So I managed to get into this sweet party with a level 35 [Shield Warrior], level 32 [Barbarian], level 27 [Swashbuckler] and level 27 [Hunter]. Considering I am only level 25 I can count myself quite lucky, but then considering I am a [Marksman], one can say the lucky ones are them.

A [Marksman] is a range class, but one that is higher tier than a mere [Hunter]. Not only can I track as well as them, my first skill [Marksman: Presence Mark] lets me put multiple markers on select targets be it friend or foe, letting me get a general idea of their location and their surroundings for a few minutes. Effectively, if you only want to track the prey, a hunter would do, but if you want to track and catch it, a [Marksman] is where it’s at!

This advantage makes a [Marksman] a very sought out class among the range classes.

Sure, elves have their darn [Presence Sense] and all, which unlike my ability does not need visual confirmation of the target, but it ain’t such a big deal with [Hawk Eyes] and my tracking abilities. And unlike their ability that can’t visualize well other than the general direction, I can pick out someone’s precise location, even if they are behind multiple layers of walls or far in the distance. Not only that, I can get a vague feeling for what said target is doing and what is within their surroundings. Effectively, I am indispensable as one would say.

To add to my luck, after being around half a year with my party, we managed to get our hands on an [Expedition Pass] by pulling some connections here and there. Of course usually an [Expedition Pass] can be a hit or a miss depending on its content. For example, an [Expedition Pass] into uncharted monster territory can either be a death sentence or for a lucky few a quick way to get rich.

But in this case, this [Expedition Pass] is for reclaiming territory. In particularly, a noble house took over a piece of land that belonged to a fallen noble and now needs to “sweep” the place up. Some people call it “legalized banditry”, I prefer to call it “opportunity”.

The only downside is that the minimum requirement for this job is being at least a Rank D adventurer. Despite the high level of the party, the members have been on the cautious side and were late to take the exam. So we needed to get it out of the way to get promoted to Rank D in time.

And this is when my luck started to run out.

We had a short amount of time to get things done, but we weren’t amateurs. We knew better than to take the exam at the last minute, though due to some fucked up reason, our exam got canceled due to “unforeseen circumstance”. From there, they tried to reschedule us for a different exam, but the amount of people allocated for that specific exam was short by one. Even worse, the Rank B adventurer had only a few days till he had to leave.

Just when I thought things were not going to work out, we got confirmation that they found the last person and are ready to go. Finally!

After we left for the exam by carriage, the Rank B adventurer gave out roles, and I got stuck with some stinking hairball, talk about luck… and if that wasn’t enough, she isn’t even an adult! I mean seriously, who wants to get stuck babysitting a 10 year old hairball?!?! Or is she 8? Whatever, as long as she doesn’t get in my way I could care less!

There is no way I can afford to fail this exam!

After arriving at the cave and the Rank B adventurer clearing up the entrance, we proceeded with our roles. When we made first contact with the bandits guarding the treasure room, I shot and took care of one and surprisingly enough the hairball did as well. Good thing she didn’t go crying for her mommy at the first sight of blood. Cause that would have been annoying as hell.

Once we entered the treasure room, we saw a metal door which is probably the escape path? Deciding to check it out, we carefully opened the door.

Then the stupid beastkin decided to “play elf” saying how she noticed someone there. I tried to see with [Hawk Eyes] but no luck. Then I remembered, didn’t Catkin have [Smell Sense]? It ain’t at the level of dogkin or wolfkin, but maybe it is good enough as long as its not too far away? Seemingly convinced,

I try to confirm the details.

“How many?” I asked.

“For now, I sense only one. They aren’t moving so far” She confirmed.

“Alright, lets go quickly take care of it” I replied wanting to get this over with as quickly as possible.

We made our way around the corner and noticed a large dog rushing at us! Wait… is that an undead?!?

