《Pathfinder》
Chapter 1
The rays of sunlight passed through the second floor window of the inn and fell on the face of a young man sleeping on an old wooden bed. After a few minutes of tossing and turning, he opened his eyes and slowly sat up. Finishing his customary yawning and stretching he stood up and washed his face using a bowl of water placed on a table in a corner of the room.
Putting on his light, leather armor and grabbing his sword, he left the room and went downstairs. There he sat down at one of the tables closest to the noticeboard on the wall and started reading it while ordering himself a cheap breakfast. As he sat there waiting for his meal, a notice caught his eye and he stood up and walked over to get a closer look.
1 Grilix Horn (Good Condition)
Pay: 150 ceors
Quest Issued By: Burney¡¯s House of Weapons
Deadline: 3 days
With a smile he tore down the paper from the board, folded it and placed it in his pocket. He then proceeded to wolf down his meal, left some coins as payment on the table and walked quickly out of the inn.
Taking out the paper again he studied the rough map drawn on it which gave the location of the establishment that had issued the quest. He left for it at a quick jog, stopping at a few shops along the way to make sure he was heading in the right direction. He reached the store in about 10 minutes and promptly went inside. It was a large store, clearly designed by a proper architect rather than just half-assedly put together, the walls and shelves covered with expensive looking swords, axes, helmets, shields and other such items. He walked over to the counter, behind which stood a young girl.
Showing her the paper in his hand, he confirmed that the quest had only been posted a few hours ago and had not yet expired or been fulfilled. After expressing his intention of accepting the quest, he left the shop and walked outside. Lazily stretching his arms above his head, he looked up to see a pure blue sky with wisps of clouds scattered about its surface. Warm sunlight fell on his face as he smiled.
¡°Looks like today¡¯s going to be a good day.¡±
Nearly 3 hours after Ravel had left town, he saw it. Sprawled out besides a small lake on the plains, the giant animal slept. Its thick, grey hide offered it protection from arrows and even weak blows from swords, while its great horn was capable of piercing through armor like it was made of butter. Adding to it the fact that it weighed over a literal ton, meant it was nearly impossible to stop after it picked up momentum. All of which is to say, people didn¡¯t usually go around picking fights with this guy.
That was good.
It meant Ravel didn¡¯t have to worry too much about competition, even though the reward being offered was fairly tempting ¡ª 150 ceors was enough to pay for a month or two of boarding, depending on how cheap a place you were willing to stay at. The Grilix was tough to handle but the compensation was more than fair. For the store to offer this much, it appeared their need was time sensitive.
Whatever the case, it was an opportunity for Ravel, an opportunity he wasn¡¯t about to let slip. He stood in the shade of a clump of trees and observed his surroundings, only stepping forward after confirming that there weren¡¯t any other Grilix, or even more problematic monsters in the area. He approached the beast, his footsteps muffled by the thick grass under his feet and kept walking until he was close enough to reach out and touch the sleeping behemoth.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.
During this entire time Ravel had a smile on his face, making it clear his thoughts were occupied more with the payday he would receive rather than the murder machine before him. It was at that moment the Grilix opened its eyes.
Waking up only to see a human creepily grinning not two feet away from it, the Grilix was understandably startled. It let out a deep bellow and stomped up to its feet with surprising agility while snapping its head towards Ravel¡¯s body to push him away. Not feeling any contact against its head, the Grilix moved a few steps back to better focus on the man in front of it. The human stood smiling, gazing excitedly at its horn as if seemingly unaware of the danger a fully grown and fairly pissed off Grilix posed. There was a sword in the human¡¯s hand which the Grilix hadn¡¯t seen him take out. That surprised it ¡ª it could have sworn the sword wasn¡¯t in his hand before. The Grilix let out a snort. If he thought that puny stick was enough to save him, he had another thing coming. It tensed its muscles, preparing to dash and skewer the human when Ravel finally stopped staring at the horn and looked into the Grilix¡¯s eyes.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, you won¡¯t feel a thing.¡±
¡°Here you go, one Grilix Horn in perfect condition just as requested,¡± said Ravel as he took the horn out of his backpack and placed it on the counter.
