Haina wiped wine glasses behind the bar, shooting a cold glare at Alan slumped over the counter. She hadn’t forgotten that morning’s incident. Damn Alan—still so young, yet already obsessed with big breasts. What would he be like as an adult?

Most importantly, Haina glanced down at her own chest. A trace of embarrassment and anger flickered across her delicate face. Why were hers as flat as pancakes?

She quickly looked away, fixing her gaze on Layne. “Why are you two so disheveled? What happened?”

Layne gave Haina a weary glance and waved a limp hand. “Let Alan answer that. My brain’s offline today. I’ll explain once it’s back online.”

Hearing this, Alan used magic to dry his clothes. He smiled at Haina. “Nothing much. Sia dropped her hammer in the river. Layne and I helped retrieve it.”

Haina placed the clean glass on the shelf. She shot Alan an icy look and slid a quest notice before him. “A joint commission from the city lord and Arcane Academy. Take it or not? Check it out.”

“A joint commission from the city lord and Arcane Academy?” Alan’s mind instantly flashed back to Layne’s afternoon warning: Dark Mage!

He skimmed the notice. Just as expected—it called for capturing the Dark Mage hiding in Newdali City, dead or alive. The reward was hefty: sixty thousand gold coins.

“Well? Should our guild accept this?”

Haina watched Alan, waiting for his decision. As guild master of Cloud Peak Guild, he had the right to refuse if he deemed it too risky.

Alan set down the notice, tapping the counter lightly with his right hand. “The notice lacks details on the Dark Mage’s rank. We don’t know their strength. Rushing in might get our members killed.”

Sixty thousand gold coins meant high risk. Alan desperately wanted to repay his dad’s massive debt, but as guild master, he couldn’t ignore his members’ safety. Dark Mages weren’t kind souls. Facing them meant risking death by magic.

Besides, the notice didn’t specify the intruder’s rank. Alan wasn’t keen on accepting.

“You could rank this quest as S Rank or Super S,” Haina suggested after a pause. “That way, only S Rank Mages or higher can take it.”

Alan’s eyes lit up with interest. Haina’s idea was feasible!

Mage ranks descended from highest to lowest: S Rank, A Rank, B Rank, C Rank, D Rank.

Cloud Peak Guild was one of Newdali City’s top three guilds. Under Alan’s dad, it boasted five S Rank Mages and two Super S Rank Mages, ranking first among the trio.

After his dad left, only four S Rank Mages remained, and just one Super S Rank Mage. Their ranking dropped to second place.

So, if Alan followed Haina’s advice and set the quest to S Rank difficulty, only S Rank or Super S Rank Mages could accept it.

Awkwardly, only Alan—the guild master—and Kane were currently at Cloud Peak Guild. The other S Rank Mages were either training or on missions. Haina was only an A Rank Mage.

Alan sighed helplessly at the notice. “Looks like only the guild master—me—and Kane can handle this.”

“Sorry, bad news,” Haina said, propping her chin on her hands. She batted her big eyes mischievously at Alan. “This afternoon, Kane took a long-distance mission. And… well, you know.”

“…”

Alan was speechless for a moment. So he’d have to catch the Dark Mage alone? He was just a kid—did they have to treat him like this?

“Then let’s politely decline. Let Dragon Guild and Forest Sprite Guild take it.”

Alan didn’t want to die young. Without knowing the Dark Mage’s rank, he wouldn’t rush in. He was an S Rank Mage, but if the enemy was a Super S Rank Dark Mage? One encounter, and he’d be dead.

“Can’t decline. I already accepted it for you this afternoon.” Haina grinned, her bright eyes gleaming with mischief.

“Impossible. Without my approval—”

“I stamped it. See? Your personal guild master seal.”

Only then did Alan notice his seal stamped in the bottom corner of the notice.

He’d been tricked by Haina from the start. Alan felt like crying but couldn’t. He was just a kid—why set him up like this?

“Guild master, do your best! I believe in you.”

“Haina, I have a certain F-word for you. May I say it?”

Haina’s forehead creased in confusion: “???” She didn’t understand.

Just then, Layne—who’d been pretending to be dead nearby—produced a pen and paper. He handed them to Alan. “Bro, just in case, write your last words and will here. Put my name as the recipient. Don’t worry—if a Dark Mage kills you, I’ll burn plenty of joss paper for you.”

Alan: “…”

Can I give you another F-word?

…

At eight PM, Cloud Peak Guild members trickled back. Seeing Alan’s dejected look, they laughed and greeted him.

“Youngest guild master in Leo Kingdom history—what’s wrong? Why so down? Did Forest Sprite Guild’s leader chase you for debts again?”

“Guild master, you look miserable. Did you get beaten for peeping at big sister Haina?”

Alan ignored the rowdy bunch. He pointed to the bulletin board with quest notices, letting them see for themselves.

“S Rank quest? Seriously? Since the last guild master left, we haven’t had an S Rank commission in ages!”

Seven or eight members crowded around the board, reading closely.

Minutes later, shouts erupted: “Holy crap!!! A Dark Mage’s lurking in our city?!!!”