The SSS class adventurer is a divine cleric-Chapter 87: Kaitlin Celster

And it was also the reason why she was bargaining with the City Lord. Now that she is here, she might as well ask for more rewards as the only epic rank powerhouse for the raid.

Derek looked the girl up and down. She looked strong. Quiet. Focused. But far too young to be in this fight.

He snorted. "So the great Sairi Celster ends up in a backwater border city just to babysit. Life really does come full circle."

Sairi grinned. "Says the man who gave up an entire epic rank essence to buy a skill book for his brat. What was it called again? Third Eye?"

Kaelen, who had been quietly eavesdropping behind Derek, gave an awkward cough. "Still using it, by the way. Great investment."

Sairi raised an eyebrow. "At least someone made use of it. I used that essence to break through. Reached epic rank. Left the kingdom the same week."

"Of course you did," Derek said flatly. "No loyalty. Just like a true merchant."

"No loyalty? Says the deserter." Sairi laughed. "I’m not a noble. I was just a branch manager. I took my promotion and left. You knew exactly what I was."

"Yeah," Derek said with a sigh. "A pain in the ass with good negotiation skills."

Sairi smiled sweetly. "And you were the dumbest Lord I ever met. Giving away power for a kid’s future. Look where it got you, grinding XP and fighting for rewards in some unknown backwaters."

Derek chuckled. "Look where it got you, back to babysitting, arguing with city lords in the middle of nowhere."

They stared at each other for a moment longer, both amused, both a little tired. Then Sairi shrugged again.

"Well. Try not to die this time, old man."

"You too, merchant."

During these days of chaos it feels good to see old friends and can’t help but tease each other.

And as they were having a conversation. Kaelen had fully freed himself. Now he leaned against a nearby post, arms crossed, a cocky smirk already on his face. "Hey. You’re pretty, must be pretty strong too, huh? But that sword’s probably just for show though, right?"

The red-haired girl standing quietly beside Sairi turned her eyes toward him, calm, steady, unreadable. Her black armor gleamed faintly in the sunlight. She didn’t say a word for a second.

Kaelen, of course, kept going. "Kaelen Maglor, healer, genius, future legend. Nice to meet you. You are?"

She blinked once. Then, with a polite smile, replied, "Kaitlin. Kaitlin Celster."

"Celster? Huh, a family of that merchant, right? Makes sense. Make sense. You don’t look like a noble but you carry yourself like one. Plus 10 points for that."

Then Kaelen reached his hands out for a handshake.

She just politely nodded and accepted a small handshake. Her grip was firm. She didn’t seem interested. Not cold. Just... like she was talking to a clown putting on a little show. But she didn’t say anything rude.

Kaelen didn’t notice.

"Great sword. How do you even swing that thing? Looks like it weighs more than Neal on a bad day."

Kaitlin gave a quiet chuckle. "I manage."

Before Kaelen could keep babbling, a loud chime echoed through the courtyard. A clear, commanding voice rang out.

"Everyone, attention."

The knight commander announced.

Then a woman in regal armor stepped up onto the platform in front of the fortress gates. She was young, barely older than Kaelen, with light brown hair tied into a bun beneath her circlet. Her voice carried authority.

"I am Princess Doris of Hather. On behalf of the royal family, I thank the Loose Leash and all awakeners for answering this urgent summon."

The noise faded and everyone listened.

"We are currently dealing with the appearance of two tyrants near the southern border."

A murmur spread.

"The first is a four-armed humanoid monster with the head of an avian beast. It stands nearly three meters tall and moves with inhuman speed. The second is an elephant-like creature, but it walks like a man and has shown signs of intelligence."

A few gold rank awakeners frowned. These weren’t normal tyrants. Tyrants usually don’t have high intelligence.

"We do not have confirmed ranks," Doris continued, "but both are believed to be peak gold, at the very least."

Someone in the crowd swore under their breath. "This is too dangerous."

"Silence the princess is speaking." The commander’s voice resounded again.

Then she continued. "But that is not all."

The princess’s expression tightened.

"Preliminary reports from scouts and field mages confirm signs of mutation. These are mutant-type monsters."

The entire gathering fell into stunned silence.

Even Kaelen dropped his casual stance. Neal’s expression darkened. Derek’s jaw clenched. Kaitlin’s eyes narrowed.

Mutants.

The word alone sent a chill through everyone.

Mutant-type monsters were rare, but devastating. No one ever forgot what happened last time. The first mutant monster that ever appeared had wiped out the battalion of elites along with Grand Duke of Hather’s. Not even a peak epic rank warrior had survived.

And that event... was why the Dawn Academy had been created in the first place.

Now, a new one has shown up.

And not just one, but two of them at that.

Even among powerful gold rank awakeners, tension rippled like a wave. They didn’t know what abilities these tyrants had. They never did. That was not the worst part. Mutants were unpredictable and had intelligence similar to humans.

Kaelen’s gaze flickered back to Kaitlin, his eyes widening slightly as he took in her reaction, or rather, her lack of one. The chaos around them, the danger they had to face, none of it seemed to touch her.

"Well," he muttered, running a hand through his disheveled hair. "This is getting way too dangerous."

Kaitlin didn’t even blink. Instead, her lips curled into a slow, unsettling smile. "Nope," she said, her voice eerily calm. "It just got more interesting."

A hollow, nervous laugh escaped Kaelen’s throat. "You’re joking, right?"

Silence.

She didn’t laugh. Didn’t reassure him. Just kept staring ahead, her expression one of giddy anticipation, like a child watching a fireworks display, not a warrior standing before a battlefield waiting for inevitable death.

Kaelen’s shoulders slumped.

Oh, heavens...

He thought, despair creeping into his bones.

Why, why, WHY does she have to be a lunatic as well? But oddly, I like it.

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