Elice put away the book she had been reading and looked at the person who had just interrupted her. He looked to be a few years older than her, in his early twenties, tall, with an easy smile and long, dark hair that fell almost to his shoulders. She remembered him from earlier in the day when he had rushed into the store, much too lively for her taste so early in the morning, asked a bunch of questions and then left. She hadn¡¯t expected him to show up again so soon, honestly she hadn¡¯t expected him to show up again at all. The quest had been issued on very short notice and the owner was worried no one would make it in time. While Grilix were easy enough to deal with for experienced adventurers, those people generally had bigger fish to fry. That meant quests like this were taken up by inexperienced adventurers working as a team. So this guy who looked neither experienced nor part of a group hadn¡¯t really inspired much confidence in her.
Yet here he was again, with what looked very much like a Grilix horn and the sun hadn¡¯t even set. She wasn¡¯t an expert in this sort of thing, she had only seen a Grilix horn twice in her life, but the shape and size of it was pretty distinct. She picked it up to inspect it and immediately her eyes were drawn to the bottom of the horn. The bottom was flat and completely even, unusually so in fact. It looked as though it had been polished, she had never seen a sword cut through something this smoothly. She gazed up and saw him staring at her patiently.
¡°How did you find the time to get this sanded?¡± she asked. ¡°You didn¡¯t need to, you know. Sanding it down just means less material for us to work with.¡±
¡°What do you mean? I didn¡¯t have it sanded.¡±
¡°Huh, then how did you get it to be so smooth?¡±
¡°That¡¯s just how it was when I cut it.¡±
Elice stared at Ravel, debating how to respond to what she had just heard.
¡°Umm, is there a problem?¡± asked Ravel.
¡°No, no problem,¡± replied Elice, deciding this wasn¡¯t her issue to deal with. ¡°Let me call the owner, he¡¯ll want to inspect it before we can pay you.¡±
¡°Sure thing,¡± replied Ravel as he watched her step out from behind the counter and walk up the staircase located along the wall opposite the shop entrance.
It didn¡¯t take long for Elice to come back, followed by a huge, bald man with a thick, black beard. Emil Burney had been making weapons his whole life and it showed. He had a thick, stout body without much hint of flab and powerful arms that spoke of a lifetime spent doing demanding work. Burney¡¯s eyes fell on the young man standing next to the counter, curiously looking around at the various weapons all over the store. He went over and inspected the horn, paying close attention to the bottom.
¡°The girl tells me you did this with your own sword. Can I ask how?¡±
¡°I¡¯m not sure I understand the question,¡± said Ravel looking puzzled. ¡°I just cut it.¡±
¡°You just cut it?¡±
¡°Yep. Really, really fast.¡±
¡°¡¡¡. Okay.¡±
¡°Anyways, I have other stuff I need to be doing, so can I get paid now?¡±
¡°Yeah, of course,¡± said Burney as he took out a few coins from one of the drawers. ¡°By the way, can I ask where you¡¯re staying? In case I end up needing your services again.¡±
¡°Yeah, sure. I¡¯ve been staying at the Leaky Bucket for about a month. Just ask for Ravel,¡± he replied counting the coins with glee before pocketing them.
With a wave he left the store, leaving the proprietor and the subordinate staring after his back.
Chapter 2
The wind blew softly, the leaves gently fluttering as Ravel sat with his legs crossed in a clearing not far from town. With his eyes closed, he focused on receiving as much information as he could from his other senses. His ears followed the movements of the small animals and insects around him. The smell of trees, earth and old leaves surrounded him as he slowly breathed in and out.
He had made it a habit of coming to this clearing a few times every week. There was ample space for him to practice freely with his sword and it was close enough to town that travelling wasn¡¯t a hassle, yet far enough away that no one would disturb him; or he them.
A few minutes of this meditative exercise was enough for him to fully recover his energy. He stood up, brushing the dirt and grass off himself and started making his way back to town. He moved through the woods with ease, at a quick pace and soon the walls around the town came into view.