Not taking any chances, I aim and use [Power Shot]! The stupid hairball almost got in the way of my shot, but luckily my shot hit is right on target taking it out. It would be a pain if she got hit and I ended up failing for “not cooperating properly”. If she is gonna rush, she should tell me first! sheesh!

As she continues down the passage, I just in case put [Presence Mark] on her and began to disassemble the undead hound. Unlike items that are owned by the bandits which will go to the Rank B adventurer, items from monsters we kill are free for the taking. So no reason to miss out on some extra coin.

That said, it is really odd for an undead hound to be here… is there a necromancer here or something? Nah, can’t be... If that were the case, it would be too dangerous for a Rank D exam. Maybe it was bound to the place?

Suddenly I notice a dark like mist begin to seem out from the walls and form into a ghost-type monster!

Fuck! Ghost-type monsters are at least level 30! Not only that, they can resist physical attacks. But worst of all, they can posses people!

I quickly place [Presence Mark] on the Ghost-type monster and run for my life! Once I make it out the door, I suddenly remember something. Fucking Shit! If I ran away, doesn’t that mean I would fail the exam?

No wait… this is clearly a unique circumstance! I am sure they will understand… but what if they won’t? And even if they do, at best they will just reschedule the exam and I won’t make it to the expedition! On top of that, I may end up losing my party if they opt going without me! Just my fucking luck!

But then again... I will only fail if they know I ran away right? If that hairball kicks the can fighting the ghost monster and I say I ran away after she died, it should be just fine... There is no evidence that I abandoned her! I can even claim we were attacked by the ghost and the hound at the same time and I took care of the hound while she faced the ghost! Perfect!

I pay careful attention to my [Presence Mark] to grasp the entire situation to the best of my ability. This way I can fabricate the perfect story and no one will ever know!

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After waiting for no more than a minute which somehow felt like ages, I could not believe what I saw…

“She fucking killed it...” I unconsciously muttered.

I sensed through my [Presence Mark] the ghost trying to posses her, but for some strange reason got repelled… Is she wearing some sort of protection item or something? Once she made it closer to the door, the ghost’s presence stopped following her and just stood there.

But this is really bad! Since she is alive, she is definitely going to tattle on me… which means…

As she dragged herself closer, after taking a glance at me, she suddenly collapsed on the floor!

I stood still like a rock not knowing what to do… but then it hit me…

I need to kill her! If she dies, she can’t tell on me… because… the dead don’t talk… I pull out my dagger and approach closer to her. I then place my dagger on her neck and resolve myself…

“Don’t blame me for this… expandable beastkin like you are dime in a dozen… unlike you I have a bright future and I can’t just stop here” I mutter…

It isn’t that I care about the life of some filthy beastkin that I am hesitating… It is just that if I kill her, it would be the point of no return,… but all I have to do is just claim that we both fought the ghost monster and after killing it, she got possessed, forcing me to kill her in self defense…

So even if they check and see that I killed her, if I present the [Soul Crystal] of the ghost, and make my claim it should be fine right? Finally convinced that my story has no flaws, I tighten the grip on my dagger and swing it towards her neck!

My blade pierces through her neck drawing blood but I suddenly stop remembering something… Didn’t she have a protection item of some sort? If they find the protection item, wouldn’t my story fall apart?

I frantically search all over trying to find anything that stands out but to no avail… well if we are talking about “standing out”, her entire equipment in sense “stands out”. I mean who the hell wears full white equipment? Does she think she is some sort of [Paladin] or something? Standing out in combat is like screaming “kill me first”.

Of course there is no way her entire equipment is the protection item… I mean sure it looks expensive and when I touched it I could feel that it is soul bound. Unless she is some bigwig from the churches or has some connections, there would be no way for her to get a full set of holy equipment… so... the protection item must be the that thing that looks like the [Slavery Collar]?

While it looks like a regular slavery collar to me, there would be no reason why a Rank E adventurer would not have it removed by now right? So maybe it is some sort of protection rune that is disguised in the form of a [Slavery Collar]?

