With Rudy's assistance, Zenith and her companions could track the direction in which Wood had left by following the residual magic in the air, allowing them to pursue him.
This was a far cry from their initial aimless search, where they had no idea where to start.
Uncertain of what kind of situation or enemies they might encounter, Paul and Zenith had initially planned to seek help from their former adventurer team members, at least bringing along the Demon Wolf King to ensure they had enough combat strength.
However, Rudy pointed out that since several days had already passed, the residual magic in the air was already extremely faint. If they took the time to gather more people, while it would increase their safety, it would make it even harder to catch up to Wood.
After hearing Rudy's words, Paul and Zenith hesitated only briefly before deciding to continue their pursuit of Wood.
For them, Wood was far too important as a family member.
Two years had passed, but the Greyrat family had not been able to move on from their grief. This was evident from how Zenith would often visit Wood's grave, lost in thought.
According to Rudy, there was a high possibility that Wood had become an undead creature. And undead creatures roaming the continent were likely to be mistaken for monsters and killed by adventurers.
Rudy wasn't sure whether Wood, if he had indeed become an undead, retained any memories or rationality. But in Zenith's eyes, even if Wood had become a mindless monster, it should be up to his family to personally grant him peace.
Since Rudy, Paul, and the others were no weaklings, their travel speed was quite fast. After detecting the residual magic in the air, it took them less than half a day to reach the town where Wood had last been seen, arriving at the tavern where Wood had stayed.
"Welcome..."
There weren't many towns near the Red Dragon Mountains, and this tavern was one of the largest in the area. Many adventurers would often stop by for a drink after completing their quests.
Although the recent anomalies in the Red Dragon Mountains had gradually subsided, and the stray wyverns had returned, most of the adventurers here were still discussing the incident.
A group of two men and one woman entering the tavern wouldn't normally draw much attention, but Rudy had been quite active as an adventurer recently due to the research funds provided by Nanahoshi Shizuka. His nickname "Quagmire" and his appearance were quite well-known among adventurers.
"Tch, so what if it's 'Quagmire'? He might look young, but I don't believe 'Quagmire' could defeat that kid from two days ago who easily took down the Jackal Brothers."
"Well, that's not entirely fair. 'Quagmire' is a famous adventurer. It's said he can easily take down wyverns too."
"By the way, don't you think this famous adventurer 'Quagmire' looks a lot like that kid with the sword from yesterday?"
"Now that you mention it, he does look a lot like that kid from yesterday.
Same blond hair, and his face, height, and age are almost identical. If it weren't for the completely different aura, I'd think they were the same person."
Following the residual magic in the air, Zenith and the others had come to the tavern to ask the owner if they had seen Wood. However, the conversation among the adventurers nearby immediately caught Zenith's attention.
In an instant, Zenith appeared in front of the adventurer, grabbing him by the collar and demanding, "What did you just say? Repeat it! Are you saying that a blond kid who looks like him was here a few days ago?"
The adventurer, feeling humiliated at being grabbed by a woman in front of his friends, didn't answer Zenith directly. Instead, he retorted, "Hey, lady, if you want to ask questions, be polite about it.
At least buy us a few drinks if you're not going to pay for the information."
It had to be said that even though Zenith was the mother of three children, with Wood and Rudy both in their early teens, she had married young and taken good care of herself. Even in her thirties, Zenith's beauty was still striking.
This was likely why the Greyrat children were all so good-looking—it was the result of excellent genes.
As the adventurer spoke, he leered and reached out toward Zenith's chest. However, he soon found himself surrounded by a stream of water that quickly rose to cover his head.
Seeing Rudy take action, the adventurer's companions at the table immediately drew their weapons, ready to fight. But before they could act, a figure moved even faster.
They felt a sharp pain in their arms, and their weapons were knocked to the ground by a tall man wielding a sword sheath.
Naturally, the one who had acted was Paul. As the former leader of an S-rank adventurer team and a master of three sword styles, Paul was still a formidable fighter.
While he might not be as monstrously strong as his two sons, dealing with small fry and low-level thugs was child's play for him.
"Answer my wife's questions properly, and watch your language. Otherwise, you know what will happen."
Although he had been in retirement for some time, Paul's skills hadn't dulled in the slightest. He now stood with his sword drawn, glaring at the adventurers before him.
"If you answer our questions honestly, we won't cause any trouble. And we won't let you go unrewarded for your help."
Seeing that the adventurers were sufficiently intimidated, Rudy stepped forward, pulling out a pouch of gold coins and pouring a small pile onto the table.
At the sight of the gleaming gold coins, the eyes of the third-rate adventurers lit up, and their attitudes did a complete one-eighty.
After all, adventurers were a pragmatic bunch. They worked for whoever paid them, and their actions were always driven by profit.
In a remote town like this, the strong made the rules, and it was clear that the two men and one woman before them were not to be trifled with.
'Quagmire' was an S-rank adventurer, well-known in the area. The middle-aged man's speed was also impressive, suggesting he was no ordinary fighter.
