ã€ŠFallen from the Moonã€‹


 Chapter 1 - The Falling

    The round moon peeked out shyly from behind a cloud, casting a soft, yellow glow on the castle ground. The castle was quiet as it was already past midnight and most of its occupants had went into sleep. The only sounds that perpetuate through the night were the footsteps of guards making their patrol, and the howling of wild beasts from the nearby forest.

    A black haired young woman of around eighteen years old rested leisurely on a dark leather sofa as she gazed out of the window. The window was wide open, allowing the cold night breeze to blow in. Although she was only wearing a thin, lilac coloured nightgown, she did not seem the least cold. Her grey eyes shone as it reflected the moonlight, and the corners of her full, red lips were curled up, revealing her good mood.

    The room door opened with a slight creak, but the young woman did not seem to notice, or rather, she did not bother to react.

    When the person finally stood behind her, the young woman tilted her head to look at the shadow towering over her.

    ¡°Big Brother, what are you doing in my room so late at night?¡± She asked with a displeased face.

    The young man who had the same raven black hair as her smiled wryly.

    ¡°I knocked, but did not receive any answer, so I came in by myself.¡±

    ¡°Really? I didn¡¯t notice,¡± the girl said lazily before turning around to gaze at the moon again.

    Of course she knew that he had been standing outside the door for the past fifteen minutes, but she did not want anyone to bother her so she purposely kept quiet. It was his fault for coming in so late at night anyway.

    ¡°What are you looking at?¡± The young man asked curiously.

    ¡°The moon,¡± the young lady replied as she rolled her eyes.

    The young man shook his head as a slight smile appeared on his lips. His younger sister was an extremely talented person, however, she was also unpredictable and difficult to handle at times. This was such a particular scenario.

    As the person next in line for the throne, Prince Julius Lucian Fierenna was in his office, wrecking his brain on a particularly difficult magic theorem when his aide knocked on his door. It was unusual for him to disturb his work so he had allowed him to speak. That was when he heard that the maids serving his one and only younger sister, Princess Elise Luchia Fierenna, had reported that Elise was acting strangely. According to them, their mistress had been lying on the sofa while spacing out with the windows open for the past three hours. Being lowly servants, they were afraid of offending her so they did not dare to say anything, hence they went to report this situation to him.

    Thinking that there might be something wrong with her, he had rushed over from the middle of work. But now, seeing that she was really just admiring the scenery, he could not help but sigh.

    Picking up a red blanket on the sofa that was most likely left by the maids, he draped it over the young woman.

    Elise glanced at the sudden extra cloth covering her before she looked up and frowned. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°If you lie here with the wind blowing while wearing thin clothing, you are going to fall sick,¡± he said firmly.

    Elise scoffed. ¡°As if something like this will put me out.¡± Who does her older brother think she is? She had not caught a cold since she was six.

    Julius sighed once again. It was true that she had a hardy body and the capability to destroy a whole squadron of Cyclops by herself. However, she was still a woman and she looks like a normal eighteen year old young lady, so it was difficult to not treat her as one.

    ¡°Prince Julius, if you don¡¯t get out of my room soon, I¡¯m going to make you go out,¡± Elise said lazily. Although she did not sound serious, Julius could tell from the amount of mana gathering in her palms that she will take action if he did not comply.

    Knowing that Elise was not called the Crimson Mage for nothing, he quickly backed away.

    The reason for why she was called the Crimson Mage?

    The nickname was aptly given after a thirteen year old girl had climbed up the highest mountain in the area, Winter¡¯s Peak, five years ago and singlehandedly slayed all the Snow Trolls that had gotten berserk. It was said that people who went up the mountain afterwards had nightmares from seeing all the crimson red covering the snow, and the water that flowed from the mountaintop tasted like rust for weeks.

    ¡°I only came here to check if you are okay,¡± he quickly said. ¡°Since you are alright, I will be going off now.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget to the close the door,¡± Elise said in her lazy tone as a mischievous smile stretched across her face.

    Julius shuddered. His younger sister would without a doubt be popular with men if not for the waves of power rolling off her. She was extremely attractive and also extremely dangerous.

    He turned around promptly and exited the room. Right before he closed the door after him, he casted a lingering glance at the young woman whose back was facing him.

    Seeing that her older brother had finally exited her room, Elise turned back to look at the full moon that had fully revealed itself from behind the cloud.

    Her older brother had a good intuition. Although it was very minor, there was something that was affecting her.

    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    For some reason, she felt like something was tugging her consciousness when she looked at the moon that particular night.

    However, it was not a bad feeling. It felt almost comforting.

    It was already in the middle of the night, and way past her usual sleeping time. Elise could feel drowsiness slowly overcoming her consciousness, but she did not get up to go to bed. She continued lying on the leather sofa that had warmed up to her body temperature. The blanket that was covering her was of the highest quality, so it was extremely soft and comfortable.

    Slowly, gradually, her consciousness faded away¡­

    *****

    ¡­

    ¡­

    Blub.

    Strange. Her skin feels cool, and she feels like she is floating around¡­

    Bubble.

    No, wait! Why can''t she breathe?

    Elise¡¯s eyes flew open when she realised that something was wrong with her surroundings.

    What greeted her was a view of blue. She blinked in shock as she was somehow currently underwater.

    Instinctively, she moved her hands and legs to try and swim up. However, her long hair and dress were bellowing around her, making it difficult to move and blocking her vision. Elise could not help but feel frustrated and panicked.

    Although she had no idea why and how she got into this situation, it was clear that she had to get herself out of it or she will die.

    She tried to gather mana within her to manipulate the water, but for certain reason the amount she could gather was very little, and was not able to help her much in the situation.

    Having no choice, she had to rely on her own limbs again.

    She had taken swimming lessons before, but for some reason, her limbs felt weaker than usual, as if they were attached to heavy weights. As her strokes were not strong enough against the water pressure, even though she was doing her best, the top of the water still seemed very far away.

    This was the first time since a long while Elise had felt despair. Was she going to die just like that?

    Just as her consciousness faded to black once again, something grabbed her waist and arm.

    In the next moment, she was brought to the water surface.

    She gasped strongly as her lungs breathed in much needed oxygen.

    ¡°Hey! Are you okay?¡± A low and urgent voice sounded beside her ears.

    Although Elise could hardly open her eyes, she could hear it was the voice of a man.

    She glanced up, but the sun was too strong to make out the features of the man clearly.

    Even though she wanted to let him know that she felt like she was dying, her body felt too weak to even speak, so she could only make a groan.

    Seeing that the girl in his arms was alive, the face of the young man currently holding on her brightened up slightly.

    However, his face darkened almost immediately when he realised that the girl had fainted on his shoulders.

    Grasping tightly onto her, he swam back to the shore.

    The young man put down the girl gingerly on the grassy ground.

    The girl that looked to be around fifteen to sixteen years old was still unconscious, but her chest was moving up and down. After doing a quick check by listening her chest for sound of water, he determined that she was not in any life threatening situation and had only fainted. He heaved a sigh of relief, but he soon replaced it with a frown on his face.

    His name is Andric Kennings. He was on his way back to the town from a quest when he saw the light blond haired girl jumping into the lake waters fully clothed. He saw hands flailing wildly around before the girl sank fully into the water. Dumping his things on the spot, he raced to the lake before he jumped in as well.

    The girl lying in front of him had long blond hair so light it was like the colour of moonlight. Her features were delicate and small, and her skin was clear and unblemished.

    The problem was, why would such a beautiful young lady want to commit suicide?

    Thinking about it, Andric could not help but let out a long sigh.

    Bending down, he scooped up the girl and headed towards the spot where his things were left at. He had intended to exit the forest that very same day, however, it seemed like he had no choice but to set up camp to let the girl rest more comfortably.

    Since he started his journey as an Adventurer six years ago, he had faced many dangerous situations, so he understands the preciousness and fragility of life. Due to that, he instinctively rushed to save the girl who was needlessly throwing her life away.

    ¡°But what am I going to do with her after this?¡± He muttered to himself. If the girl was adamant about commiting suicide, was he going to watch her die in front of him?

    Oh well. Since he had already saved her, he can decide what to do again later.

 Chapter 2 - Waking up and Confusion

    As Elise¡¯s consciousness slowly got clearer, she prayed in her heart that she would wake up to find herself back in her room in the castle, that the experience of drowning was just a bad dream. However, when she opened her eyes, what greeted her was not the intricately carved marble ceiling of her room, but rather dark green tree tops.

    It seemed like her prayers had failed...

    Her whole body ached so much that even breathing hurt. She felt as if she had been tossed around and stomped on by giant beasts. She tilted her chin down to look at the dark coloured blanket covering her before she extracted her arms from under the cloth.

    She lifted her hands weakly and studied the slim, white fingers. She then picked up the strands of light blond hair that have been brought to the front of her chest.

    Tiredly, she closed her eyes. There was no need to use a mirror. Elise was sure that this body was not hers. Even though she was a Mage, she was also proficient with a bow, so her hands were rough and filled with cuts, unlike the white and smooth hand in front of her now. As for the hair, one was as black as the night, while the other was so light it was almost white. There was no need to compare.

    She had heard of magic that allowed body switch. However, it was only something in theory. Magic that allowed a person to take over the conscious of another living thing was dangerous and could potentially result in more issues. However, luckily or unluckily, research in that area  was met with many walls, and it was never successfully done.

    So why did she manage to experience something that experts have all failed to complete?

    Desperately, she tried to recall the events leading up to this situation. The last thing she remembered before she fell asleep unintentionally and waking up in the water was her being mysteriously attracted by the full moon.

    What has happened in between the time she fell asleep and when she woke up in the water?

    ¡°Have you woken up?¡± A low voice came from a short distance away from her. Elise recognised it as the person who had saved her before she fell unconscious.

    Elise tried to sit up, but her muscles could not cooperate and she fell back again.

    She braced herself for the impact, but instead, she felt a rough but warm hand holding her naked shoulders.

    ¡°Don¡¯t rush. Although your life is no longer in danger, you are still weak.¡±

    Elise turned to look at the young man holding her. He looked to be his early twenties with russet coloured hair. His eyes were also of the same dark brown colour with orange tinge. His skin was tanned, showing that he was a person who spent a lot of time outdoors, and she could see defined muscles on the arm holding her.

    ¡°Where am I, and who are you?¡± She asked. Her voice was hoarse and it cracked at some points, but it was enough to convey her question.

    ¡°Before I answer that, you should wear your clothes first.¡± Although the sun was setting and the visibility had worsened, Elise could still see that his cheeks had turned red.

    Elise then realised that she was naked. Given the situation, she could roughly guess that the young man had taken her wet clothes off and covered her with a dry blanket so that she would not catch a cold.

    Andric thought that the girl would get embarrassed and scream or hit him. After all, it was unbecoming for a man to take off the clothes of a woman, even if it was to help her. However, the girl did not seem upset and only asked calmly, ¡°I understand. Where are my clothes?¡±

    He quickly retrieved the clothes hanging over the campfire. Thinking that it did not make sense leaving wet undergarments on, he had taken everything off, and hung them close to the campfire to dry. Of course, he had avoided looking as much as he could during the process.

    He passed the dry clothes to the girl before he turned around so that his back faced the girl.

    Seeing this, Elise could not keep a corner of her mouth from turning up. Should she be glad that she seemed to have been saved by a gentlemanly guy? Although she still had not gotten hold of the full situation, at least the person behind her did not seem to be hostile towards her.

    She collectedly wore the clothes that were passed to her. Her outer garment was a simple short sleeved, light blue dress with a dark brown belt around her waist.

    ¡°I''m done,¡± she said as soon as she finished.

    The russet haired young man who waited at the campfire stood up and walked over with a wooden bowl in his hands.

    ¡°Eat this. It will help you to restore your strength,¡± he said as he handed the bowl to her.

    Elise looked at the contents of the bowl. It seemed like it was a pottage made with root vegetables. She took the spoon and tentatively licked the contents off the spoon.

    ¡°It''s not poisoned and I think my cooking skills are pretty good you know,¡± the young man said wryly when he saw how careful she was being.

    Elise did not reply to his statement, but she felt slightly apologetic for her distrustful action.

    Not tasting any strange substances in the food, Elise started scooping the thick pottage generously into her mouth.

    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.Back at the castle, because of her royal blood, it was not strange for people to eye her and put poison into her food. Hence, she developed the habit of testing all the food and drink she is served with. Even though the young man most likely had good intentions, she trampled on them unintentionally.

    Elise was aware that the young man was watching her eat closely, but she ignored him and focused on her food. She had examined her body while changing, and concluded that the body was underweight and malnourished. In addition to that, she had spent a lot of energy struggling in water, so it all resulted in her current painful condition, so she need to eat as much as she could to gain her strength back.

    Looking at the ravenous girl, Andric could not help but mutter, ¡°wouldn¡¯t it had been better if you had not tried committing suicide in the first place?¡±

    His words were soft, but the girl seemed to have caught onto them and looked up suddenly. Her pale grey eyes that reflected the campfire behind him shone with a strange light before she asked in a surprised tone, ¡°I committed suicide?¡±

    Andric frowned. ¡°You jumped into the lake with all your clothes on. If that is not suicide, do you plan to tell me you were going for a swim?¡±

    The corners of the girl¡¯s lip curled up a little, but it quickly returned to her previous expressionless manner.

    The girl looked down on the ground for a while, seemingly in deep thought.

    Andric could not help but feel perplexed. He thought that he had saved a girl who wanted to commit suicide and that she would have a stronger reaction when he revealed about her clothes. However, none of his predictions were right.  The girl was extremely calm and her face was an unreadable mask.

    Just as he thought that the girl might have fallen asleep, she looked up. To his surprise, tears had rolled down her pale white face.

    ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t remember¡­¡± She stammered with a wavering voice.

    Looking at the pretty girl who had started crying, Andric was at a loss.

    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t cry so suddenly¡­ C-calm down...¡± He said quickly. ¡°What do you mean by you don¡¯t remember?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened to me. Will you please tell me what you know?¡± The girl asked.

    Andric cleared his throat quickly and started his narration of the situation as requested. The girl wiped her tears and was prepared to listen intently.

    He introduced himself first, saying that he was an Adventurer returning back to the town from a quest in the late morning when he saw her jumping into the lake. When he saw that she was struggling in water, he rushed over to save her. After she fainted, he brought her to the forest to set up camp where she had been resting for around eight hours before her conscious returned.

    ¡°Do you remember what happened to you now?¡± He asked carefully after he had finished his explanation.

    The girl shook her head slowly. ¡°I don''t remember. Can you tell me where are we?¡±

    Did she lose her memories? He had heard of stories about how people had lost their ability to recall  things after a traumatic event. Given that the girl had almost drowned, it could have caused her memories to become disordered.

    ¡°We are now in Spider Forest. It is part of the Perenia Kingdom. Around north west from the capital.¡±

    The girl only looked lost at his words.

    ¡°Do you remember why you came into this forest? This place is dangerous and riddled with magic beasts. It is not a place for a young girl to wander around alone,¡± he said as gently as he could.

    The girl shook her head once again.

    ¡°I don¡¯t remember¡­¡± She said softly.

    ¡°Then at least your name? Do you remember your name?¡±

    ¡°My name is Elise,¡± the girl replied after pondering for a moment.

    At least she remembers her name. Andric thought in relief.

    ¡°How about your family? Do you know where you come from?¡±

    Elise shook her head. ¡°No, I don¡¯t remember. I only know that my name is Elise.¡± A deep crease had appeared between her brows, and her grey eyes were downcast.

    After prompting for a few more times, and realising that she was really unable to recall anything else, Andric decided that it would be better to let her rest first, and decide on what to do the next day.

    Remembering that he had picked up some items by the lake side earlier, he passed a brown messenger bag, a woven rucksack and a pair of calf skin boots to her.

    ¡°These are probably your belongings. I found them at  the area where you jumped into the lake. Try and see if you can remember anything when you are going through them.¡±

    The girl nodded as she hugged the items close to her. ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Andric let out a difficult smile. ¡°I was just doing something I felt was right.¡±

    ¡°Sleep soon.¡±

    Turning away, he walked towards the other side of the campfire where his things were at.

    With his back facing her, he did not manage to catch the calculating glint that flashed across the girl¡¯s eyes.

 Chapter 3 - She Understands and Plans

    Elise stared at the calm surface of the lake. The waters were so still and clear that it was difficult to imagine that she had almost drowned in it yesterday.

    Heaving a sigh, she buried her face in her knees.

    She thought back to what had happened last night.

    After hearing Andric¡¯s account, she decided that the best way to proceed was to pretend that she had lost her memory.

    Using that as an excuse, she would be able to get more information while not sounding strange for not knowing certain things.

    Her tactic had went smoothly, and the young man who had saved her seemed rather sympathetic towards her as well.

    She contemplated briefly about using a fake name, but since Elise was a pretty common name and it would be troublesome to remember a new one, she decided to use her real name.

    After having a difficult time sleeping last night, she got up just as dawn was breaking and requested Andric to show her where the lake was to see if she could find any other clues.

    She had searched through her belongings yesterday but the results had been unhelpful.

    The rucksack contained a cloak, two changes of clothes and a dagger around 30cm long. On the other hand, the messenger bag only contained a flask of water, a pouch with money and some vials that, after some assistance from Andric, were found to contain medicine. There was absolutely nothing that could give a clue to who this body originally belonged to.

    After insisting strongly that she would be alright on her own, she finally managed to convince Andric to give her some time alone at the lake. As the lake was not very big, she was able to complete a round of the lake in less than an hour. However, she was unable to find any further clues.

    Heaving a big sigh once more, she tilted her head to look at her reflection in the water.

