Alice, held tightly by her mother, opened her mouth, attempting to say something to Ed.

At that moment, a figure walked up beside Alice's mother. His face showed a look of concern as he gently patted Alice's head, saying, "No need to thank the Hunter right now. Once you're feeling better, I'll take you to the city so we can thank the Hunter properly."

Alice trembled, burying her head in her mother's embrace. The man who had appeared, Alice's father, was looking at Ed and the others with gratitude. He spoke sincerely, "Thank you, all of you Hunters, for solving the village's crisis and saving us. If it weren't for you, we would have surely been killed by those monsters!"

After Alice's father spoke, the other villagers nodded in agreement, continuously expressing their gratitude toward Ed and the others.

As for Toronto and Ford, the two of them exchanged glances, silently acknowledging that Ed had done the lion's share of the work to complete this mission. Without Ed, they would have both already been dead.

Ford looked down at the wound on his leg and, somewhat dissatisfied, spoke to the old village chief, "This mission wasn't just about clearing the ghouls in the forest. The real danger was the hidden monsters in the village. Without Ed, this mission would have failed."

The limping old village chief awkwardly pretended not to hear Ford's words. There was an unspoken rule in the Hunter world: when the danger level of a mission increased, the Hunters had the right to negotiate for an additional bounty from the mission's issuer once the task was complete.

Usually, when a Hunter senses an increase in danger, they would communicate with the task issuer—either the Hunter would abandon the mission, or the issuer would raise the bounty amount.

This situation was unusual, as there hadn't been enough time to discuss the matter with the old village chief.

Ford was just venting his frustration. If the old village chief refused to increase the bounty, there was nothing Ford could do. After all, he couldn't just take the money by force.

Ed had heard Ford's comment, and he was about to wave his hand, signaling Ford to stop when, unexpectedly, the old village chief waved his hand with a large gesture and said, "No problem. In addition to the one hundred gold coins already given to the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association, we will add an extra fifty gold coins. Hunter, does that sound acceptable?"

Ed was somewhat surprised and gave the old village chief a puzzled look. He remembered that at the start, the old village chief had mentioned that this year's harvest was poor. How was he being so generous now?

Fifty gold coins may not be considered a large sum for a Hunter, but for ordinary people, it's a considerable amount. Even if the entire village were to pool their resources, they would probably need to gather the villagers and discuss it first.

Thinking about this, Ed casually said to the old village chief, "I didn't expect your village to be so wealthy. Fifty gold coins is quite a lot."

The limping old village chief was momentarily taken aback. Then, a look of pained sincerity appeared on his weathered face as he explained, "Ah, Hunter, we can manage to scrape together fifty gold coins. The important thing is that we can't let you down. If it weren't for you, those monsters would have killed us all!"

After speaking, the old village chief limped off to fetch the money. Ford began tending to the wound on his leg, while Ed and Toronto, with no immediate tasks, started handling the monster corpses, intending to take both the monster bodies and Fidel's back with them when they left.

Although the monsters had been killed, Ed still couldn't figure out what these creatures were trying to accomplish. The strange tree behind the warehouse, which had killed villagers and then stripped their skin, flesh, and bones—it all seemed too bizarre.

If they could identify what kind of monster this was, it might lead to more clues.

Toronto, watching Ed lost in thought, cautiously asked, "Captain Ed, what are you thinking about?"

Ed paused for a moment, then revealed part of his thoughts. He couldn't shake the feeling that things weren't as simple as they seemed. Killing the monsters didn't necessarily mean they had solved everything.

Toronto scratched his head, also feeling that something was off, but he didn't have any more clues. However, there was one thing he needed to remind Ed of.

Toronto spoke to Ed, "Captain, when we head back, we'll need to bring the village chief with us. After all, the completion of the mission has to be confirmed by the issuer at the Association."

Ed nodded, pushing aside his doubts for now as he waited for the limping old village chief to return.

Regardless of the situation, according to the bounty task requirements, they had completed the mission. Ed would now be able to become an official member of the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association and wouldn't have to be under restricted management anymore. That would allow him more freedom.

