It was, of course, Hilxi who saved Avia.
Rescuing as a group only increased the enemy’s hit rate and made them less flexible.
After a brief discussion, it was decided that Hilxi would rescue Avia alone and lead her to retreat, while Jiai and the others would withdraw in a different direction.
After shaking off the enemies, both parties would regroup.
Hilxi sat on her broomstick, flying at a steady, unhurried pace.
The tornado she had just unleashed made it unlikely that those mushroom monsters would catch up.
“Um, thank you, Miss, for saving me. May I ask who you are?”
Avia rode her broomstick, not far behind Hilxi.
“I’m from the Magic Unification Association. I was commissioned to find you, though I didn’t expect you to be in such a godforsaken place.”
“The Magic Unification Association, huh? No wonder you came to save me. But whatever the reason, thank you… May I know your name?”
Avia thanked her again and asked.
After being missing for so many days, the Association hadn’t forgotten her after all.
She had thought she’d almost died just now.
“My name is Hilxi. No need to thank me, it’s just a Commission.” Hilxi said casually—she was only in it for the money, and if Avia died, she wouldn’t get paid.
“Hilxi-san, well, I have an awkward favor to ask… could you help me with something?”
After hesitating for a moment, Avia finally spoke up.
She wanted to rescue Songgu Sasa.
She knew she couldn’t do it alone, so she hoped this mage in front of her would help.
Hearing Avia’s request, Hilxi slowed down and flew alongside her.
“Are you sure? That Songgu Sasa you’re talking about might have already been taken care of by her own kind.”
“…Probably not?” Avia was startled.
“Think about it. If you were a member of the Association and let an important criminal imprisoned within the Association escape, what do you think would happen once they caught you?” Hilxi used an example to make Avia better understand Songgu Sasa’s situation.
She’d probably be executed on the spot!
But judging from what the mushroom monsters had said earlier, Songgu Sasa probably wouldn’t be executed outright. Instead, she’d be offered as a sacrifice tomorrow to that bastard Sirdoruk.
There was still a chance!
She shared her guess with Hilxi, who tilted her head and pondered for a few seconds before replying.
“In that case, there is indeed an opportunity, but…”
“But?” Avia instinctively pushed up her glasses, heart tightening.
Then she saw the other’s faint smile as she said:
“Promise me three conditions, and I’ll help you. After all, my Commission was only to bring you back to the country, not to help rescue someone—or rather, rescue a mushroom.”
Fair enough. This was just my wishful thinking; she wasn’t obligated to help. Avia sighed inwardly.
Her mind flashed back to Songgu Sasa’s final gaze and the promise to teach her magic.
“Tell me what the three conditions are first, then I’ll decide if I’ll agree.”
If the conditions weren’t too harsh, Avia thought she might still agree.
However, she realized she had underestimated the girl in front of her—their heart was far less innocent than their appearance.
“The first condition: you have to give me all the money you earn in the future, including but not limited to valuable things like ore or jewels.”
“Ah?”
Avia was dumbfounded. That… would completely strip her of any personal financial rights for life?
Ignoring her reaction, the devil continued.
“The second condition: you work for me free of charge for ten years. During that time, you must obey me without complaint.”
“…Ah?” Avia was even more baffled. She’d become a slave?
“The third condition is adding ten more conditions. Well… that’s all for now.”
The devil fell silent, seemingly still deciding what those ten conditions would be.
Avia opened her mouth but only managed after a moment to say:
“Are you a human trafficker?”
Each condition was more unreasonable than the last!
Taking advantage of someone in trouble? No, this was outright robbery!
And then adding ten more conditions—wasn’t that too much? No sane person would agree.
It was simply incomprehensible!
At that moment, she saw the devil smile:
“Of course, those were just jokes.”
So it was a joke.
A joke—how terrible.
Avia didn’t know what expression to wear, so she asked with a puzzled tone:
“So, will you help me?”
Hilxi stopped pretending and laid it out straight:
“How much can you pay?”
“Uh, well…”
She wanted money… trouble, she wasn’t carrying any, and worse, she didn’t have much savings either. Avia felt a headache coming on.
“How about five Gold Coins?” That was her limit, and she planned to pay in installments.
“We’re going into a den of monsters to snatch someone!”
Hilxi neither agreed nor refused, but seriously emphasized:
“I know that.”
Avia quickly understood the point: the reward didn’t match the danger.
So cute, yet so merciless! She really wanted to experiment on her magic… Avia shook away the chaotic and useless image in her head.
“I can agree to one more thing if it’s not too much.”
“Five things.”
“…Let’s go, we’re leaving the forest.”
“Just kidding! Songgu Sasa is still waiting for us to save her.”
Hilxi quickly backtracked before those five Gold Coins slipped through her fingers.
Then she pulled out her Crystal Ball, divined the location of Jiai and the others, and headed to meet up to discuss their next move.
Before long, she saw a few figures in the woods: Jiai and Naersha leaned against a large tree, while Monica sat on a branch, seemingly observing.
Hilxi had already told Avia about her companions on the way, so no further introduction was necessary.
“I don’t agree.”
After hearing Hilxi’s next target, Jiai glanced at her and said:
“The Commission target has been rescued; we should return to the country as soon as possible.”
Not go rescue a monster.
“Yeah, there’s no need to take more risks. What happens to that Songgu Sasa is their monster tribe’s business, not ours…” Naersha shrugged.
Though harsh, they had never met Songgu Sasa and didn’t know her nature—good or evil. All they knew was she was a monster.
And monsters are generally not good.
Only Avia had briefly understood that mushroom girl.
“Is that so.”
Hilxi crossed one arm and pinched her chin, pretending to think.
She turned to look at Avia, who was squatting on the ground, absentmindedly—or perhaps miserably—pulling weeds into small piles.
“…Looks like I’ll have to go alone then.” Hilxi shrugged.
She wasn’t surprised by her teammates’ attitude.
Normal people would think like this and wouldn’t risk themselves to save someone unrelated.
Unless there was money involved.
“It’s dangerous—you might die,” Jiai frowned, completely unable to understand Hilxi’s behavior.
“Yeah, Hilxi-san…” Naersha tried to persuade her but was cut off by Hilxi raising a hand.
“Don’t worry about me. I know my limits. If it gets too bad, I’ll run.”
Seeing Hilxi was resolute, Naersha and Jiai stopped their protests and simply told her to be careful.
“Wait for me in that ruined village from before.”
“Okay.”
Naersha and Jiai mounted their broomsticks, but then Monica leapt down from the tree and landed on a summoned broomstick, speaking coldly:
“I’m coming with you.”