Gauss could indeed sense that all of Grayrock Town was enveloped in an indescribable atmosphere. But the exact nature of it was hard to pinpoint.

Sorrow? That didn't seem quite right.

Oppression?

There was some, but not much.

Perhaps it was more of an unease - witnessing the wheels of history turning, watching an era come to an end while feeling lost about the unknown future.

Come to think of it, Gauss had fragmented memories about Sword Saint Roland in his mind. From what he recalled, Roland was the core member of an elite squad that had slain the Demon King - a legendary Sword Saint, humanity's strongest hero who had established a century of peace.

But to the original Gauss and most ordinary people, Sword Saint Roland was more like a character from storybooks, a name from distant legends. The era when Roland truly dominated the continent was already over a hundred years ago. Back then, not only had Gauss not been born, but likely neither had his grandfather or even great-grandfather. It was perfectly normal not to know much about such distant times.

"All men must die... even the strongest among us." Gauss felt a sudden realization.

Humans were naturally short-lived. In this era, ordinary humans rarely lived past a hundred years through natural aging, while races like elves and dwarves commonly lived for several centuries. Not to mention dragons and other long-lived magical creatures - their mightiest could outlive entire kingdoms. Even human powerhouses who reached legendary status would only live 200-300 years without special life-extending methods - the gap was quite apparent.

The only advantage humans had was their massive population base, constantly producing new generations of strong individuals. Of course, for nineteen-year-old Gauss, discussing the limits of life was still premature. He was just reflecting upon hearing about the death of a legendary figure.

Moreover, with his Adventurer's Manual, he might well find suitable life-extending methods in the future. This thought quietly took root in his mind.

"Let's go submit the mission first," he pulled himself back to reality.

At the Adventurers Guild headquarters, the first-floor hall remained bustling with noise, but beneath the clamor there seemed to be an undercurrent of distracted restlessness.

Levin was leading the Night Owl Squad members - Meva, Daphne, Oliver and Doyle - as they searched the mission board for suitable tasks.

"Sword Saint Roland has died?" Doyle suddenly spoke up.

"What's that got to do with us?" Meva responded flatly, her eyes still scanning the parchment notices.

"How can it not?" Doyle immediately countered, his face flushing with excitement. "Adventurers from all over the world are gathering in the imperial capital now. Haven't you heard? The Emperor issued a 'Proclamation to All Adventurers' - whoever draws the sacred sword will inherit Roland's legacy and become the next Sword Saint!"

Doyle's voice rose uncontrollably, his face red with exhilaration. As a warrior - and a swordsman at that - he was completely immersed in the fantasy. He could almost see himself drawing that legendary sword, becoming famous across the continent, with even the mischievous children back home proudly singing tales of "Sword Saint Doyle."

"Hmph..." Meva let out an ambiguous chuckle and shook her head.

"Doyle," archer Oliver spoke up with a smile, but his words brought Doyle crashing back to reality. "Want to go to the imperial capital Aurelian? First figure out how to cross the entire Kingdom of Carlos, then traverse most of the Empire. Do you think, with our current abilities..."

He didn't finish, but the meaning was clear. For low-ranking adventurers from a backwater like Grayrock Town, reaching the golden sacred capital Aurelian at the heart of human civilization might as well be an insurmountable chasm.

"Uh... th-there must be ways, right? Like... those ultra-long-distance teleportation spells..." Doyle's voice trailed off weakly. He knew full well such advanced magic and teleportation arrays had nothing to do with bottom-tier adventurers like them.

Under several mocking gazes, Doyle finally deflated, his shoulders slumping.

"...Can't I even dream? I really envy those born in the capital!" he muttered, trying to change the subject. "Speaking of which, what about that kid Gauss? Feels like ages since we've seen him."

His words made the Night Owl Squad members thoughtful.

"He's probably close to his profession advancement. Maybe we haven't seen him because he's preparing for it?" Levin's tone couldn't hide his envy.

Just then, the crowd at the hall entrance suddenly parted like waves, creating a pathway. This usually meant a professional-rank adventurer had arrived.

The Night Owl Squad instinctively followed everyone's gazes. As low-ranking adventurers, it was crucial to recognize the professional adventurers coming through town, lest they accidentally offend some unassuming "powerhouse."

Two figures strode calmly into the hall. Levin and the others' eyes froze.

The man on the left stood tall and straight, with handsome features. Beneath his neatly cropped black hair, those clear jade-green eyes were particularly striking. The more they looked, the more familiar that face seemed.

Because they knew this person?

It was Gauss, who had teamed up with them for a month or two before leaving the squad!

"That... that's Gauss?" Doyle's voice came out hoarse as he swallowed hard, unconsciously shrinking back.

This Gauss was different from the one in his memories. His features seemed more defined, his demeanor calm and confident, carrying himself with the composed bearing they'd only seen in true "powerhouses."

"Mmm," Meva acknowledged, though her gaze lingered slightly longer on the valiant-looking female companion beside Gauss.

"He really advanced his profession?" Daphne blinked rapidly, her tone full of disbelief. Their past adventures with Gauss felt like just yesterday.

Under their stares, Gauss and his female teammate headed for the stairs to the second floor. The leather-armored guards bearing guild insignias straightened immediately upon seeing the bronze badge on Gauss's chest, saluting respectfully with fists to chests before stepping aside.

