The Frugal Mage

'Gray Ring… Is there a special meaning in it?' Rayven mused as Stella led him up the stairs into one of the guild's private meeting rooms.

Stella didn't enter and just gestured for him to enter.

Inside were four figures waiting for him…

The first thing that Rayven did was to look at their hands.

'Ahh… They're wearing it.' Rayven thought as he bowed slightly to the older group. They seemed to be in their 20s after all.

They were Silver-Rank adventurers, but unlike the rowdy groups that Rayven would normally find downstairs, their presence seemed very professional.

The man at the head of the table rose when they entered.

"Rayven, is it?" he asked…

"I'm Drosk, captain of the Gray Ring. These are my friends."

He gestured to each in turn.

The woman with light leather armor gave a nod. "Emma. The team's scout."

Next was a lean man with a bow resting across his lap. "Hale. Hunter." He didn't smile, but his nod was polite enough.

The last to speak was a man almost as broad as Drosk, though he seemed younger. "I'm Victor. A warrior." His tone was deep, steady.

As each introduced themselves, Rayven used his Detect Mana Source…

[ 1 Gold Coin deducted. ]

[ Current Balance: 559 Gold Coins ]

As soon as he did this, he confirmed that they weren't Mages, but they had weapons that had pulses of mana around them.

They have at least two enchanted weapons each.

"I heard that you're missing a mage in your party." Rayven said. He already had the information from the Guildmaster after all.

Drosk nodded.

"Yes… It was Josen, our mage. He's recovering from injuries. Won't be joining us for another month, maybe longer. Which is why we're here."

Emma then added. "Without Josen, we're crippled inside the dungeon doing the most basic things. We're lacking some firepower. We can handle other beasts with blades and arrows, but the Skitterfangs? We need magic. Something that burns, blasts, or at least damages them from the inside. Otherwise, the deeper floors will chew us alive."

Hale added, voice steady but serious, "Our scouting missions are already risky enough. We can't keep stalling forever. Silver-Rank demands progress, not just surviving on scraps. There are many treasures inside, and we're capable of not losing against Skitterfangs, but we can't win against them either."

"I see…" Rayven nodded as he already had a rough idea about their strength. It seemed that the Skitterfangs of the 17th Dungeon was their worst opponent.

Unfortunately, he was also unsure about his capability to break through their shells…

'Can Mana Pulse work on that?'

Nonetheless, he allowed them to continue informing him about their strengths and capabilities.

"We've fought two or three Lesser Beasts at once before… They were mostly breeds of wolves, bears, and even those scaled boars. But in the dungeon… numbers don't matter. The Skitterfangs come in swarms. Without a mage, it doesn't matter if our defense is good, we'd run out of stamina before being able to break them."

'A team that lacks firepower…' Rayven mused.

Drosk then smiled as he didn't wish to put too much pressure on the young mage.

"The Guildmaster said you were worth a look. You've already earned some attention for yourself after that duel with Cedric. But I have to remind you that Skitterfangs were different compared to other Lesser Beasts. Even with Josen's Magic Missile, it would only be enough to blind them and crush their joints… If you join us, you're not a guest. You're part of the line. If you falter, it won't just kill you. It'll kill us too."

Rayven met Drosk's gaze without flinching. He understood the warning. Drosk wanted him to understand what could happen within the dungeon…

He then went silent for a moment… After a few moments, he decided to bring up the most important topic.

"What about the earnings?" he asked plainly. "If I join you, what can I expect from each mission?"

The question silenced the room for a moment. This was unexpected.

Emma raised a brow at his bluntness, while Hale let out a faint chuckle. Victor glanced at Drosk, but the captain only smirked faintly.

"You're direct…" Drosk said with an approving nod. "Most rookies dance around the question. Good. Let's talk numbers."

Emma decided to continue. "Outside the dungeon, depending on the mission, we make anywhere between seven to ten gold coins. That's per mission, split evenly. Sometimes more if the beast parts fetch a good price."

'That's not good…' Rayven immediately thought.

'I guess working as an Adventurer isn't really for me.' He thought.

Hale added… "Beast Cores are the real income. As you know, Lesser Beast's Beast Cores are only worth 6 or maybe 10 silver coins if they're decent, but Greater Beast Cores are worth 2 or maybe even 3 gold coins… If we collect them diligently, we can easily earn a lot. But Great Beasts weren't something you could easily find. As for the Elite Beasts, their Beast Cores are worth 15 to 20 gold coins, but that wouldn't be easy to get even with our group."

Victor shrugged. "As for the mission rewards… Most Silver-Rank jobs start at five gold minimum. The real bonus is, we don't bleed money on repairs like most teams do."

Rayven just learned that hunting Greater Beasts or even Elite Beasts was more profitable… However, he was confused for a bit…

"Repairs?"

Drosk's smile widened. He then tapped the hilt of his longsword and showed it off.

The weapon had enchantments, and Rayven knew of this since he used his Detect Mana Source a while ago… But upon taking a closer look, what drew his attention was a tiny but recognizable red emblem engraved at the base of the blade.

It was a stylized wolf's head inside a ring. It was quite easy to notice because of its color.

"That's because we're partnered with a company…" Drosk explained. "The Iron Fang Smithing Company. They outfit us with weapons, maintain them, and repair them for free. Same goes for Victor's armor, Hale's bow, and Emma's daggers. As long as we advertise them."

Rayven's brows rose in surprise. "Advertise…?"

'They have sponsorship here?!'