    She had to admit that this face was prettier. Though her original face was praised by countless men to be beautiful, she preferred this current face with wide doe-like eyes, a small nose and cherry like lips which she thought was definitely much more charming. The only similarity she had found between her current body and her original body was the pair of grey eyes.

    Who is this girl and why did she appear in her body? What has happened to her original body? Did the soul of the girl go into her body?

    If the soul of the girl had switched places with her, her brother would most probably be able to find out immediately. Given the ability of her brother, the word of it should be carefully controlled, so the chance of lash back from the other nobles should be minimal.  He would definitely try and find a way to restore her soul back to her body as well. It would be wonderful if she woke up one day to find that she had returned back to the castle. However, if she had died¡­ Then, she will need to live on with her current body.

    But it was not the time for her to worry about that now.

    Elise sighed as she looked with resentment at her snow white hands.

    The condition of this body was just too¡­ terrible.

    Her original body had bountiful mana, and as she was well taken care of, her physical condition was excellent as well. On the other hand, the body she was in now was weak and the mana was next to none.

    Imagining a flame in her palm, she chanted, ¡°What I desire is a flame. Appear.¡±

    At the end of her words, a tiny and fluttering orange flame that could be put out by a passing breeze appeared on her palm.

    Elise¡¯s expression turned dark. She had imagined a ball of flames around the size of a head. To think that the outcome of that was a flame that had shrunk so significantly in size. It seems like she would need to spend some time getting used to using magic with the current body.

    ¡°You are a Mage?¡± A surprised voice came from behind her.

    Elise jumped as she had not heard him approaching. If it was in her previous body, she would have been able to sense anyone within ten metres from her, so it was impossible for anyone to sneak up to her.

    The flame in her hand had also vanished when her concentration was broken.

    Andric felt slightly guilty at the unhappy look the girl shot him when her flames disappeared.

    He had brought the girl to the lake and went off afterwards due to her insistence. Knowing that the area around the lake was relatively safe, plus he needed to pack up, he had obliged reluctantly. However, he was still worried and came back as soon as he could. This was when he saw the girl using magic, and had sounded out suddenly. It was estimated that only around 1 out of 10,000 people can use magic so he could not be blamed for becoming overly curious.

    ¡°Is that a problem?¡± Elise asked cautiously.

    Andric, who had squatted down beside her, looked puzzled. ¡°Why would that be a problem? It is just that it is very rare, so I got a bit excited. Sorry that I startled you,¡± he apologised.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°Magic is very rare?¡±

    ¡°Well, yes. Some people can live their entire lives not coming into contact with any magic,¡± he explained patiently.

    Elise frowned. From where she came from, there was not a single person who was unable to use magic.

    ¡°Ah, but if you are able to use magic, then you might be able to enter Lauritopia,¡± he said with a wry smile.

    ¡°Lauritopia?¡± Elise exclaimed suddenly.

    Seeing the girl¡¯s excited face and remembering that she had amnesia, he explained, ¡°Lauritopia is a floating continent that was said to have appeared over the sea around two hundred years ago. It is a land that is said to be utopia; a paradise with fertile lands and no poverty. However, only Mages are allowed to enter the place. All others, regardless of their wealth and status, are all turned away.¡±

    Truthfully speaking, he did not believe that it was really an utopia as some do. As long as there are humans, there are bound to be conflict. However, he was rather curious about the mysterious land, although it was most likely that he will never be able to enter the place as he was unable to use magic.

    ¡°Do you know where Lauritopia is?¡± Elise asked as she grabbed onto his arm.

    Andric blinked blankly at the hands on his arm before he looked incredulously at the girl. Is this girl planning to enter Lauritopia?

    ¡°Lauritopia is very far away from here. In addition, even if you are a Mage, you can¡¯t enter just for that reason alone,¡± he warned. ¡°They have very strict tests for people entering.¡±

    Elise could hardly stay still to listen to Andric¡¯s words of caution. After all, Lauritopia was the name of the continent she came from.

    So this is the lower world, Elise thought as it all dawned to her. The reason why she was unfamiliar with the name of places as well as the weak mana in her body.

    Elise tried to recall what she had learned previously about the land beneath theirs. The land of Lauritopia was overflowing with mana hence all its occupants were born with a a good amount of mana in their bodies. However, the lower world did not have as much mana, hence its was understandable that its occupants likewise had little mana.

    She had never been to the lower world before. While she knows that it exists, there was simply no reason for her to go there. However, she was told by others that the lower world was chaotic and the people were frail. While she was unable to tell if it was chaotic at this point, it was true that their mana was little.

    Having understood where she was currently at, she felt as if a weight in her heart had lifted up. Although she still had no idea how she came to the lower world, and how she could return to her original body, at least she had a goal to work towards now. The first thing she was going to do is to find her way back to Lauritopia again.

    Unknown to her, her feelings had appeared on her face, so Andric could only feel baffled at the young girl who had suddenly brightened up.

    Was she really going to try and enter Lauritopia? Lauritopia was notorious for its difficulty in entering and it was almost like a dream for most people.

    ¡°Do you know how to go to Lauritopia?¡± Elise questioned as she leaned forward in anticipation.

    ¡°I have never been there, but I believe you will need to pass through some countries. It should be to the far east from here,¡± Andric replied as he tried to recall what he knew about the mysterious continent.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have a map that leads there with me, but if you are interested, you should be able to get one from a store in town.¡±

    Elise stood up immediately. ¡°Thank you very much for the information.¡± Now that she knows what to do, she need to get to town to get the map and start making the journey back home as soon as possible.

    Looking at the young girl who seemed like she was going to run off into the forest anytime, Andric didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry. Does she have any awareness that she was a person who had almost died yesterday?

    ¡°Wait. Since I need to return to town as well, why don¡¯t we go together?¡±

    Elise thought about the offer, but soon found that there was actually no need for consideration. Andric was familiar with the area and knew where the town was. Although she was unsure of how tough he is, he should be capable enough to fend for himself in the forest. Additionally, she had no idea how to exit the forest, and her magic was next to useless. In the event that any beast attacked her, she could only count on the dagger to protect her.

    The beasts in the lower world should not be as vicious as the ones back in her hometown, but it probably will not be wise for her to cross their path at her current state.

    Looking at Andric in the eye, she replied with a smile, ¡°That would be deeply appreciated.¡±

 Chapter 4 - A Battle in the Forest

    Upon returning back to the campsite, Elise found out that Andric had finished packing up.

    She put on the brown cloak before picking up her bags. When she turned around, Andric was standing under a tree with two rucksacks over his shoulders. He was previously only wearing a green shirt and brown pants, but now, he had put on a metal chest plate and knee plates. His hands were covered with thick fingerless leather gloves as well. Looking to his waist, she also noticed that a plain long sword hung from a leather belt on the left side of his hips.

    Oh, so he¡¯s a Swordsman.

    ¡°Ready to go now?¡± He asked as he raised his eyebrows after the girl had glanced up and down over him.

    Elise gave a quick nod and followed closely beside him as they headed off into the forest.

    The forest was made out of tall trees with green leaves and low bushes and shrubs. Although she was unable to identify the type of tree, it looked similar to what she had seen before in Lauritopia. The ground was dry, so it was relatively easy to walk on. She just needed to be careful not to trip over protruding roots and the occasional fallen branch. Thankfully, walking through wilderness was not an issue to her as she often had to travel through wilderness to complete tasks back in the past. In fact she had experienced tougher conditions than this, so this was literally a walk through the park for her.

    Her only concern would be the stamina of her current body.

    She had eaten as much as she could for breakfast so that she will have enough energy for the day. However, she was a little skeptical about the condition of her body.

    As expected, after walking for an hour, her breath started to get ragged, and her feet slowed down unconsciously.

    ¡°Hah¡­ Hah¡­¡±

    She had walked quite a bit in the morning to search around the lake, could that have affected her stamina?

    While walking, she took out the flask of water from her bag and drank a few sips to moisten her throat.

    Andric wordlessly slowed down his pace. Casting a worried look at the girl beside him who had a pale face, he asked, ¡°Do you want to rest for a while?¡±

    ¡°No, let¡¯s continue,¡± Elise answered resolutely.

    Andric had explained to her earlier that they might be able to reach the town before nightfall if they proceeded at a steady pace. Otherwise, they would have to make camp in the forest as visibility was bad once the sun goes down. She wanted to reach the town as soon as possible, so she intended to push herself as much as possible.

    Seeing that the girl was determined, Andric frowned but did not say anything else.

    They continued for a while more before Andric found that he has reached his limits.

    He stopped in his tracks and held an arm out in front of the girl.

    Elise was unable to stop in time and walked straight into the arm. The light collision caused her legs to crumple and her body to fall heavily towards the ground.

    Having expected that, Andric reached out to support the girl¡¯s waist with his right hand and pulled her closer to him to prevent the fall.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Elise asked irritatedly as she turned her head up to look at the man holding her with a frown. She wanted to push the arm away, but found that she didn¡¯t have the strength to do so.

    ¡°We will take a break now,¡± he said firmly.

    The person herself might have not noticed, but her face and lips had been getting paler since a while ago, and the shade of white now was definitely not normal.

    He could not help but notice her cold body temperature either. Perhaps it was his fault for not making her rest for a day more before taking her out of the forest.

    ¡°Why? If we rest now, it will delay our journey.¡±

    Andric glowered at the girl who had answered defiantly.  ¡°If you continue like this, you will die before we even reach the town.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want the girl that I had just saved to die so soon in front of me.¡±

    Elise jerked her face away, her expression stony. However, she knew in her heart that what he said was right. She would probably faint if she continued any longer.

    She gathered her remaining energy to stand firm, and pushed the arm away.

    Andric did not resist. Crossing his arms, he waited to listen to what the girl had to say.

    Elise tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ears and said sullenly, ¡°Since it is almost noon now, let¡¯s have lunch first then.¡±

    Having finished saying that, she put her bags down and started rummaging through the rucksack for the lunch that Andric had previously prepared for them.

    This girl was more stubborn than he had previously thought. Andric shook his head as he sat down as well.

    Lunch for the day consisted of bread with dried meat and wild vegetables gathered nearby that were suitable to be eaten raw. In other words, it was a sandwich. Although it was not luxurious, it was enough to satiate their hunger.

    As they ate in silence, Elise eyed the rucksacks that Andric was carrying. She knew that one contained his own belongings. The other rucksack was even bigger, and was filled to the brim with white objects. She had been interested in them since that morning, but had yet to figure out what they were.

    Andric noticed Elise¡¯s gaze on his rucksack and opened his mouth. ¡°Are you curious to know what this is?¡±

    A faint pink glow appeared on her cheeks as she felt like a little child that was caught doing something embarrassing.

    Andric grinned at her reaction, and continued to tease her slightly. ¡°If you have anything you want to know, you can just let big brother know~¡±

    Elise threw him a resentful look and turned away. If he was going just to make fun of her, then she had no plans to entertain him. To think that she, who had been a feared existence from the day she got the nickname of Crimson Mage, would get teased like a little girl today!

    Andric sighed as he realised the girl had become angry with him. Not only was she stubborn, she had a short fuse as well.

    Opening up the rucksack, he took out some of the white objects. Or rather, they were threads that were clumped together.

    ¡°These are threads from Giant Spiders.¡±

    Elise, whose curiosity have overcome everything else, turned around to study the bundles of white threads on his hands.

    ¡°What are you planning on doing with these threads?¡± She asked.

    ¡°This was a request that I picked up from the Guild, to go to the Spider Forest to collect Giant Spider Threads.¡±

    ¡°As for what can be done with these... They are usually made into Mage robes as they have very good magic defense and physical defense properties. There are also some nobles that buy clothes made from these threads as they are extremely soft and have vibrant colours when dyed,¡± he explained.

    Elise nodded.

    ¡°But humans aren¡¯t the only ones who want these threads,¡± he continued wryly. ¡°Intelligent monsters know how good the properties of the thread are as well. So one of the challenges of this quest is not only getting into the den of the Giant Spider but also to prevent other monsters from stealing the thread.¡±

    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Having said that, he stood up.

    Even with her poor senses, Elise could also recognise that there was something approaching them from all directions.

    Elise stood up as well and took out the dagger that she had hidden under her cloak.

    Five¡­ No ten? There were around ten creatures who had surrounded them.

    As they came out of the shadows, Elise saw that they were humanoid monsters around 130 cm tall with dark green skin and pointy ears wearing tattered leather clothes.

    Their eyes were fully black with no eye whites, and they were looking intently at them while showing their sharp yellowed teeth.

    ¡°These are¡­¡±

    ¡°They are High Goblins, a species that evolved from Goblins.¡±

    High Goblins had skin that were darker in colour than normal Goblins. Their features remained largely the same apart from being taller and more stoutly built. They were also more intelligent, and were capable of creating tools and laying traps.

    Although research have not found out the exact conditions that trigger evolution in monsters. It has been observed many times of monsters evolving into more powerful and intelligent beings after meeting certain conditions.

    However, even if these High Goblins were more intelligent and stronger then normal Goblins, they were still no match for him.

    A corner of Andric¡¯s mouth curled up.

    He had been waiting for them to attack since he left the Giant Spider''s den. Although he had someone he needed to protect with him now, it should not be too much of a problem.

    ¡°Oh. I see¡­¡±

    Hmm, she could tell these were Goblins alright. Just that the Goblins she was familiar with were black in colour and were around the size of a female human.

    ¡°Elise, it is ok for you to just stay back,¡± Andric said as he drew out his sword.

    Elise raised an eyebrow. In the past, she was always the one relied on during battles, so she couldn¡¯t help but be slightly amused when she was asked to stay back this time.

    ¡°If you say so,¡± she replied evenly as she kept her dagger and sat back down. ¡°Do your best then.¡±

    Andric was slightly speechless at the nonchalant attitude Elise was showing. If he had not known better, he would have thought that she was watching a show.

    Turning back his attention to the hostile beings around them, he confirmed the presence of eleven High Goblins. Five of the High Goblins had short swords on their hands, another three had small axes on both their hands while the remaining three had bows. One of the archers was even hidden on the tree. Most probably to ambush them or to seek help if the battle was not in their favour. This was a well balanced team. It seemed like they had prepared before approaching them.

    The High Goblins observed the two humans for a moment before one jumped forward waving a crudely made metal sword in the air.

    Andric stepped forward, and with a slash, he split the green creature into two.

    The action was so fast that the High Goblin did not even get to make a sound before it died.

    Seeing that one of their comrades had fallen, the rest of the High Goblins jumped into action immediately.

    In a swift motion, Andric threw short daggers of around 10cm long towards the High Goblin archers. Each dagger found its way into their throats, killing them instantly.

    Three of the High Goblins reached him first and their weapons cut towards him with no mercy.

    Andric deflected one of the attacks with his long sword before he gave a strong kick to the chest of another. As his boot contacted the body, he felt the ribs cracking.

    A deep boot print could be seen on the chest of the High Goblin that was kicked and it stumbled backwards before it fell to the floor limply with a squeak.

    Before the other two could react, a deep gnash had appeared on their chest, and red blood spurted out of the wound before they too, fell onto the floor.

    The remaining four High Goblins hesitated when they saw that their comrades had all fallen within seconds. Their black, beady eyes looked at each other as they realised that they might have attacked someone beyond their ability.

    However, before they could regret their decision, Andric had already leapt forward. With each of his strikes, it took away the lives of the remaining four High Globins.

    As a person who have fought poisonous Basilisks five meters long, the fight with High Goblins was honestly nothing exciting for Elise who was watching the fight curiously.

    Even though she was not trained in swordsmanship, she could tell that Andric¡¯s sword skills were good. Each of his strikes were deadly and there were no unnecessary movements. While he was not as good as her brother, he was probably on par with the castle¡¯s elite knights. But as their knights could use magic, he will probably be at a major disadvantage if he really fought with them.

    Andric pulled out the daggers that were embedded in the High Goblin archers¡¯ throats and wiped the blood off on the grass. When he turned around, he saw Elise staring at him with an amused expression.

    ¡°You are not afraid?¡±

    No matter what, the situation earlier was dangerous, but the girl did not show any indication of fear. Or even now, although dead bodies were lying on the ground and the scent of blood was strong in the air, the girl did not show any signs of discomfort.

    ¡°Why should I be?¡± The girl asked back, her eyes wide and questioning, as if he had asked something silly.

    This girl is strange.

    It was as if she did not have a sense of danger. For any normal human, getting surrounded by monsters or seeing a scene of carnage should invoke some fear or disgust. However, she was calm and relaxed.

    ¡°Because you could have died if you were not careful.¡±

    The young man¡¯s face was serious and his voice grave. Elise blinked blankly at his words.

    Oh right. She had forgotten that with her current body, she was indeed weak enough to be killed if she had been stabbed by the green weaklings.

    The more she thought about it, the more she realised how much of a nuisance this body was. She needed to find a way to improve her physical condition and mana level as soon as possible, or she might die before she returns back to Lauritopia.

    Andric observed the girl that had fallen into silence.

    ¡°We should go off now. You want to reach the town as soon as possible right?¡± He reminded her.

    Elise jumped up immediately. ¡°Yes, let¡¯s get moving.¡±

    She could think about strategies while walking. She had never backed down from a challenge, so she would definitely reach home safely.

    Andric gave a wry smile at the girl who had cheered up all of a sudden.

    However, Elise¡¯s good mood would get dampened later as they were met with three more attacks from the High Goblins and ended up falling behind schedule. By nightfall, they were only two third of the way to their goal, so they had no choice but to camp in the forest.

 Chapter 5 - Arrival at Wivendale

    ¡°Wait here for me while I go to the Guild to hand over the quest item,¡± Andric said as he stood by the door.

    ¡°Sure,¡± Elise replied offhandedly, her attention drawn to the interiors of the room that she will be staying in for the night.

