Chapter 638 – Isgard Adventurer District.

“What did you say?”

A loud voice echoed, and several people turned their heads.

“You heard me. Are you hard of hearing? Got piss in your ears?”

“Fucker!”

The insult rang out as two large men squared off while a small crowd gathered around them.

“Fight, fight!”

The onlookers chanted as the pair drew their weapons. One was a stocky dwarf holding a halberd. The other was a human gripping a longsword. They stood in the middle of the street near what appeared to be the entrance to the local adventurers’ guild. The nearby guards looked away. They clearly had no interest in the confrontation or the possibility that one of the fighters might die.

Steel scraped against stone when the dwarf lunged. His boots skidded across the worn street, and his halberd dipped into a practiced thrust meant to tear open his opponent.

“Come on, long legs!”

He shouted as he charged. The human roared in response and swept his longsword in a broad arc.

“I will cleave that beard off your rotten face and wipe my ass with it later!”

Adventurers quickly formed a loose ring around them. Some grinned with anticipation. Others exchanged coin purses and placed bets. They knew no one would stop them and that this seemingly peaceful city had its own laws. The district they were in lay far from the nobles, divided and largely neglected.

Unless a noble was killed or the guild building began to burn, the nobility would not intervene. As long as trouble stayed away from the noble district, it was ignored. Out of view and out of mind might as well have been their motto, and the adventurers enjoyed every moment of it. At least, that was how it looked to those on the outside.

The dwarf’s halberd met the longsword with a ringing crash, sparks skittering across the stone. The human pressed forward, relying on strength rather than finesse, forcing the shorter fighter back step by step. The crowd roared as steel struck steel again and again.

Then someone else decided to get involved. A mug shattered against the dwarf’s shoulder, ale spraying across his armor. The fight stopped, and both rowdy adventurers turned to the side.

“Oi! Who threw that? I’m going to ki—”

The dwarf cut himself off when he saw who stood there. A man in light armor bore the insignia of the Adventurers Guild on his shoulder. Beside him stood another man dressed almost identically.

“You were going to do what?”

“Ah… nothing. We were just messing around.”

The dwarf looked away, and towards the human he was battling. The taller man looked pale as well and quickly caught on to what was happening. The two newcomers were the local enforcers. Not the city guard, and not regular guild clerks either. Their armor was lighter, practical, and marked with discreet runic enchantments meant to be hidden beneath cloth. The insignia on their shoulders was subtle, but every adventurer worth their salt recognized it instantly.

The chanting died almost immediately. Coins vanished back into pockets. A few people took awkward steps backward, suddenly fascinated by the texture of the street stones or the weather. The human adventurer swallowed hard and sheathed his sword in a single stiff motion.

“Sorry, just got a little heated, that’s all…”

The dwarf followed suit, lowering his halberd and bowing his head just enough to be respectful without looking submissive.

“Didn’t mean nothing by it…”

‘So, those are the Guild Cleaners.’

From nearby, a lone man watched the scene play out. His entire body was covered by a hooded robe, making him appear quite large. He had been standing there from the start, choosing to wait until everything played out. Although this was not his first time in the city, he had never fully passed through this district, which was ruled by various guilds.

What he observed was a kind of militia operating within the district. They were responsible for handling disputes between adventurers and commoners alike. These people had a contract with the Valerian estate, granting them limited law enforcement authority.

Because of the proximity of the super dungeon, the area was swarming with tier three adventurers, and on occasion, even tier four ones appeared. It was a complicated situation that, if managed directly by the nobles, would require constant military oversight and the stationing of highly trained knight commanders who already had other duties.

As a result, a decision was made for the guilds to govern themselves. As long as they kept the peace and matters did not turn too bloody, the noble armies would stay out of it. This arrangement created a district with its own power structure and a delicate balance.

There were three distinct forces at work here. First was the Adventurers Guild, which oversaw the superdungeon. Then there was the Merchant Guild, which controlled the flow of supplies, lodging, and transport to and from the dungeon. The third force was less visible, yet everyone felt its presence. The Thieves Guild, or as they were known here, the syndicates.

They had no banners, no official contracts, and no public headquarters, yet they were woven into the district like rot in old wood. Smugglers, information brokers, loan sharks, and hired blades. Some worked independently, while others were quietly sponsored by influential patrons who preferred to keep their hands clean. Where the Adventurers Guild enforced order openly, and the Merchant Guild dictated prices through ledgers and contracts, the syndicates operated through whispers, favors, and blood spilled in alleys no one bothered to clean.

The hooded man took note of the Cleaner’s posture as they dismissed the crowd. Their hands rested casually near their weapons, but they were clearly not expecting any opposition. One of them began to look around, his eyes scanning the area as the crowd dispersed. For a moment, his gaze lingered on the hooded man standing near the entrance to the dark alleyway. Then, as if he saw nothing at all, he turned away and shouted at the adventurers to move along.

“Awoo!”

“It’s fine, Agni. They can’t see us.”

From within the alley, a loud howl escaped, yet no one outside heard even a whisper. An invisible force surrounded the area, blocking all sound and movement. Within it stood a massive wolf, his fur studded with gems that glimmered blue, a color unfamiliar to him.

“Don’t like the new look? You chose it. I told you to choose wisely, didn’t I?”

“Grrr!”

Agni answered with a low growl. He had been given a choice between green and blue, the two colors his kind could also manifest within the world. Ruby wolves were rare creatures with two additional variants, one emerald green and the other sapphire blue. Agni had decided to chomp down on the blue gem, which transformed all of his rubies into blue stones instead. His appearance was otherwise unchanged, save for the shift in color.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“Don’t worry. You’ll regain your old color eventually, but only after a month.”

From an Alpha Mystical Dire Ruby Wolf, he had changed to imitate an Alpha Mystical Dire Sapphire Wolf. The creatures were nearly identical to their ruby counterparts, the main difference being that their flames burned blue. With this form, Roland hoped to prevent Agni’s true identity from being discovered and traced back to him.

“Worf.”

“Just calm down for now. Once we meet up with the agent, we’ll leave.”

Roland patted Agni on the head with a hand clad in a pitch black gauntlet. They had arrived in Isgard only an hour earlier through the main portal. From there, they made their way to this district, heading toward a meeting place prepared by one of his people. He had hoped to avoid such a farce, but the behavior of a certain blacksmith had forced his hand.

“Worf.”