Gathering Husbands with a System in a Game Like World [BL]
Chapter 22: The Full Proposal

Chapter 22: The Full Proposal

The senior receptionist led Kai and Elias away from the crowded main hall of the Adventurer’s Guild and into a private corridor. Kai kept his hood low and his expression carefully neutral. He had only agreed to hear the proposal. Nothing more. Elias, of course, already walked as if the two of them were partners. Kai glanced at him sideways.

"Stop looking so smug"

Elias’s smile didn’t fade.

"I’m not assuming anything. I’m simply optimistic."

"Be less optimistic."

They entered a restricted office. A senior Guild official sat behind a heavy desk, documents spread neatly before him. He looked up as they entered, eyes lingering on Kai for a moment longer than necessary before shifting to Elias.

"Thank you both for coming. I’ll be direct. Kai Valerius, you are an unusual choice for this mission. You are currently F-Rank."

Kai nodded once.

"I know. That’s why I shouldn’t even be here."

The official did not disagree.

"Under normal circumstances, you would never qualify. However, Elias has made your participation a non-negotiable condition for accepting the mission himself. The Guild has decided to consider the request because you are a documented survivor of the Emeraldwood expedition. That is the only reason."

Kai turned slowly toward Elias.

"You blackmailed them into bringing me."

Elias’s expression remained mild.

"I negotiated."

The official cleared his throat and continued.

"The mission is not a standard monster-hunting request. The problem is occurring in the city of Voltra. Voltra is one of the largest trade hubs on the continent—comparable in scale and complexity to an entire nation. It sits on multiple major trade routes, handles vast volumes of goods, and contains dozens of districts ranging from merchant quarters and alchemical research zones to noble enclaves and undercity markets. When something goes wrong there, the effects ripple outward quickly."

Kai listened carefully.

"What exactly is going wrong?"

"Disappearances," the official said. "At first they were treated as isolated incidents. Travelers vanished. Then merchants. Then ordinary citizens. Eventually, adventurers who had been sent to investigate began disappearing as well. The local authorities have failed to identify the cause. The Guild wants a discreet investigation."

He looked at Elias.

"Your specialties make you particularly suitable. Stealth. Infiltration. Tracking. Reconnaissance. Gathering information without alerting the target. That is why the Guild approached you."

Kai finally asked the question that had been bothering him.

"Then why me? You just said I’m F-Rank. You don’t know anything about my abilities. So why am I here?"

The official was honest.

"We don’t know anything about hidden skills you may or may not possess. As far as the Guild is concerned, you are an inexperienced F-Rank Adventurer who somehow survived the Emeraldwood disaster. Elias personally requested you. That is the only reason you are sitting in this room."

Kai turned fully toward Elias.

"Why?"

Elias met his gaze without the usual teasing edge. For once his expression was serious.

"You survived an A-Rank beast that should never have been in that forest. That alone makes you unusual. And I work better when I have someone interesting nearby. You’re coming with me, or I’m not taking the job."

The official continued before Kai could argue further.

"Several Adventurers have already been sent. They failed. At least one of them was an experienced professional. We do not know whether they are dead, captured, hiding, or involved in something we cannot yet understand. There is no clear evidence of a powerful monster. No large-scale destruction. No obvious pattern that can be explained by ordinary beasts. People are simply disappearing. Quietly."

Kai’s expression hardened.

"And the reward?"

"One hundred thousand platinum coins each," the official said evenly. "Payable upon successful completion of the primary objectives. There will be an additional reward for recovering any missing Adventurers alive."

Kai stared. The System spoke quietly in his mind.

[Currency conversion complete. One hundred thousand platinum coins is approximately equivalent to five hundred billion dollars in the currency of your previous world.]

Kai’s breath caught for half a second. That amount was absurd. Life-changing. Enough to fund years of independent travel and training without ever needing another mission.

The official continued.

"Primary objective: travel to Voltra and investigate the disappearances. Secondary objectives: determine who or what is responsible, locate the missing Adventurers, gather evidence, and identify any connection between the incidents. Return all information to the Guild. Optional objective: recover missing Adventurers if they are found alive. You are investigators first. Combat is authorized only if necessary. The Guild does not want an incident inside a major city."

Kai was quiet for a long moment.

"How long is this expected to take?"

The official met his eyes.

"It could be weeks. It could be months. In the worst case, it could stretch into a year or more. Voltra is enormous. If the source of the disappearances is well-hidden, this will not be a short assignment."

Kai looked at Elias again. The assassin’s expression remained serious, but there was still that undercurrent of satisfaction in his eyes. Kai exhaled slowly.

"I have conditions."

Elias raised an eyebrow.

"If I agree," Kai said, voice firm, "you do not enter my private room. You do not touch me without permission. You do not sexually harass me. You do not expose yourself. You do not deliberately sabotage the mission. And you treat me as a partner for the duration of this job. Not as entertainment."

Elias studied him for a moment, then nodded once.

"Agreed."

Kai narrowed his eyes.

"That was too fast."

Elias’s mouth curved slightly.

"I’m capable of behaving when the job requires it. Whether you believe that is your problem."

The System observed quietly.

[Assessment: Elias’s primary motivation for accepting the mission appears to be Host participation. Behavioral compliance is likely temporary and conditional.]

Kai hated that information.

He looked back at the official.

"I’ll take the mission."

The official recorded the decision without ceremony.

"You are now registered as a temporary mission party. Departure is scheduled for tomorrow morning. Travel to Voltra will take several days. You will receive a formal briefing packet and travel funds before you leave."

Kai returned to the inn alone that evening, packed everything into the Ring of Infinite Storage, checked his supplies, and stood for a long moment looking at the quiet room. His compatibility with Infinite Strength was still only 1.7 percent. He could not rely on the skill recklessly. He would have to continue training during the journey. For the first time, he was leaving the familiar area around the town as a genuine Adventurer. No Academy waiting for him. No predetermined schedule. No obligation to follow the game’s original storyline. This was his choice.

The next morning Elias was already waiting outside the inn.

"Partners now," Elias said lightly.

Kai adjusted his hood.

"Temporary mission partners. That is not the same thing as friends."

"I understand."

Elias fell into step beside him anyway. They left the town together, the road stretching ahead toward a city large enough to swallow nations. As the buildings faded behind them, the System delivered a single notification.

[Temporary Mission Party Established.]

[Member: Elias]

[Mission: Investigation]

[Destination: Voltra]

Kai stared at the notification, then at Elias, then at the long road ahead. He had a terrible feeling about this. And for once, even Elias wasn’t the only thing worrying him. Somewhere in that distant city, people were disappearing. And nobody knew why.