The two ascended the stairs and disappeared around the corner.

"He really did become a bronze-rank adventurer," Levin said quietly, his voice complex with unspoken emotions.

This sight left the entire Night Owl Squad briefly silent. Even Doyle, previously lost in sword saint fantasies, completely deflated, his daydreams evaporated. While he'd been indulging in unrealistic fantasies, their former teammate had quietly climbed to greater heights. This gap left him somewhat disheartened.

Those ten vertical meters between upstairs and downstairs might represent a chasm that low-ranking adventurers could spend their whole lives unable to cross.

Various emotions churned within them.

Meva appeared calm - if anything, she'd long sensed Gauss wouldn't be far from profession advancement.

"Levin," Daphne suggested softly, "should we... find a chance to congratulate Gauss?"

"...Better not. Gauss must be busy now," Levin hesitated, his eyes flickering. "And he has new teammates too. Let's not bother him."

"Y-yeah," Doyle quickly agreed.

"Right, I heard newly promoted bronze-ranks have lots of new things to handle," Oliver nodded.

What they didn't voice was another reason - they somewhat dreaded facing Gauss now, afraid he might notice their lack of progress, or see possible distance or condescension in his eyes.

Meva took in her teammates' reactions. Though usually quiet, she was quite perceptive, often quietly observing others. Seeing everyone reject the idea of congratulating Gauss, she said nothing more - though she wanted to say Gauss probably wouldn't mind.

But she understood this subtle sense of distance. She decided silently to later pick out a gift and leave it at his inn's front desk.

...

"Gauss, what's wrong?" Aria asked softly, having keenly noticed her partner's momentary hesitation.

"Nothing. Let's submit the mission first," Gauss shook his head, pressing his lips together.

"Alright." Seeing Gauss didn't want to elaborate, Aria tactfully didn't press. She hadn't fully realized yet that within their two-person team, she'd unconsciously begun deferring to Gauss's opinions.

They reached the second-floor mission hall counter. After submitting documents and badges, following brief verification, their commission was confirmed complete.

"Honored adventurers, here's your payment - seventy silver coins. Please check."

The receptionist respectfully pushed forward a weighty small purse.

"Thanks." Gauss took it, expertly testing its weight between fingers before storing it away. Then he said seriously, "Also, during our mission, we discovered special intelligence needing guild reporting."

"Special intelligence?" The receptionist stiffened. "Understood. I'll notify guild leadership for you."

Special intelligence couldn't simply be reported to a front desk clerk.

"Please follow me to the reception room to wait."

After a short wait in the quiet room...

"Tap... tap... tap..."

Sharp, rhythmic heel taps on stone bricks approached.

Creak—

The door opened, long pale legs stepping across the threshold.

A beautiful woman entered, her fiery red hair swaying like burning flames with each step, her tight robe accentuating breathtaking curves. After scanning the room, her gaze locked onto Gauss.

"We meet again, Gauss." The redheaded warlock Sherry's lips quirked, her tone familiar.

"Lady Sherry." Gauss nodded. He should've guessed - someone who'd qualify as "leadership" to receive special reports would likely be this warlock he'd dealt with before.

"You teamed up?" Sherry's curious gaze turned to the quietly seated Aria beside Gauss. Clearly she recognized this druid too.

"Yes."

"A spellcaster and druid..." Sherry's fine brows rose. "An... interesting combination."

Her thoughts raced. Honestly, this pairing was rather unconventional. For a spellcaster, the most common partners were warriors or priests - the classic warrior-mage-priest trio being time-tested gold standard.

Though she knew Gauss had decent protective spells, for spellcasters - especially lower-level ones - maintaining safe casting distance for control and supplementary damage was paramount. In such cases, a solid frontline ally to create safe casting environments was crucial.

But... Sherry wasn't one to lecture others, so after brief consideration, she said nothing more.

"So, what intelligence have you found?"

Gauss took out the cloth-wrapped scale from his storage bag, then described their final sightings to Sherry. Thanks to his good memory, his account was extremely detailed, especially the ratfolk elder's final words, which he repeated verbatim.

After receiving the report, Sherry stared at the scale in prolonged silence. Then she closed her eyes, seemingly searching her memory about such intel.

Finally she slowly opened her eyes and shook her head.

"Apologies, but the name Vespertilia means nothing to me," Sherry admitted. "This scale needs forwarding to specialized appraisal departments above me for deeper analysis."

"However, I can indeed sense extremely faint traces of evil divinity from it."

"Per guild 'Evil God Threat Response Protocols,' this qualifies as [Class 1 Direct Evidence of Unknown Evil God]. Standard initial reward for such intelligence is... ten gold coins."

"Ten gold coins!" Gauss's eyes widened.

They'd worked hard clearing that entire ratfolk nest all day for just seventy silver - yet this unremarkable scale and few words of intel were worth ten gold?

"Don't think it's little. This is just base payment. If subsequent appraisal upgrades its threat level, or if major discoveries stem from this intel, additional rewards will follow protocol," Sherry explained, seeming to misinterpret his reaction.

The payout could increase further?

Gauss took a deep breath. Evil god intelligence was this lucrative? He felt he'd stumbled upon an excellent money-making avenue. The gloom from encountering that evil worship earlier was now soothed by the comforting weight of precious metals.

Nothing calms mortal hearts like gold and silver!