I Have a Task Log

After one last look at Ale, Colin turned his gaze forward.

Edwin shouted, "Listen up, everyone! For the time being, please stay in your assigned rooms. Missions will be assigned when the time is right, so please be ready to depart at a moment’s notice.

Your food and lodging will be provided by the Silver Star Court. After completing one mission, you’ll receive a full day of rest. Also, every mission will come with a corresponding reward!"

After Edwin finished speaking, the Day Elf immediately spoke up. "Please follow me, everyone. We need to register the details of each squad."

The Elf’s voice sounded much louder, likely the effect of some kind of Magic.

As soon as he finished, the Elves turned and walked out of the tree hollow.

Colin and his group followed the Elves, moving with the crowd.

"The way that pointy-ear talks is so damn annoying."

"First time seeing an Elf? Shut up. Be careful, or people will think we’re a bunch of hicks."

A few nearby Adventurers grumbled under their breath.

While they walked, Colin briefly recalled the way the Day Elf had spoken.

Just as the Adventurers said, the Day Elf’s expression and tone could indeed be described as "arrogant." However, his arrogance was different from Ale’s.

Even in his own mind, Colin found it hard to articulate the difference.

’The Day Elf’s arrogance is obvious, but Ale’s is much more subtle...’

’It’s like how most humans don’t act arrogant in front of an insect. After all, most people know that insects can’t comprehend "arrogance," so there’s no point in acting that way toward them.’

’The reason for the difference is probably that Ale’s status is higher than the Day Elf’s,’ Colin thought. ’Maybe all truly important people are like her.’

Lost in thought, Colin followed the group out of the tree hollow.

The moment he stepped outside, a gust of crisp air blew against his face.

Yes, it was exactly that kind of fresh air—slightly misty and cool, a refreshing blast that cleared the mind.

Colin quite liked this kind of cold wind. It reminded him of the feeling he got after his Intelligence Attribute increased.

He lifted his eyes to the scenery before him and paused.

Outside the tree hollow, they were surrounded by colossal, towering trees, each as tall as a ten-story building. Their branches blotted out nearly all the sunlight.

As a result, even though it was daytime, very little sunlight reached the ground below.

The illumination came from fluorite stones and lanterns hanging from the branches.

These stones and lanterns emitted a soft, silvery glow, like stars suspended from the boughs.

Countless snow-white buildings coiled around the branches and trunks, forming treehouses suspended in mid-air. They were connected by white rope bridges, upon which many slender figures were currently strolling.

Colin had read in books that those white structures were apparently living plants, shaped into buildings through Magic.

Looking down, he saw sheds formed from naturally grown tree roots encircling the trunks. There was nothing that could be called a road on the ground, only neat lawns.

A few Elven vendors were working among the sheds. When their feet stepped on the lawns, the blades of grass emitted a faint glow.

’Like a waking dream...’

Colin sighed inwardly. That was probably the only way to describe the scene.

As he walked forward, he moved to the railing and looked up.

At that, the feeling of being shrunken grew even stronger.

With his naked eye, Colin could no longer estimate the height of the tree beneath his feet. It felt like it could be several hundred meters tall. There were hardly any other giant trees around it, probably because it hogged all the sunlight.

"I’ve never seen a tree this big in my whole life," Kase, walking beside him, remarked after staring for a long time.

"Elven parlor tricks," Dorn commented.

Meanwhile, Orelia, walking on the far side, kept fussing with her hair. The beautiful surroundings had likely made the self-conscious little Tiefling nervous.

Colin looked at Ale, who was walking in the middle of the group.

He had wanted to ask her about the local customs of the Silver Star Court, but seeing how the Half-Elf had wrapped herself up, he decided against it.

The group crossed a few arboreal corridors and followed a long, wide rope bridge away from the great tree, arriving at one of the surrounding "small trees" that were about ten stories high.

Colin looked at the railings on either side of the rope bridge.

They were covered in a layer of verdant leaves and looked like they, too, had been grown from living plants.

They crossed the bridge and passed through a few more arboreal corridors.

Finally, the Day Elf leading them stopped in a small plaza built upon the treetop canopy.

In the middle of the plaza were several tables, and behind them sat Elves dressed in green robes.

The skin of these Elves was slightly darker; they were probably Wood Elves.

"Please register your squad members’ abilities and specialties here," the Day Elf said, turning back to them. "It would be best if you could also list some of your past achievements."

After he spoke, the squads began to form lines in front of the tables.

Colin’s group went to the back of one of the lines.

Halfway there, Colin felt a light tug on his Cloak. He turned to find Orelia, her forehead beaded with sweat from anxiety.

She asked timidly, "What’s our squad name again, Mr. Colin?"

"Oh... right. I don’t think we’ve picked a squad name yet," Colin said, scratching his head. He tried to reassure her, "Don’t worry, it’s not a big deal."

Dorn, beside them, piped up, "Let’s just call ourselves the ’Bastard Squad.’ It fits, since everyone in our squad has that element."

The comment made Colin laugh in exasperation.

"No way!" "That name is way too stupid." "Mr. Shadow Anvil, how about you think of something else?"

The other three immediately objected.

Fighting a headache, Colin said, "Leaving everything else aside, I don’t have that ’element,’ do I?"

"Your sword! Some people call a Hand and a Half Sword a bastard sword or a bastard long sword," Dorn replied with a cheeky grin.

Ale, her head covered, retorted in a muffled voice, "If we’re really going to call it that, we might as well be ’That Word’ Squad."

"Hey, I was just joking!" Dorn shot back, annoyed. "Look at you, with your head covered like a pile of cow dung. We might as well just call ourselves the Cow Dung Squad."

While they were bickering, their group reached the front of the line.

The Wood Elf sitting behind the table looked up at them and asked, "Squad name."

’Most of us are of mixed blood, and we’re all from different parts of the world. We can’t use a name related to being mixed-race, and then...’

Colin blurted out, a bit flustered, "Uh... ’Foreigners’?"

"Foreigner Squad, got it." The Wood Elf scribbled the name down with a couple of quick strokes and then asked, "What are the squad members’ specialties? If there are any Casters, you need to register the Magic they have learned."

Colin stepped forward and began to introduce himself. "I’m a Mage who can cast Tier Three Magic..."

"You can cast Tier Three Magic?" The Wood Elf pointed at him with the end of his quill and asked, "Then what’s the purpose of dressing like that?"