This adventurer is overly righteous.

After removing the cloak and shoulder guards, plucking the feathers from the helmet, and then erasing the overly intricate and ornate patterns on the armor, Croya finally put on the armor.

"No, that won't work..."

Leijin made a sound of disgust.

"Now it looks no different from ordinary equipment!"

Keep in mind that the armor Kroya is currently wearing is high-level armor made by dwarves, worth 120 gold coins, and has permanent defensive magic!

Now that Kroya has done this to it, the armor no longer shows any signs of being expensive and has become extremely plain.

"That's good enough. I don't want to become famous like those hero-level adventurers and then have to serve under some nobleman." Kroya sighed, shutting up Lejin's mouth, and then went out with him. The hunting party was to set off this afternoon. Kroya was confident that everything was prepared, and there were only two things left to do.

"Two stews, two white breads, two roasts with all the seasonings and rich sauce, this time we'll have lamb, a tomato baked bean, a creamy cod soup, a fried fish, and a large glass of ale."

Joining the hunting party meant that Kroya would probably have to stay in the Misty Forest for a month or two, during which time he probably wouldn't have the chance to eat such good food. This was his last meal before leaving, so he should have a good meal at the White Mushroom Tavern. He also ordered food for Leijin and paid for it as well.

"After rounding down, it's only two hundred copper coins."

He said it politely.

"We've never rounded down before." Croa said with some surprise as he pulled out two silver coins.

"Sir, this is a privilege reserved for elite adventurers. As a tavern that cooperates with the Adventurers' Guild, we offer preferential treatment to elite adventurers," the waiter replied, before turning and leaving.

"That's good." Kroya liked this little advantage that made things more convenient.

"Indeed," Leikin nodded.

After dinner, the two went to the church, where Kroya wanted to do one last thing before going out—to pray for peace from God.

"I thought you would ask a god for help." Considering that Kroya had already received a sword bestowed by a god, Leijin felt that if Kroya was willing to continue asking the god for help, he might really be able to gain some more benefits.

For example, praying to the goddess of the hunt or something...

"Excessive greed will only displease the gods, and besides, I have no interest in using God's gifts to gain fame and fortune," Kroya replied.

After saying this, the two turned to leave, but a priest approached and gestured for Kroya to discuss some matters, so Kroya temporarily separated from Lejin.

"We have kept the news under wraps. We have made a special trip to visit those believers who witnessed you receiving the Sword of Judgment and made them swear an oath before the idol not to reveal a single word."

  

"Thank you for your help," Kroya said gratefully to the earnest-looking priest.

Having just witnessed a miracle, these believers' faith in God became even stronger. After swearing an oath to the idol, they naturally wouldn't easily reveal that Kroya had obtained the Sword of Judgment.

After resolving everything, Kroya arrived at the Adventurers' Guild. Miss Millie greeted him warmly and told him where the adventurers recruited by the White Stone Town Adventurers' Guild to join the hunting party were located. She was also very surprised that he had suddenly been promoted to an elite-level adventurer.

However, based on her experience, there must be many things behind Kroya's sudden promotion to elite-level adventurer that she, as an employee of her level, could not know. Therefore, she was just surprised and did not ask too many questions.

"Thank you very much." Kroya thanked Miss Millie, and then followed the direction she indicated, eventually arriving at a place that looked like a council hall. A square table was located in the middle of the room, with adventurers sitting on both sides. Kroya found a seat and looked around.

The adventurers' packs were placed against the wall, and they sat on stools, some chatting with people they knew, others simply closing their eyes to rest, and still others staring blankly into space.

Including Kroya, the total number of people was thirty-two, including sixteen elite-level adventurers and fifteen hero-level adventurers.

The sixteen elite adventurers were qualified to participate only after completing the assessment, while hero-level adventurers do not need to go through such trouble and can join as long as they wish.

Kroya didn't recognize any of the heroic adventurers, but their clothes were indeed extremely bright and beautiful. It seemed more like they were going to a parade than to hunt.

Moreover, Kroya was quite interested in their race. Some of them had scales on their bodies and would occasionally stick out their tongues like snakes. Some were tall, even over three meters, with skin that shone with a metallic sheen. Of course, there were also elves with pointed ears and a noble air about them.

However, among the elite adventurers, there were some that Kroya knew.

Tiki, Guise, and Lillian came from the North—Lillian was the only non-adventure person in the entire house. Kroya even saw Carter, whom he hadn't seen in a long time. He waved to them and received a response from each of them.

After waiting for a while, a mage appeared in the room. He looked much older than Frederick, but he was in good spirits. He tapped the floor with his staff to signal all the adventurers to focus.

"Since you are all here to join Count Reginald's winter hunting party, I will keep it brief."

"We need to start from Whitestone Town and head towards the entrance to the Misty Forest, which is this location on the map..."

The adventurer guilds around the Misty Forest once joined forces to open up passages into the interior of the Misty Forest for adventurers to enter and hunt. Traveling on these paths is much safer.

Of course, this is a paid service, and there are even small castles at the entrance specifically for collecting tolls; these castles belong to Count Reginald.

"We will meet up with Count Reginald here with the other adventurers. The Count should have arrived by now, so we should set off as well."

After saying that, the adventurers packed their belongings. This group was managed by the Adventurers' Guild of Whitestone Town, which allowed them to form a small caravan and head into the Misty Forest together.

As dusk settled and stars rose, the caravan advanced deeper into the forest. Kroya peered out, feeling a slight unease as if countless eyes were watching the ostentatious procession in the darkness. However, Kroya knew it was merely an illusion; the force of this team was enough to crush most monsters—after all, there were fifteen hero-level adventurers alone.

The falling snowflakes were swept into the sky by a long gust of wind. Under the dome, several convoys lit their lights in the darkness, converging on the same destination from different roads.