My inventory is full of monster materials.

Golan Forest.

The wagon loaded with hay creaked and came to a steady stop at the edge of the forest.

A red-haired boy suddenly leaped down, charging towards the sparse trees in the distance with a long sword on his shoulder in an exaggerated sprint:

"Yo-ho! Golan Forest, welcome your king, the legendary swordsman Brady—!!"

Henry, Mark, and Emily followed suit and came down one after another.

The carriage slowly drove away, and the three of them stood by the roadside watching with different expressions, while the red-haired boy jumped up and down in the grass and bushes, startled and jumping.

Mark: So, in the end, we accepted him into the team.

Henry: You know the situation back then. If we didn't let him join, he would definitely have followed us anyway. I'll have my daughter write a letter to Talia later to ask what happened.

(Brady: Behold the Tree Demon! Brady's Grass-Splitting Style - Sweep Across the Army! Hahaha!)

Mark: It's not that I doubt his identity, after all, that signature red hair is practically a carbon copy of his sister's, it's just that he's really hindering us from completing our mission.

Henry: That's how it is the first time someone goes on an adventure. Once the excitement wears off, he'll calm down on his own.

(Brady: Enemy on the scene! Don't run, you rats!)

Emily: Why is Mr. Mark so much more mature than him, even though he's only a year older?

Mark: Because I don't have a good older sister.

Henry & Emily: ...

(Brady: Frog... no, goblin! Take this!)

Mark: I just thought of a good idea that might be able to control this unruly kid.

Henry & Emily: What's the solution?

Mark: Find him a new older sister~

Mark immediately gave a knowing look, and Henry suddenly understood. The two of them then looked at Emily, who had a blank expression, with sly grins.

"oops--!"

Brady cried out in pain, dragging his longsword, and staggered all the way to Emily.

"Sister Emily!"

The shy young man suddenly stammered.

"I... just... got hurt in the fight. Could you... use that warm light to help me for a little while? Please~"

"puff--"

Henry and Mark's shoulders twitched involuntarily, and they both struggled to suppress their laughter.

Emily's face flushed slightly, but she still reached out and pressed her hands lightly against Brady's scratched palms. A soft white light appeared, and the wounds were quickly healed.

"Thank you, sister! You're an angel!"

Brady instantly recovered and excitedly continued his journey into the forest.

"Monsters, your king has returned!!"

"well..."

Henry, Mark, and Emily all let out a deep sigh in unison.

……

……

In the tranquil forest, decaying wood and aquatic plants weave together a shallow beach where more than twenty green, jelly-like creatures slowly wriggle.

The "White Eagle" squad lay in ambush behind the dense reeds.

Henry's eyes were fixed on the monster on the shallows, and he introduced it to his companion in a low voice.

"The giant meat jelly you see now is slime. There are several varieties, and they change depending on the environment and food."

"The green ones are acidic inside, and some of the larger ones can even 'splash acid,' so you have to keep a close eye on your metal equipment to prevent it from getting corroded."

After saying that, Henry's gaze fell on the brand-new longsword on Brady's back, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Sensing the captain's gaze, Brady straightened his chest, his excitement tinged with eagerness as if he wanted to prove himself.

"Uncle Henry, leave the lead to me! I guarantee I'll take the enemy's 'head' and bring glory back to the squad!"

Upon hearing this, Mark's eyes twitched slightly, and he silently complained to himself.

A severed head... Has this kid been reading too many knightly novels?

Can you cut off a head from a slime?

Just then, Emily's fair little hand landed on Brady's head, gently stroking it with concern.

"Brady, your courage is a virtue, but more than glory, I would prefer you to stay healthy."

These words carried a certain feminine gentleness, rendering Brady's high-spirited and sharp fighting spirit utterly useless.

He visibly slumped down, unconsciously raising his hand to scratch the back of his head, his eyes darting around, avoiding eye contact with Emily.

"I...I understand, Sister Emily...I'll be careful..."

Seeing Xiao Chu Nan's reaction, Mark and Henry exchanged a knowing glance.

"Well done, Emily."

On their journey into the forest, Mark persuades Emily to manage Brady, an unstable element, and also teaches her various witty remarks and slang.

The young pastor was well aware of Brady's "mischievousness," so he agreed without hesitation and studied diligently.

As for whether this will spark budding feelings in the young man?

Mark wasn't worried at all.

Because Emily was a devout believer who dedicated her life to serving the goddess of dawn.

Does this little red-haired guy dare to steal the goddess's man?

"mark!"

Henry gently pulled Mark back to reality.

"What method did you propose in the guild? We need to plan our tactics accordingly."

"it is good."

Mark gestured for the group to come closer and whisper.

"It's a very simple method. Slimes are more than 90% water, so I can freeze them with the 'Freeze Ray'."

"After that, it's much simpler. We just need to break open the ice shell and we can remove the core intact."

The others' eyes lit up when they heard about this idea.

They didn't understand the intricacies involved; they simply trusted Mark's knowledge, and compared to risking acid corrosion to extract the core, this method was much safer and more efficient.

"feasible."

Henry, as captain, made a swift decision.

"Let's lure one or two to test the effect."

As Henry moved, they selected a small open area near the shallows, far from the water source, as the pre-arranged battlefield.

The next issue is the bait.

As the tactical core, Mark naturally stayed in position to await orders.

Henry was large and wore plate armor, which made it very inconvenient for him to move around in the water.

Emily was a wet nurse, so it was even less likely that she would act as bait.

Therefore, this responsibility naturally fell on Brady's shoulders.

When Henry told Brady, he not only didn't refuse but was eager to try.

"Leave it to me!"

The red-haired boy made a bold statement and was about to go into the water when Henry grabbed his shoulder and showed an unprecedentedly serious expression.

"Listen, kid. This shallow area may look calm, but it's actually full of hidden dangers, like underwater weeds that can entangle your feet, and venomous water snakes..."

"...In short, if you sense something is wrong, run back immediately. Absolutely! Absolutely do not try to save face or act recklessly! Understand?"

Under Henry's serious gaze, Brady finally dropped his playful demeanor and nodded emphatically.

"I see!"

"Hey! Here you go!"

Suddenly, Mark tossed a yellow, sticky ball to Brady.

Brady caught it with lightning speed, but was immediately disgusted by the smell of alcohol and fish.

"Senior Mark, what is this thing? Why does it smell so bad?"

"It's probably... a fermented mixture of bran, snail meat, and earthworms."

"Ugh~ Why are you giving me this?"

Brady looked disgusted, thinking it was a prank by a senior to a junior, and was about to throw it away.

But Mark quipped with a half-smile.

"This thing is originally used by anglers to bait fish, but it can also be used to bait slimes. You're not thinking of using your body to lure slimes, are you?"

Brady's face showed the embarrassment of his thoughts being exposed, but he quickly corrected his attitude.

"Thank you so much, senior!"

"Remember not to throw it all out at once, but take a small portion and slowly lure it in."

"I'll remember that."

"Wait, Brady. I'll cast a divine spell on you."

Suddenly, Emily called out to Brady, raised her silver staff high, and chanted softly. Intense holy light burst forth from the head of the staff—the staff's blessing enabled Emily to release holy light from a certain distance.

"بِضِيَاءِالْفَجْرِ،اهْدِهَذَاالْجَسَدَ! (The light of morning, guide this body!)"

0-ring spell "Divine Guidance"!

A beam of white light shone on Brady, causing his body to glow with a hazy white light.

Brady clenched his fist, feeling a significant increase in strength compared to usual.

Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, he tightened his grip on the long sword and resolutely walked towards the quiet shallows.