Chapter 108: Of Valor
They arrived at the outpost late in the afternoon of the next day.
Well before they reached it, Kir noticed that the whole place had an air of security. A wooden palisade was guarded by a moat of sharpened sticks.
As the Black Sheep arrived in good order, Kir marched at the back of the formation; given how tall he was. Putting themselves on display was a show of good faith to let the watchmen know they weren’t hiding anyone. Which they were.
Stella had made the decision to copy Cheshire’s appearance, an act which had the raptor confused at first, then hissy. Once Kir had calmed Cheshire down enough for them to perch on opposite shoulders, she regarded Stella with wariness. Kir wondered if that indicated females of the species were competitive with each other.
Once they finished approaching the gate, the dwarvish watchwoman, who was clearly more of an adventurer, called for them to "Halt! State your business."
"Hey friend," Noir said, stepping forward and looking up at the woman who was a head taller than him, "My group, the Black Sheep, just came all the way up from the coast and through a bit of a dungeon. I’m Noir, and these are Sam, Namosa, Garoon, and Kir." He introduced them in order of their formation. "We’re hoping to sell the location of said dungeon before we head north and back to civilization."
"A dungeon you say. Wouldn’t happen to be the same one some Chain Syn ass hired for last year?" she asked, crossing her arms.
"I have no idea if the Syndicate has a claim to it; we just went down a few floors, lost our man, and now we’re done with dungeon life for the foreseeable future," Noir rubbed the back of his neck subconsciously.
"Must be rookies then. You guild?" she asked.
Noir winced. "We’re more of an unofficial adventuring group. Brought together by circumstances-"
"Can’t let you in if you’re not Valrians, Adventurer’s Guild, or some other official order. No rules against you camping outside though," she said flatly, her eyes going to Kir suspiciously.