Becoming a god starts with enhancing fire arrows.

The next day.

Paris woke up.

Aside from a slight headache that I don't know why, I slept very soundly.

She stared with clear eyes, looked around, and finally her gaze settled on Avira, her tone somewhat bewildered:

"Where's Rhodes? Where did Rhodes go?"

Avira wiped the greatsword in her hand, glanced at the silver-haired little priest, and said irritably, "Rhodes went to Phil Town to die."

"What?! I want to go too!"

Paril panicked upon hearing this and stood up to leave.

Avira reached out her right hand, grabbed Paril by the back of the neck, and lifted her up.

"What are you doing?!" Paril flailed in the air, glaring at Avira with displeasure.

Avira pulled the little priest, who was waving his arms wildly, away from her and said seriously, "Listen carefully, Paril. I promised Rhodes I would take good care of you, and I won't allow you to act recklessly from now on."

Her gaze swept over Harvey and Clint in the distance, and seeing that their attention wasn't on them, she lowered her voice:

"If there is any conflict between my orders and Harvey's orders during today's operation, my orders shall prevail, understand?"

As an elf, Avira does not place unconditional trust in the human race.

Aside from Rhodes, who saved her life and with whom she found the relationship quite interesting, and this little brat, she remained quite wary of humans.

Especially that bard named Harvey.

His identity is definitely not simple.

Paril didn't ask why, she just nodded silently and was placed on the wooden stump by Ivira.

Like a lost kitten.

She looked down at the tips of her brownish-yellow shoes, lost in thought.

……

Noon.

Rhodes was wearing a fluffy overcoat.

He pushed open the door to Stanley's office and walked a few steps to the chair opposite the desk.

Without any hesitation, I sat down.

"Speak, what do you want from me?"

Stanley paused for a moment, then smiled. "I knew you'd come."

"Rhodes Gilbert".

Rhodes raised an eyebrow. Since transmigrating, he had remained cautious and had never revealed his real name.

I never expected to hear that name from Stanley.

There was a sense of surprise at having one's real name revealed by netizens.

It seems that the "Black Hand's" intelligence system is more powerful than I imagined.

Rhodes reassessed the organization in his mind.

Seeing that Rhodes remained silent, Stanley continued:

"I've always been curious, as a member of the Gilbert family, why did you decide to become an adventurer?"

His tone was calm and steady, like that of a kind elder.

Rhodes leaned back in his chair and casually said, "Naturally, it's because I care about the world and don't want to be corrupted by money."

"I didn't realize you were so ambitious," Stanley chuckled.

"To truly control the world requires strength commensurate with one's heart."

"When I was your age, I also wanted to be a town hero like the old chairman, dedicating everything to the town with my passion."

"But I gradually realized that the old chairman's idea was not wrong, but his method was wrong."

Rhodes continued, "Are you saying that President Raymond's method of constantly fighting other races can't fundamentally solve the problem of protecting Phil Town?"

"Yes!" Stanley's eyes lit up, a joy akin to finding a kindred spirit.

"Those races can't be wiped out."

"As long as the fertile land of Phil remains in human hands, it will always be coveted by them."

"They're like vultures; every time we defeat them, they come back again, slowly eroding the town of Phil."

"The old guild master gathered so many powerful adventurers and waged such a long war, but in the end, didn't he still divide the land into sunrise and sunset zones?"

Stanley's tone gradually became agitated.

"So I need the power of the 'Black Hand,' and the town of Phil also needs the power of the 'Black Hand.'"

"Only when this force becomes strong will Phil Town attract the attention of the main city, and this is the only way for the town to be saved."

Rhodes stared intently at him, his mind flashing back to the empty-eyed humans he had seen among various races.

The question was asked: "Are they really willing to treat ordinary people, who are also human beings, as commodities for sale?"

"It's like a simple math problem, Rhodes," Stanley reasoned patiently. "Sacrifice a small number of people to save the majority of Phil."

"This is better than all the townspeople being left to wander the wilderness."

Rhodes pondered for a moment but did not reply.

Instead, a question is raised:

"According to your plan, you should have continued to slowly develop 'Black Hand' and accumulate funds. Why did you suddenly choose to use a method like petrification disease?"

Taking advantage of the petrification outbreak, they forcibly took away more than 100 people under the pretext of centralized treatment, but in reality, they sold them to other races.

There's no way to explain this to the residents afterwards.

Finally, they used the excuse that all the patients died from petrification? And their bodies were never found?

"The reason is simple: I want to step down."

Stanley seemed to have anticipated Rhodes' question: "On the one hand, as the Black Hand grows larger and larger, I can no longer manage the entire town and the Black Hand."

"On the other hand, the position of guild leader is always subject to the constraints of those in the Adventurers' Guild."

"Many things are inconvenient."

"It would be better to support a trusted confidant to take over the town's position, and then return to the shadows to become the new leader of the 'Black Hand'."

Rhodes's doubts were finally resolved:

"So you orchestrated the petrification disease outbreak, and then just come up with some excuse to deal with it."

"It can be used as an excuse for your poor performance and resignation, while also allowing the 'mastermind' to make a fortune."

Stanley crossed his arms and said confidently, "I plan for a total of three petrification outbreaks, which will take away about six or seven hundred people in total. That will be enough for me to accumulate the funds to complete the next stage of development."

"Unfortunately, the next outbreak has been postponed."

Rhodes noticed the president's gaze.

I know the reason for the delay is that I blew up the petrochemical chemical warehouse.

"Alright." Stanley stood up.

"I've said so much, so I won't beat around the bush anymore. Your actions these past few days have clearly demonstrated your capabilities."

"Join me, join the 'Black Hand'."

"You will enjoy all the resources that adventurers cannot obtain, and you will become a mid-level mage or even higher in the near future."

"If you're willing, I can even get you directly appointed as the next town mayor or association president."

Rhodes understood that it wasn't about ability, but simply the Gilbert name.

Moreover, he keenly realized that all of Stanley's conditions were only directed at him and did not involve any of his companions.

Rhodes looked into Stanley's eyes and smiled.

"Based on the education I received growing up, human traffickers are one of the groups of people I hate the most."

"Your actions may indeed give Phil a future, but I don't agree with your methods."

"I do not condone this approach of sacrificing humanity."

"Perhaps I'm being a bit idealistic. But instead of worrying about these things, it's more practical to find ways to improve our own strength and recruit more adventurers to defend the town."

"Just like the old chairman did back then, at least he was a true hero who protected the town."

"Therefore, I refuse."

"Oh, really?" Stanley said with some regret.

Sudden.

Without any warning, he swung his right fist.

The seemingly ordinary punch, accompanied by a whooshing sound, hurtled towards Rhodes at an unimaginable speed.