Roberto, the captain of the "Archers of the Fortress," was thinking over a pamphlet of the "Arsenal of the Spirits" on the way to the "Dragon''s Fires.
What''s the matter, Roberto? Look at that pamphlet intently. Does it say anything interesting?"
Jeremy, his deputy, asked.
''......''
Hey. You''re not going to sign a contract with this ''Arsenal of Spirits'' thing, are you?"
No way. Just this pamphlet. It might be of some use.
Roberto smiles wryly.
What? What do you mean?"
We''re going to use it as a bargaining chip with the Dragon''s Fires.
Negotiation? This pamphlet?"
Yes. I''ve never liked it, you know. I''ve always hated it when alchemy guilds take control of dungeon exploration.
Roberto said, tapping the pamphlet crisply.
Every time I don''t ask them to do something, they just tell me to buy this weapon or that the price of ore has gone up," he said. It''s just too much.
......"
Even a ''dragon''s fiery fire'' can''t produce equipment with this kind of status," he said. It would be cheaper to give this to them and have them make the equipment at the "Arsenal of Spirits". What if I say so?"
So, even the "dragon''s fiery fire" will have to lower its price?
That''s what I meant.
But the status listed in this pamphlet, is it true? It smells too fishy."
I don''t believe this either. I don''t believe it either. But what if the world''s leading alchemy guild, the famous "Dragon''s Fires," has lost customers to a fraudulent guild like this? Isn''t that a blow to the reputation of the best alchemy guild on the island?"
I see. You''re going to pretend you''ve been duped."
That''s what I mean. If you just pretend, you can do it for free. It''s worth it, isn''t it?
I''ll be right back. Let''s give it a try.
Roberto and Jeremy were ostentatiously surprised at the budget they came up with in front of the "Dragon''s Fires" sales representative, and then deliberately said in conversation, "The "Arsenal of Spirits" is cheaper," and "Sometimes we should try contracting with a different guild.
Just as the two had hoped, the person in charge of "Dragon''s Fires" hurriedly cut the price.
The man in charge of "Dragon''s Cutlass" panicked and offered to lower the price. What are you doing!"
Medes was furious with the contract brought by the sales representative.
What are you people doing, taking the Adventurers'' Guild''s bait and getting them to lower their prices?
But they said they would sign a contract with the ''Arsenal of Spirits'' if we didn''t lower the price. ......
Of course they were trying to pull a fast one on us anyway!
But we''ve already signed a contract with these terms and ......
Go tie it back up.
What?
I said, "Go renegotiate the contract. Come on, let''s get the hell out of here.
The sales representative rushed to the "Fortress Archers" quarters.
Roberto grumbled and agreed to renegotiate the contract.
I can''t believe you would just renege on a contract that was once signed. You too are a fool.
The three guilds, "Archers of the Fortress," "Players of the Red Sands," and "Knights of the Black Wall," eventually concluded a contract with "Dragon''s Fires," but the appearance of the "Arsenal of Spirits" caused a slight stir between "Dragon''s Fires" and the outside guilds.
We waited for the moon to turn new while staying in our quarters.
In the meantime, it was time for the "Guardians of the Magic Tree" and Lange and the others to return home.
The members of the "Guardians of the Magic Tree" and the members of the "Arsenal of Spirits" were preparing to board the port.
The members of the "Arsenal of Spirits" branch and the core members of the "Spirit Alliance" also saw them off.
Aina and Ranju said their farewells to each other.
Aina. I was able to teach you everything I could in the short time I was here. I''m sure you can run the new studio and be of help to Mr. Roland.
Mr. Lange. Thank you very much. I will never forget what you taught me. Someday, we will surely visit the "City of Adventurers.
Roland handed a letter to Euphine and the others.
This is for Lily. This one is for Monica. And this one is for Jill.
So Jill is finally coming to this island.
Oh," he said. With the growth of the "Spirit Alliance," I would say that all the preliminary preparations are in place. All we have to do now is wait for Jill to arrive. I asked her to deliver this letter.
Yes, sir. I will make sure to deliver it.
Soon the ship carrying the group left the port.
The people waving to each other could be seen forever on the distant ship and in the harbor.
Soon the ship disappeared beyond the horizon.
（They are gone.)
Aina looks sadly out to sea.
''Come on, guys, we don''t have time to say goodbye forever. We have to prepare for the next season''s dungeon exploration.
When Roland said this, people took their eyes off the sea and turned their attention back to the volcano.
''Aina. How''s business going with the three newly visited guilds?"
It seems that ...... all of the guilds intend to sign a contract with Dragon''s Fires.
I see. Then it''s up to us to show them the power of our equipment."
It was the next month.
The "Knights of the Black Wall," "Players of the Red Sands," and "Archers of the Fortress" who had been fully equipped and procured by the "Dragon''s Fires" gathered at the dungeon''s entrance square.
