the Cerberus?

‘Byutek and Sharin are also bound to die the moment they face the Cerberus…’

He couldn’t let the companions he had worked so hard to find die like that.

Having concluded his thoughts, Khan was finally about to give up on the Hidden Quest.

“The situation is truly dire, but…”

As he calmly began to speak, the only possible method to confront the Cerberus flashed through his mind in an instant.

The Rank 2 Hidden Skill ‘Mirror Defense’, arduously obtained in the rocky mountains of Hugo Village.

If he used ‘Mirror Defense’, defeating the Cerberus might not be entirely impossible.

Reaching the conclusion that he might actually be able to defeat the Cerberus while trying to refuse, Khan naturally changed his words.

“Very well. I will assist with the Cerberus subjugation.”

“Re… really?!”

“Thank you!! Truly, thank you!!!”

Buttner and Brente, having initially heard the words from Khan’s mouth, thought he was refusing the request and their expressions darkened, but when he suddenly said he would help subjugate the Cerberus, they couldn’t have been happier.

“Truly, thank you, Sir Khan. From now on, I and all of Eldrida will actively support you and step forward to help you in times of difficulty!”

“We haven’t even defeated the Cerberus yet. Save such words for after we defeat it.”

“Hahaha, understood! We should hold a grand party tonight!”

“What are you talking about? We will depart immediately.”

“Huh…?”

“In a situation where we don’t know when the Cerberus might attack the city, where is the time to enjoy a party?”

Looking at Buttner, whose face was excited as if he was about to throw a party right away, Khan thought he was a bit pathetic.

Could a noble holding the title of Lord and Viscount of such a large city really be that complacent?

In fact, having seen such nobles in games and novels being far more complacent and thoughtless than commoners, it also seemed perhaps natural.

“Haha… Well, I’m grateful then! Brente, take all the troops we can dispatch from our Knight Order and depart for Selenad immediately with Sir Khan!”

“I shall obey my Lord’s command!”

Khan, Byutek, and Sharin could only board the large Carriage outside after receiving numerous thanks from Buttner.

Shortly after, Brente appeared on horseback beside the Carriage carrying Khan’s party.

Behind him, a full fifty knights were lined up on horseback.

‘Their Levels aren’t bad… But even so, they’re no match for the Cerberus.’

Some knights were even Level 16, but before the Cerberus, they would be no different from ordinary people.

After all, the Cerberus was a dungeon Boss Monster at a whopping Level 40.

The dungeons existing on the outskirts of the kingdom were essentially Monster spawning grounds.

Monsters that escaped the dungeons would sometimes come down to cities and villages to attack people.

“Then I shall escort you directly to Selenad!”

Brente shouted that and took the lead.

Khan’s party could travel comfortably to Selenad while riding in the Carriage.

It took three hours by Carriage to reach Selenad.

Despite being the neighboring city, the atmosphere was slightly different.

It was close to the coast, with a large port, and the fishing industry seemed quite developed.

“It seems the situation isn’t as serious as I thought. The citizens don’t seem particularly anxious.”

Khan said, looking around after getting off the Carriage.

“Ah, there’s something I failed to mention. The Cerberus seems to have claimed a Mana Crystal Mine a short distance from Selenad as its territory and isn’t leaving that area.”

“Hmm… That’s actually a problem too. If so, it becomes impossible to mine the Mana Crystals, Eldrida’s primary resource.”

“Correct. That’s why Eldrida’s overall prices are rising these days and the economy is collapsing.”

They needed to sell Mana Crystals externally to bring in money for the city to function properly, but being unable to do so meant the situation wasn’t good.

‘To defeat the Cerberus… I need to accurately understand its attack patterns first.’

Khan would have only one chance to defeat the Cerberus.

His Rank 2 Hidden Skill, ‘Mirror Defense’, is a defensive skill that blocks any attack.

Simultaneously, it’s a cheat-like skill that absorbs the blocked attack and allows the same attack to be used identically.

If he timed it right, he should be able to defeat the Cerberus.

‘If I absorb the Cerberus’s most powerful attack, its Breath, with ‘Mirror Defense’ and then use it against it, that should be enough to defeat it.’

Of course, Khan would also be risking his life, but the reason he accepted the Quest anyway was twofold.

First, the Experience Points and rewards gained from defeating the Cerberus.

Second, he wanted to continue progressing the Hidden Quest.

‘If the Hidden Quest doesn’t end here but continues further, I should be able to grow faster.’

He still knew very little about Hidden Quests, but he could somewhat guess.

Judging by the overwhelmingly high difficulty of the Hidden Quest, faster growth seemed possible.

Meaning, he could shorten the time and go to defeat the final boss a bit sooner.

To go to the Magic Tower where the final boss resided, one needed to be at least Level 100 and meet the Quest conditions to enter.

‘It feels like clearing Hidden Quests like this will allow me to meet the Quest conditions to enter the Magic Tower.’

As Khan was organizing his thoughts, Brente spoke to him again.

“Then I shall take you to meet the mayor of Selenad right away.”

“Who is the mayor of Selenad?”

“A man named Audric.”

Hearing the name, Khan also remembered.

“Let’s plan to meet the mayor in two hours. You all should also have a meal nearby for now.”

“Huh…? No! We should treat you. Please follow us……”

“I have other business to attend to as well. Let’s eat separately.”

“Ah… Understood! Then we shall meet again here in two hours.”

Khan nodded at Brente’s words.

“See you later, Hyungnim Brente!”

“Sure.”

Byutek also exchanged farewells with Brente before parting ways.

Khan’s party entered a rather upscale-looking restaurant nearby for a meal.

It was a place that sold fish dishes, but it felt a bit rough to be called a restaurant.

‘It feels more like a diner.’

It was called a restaurant, but it was essentially just a diner.

“Welcome! Please take a seat anywhere you’re comfortable!”

Khan’s party, guided by a server, sat down and casually ordered food.

A menu of fish and potatoes fried in oil came out, and the taste was better than expected.

“Tastes good.”

“Haha, indeed! Please eat heartily, Sir Khan!”

“It’s super delicious!”

The three were enjoying their meal when suddenly someone flung the diner’s door open and barged in.

It appeared to be a blonde woman with her hair braided on both sides and a knight attending to her.

“What’s this! I’m here, why isn’t anyone coming out to greet me?!”

“Ahh! Welcome, Princess! It’s truly an honor you’ve come! I’ll guide you this way!”

“Aren’t you going to come out quickly?!”

“S-sorry!”

The diner’s owner came out and personally guided the woman addressed as Princess, but her attitude was quite arrogant.

The woman looked very young, generously in her mid-teens at best.

‘The audacity of speaking to someone old enough to be her father… tsk.’

Khan, minding his own business, finished his meal.

About ten minutes later, a loud voice came from the table where the woman was sitting again.

The woman spat out the food she was eating and raised her voice.

“Ptooey! Owner! Are you selling this as food right now?! Huh?!”

“S-sorry…. I’ll bring new food right away……”

Slap!

The woman slapped away the diner owner’s hand, which was clinging to her sleeve.

Instantly, the atmosphere inside the diner turned icy.

Glancing sideways, Byutek also seemed very angry, his fists trembling as if he was about to jump up from his seat any moment.

Thud.

Then, Khan stood up from his seat and looked towards the woman’s table.