It seemed that more people had entered Nexar City lately, and many more commission quests had appeared as a result.

However, most of them were simple Iron-rank quests, with rewards of no more than two silver coins.

“With me around, just take a Gold-rank quest and make a fortune!”

An’s lazy voice echoed in Sophia’s mind. As usual, Sophia pretended she hadn’t heard a thing.

That stupid dragon was always arrogant and rude, acting as though he was better than everyone else.

Sophia was already used to it.

“Esteemed mage, are you considering one of the top-tier commissions?”

A heavily armored adventurer approached, flashing a sunny smile.

Sophia raised her head slightly. Her water-blue eyes, shadowed beneath her hood, glanced coldly at him.

“Oh, pardon me. You’re a lady.”

The warrior adventurer froze for a moment, captivated by Sophia’s stunning beauty. He quickly recovered, though.

A seventh-level mage wasn’t someone he could afford to covet.

“For high-level commissions with generous rewards, most sensible people choose to contact a warband privately,” the warrior adventurer whispered. “That way, they can save a whole gold coin in taxes, at the very least.”

This was an unspoken rule among adventurers.

Sophia froze when she heard that, then fell into thought.

The warrior adventurer brightened inwardly.

There was a chance!

“Coincidentally, our warband recently received a high-paying commission. We’re still missing a high-level mage to accompany us. Would you care to consider joining?”

Sophia understood at once. He had come to recruit her.

At that moment, Sophia found herself conflicted.

If she didn’t go with their warband, she wouldn’t be able to earn enough gold in a short time.

But if she agreed to join them, even if she only accompanied them for one commission, her current identity was sensitive. With An’s existence as well, traveling with a large group truly wasn’t suitable.

“Accept his offer. I’ll sleep during this period and maintain this form. Besides, no one would believe that the prince of old has become a beautiful princess.”

An deliberately emphasized the words “beautiful princess.”

Sophia’s eyes darkened slightly.

“What’s the commission? And how much is the reward?”

The warrior adventurer’s eyes lit up at her question. He knew she was interested in his team.

“We’re going to a nearby dungeon. We need to kill a Tauros King and take its horns. I can’t reveal the exact reward, but I can guarantee you’ll receive at least ten…”

He paused as he spoke of the reward, then steeled himself and continued.

“Twelve gold coins.”

Clearly, those extra two gold coins were the greatest concession he could make.

Sophia sank into thought.

Tauros were bull-headed, humanoid monsters found in dungeons. They were renowned for their tough hides and terrifying strength.

A Tauros King would have at least dozens of Tauros surrounding it. Killing one was no simple task.

Still, since this man’s team dared to accept the commission, they could at least guarantee a basic level of safety.

But…

“I want the Tauros King’s heart as well.”

The warrior adventurer froze for a moment. He didn’t think much of it and nodded.

“Fine.”

“Then let’s introduce ourselves first. My name is Bill Vick. I’m a fourth-level swordsman.”

“Sophia. A water mage.”

Sophia spoke calmly.

“When and where are we meeting?”

Bill replied, “We’ll rest today and meet at the western city gate at dawn tomorrow. The banner with the lion is our team’s.”

Sophia nodded, then turned and left.

Now that she’d found a way to earn money, there was no reason to stay any longer.

After Sophia left, a rugged orc moved to Bill’s side and patted him on the shoulder.

“Mr. Bill, you’ve really done your warband a great service this time. With a mage like that joining you, the Lion Warband will surely rise another step!”

Bill frowned when he heard the orc’s words.

The orc belonged to a warband opposed to his own. Bill figured he’d acted quickly enough to stop Miss Sophia from joining that man’s warband.

That was why the orc had come over to mock him.

Just as Bill was about to say something, a lively female voice rang out.

“Mr. Orc, surely you understand the rule of first come, first served?”

An elven girl carrying a longbow approached and shot the orc a cold glance.

The orc narrowed his eyes resentfully, then hurried away.

Bill looked at the elven girl and shook his head with a bitter smile.

“That mage is only accompanying us for one commission. I doubt she’ll choose to stay with our team.”

The elven girl wrinkled her nose.

“That’s fine. Since she’s joined us, we should make good use of her. Besides, she looks… somewhat familiar…”

Bill looked at his vice-captain and let out a helpless sigh.

After leaving the Adventurers’ Guild, Sophia didn’t return to the little tavern. Instead, she headed toward the commercial street nearby.