I quietly measured the two men. Dark cloaks obscured their broad frames. They weren't as massive as our leader, but still above average. It was a shame I couldn't learn more about their equipment due to the car standing in front of them. At this distance, even their facial features were unrecognizable. More importantly, it irked me I couldn't tell whether they encountered any monsters along their journey because of the darkish cloth they wore, which made it near impossible for me to figure out whether they got blood on themselves or not. Shit...

Edward simply raised his crossbow at them, ready to fire. I knew he'd get a hit if he tried, so it helped to calm my nerves a little.

"We mean no harm," yelled one of them, lifting their gloved hands in the air. His tone, albeit high, was strangely calm. "We're mercenaries. We came to check the commotion. That's all."

Logan took a step forward, tightening his muscles and scowling as he pounded his axe into the concrete. I used to make fun of him because of his beard, but he is not to be taken lightly by others. Certainly not in this kind of setting.

"What do you actually want?" our leader said, his voice as solemn as it could be.

Which implied he didn't trust them in the slightest.

One of the mercenaries' arms moved beneath its clothing, displaying a tangle of clean cerulean tubes running from his shoulder to his metallic hand as he reached for his weapon. I frowned, but that didn't help me see through the vehicle. I had yet to determine what kind of weapon he used. But one of them is augmented—I noted. Big trouble.

"Calm down, Aaron," said the other one as he tapped his shoe onto the car in his path, not worried in the slightest. "They've just been through a battle, so they aren't in the right state of mind to make a rational decision. We have to be a little... understanding."

Aaron let his hand wander by his torso and beneath the cloak without saying anything else.

"My name's Rayan, and I'm sorry if we startled you. Like I just said, we heard a disturbance and ran to help," he shouted from afar, trying to reassure us they were no threats. That's what dangerous people do, though. "There's no reason to rob you, either. As you can see, we—oh, let me get out of this way first—"

I gulped, a cold shiver running down my skin as I watched what he did next. Ryan pressed both hands on the car, giving it a slight nudge. The rusty metal buckled and scraped the concrete. All of that was done with ease by the mercenary. If he were to apply more force, I believe his hands would have gone through the vehicle itself. This guy—he pushed a whole vehicle out of his way.

He approached us with a relaxed expression. Logan, despite appearing older due to his beard, was actually quite young. He and the mercenary appeared to be the same age. Aside from physical appearances, having that kind of power meant he didn't think of us as individuals to be concerned about. Nothing resembling augmentations could be seen on Ryan's body, which could only indicate he had the capacity to conduct mana at will. He was a hunter.

And what the heck does he expect from us?

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Each stride Ryan took as he got closer was deliberate, and he obviously didn't care if we'd ambush him or not. The hunter's cloak fluttered around, displaying his grayish military-style garments composed of nylon and cotton. His knees and elbows were also protected by padding. That's how an actual hunter looks. Aaron, on the other hand, kept his cloak with his fingers in order to not reveal a thing. Perhaps he didn't enjoy flaunting around his augmentations as some people do in the Underworld.

"Could you stop glaring at me like that?" Ryan asked me as he passed through the factory's entrance. "It's kind of intimidating."

The scowl on my face got deeper as soon as I heard that.

"Okay, I get it. You don't like me, but—mm?"

The mercenary got closer to a corpse. As soon as his shadow formed over it, one of its sharp claws twitched, poised to strike as quickly as possible.

"Be careful," warned Edward, still following him with the crossbow. "It's still—"

But the sound of cracking bones drowned out his worries. The reason for that was the hunter. He stomped on the goblin's throat with his boot, crushing the monster's windpipe with his entire weight. The poor creature thrashed on the ground for air, only to stop moving after a painful period of writhing. Everyone knew it wasn't a pleasant death.

Lucas tightened his grip on the spear and, despite his feelings, remained silent. He presumably knew Logan was the ideal person to represent us in this situation.

"Goblins are rather smart," Ryan muttered as he approached his quiet companion, turning his back on us. "There are some that fake their deaths to lower your guards down. Be careful next time you fight them."

"Thanks for the advice," answered Logan without revealing much of a reaction. Deep down, I knew he was shaken as well. "But your assistance's unnecessary."

After learning the identity of the man, the barbarian didn't back down. Even with his physique, he couldn't close the gap between himself and Ryan in case matters got heated. And even his friend, Aaron, would be tough to deal with if our whole party were to ambush him. I personally felt the strength that some cheap augmentations were capable of producing, let alone the high-end ones this mercenary wore. In terms of raw quality, they were closer to Jacob's, the merchant I met in the Underworld, rather than the thugs I had an unpleasant encounter with, who wore stained copper instead of actual metal.

Augmented bastards...

"Yeah, I can see that," he replied, unimpressed by Logan's ostensibly formidable stature. "I just wanted you to understand that we aren't some savages. And since we've checked the situation and already obtained what we were after, we'll leave immediately. Let's go, Aaron. We appear to have overstayed our welcome."

"Hey!" roared Mara, clutching a backpack the size of half her body. "Just where the hell did you put it?! I can't find it anywhere!"

She drew closer, then halted when she discovered we had some unannounced company. She held the bag tightly in her hands, squeezing it against her body, without saying anything else and holding her breath for a second.

"W-who are they...?" she whispered, clearly troubled by their presence. Her actions may be misinterpreted as fear, but I knew precisely what she was going for. Mara had no trouble taking advantage of her gender.

"That's your porter?" Ryan scoffed, measuring each of us as he cast his glance over our group. Contrary to his confident demeanor, he now appeared to be dejected. Just why did Mara's presence affect him to that extent? Did they know each other? I doubted it.

As he reached the factory's entrance, he lightly patted Aaron on his shoulder, indicating it was time to leave as he added: "Don't answer. Who you have in your party is none of my business."

We waited for a bit, holding our breaths, every muscle in my body strained, ready to counter-attack whatever they threw at me. I examined my surroundings from the corner of my eye, but nothing within reach could conceal me, nor was there a route that could help me flee. But it appears that I was simply overthinking when their forms passed through the fence.

"They're gone," sighed Mara as she threw the bag down.

People that could've murdered us walked away, just like that.