Damn it! I have no clue where to start, and if I mess this up, forget not passing the exam, I’ll be hunted down all over the continent… is there no other way…

I don’t have much time… every second that passes, I risk the Rank B adventurer coming here… I need to find a way to prevent her from telling that I abandoned her… Do I try bribing her? But she is unconscious… and I doubt she will wake up in time… God fucking damn! Why has my luck been so terrible lately?! A way for her not to talk… a way …

Then it suddenly hit me! There is most definitely a way! The one who accuses first has the advantage! And if I play my cards right, I can falsify all the evidence I need!

With the ghost presence finally gone, I head back into the passage and retrieve the ghost’s [Soul Crystal]. I make sure to hide it very well within my secret pocket and head back to the undead dog. I finish disassembling its claws, but my goal this time is not some chump change.

Once I finish collecting the claws, I take an arrow and shoot another [Power Shot] through the dog from the back, opposite the side I shot it the first time. Making it seem like the attack came from behind.

I then head back to the unconscious beastkin, and with the claws, I begin making scratches on her skin.

The story will go as follows, when we entered the passage, we got attacked by the undead dog. Out of fear, she ended up running, thus provoked the dog to chase after her. Out of her desperate run, she ended up tripping and the dog assaulted her causing her to faint due to shock. At that point, I shot my [Power Shot] rescuing her. And since she fell unconscious, I brought here here to safety… should be good enough right?

Even if she gains consciousness and disputes my story, no one will believe that there was a ghost monster if she can’t show the [Soul Crystal]. And I’ll make sure to hide it well once I get out of here so that they can’t trace it back to me. Effectively, it will be her word against mine. But when looking at the evidence, it clearly tilts in my favor. Especially if I can convince the Rank B adventurer and other party members to take my side while she is unconcious.

From what I hear, the Rank B adventurer was pretty short on time and should easily side with the most convenient option. Especially since she is not awake to defend herself at this point in time.

Hmm… taking a look at the scene, it seems a bit strange how despite the scratches, her armor seems to be in pristine condition… So I take the claws and start making scratches on her white armor… Ha? It ain’t scratching… After trying for a good 5 minutes, I gave up. If it is durable enough to last that long, then it wouldn’t be weird it didn’t get scratched in the first place...

After about 10 minutes passed, the Rank B adventurer showed up with the other party members in tow and I explained details of my side of the story. As he was listening, he placed the things of value in the treasure room into his [Item Box].

“I understand” said Daron, “I will go check out the escape passage, everyone else wait outside the cave” he then added.

After about an hour of endless anxiety, he came out of the cave carrying the beastkin while seemingly pondering something…

Was I exposed?!?! Feeling restless I came up to him.

“I-Is everything okay?” I nervously asked.

“Hmm… Oh, yes everything is fine and your story checks out as well… Lets head back to the guild. Though I will warn that from this point on, communication between party members is prohibited to prevent fabrication of any stories. Once we make camp for the night, during your shift, I will confirm each party member’s stories and combine it into my final evaluation. There is no need to worry as this is standard procedure” Daren announced.

With that, I felt the huge weight lift off my shoulders and I happily headed out along side the others. It was a bit boring since we couldn’t converse, but considering after this I can finally head out on the expedition, it isn’t a big deal.

We ended up making camp and each of us were assigned turns taking shifts along side Daren who listened to our stories. I was assigned the third shift, so I went to sleep early. After being awoken for my shift, I went to sit along side Daren.

“Hey” I exclaimed when I saw him sitting by the fire.

“Todd is it?” Daren asked with a somewhat inquiring tone.

“U-Uhm… yes” I replied suddenly get a bit worried.

“No need to get nervous, I just want to ask a few questions here and there, that is all” Daren explained.

“I-Is it about the beastkin running away?” I cautiously questioned.

