"Wyvern-type Abomination, huh? Indeed I have heard and seen one such thing flying over the town the other day," Lady Solana affirmed.

"Though, I don't know whether it had flown past Red Goblin Mountain or found refuge on the mountain. You shouldn't have any problem if the thing left. But if there's any chance it stayed on the mountain, you should all take extra precaution while traveling to the next city."

"Nevertheless, the sudden interest in the Wyvern-type Abomination?" Lady Solana asked curiously after advising them.

Linetta and Lillias also glanced over with curious looks.

Nevertheless, Vaan had anticipated the chance of such a question being asked. His expression remained unchanged, calm as it was.

"The Wyvern-type Abomination came from Blackmoon City, which we came from, and headed northward. I asked out of precaution for potential dangers on the road that we may need to consider," Vaan calmly said.

"Furthermore, Wyvern-type Abominations are all classified as B-rank threats. Thus, it's definitely not something we can ignore considering our destinations require just to head in the same direction, north."

"That makes a lot of sense," Lady Solana nodded and said, "Sunpeak Town did receive the warning from Blackmoon Academy ahead of time."

"Nevertheless, I'm surprised that this question wasn't raised by one of you two ladies. Instead, it was raised by your paramour. How envious it is to have such a meticulous person about travel safety."

"If I was traveling with this young man, I'd feel quite safe and secured," Lady Solana chuckled softly.

Linetta and Lillias could not refute Lady Solana's words, nor did they need to.

Vaan did give them such a sense of security.

"Vaan isn't our paramour… at least, not mine yet," Lillias said quietly, while Linetta didn't even bother trying to correct such a simple misunderstanding.

"Oh? My apologies. It certainly seemed that way. Anyhow, I think you have all learned everything you needed to know about Sunpeak Town. I should get back to work now. It was a good chat," Lady Solana stated as she got up from her seat.

"Indeed it was," Vaan nodded and said, "Also, we're sorry for having you recall some unpleasant memories. If there's another chance, I would like to chat with you again."

As Vaan said that, he gave Lady Solana an eye signal that implied there was more he wanted to talk to her about and blinked once, followed by another two blinks after a short pause in between.

Lady Solana was baffled at first but then silently nodded with a smile.

"Please enjoy your meals while they are still warm," Lady Solana stated before bidding her leave.

After Linetta and Lillias saw Lady Solana off, they resumed their meals with Vaan.

Just as they finished and intended to retire to their rooms, Captain Rhys and the rest of the escort group finished their errands and entered the inn.

"There you are, my Lady. Are you planning on staying here for the night?" Captain Rhys inquired.

"That's right," Linetta calmly nodded and said, "We've already eaten, so we'll be retiring to our rooms first. Don't forget about our schedule."

"Understood, my Lady," Captain Rhys nodded before bidding them goodnight.

As Vaan walked past Captain Rhys, he patted him on the shoulders and casually said, "Enjoy the night, Brother Rhys. But don't party too hard. Otherwise, it might be difficult to get up in the morning."

"Alright," Captain Rhys nodded with a smile, not putting too much thought into Vaan's words, and told the young warriors to grab themselves some drinks and enjoy themselves.

However, after Captain Rhys grabbed his own drink and meal and sat, he was suddenly bugged by Vaan's words.

Their schedule was to leave the town at midday. Why did Vaan need to mention the morning?

After some thought, Captain Rhys decided not to drink too much that night.

"Captain, why aren't you drinking much tonight? This isn't like you," a young warrior mentioned.

"Haha…" Captain Rhys chuckled lightly before saying, "You, young lads, should just enjoy yourselves and not worry about me. I'm just getting old."

"Besides, we are still on the job. It won't be too late to let loose once we complete our escort," Captain Rhys stated.

The young warriors felt like their captain spoke a lot of sense.

However, they had just survived a dangerous journey. As such, they decided it was fine, even if they just enjoyed themselves a little bit.

…

…

…

Near the east gate that connects to the Goblin's Road, Old Merchant Ronnie and his group settled their accommodation at Rainy Bell Inn.

While Old Ronnie had lost interest in Linetta's group after finding out they didn't have noble backgrounds, it was also true when he said he wanted to travel with them for safety.

As such, he chose the closest inn to the east gate in case he missed them.

"Sleep early, everyone. We may need to get up early," Old Ronnie said to his people.

"Do we really need to? Didn't that escort group say they were leaving the east gate at midday? Surely, we can sleep in a bit," a group member mentioned.

"Well, the two witches didn't seem all that interested in our small merchant group. If they decide to leave earlier, wouldn't we be forced to take Goblin's Road by ourselves?" Old Ronnie stated.

"Oh, that makes sense…"

"So sleep early."

"Understood."

Shortly after, the small merchant group's people split up, each retiring to their own room.

After Old Ronnie retired to his room, he tucked himself into bed to sleep right away. His unfit body was ill-suited for long-distance travels. Thus, he was easily tired compared to other people.

But as soon as Old Ronnie closed his eyes, he suddenly heard the windows creak, and a gust of wind blew into the room.

His brows furrowed before Old Ronnie reopened his eyes unwillingly.

However, a blurred shadow immediately dashed over, covering his mouth and pressing a sharp dagger at his throat.

"I have a few questions to ask you. If you answer them obediently, I will let you live and may even reward you. However, if you don't and try to scream for help… Well, you can guess what will happen."

"Nod your head if you understand," the black-clothed figure stated.

Old Ronnie nodded his head fearfully.

…