    They had finally reached the town of Wivendale that morning after being forced to camp in the forest. As it was still early, the streets were relatively quiet with few people walking around. After passing through the gates of the town, Andric had brought her straight to an inn.

    The inn was fairly small and sparsely decorated, but it was clean, and the innkeeper looked honest, so it should be a safe place. Andric had requested for two rooms, and the room they were currently in was the room that was going to be hers.

    ¡°What? I thought you were going to the Guild?¡± Elise asked when she realised that he was still standing behind her.

    ¡°Soon,¡± Andric gave a wry smile at the girl who was impatient to throw him out of the room. ¡°But don¡¯t go out of the inn until I return, alright?¡±

    Does he really think that he is my guardian? Elise thought, slightly amused. This young man had been helping her a lot, so she should play along with him for a while.

    Elise nodded meekly. ¡°I won¡¯t go out of the inn,¡± she promised.

    ¡°Ah, but if you don¡¯t come back before lunch, I¡¯m going to go out on my own,¡± she quickly added. She wanted to go out and take a proper look around the town. It was the first time she had went to the lower world after all. Despite everything, she still can¡¯t help but feel excited about travelling to new places.

    Andric froze upon hearing the contradictory statements from Elise. Exactly what kind of trouble has he brought upon himself?

    *****

    The Adventurer Guild was an independent organisation that has branches all around the continent. As the land was plagued with ferocious magical beasts, it was difficult for countries to send military to resolve all of such complaints. The Adventurer Guild comes in to solve this by allowing people to put up requests to resolve monster related problems. People who pick up such requests were called ¡®Adventurers¡¯, and the requests were called ¡®Quests¡¯. Quests have since expanded in category and did not only deal with the traditional monster subjugation. Adventurers could also pick up quests that need them to harvest certain items or serve as a bodyguard to protect people against monsters while traveling.

    The Adventurer Guild in Wivendale was modestly sized. It was a three storey stone building that had its own armory and training field. While it was not as grand as the one in the capital of Perenia Kingdom, as the town is surrounded by forests, it had a good number of requests coming in and could be said to be one of the top five busiest branches in the Kingdom.

    However, on that particular day, the business for the Guild was lull.

    ¡°Ah¡­ Bored¡­¡±

    The person who had muttered the complain was a young lady with layered shoulder length moss green hair. She was seated behind a counter with a stone table top and was currently twirling her pencil absent mindedly as she waited for Adventurers to arrive.

    Her name is Fiore Teak, and she had been working in the Wivendale Guild since she was sixteen, so this marked her third year as a Guild Receptionist. She was proud of her job as a receptionist, and found it to be very fun and rewarding, so she did not have much complains.

    However, she mood on that that was terrible.

    Apart from herself, there were two other girls around the same age who were also working as receptionists. However, the girl who was supposed to be on duty that day took a sudden day off as her boyfriend managed to get hold of tickets to a show at the theatre. As it was extremely difficult to get tickets to the show, the girl had pleaded with their Guild Master to let her take the day off.

    Their soft-hearted Guild Master was unable to win against the pleads of a cute girl so he granted her the leave. Even so, that was not the horrible part.

    The reason why she was upset was because she had overheard him saying while laughing good naturedly, ¡°Hahaha! It is not like Fiore will have a date, so she should be free to take over your shift!¡±

    So what if she don¡¯t have a boyfriend? Does it make her the go to person to cover for any shift? Fiore sulked. That stupid Guild Master! He¡¯s still single as well anyway!

    Just then, the bell placed at the entrance tingled as the door opened.

    Tidying her feelings, Fiore sat upright and greeted cheerfully, ¡°Welcome to the Wivendale Guild!¡±

    As Fiore saw a man with russet coloured hair and eyes appear from behind the door, her professional smile turned into one of genuine happiness.

    It was the good looking man in his early twenties that took up the quest for the Giant Spider Thread four days ago! She recognised him immediately as he had chose to complete the quest alone although that would usually take at least a party of four rank B Adventurers to complete.

    She had cautioned him about it as he was an Adventurer that had just arrived in town. Even if he was an Rank B Adventurer on the verge of becoming B+, it would still be extremely difficult for him to complete it alone, and it would be unfortunate if he died or be forced to pay the penalty for giving up the quest halfway.

    However, he just smiled and assured that he was confident to complete it on his own.

    She had fretted about it for a couple of days, so she was really glad to see him still well and alive.

    ¡°Good morning! Did you manage to complete the Giant Spider Thread quest?¡± The green haired lady at the counter smiled amiably as Andric approached the reception.

    Andric was slightly surprised that she was able to recognise him. If he did not remember wrongly, she was the same person who had assisted him when he came by to pick up the quest. He had a strong impression of her as her green hair was quite rare. What was her name again?

    Smiling in return, he nodded, ¡°Yes, I have completed the quest. Please help me to verify the contents.¡±

    He put the rucksack containing the threads onto the countertop.  The lady quickly took out the contents and put it in a separate basket. After going through the contents carefully, she nodded in satisfaction. ¡°These all Giant Spider Threads.¡±

    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    Following that, she put the basket on a weighing machine.

    ¡°The reward for this quest is 70 Merin for each kilogram of Giant Spider Thread obtained. You have 4.5kg here, so it comes up to 315 Merin.¡±

    Looking at him curiously, she asked in a disbelieving tone, ¡°Did you really complete the quest all by yourself?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I did,¡± he answered with a wry smile. He recalled that the lady had warned him repeatedly about completing the quest alone as it was usually for a party. It seems like she still had some doubts.

    The lady looked at him strangely, but her professionalism soon took over, and requested. ¡°Since you have completed the quest, then please let me enter it into your records.¡±

    Andric took out his silver Adventurer pass and handed it over to her.

    The Adventurer pass was the identification card for Adventurers. Adventurers who want to pick up quests need to register themselves with the Guild. The pass shows the individual''s name, place of birth, age, gender,  job class and rank. When it is scanned with a special magic device at the Guild, it will display on a special parchment the record of the list of quests that the Adventurer had picked up, completed or failed to complete.

    ¡°It seems like you have just fulfilled the criteria to go for the rank up examination!¡± She exclaimed after she had updated the status of the quest from ¡®ongoing¡¯ to ¡®completed¡¯.

    ¡°Will you be going to the capital to take the examination soon?¡±

    In order to Rank up from a Rank F Adventurer to a Rank B, the individual just need to complete a number of quests. However, to Rank up from a B to B+, a special test will be conducted by the Adventurers of Rank A and above, and this test can be taken at the capital of each country.

    Andric pondered for a moment before replying, ¡°I have something on hand at the moment, but I do intend on completing the test as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°Best of luck with it then!¡± The lady answered with a cheerful smile. ¡°And here is your reward for completing the quest. Please ensure that the amount is correct.¡±

    Andric counted the coins and nodded. ¡°These are correct. Thank you very much for your help. By the way, are there any quests for subjugation of Goblins here? I killed some Goblins while I was on the way back from the quest at Spider Forest.¡±

    As Goblins were a well known menace to humans, stealing food and kidnapping children or women, there were often quests that rewarded people for killing them at most Guilds.

    ¡°Hmm, I am sure there is. But can you let me take a look at the evidence that you have first?¡±

    Andric took out another rucksack filled with the tips of Goblin ears that he had cut off from the corpses. A certain body part from monsters were usually requested to be used as identification parts for subjugation quests. For the case of Goblins, the requested item was usually the tip of the right ear.

    Looking at the number of parts that pour out of the bag, her jaw dropped.

    She looked at him with an astonished face and exclaimed, ¡°You killed all of them alone?¡±

    Andric could understand the reason why she was surprised. There were thirty High Goblin ears, fifteen Goblin ears and two Red Goblin ears in total after all. Red Goblins were a type of Goblins that evolved from High Goblins and were able to use fire magic. This made them trickier to deal with than normal Goblins. Although Goblins were weak individually, to face an army of close to fifty Goblins with evolved species, it would usually require a party of at least six Rank B Adventurers.

    ¡°I had some help,¡± he replied truthfully.

    ¡°Is that so?¡± The lady asked curiously.

    As Elise could use magic, she had suggested to use her magic to help to clear the Goblins more quickly. After some experimentation, they found out that the best way was for Elise to use her magic to control the growth of plants and use the roots of trees to hinder the Goblins¡¯ movement. So while she distracted some of the Goblins, he would finish off the others. Using this tactic, they successfully destroyed the Goblins that attacked them. Although there were some who ran away, Andric felt that it was inevitable as there were only the two of them.

    Seeing that the he was not going to elaborate, the receptionist reluctantly changed the topic.

    ¡°The Guild is willing to pay 2 Merin for each Goblin, 10 Merin for each High Goblin and  20 Merin for each Red Goblin,¡± she said after flipping through a thick leather bound book that contained all the quests that were offered by the Guild. ¡°So it will come up to a total of 370 Merin.¡±

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Andric thanked once again after he had received the money.

    ¡°You are welcome!¡± The lady at the counter replied cheerfully. ¡°Is there anything else that I might be able to assist you with?¡±

    Andric thought carefully before leaning slightly forward. ¡°It is not regarding a quest, but here is one more thing I''ll like to check about.¡±

    ¡°Please ask away!¡±

    ¡°Do you know any female Adventurer of around fifteen to sixteen years old with grey eyes and long light blond hair by the name of Elise?¡±

    <hr />

    Author''s note:

    Hi everyone! How are you enjoying the story so far?

    The start is quite slow as I am still building up the story, but please bear with me as it will get more exciting later!

    In terms of how you can expect the story to be, if there is a shoujo tag I''ll definitely put it there. I really enjoy reading Japanese light novels, like Common Sense of a Duke''s Daughter, Dragon Life and I Reincarnated into an Otome Game as a Villainess With Only Destruction Flags, so you can expect it to have a similar tone and style. If you like the kind of stories I have mentioned above then, you might like this as well!

    For release schedule, I plan to release a chapter every other day until chapter 14, after which I will take a short break as I need time to write more chapters.

    Please don''t be shy to leave a comment or review. I''ll gladly answer any questions as well! See you guys at the next chapter!

 Chapter 6 - A Misunderstanding

    Author''s note:

    I am having trouble coming up with a synopsis and chapter titles. Does anyone have any suggestions? ^_^;

    Anyway, here is the promised chapter. Please enjoy!

    <hr />

    As Andric was away, Elise quickly found herself getting bored.

    The room was interesting to her at first as it was the first time she had been to such a quaint inn.

    Not that she was boasting, but as a Princess, all the inns she stayed at when she was required to travel were all luxurious and of the highest class, hence it was a big change of environment for her to stay in such a simple room. The room consisted of only a bed, a chair, a dressing table with a palm size bronze mirror and a lockable chest.

    After exploring all the nook and crannies in the room, Elise was now sitting on the bed and peering out of the window with her face propped up by her hands.

    The streets were starting to get busy. There were more people walking about, and some vendors had set up push cart stalls selling breakfast and other items.

    Elise opened the window slightly, and the sounds of the people walking and conversing on the streets soon floated in.

    Sniff.

    It smells like scrambled eggs?

    They had an early breakfast before entering the town so she was not hungry, but she still felt tempted from the delicious scents wafting up.

    Should she¡­?

    She did promise Andric that she will remain in the inn. But if she went out for a while and return quickly, he won''t even know right?

    In the first place, why was she even prevented from going out?

    Having convinced herself, Elise stood up.  Her sudden movement caused the hair that she has hastily tied up into a ponytail with a tree vine become undone.

    Long tresses came falling over her shoulders like a light, golden waterfall.

    Elise fingered her hair that has come undone. Her original hair was black and straight, while the hair she had now was blond and slightly wavy.

    Although the hair was pretty, it was very troublesome to take care. The long hair will get in her way when she lets it down, and because it is thick, it was difficult to tie up as well.

    Looking around, she saw the dagger that she had put on the table.

    The original owner might have spent a lot of time growing out the hair and taking care of it, but she was afraid she would have to cut it off to make her life easier.

    As she held the 30 cm long dagger in her hand, she soon realised that she had another problem.

    The bronze mirror was too small to see her head properly. Furthermore, she is unable to see the back of her head to trim her hair evenly.

    Maybe she should ask someone for help¡­?

    Just as she was thinking about it, someone knocked on the door.

    ¡°Elise, are you inside?¡±

    Oh, Andric¡¯s back, she thought with slight regret. It seemed like her plan of going out on her own is gone.

    ¡°Yes. The door is not locked, please come in.¡±

    The door opened with a slight creak. Andric¡¯s face soon appeared from the back of the door.

    He gave a gentle smile as his eyes met hers, however, when it travelled down to the thing she was holding on her hands, the smile froze.

    Using a speed that was faster than what she had seen him using while fighting Goblins, he appeared beside her and plucked the dagger out of her hands and slammed it on the table.

    Before she was able to explain herself, a low and stern voice sounded out.

    ¡°I thought that you had learned from your previous attempt so I didn''t say anything. Although it might be inappropriate for me to say so but you should treasure your life more.¡±

    Knowing that Andric had completely misunderstood her, she gave a deep sigh.

    ¡°What are you sighing about?¡± He asked with a frown.

    Elise stared at him in silence for a moment.

    ¡°What?¡± He asked again. He had to admit her upward gaze was powerful. When he look into her eyes for an extended period of time, he could feel himself getting drawn into the grey depths.

    ¡°I want to cut my hair,¡± she said plainly.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Her sudden reply caught him off guard.

    ¡°My hair is getting in my way so I want to cut it short,¡± she elaborated slowly.

    Looking at the dagger at the table and at the girl who was looking at him like an idiot, he could feel his face getting hot as he realised that it was a misunderstanding.

    ¡°So you want to use the dagger to cut your hair?¡± He confirmed.

    When Elise nodded, he flicked her forehead lightly.

    ¡°Who on earth uses a 30 cm dagger to cut their hair? Are you intending to cut your head off as well?¡±

    Rubbing the spot that he had flicked, Elise grinded her teeth to control her anger. I am a eighteen year old adult. I should not go around killing people who is treating me like a kid.

    Once she had calmed down, she jerked her head towards the side and replied indignantly, ¡°I don''t have any smaller blades with me.¡±

    Looking at the red mark that had appeared on the girl¡¯s forehead, Andric felt a slight pain in his heart. Perhaps he had used too much force¡­

    Heaving a sigh, he took a few steps to stand behind her. Just as Elise was wondering what he was up to, he took out a small blade of around 10 cm and said composedly, ¡°Hold still. I¡¯ll help you to cut your hair.¡±

    He often trimmed his own hair while he was traveling as he disliked having long hair, but this was going to be the first time cutting someone else¡¯s hair.

    ¡°How short do you want it to be?¡±

    Elise looked at him with suspicious eyes. Even though it was her intention to ask him for help at the start, she was not sure if she wants to accept his help right after he had done such a childish act of flicking her forehead.

    Andric met the gaze of the girl. Knowing that she was upset with him, he rummaged through his pockets and took out a candy wrapped with purple paper.

    Placing it on the table, he said, ¡°This is hard boiled candy made from grapes.¡±

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Elise unwrapped the candy and popped the pale violet ball into her mouth.

    Mm, tasty.

    ¡°Apology accepted,¡±she said with a slight smile.

    Looking at the mirror in front of her, she turned her head from the left to the right slowly before replying, ¡°Around my chin would be nice.¡±

    Andric hesitated. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be too short?¡±

    ¡°Just do it.¡±

    *****

    ¡°Young lady would you like to try this chicken kebab? It is really delicious ya know!¡±

    ¡°Hey! You new in town? Then you should know that you can¡¯t say that you have visited Wivendale without trying some of my handmade fried fritters!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t listen to what that old man is saying. Everyone knows that Wivendale is only well known for the cloth!¡±

    Elise chuckled as the stall owners bantered to catch her attention.

    ¡°You should take a look at some scarfs I have here! They are made with 50%  Giant Spider thread. The quality is really good!¡±

    Now that the stall owner mentioned, she was feeling a little cold. Elise pulled her cloak tighter around herself before she excused herself and continued on her way.

    They were now walking on the main street of the town, where most shops and stalls were at. As it was late morning, the streets had gotten considerably busy.

    She flitted from stall to stall excitedly, drawn by all the new things that she had never seen before. Her chin length hair would bob up and down as she ran around. She would occasionally stop to ask about what certain items were and how much they cost, but she will soon move off. Andric followed closely beside to make sure she did not lose herself in the crowd.

    ¡°What is that?¡± She asked as she pointed at a stall that was selling what seemed like rolled up leaves.

    ¡°This is a kind of food made from barley, herbs and chicken wrapped with leaves and steamed. It is usually eaten as a snack,¡± Andric replied.

    Eyeing the girl beside him who was looking at the stall with interest, he took a few steps to the front of the stall.

    ¡°How much is it?¡±

    The middle aged stall keeper who was in the middle of arranging the rolls smiled broadly. ¡°Only 3 Merin for one, good sir.¡±

    Andric took out six small bronze coins and handed it over to the man.

    ¡°I''ll have two. Thanks.¡±

    Elise looked closely at the type of coin he was handing over. Prior to coming out of the inn, she had opened up the money pouch in her bag to check the coins. However, as the currency Lauritopia uses and currency Perenia Kingdom uses were different, she was unsure of how much each coin was worth.

    Based on what she had managed to observe and find out, the name of the currency used in the country is called ¡®Merin¡¯. Each small bronze coin is worth 1 Merin and the bigger bronze coin is worth 10 Merin. The small silver coin is worth 50 Merin while the big silver coin is worth 100 Merin. She had a gold coin in her money pouch as well, but she had not seen anyone use a gold coin so she was not sure of its value.

    She could probably ask Andric directly, but wouldn¡¯t it be too strange to not even know how the currency of the country works?

