"Feels like it's been forever since I was last here."
Gauss stood on a Grayrock street and tipped his head back, taking a deep breath.
Even the air in Grayrock seemed to carry a faint stone scent—the natural smell of paving bricks, city walls, and all the various stone buildings.
Every time he went out adventuring and then returned to Grayrock, he got that same strange feeling.
Familiar… but with a hint of unfamiliarity mixed in.
"It hasn't been that long…" Alia said with a smile.
Gauss glanced at her and blinked.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"We should find a proper activity venue for Red Dragon Company ahead of time," Serandur reminded him. "There are dozens of people, and we also need space for the tools and supplies we brought from Falrim. A normal inn can't handle that."
They needed an independent place—something like a branch site.
"That won't be hard." Gauss's gaze shifted toward the Grayrock Adventurers' Guild.
They weren't clueless outsiders. If they had a problem, they'd go straight to Guildmaster Eberhard and let him work his magic.
…
"Eberhard, I'll be counting on you!"
"Hope we're not causing you trouble."
In front of a floor-to-ceiling window that overlooked all of Grayrock, Gauss clasped his hands and thanked him.
"What can I do?" Eberhard rubbed his temples with a helpless smile. "You lot are the heroes who saved Grayrock, remember?"
"Even if it's a pain, I still have to make it work."
"If I wanted to give you some privileges, I doubt any townsfolk would object."
Gauss had come in person to ask. What was Eberhard supposed to do—refuse? If he did, the townspeople would spit behind his back.
Besides, they were friends now.
"But you move fast," Eberhard added. "You've only been in Falrim two or three months, and you already have an adventuring company framework up."
"I thought it'd take longer. Honestly—impressive. It really is you."
"I don't know," Gauss shrugged. "Maybe the guild over there pulled strings and approved us early?"
Eberhard stroked his chin and swept his eyes over Gauss.
"Yeah. That's probably it. Otherwise there's no way it'd be this fast."
Gauss felt… different, compared to last time.
Before, when Eberhard focused and relied on a swordsman's instincts, he could still sense pressure up close. Now—nothing at all.
He obviously didn't think Gauss had gotten weaker.
The only explanation was that Gauss had grown so strong Eberhard couldn't even read him clearly anymore.
If Eberhard were a Falrim official approving company registrations, and he saw a young supernova like this, he'd probably open a back door too.
"You're strong like a monster," Eberhard muttered as he stood.
Every time he looked at Gauss, he felt like he was getting old—about to be swallowed by the rolling tide of the era.
Gauss scratched his head, confused by the abrupt complaint.
Calling someone a "monster" didn't sound nice… but he guessed it counted as praise?
"Uh… thanks?"
Eberhard waved him off. "I'm not praising you."
He turned to the window again.
"Oh, right. When you head to the Blackwater region this time, be careful. I've heard some extremely powerful monsters have been flooding in there."
"Don't worry. The three commissions I took are all seven-star. We should be fine," Gauss said, nodding.
He didn't really have a choice. His official level was seven now.
Normally, a company's task cap was set to the commander's level, which made sense.
That kind of "sense" just… didn't apply to Gauss.
A challenge rating seven monster? He could handle it.
Eight, nine, ten—he probably wouldn't be in much danger either.
But rules were rules. The guild had followed them for ages, and they weren't going to break them just for him.
Eberhard listened and for a moment felt like Gauss was subtly showing off.
But he immediately dismissed the thought—Gauss wasn't that kind of person.
"Sir Belrock took troops toward the Blackwater region too," Eberhard added. "You might run into him out there."
Belrock was the Iron Anvil Fortress commander who'd brought reinforcements to defend Grayrock earlier in the year.
Gauss looked surprised. The man was old, yet still running around to support different fronts—truly aging like steel.
"I'll keep an eye out."
Eberhard's mage advisor knocked and came in, and Gauss took the hint Eberhard had business.
He excused himself and left.
On the walk back, townsfolk greeted him warmly.
If he didn't walk fast, he'd probably end up with a mountain of fruit, pastries, and daily necessities in his arms.
"You're back. Did the temporary site get settled?" Alia asked.
"Smoothly," Gauss said, nodding.
While he'd been at the guild, his teammates had already turned the house inside out and tidied everything up.
He got back just in time for lunch.
"Eat."
…
"They here yet?"
At the city gate, Alia rose onto her toes and peered into the distance.
"I see Torga's group."
On the horizon, a uniformed convoy was slowly approaching.
That familiar black-and-red scheme told Gauss instantly—Red Dragon Company members had arrived.
Traveling by ship was faster than roads, but still couldn't match Hephaestus flying through the sky. So they'd reached Grayrock later.
A little while later, the convoy rolled closer.
"Captain—everyone's here. Mission accomplished," Ivan said as soon as he spotted Gauss, visibly relieved.
"No trouble on the way?"
"Ran into a few petty thieves two days ago," Torga waved it off. "I handled it."
Gauss scanned the convoy. They'd traveled far, but their spirits looked alright.
"You can go in through here," a soldier said, quickly pointing to a side gate as the convoy started to turn toward the main queue.
"No inspection?" Torga asked, raising her head.
"You're all Captain Gauss's companions. No need."
Torga glanced at Gauss, who looked completely calm.
So this was what it felt like—coming home with the boss. Privilege before you even stepped inside the city.