At that moment, the old village chief hobbled back, holding a small cloth bag. He carefully handed it to Ed.

Ed opened it to find that it was filled entirely with gold coins—about fifty in total.

How could it all be gold coins? Ed had expected the bag to contain a mix of gold and silver coins, with the majority being silver. Then, he remembered Viktor's father, who was also a village chief and very wealthy.

The old village chief's situation was probably similar to Viktor's father—he must have saved up quite a bit.

Ed didn't think much of it. He glanced up at the sun—it was already afternoon. They had to head back to Dorey City as soon as possible. If they delayed any longer, it would get dark, and that might interfere with Ed's ability to practice his Moonlight Meditation Technique.

So, the group began to pack up, mainly securing the monster corpses to the horses to take back to the city.

Although the monsters were dead, the dark, eerie aura around them hadn't completely dissipated. It made the ordinary horses uneasy. One of the horses even dropped to its knees, its body trembling uncontrollably.

Toronto began calming down the frightened horse, while Ed frowned, thinking that if he ever had the chance, he'd need to upgrade their battle steeds. Ordinary horses were just too weak.

Once everything was packed and ready, Ed made sure to gather a torch and some oil. He went to the back of the warehouse and set fire to the strange tree.

The flames blazed brightly, crackling as they consumed the tree. Alice's parents, holding Alice—who was still keeping her head down—walked along with the other villagers toward the village entrance. They wanted to see off the three Hunters.

Ford and Toronto both wore excited expressions. Once the limping old village chief went to the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association to confirm that the mission was completed, they would officially become members of the Association!

Ed, however, looked back at Alice. At that moment, Alice was holding her mother's hand with her left hand, while her father held her right. She kept her head down, looking at her feet.

The surrounding villagers were in high spirits, all their faces beaming with smiles, and the atmosphere was incredibly joyful.

Under the sunlight, Toronto and Ford mounted their horses and began heading toward Dorey City. The old village chief squeezed onto Toronto's horse, while Ed stayed behind.

Just as he was about to leave, Alice's voice called out. With her head down, she asked, "Big brother, you'll come back, right?"

Alice's father immediately lifted her into his arms and called out to Ed with a smile, "Hunter, once Alice feels better, I'll personally bring her and her mother to thank you!"

Ed waved his hand, but his mind was entirely occupied with figuring out the identity of those monsters.

At this moment, Alice, who had been keeping her head down, slowly lifted it. Her eyes were dull, staring at Ed's receding figure. Her mouth slightly parted, but no sound came out.

Alice's father gently patted her back and whispered, "It's okay, it's okay. The Hunter has left, and it's time for us to go home."

Standing beside her father, Alice's mother looked at her daughter with a heart full of tenderness and comforted her softly, "Darling, it's all over. The monsters have all been killed by the Hunter. You need to get better soon."

Listening to her mother's words, Alice slowly lowered her head again. She reached out with one hand and grabbed her father's arm.

The family of three, bathed in sunlight, turned and began walking toward their home.

Time passed quickly, especially during the day. If one wasn't paying attention, the sun would already be setting.

Ford glanced back at Toronto with a hint of impatience. At that moment, Toronto was riding on the same horse as the limping old village chief. The horse's speed had slowed down due to the weight of the monster corpses, and Ford's situation was similar.

Ed, however, showed no signs of the relief that usually follows the completion of a task. He furrowed his brow, repeatedly replaying everything that had happened in his mind.

It seemed that Toronto noticed Ed's mood. He rode over to Ed, the old village chief accompanying him, and quietly asked, "Captain Ed, you seem a bit down. After we get back, we'll officially be members of the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association."

Hearing this, the old village chief's eyes widened in surprise, looking at Ed in disbelief. He hadn't expected that this young Hunter, so strong, wasn't yet an official member of the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association.

Ed looked at the old village chief, his brow still furrowed. He pulled out the small pouch of gold coins the old village chief had given him earlier and asked directly, "Did you exchange these coins in advance?"

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