    In terms of the price range, most of the food items sold at the outdoor stalls were selling at a price between 2 to 6 Merin while meal sets at eateries were sold at around 5 to 12 Merin. For daily necessities and fresh produce, they were sold from between 1 to 5 Merin. Ready made clothes of decent quality were around 15 to 20 Merin while custom made clothes start at around 30 Merin and can go for over 100 Merin depending on the quality. The most expensive kind of item she had seen so much were clothes made from pure Giant Spider thread. A simple pants made from that would cost at least 500 Merin.

    ¡°Do you want to try?¡± A roll that was wrapped with leaves was suddenly held in front of her.

    Elise was jolted out of her thoughts, and accepted the roll.

    ¡°How much is it again?¡± She asked as she reached to her bag to take out her money pouch.

    Andric stopped her. ¡°It¡¯s my treat,¡± he said with a wry smile.

    ¡°I''ll buy you something else in return later then.¡± Now that she knows how money works, she was confident that she had some spare coins to treat him in return. Plus she had the gold coin which she perceived to have a high value.

    ¡°Andric, do you know where is the shop that sell maps?¡± Elise asked. She had not forgotten about her goal of returning to Lauritopia.

    ¡°We should be able to find it at an item store,¡± Andric answered.

    ¡°But why are you so insistent on going to Lauritopia? Have you remembered anything?¡± Andric asked as he studied her face closely.

    To his disappointment, Elise shook her head. ¡°I still don¡¯t remember anything about my past¡­¡±

    ¡°But I do feel a sense of nostalgia when I think about Lauritopia,¡± she said softly. Looking at him with a slight crease between the middle of her brows, she asked, ¡°Do you think I might have come from there?¡±

    Take my pretty girl attack! Elise thought triumphantly while still maintaining her mildly troubled expression. In her original body, apart from her brother, normal men would steer clear of her. However, with this current body she was certain that any guy with a conscience would not bear to treat her badly.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t know about that¡­¡± Andric replied with a sad smile. ¡°However, this is the nearest town to Spider Forest. Perhaps if we ask around, someone whom you know might appear,¡± he continued sympathetically.

    Honestly speaking, that would become a disaster, Elise thought. Even if someone was to come up to her and say that she is her mother, she would still be acting troubled and insist that she cannot remember. At the moment, her main goal is to return to Lauritopia. Although she was interested in the identity of the body as well, that would come after she has achieved her first goal.

    However, Elise cannot say her true feelings, so she only nodded. ¡°But can we get the map to Lauritopia first? I have a very strong feeling that I need to get there as soon as possible.¡±

    He studied her face with a thoughtful look. Elise was not intimidated and met his gaze squarely. Finally, he relented. ¡°If you are sure about it, then let¡¯s go to a item store to get the map.¡±

 Chapter 7 - The Way Home

    Author''s note:

    Hi everyone!

    This is a special Sunday release to celebrate the story''s first two ratings and reviews! Unfortunately, I''m not going to do this for all reviews I receive (laughs). But seeing reviews and comments really fuel my motivation to write so please keep them coming!

    The scheduled release tomorrow will happen as well. Please enjoy!

    <hr />

    The item shop that Andric brought her to was slightly away from the main street. He explained to her that when he went to the Guild, the lady at the counter had recommended this shop to him for Adventurer supplies.

    Now that he mentioned, she was quite curious about the Guild that he was part of. The system of people picking up requests was quite interesting and something not done in Lauritopia. She should try and see if she can get more information from him about it later, she told herself.

    When they entered the two storey stone building, she saw waist high display cabinets showcasing items.  As she peered curiously into them, she found that apart from having the usual adventuring gears like tents and fire starters, the shop was also selling magic items like a device that could condense water from the air so the Adventurer would not run out of water during travels.

    Andric could tell that she was really interested, so he did not hurry her. Once she had finished looking around, he brought her to the counter, where an elderly gentleman with snow white hair was seated at. He was dressed smartly with  a white, long sleeved shirt, black vest and brown tailored pants. He looked up from the device he was tinkering with when he heard their footsteps approaching.

    Peering at them over the small glasses perched on his nose, he asked, ¡°Good afternoon. What may I do for you?¡±

    ¡°Good afternoon, sir. Do you have any map that shows the way to Lauritopia?¡± Andric asked politely.

    ¡°Lauritopia?¡± The elderly man asked with a raised eyebrow.  ¡°Are the both of you planning on travelling there?¡± His peridot eyes ran over the two youngsters in front of him.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Elise quickly answered.

    ¡°The young lady here wish to go to Lauritopia? Are you one of those youngsters who believe that it is a paradise?¡± His attitude immediately turned cold.

    Elise tilted her head. ¡°A paradise?¡±

    ¡°This is the rumour that is travelling around nowadays isn¡¯t it? That the mysterious continent is a beautiful place with no conflict or poverty.¡± The elderly man scoffed. ¡°If you have any of such thoughts, then give it up. I have been there myself. That place is riddled with monsters of Rank A and above. If anyone takes a step outside of the safe areas, they are going to be monster food!¡±

    ¡°A weak young girl like you will just get killed if you go to such a place,¡± he finished solemnly.

    Andric was surprised at the elderly man¡¯s sudden change in tone. He glanced at the girl standing beside him and saw that her fists were balled up and shaking slightly. Before he was able to say something to soften the atmosphere, Elise opened her mouth.

    The next words that she said surprised not only him, but also the elderly man.

    ¡°Even if it is true that Lauritopia is a place filled with strong monsters, I am sure that there are people who are working hard to protect the citizens from them.¡±

    As she was part of the vanguard who would regularly exterminate monsters who were threatening citizens, she understand the feelings of the soldiers the most. Even though they were all afraid of dying, they still faced wave after wave of monsters bravely. Their only driving force was the fact that their families and friends counted on them to prevent monsters from attacking villages and towns. Because of that, they have faced death on the battlefield many times.

    ¡°As to whether I am able to survive in such a place, I will only know once I reach that place.¡±

    Deep in her heart, she knew that if she were to return to Lauritopia in this body, she will not be return to the frontline. The mana in her current body was probably less than one tenth of what she had originally. With this, she might even be weaker than the average citizen in the country.

    Despite that, she did not wish to give up. She will return back first, and as of what happens after that, whether she can return to her body or not, she will think about it again later.

    Upon hearing her words, the elderly man sat back into his chair and looked at her with gentler eyes. It seems like he might have been wrong about the girl. Contrary to her appearance, she had a will that was tough.

    ¡°If that is your conviction, then I will be glad to assist you with your request,¡± he said finally. ¡°So you were saying you want to go to Lauritopia?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Andric replied with a nod. ¡°Do you have a map that shows the way there?¡±

    ¡°Well, the only way to enter Lauritopia is via the magic circle at the Holy Kingdom of Thristal. I do have a map that leads to the Holy Kingdom, but it is going to take around three months if you are going by horse.¡±

    Three months? Elise¡¯s heart sank when she heard that. It was much longer than what she had expected.

    Looking at her downcast face, the elderly man elaborated, ¡°If you are in a hurry, you can take the new airship that travels between the capital of Perenia and the capital of the Holy Kingdom. It will only take around a week.¡±

    Elise¡¯s eyes sparkled immediately¡­ Before his next words threw her back into confusion.

    ¡°However.¡± Holding up all his fingers, he said, ¡°One trip costs 10 Gold coins.¡±

    ¡°10 Gold coins!¡±

    ¡°10 Gold coins?¡±

    One person¡¯s reply was shocked, while the other was questioning.

    How much is 10 Gold coins worth? She already have one, but how can she get nine more? Elise was anxious, but she battled with her inner self not to ask how much 1 Gold coin was worth and risk others¡¯ suspicion.

    ¡°But when did an airship route start between Perenia and the Holy Kingdom?¡± Andric furrowed his brows.

    Airships were a relatively new invention. As it''s name suggests, it was a kind of transportation that could fly through the air. It was powered by magic crystals, a very expensive fuel, hence only the very rich were able to afford it. Even then, it was mainly for personal use by nobles. He had yet to hear about an airship that was open to commoners.

    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    ¡°It just started 2 months ago,¡± the elderly man answered. ¡°And it will not be strange for you not to know as it is still very unpopular. Most people will still prefer to take the route over land instead of spending one year of their living expenses on that. So right now, apart from people taking it for the novelty factor, nobody in the right mind will use it just for travelling.¡±

    So 10 Gold coins is worth a year of living expenses. Elise furrowed her brows. If she is unable to find a way to earn money quickly, then she might have no choice but travel over land instead.

    She massaged her throbbing temples. Why does it feel like another problem will always come after she thought one was solved?

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Andric asked when he saw that she was rubbing her temples. As the lighting in the store was relatively dim, it was difficult to see the colour of her face clearly, but he could see the slight frown on her face.

    Still rubbing her temples, Elise shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m okay. Just a little tired.¡±

    She had made sure to sleep early last night so that she would have sufficient rest. She was still feeling alright earlier, but  now she felt restless and unenergetic.

    It must be all the bad news one after another...

    Unconsciously, she pulled her cloak tighter around herself again. Why was she getting chills even though it was a warm summer day? Elise wondered absentmindedly.

    Having noticed her strange behaviour, the elderly man asked in a concerned voice, ¡°Young lady, your face does not look good. Are you ill?¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    Andric¡¯s eyes widened as he realised what was off about her. Gently but firmly, he turned Elise¡¯s shoulders towards himself before he placed his palm on her forehead.

    His face darkened. ¡°You are running a fever. Why didn''t you tell me you are sick?¡±

    I didn''t even know I was sick, Elise wanted to retort. She had not fallen sick for a long time so she thought that it was just fatigue.

    ¡°If that''s the case, I will just need to take medicine right?¡± She asked uncertainly.

    Andric could feel his patience coming to an end. What did she mean by ¡®just need to take medicine¡¯? Did she lose her common sense together with her memories?

    ¡°We will need to get you to see a doctor, and you will need to stay in bed until you fully recover,¡± he said sternly to Elise. Then, in a softer voice, he continued, ¡°It must be due to exhaustion from all the travelling and fighting. I¡¯m sorry for not letting you rest more.¡±

    Elise furrowed her brows. ¡°Why are you apologising? It is not your fault I¡¯m sick. If someone have to be blamed, then it will be because of this body.¡±

    Turning to the elderly man, Andric asked in an apologetic tone, ¡°Sorry for the trouble, but could you let me know where the doctor is?¡±

    The elderly man gave a sympathetic smile and suggested, ¡°Why don''t you bring the young lady back to where you''re staying to rest first, while I go and look for the doctor?¡±

    ¡°No, I''m al-¡± Before Elise could finish her words, Andric covered her mouth with his palm and said gratefully, ¡°That would help a lot.¡±

    Elise glared at him. Ignoring her furious gaze, Andric bent his knees slightly and put an arm around her back and the other arm around the bend of her knees. In a smooth movement, he lifted her up.

    Elise felt her feet leaving the ground and instinctively held on to him.

    T-This is! She was currently being carried like a child!

    ¡°What are you doing!¡±

    ¡°We are currently staying at Sunworth Days Inn. Do you know where it is?¡± Andric ignored the girl in his arms, and asked the elderly man.

    The elderly man only looked amused and nodded. ¡°I''ll bring the doctor over shortly.¡±

    ¡°Thank you. Just let the innkeeper know that you are looking for Andric Kennings later.¡± Not wasting any time, he turned around and quickly walked out of the store.

    As they walked down the street, they attracted some strange looks, but Andric was unperturbed and continued at the same pace.

    On the other hand, Elise was not okay at all.

    She struggled to get out of his grasps, but her efforts were in vain as the muscular arms continued to hold her prisoner.

    Gritting her teeth, she said with a controlled tone, ¡°Andric. Put. Me. Down.¡±

    ¡°No. If you walk, your fever will worsen,¡± he rejected calmly.

    ¡°I just feel a little cold and tired. I can still walk,¡± she insisted.

    ¡°This way is faster. Just lie still.¡±

    She had to admit that it was faster this way, but that was not the main point!

    ¡°It is embarrassing. Please put me down,¡± Elise repeated in a lowered voice. Her face was burning from all the curious looks from the passer-bys. Much to her chagrin, some of the ladies were even looking in their direction enviously.

    ¡°If you feel embarrassed, you might want to hide your face,¡± Andric suggested as he tried to stifle a laugh. He knew that his action was embarrassing as well,  but he was doing it on purpose so that the girl lying in his arms would learn not to behave so recklessly.

    ¡°Urgh, you¡­¡± Elise didn¡¯t know what to continue. Giving up, she decided to take up the suggestion and turned her face towards his chest.

    I am just a lump of clothes¡­ Elise closed her eyes as she prayed that this ordeal will pass over soon.

    *****

    The elderly man watched the two young people exit his shop. It was out of his character to offer assistance to others outside of his scope of work.  However this time round, his interest was aroused by the strange girl so he decided to offer them his help.

    Thinking back to how the young man had carried the girl without batting an eye upon learning that the girl was sick, he shook his head and muttered, ¡°Young couples nowadays are really open. Back in my day, I had to do everything undercover¡­ And even then, what do I have left of it?¡± The corners of his lips curled up slightly. but his peridot eyes were clouded.

    But well, that was no business of an old man like him to poke into. He still have a doctor to find first.

 Chapter 8 - A Chance Meeting

    ¡°How is business today?¡± A deep voice bellowed as someone walked down the stairs from the second level of the building. A middle aged man in his early forties appeared soon after. Although his dark brown hair that was swept back was slightly peppered, his huge, defined muscles and the sharp glint in his brown eyes showed that he was still a man in his prime.

    ¡°Guild Master,¡± Fiore greeted emotionlessly. Even though she usually held their Guild Master, Reuben Wingsley, with respect, she was still annoyed with his inconsiderate remark.

    The man who wore a well fitted, black long sleeved coat with silver trimmings and dark blue pants approached the counter slowly. He could tell that the girl at the counter was still cross with him. He had said the comment about her not having a boyfriend the previous day without thinking too much as he had not known that she was just right outside the door at that time.

    ¡°I¡¯m really sorry about what I said the other day you know,¡± he apologised. He had apologised yesterday as well, after she had kicked down the door and held him up by his collar. She was not nicknamed the ¡®Iron-Fist Fiore¡¯ for nothing, so knocking down an heavy oak door and holding a two metre tall adult man up was still something within her ability. He wondered if she knew the reason why she could not find a boyfriend¡­

    However, she had ultimately agreed to help out her colleague after she had calmed down. She was still a kind child after all.

    ¡°Stop. I don¡¯t want to hear about it anymore,¡± Fiore replied sullenly.

    ¡°Okay, okay¡­¡± Reuben said as he held his hands up in the air.

    Fiore scowled, but she soon remembered the news she wanted to report.

    ¡°Guild Master, remember the Adventurer who picked up the Giant Spider thread quest by himself?¡±

    Reuben nodded. ¡°So how is that lad doing? Did he give up?¡±

    ¡°Nope. He submitted the thread in today.¡±

    ¡°He really managed to complete alone?¡± Reuben asked in surprise. It seems like this lad had quite the potential.

    ¡°Yeah! He¡¯s amazing isn''t he,¡± Fiore replied as she grinned.

    ¡°Pshh. I can do that by myself as well.¡±

    Fiore glared at him. ¡°It''s not fair to compare him to you.¡± The Guild Master was a rank A Adventurer before he retired and took up the position of Guild Master. Rank A Adventurers had abilities much higher than B+ Adventurers, and they were usually given that rank after they are recognised for accomplishing something big. From what she had heard, their Guild Master was part of a small party that subjugated a group of six metre tall stone golems that were wreaking havoc near a mine.

    ¡°Ah, but that''s not all that I want to say,¡± Fiore shook her head.

    Bending down, she took out a basket that contained Goblin ear tips from under the counter.

    ¡°This was what that Adventurer passed to me as well. He said that he killed them while on the way back from the quest.¡±

    ¡°All of these? There must be around 50 here!¡± Reuben blurted out.

    ¡°That¡¯s about right. Remember what I said a few weeks back that the monster activity in the forest has been getting lesser?¡±

    Reuben nodded. ¡°I remember. Usually for this season, monster activity is quite rampant. However, there are very few Forest Wolves and Goblin sightings this year.¡±

    ¡°Mmm. But just yesterday, this Adventurer met with a group of 50 Goblins. Don''t you think that it''s strange?¡±

    Reuben rubbed his chin thoughtfully. ¡°You are right. I will send some scouts to track down where the Goblins are coming from. If they are moving around in large numbers, it should be easy to follow them.¡±

    Although Goblins were a threat, it was difficult to hunt all of them down as they were lithe and their villages were all well hidden. In addition, they usually travelled in small groups of three to six. Thus, for an individual to meet 50 all in one day, it was extremely strange. It was definitely something that they needed to investigate.

    ¡°What do you think could be happening?¡± Fiore asked. The sudden disappearance of monsters, and then the sudden reappearance of a huge number of Goblins.

    ¡°It is difficult to answer that now. But looking at things, there could have been a birth of a Goblin General.¡±

    Fiore dropped her jaws. Goblin General was a rank A monster and was one of the advanced evolutions of the Goblin species. Apart from having physical abilities much higher than other Goblins, they also had the authority to command lower ranked Goblins. They were also rumoured to be grow up to 3 metres tall and had almost black skin. Although very few Goblin Generals have existed in history, almost all of it had ended in an intense war between Goblins and humans.

    Looking at Fiore¡¯s shocked expression, Reuben tried to give an assuring smile, ¡°That is only the worse case scenario though. We won¡¯t know what is really happening until we investigate.¡±

    Although she was unable to shake off the bad feeling in her heart, Fiore nodded slowly. ¡°I will contact some Adventurers to investigate then.¡±

    ¡°By the way, who is the Adventurer that killed of all these Goblins?¡±

    Fiore opened the leather bound book and flipped to the page where the completed quest was at.

