The Cosmic Vessel

chapter 5: Underestimating the Threat

Eira looked concerned and said, "Don't you think by the time reinforcements come to rescue us, we'll be dead? Thorin, it's going to take three hours just to reach the border! And then another four to five hours for the Magic Knights to prepare and arrive. That's nearly eight hours of waiting!"

The merchant manager, trying to lighten the mood, laughed and said, "Come on, how big could the wave be? We have a Level 6 defense array! There's no way those stupid beasts can break through it."

Thorin turned to him, his expression dark. "Do you even know what level of threat we're facing?"

The manager shrugged, still unconcerned. "About Sovereign or lower, right? I mean, we haven't seen a Mythical or Divine-level beast in thousands of years. They're just legends by now, no?" and The manager stammered, "And besides, there hasn't been a summoner of that level for hundreds of years! So, I used my brain—well, what's left of it—to calculate and gather information from our empire, all the way from where we picked up the goods."

Thorin's voice boomed as he shouted, "You moron! We're facing a Mythical-level threat!"

The merchant manager's smile faded instantly as Thorin continued, "If it was a low-level threat, we wouldn't even bother preparing this much. The array can hold against those for a day, easily. But against a Mythical? It's a whole different story."

The merchant manager, visibly worried, blurted out, "We don't care about our lives! You must save the goods in the horse carts! If we lose them, we're as good as dead anyway!" His face was pale with fear, and one of the merchants standing nearby had already wet himself in terror. One of the party members started laughing at him for being a coward.

Ash stepped forward, his gaze cold as he looked down at the merchant manager. "If the goods you're delivering are so important, why didn't you hire more adventurers? Do you think our lives mean nothing? If they're that valuable, I bet the head of your department paid you a lot of money for this mission, right?"

The manager froze, panic written all over his face, unable to respond.

Thorin stepped in, his voice filled with anger. "You damn fool! You pocketed the money for yourself, didn't you? If we survive this, I'm reporting you to the Merchants Guild, and I'll make sure your company is fully investigated. I'll even report this to the Emperor! Don't think you can escape—I'll personally see to it that your company's reputation is destroyed."

"And you know," Thorin continued, his voice cold with fury, "failing to properly submit the report to the Adventurers' Guild is a crime—and because of it, you've put all our lives at high risk. You'll answer for that too."

Eira glanced at the manager, noticing his expensive clothing and accessories. "No wonder you're dressed in such fine items. It's clear you're corrupt."

The merchant manager, desperate, tried to strike a deal. "Look, we can split the profit. How about fifty-fifty?" He forced a smile, but everyone could see the greed on his face.

The room went silent, and everyone stared at him, disgusted by his shamelessness. Seeing their expressions, he quickly upped the offer. "Okay, okay, how about you take eighty percent, and I take twenty?"

The silence grew heavier as the party members looked at him in disbelief. How could he be so shameless? Sensing their reaction, the manager panicked further and finally offered, "Fine! I'll give you all the profit I took! It's yours!"

Thorin stepped forward, his expression dark. "How much did they give you to hire adventurers?"

The manager stammered, "A-about a million gold plates... or something."

The party members' jaws dropped in shock. One of them muttered, "If we split the profit equally, we could all settle down for life. As it stands, for this mission, we're only paid based on rank when we divide the 100,000 gold plates they gave us. People like Ash, Thorin, and Eira each get 22,000, while the rest of us only get 4,800 each. But the real question is... even if our leader accepts the deal, are we even going to live until dawn?"

Another party member chimed in, "That means this escort is a suicide mission! The amount of money paid should reflect the risk, so adventurers can prepare accordingly. But a million gold plates? That's a sign of an extremely high-risk job. And we weren't even told."

Ash's eyes narrowed as he responded, "And you paid us only a 100,000 gold plates for this job? That's the normal rate for guarding high-value goods, but with a million, you could've hired ten more parties! This is insane. You put us all in danger—you could've gotten us killed while we were escorting you on this journey, you idiot! And now, if we don't hold our ground until support arrives, we're all going to end up as beast food."

The rest of the party stood in stunned silence, realizing just how reckless and greedy the manager had been.

Ash said, "Tie this idiot up and throw him in the carriage. He won't be of any help!" He then turned to the rest of the merchant group, "The rest of you, get inside the carriage as well. You're all at a mortal level, and it's better if you stay out of our way rather than making things harder for us."

The manager pleaded, "Please, listen to me! I'm sure we can come to some kind of agreement. What do you say?"

Ash glared at the manager, his anger evident. Without a word, Thorin stepped forward and taped the manager's mouth shut as well.

Thorin said to Ash, "We'll deal with him once this is over."

Ash nodded, "You're right. That moron tried to make a deal even in this chaotic situation. And he said he doesn't care about his life—only that we protect the goods in the cart. I wonder what's inside that's worth risking everything for. I'll figure it out once this is over. But for now..."

Everyone in the party also began to grow curious about what they were actually escorting.

Ash raised his voice, calling out to the group, "Everyone, prepare for battle and take your positions! Remember, we are stronger together. Hold your ground, trust your training, and protect one another. No matter what comes, we face it side by side! Let's show these beasts what true courage looks like!"