“There are some things I’d ask to confirm on in that regard, but I am more interested in another topic… specifically… what did you think about the escape passage?” Daren probed.

The escape passage? Why does that matter? Hmm… though now that I think back on it, it was rather odd in sense… I mean... the escape passage seemed more well built than the hideout itself… not to mention... those undead monsters… even stranger, when you have multiple undead monsters, from what I heard they would generally be of similar type… the only place where you can get variety of undead is either some sort of crypt or… a… dungeon…

Now it all fucking makes sense! Even for a ghost, that kind of appearance was not normal, it felt like it came into existence out of nothing rather than just appeared there. But if it was a [Dungeon Trap] that creates a monster once its triggered, then it all fits!

Wait a darn second, but wasn’t this place scouted just last week… then this means that place is a new dungeon?!?!

And if I remember correctly, the guild gives a good bonus for finding new dungeons! My luck is finally coming back on track!

So that is why he prevented us from talking to each other and called us out individually instead! Unlike the treasures which all go to the Rank B adventurer by default, the reward for finding a new dungeon gets split evenly between those who found it. If we leave out the other guys, we can split the reward between ourselves!

“You mean about the dungeon? Don’t worry, I haven’t told anyone about it! So we can split it 50/50 once we make it back into town” I replied with excitement.

“Not sure what you mean by dungeon, it was clearly a normal escape passage...” Daren responded with a bemused smile.

Ha? It wasn’t a dungeon? Is he just playing stupid on purpose or taking me for a fool?

“What do you mean… it clearly looked like a dungeon to me!” I retorted feeling somewhat irritated.

“Well... If it really was a dungeon, then I kinda feel sorry for that catkin… abandoning your companions is one of the grounds for disqualification for claiming the reward after all...” Daren contemplated seemingly to himself.

“That is why I said, we’ll split the reward 50/50!” I exclaimed while totally annoyed with his antics… ha?

Suddenly I had a really bad feeling about this…

“Speaking of that catkin… the guards protecting the treasure seem to have slightly cut her neck with a dagger… she really has some bad luck… though now that I think about it… there was no blood on their swords… truly odd… or maybe my memory is getting worse with age… what do you think?” Daren questioned as his smile continued to widen.

* gulp *

Fuck! He most definitely knows!

“That is… I don’t know… maybe she cut herself somewhere… I have fucking better things to do then babysit a filthy beastkin… Anyways, if this is all you wanted to ask, I want to excuse myself and take a leak!” I declared and started to make my way towards the forest to get away as soon as possible, hopefully buying enough time come up with something.

“One last question… completely unrelated…” Daren voiced out.

“What?!?” I snapped back.

“Well… you see… I found this [Soul Crystal] in the treasury...” Daren spoke as he took out a decent sized black crystal from his pocket “… and I was wondering what kind of ghost monster it belong to… do you happen to know? A wild guess would be fine too...” he added.

My eyes widened in shock and I quickly felt my hidden pocket…

FUCKING MOTHER FUCKING BASTARD!!!!

“DA FUCK WOULD I KNOW!” I yelled and turned around, widening my steps to make some distance.

But before I knew it a hand landed on my shoulder and a cold chill ran down my spine!

“There is no need to get so antsy… as I said… nothing in this conversation will change the outcome of the results… when you tried to go into the escape tunnel, you got attacked by a zombie hound… the catkin ran, you saved it… all the evidence confirms this… so there is nothing to worry about Todd, or should I say Rank D Adventurer Todd? I heard from your friends you plan to go to an Expedition into Viscount Sharman’s old territory, aren’t you the lucky one?” Daren smilingly assured.

Despite the friendly attitude, it felt far from friendly… even with no weapon drawn, it felt like a knife was sliding down my throat…

“W-What I-is it that y-you want?” I mumbled stuttering.

“Nothing much… I just want to have a nice and friendly chat with you, thats all...” Daren replied with a smile fit for a devil.

…