    Looking for the part which indicated the name of the Adventurer who completed the quest, she said, ¡°Andric Kennings, a Swordsman. Currently twenty three years old, born in the Esterpine Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°I see. Thanks.¡±

    A Swordsman who is able to complete a quest meant for four and kill off a group of 50 Goblins all by himself...

    He should keep an eye out for this young lad as he could be useful in the future.

    *****

    It had been four days since Elise fell sick. On the first day, after she had reached back to the inn, her fever had worsened so she was put to bed immediately, only waking up when the doctor arrived. The doctor¡¯s diagnosis was that she had caught a cold, which she could expect to make full recovery within five days time by taking her medicine on time and having sufficient rest. Hearing that, she had reluctantly stayed in bed obediently for the past four days.

    Today was the fifth day she had reached the town of Wivendale, and unfortunately, she had not stepped out of the inn since the first day. Although she was vexed, she could only blame her own body.

    Elise sighed as she lied in bed and stared at the whitewashed ceiling.  The doctor had came by that morning to check on her again. Thankfully her fever had gone down, but the doctor had said that she should rest more as her body was weak, so she was advised to stay in bed for one more day.

    But she really can¡¯t sleep anymore¡­ And if she was to continue staring at the ceiling for the whole day, she might just rot away¡­

    Knock knock. A soft sound came from the door. ¡°Miss Elise, are you awake?¡±

    ¡°Mari? I¡¯m awake.  Come in.¡±

    The door opened and a young girl with light brown hair and freckles came in carrying a tray with a covered bowl. Mari was the child of the innkeeper and she had been taking care of Elise for the past four days.

    ¡°Sorry for the trouble of bringing the food up. You could have just called me down to eat,¡± Elise said as she sat up.

    ¡°This is not a trouble at all. Plus, I heard from Mr Andric that Miss Elise is sick,¡± the young girl of around ten said shyly as she put the tray down on the dressing table.

    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sick anymore. Don¡¯t listen to Andric. He is just exaggerating things.¡±

    ¡°That is because Mr Andric is worried about you...¡± The young girl replied softly with red cheeks.

    When she had first seen the both of them enter the inn together, she thought that they were actors from the theatre. The man was handsome while the woman was beautiful; they looked perfect together. However, when they asked for two rooms, she realised that they were not a couple and thought that it was a waste.

    However, when they walked in again that afternoon with Andric carrying her princess-style, she felt that there was still hope. Not only that, during the last three days, she had seen Mr Andric being concerned about her. However, Miss Elise did not seem to reciprocate, so she is determined to help him out. She is definitely on the side of Mr Andric!

    Not knowing that a silent flame had lighted up inside the heart of the young girl, Elise nonchalantly opened the cover of the bowl and was delighted to find that it was rice porridge with pork and soft boiled egg.

    ¡°Please give my compliments to the chef!¡± Elise exclaimed as she dug heartily into the porridge. Although it was very different from she was used to in the castle, the food was still delicious. ¡°And tell him to put eggs in all my of food please!¡± She just can¡¯t get enough of the soft fluffy taste of soft boiled eggs!

    ¡°Eh? I¡¯ll let Papa know. But I hear from Mama it¡¯s not good to eat too much eggs¡­¡± The girl cautioned.

    ¡°By the way, is Andric still around?¡± Elise cut in before the young girl went on further. He was the one who brought the doctor, however, she had not seen him after that.

    Mari shook her head. ¡°Mr Andric went out after the doctor had left.¡±

    ¡°I see,¡± Elise replied simply.

    Andric had been going out everyday since she fell sick, and would only return at night. When she asked him where he went, he was quite vague about it. Although she was curious, she did not ask more as she respected his privacy.

    ¡°Mari! Can you come down and help out for a moment?¡± A voice called from below the stairs. Elise recognised it as the voice of her father, the innkeeper.

    ¡°Coming, Papa~¡± Mari raised her voice to reply.

    ¡°Go ahead.¡± Elise smiled as she met the apologetic eyes of the young girl.

    ¡°I¡¯ll come up and check on you later,¡± Mari promised before she ran out of the room, her feet pitter pattering across the wooden floor.

    ¡°So cute,¡± Elise murmured with an affectionate smile. ¡°When I was around her age, I was already following soldiers to exterminate monsters, wasn¡¯t I?¡± she muttered to herself as she scooped the porridge into her mouth.

    As her mother passed away soon after delivering her, she was brought up by nannies and governesses who were strict and cold. Even though her lifestyle was luxurious, she did not have many happy childhood memories because of the stiff environment.

    On the other hand, being born as a commoner, Mari needed to work and help out with her family¡¯s business since young. However, she was able to live freely with her warm and kind parents.

    Was she envious? Perhaps.

    But does she hate her life? Not really

    This was the kind of situation that she was born into, and she had long accepted her duty. There was no need for her to waver anymore.

    Ah. That¡¯s the last of her porridge. While she was deep in her thoughts, she had finished her porridge. She looked at the bowl regretfully. The food was delicious. She should have savoured it more.

    Picking up the tray, she decided to bring the bowl down. It was not like she was crippled, the least she could do was to return it on her own.

    The moment she opened the door, the sounds of people talking and laughing coming from the dining area on the first floor floated into her ears.

    The inn had gotten busier since two days ago. When they first arrived, only two other rooms apart from theirs were taken up. However, the twelve room inn was now almost fully occupied. Mari had explained that they were mostly Adventurers, and heard that it was because there was a special quest happening.

    When she asked Mari what a ¡®special quest¡¯ was, the young girl shook her head and said that she was not very sure either as it was only something she had overheard from the guests.

    As she walked down the corridor, she met Mari, who was bringing someone up the stairs.

    ¡°Miss Elise! You should have left the bowl in the room. I was planning to collect it later,¡± Mari¡¯s face paled when she saw Elise walking about.

    ¡°Haha. I¡¯m fine,¡± Elise chuckled. ¡°You are bringing a guest to the room right? Don¡¯t keep the guest waiting,¡± she said with a cheeky smile.

    Mari shuffled. But Mr Andric had told her that Miss Elise needed to rest, so she would have let him down if he knew that Elise went out of her room to return the bowl. At this moment, the guest behind her who had been partially hidden behind a pillar stepped out.

    Elise caught her breathe as a tall figure came into view.

    From the head of the perfectly oval face were long flowing light blue hair that shone when it was caught in the sunlight. Her features were sharp, with thin lips and slender eyebrows. As the person¡¯s light blue eyes met hers, Elise felt as if she was looking into a tranquil lake.

    ¡°Nice to meet you, are you an Adventurer as well?¡± A deep but melodious voice greeted warmly.

    ¡°Eh?¡± A deep voice? Elise was jolted out of her daze.

    Elise quickly swept her eyes down the person¡¯s clothes. Although he was wearing loose fitting black and blue coloured robes, she could tell from the broad shoulders and flat chest that the beautiful person in front of her was really a man. What a big mistake she had almost made¡­

    ¡°Miss Elise?¡¯ Mari prompted softly with red cheeks when she saw that Elise was staring at the guest behind her in silence. She could understand the reason why though. She was also shocked when she saw such a fairy-like person.

    Elise cleared her throat and smiled awkwardly at the beautiful man (?). ¡°Nice to meet you as well. My name is Elise. Uh, but I¡¯m not an Adventurer¡­¡±

    ¡°I see,¡± the beautiful man replied amiably. ¡°My name is Seymour, but you can just call me Sey for short. Since we are going to be neighbours, we should be seeing each other around quite often.¡±

    Elise chuckled. ¡°Seymour is a nice name, but Sey is definitely easier to call.¡±

    ¡°See you around then. You still need to head to your room right? And I need to return the bowl as well,¡± she said while looking meaningfully at Mari.

    ¡°Y-Yes! Mr Seymour this way please!¡± Mari stammered as she gestured him towards a room to the far left, which was the opposite of Elise¡¯s room. She had almost forgotten what her job was!

    ¡°You can just call me Sey as well,¡± the beautiful man laughed as he followed the young girl.

    ¡°N-No, that would be too rude¡­¡±

    The corners of Elise¡¯s mouth twitched as she watched the two of them walk away. Ah, to think that she would see a man that was more beautiful than a woman¡­ This had definitely dealt a blow to her confidence.

 Chapter 9 - Preparation

    At that very moment, Andric was studying a map that had been spread out on a round table. On the map, markings with green and grey pins had been made sporadically across the map, and lines of different colours were drawn in a seemingly unstructured fashion.

    To the people not involved, it would be difficult to decipher the value of the map, but to the eight people crowding around the table, the map was something that can help them to decide if they were going to live or perish. And at the moment, the odds were not good.

    The place that Andric was current at was the meeting room in the Wivendale Guild. The people surrounding him were all high ranking Adventurers of B+ and above.

    To explain the reason why he was currently at such a place, the time will need to be rewinded to three days ago...

    While Elise was resting at the inn, Andric had not been idling around.

    Since the first day Elise fell sick, he had been going around to ask if there were anyone who knew Elise.

    On the first day, he had asked the Guild Receptionist if she knew a young lady by the name of Elise. According to her, there hasn''t been any female Adventurer by that name who came by recently. Although Elise did not find any Adventurer pass in her bags, he thought there was a chance that she might have lost it somewhere, hence he felt that there was still hope by enquiring at the Guild. However, the answer was a resounding ¡®no¡¯.

    When he asked the elderly shopkeeper the same question, he too, had shook his head and replied that if Elise was a townsperson, most of the townspeople would recognise her with her caliber of looks. However, the townspeople treated her as a stranger, so with that, the chance of Elise being a townsperson was striked out.

    On the second day, he headed out early to the guard post to ask if they had seen someone who looks like Elise enter and exit the gates recently. The guards had gotten slightly suspicious, so he lied that he quarreled with her and she had walked off, so he thought that she might have went out of town. Luckily there was a guard who saw the both of them entering the day before, and their attitude became slightly friendlier.

    Andric¡¯s mind whirled as he attempted to ask the same question again. Giving a sad smile, he had said woefully, ¡°She is quite headstrong so she will run off on her own sometimes when she gets angry. I haven¡¯t seen her this morning so I am afraid she might have done the same again. Have you seen her exiting the town recently?¡±

    The guard had patted in his shoulders sympathetically. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t see her going out today. But I was quite worried when I saw her walking into the forest around a week ago. Good to see that you managed to bring her back.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, she is quite reckless so I always need to keep a watchful eye over her,¡± he replied calmly.

    However, deep in his heart, he rejoiced at the fact that he had managed to find out she went out of the town a week ago. As she was not an Adventurer, she should be a traveller. But why would she go all the way to a secluded lake on her own? And was she really there to commit suicide?

    After he left the guard post, he was considering where to go to next when a familiar person with moss green hair ran up to him.

    ¡°Miss¡­ Guild Receptionist?¡± Andric asked with a raised eyebrow as the small figure in front of him stopped to catch her breathe.

    ¡°You are Andric Kennings, right?¡± She asked excitedly. Before he was able to react, she grabbed his hand and started running. Being pulled by the small figure, Andric had no choice but to run behind her. ¡°Please follow me to the Guild! We will answer your questions later.¡±

    What surprised him more was not the fact that the Guild Receptionist was looking for him urgently, but rather how, despite her small stature, she had the strength to drag a 180cm tall adult male across two streets without losing her grip.

    They approached the Guild door at such a speed that he was almost convinced that she was going to crash into in. However, she reacted in time and swung the door open widely with a loud resounding bang.

    ¡°Guild Master! I¡¯ve brought the Adventurer I was talking about!¡±

    ¡°Fiore¡­ How many doors are you planning to destroy this week?¡±

    Inside the Guild, Andric saw that there were seven people standing around the lobby of the Guild. In the center was a well-built, middle aged man with swept back brown hair. Beside him was a man in his thirties with steel grey hair, and three other Adventurers in their twenties. A pair of Adventurers with black hair that looked similar to each other stood slightly away.

    The person who had spoken out was the commanding man standing in the middle.

    The young lady who was called Fiore retorted back, ¡°This is such a critical time and you still want to argue with me about a door?¡± ¡°The first time was your fault anyway!¡± She said angrily as she pointed a finger at him.

    Hearing their exchange, the man with steel grey hair said wearily, ¡°Guild Master, if you don¡¯t mind, is it okay if we go to the meeting room to sit down first?¡± Turning to the girl, he continued, ¡°Miss Fiore, I¡¯m sure the young man behind you have a lot of questions to ask as well. Let us sit down, so that we can discuss things more easily.¡±

    It seems like that man was the most reasonable person in the room. ¡°That would be great,¡± Andric said as he crossed his arms and smiled wryly.

    The man with grey hair bowed his head slightly in apology. ¡°We are sorry for bringing you here without an explanation. My name is Rigel, and I am the Assistant Guild Master for Wivendale Guild.¡± Gesturing to the man beside him, he introduced, ¡°This is our Guild Master, Reuben Wingsley.¡±

    The Guild Master nodded his head. ¡°So you are that young lad I have been hearing about. You have a pair of good eyes. I heard that you killed a bunch of Goblins by yourself?¡±

    ¡°So what if that¡¯s true?¡±

    The Guild Master laughed. ¡°There¡¯s no need to be on guard, lad. You look like you are going to bolt away anytime.¡±

    Andric furrowed his brows slightly but did not answer.

    Seeing that the conversation was going nowhere, Rigel intercepted immediately. ¡°What we wish to say is actually; there is something strange going on with the Goblins in the forest, and we will like to seek your assistance in the investigation.¡±

    Hearing this, Andric could roughly understand the reason why. It was the first time he had met so many waves of attacks coming from High Goblins in a forest. Goblins usually attacked in small groups and they would also run away once the situation was unfavourable. However the once he faced seemed like they were targeting him specifically, and their attacks got stronger until the last wave with the Red Goblins. On the other hand, as he was informed that it was normal for Goblins to attack Adventurers carrying Giant Spider thread, he did not think too much into it.

    ¡°Shall we head up to the meeting room to sit down and discuss properly?¡± Rigel asked.

    Andric sighed resignedly. ¡°Let¡¯s go then.¡±

    *****

    The meeting room was on the second level of the Guild. Andric had never entered the area before so he was slightly curious. There were a total of three rooms on the second level. One was a lounge where special guests could sit at, the other was the working space of the Guild Master and the Assistant Guild Master, and lastly, the meeting room, where all of them entered.

    The room was well lit by oil lamps even though the curtains were all lowered. The main furniture in the room was a big, round wooden table with ten chairs placed around it. There was also a large map of the area surrounding Wivendale hanging on a side of the wall.

    It was big enough for a group of thirty men to stand inside, so when the nine of them at gathered inside, there were still plenty of space to move around.

    Once they had all seated, Rigel opened the topic.

    ¡°I''ll make this short and to the point. Goblins moving in groups of ten and above in the Spider Forest is unheard of. So after hearing that one of the Adventurer was met with an attack of close to fifty Goblins in a day, the Guild Master decided to send out men to investigate. My men and I had set out yesterday and split into two groups to look for the Goblins¡¯ tracks.¡±

    This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

    Reuben nodded. ¡°How was your findings?¡±

    Rigel¡¯s face hardened. ¡°The group that I was with met two groups of High Goblins. Each group had ten Goblins and they were armed with swords and light plate armor.¡±

    ¡°Plate armor?¡± The mouth corners of Reuben¡¯s mouth raised, however his eyes were cold. ¡°When did Goblin blacksmiths learn how to make plate armor?¡±

    ¡°The craftsmanship was quite poor, so it should be something they started recently. However, the main problem should be where they received the metal from.¡±

    ¡°Are there any working mines nearby?¡± Reuben asked.

    Fiore had been living in the town since she was born so she knew it better than the Adventurers who only came around three years ago. She shook her head. ¡°No. The town has always been in forestry and weaving. While there are mountains nearby, it is heavily inhabited by Giant Spiders so no attempts have been made so far to check if there are minerals.¡±

    Reuben rubbed his chin. The next possible scenario is that there was someone supplying them with metal. But why would anyone do that?

    ¡°But that is not the worst. Keith, tell them what you saw,¡± Rigel said as he looked at a man in his mid twenties with chestnut coloured hair.

    Keith stood up. ¡°After we split with the Assistant Guild Master, we went to the east side of the forest. Over there, we saw High Goblins and Forest Wolves drinking at the stream together.¡±

    ¡°Drinking together?!¡± Reuben thundered.

    Goblins and Forest Wolves were natural enemies that would attack each other whenever their paths cross. How could they possibly be drinking amiably together?

    ¡°Are you sure you did not mistake it?¡±

    Keith nodded his head glumly. ¡°Yes. Although we were a distance away as we did not want to risk being spotted, we saw them clearly standing side by side. Lastly, the High Goblins rode on the backs of the Forest Wolves when they left.¡±

    Deafening silence swept across the room.

    Forest Wolves were rated as rank D monsters individually. When they are in a pack of five or more, it increases to rank B and become troublesome deal with as they had good teamwork. On the other hand, normal Goblins were rank E monsters as they were small and only had the strength of a human child. Although after evolving, High Goblins were rank D monsters, they still did not have the power to tame Forest Wolves.

    Why would two enemies of the same rank put down their differences and started working together?

    Regardless of the reason, it was evident that it did not bode well for them, the humans.

    ¡°This requires more investigation,¡± Reuben said gravely. ¡°No matter what, we need to find out where their base is.¡±

    Slamming a hand on the wooden table, he cursed, ¡°Damn it. No matter how I look at it, a high ranking monster must have evolved from amongst the Goblins. The new monster must be intelligent as well, to be able to make the Forest Wolves work together with them, and to get materials to make armour.¡±

    ¡°Lad, how were the Goblins to you when you met them?¡± Reuben turned to the russet haired young man who had been silent so far.

