‘…What? A quest?’
Isaac frowned at the glowing system window that appeared before his eyes.
As usual, the system seemed to be mocking him, flashing its colorful display as if it were enjoying his discomfort.
[Resolve the incident with your matched companions!
Rewards will be given upon completion.]
Damn it.
The blasted system strikes again.
Grinding his teeth, Isaac glared at the notification.
Even in ‘The Destruction of Empire’, the system had constantly spammed quests, causing endless annoyance.
And now, it was pulling the same stunt with him. Ignoring it wasn’t an option either; the system was a persistent menace.
[Failure to complete the quest will result in penalties.]
“…Hah.”
As if it had read his mind, the system added another line, sealing his fate.
Shaking his head, Isaac let out a sigh.
“I’ll go too.”
“But…”
When Isaac insisted on following, Luinael looked troubled.
Naturally, Isaac couldn’t back down. Penalties were not something he could afford to face.
Though Isaac himself had never experienced them, the protagonist of ‘The Destruction of Empire’, Maximilian, had suffered greatly from penalties in the early chapters of the story.
And unlike Maximilian, Isaac wasn’t even recognized as a full-fledged protagonist yet.
A penalty now could have disastrous consequences for his future.
“It’s dangerous, Isaac. That’s why…”
“All the more reason I can’t leave you to face it alone.”
“…!”
“I’ll go with you, Your Grace.”
Isaac’s words, if overheard, could easily be misinterpreted.
But he remained resolute, meeting Luinael’s gaze head-on.
Luinael’s clear blue eyes wavered slightly.
“…Fine. But promise me, if it gets dangerous, you’ll retreat immediately.”
“Understood.”
Of course, Isaac had no intention of retreating until the quest was completed.
But for now, he eagerly nodded in agreement, determined to stick close to Luinael.
“Sir Gilbert, you’re coming too, right?”
“Naturally.”
“…”
Luinael shot a disapproving look at Gilbert but didn’t protest further.
As much as he might dislike him, Gilbert’s skills would undoubtedly prove useful.
“Head toward the site of the explosion!”
“Yes, sir!”
Luinael, mounted on his horse, commanded the knights who had accompanied him.
Their disciplined response was almost startling as they loudly affirmed and followed him without hesitation.
Isaac quickly mounted his horse and joined them. Galloping through the streets, he felt exhilaration course through him.
It had been a while since he’d ridden a horse, and the powerful stride of the knights’ warhorses was unlike anything he’d experienced before.
Compared to these, the horses he’d ridden previously seemed like mere ponies.
“Hold!”
They hadn’t traveled far from the library when Luinael ordered a halt.
Isaac obediently pulled the reins and froze in place, his eyes widening at the sight before him.
“What on earth…?”
The plaza and the roads leading to it were in complete disarray.
Buildings had collapsed, and fleeing citizens crowded the streets, blocking any further progress.
Clicking his tongue in frustration, Isaac surveyed the scene.
Bang!
“…!”
Another explosion roared in the distance.
Luinael grabbed one of the fleeing citizens, urgency clear in his voice.
“What’s happening? What caused this?”
“Huff… It’s a monster! There’s a monster over there!”
“A monster? Here?”
A monster, in the heart of the capital.
The revelation sent a ripple of shock through Luinael and the knights.
Even Isaac’s expression darkened.
Monsters were a natural part of this fantasy world, and the protagonist Maximilian had spent much of the story defeating them to level up.
But they typically appeared in the frigid northern regions, where Maximilian had been exiled as a disgraced prince.
Due to their aversion to warmth, monsters rarely ventured into the southern capital.
And for one to appear inside the city walls, in the plaza no less?
It was almost impossible unless someone had deliberately summoned it.
“Move toward the explosion site!”
“Yes, sir!”
Luinael, judging that there was no time to waste, raised his voice.
Although they could simply wait and keep the situation under control until the guards arrived, Luinael seemed determined to handle the monster himself.
Though the region Luinael fought in wasn’t the frigid northern territory, it was far colder than the capital, so he must have had his fair share of experience dealing with monsters.
Isaac, on the other hand, had never seen a monster despite having transmigrated into this novel.
That was because he had never once ventured outside the capital.
Why in the world would the system assign a quest to hunt monsters to someone like me?
Riding on horseback, Isaac swallowed the sigh threatening to escape.
Still, as a major villain in the story, his level was relatively high, so he figured he could manage somehow.
That optimistic thought, however, vanished like melting snow the moment he saw the actual monsters.
“Graaaagh!”
“….”
Wow. That’s a real monster.
Upon arriving at the plaza, Isaac murmured internally.
Even though the creature was right in front of him, it somehow didn’t feel real.
The monster, covered in black fur, resembled a gigantic wolf.
But it was about ten times the size of a normal wolf, with unnaturally large, protruding fangs extending far out of its mouth.
And there wasn’t just one—there were two of them.
“Stop the monsters!”
At Luinael’s command, the knights charged at the beasts. Isaac watched their coordinated movements from behind.
It felt like he should join the fight, but squeezing himself into the ranks of the well-trained knights wasn’t easy.
Besides, Isaac had never properly fought in this body before.
Even the sword in his hand felt more like a decorative piece.
“It’s dangerous.”
“But…”
When Isaac tried to head toward the knights fighting the monsters, Gilbert blocked his path.
Seeing Gilbert’s stern expression as he stood in his way left Isaac in a bind.
He had to jump into the battle and finish the quest somehow.
If he kept standing by, he wouldn’t complete the quest and would face penalties.
But with Gilbert firmly blocking his way, he couldn’t get closer.
It was clear Gilbert had made up his mind to stop him from fighting right from the start.
Isaac found himself in a tricky situation and glanced around restlessly.
“Huh?”
Then something caught Isaac’s eye.
His gaze fell on an object lodged in the ground, and his eyes widened.
A large, jewel-like object was embedded in the earth.
The crimson gemstone exuded an ominous aura. Isaac had a strong hunch—he absolutely needed to retrieve that.
“Sir Gilbert, hold on a moment.”
“You can’t go toward the monsters.”
“I’m not going that way.”
“…?”
Though puzzled, Gilbert didn’t stop Isaac.
That was because Isaac, still without drawing his sword, pointed toward the jewel instead.
“I think I need to get that.”
“That? What do you mean?”
“….”
But Gilbert only tilted his head in confusion.
Isaac was now certain—Gilbert couldn’t see the jewel.
Of course, it made no sense for something so conspicuous to be sitting undisturbed in plain sight.
It was as if a barrier had been placed to keep it hidden from others.
Perhaps because the real Isaac had a penchant for collecting rare artifacts and always carried enchanted accessories, he could see it.
“Wait here for a moment.”
“Your Grace!”
Without another option, Isaac suddenly sprang into action.
Gilbert, startled, reached out to stop him, but Isaac had already reached the jewel.
Fortunately, it wasn’t far away.
‘Got it!’
The jewel, though embedded in the ground, came loose easily.
It hadn’t been buried deeply at all.
The moment he grabbed the jewel, a status window appeared before him.
[You have acquired the Monster Summoning Stone (A).]
‘A Monster Summoning Stone?’
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