Duran was a small town, with a population under 15,000 people, though as far as Ravel was concerned it was a bustling metropolis. With streets paved with stones, houses made of bricks, a central marketplace that occupied more real estate than his whole village and most wonderful of all a fully functional sewage system, Duran was everything Ravel had hoped for.
Before long he was at one of the gates, giving the guards a nod as he walked past. He ambled into town, his head swiveling about as he observed the people and shops around him. He was still a bit unaccustomed to such large crowds. His mouth watered every time he walked past a restaurant, the smells entering his nose and rocketing straight up into his brain. On many an occasion he had found himself losing control of all reason, before pulling himself back by sheer force of will. With moist eyes he would forcefully remind himself that splurging now would mean slower accumulation of wealth in the future. Be patient, invest in yourself and then¡... We¡¯re on a highway to hedonism baby!
Distracted by these thoughts, he didn¡¯t notice a carriage coming towards him at some speed from the road to his right until it was almost upon him.
¡°Hey! Watch out!¡± yelled the driver as he flicked the reins in panic, trying to get the horse to turn away before it squashed the pedestrian in front of him. He was already on thin ice from his boss, he couldn¡¯t bear another mishap.
The horse turned to the left and quickly skid to a halt. The driver sat in his seat with a wince on his face and his eyes closed. Slowly he began to open his eyes wondering, worst comes to worst, if he should just make a gallop for it. As he widened his eyes, he was pleasantly surprised to see the lack of a mangled carcass in front of him. His joy at having avoided committing manslaughter however, was soon replaced by confusion. He looked right and left, but there was no one near the place where he had seen that man standing. Could he have been hallucinating? But he wasn¡¯t high. It was too early in the day for that. Just as he sat there bewildered, moving his head from one place to another, he heard a light cough coming from behind him.
¡°You okay there bud?¡±
The driver turned around, only to see that same man standing behind him on the edge of the carriage roof. The chap stood with a hand rubbing through his hair and a weird look on his face. If he was forced to guess, the driver might have said he looked a bit embarrassed.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
¡°Huh. You. How?¡± incoherently uttered the driver.
Ravel lightly jumped off and landed noiselessly onto the road.
¡°Haha, sorry about that. I really should¡¯ve been paying more attention,¡± he said abashedly, ¡°Hope none of your merchandise was damaged.¡±
¡°What? Umm, oh that. Wait let me check,¡± he replied getting off his seat and inspecting his cargo, before dazedly looking back at Ravel, ¡°Ahh yeah, no. It¡¯s all fine.¡±
¡°Great, great,¡± said Ravel, ¡°That¡¯s good. Again, really sorry about that whole mishap. I¡¯ll be leaving then, you take care of yourself.¡±
Ravel left the scene, with the baffled driver still staring at his back, and moved towards his destination. This time with a little less internal debate. Soon he reached a two-storey building with a wide open door and a constant stream of people moving in and out. He headed in and walked to the end of one of the lines in front of a reception desk. As he stood waiting for his turn he habitually began observing the people standing about or moving around the busy floor.
Many had some light leather armor on and were carrying weapons, one fellow had even brought in a spear nearly seven feet long. The majority were young and more or less in decent shape. Many, in fact most, were bunched together in groups, and it was relatively rare seeing people acting on their own ¡ª a fact Ravel had picked up on in his first week here. After a few minutes of waiting, his turn finally arrived.
¡°Yes, how may I help you?¡± patiently asked the thin, young receptionist as he adjusted his glasses.
Without a word Ravel handed the man a small card the size of his hand. The receptionist took the card and looked it over, he was about to turn back and repeat his question when something caught his eye.
¡°Oh I see,¡± he said with a smile, ¡°Congratulations on officially becoming a D-Rank adventurer.¡±
¡°Yep, finally escaped the dreaded land of rookies with nothing but crappy quests and no money.¡±
¡°And it took you less than two months to do it. Not bad, yours is pretty close to the fastest I¡¯ve personally handled. Please wait a minute, I¡¯ll be back with your new card,¡± he said as he stood up and left through a door in the back.