    Andric recalled his fight with the Goblins, and explained slowly, ¡°They were wearing leather clothes and their weapons looked new. Although their teamwork were lacking, it felt like they put in some thoughts to their formation. For example, some Goblin archers will hide on the trees while others were on the ground.¡±

    Although Goblins were considered a fairly intelligent race of monsters, they tend to have infighting between themselves so it was unusual for them to display such a level of teamwork.

    Unless... A more intelligent being had been born amongst them and was guiding them now.

    ¡°If,¡± Rigel started hesitantly, ¡°It is true that a high ranking monster has been born among the Goblins, will it lead to war?¡±

    All eyes looked towards the commanding man in the room.

    ¡°History have proofed that that is so,¡± Reuben said with a sigh. ¡°However, we might be able to control the casualties if we act first.¡±

    With a glint in his eye he declared, ¡°Fiore! Send out notification to all the Guilds in the Kingdom! Let them know that the Wivendale Guild is starting a special subjugation quest. The requirement is that the Adventurer needs to be at least rank D and above. For those who wish to participate, they need to be reach the town within two weeks. The reward will be revealed on a later date.¡±

    ¡°Rigel.¡± He turned to the man with gray hair. ¡°I need you to inform the capital Guild to send a rank A Adventurer over.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Guild Master.¡±

    Turning to Andric, he grinned. Andric could anticipate what kind of sentence he would say next. ¡°Lad, I will need your help with the scouting.¡±

    Andri nodded. Since he was dragged into this mess, he had no choice but to continue to participate.

    And so, that was the reason why he got involved with this group of strong Adventurers with rankings higher than his.

    *****

    It had been three days since he joined, and he had been going out to the forest everyday to try and find out the base of the Goblins.

    So far, they had managed to find out the general direction the base is at, however if they were to head too deep into that area, it would risk alarming the Goblins, hence they had yet to see the base for themselves.

    The word regarding the special quest had spread quickly, so Adventurers were starting to stream into town. By the time the deadline was up, it was expected that over 200 Adventurers would reach the town.

    ¡°When will the rank A Adventurer reach the town? It¡¯s already evening,¡± Reuben asked Rigel impatiently.

    ¡°He is expected to arrive by today in the afternoon,¡± Rigel answered. ¡°But as he is returning from a quest in another area, he could have been delayed on the way.¡±

    Reuben sighed. He knew that he was just being unreasonable. It was just that he could not help being restless.

    Crash! Bang! The door to the meeting room swung open with a huge noise.

    Seeing the green haired girl standing outside the door, Reuben could not control his rising temper.

    ¡°Fiore¡­ How many time must I tell you not to destroy the doors in the Guild¡­?¡± He said through gritted teeth as a green vein popped out from his forehead.

    However, Fiore was too excited to counter him. ¡°Everyone! The rank A Adventurer is here!¡±

    Everyone fell silent as they watched a tall man with long, silky light blue hair walk into the room.

    Despite his friendly smile and feminine features, no one in the room dared to make any jokes as they could could feel his imposing aura. The atmosphere in the room was stifling, as if they were held underwater and unable to breath. Even for Reuben who was also a rank A Adventurer, he could feel that there was a power difference between the both of them.

    With each step, the man¡¯s boots made a reverberating ¡®thud¡¯.

    Finally, he stopped in his steps after having come to the front of the room.

    ¡°Nice to meet all of you. My name is Seymour.¡±

    <hr />

    Author''s note:

    Thank you for reading today''s chapter! Was Seymour''s identity surprising, or was it something expected?

    There was no Elise this chapter, but she will be returning next chapter. :D

 Chapter 10 - Adventuring Sounds Fun

    ¡°Miss Elise¡­ You should be staying in your room¡­¡± A small and nervous voice sounded out.

    The owner of the voice was, of course, the cute and adorable Mari. Elise smiled indifferently and argued, ¡°I¡¯m just having my dinner in the dining area. I can¡¯t possibly stay in such a small room the whole day.... Ah! I¡¯m not saying that the room is small though!¡± Elise quickly added as she realised her words might be hurtful to the young girl.

    ¡°It''s ok, Miss Elise. I know the room is small as well,¡± Mari replied ruefully.

    ¡°Mari, don''t let the other customers wait.¡±

    Mari jumped and turned around. ¡°Mama¡­¡±

    A woman in her thirties with the same light brown hair as Mari approached the table Elise was seated at.

    ¡°Go and help the other customers take their orders. I''ll help Miss Elise,¡± she said firmly as she put a hand on her waist.

    Having no choice, Mari had to do as her mother says and went off reluctantly.

    ¡°Sorry my daughter is so stubborn,¡± the woman said apologetically. ¡°She has been very motivated by Mr Andric¡¯s request to keep a watchful eye over you.¡±

    ¡°It''s okay, Mrs Daysworth,¡± Elise chuckled. ¡°I really appreciate all the help the inn has given me for the past few days.¡±

    Mrs Daysworth laughed heartily. ¡°You are a paying customer. Something as small as this is not an issue at all.¡±

    ¡°So, what do you want to eat today?¡± She asked as she placed the menu on the table.

    ¡°The roast beef with potatoes sound delicious. Can I have the vegetable soup as well?¡±

    ¡°Sure!¡± Mrs Daysworth replied as she jotted the order down with a notepad she took out from her apron. ¡°Will you be eating alone today?¡±

    Elise raised an eyebrow. She had been eating alone in her room for the past four days. What was she talking about now?

    Seeing the girl¡¯s confused look, Mrs Daysworth glanced around before leaning forward. ¡°Most of the people staying here are rough people so they might get a bit excited when they see a pretty miss. If you need any help just give me a call, okay?¡±

    Elise thought for a while before her words registered in her head. Ah, having a good looking face is pretty tough isn''t it.

    ¡°I will be fine,¡± she said with a smile.

    Mrs Daysworth looked unconvinced, but she nodded. ¡°Alright. Just give us a while. I¡¯ll bring the food over soon.¡±

    Now that she was alone, Elise started looking around. The dining area contained twelve wooden round tables that could seat four people each. The number of seats was more than the maximum number of occupants in the inn as the inn also served diners not staying in the inn.

    The place was now almost fully occupied as it was close to dinner time. As Elise was waiting for the food to be served, more diners streamed in, making the place even livier. This was a nice change for Elise who had been holed up in her room for the past few days.

    ¡°You are Miss Elise right? Your soup is here,¡± a cheery voice called out.

    A bowl of steaming vegetable soup was put in front of her. Next to the soup was a small loaf of bread that was meant to be eaten with the soup.

    Elise looked up and met the twinkling hazel eyes of the buxom waitress. She was wearing a green apron that all the staff were wearing over a long sleeved white blouse and dark brown midi skirt. Her apricot coloured hair was braided loosely into a pigtail and brought to the front of her ample bosom. Her looks was average, but she gave off a welcoming atmosphere, so she should be quite popular in the inn.

    She heard from Mari that the waitress¡¯ name was Percy, a part timer who only worked during the lunch and dinner hours.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Ah, so polite.¡± The twenty year old grinned. ¡°I heard a lot about you from Mari. Are you feeling better?¡±

    ¡°Haha. Yes. If I stay in my room any longer, I''m going to grow mushrooms,¡± Elise joked.

    ¡°Heh. Good to know that you have recovered,¡± she remarked. ¡°You still have a main right? It should be done soon. I''ll check with boss,¡± the young lady said rapidly before she bustled off again

    Having been left alone again, Elise picked up the spoon to prepare to tuck in.

    ¡°Hey there. Are you eating alone?¡±

    How unoriginal, Elise thought before she looked up. As she was cautioned by Mrs Daysworth earlier, she was not surprised to hear a stranger talking to her.

    It was a youth wearing a silver coloured light plate armor with black under clothes. From his getup, Elise could deduce that he was an Adventurer. The person that looked to be in his early twenties was grinning and his green eyes was friendly.

    ¡°If you are eating alone, would you mind if I join you?¡± The youth with messy brown hair asked enthusiastically.

    Smiling slightly, she answered, ¡°I¡¯m waiting for my friend.¡±

    Hearing this, the face of the youth fell.

    Elise was amused. Was he going to give up just like that? The men of the lower world seemed to be pretty chivalrous. Not that she was complaining of course.

    ¡°See, I told you a pretty lady like her will have companions.¡± A tall, muscular man with dirty blond hair under a white bandana appeared behind the youth, and grabbed his shoulders. Different from the first man, he was wearing a brown shirt under a set of black, hard leather armor.

    Flashing her an apologetic grin, he said, ¡°Sorry, I hope Mansor has not scared you.¡±

    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    Elise quickly waved her hands. ¡°Not at all. I was slightly surprised though¡­¡±

    ¡°Mansor¡­ See I told you it was a bad idea,¡± the muscular man said with a disapproving frown.

    ¡°Fred, you wanted to talk to her as well, didn¡¯t you¡­ Why am I the only one who is getting scolded¡­¡±

    Elise smiled at the duo. Since she had time, why don¡¯t she entertain herself for a while?

    ¡°If the both of you don¡¯t mind, would you like to join me for dinner?¡± She invited. ¡°My friend seems to be late. It would be nice to have people to talk to while having my dinner.¡±

    ¡°Really!¡± Both man exclaimed before they looked at each other and grinned. ¡°Of course we will not mind!¡±

    The surrounding diners who have been secretly listening to the conversation between the pretty blonde haired girl and the two Adventurers immediately regretted not gathering their courage to speak to the girl.

    *****

    ¡°Are the both of you from Wivendale?¡± Elise asked after they had settled down at her table.

    ¡°No, Fred and I are Adventurers. We just came to the town a day ago,¡± the younger looking of the duo, Mansor, answered energetically. Elise could tell that he was a chatty person.

    ¡°Oh? What are the both of you in town for?¡± Elise asked as she put a piece of bite sized roast beef into her mouth.

    Mmm¡­ Delicious!

    All of their mains had been served so they were in the midst of eating while they were talking.

    The reason why she had invited them to have dinner with her was not only because she was bored. It was to find out more information about the land as well. Although Mari had shared with her what she know, there were many things she was not sure of as she had never went out of town. If she was to go to the capital to take the airship, she will need to find out more information about what is happening in other towns in the land. She can¡¯t keep depending on Andric after all.

    ¡°We are here to participate in the special quest the Wivendale Guild sent out.¡± The muscular man called Fred said. ¡°How about you? What are you here for?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a special quest?¡± Elise asked curiously while ignoring his last two questions.

    ¡°The details are not out yet, but I heard that it is something to do with Goblins,¡± Mansor replied. ¡°The forests in this area gets pretty infested with Goblins during this time of the year. Perhaps it¡¯s to help with the extermination.¡±

    ¡°I heard that the reward for this is going to be pretty good!¡± Fred added.

    ¡°Reward? Is it money?¡± She knew that the job of an Adventurer was to complete quests and submit them to the Guild for a reward, but she was not sure of what kind of reward they received, and how much they received for each quest. But for a life threatening job, the reward should be pretty good right? Her eyes started sparkling as she thought of that.

    ¡°Mmm¡­ If it¡¯s Goblin subjugation, they will usually count by the number of monster you have killed. The usual rate is around 2 Merin for each Goblin. If it¡¯s a High Goblin, then it will be around 10 Merin,¡± Fred explained. ¡°Miss, you are interested in becoming an Adventurer?¡± He joked when he saw her eyes light up.

    Elise smiled as she realised she had found her chance of getting the money for her ticket back home.

    Her adorable smile caused the heartbeat of the two Adventurers in front of her to increase. Who was that bastard that dare to leave her sitting alone in an inn?

    ¡°Yes. I think I''ll like to become an Adventurer. It sounds pretty fun.¡±

    ¡°Ehhhh!¡± Mansor exclaimed. Fred looked surprised as well, but he did not let out a unsightly sound like Mansor. ¡°What kind of Adventurer are you intending to become?¡±

    ¡°What kind?¡± Elise questioned. ¡°There are different kinds of Adventurers?¡±

    ¡°Ah, he¡¯s referring to your job class,¡± Fred explained. ¡°For example, I am a Warrior who uses a battle axe while Mansor is a Swordsman who uses a longsword and shield.¡±

    ¡°Miss do not look like the kind of person who fights. What kind of weapon do you use?¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­ I haven¡¯t thought about that¡­¡± She could be a Mage¡­ But her mana level was so low it would be an insult to other Mages to call herself a Mage.

    Mansor fell over his chair comedically. ¡°You don¡¯t know what weapon to use and you want to be an Adventurer? Isn¡¯t that too dangerous?¡±

    ¡°Mansor is right about that. The job of an Adventurer is tough and you meet with lots of dangerous situations. It is not a job that someone without training should go into,¡± Fred said seriously as he crossed his arms.

    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t know how to use any weapons. It¡¯s just that I¡¯m not sure which one to use when I¡¯m registering myself as an Adventurer,¡± Elise explained. ¡°But thanks for the caution, I¡¯ll be careful.¡±

    The two men looked at each other. ¡°Well, since Miss says so¡­¡±

    ¡°By the way, we have been talking for a while but we still don¡¯t know your name yet,¡± Mansor said as he leaned forward.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. May we know the name of this beautiful lady?¡± Fred asked smoothly with a wink.

    Seeing the two expectant faces looking at her, Elise could not help but smile at their foolish expressions.

    ¡°My name is¡­¡±

    ¡°Elise.¡±

    A deep voice had interrupted her sentence.

 Chapter 11 - Teasing Others is Fun

    Author''s note:

    Hi everyone! This scene is a continuation from the previous chapter. Please enjoy~

    p.s Percy has the biggest *cough* plot *cough* among the females introduced so far.

    <hr />

    ¡°Elise.¡±

    The voice that had interrupted her was one that she had not heard since that morning.

    Andric had just entered the inn when he noticed that the eyes of the diners were all focused on a table at the corner of the dining area. Although her face was blocked by the two men sitting in front of her, he could recognise her pale blonde hair peeking through the heads of the well-built men. Taking big strides, he walked to Elise¡¯s table and gazed coldly at the two men. From their clothes¡­ Probably Adventurers. Had the girl gotten herself into trouble?

    ¡°Ah, Andric. You are back early today. Would you like to join us for dinner?¡± Elise asked pleasantly. She could tell that he was unhappy, and this had stirred up a little happiness within her. She had not forgotten the embarrassment of being carried down the busy street.

    ¡°They are your acquaintances?¡± Andric asked causally.

    ¡°Well, yes. The two of them asked if they could join me for dinner. Since I was all alone, I took up their offer. Is there a problem?¡± Elise asked in return with wide, innocent eyes.

    He thought that the girl might have gotten caught up in with troublesome guys, but seeing the girl¡¯s calm demeanor and the frightened looks of the two men, it seems like it was him who had gotten caught in her trap.

    ¡°No. Why should there be a problem with that?¡± Andric answered smoothly. Turning to the two men who was looking at him like they were caught doing something wrong, he smiled warmly. ¡°Thank you for keeping Elise company while I was away. I hope that she has not troubled you.¡±

    ¡°N¡­ Not at all... ¡° Fred stammered. Turning stiffly to Elise, he said, ¡°Miss¡­ Elise was it? Well, since your friend has arrived, Mansor and I will be making a move first then.¡±

    ¡°Eh, what?¡± Mansor snapped out of his stupor and stared at his partner. It was difficult for them to get the chance to speak to the pretty girl, why were they leaving so quickly?

    Fred grabbed Mansor by his arm firmly. Having worked as an Adventurer for close to ten years, his instincts were very strong. Although the russet haired man was smiling, his eyes were not. Judging from the aura he was giving off as well, this person was not someone they should mess with at their level.

    Ignoring his dense partner, Fred quickly pulled him up. Forcing himself to calm down, he flashed a stiff grin at the girl who was looking at them in amusement with upturned eyes. ¡°Well then. Although we are staying in a different inn, this town is not very big so until the next time we see each other again.¡±

    ¡°Sure, see the both of you around,¡± Elise replied cheerfully as she waved.

    Fred nodded at the man who was standing at the side before he dragged his partner out of the inn. As they headed out, they almost knocked onto a tall man wearing a hooded robe. However, the man reacted in time and stepped out of the way.

    The other diners who had been looking in their direction all went back to concentrate on their food. They could tell when the show is over as well.

    ¡°Andric, you know Elise as well?¡± The tall man who had been keeping silent voiced out as he stepped up to the table.

    Elise looked at the hooded man in surprise. This voice was¡­

    Andric raised his eyebrow. ¡°You have met Elise?¡±

    The hooded man laughed before he took off his hood, letting his long light blue hair flow down freely from his head.

    ¡°Yes. I met her earlier this afternoon.¡±

    She knew it! It was the beautiful man called Seymour she met earlier that afternoon.

    ¡°I see. Since you are staying in this inn as well. It wouldn¡¯t be strange to have met seen her,¡± Andric replied as he sat down and gestured for the blue haired man to do the same.

    ¡°What about you guys? How did the both of you know each other?¡± Elise asked as she her eyes flickered between the two of them curiously. Although they knew each other, she could feel a sense of distance between the both of them.

    ¡°I guess you can say it¡¯s because of work?¡± Andric answered carefully.

    Seymour nodded. ¡°We just met today as well actually.¡±

    ¡°Oh~ Would what you have been doing by any chance have something to do with Goblins?¡±

    Seymour gave a surprised expression before breaking into a curious smile. ¡°Yes it does. How did you know about that?¡±

    ¡°Because there¡¯s the scent of Goblin blood on Andric,¡± she replied while wrinkling her nose. Now that she had recovered, her senses were starting to get better. Although it was not strong, she could catch a faint whiff of it from him. Was the reason why he had been disappearing everyday because he had been going into the forest to hunt for Goblins?

