Flashy Adventurer System : Show Off to Get Stronger! - Chapter 732

Chapter 732: A Hero’s Job
A pleasant kind of silence ensued as a trio of youngsters faced six other youngsters loitering at a table, who appeared to have been extremely shocked by what they just heard.

It took Shye and the others three seconds before their brains managed to process the information they just heard.

“S-Seriously, that’s amazing, you three!” Seira exclaimed, beaming as she ran over to hug Wendy tightly in celebration. “Congratulations, lil sis Wendy, lil bro Ian, and Big Madam Shirley!”

“Thanks, Seira.”

“I am grateful, Miss Seira.”

“Thank you, Seira… but could you please stop calling me Big Madam? I-It’s a bit embarrassing.”

The trio thanked the midget in response.

“No! I’m the boss’ ultimate underling! Any title less than Big Madam wouldn’t do!” Seira replied, steadfastly calling Shirley such an embarrassing title.

After Seira, the others immediately proceeded to congratulate the three, including Shye, who even hugged Shirley with a laugh and gave her a peck on the forehead.

He was naturally happy for her.

However, he also knew what this meant.

“Seems the plan’s shifting, huh?” Shye sighed with a smile, his gaze drifting over the other five, who took a moment to catch his meaning. “You’re free to pick your first apex (S) ranked monster-hunting quest now, since there’ll only be one party going forward. Ian, Wendy, and Shirley will need to focus on their WAA tasks from here on out.”

Seira and the others had bittersweet feelings in their hearts, realizing that they loved the intense ten-man career grind with party member swaps they did in the past when there were still ten of them.

Now, with Siegfried, Lesurii, Ian, Wendy, and Shirley gone, although they would still be able to keep up the intense grind, things wouldn’t be as merry anymore.

Still, they were growing older, so they understood that their time together would gradually lessen as they advanced in their careers and lives.

Yet, this didn’t mean their friendship would end.

Even as their own lives became busier—especially when they had families of their own—they inwardly vowed to make as much time for each other as possible.

“You guys are familiar with Regi, right?” Shye suddenly added, snapping everyone out of their thoughts.

“Oh, the one who always lazes around in the division lobby’s couches? Yeah, I believe we’re all familiar with him.” Kiin answered.

“Yep, that’s the one. He’ll be your party’s scout from now on. Don’t worry—he might look lazy, but he’s insanely skilled, so there’s no need to question his competence.”

After giving the other five a few more instructions, Shye left with the other three and headed towards the WAA Headquarters in Valenzia City.

It wasn’t that far from their guild headquarters, so they arrived around twenty minutes later.

“Brother Jed!” he exclaimed upon arriving near the gates of the WAA Headquarters.

Hearing his voice, his guard friend naturally came sprinting, not daring to make Shye Crowley of the Black Dawn wait for even two seconds.

However, Shye noticed that Guard Jed was only forcing himself to smile.

“S-Sir Crowley! Welcome to the headquarters! Are you here for your mandatory mission?” the guard asked, feigning enthusiasm.

“Yeah, Handler Nutter told me she already has my next mission,” Shye replied. “You don’t look too good, brother. Is something bothering you?”

Jed wasn’t good at hiding his emotions, so he subconsciously flinched upon hearing Shye’s words.

“W-Well, yeah, I do have some troubles, but don’t worry, Sir Crowley. I’ll find a solution eventually.” the guard said, scratching his head while laughing awkwardly.

“Maybe I can help?” Shye offered.

Now that he was a hero and knew his way around the headquarters, he didn’t rely on the guard’s help as much.

Still, he appreciated all the times the guard had guided him through the vast WAA Headquarters when he was just starting as a regional champion, and he hadn’t forgotten the promise he’d made to him.

“H-How could I possibly ask a regional hero for help?! S-Sir Crowley, please, don’t worry about me. I know you have a lot on your plate, so there’s no need to spend your energy on minor issues.” the guard immediately rejected his offer with a slightly horrified expression.

Jed hadn’t forgotten Shye’s promise to help him with any single matter he needed assistance with.

However, he’d never imagined that the young man would rise like a dragon emperor, becoming their region’s first hero and forging legends wherever he went.

The guard naturally considered asking the hero to honor his promise, but ultimately decided against it, recognizing that even a single second of a regional hero’s time could mean another life saved in their region.

“Oh, come on now, Brother Jed. I gave you my word, didn’t I? Hero or not, I’ll keep my promise. So, tell me—what do you need help with? I, Shye Crowley of the Black Dawn, vow to assist you to the best of my abilities. After all, isn’t it a hero’s duty to save the day?” Shye said, winking at the guard with a wide smile.

Recognizing that the young hero was still the same person he had befriended back then, Jed finally decided to open up.

“Hahaha, Sir Crowley, you’re truly impressive,” the guard said warmly. “Well, since a hero is offering to help me with my problems, who am I to turn down such a golden opportunity?”

“Hahaha! Yes, Brother Jed! Just leave it all to me! So, what’s the issue?” Shye patted his chest in guarantee and asked.

“Well, m-my five-year-old son caught a disease called heartsear, probably from playing too close to an adventurer who just returned from a quest and was infected with it. That’s the only explanation I can think of.”

“I took him to Valenzia Hospital, but the doctors and priests there said there are only two ways to cure the disease. The first is to boil an extremely rare (D) ranked Snow Leech and have my son drink the extracts. The other option is to find a [Unique]-tier herb called Winter’s Blessing and have a high-ranked apothecary create a Winter’s Cure Pill from it.”

“I-I can’t possibly find and purchase such an herb that would only grow in cold areas, so I went to every apothecary material shop to try and buy a snow leech, but they were all sold out. I check the shops regularly, but the results are always the same, and I don’t know what to do. My son’s condition is worsening each day, and I’m afraid that in two weeks, he might not survive the disease.”

After the guard finished explaining his situation, tears streamed down his face.

His problem turned out to be far more difficult to solve than he had initially let on.

Shye knew that Jed would likely choose the second option if he could, as drinking the extracts of a snow leech would be unpleasant.

However, being just a guard, Jed had no other choice but to put his son through some discomfort to cure his disease.

Hearing his guard friend’s problems, Shye rubbed the guy’s back, smiling as he did so.

“There’s no need for your son to drink the extracts of a leech, Brother Jed,” Shye reassured him, causing the crying guard to look up. “Do you know what this is?”

He then pulled a Winter’s Blessing from the system’s inventory and held it up for Jed to see before handing it to him.

Fortunately, he didn’t have to help the guard search for the herb since he had already obtained one from Aeolus the Wind Dragon’s lair.

“W-Winter’s Blessing!” Jed exclaimed with shaking hands. “Sir Crowley! Thank you! Thank you so much for this favor! I will never forget this as long as I live!”

“Aihh, don’t worry about it, Brother Jed. It wasn’t much trouble for me at all. I’ll tell you what: if you have another problem in the future, don’t hesitate to reach out, alright? Who knows, I might be able to solve it just as easily as I did this one!” Shye replied with a smile to the bowing guard.

“Yes, Sir Crowley! Will definitely do so! Again, thank you for saving my son’s life!”

“No worries, brother!”

With a contented heart, Shye and the other three then proceeded to enter the headquarters, parting ways soon after to pursue their own agendas after the young hero provided them with directions.