Ravel leaned against the desk, waiting with bated breath to receive his shiny, new Adventurer ID. It had been a pain in the ass getting this far. As the lowest rank, E-Rank adventurers were basically considered glorified handymen. The only quests fit for rookies were ones like gathering herbs from outside town or taking care of wild animals trampling some farmers fields.
What was worse was while D-Rank adventurers were able to accept C-Rank quests, C-Rank adventurers B-Rank quests and so on, E-Rankers could officially only accept E-Rank quests. And since the only way to increase your rank was to do a certain number of quests, E-Rankers had to be prepared to live hand to mouth until they ranked up. To get by Ravel had unofficially taken on higher ranked quests ¡ª it didn¡¯t count against his quota but at least he got paid for it.
The receptionist came out carrying an envelope and a small purse. He handed them over to Ravel before sitting down. Ravel quickly tore it open and took out the new card.
Ravel Thorn
D-Rank
Quests: 0/50
¡°Damn, that¡¯s a lot of quests, but right now I don¡¯t even care. Moneyville here I come,¡± said Ravel.
¡°Haha, well here¡¯s a little something to get you started on your journey,¡± smiled the receptionist as he pointed towards the purse on the desk, ¡°The guilds reward to welcome you to your new rank.¡±
Ravel opened up the purse and quickly counted the coins. 200 ceors! Ha, could this day get any better.
¡°If you¡¯re interested in some work, we¡¯ve got a few quests lined up.¡±
¡°No thanks,¡± said Ravel pocketing the purse and his new ID, ¡°I¡¯ve already got something in mind.¡±
Leaving the building Ravel stretched his arms contentedly and began making his way further into town. He had only walked a few hundred meters when his eyes fell on the storefront of a bakery shop with pastries and cakes on display behind large, floor-to-ceiling windows.
¡°Well...... I suppose there isn¡¯t any harm in a little pleasure before business.¡±
Chapter 3
¡°Hey,¡± said Ravel as he entered Burney¡¯s store. Elice looked up from her book and stared at his face.
¡°What? What¡¯s wrong?¡± Ravel shifted uncomfortably as the stare continued unabated.
Elice pointed at a spot next to her lip. Ravel¡¯s brows furrowed in confusion as he rubbed his hand next to his own lips, only to find nothing there.
¡°Other side.¡±
Ravel promptly shifted his hand on the other side of his face and felt it brush against something soft and fluffy. Wiping it off his face he inspected the material on his fingers.
¡°Ahem,¡± coughed Ravel, quickly licking the cream from his fingers, ¡°How strange. I wonder how that got there.¡±
Elice rolled her eyes and put down her book. ¡°I¡¯ll go call him.¡±
¡°Thanks,¡± said Ravel sheepishly.
Burney arrived down the staircase only to be welcomed by the sight of Ravel shaking his head, with a hand covering his face.
¡°So lad. Is it done?¡± he simply asked, having become somewhat accustomed to Ravel¡¯s idiosyncrasies after their past few meetings.
¡°Ah, yeah. Yeah,¡± said Ravel putting his hand down and looking up at Burney. He pulled out the ID card from his pocket, ¡°D-Rank.¡±
The Grilix horn had been a surprise for Burney, but it was nowhere near the shock he felt when he realized the party responsible for it was an E-Ranker. When he first heard Ravel say it, he thought his leg was being pulled. It was only when Ravel whipped out his ID that Burney realized he was being serious. To say that it was unusual for an E-Ranker to have such strength was an understatement. As complete rookies the only horn Burney would expect one to be capable of bringing back was that of a deer. A Grilix was something that D-Rankers had to band together to deal with. Yet this absentminded youngster before him had not only brought the horn; he had brought it within 12 hours of the quest being public.
To test if it wasn¡¯t just a fluke, Burney had sent Ravel out on a few more quests since then. For Ravel ¡ª who had begun counting the coins he had left every night and calculating the days before he was kicked out of the inn and starved to death ¡ª it was as if free money had begun to fall from the heavens and straight into his lap. He was more than happy to oblige.