    Andric looked at his clothes before exhaling heavily. Although he had been careful to avoid getting splashed by blood, it seemed that the stench still stuck on him.

    ¡°I heard that there''s a special quest coming up about the Goblins?¡±

    Andric nodded. ¡°But the details will only be revealed in a week and a half time.¡±

    ¡°Do you know how I can join in?¡± Elise asked casually as she picked up her fork and knife.

    Andric¡¯s face twitched.

    ¡°You are alright now?¡± Andric asked the girl who had started to tuck in to her roast beef again. As he had been busy with tasks by the Guild for the past couple of days, he had to leave early and would only come back to the inn at night, hence he had not been able to speak to her much. When he brought the doctor to check on her again that morning, she had looked much better, but she fell asleep after eating the medicine so he was not able to talk to her either.

    ¡°At the peak of my health,¡± Elise said cheerily as she popped the last piece of potato into her mouth.

    Andric smiled wryly. ¡°That¡¯s good to know.¡±

    Seymour gave a look of concern. ¡°Elise is ill?¡±

    ¡°Not anymore. Thanks for your concern though,¡± Elise replied with a charming smile. Turning to Andric, she asked persistently, ¡°So? How can I join?¡±

    ¡°Only Adventurers can participate in it.¡±

    As if that was going to stop her. ¡°Then I¡¯ll become one!¡± Elise said decisively.

    ¡°But why do you want to participate in the special quest so much?¡± Seymour asked curiously. Although the young lady in front of him looked demure and sweet, their short acquaintance gave him the feeling that she was different from how she looked.

    ¡°Because I need to earn money quickly and adventuring seems like a pretty good way of doing that,¡± she replied simply.

    Seymour widened his eyes before touching his chin thoughtfully. While it was true that Adventurers could earn high income, they were placing their lives on the line, so it was a high risk high return job. Furthermore, Adventurers had high expenses as they needed to purchase good equipment and medicine to help them in their quests; fighting monsters without being adequately equipped was akin to throwing their lives away after all. So it was debatable to say that Adventuring was a good way of earning money.

    If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    Having visited the item shop together with Elise, Andric understood the reason why she needed to earn a large sum of money. But he was not going to back down so easily. ¡°What about trying other forms of employment?¡±

    ¡°Like?¡± It was not like she was only fixated in becoming an Adventurer. If there was another way where she could earn money, she would gladly consider as well. Provided that it is not unscrupulous, of course.

    Andric furrowed his brows. A job where a girl can earn a large sum of money in a short period of time¡­ In this kind of day and age, it seems like adventuring might be the best way to go about doing it.

    Looking back at the girl who was waiting for a reply, he massaged his temples and said resignedly, ¡°It seems like becoming an Adventurer might be the best way.¡±

    ¡°I thought so as well,¡± Elise replied while smiling triumphantly.

    ¡°Well, well. Although there are more male to female Adventurers, it was not like they are rare. There are female rank A Adventurers as well, so there should not be any gender discrimination,¡± Seymour said as he laughed lightly.

    ¡°It¡¯s just as Sey says~ Andric, you should have more confidence in me,¡± Elise said mischievously.

    Although he knew that she was purposely trying to stir him up, he still could not stop the slight ire in his heart. And when had this girl become close enough to call the other man ¡®Sey¡¯?

    ¡°If you are intending to become an Adventurer, have you decided on your job class?¡± Seymour asked curiously.

    ¡°Since you can use magic, the most logical answer is to become a Mage,¡± Andric said matter of factly. Plus Mages were usually at the back where it was safer, he added silently.

    Seymour perked up upon hearing Andric¡¯s words. ¡°Elise is a Mage?¡±

    Faced with his sudden enthusiasm, Elise furrowed her brows. ¡°I can only use a little magic¡­ Plus I didn¡¯t say I want to become a Mage.¡±

    ¡°Being able to use any kind of magic is impressive,¡± Seymour said gently. ¡°I¡¯m a Mage. I can help you if you have any question.¡±

    Elise gave a troubled expression. The question was not about whether she knew how to use magic or not, but instead about the kind of magic she is able to use with her level of mana. But that would be too troublesome to explain.

    ¡°Mmm¡­ I will think about it first then.¡±

    ¡°Oh my oh my, this gentleman is a Mage?¡± A startled voice interrupted their conversation.

    All three at the table turned their heads to look at the buxom waitress standing a short distance away from their table. Her hazel eyes were round and her lips were in the shape of astonished ¡®o¡¯.

    Seeing the three pairs of eyes staring at her, Percy quickly gave an apologetic smile. ¡°Sorry for interrupting your conversation. I couldn¡¯t help overhearing the conversation and was slightly surprised so I accidentally spoke out loud.¡±

    Seymour smiled graciously and shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s okay. Please don¡¯t worry about it.¡±

    ¡°Mages are really rare so I couldn¡¯t help getting excited,¡± Percy said as her hazel eyes twinkled and she took a few steps forward. ¡°It isn¡¯t often for us to see Mages around.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha. Is that so?¡± Seymour followed up good naturedly.

    Percy took out a notebook and glanced between the two men with a gentle smile. ¡°Would the both of you like to order anything? If you don''t order soon, the kitchen is going to close~¡±

    Andric took a look around the inn and realised that the dining crowd had already cleared out, and they were one of the last few customers sitting in the dining area. It seems like time had passed quickly while they were talking.

    Taking the menu from the girl, he took a look before he passed it to Seymour.

    ¡°I''ll just have what this lady had just now.¡±

    ¡°Alright~ That would be vegetable soup and roast beef with potatoes. It''s that okay?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°How about the gentleman here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll like to have Baked Pasta with Chicken,¡± Seymour answered with a smile before he returned the menu to her.

    ¡°No problem~¡± Percy replied before she put the notebook back into her apron.

    However, she did not leave the table immediately. Her eyes went over the blonde haired girl and the russet haired man sitting opposite her purposefully before she opened her mouth.

    ¡°It might be a little impudent for me to ask but... Are the both of you lovers?¡±

    Elise watched with amusement as Andric¡¯s face grew stiff.

    Thanks to his grand display on the first day, she was aware that there were rumours flying around about their relationship.

    Truthfully speaking, she considered him to be a fine specimen for a male human. But it pretty much ended at that. Romance and the like was not for her.

    But it doesn¡¯t mean she can¡¯t have a little fun though~

    What is he going to say? Elise thought in anticipation.

    Andric took a deep breath before he replied evenly, ¡°No. We are friends.¡±

    Percy nodded in understanding. ¡°Ah is that so~ I thought that it couldn''t be true either, but Mari wouldn''t listen to me. Sorry for surprising you~¡±

    ¡°Mari?¡±

    ¡°She is the innkeeper¡¯s daughter,¡± Elise answered. ¡°By the way, didn''t you ask her to monitor me? Why can''t you remember her name?¡± She asked accusingly.

    ¡°Ah. I think I remember.¡± It should be the young girl that he spoke to when he carried Elise back to the inn on the first day. She looked like a serious child so he told her to make sure Elise got lots of rest. He don''t remember telling her to keep an eye over her though?

    ¡°If there''s anything else, feel free to call me.¡± Percy winked at Andric and gave a slight giggle before swaying off merrily.

    ¡°Hmmm¡­¡± Elise gazed at Andric with a smirk.

    ¡°You have something to say?¡±

    Elise chuckled when she saw his uncomfortable expression. Teasing others is really fun~

    An uncontrolled yawn escaped from her mouth before she could react. She would love to chat more, but it seems like she had enough excitement for the day.

    She stood up and stretched before saying, ¡°I''ll leave the both of you to eat your dinner. I''m going to sleep first. What time do you want to meet tomorrow?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to think about it more?¡±

    ¡°Don''t need to,¡± Elise replied lazily.

    Andric heaved a sigh.

    ¡°Then 7am at the dining area.¡±

    ¡°Okay~¡± Looking at Seymour, she flashed a bright smile. ¡°See you around as well, Sey.¡±

    ¡°Good night, Elise. See you tomorrow,¡± Seymour said as he waved.

    This girl is interesting, he thought as he watched her go up the stairs.  He gazed sideways at the expressionless man who was sitting beside him. To say the truth¡­ He was curious as well.

    Lowering his voice, he asked, ¡°Are the both of you really friends?¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    Have you ever seen the phenomenon of dark clouds gathering in an indoor area? Seymour had not either till that day.

    ¡°I heard that the food is really delicious here,¡± he quickly changed topic.  ¡°Ah, I¡¯m really looking forward to it... Do you think they might have any desserts here as well?¡±

    Mmm. Now he know what to avoid talking about to this man.

 Chapter 12 - How to be an Adventurer

    Having been resting for the past few days, Elise woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the day.  She wiped her face with a wet towel that had been placed outside the door and changed out of the night clothes into a short sleeved green A-line dress.

    The dresses that she had worn in the castle were all heavy gowns or functional battle wear, so it was the first time for her to wear simple and sweet dresses. Feeling tempted, Elise spun around, causing the skirt of the dress to float up slightly.

    She stopped and chuckled at her childish action. ¡°What am I doing?¡± She asked herself softly with a sigh.

    It had been eight days since she landed in her current body. How were things going on in the castle? Had the people in the castle figured out she is no longer in her body? Were they in a panic?

    Questions flashed endlessly through her head, but there was no way she could get an answer to them. She could not risk telling others her true identity, but with her current status, there was no way for her to find out more information about her country.

    Ah, why did Lauritopia have to be so far?

    *****

    ¡°Sorry, but we are not opened - Ah! Andric!¡± Fiore exclaimed when she saw that the man that was coming through the entrance of the Guild was a familiar russet haired man.

    Andric nodded in acknowledgement. ¡°Good morning.¡±

    ¡°Mr Seymour as well!¡± Her smile got brighter when she saw a man with light blue hair that was almost to his waist enter the building. Although she was slightly jealous of how his skin was better than hers, he was a major eye candy at so she could look past that.

    ¡°Oh~ So this is the Guild?¡± A sweet voice came from behind them. Fiore perked up her ears when she heard an unknown voice. As the two men were tall, they had unknowingly blocked the girl behind them.

    When the both of them stepped aside, Fiore felt a sense of danger.

    The girl standing in between them had soft, wavy light blonde hair that formed a golden halo around her head. A petite stature with delicate features and skin that was smooth and snow white. Her silvery grey eyes wandered around the interior of the building as her cherry like lips opened slightly, revealing some of her pearly whites.

    Who is this girl that looks like a walking doll?

    No, more importantly. What was she doing with the two of them?!

    ¡°Good morning, Miss Fiore,¡± Seymour greeted. Gesturing to the  girl who was still looking curiously around he introduced, ¡°This is Elise. She is staying in the same inn as us.¡±

    ¡°Ah¡­ I-Is that so?¡± Fiore answered as she tried to keep her professional smile on her face.

    ¡°Nice to meet you. My name is Elise,¡± Elise greeted politely. ¡°Are you Fiore the Guild Receptionist?¡±

    ¡°Yes. That¡¯s right,¡± Fiore replied calmly. However, inside, she was in a ball wondering why the girl knew her.

    ¡°That¡¯s great! I heard many things about you from Andric and Sey! I really wanted to meet you,¡± Elise said as she gave a charming smile.

    Andric and Seymour? What had the both of them been saying about her?! ¡°W-What kind of things?¡± She asked tentatively.

    Elise¡¯s face flushed as she spoke excitedly, ¡°I heard that before you became a Guild Receptionist, you were already a rank B+ Adventurer at the tender age of 16! And you are the practitioner of a secretive and powerful traditional martial arts.¡±

    Not stopping at just that, Elise quickly continued, ¡°I¡¯ve really wanted to wanted to become an Adventurer, and hearing about you made me more motivated to become one! Would you be able to help me?¡±

    Fiore was in a daze after getting praised so suddenly. However, her feelings towards her had made a sharp turn for the better. Heh. At least this girl had good eyes~ Now that she thought about it, why was she getting upset over a girl younger than her? She should be more confident of her own womanly charms, she thought as she stuck out her minute chest.

    ¡°Miss Elise is too kind. Hohoho~¡± She replied while letting out undignified laughter.

    ¡°It''s my heartfelt words!¡± Elise replied earnestly.

    Andric, who knew what the girl was up to, could only look on amusedly while Seymour still had his usual peaceful smile on his smile.

    ¡°Umm¡­ Miss Fiore, I''ll like to apply to become an Adventurer. Could you help me with it?¡± Elise repeated her question again.

    ¡°No problem! Just hold on for a while.¡± Fiore turned to the desk beside the counter and took out a form. Technically, the Guild was not opened yet, but there''s no reason why she could not help such a dear.

    Elise peered curiously at the form. It was a two page form asking for personal details. There were basic items like, name, age, gender, date of birth, country of birth, and job class as well as more complicated questions like family members, notable achievements, type of weapons used and special skills.

    ¡°So I have to fill this up?¡±

    ¡°That''s right! Please write down as much as you can.¡±

    ¡°Is it okay for me not to fill up all the fills?¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­ Well, there are some who don''t fill up everything, but I need to remind you that the Adventure Pass tracks each Adventurer using their blood. So if you have made one before, your records will still be with us,¡± Fiore warned. This function was to prevent rogue Adventurers who had a bad record from trying to start afresh by creating a new Adventurer Pass. It also helped them when people who want to replace their lost Adventurer Passes.

    ¡°Please also be warned that people who are found lying on their application will have their credibility affected, and it will affect the kind of quests you can pick up. So please fill it up to the best of your knowledge.¡±

    Elise nodded and took the form. She had no idea whether her current body had registered herself previously, but if she turned out to be an Adventurer, she do not mind either because she would be able to know the identity of this body.

    Seeing that there was nothing else he could do, Seymour walked up to them and excused himself. ¡°Since everything is okay, I¡¯ll head up to the meeting room first,¡± he said with a smile.

    Fiore nodded. ¡°Please do, Mr Seymour. The Guild Master is already in the room.¡±

    Seymour nodded and started walking up the stairs.

    What kind of work were they doing exactly? Elise wondered.

    Looking at Andric who was still standing behind her, she asked, ¡°You don¡¯t need to go?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll stay here for a while more,¡± he replied simply.

    Elise shrugged and turned her attention back to the form.  Her pen hovered over the blank fills as she thought of what to fill. After deliberating for a while, she wrote down a few words quickly and passed it back to Fiore.

    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Fiore scanned through the form.

    Name: Elise

    Gender: Female

    Job class: Archer

    The rest of the blanks had been left unfilled.

    ¡°Is that all?¡± She asked with a puzzled expression. This was the briefest application form she had ever seen.

    Elise nodded and lowered her eyes . ¡°Yes. Is it okay if I just submit that?¡±

    Seeing the girl who was looking low-spirited, Fiore pursed her lips. Although there was no rule against that, if it was any other person who submitted this kind of application, she would usually refuse it as it was very suspicious. However, the girl in front of her looked very sweet and innocent, and she knew two Adventurers who had good credibility so she was reluctant to just turn her away.

    It was usually not easy for a girl to decide to become an Adventurer as there are many hardships in their line of work. For such a soft and sweet girl like her to want to become one, she probably had her own circumstances.

    Looking at how well mannered she was¡­ Maybe a runaway daughter of a noble?

    Her feelings of sympathy overcome her  reservations and she gave a smile. ¡°Please hold on while I do up the Adventurer Pass for you.¡±

    Elise brightened up immediately and nodded eagerly. ¡°Thank you!¡±

    Yes, one obstacle down!

    ¡°You know how to use a bow?¡±

    Elise turned to look at Andric. ¡°Who said I didn¡¯t know?¡±

    ¡°Even though you don¡¯t have a bow?¡± Andric asked as he raised an eyebrow.

    ¡°I¡¯ll just have to buy one then!¡± Elise replied unconcernedly.

    ¡°What? Are you sure about this? You will still need to complete a test before you can officially become an Adventurer you know?¡± Fiore who had overheard their conversation asked anxiously.

    Elise turned around to face the anxious looking girl and smiled. ¡°It will be fine. Please do not worry.¡±

    ¡°Is the card ready?¡± She quickly changed the topic.

    Fiore held out a bronze card to Elise. On the card, there were fills for name, place of birth, age, gender and job class. However, apart from the name, gender and job class the rest were blank.

    ¡°Now for the final step.¡±

    Fiore flipped the card to its back where a intricate drawing of a bird was carved.

    ¡°Please hold out your hand. I''ll need to prick your finger so that the blood will drip onto this card and complete the registration.¡±

    Elise did as she was told. Fiore swiftly and professionally pricked her index finger with a silver needle and held it over the drawing of the bird.

    The moment a drop of ruby red blood touched the card, it was absorbed into the material. The card glowed red for a few seconds before it returned to its normal state. However, the bird¡¯s eye was now red.

    So this card is a magic device, Elise thought, impressed.

    ¡°Alright, all done!¡± Fiore said cheerfully and handed it over to Elise.

    She took over the card and touched the giant ¡®F¡¯ was printed in silver at the top right edge of the card.

    ¡°You will be starting as a Rank F Adventurer. In order to rank up, you need to complete quests. If you complete quests that are of a higher rank than your rank, you will rank up quicker as well. But note that if you can''t complete the quest, your credibility will be affected and you will need to pay 20% of the reward amount, so it''s best to start with something you can handle,¡± Fiore advised.

    ¡°As for how to pick up quests; you can just visit any Adventurer Guild in the continent and pick up a quest from the Quest Board,¡± she said as she pointed at a giant cork board placed along the side of the lobby. ¡°And pass it over to the receptionist at the counter. Wivendale Guild is currently not giving quests that happens in the Spider Forest due special circumstances with Goblins, but you can still pick up quests happening a bit further away. Any questions?¡±

    ¡°How many quests do I need to complete to become a Rank D?¡± Elise asked.

