Why kill them?

Because the two who approached him truly had no good intentions.

If someone fell for their honeyed words, they would be lured away, poisoned without ever realizing it, then have their organs harvested and body carved apart.

More terrifying than monsters. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Gulu—

The severed heads of the two creatures rolled across the ground, and the surrounding beings all turned toward Kanzaki Rei in unison.

Yet Kanzaki Rei merely kept both hands in his pockets.

As though he did not care in the slightest.

At the same time, faint killing intent spread outward from his body.

Although everyone stared at him, not a single person dared provoke him.

"There really are quite a lot of people here."

Finding this place within the Abyssfall had already required two rounds of Future Simulation.

Fortunately, Kanzaki Rei now possessed six Future Simulation uses per day.

That amount was practically excessive.

With six projected futures available, most information could be uncovered sooner or later.

And here—

Besides Kanzaki Rei, there were other humans as well.

After spreading his perception outward, he sensed roughly twenty individuals.

Thinking about it carefully, it made sense.

Although this place was dangerous and none of the local inhabitants held goodwill toward humans, comparatively speaking, this was already one of the safest and most stable resting points within the Abyssfall.

A true golden refuge.

Otherwise, given the Abyssfall’s nature of only allowing descent with no ascent—

There were essentially no footholds at all.

Not to mention the monster density here was absurdly terrifying.

Once you left a safe resting place, what awaited you was likely endless slaughter.

So even though this place was filled with deception and hidden malice, these people still chose to remain here temporarily.

"There are way too many monsters in the Abyssfall, nya..." a silver-haired cat-eared girl muttered.

"Yeah. I originally thought the stories about monsters filling every inch of the Abyssfall were exaggerated metaphors." A red-haired woman carrying an enormous greatsword on her back sighed. "Who would’ve thought they were telling the truth without exaggerating at all?"

"How far are we from the exit now, nya?"

"If we continue descending straight down... probably another thirty trillion kilometers."

"That far, nya..."

"Can’t we just use that Phase thing to teleport there directly, nya?"

"No chance. Hugh died. Our team no longer has a mage."

"Phase movement was researched by that guy specifically. You know how terrifying his magical talent was."

"Even Stellar Mages who mastered Phase Traversal and Phase Teleportation still can’t use it as freely as he could."

"Not to mention I’m just a warrior, while you’re a hunter."

The silver-haired catgirl immediately wilted in despair.

"If that’s the case... then we really can only go this way, nya? We have to descend through the Abyssfall to reach the Moonsea, nya?"

"This is the only fastest route to the Moonsea I could think of," the red-haired warrior replied with another sigh.

And just as the two were speaking—

Knock knock knock—

A knocking sound came from outside the door.

The two exchanged glances before simultaneously looking toward the entrance.

But outside the door, there was nobody.

Neither of their perceptions could detect anyone at all.

"Should we open it, nya?"

"Hmph. Even if we don’t, do you think that would actually stop whoever it is?"

"This door is basically decoration."

The warrior was bold enough to walk over and yank the door open directly.

Yet outside—

There was nothing there.

A hand suddenly rested on her shoulder.

She spun around instantly while drawing her sword!

BOOM!

A horrifying shockwave erupted, splitting the entire inn in half in an instant!

Meanwhile, Kanzaki Rei stood calmly in midair, holding the incoming strike in one hand.

Heavy.

But he still managed to catch the massive blade.

The warrior before him also seemed relaxed, casually wielding the greatsword with a single hand.

"Looks like we’ve encountered another human," she said. "Who are you? What do you want from us?"

There truly were a small number of humans here.

But why they had come here was another matter entirely.

A mature adventurer team would never lower its guard simply because the other party belonged to the same race.

Human hearts were often dangerous as well.

Especially among those who entered the Abyssfall.

Kanzaki Rei spoke directly.

"You should know Sesha."

"I do. What about her?"

"She’s currently part of the Expeditionary Army. She became trapped in a ruin somewhere within the Abyssfall."

"Do you want to save her?"

"You realize how suspicious you sound, right?" The red-haired warrior did not relax her guard whatsoever. "Who exactly are you?"

Meanwhile, Shumi frowned in confusion from the side.

For some reason, that face looked vaguely familiar.

Kanzaki Rei answered plainly.

"I’m... Lu Cang."

Shumi’s eyes immediately lit up in realization.

"Oh! I remember now!"

"That name! He’s Izparut’s disciple! The one who suddenly disappeared ten years ago!"

"I think I met him a few times before. No wonder he looked familiar! Back then he was still just a kid!"

Kanzaki Rei’s encounter with Shumi had taken place in the Kingdom of Oblivion.

However, Shumi had likely forgotten those events entirely.

Afterward, Shumi only became acquainted with Luluwe.

As for Kanzaki Rei, he was merely remembered as the incredibly talented child from the same adventurer party as Luluwe.

Their interaction had never been particularly deep.

Back then, Shumi had already reached Level 6.

What Kanzaki Rei hadn’t expected was this—

In merely ten years, Shumi had actually become a Level 8 Class-Changer?

Did she truly possess that much talent?

In Kanzaki Rei’s eyes, even if she counted as a genius, she had only been an ordinary genius.

And for ordinary geniuses, reaching the threshold of Level 8 was far from easy.

"Izparut’s disciple?" the red-haired warrior narrowed her eyes. "You disappeared ten years ago, so why are you here now?"

"And what’s this about Sesha?"

Kanzaki Rei produced an insignia.

It was proof of membership in the Expeditionary Army.

"I joined the Expeditionary Army. My assigned mission is to bring these four people back."

He projected images of the four individuals.

One of them was a black-haired woman with a high ponytail.

Sesha.

"How do you know I know her?"

Kanzaki Rei replied calmly,

"I have some information channels."

"And I also possess the class of Deciphering Scholar, so I’m capable of making certain deductions."

"As for why I disappeared for ten years... I can only say that it was due to my own circumstances."

"Oh, right."

"I’m currently collecting these materials. Do either of you happen to have them?"

"I can exchange them for items you need."

After some casual conversation, Kanzaki Rei handed over a list.

One copy to Shumi.

One to the red-haired warrior.

In truth, he did not particularly need their assistance.

The other reason he sought them out was because they possessed materials he needed.

Within the blueprint, the "Supreme Luck Scepter" had already been completely outlined.

Only three materials were required in total.

And one of those materials happened to be in the possession of the red-haired warrior.

The real purpose behind Kanzaki Rei approaching them was largely because of those materials.

By discussing unrelated matters first before bringing up the trade request, he could lower their suspicion considerably.

Otherwise, if his intentions appeared too obvious, the other party might refuse the trade outright.

"Softlight Crystal, Darkiron, Cloud Resin?"

Sure enough, among the lengthy material list, the warrior spotted several items she possessed.

"What are you offering in exchange?"