For the past couple weeks, he alternated between taking a few E-Rank quests in order to earn his promotion and a quest from Burney in order to earn his living. The quests were relatively more challenging, mostly related to locating wild beasts that lived a few hours, or occasionally days, walk away from town and engaging them in a bit of fisticuffs. They had all gone pretty smoothly, apart from that one time he had to hunt a Red-Tailed Snake. He wasn¡¯t the biggest fan of snakes and had to psych himself up for that one.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
Burney felt he had hit the jackpot. In a small town like Duran, there was a dearth of high level adventurers. Thus those that did operate here commanded a premium price. With the strength Ravel had displayed, he would probably obtain C-Rank status inside of a year. Burney could only thank lady luck for the opportunity to avail the services of such an adventurer while he was still green and inexpensive.
¡°Great job,¡± smiled Burney, ¡°In that case, allow me the honor of giving you your first official D-Rank quest. I¡¯ll be needing an ore.¡±
¡°An ore.¡±
¡°Indeed. It¡¯s a special kind of ore. Name¡¯s Infernal Hematite.¡±
¡°Oh my.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t worry, the name is unnecessarily impressive. The metal inside it is pretty useful, but not that uncommon. The only reason it isn¡¯t readily available in the market here is cause we¡¯re way out in the boonies. Plus the only place around here that has it is a cave that runs a bit deep. Not too many people wanna go.¡±
¡°Trudging down a deep, dark cave. Lovely.¡±
¡°You in?¡±
¡°Yeah fine, I guess. You have a map I suppose?¡±
¡°Yep, right here,¡± said Burney handing Ravel a piece of rolled up parchment.
¡°And how much of it do you need?¡± said Ravel as he accepted the map.
¡°Not much. But just to be on the safe side, fill this whole bag up with it,¡± said Burney picking up an empty, medium-sized leather bag from behind the counter and placing it on the wooden countertop.
¡°You better make this worth my while, old man,¡± said Ravel grabbing the bag and putting it over his shoulder.
¡°Oh, you know me son. Never had it in me to cheat someone out of their fair share,¡± said Burney with a magnanimous look on his face, ¡°How¡¯s about we go with 200 ceors and call it a day? Waddya say?¡±
Ravel narrowed his eyes, causing Burney to stiffen.
¡°You take me for a sucker?¡± he said seriously, as Burney began to sweat.
¡°Now, now¡¡¡±
¡°I won¡¯t lift a finger for less than 220. Take it or leave it.¡±
There was silence in the shop that lasted for nearly ten seconds ¡ª before being broken by a gentle sigh from Elice and a mumble that sounded suspiciously like dumbass.
¡°Boy, you drive a hard bargain. It¡¯ll be tough to make profit off of margins like that. But if you insist, then I suppose I have no choice. 220 it is,¡± said Burney solemnly as he put forth his hand, which Ravel shook, eager to seal the deal in case Burney changed his mind. With the matter settled, the two equally smug men parted ways.
¡°Welcome to Huu¡¯s Crystal Store. How may I help?¡± asked the clerk as Ravel entered the store.
¡°I¡¯d like to buy three small Essence crystals and two small Light crystals,¡± said Ravel.
¡°Here you go,¡± said the clerk, picking three small, violet and two white crystals from the assortment of stones hanging on the wall behind him, ¡°That¡¯ll be 80 ceors.¡±
With a pained smile, Ravel took out the coins from his purse and reluctantly placed them on the counter. Picking up the crystals, he gave them a quick look over before putting them in his bag. Exiting the store Ravel walked to another shop nearby and picked up a small but sturdy pickaxe. Having done that, he mentally went over his checklist and confirmed that he had brought everything he would need for the trip.
His destination, called the Jurk Cave, was located some distance from town. He had rented a horse for the trip. One of the benefits of his new promotion ¡ª no lengthy process for accessing services of that nature. His Adventurer ID could now serve as a credibility check. E-Rank IDs didn¡¯t have that value, they were much too easy to get.
Walking at a leisurely pace, he soon reached the stable. Meeting the man with whom he¡¯d made the agreement, he handed over some coins and got on his horse. He walked the horse carefully until he reached the gates before picking up the pace. It didn¡¯t take long before the town went out of view.