The morning sunlight began to illuminate the streets of the City of Sellon, driving away the leftover chill of the night. Inside the guild bar that was attached to the inn building, Calian and Wolvin, who had just finished their breakfast, immediately rose from their wooden chairs, walking away from the bar area and stepping into the main lobby of the adventurer guild to carry out a mission.
Calian and Wolvin continued walking toward the receptionist desk to meet Denna.
"Good morning, Denna." greeted Calian in a calm tone. "Well, is there a suitable mission for the two of us today?"
Seeing the arrival of the two elite adventurers, the woman's face brightened slightly, and she then reached into the drawer beneath her desk.
Denna placed a red-stamped parchment sheet on the wooden desk, a mission that she had deliberately set aside specifically for the two of them since yesterday afternoon.
"Good morning to you two. This is a rank A mission, but considering its recent danger level, this mission could probably be categorized as rank S." said the receptionist, beginning to explain the details of the mission with a more serious tone and a slightly lowered voice.
Denna pointed at the mission parchment on the table. "There are several reports stating that lately there have been a lot of brutal attacks there. Who knows what is actually happening inside the forest south of the City of Sellon. The monster groups there are usually very passive, but recently many hunters have been injured and even disappeared without a trace."
Denna lifted her face, looking at Calian and Wolvin alternately with a hopeful gaze. "Are the two of you willing and able to help us investigate and solve this case? We strongly hope that the city residents who rely on hunting in that forest for their livelihood will no longer be struck by the terror of fear."
Calian and Wolvin looked at each other for a moment, then looked back toward the receptionist.
"We will do it!" answered Wolvin enthusiastically, picking up the parchment from the table. "So, the two of us just need to head to the forest south of this city and find the source of the problem, right?"
Denna nodded, confirming his words. "Exactly. You have full freedom to handle the threat according to your judgment in the field."
Hearing the words 'full freedom', Wolvin's wolf ears twitched slightly. He leaned his body forward.
"If during the investigation later the two of us are forced to kill, is it not a problem?" asked Wolvin again. He needed to make sure that everything would not become a long-standing issue with the local law if something undesirable or bloodshed occurred there.
"Not a problem at all!" answered Denna firmly and decisively. "The guild and city security have given full permission to eliminate the threat. The most important thing is, the city residents can feel safe again when hunting there!"
Hearing the guild's fully assured answer, Wolvin smiled in relief, revealing his small fangs. Without overthinking it, the Night Wolf youth folded the mission parchment, put it into his pocket, and immediately pulled his husband's hand.
"In that case, we will be taking our leave!" exclaimed Wolvin enthusiastically, dragging Calian who could only resign himself to following his spouse's steps.
From behind her wooden desk, Denna could only stand silently watching the two youths walk quickly toward the exit.
I hope the two of you can complete that dangerous mission and return safely. said the woman sincerely in her heart.
Once their footsteps were outside the guild building, Calian and Wolvin walked through the crowd toward the southern city gate.
....
....
Upon arriving in the depths of the lush southern forest, the atmosphere around them felt damp and very silent.
Wolvin, who was walking in front to clear the path, suddenly stopped his steps. His black tail stood erect and his wolf ears twitched, catching very faint sound waves. The Night Wolf youth sensed that something was approaching them at an unsteady speed.
"Darling, be careful!" whispered the Night Wolf youth giving a warning, his hand slowly reaching down to touch the dagger hilt at his waist. "It seems like something is heading this way. The sound of its footsteps can be heard very clearly in my ears, and it is running with a limp."
Calian immediately changed his standing posture to be more vigilant. "Yes, I understand!"
Not long after that warning, the bushes in front of them rustled roughly. From there, emerged a beastfolk youth possessing the characteristic white-furred round ears of the Snow Bear clan.
The youth's condition was very pitiful. He ran limping while severely injured, clutching his stomach which continued to ooze fresh blood. He was panting heavily and his face was deathly pale from losing a lot of blood.
When his eyes caught the presence of Calian and Wolvin standing in front of him, the Snow Bear youth felt relieved because he could finally meet other people in that desolate forest.
Thud!
However, his physical limits had reached their end. Just a few steps before reaching them, the Snow Bear youth tripped over a tree root and collapsed heavily onto the ground covered with dry leaves.
Seeing the youth lying helplessly on the ground, Calian and Wolvin immediately ran to approach him.
Wolvin knelt down and carefully rolled over the body of the half-conscious youth. Wolvin's eyes narrowed sharply as he inspected the wounds. The wounds were very deep and severe.
But, the Night Wolf youth instantly realized one strange thing. All the wounds had a pattern that was too neat and were not caused by the bites or scratches of a wild monster attack, but purely due to sharp weapon attacks.
"Darling, he is dying! Please restore his wounds immediately!" pleaded Wolvin urgently, looking at his husband.
Hearing his spouse's request, Calian nodded. He immediately knelt on the other side of the injured youth.
His right hand reached forward and right above the blood-soaked youth's chest and immediately used his time magic, focusing his mind to rewind the flow of time on the object he touched in order to restore the youth's body to its intact condition before being injured.
"Reversion." whispered Calian softly.
In that very instant, a purple-colored light glowed softly, enveloping the Snow Bear youth's entire body.
Wolvin did not blink as he witnessed the miracle before him. He saw clearly how the blood pooling on the ground slowly crept up and re-entered the youth's blood vessels. The torn flesh caused by sword slashes knitted itself together very quickly, and the open skin closed tightly without leaving the slightest scar.
Wolvin felt very amazed by the way his husband turned back time to heal the fatal wounds of the youth from the Snow Bear clan. His memory instantly drifted back to the incident on the first night they met.
So, is this how my husband healed my wounds when I was in a critical state in the forest back then? thought Wolvin with a warm feeling spreading in his chest, increasingly realizing how great the power his husband possessed was.
Not long after, the purple light's glow faded. The wounds on the beastfolk's body had completely disappeared, as if the sword slashes had never happened to him.
The Snow Bear youth's breathing also slowly returned to regular.
Calian pulled his hand back and exhaled softly. He felt that his energy was slightly drained after rewinding time on that severely damaged body.
But, he realized a very significant difference.
Thanks to the physical training Wolvin gave him every day, Calian no longer felt extraordinarily exhausted like the first time he healed the wounds on his spouse's body in the past. His body was now much stronger to withstand the burden of his [Time Loop] blessing.