Even the seemingly weakest member of the group, the blond woman, had effortlessly lifted a man by his collar. And since the two men seemed to defer to her, she was likely the true leader of the group.
"Lord Quagmire, about three days ago, a blond kid who looked a lot like you did come here. He got into a fight with the infamous Jackal Brothers..."
Even if it weren't for the gold, the adventurers wouldn't dare withhold any information from Rudy and the others, not if they valued their lives. They quickly recounted everything they knew.
As they spoke, the expressions on Rudy, Zenith, and Paul's faces grew increasingly excited.
"So, the kid you saw was alone, and he said he came down from the Red Dragon Mountains?
And he got into a fight with the Jackal Brothers in this tavern, but he spared their lives because they were only after money?"
Seeing how excited Paul and Zenith were, Rudy turned back to the adventurers to confirm the details.
"That's right. The kid admitted that the gold he had was from selling a few wyvern corpses he'd brought down from the mountains.
And while he was eating, he said some strange things, like how he hadn't eaten in two years and was finally full..."
Hearing the adventurers' account, both Rudy and Zenith's faces lit up with joy.
However, when they pressed the adventurers for information on where Wood had gone after leaving, the adventurers shook their heads, claiming they didn't know.
After all, the kid had effortlessly taken down the Jackal Brothers. In that situation, who would dare approach him and strike up a conversation?
If they hadn't even spoken to him, how could they know who he was or where he was headed?
Although the information Rudy obtained from the adventurers was limited, he generously left ten gold coins as payment.
Seeing the coins Rudy had left, Zenith, in an even more generous gesture, pulled out a pouch and tossed several dozen gold coins onto the table, much to Paul's dismay.
"Zenith, Rudy already paid them. We don't need to be so generous. Money's tight at home..."
"Quiet. I'm in a good mood, so I want to give them more. Do you have a problem with that?"
At Zenith's words, the "head of the household," Paul, immediately fell silent. Ever since the incident with Lilia came to light, Paul's standing in the family had been steadily declining, and his status as a henpecked husband had become increasingly apparent.
However, the fact that the usually frugal Zenith was being so generous now indicated that she was truly overjoyed.
Based on the information provided by the adventurers, it was clear that Wood had been acting alone. This ruled out the second possibility—that Wood had become someone else's puppet or tool.
Furthermore, the way Wood had handled the Jackal Brothers showed that he still possessed rationality and the ability to think. Whether or not Wood had become an undead, it was clear that he was capable of communication.
Whether undead needed to eat or not was still up for debate, but the information they had obtained strongly suggested that Wood had truly been resurrected.
Just as Zenith, brimming with excitement, urged Rudy to continue tracking Wood using the residual magic in the air, Rudy informed her that the trail had gone cold.
The reason they had been able to follow Wood this far was that he had used magic during his battle with the wyverns in the Red Dragon Mountains, and he had also used magic during the fight in the tavern.
This had allowed Rudy and the others to follow the residual magic to this town.
However, once Wood had entered the town, he had stopped using magic. Without the use of magic, there was no residual magic to track, and Rudy and the others had no way to continue following him.
"Let's head to the local Adventurer's Guild and ask around. Didn't those adventurers say that Wood brought a few wyvern corpses to the guild to exchange for money? Maybe he took on another quest. The staff there might know something."
Hearing Rudy's suggestion, Zenith and Paul nodded in agreement. The group quickly left the tavern and made their way to the town's Adventurer's Guild.
By the time Rudy and the others left the tavern, the adventurer who had been trapped by the water spell finally managed to free himself. The others, who had been intimidated by Paul's presence, slumped into their chairs, exhausted.
"Who were those people? Besides 'Quagmire,' I think the other man and woman were also no ordinary folks.
And that blond kid they were looking for—he was a monster in terms of strength too."
"Idiot, isn't it obvious? Just look at their appearances. They're clearly a family.
As for what happened between them, that's none of our business. Let's lay low for a while. With this much money, we can live comfortably for half a year."
Looking at the pile of gold coins Rudy and Zenith had left on the table, the adventurers, who had been drenched in cold sweat moments ago, now grinned from ear to ear, marveling at how generous high-ranking adventurers could be.
A few pieces of information had earned them a small fortune. Normally, it would take them months of dangerous work to earn this much, but now they had gotten it just by answering a few questions.
After leaving the tavern, Rudy and the others quickly made their way to the town's Adventurer's Guild. When Rudy presented his adventurer's badge, the receptionist assumed he was here to resolve the "Rogue Wyvern" incident and apologized profusely.
"I'm terribly sorry, Lord Quagmire. For unknown reasons, the rampaging wyverns returned to the Red Dragon Mountains two days ago.
We sent you an urgent message yesterday, but we didn't expect you to arrive here so quickly."
The guild had been the ones to issue the quest to Rudy, but now that he had arrived, they were informing him that the quest had been canceled. It was an incredibly rude move, and the guild staff's demeanor was appropriately humble.
"Actually, I was already—"
"If you're truly sorry, then as an apology, I hope you can answer a few of our questions honestly."
Before Rudy could finish speaking, Zenith cut him off.
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