"No, you shouldn't, it is yo..." Before Sword Hero Morningster could complete his sentence, Ingal interrupted.

"Thank you, I am okay with this much," He didn't give Sword Hero Morningster any chances to refute before turning around to dash ahead.

"Bye! See you soon," He waved at Sword Hero Morningster as he vanished into the distance.

'Hmm, he will surely grow to become a young man of fine character,' Sword Hero Morningster said inwardly before turning to stare at the three party members before him.

"You three are still getting less," He stated.

Their faces dropped the moment they heard this.

"This will teach you to treat your fellow humans with love and respect," He added.

Ezrel, Ekiel, and Bright couldn't even refute anymore. They knew just how Morningster was with his words. The moment he made a declaration, no one could change his mind.

They couldn't even ask the fourth party member, Princess Valerie, to help them out. She never joined them in sharing compensation. She promptly informed the Sword Hero to pass her compensation to the street beggars.

Being a princess sure had its perks.

....

Ingal arrived in a poverty-stricken area close to overlapping hills that extended into the horizon.

Some sheep could be seen in the surroundings as well as people in low-quality outfits. Some wooden houses could also be spotted, but it was more common to see children in their undergarments shuffling about.

Ingal slowly walked towards a shed that happened to be in a fairly secluded part of that area. It was poorly structured with a part of its roofing missing.

He walked into the shed and closed the loud croaking door behind him.

He proceeded to take off his worn-out slippers and sit on the piece of cloth laid out in the shed. It was a makeshift bed.

By the side was a two-foot-tall table with a few items positioned on it. One of the items happened to be a little container.

Ingal proceeded to take ten gold coins out of his bag and place them in this circular container.

He shook the container, and the sound of multiple coins jingling rang out. There was no doubt that the container held a lot of coins.

"Should I just do as the Sword Hero says and get some clothes?" He wondered out loud.

"I feel very comfortable in these," He muttered while staring at his brownish raggedy outfit.

"We might not have any new quests for a while, so maybe visiting the mid-market place tomorrow wouldn't be a bad idea," Ingal thought out loud.

He didn't seem to be bothered about his present living condition despite having saved quite a sum since he started moving with the Sword Hero's Party.

A thought suddenly appeared in his mind, causing his face to contract a bit.

"Why doesn't the Sword Hero remember killing the boss of the gate? I watched it happen," He muttered with a befuddled expression.

He was even more confused because this was the second time such a scenario was playing out. According to his memories, the Sword Hero killed the boss of the gates both times and passed out afterwards.

The confusing aspect was that everyone else forgot that it happened. Meanwhile, he was the only one who recalled.

"Well, it could just be a case of mana depletion. Not like I'd know anything about that, I barely reached level five in nearly six months," Ingal decided to throw everything to the back of his mind.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

It wasn't his problem to worry about anyway. His only job was to carry their luggage and he was making enough profit off that.

Living outside of the slums that he had been in all his life was something he had always wanted, and now it was starting to look like a possibility.

He lay down to sleep when a voice suddenly rang in his head.

~ "That is not why you're here!" ~

"Hmm?" He muttered in confusion while jolting back up.

"What was that?" He wondered while looking around.

He was sure he heard a voice but he couldn't see anyone in the surroundings. Was he just imagining it? Was he fatigued?

'I must have imagined it,' He came to a conclusion and laid down again.

Ingal soon drifted into la la land.

It turned out he was only fatigued. Carrying the bags of the members of the sword hero's party must have taken a toll on his frail body as he fell asleep very quickly.

....

Huff! Huff! Huff!

In an unknown location, two figures stood amid a sea of beast corpses.

One had a glowing shield in his grasp, and the other had a nine-foot-long spear with its large tip smeared in beast blood.

They both looked fatigued, and the stream that flowed a few feet away from them was coontaminated with a mixture of green and black blood.

"I am almost out of mana," the one with the spear voiced while placing the butt of his spear onto the ground and wrapping both his hands around it for support.

"Good thing we managed to close the gate before we both ran out," the one with the Shield responded amid hurried breaths.

These two were none other than the spear and shield hero. A great battle had just ended there, and they had both come out victorious.

They basked in the glow of the full moon with expressions of triumph plastered across their faces.

"Let's get out of here. I have beautiful women waiting for me back in town," The shield hero voiced.

"You still haven't changed..." The spear Hero shook his head lightly before raising his spear.

Crrriirtlllee~

Rolling stones and loud footsteps suddenly drifted into their eardrums.

"Hmm?" The spear Hero turned towards the left while the shield hero turned right.

They alternated their gazes sharply in shock from left to right as they realized that they were surrounded.

Atop the hills surrounding them were figures in all-black cloaks with their faces well hidden, no thanks to the cloudy night sky.

"Who the hell are these guys?" The shield hero questioned hoarsely.

"They're not with you?" The spear Hero inquired.

"No, they're not with me. My party members don't dress like this," The shield hero responded warily.

"Neither do mine. They should be in the neighbouring towns... how did these... what do I call them...? Get past our party members?" The spear Hero questioned cautiously. His tone increased with each phrase.

"Who are you guys?! Can't you speak?!" The shield hero yelled.

The dark cloaked figures in the surroundings were now over twenty in number. One of them, from the right, stepped forward with a large six-foot-long staff in their grasp.

Bam!

They slammed the butt of the staff, which had a turbine blade-like top, that oozed with mythical energy.

"Spear Hero! Shield Hero! You both have been sentenced to death by our glorious organization," The one with the staff spoke with a loud tone.

"Is this some type of joke?" The spear Hero said with a tone of annoyance.

"Did Ruri send you guys? Your dressing is somewhat similar," The shield hero also saw this as some type of silly play.

Until...

Zzhhiinnnn~

The turbine-like blade atop the staff beamed with a silver glow, causing the mana in the surroundings to gather around it.

"Heed our divine mandate and perish!" The one holding onto the staff raised it, and the dark sky suddenly cackled with lightning streaks.

"Shit!" The shield Hero cursed.

....

Within a shed, a teenage boy slept soundly. The surroundings were very dim, with only a small lamp by the side, giving the interior of the shed a little bit of illumination.

The sound of chirping night insects melodiously rang out as the only noise in the vicinity. Besides this, the surroundings were so quiet that even a whisper would sound like a scream.This was to be expected since it was currently midnight.

Amidst the tranquillity and silence, the sound of a door slowly opening suddenly broke the silence.

Fortunately, it wasn't loud enough to wake the sleeping boy as two figures stepped into the shed.

They were both clad in robes, but a slightly exposed area displayed the green armor within. It was unknown who these two were, but they had no good intentions for being there.

They studied the surroundings for a bit, finding it difficult to make out the things within the shed.

Fwwhoomm~

One of them raised his palm, and a small fireball suddenly sparked into existence.

The gleam from the small fireball gave them a clearer view of the surroundings. They noticed the little table by the side and the circular container positioned atop.

Without wasting a second more, one of them reached out to grab it.

The jiggling sound of coins rang out, causing both of them to instantly pause. One could make out the faint smirk on their faces as they completely raised the container.

"This is where the brat keeps all his coins."

"We hit the jackpot."

Both of them whispered and proceeded to pour all of the coins into a pouch. The one with the flame closed his palm into a fist and it got extinguished.

They nodded at each other before turning around to leave.

The moment they turned around, their hearts jumped in fright.

"What the...?"

A figure was standing at the entrance to the shed, staring at them with intense contempt.