And as usual, the local adventurers were not ...... following the outside adventurers like bandogges.
Zero! You mean to tell me that not a single person joined our guild?"
Simon shouts in surprise.
Simon is surprised. Yes."
Liz said, also in distress.
So all the locals came to the aid of the Archers of the Fortress and the Players of the Red Sands?"
It seems ...... that they are going to join the ''Spirit Alliance''.
The League of Spirits,......, is that the alchemy guild that you mentioned?
Simon said, perplexed.
Yes," Simon said, perplexed. Apparently, the most recent joint dungeon search with the Guardians of the Magical Tree went well, so they are getting bullish.
But the ''Guardian of the Magical Tree'' has already left, hasn''t he?"
Yes. Indeed, they were seen leaving by boat from the harbor.
And you still want to call this "Spirit League"?
Yes."
Simon sighed deeply.
(Good grief. (Good grief, what a bunch of people on this island. Here we go again. (If they get a little success with the help of an outside guild, they''ll get carried away.)
It is unavoidable. We''ll do the first search without any local help."
Without the help of local adventurers, the number of ores that can be procured is limited.
Simon decided to win the hearts and minds of the local adventurers on the first search and put them to work on the second and third searches.
''Rock-paper-scissors! Aiko de shosho. Sho. Sho. Okay, I won."
I''m like, "Oh, no. You got me."
This loss hurts.
The representatives of the three guilds had decided the order in which to enter the dungeon by rock-paper-scissors-scissors.
Simon had won the rock-paper-scissors dungeon and had earned the right to enter the dungeon first.
（Simon was the first one to enter the dungeon. (Okay, I got the right to be the first one to enter the dungeon, because in this dungeon, the first one to enter has a huge advantage. (We''ll escape from the other two guilds and the bandits, bring back the ore, and win the "Dragon''s Fires" and the local guild''s confidence in one fell swoop.)
Thus, the three guilds decided the order in which they would enter the dungeon only among themselves, and each made its own strategy.
There was not a shred of the "Spirit Alliance" in their minds.
The three guilds, having finished their preparations, entered the dungeon in turn.
The "Players of the Red Sands," who entered the dungeon last among the three guilds, were hurrying ahead to catch up with the two guilds that were ahead of them.
They were moving through the dungeon at an unprecedentedly brisk pace.
In the blink of an eye, they passed through the "forest at the foot of the mountain" and arrived at the "metal line," without regard to the oni and wolves that were approaching.
They had already reached the "Metal Line. You''ve made pretty good progress this time.
The local guilds are gone," he said. We''re making progress in our search.
However, it is the same for the "Knights of the Black Wall" and "Archers of the Fortress" who are ahead of us. We''ll have to pick up the pace tomorrow.
What? If you enter the "Metal Line," "Fafnir" will come out too. If that happens, we who can use "Ryuon" will be more ....... Hm? What is it?"
The members of the "Red Sands Players," who were talking lightly, turned around when they heard the sound of many footsteps coming from behind them.
A group of people wearing unfamiliar equipment was approaching.
The equipment bore the emblem of a spirit holding a hammer.
It was the head of the "Spirit Alliance.
What is it? Have those guys made it this far already?"
You''re awfully quick for a local guild."
No, it''s more like ...... they''re about to attack us."
The archer at the head of the "Spirit Alliance" had already stopped and was setting an arrow on his bow.
He had already stopped and was setting an arrow on the bow. If they want to do it, we''ll do it too.
The "Red Sands Player" was ready to respond immediately.
The greatest strength of the "Players of the Red Sands" was the bardic unit that could use "Ryuon," but the archer unit that supported them was also quite a strong group.
They are skilled archers who have killed many of the ferocious monstrous bird monsters that attack adventurers traveling in the desert.
They quickly spread out, hiding behind sparse trees and rocks, and began to fight back.
However, the archers of the "Players of the Red Sands" were only beaten one-sidedly.
The arrows from the "Spirit Alliance" hit with a hundred successes, but none of the arrows fired by the "Players of the Red Sands" hit.
In no time at all, the shooting unit of the "Players of the Red Sands" was taken out, and they were unable to fight.
The white army also approached to challenge them in melee combat, but were easily overcome by the highly agile archers of the "Spirit Alliance.
Eventually, they were lured into a position where the "Spirit Alliance" was waiting for them in a well-prepared position.
The "Spirit Alliance''s" white army launched an unrestrained assault against the "Red Sands Players," who came charging at them in disarray, and quickly defeated them.
The "Red Sands Players" were quickly defeated. What? Strong."
The "Player of the Red Sands" suffered catastrophic damage before he had time to utilize his vaunted bardic troops, and surrendered to the "Spirit Alliance.
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