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Chapter 1671: 456 Major Tear and Legendary Sniper_3 Alicia simply couldn’t be bothered to remember their names, usually just calling them Hound and Porcupine. And both men happily accepted that. Alicia was well aware. The warrior brothers were both interested in her, always trying to woo her whenever possible. If it had been before, she would not usually refuse a man’s advances, nor would she want to extinguish their hopes prematurely. ... But the past half year’s experiences had taught her much. In the current chaotic situation, one must not lightly provoke men capable of violence. Even though Alicia was not afraid to face them in a duel, she did not want to see any love-hate drama develop amongst her companions because of her. Therefore, she had taken a rejecting stance early on. However, confusingly, the brothers still tirelessly pursued her. At first, Alicia thought it was because her charm was as great as ever. But then she realized, it seemed the brothers enjoyed competitively vying with each other— In whatever they did, they would set a common goal and compete against each other fiercely, yet rarely losing principles. This seemed to be the case in pursuing women as well. Soon, Alicia realized she had become a part of their peculiar “competition game.” That made her even less amiable towards the two. What followed was the arrival of the commander and his wife, who were also seasoned warriors, along with the member of the team Alicia disliked the most— a pale-skinned, soft-spoken female mage. Her name was Ding Xianghua. Of course, ‘Mage’ was how Ding Xianghua referred to herself. In Alicia’s view, Ding Xianghua was merely a warlock who had taken some extracurricular courses at the Mage Academy for a year. She only knew some of the most basic cantrips and dark-natured esoteric spells; she had not learned a single genuine healing or support spell. If it were just that, Alicia wouldn’t have disliked her so intensely. The reason for her disdain was that— Ding Xianghua was constantly subtly trying to seduce the commander! That was quite unforgivable. Moreover, the commander’s wife—a strong, kind-hearted barbarian woman—had once saved Alicia’s life. Alicia felt obliged to keep a close watch on the flirtatious Ding Xianghua! At the very least, she could not let the commander, whose looks quite matched Alicia’s standards, be bewitched by her… “Is everyone here?” “Let’s head to the private room,” The commander greeted everyone with a smile. So-called ‘private room’ was actually the cellar on the basement’s second floor. After the commander had led his team to clear out a nest of Ratfolk in the sewers for the lizardman owner, free of charge, the cellar was open to them for free use whenever it was unoccupied. The commander, an optimistic man, referred to it as the Dream Mercenary Group’s base, colloquially calling it ‘the private room.’ Because Alicia had been informed beforehand, she knew the commander was bringing a new mission today. But before explaining, he introduced a new temporary member of the team— a young man with a piccolo at his waist, displaying a somewhat shy smile. His features were handsome, though his face bore a number of dull spots that detracted from his appearance. As the commander introduced the young man further, Alicia’s face involuntarily displayed a skeptical expression— Claiming he had learned some spells, Currently mastering the art of being a bard, Aiming to search for his relatives further north, Would not be a burden to the team. All these elements combined almost spelled out “I am a liability” on his face! Alicia and the other members looked at the commander with suspicion. The commander calmly explained: “He is just tagging along with us.” “He doesn’t share in the bounty.” “Also, he knows Bread Spell and Water Creation Spell, I’ve personally verified it, and his technique is not bad,” Upon hearing ‘does not share in the bounty,’ everyone breathed a sigh of relief. After the third statement, Hound and Porcupine, the two brothers, rushed to be the first to shake hands with the young man: “Welcome to the Dream Mercenary Group!” “We’re going to get along splendidly!” After the pleasantries, it was time for business. The commander happily announced that the Dream Mercenary Group had received a well-paid escort mission. The task was to accompany a caravan of traders starting from Sword Winter City, heading to King City in the north. The goods being escorted were primarily young pigs and a large amount of burlap. These commodities were already scarce in Sword Winter City itself, but in other more heavily affected areas, they could be sold for a truly high price. Despite various risks, the excessive profit still drove the traders to venture through fire and water. This was also one of the reasons why the mercenary industry was booming. Quickly, the commander spread out a rough map, briefly clarifying the route for this journey. From Sword Winter City to King City, there were mainly two routes. One was to head north along the coastline for a while, then cross the entirety of the Bronze Dragon Hills, replenish at Wildfire Town, and continue north to reach King City on the continent. This was the eastern line. It was the route most traders chose because it was the closest, saving a substantial amount of costs. The second route, the western line, was actually safer. That involved traveling down Order Avenue, entering the territory of Order City, where Elemental Life guarded the land, and bandits dared not easily cross the border, making it much safer for traders and mercenaries alike. However, that route took much longer. And after the Great Tear, the terrain near Order City had undergone many changes, reportedly giving rise to many new kingdoms.