The convoy with the red dragon banners entered smoothly via the side gate.
As for the temporary base, Eberhard had already arranged it.
It was an unused merchant mansion—bought by the Grayrock Adventurers' Guild years ago as a backup training facility.
It came with a courtyard, warehouse space, a main building, and auxiliary structures—perfect for living, working, training, and storage.
Housing dozens of people was no problem at all.
The place had been cleaned ahead of time. When Gauss pushed the door open, the yard was spotless, and the plants had even been trimmed.
It couldn't compare to the heavily funded estate base they'd built in Falrim—but for being on the road, it was luxurious compared to what most adventurers rented at inns and taverns.
And in a small place like Grayrock, independent compounds like this were rare. Without connections, you couldn't get one even if you had money—because the owners often didn't live here and wouldn't rent them out.
"Not bad," Torga and the others said, looking around with satisfied expressions.
Most of them didn't demand comfort, but better accommodations were always welcome.
"Ivan, organize everyone," Gauss said.
"And remind them to be careful. This isn't our property—it's the local guild's backup training grounds."
Gauss figured that as long as nobody literally tore the mansion down, Eberhard wouldn't complain.
But borrowing guild property still meant: don't cause unnecessary trouble.
"Understood," Ivan nodded.
Before coming, he'd already looked into Captain Gauss's history with Grayrock.
He knew this town was the start of Gauss's career—half a homeland—and the stone town Gauss had defended at extreme risk under the siege of ten-thousand-plus monsters.
So even if Gauss hadn't said a word, Ivan would've kept everyone in line.
He'd already warned them during the trip: don't act like arrogant Falrim people and embarrass the Captain in his "home turf."
Gauss didn't say more. Ivan was reliable.
"You all rest today," Gauss said. "Tomorrow, the field team starts preparing to head into the Blackwater region with me."
…
Gauss's small squad didn't stay in the mansion. After settling the company members, they left.
Grayrock's streets were packed with adventurers.
That was inevitable.
Nearby towns had been attacked months ago. Lincrown Town held, though it paid in lives and property. Blackwater Town was less lucky—its entire region fell.
Because Gauss's squad had been here, Grayrock took the smallest losses.
So it looked the safest and sturdiest—naturally, it drew outsiders like moths.
On the way back, a voice called from behind.
"Captain Gauss—didn't expect to run into you here."
Gauss stopped and turned.
A man and a woman stood behind him. The man—about 1.9 meters tall—wore a wolf-head mask. Beside him was a shorter human woman with pink hair.
Strangers. Outsiders. And strong.
Gauss's instincts sharpened, but since this was his hometown and they were inside the city, he didn't overreact—just grew curious about who they were and what they wanted.
"You are…?"
"My apologies for being abrupt." The man bowed slightly.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Wolf, Captain of Falrim's Fang of the Gray Wolf adventuring company."
"This is our deputy Captain, Luna."
"Captain Wolf, Deputy Captain Luna." Gauss greeted them evenly.
So they were fellow Falrim-based adventurers.
He remembered the wolf-beast banner he'd seen at the gate when he arrived—it must've been theirs.
That eased his guard a notch.
"This is my hometown," Gauss said.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't wrong. This body's original family was from Stonebrook Village, not the town itself—but Stonebrook fell under Grayrock's jurisdiction, and many surrounding villages traced their roots back here anyway. He could claim Grayrock as home without shame.
"What a coincidence," Wolf said. "I've heard of you and your Red Dragon Company in Falrim. Seeing you in person, the reputation seems well-earned."
"And we're heading to the Blackwater region too. If your destination is the same, maybe we can cooperate."
Wolf offered his hand.
"Flattery," Gauss replied, taking it. "Blackwater is dangerous. Watching each other's backs isn't a bad idea."
"Then we'll see you in Blackwater."
They parted ways into different streets.
After they'd gone some distance, Luna finally spoke.
"That's Gauss? He just looks… clean and pretty. Nothing special."
Wolf's expression tightened. "No. He's strong."
"Stronger than you?" Luna frowned.
"Hard to say." Wolf shook his head.
A warrior's instincts were sharp at close range.
During that brief exchange, Wolf hadn't sensed any obvious threat—talking to Gauss felt like a soft breeze.
But his body had stayed subtly tense the whole time.
Wolf trusted that feeling.
To him, that meant Gauss was frighteningly dangerous.
And possibly the kind of opponent Wolf hated most—mysterious, unreadable.
Luckily, they weren't enemies.
"Maybe in Blackwater, we'll fight side by side."
Among adventurers, relationships were complicated. Rivals, yes—but sometimes also dependable allies.
Especially on land already claimed by monsters, humans had to cooperate.
…
Gauss's group also talked briefly about Wolf.
Albena was curious about his exact strength, but Gauss couldn't really pin it down.
Against casters, he could use certain senses to estimate. Against a swordfighter deliberately hiding his edge? Unless they fought, it was hard to judge.
All Gauss could tell was: the man was capable.
One thing was certain—Wolf's official level was higher than Gauss's, because it was rare for Falrim company commanders to be below him.
If one was, Gauss would assume they were a nepotism pick.
They turned down another street, chatted briefly with Sophia outside her inn, and headed into a deeper alley.
At the wall of Gauss's courtyard, he spotted a broad, familiar figure.
When he recognized the face, surprise flickered across his expression.