    ¡°Rank D? That¡¯s two ranks away from Rank F. You should be aiming for Rank E first,¡± Fiore said with an amused tone.

    ¡°Mmm¡­ But to participate in the upcoming Goblin quest, I need to be at least Rank D right?¡±

    Fiore nodded. ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± Looking at the eager girl, she continued cautiously, ¡°But that will be too challenging for you at the moment.¡±

    Elise just smiled indifferently. ¡°You won¡¯t know until I try. Is there any way for me to increase my rank quickly?¡±

    ¡°Hahaha! I like a girl who have big dreams!¡± A deep voice guffawed.

    Fiore recognised the voice so her face immediately fell. ¡°Guild Master, what are you doing here? Didn''t your discussion with Mr Seymour just start?¡±

    ¡°This is my Guild. Why shouldn¡¯t I be here?¡±

    Fiore clenched her fists. ¡°What not what I meant. Shouldn¡¯t you be in the meeting room with Mr Seymour?¡±

    ¡°There there,¡± Seymour stepped up and cut in between the two parties patiently. ¡°We have just finished our discussion so we are here to have some fresh air,¡± he explained to Fiore.

    Elise studied the new face. The middle aged man was probably at least 2 metres tall and well built. His dark brown hair was swept back casually and she could see some strands of grey hair intertwined.

    So this was the Guild Master for Wivendale Guild. There was an indescribable feeling of power emitting from him. Although he looked laid back, his sharp eyes and the strength rippling through his limbs with each movement he took showed that this person was not as simple as he looks.

    Walking up to Elise, Reuben asked as he stared at the girl, ¡°You want to participate in the Goblin quest?¡±

    Elise nodded seriously. ¡°Yes. Can you let me know how I can do that?¡±

    Reuben laughed heartily. ¡°I like the look in your eyes, young lady. You know what, I might just have the test for you.¡±

    Gazing at Andric and Fiore, he held out a note between his fingers. ¡°I have just received a message from Rigel that they have found two groups of around 100 Goblins each heading towards the town.¡±

    Fiore took in a sharp breath. Were the Goblins finally launching an attack on the town?

    Grinning, he continued, ¡°But not to worry, because we are going to greet them first before they reach us.¡±

    <hr />

    Author''s note:

    Hi there! I hope you enjoyed today''s chapter.

    There will be a more action-ey chapter coming up next!

 Chapter 13 - To Exceed Expections

    ¡°We should be reaching Rigel¡¯s location soon,¡± a black haired man with hair pulled back into a half ponytail said as they traversed carefully through the forest.

    ¡°Good. We are proceeding as planned,¡± Reuben nodded as he studied the position of the sun.

    Elise who was walking behind wiped sweat off her forehead as she trudged ahead together with the rest.

    It was high noon, and there were currently six members in their group. Andric, Seymour, Fiore, Reuben the Guild Master, the black haired scout with an axe on his back who had joined them a little while after they had entered the forest and lastly, herself.

    After the Guild Master had announced that they would be attacking the Goblins, they prepared quickly, and Fiore brought her to the Guild armoury to borrow a shortbow and a quiver of arrows. They left around late morning, leaving one of the three Guild Receptionists to look after the building, and according to the scout, they should reaching the place where one of the group of 100 Goblins were resting at soon.

    Andric walked nearer to her and asked, ¡°Are you feeling unwell?¡±

    Elise shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m okay.¡±

    It was difficult to believe in her ¡®okay¡¯, but Andric had no choice but to watch the girl trudge on. This was supposed to be her test to see if she was capable enough to be a rank D Adventurer so it would not be to her advantage if he helped her too much.

    ¡°Hah,¡± he let out a sigh as he scratched his head.

    Seymour who saw that came closer to him and smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. When we are fighting later, I will be beside her so nothing bad will come to her,¡± he assured.

    Andric smiled wryly. Even if a person was to pay a high amount, it was difficult to say that they would be able to get the protection of a rank A Mage. However, Elise got it for free, and probably without even knowing how special it was.

    ¡°Wait,¡± Andric said suddenly as he stopped in his steps. ¡°There is someone approaching from the west.¡±

    Reuben who had sensed it as well glanced at the young man approvingly. ¡°It is fine. It is just Rigel.¡±

    In the next moment, a grey-haired man in his thirties stepped into their line of sight.

    He was breathing slightly heavily, but his eyes were steady. ¡°Guild Master, I''m glad you have arrived. The group of Goblins at the west have started to move. The ones in the east are still stationary.¡±

    ¡°What kind of Goblins do they have?¡±

    ¡°Each group consist of around 20 Goblin Riders, 20 High Goblin Archers, and 60 Goblins.¡±

    ¡°Hah. Mostly weaklings. They are just testing us with this. Is it because we have been killing too many of their scouts recently?¡± He asked with a sly grin.

    Looking at Rigel again, he asked, ¡°Any signs of reinforcements?¡±

    The man shook his head. ¡°As you say, this group is most likely cannon fodder to test how well we can handle large groups at one go.¡±

    ¡°Where have you placed your men?¡±

    ¡°So far we have five men observing each group.¡±

    ¡°Five will be too little if we are suddenly faced with reinforcements,¡± Reuben said thoughtfully. ¡°Tell Reina to gather at least twenty more rank C and above Adventurers and tell them meet us at the Twisted Tree. Oh, and update the Mayor on what is happening. Tell him to increase the frequency of guard patrols around the town perimeters and prevent the townspeople from going into the forest.¡±

    Rigel nodded. ¡°Understood.¡±

    He held out his arm and whistled. Just as Elise was wondering what he was doing, a grey flash appeared and landed on his arms.

    It was a large bird around 80 cm tall with grey and black feathers. It had yellow, hooked beak, and three tiny blue feathers grew from the top of its head. Its golden eyes were intelligent and it swept across the group of Adventurers before affectionately rubbing its head on the face of Rigel.

    When she saw Rigel writing a note and tying it on the bird¡¯s legs, Elise finally understood how they had been passing messages so quickly.

    As Rigel was busy writing down Reuben¡¯s instructions, he continued giving out instructions to the rest of the group. ¡°Andric,  you will go to the group in the west with Rigel. Fiore and Blake, go with him as well,¡± Reuben ordered.

    ¡°Alright!¡± Fiore replied cheerfully. It had been some time since she had exercised, plus she will have a good looking guy to accompany her, so she did not have any complains.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go with the young lady and Seymour to face the Goblins in the east. Are there any questions?¡±

    Andric had anticipated that they would split Elise and him up as they knew each other so he was not very surprised. ¡°I do not have any issues with that arrangement.¡±

    Rigel had only just realised that there was a foreign face amongst the group and asked puzzledly, ¡°Pardon my question, but this lady is¡­?¡±

    ¡°Rigel, meet Elise. She is a new Adventurer who wish to participate in the Goblin quest. I have brought her here to test if she has the capability to participate in it,¡± Reuben explained to the bewildered Rigel.

    ¡°Elise. This is Rigel, my Assistant Guild Master.¡±

    Elise gave a slight smile and nodded her head at the older man.

    ¡°Well, now that we have made the introductions, let us move into our positions quickly.¡±

    ¡°Today, our motive is to destroy every single Goblin they have sent us,¡± he said with a cold grin.

    *****

    Elise was currently hidden amongst the trees. Her green dress and brown cloak blended into the foliage, making her difficult to spot.

    Reuben squatted beside her as he peered at the group of Goblins half hidden within trees. They were currently at an elevated ground a distance away from their targets. The five other men were scattered loosely around the perimeters and were ready to attack once the signal is given.

    The Goblins riding on Forest Wolves were currently patrolling around the area while a mass of 60 Goblins were restlessly milling around the centre of the group. Different from the Goblins Elise first saw in the forest, the Goblins Riders and the Goblins were all wearing shoddily made metal armours. The Goblin Riders even had shields made from wood and covered with a layer of metal.

    Hiding in the trees were the High Goblin Archers. As they had green skin, they blended into the surroundings perfectly.  Elise would not have noticed if Reuben had not pointed them out to her.

    ¡°Elise, how far are you able to shoot?¡± Reuben asked suddenly.

    Elise closed her eyes for a while before she answered, ¡°With the current wind speed and direction, probably around 150 to 200 metres.¡±

    Reuben nodded. ¡°That is a bit shorter than what I¡¯ll hope for, but it should be sufficient.¡±

    Pointing at a Goblin Rider that was slightly bigger than the rest, he asked, ¡°When I give the signal, I need you to shoot the leader of the group. You can hit anywhere. The arrow is just to cause confusion and signal my other men to attack. Will you be able to do that?¡±

    ¡°Leave it to me.¡±

    ¡°Seymour,¡± he addressed the calm man who had been standing aside. ¡°Please support us from the back later.¡±

    Seymour smiled. ¡°There is no need to worry about that. I will do my best to assist you.¡±

    Reuben nodded. Like him, Seymour was a rank A Adventurer. However, he was not stationed at a fixed location but sent by the Perenia Capital Guild to different parts of the land to resolve monster problems. With him around, their chances of winning this war was in their favour.

    ¡°Alright. You can start whenever you are ready,¡± Reuben said to Elise. ¡°It will be fine even if you miss, so don''t get too stressed over it,¡± he added with a mischievous grin.

    Elise just laughed dryly. While it was true that she had not used the bow for very long, she managed to get the feel back while practicing at the Guild¡¯s range so she had confidence she will hit the target.

    Taking out the bow that was hanging on her back, she notched an arrow and pulled opened the bow.

    She aimed at the head of the Goblin Rider wandering near the front of the group of Goblins.

    ¡°Is this going to affect the outcome of my test?¡±

    Reuben grinned. ¡°Your test has already started from the time you enter the forest. But I won''t lie to you that how you perform in this battle will show if you are capable of being a rank D Adventurer or not.¡±

    She was very sure that she will be able to kill it with one shot, but was that really enough to proof that she is capable of being a rank D Adventurer?

    If she need to bet her test result with this shot, then she will need to make it flashier.

    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    ¡°As long as it causes confusion, it will be okay right?¡± Elise asked.

    Reuben was amused. What was this girl up to?

    ¡°Yes. That will be fine.¡±

    ¡°Alright,¡± Elise answered, satisfied with his answer.

    Instead of aiming at the Goblin Rider, Elise pointed her arrow upwards.

    She gathered all the mana in her body and directed it to the tips of her finger.

    To create magic, apart from offering mana, the user need to give structure or instructions to what they want the mana to become. This can be done by using words or envisioning the phenomenon the user want. For more complicated magic, magic circles are required, but for what she was going to perform, just envisioning and words will be enough.

    Flames, become my fury and scatter. What I desire is, Fire Rain!

    At her last thought, she let loose the arrow.

    Her arrow flew in a beautiful arc across the sky. Everyone apart from Seymour who saw that was confused as it was obvious that it was not going to hit a target. Seymour on the other hand held his breathe as he could sense the mana trapped within the arrow.

    Th-This was!

    When the arrow reached its highest  altitude and started to descent, flames burst from the arrow and scattered down over the Goblins. Trails of orange rained down from the sky, burning everything it touched. True to its name, it looked as if fire was raining down on the Goblins.

    The unfortunate Goblins were immediately thrown into a mess and shrills cries and screams filled the air. The Goblin Riders who had shields used them to cover their heads and attempted to calm their subordinates down, but the sudden onslaught of flames had caught everyone by surprise, and very quickly, the smell of burnt flesh filled the air.

    Goblins with body parts burnt screamed and rolled around the floor in pain. Some even had their green, hairless heads melted, and white skulls could be seen from below the black, charred skin.  The whole scene looked like something out of hell, and the scent of blood was strong in the air. Even if the Adventurers did not go out to kill them, there was no doubt most of the Goblins will die from blood loss.

    Although the magic had lasted for less than a minute, half of the Goblins had already been rendered useless.

    All the men who saw that spectacle were momentarily stunned. Even Seymour, as despite knowing that Elise could use magic, he did not know that she was capable of using such a large scale attack.

    Reuben on the other hand, guffawed out loud. This girl is surprising!

    ¡°Well done! I¡¯ll talk to you again later,¡± Reuben said as he pulled out his 2 metre long broadsword from his back and held it easily with his right hand.

    ¡°Sure,¡± Elise answered calmly. Her hands had not stopped after she let out her first shot and she was smoothly and agilely aiming for the Goblin Archers hidden in the trees.

    What? How did she go from a small sputtering flame to being able to create flashy magic like this?  You can''t possibly think that she has been just sleeping and eating for the past few days, right? She had been properly meditating and practicing to get used to the mana in her body, so her magic is much more stable with a better effect now.

    Reuben jumped down from their elevated position and joined in the fray. His other five men had already jumped into action after the fire had stopped and were busy engaging the Goblins. With a swing of his broadsword, Reuben decapitated the heads of several Goblins. The Goblin Riders proofed a little trickier as they were agile on the backs of the Forest Wolves, but as the men were all rank B and above Adventurers, the Goblin Riders were not a match and they made quick work of them as well. In less than fifteen minutes, all of the Goblins had perished.

    As the men combed through the forest for any stragglers or spies, Elise remained at her elevated position. She heaved a soft sigh of relief. It was the first time she had participated in battle as an Archer, so she was glad everything had gone smoothly.

    She glanced at the man standing beside her who had been looking at her with curious eyes since the start of battle. Did Sey even attack during the whole battle?

    ¡°Is there something on my face?¡± Elise could not resist and finally asked. It was unnerving to have a beautiful man stare at her silently.

    ¡°Why did you choose to become an Archer even though you can use magic very well?¡±

    Ah, so it was because of her choice of job class? Why is everyone insisting for her to become a mage? Her magic power is lesser than an average Lauritopia citizen, you know?

    Elise wanted to say that out loud, but since she was supposed to be keeping her identity a secret, she swallowed her words and explained, ¡°Because my mana is low. Once I have used an attack like the one I showed earlier, I don¡¯t have the mana to use magic anymore. If I choose to become a Mage, I will become useless after using my mana for a large scale attack, so it is better for me to be an Archer.¡±

    Although Seymour understood what she was saying, he could not help but give a slightly confused look as it was normal for a person to run out of mana after using a large scale attack. Unsure of what to follow up after her strange response, he decided to change the topic instead.

    ¡°Then, where did you learn how to use magic from?¡± As people who can use magic were rare, people who can use magic were usually sent to special institutions or were taken in by an experienced Mage as disciples. From Elise¡¯s smooth and experienced actions, she must have been taught by an excellent Mage so he was rather curious.

    Where did she learn her magic from? Elise¡¯s mind went into a whirlwind as she thought of what to say. She was supposed to be an amnesiac person, but apart from Andric, she had not spoken about it to anyone. Andric did not seem to have spoken about it to others either.

    Should she come out first and let them know about it? It would become troublesome to deal with all the questions, but it might be better than being suspicious for keeping it a secret.

    ¡°I...¡±

    ¡°We have cleared the area here. There was a group of ten Goblins hanging around the area, but they have all been killed.¡±

    ¡°Thanks for your hard work,¡± Seymour replied Reuben politely with a slight nod.

    ¡°What are our next plans?¡± Elise asked quickly. Since Reuben had showed up at a good timing, she might as well take advantage of it.

    ¡°My scouts will be taking this chance to enter deep into their territory and secure the location of their base. I have already contacted Reina to send over the twenty scouts. We should be able to get hold of the location by nightfall.¡±

    Reuben crossed his arms and looked at Elise approvingly. ¡°You are much better than you look. Why did you choose to be an Archer when you know magic?¡±

    This again?

    Seeing Elise¡¯s grimace, Reuben laughed. ¡°Haha! It¡¯s okay if you do not want to be a Mage. You make a pretty good Archer as well.¡±

    ¡°Thanks?¡±

    ¡°Elise, you can return back to the Guild first. You can participate in the Goblin Subjugation Quest a week from now. Take this time to train and buy your bow.¡±

    ¡°So, I pass the test?¡± She asked excitedly.

    Reuben laughed. ¡°Yes! Now start heading out. One of the scouts will escort you.¡± He gestured to an dark blue haired man in his thirties to come over. The man already knew what was expected of him so he quickly jogged over.

    ¡°Titan will be your escort.¡±

    The two parties nodded at each other in acknowledgement.

    Turning to Seymour, Reuben said, ¡°Seymour, I need you to remain here for a while. I have something I need to discuss with you.¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    Elise did not mind as she knew that Sey was working for the Guild. Since there was nothing else here for her, she will gladly take up his offer and go back and rest first.

    After making sure that Elise was out of earshot, Reuben turned to face Seymour with a serious expression.

    ¡°Seymour. How is it?¡±

    The blue haired man closed his eyes before a crease appeared between his brows.

    ¡°I can feel the presence of multiple strong monsters in this forest.¡±

    ¡°Multiple?¡± Reuben¡¯s face grew stiff. Were they going to be dealing with more than one Goblin General?

    He nodded. ¡°Yes. I can¡¯t identify exactly what they are. But they are at least rank A.¡±

    Reuben exhaled heavily, and exchanged looks with Seymour.

    ¡°We will need to keep our guard up then.¡±

 Chapter 14 - Desperation

    Author''s note:

    Hello!

    The hiatus will be slightly delayed till after chapter 16. Chapter 15 will be posted on Monday as normal. :D

    This chapter is action filled! I tried my best to portray the fights. I hope it won''t be too confusing. /O\

    <hr />

    To their east, a faint orange light appeared over the sky. It lasted for a few seconds before it faded away.

    A group of four Adventurers who were crouching on sturdy branches noticed the the strange sight.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Fiore asked wonderingly as she stared at the sky.

    ¡°Hopefully that is something caused by our people,¡± a blonde haired Adventurer with closely cropped hair said wryly.

    ¡°With Guild Master and Mr Seymour around, there won''t be any problem,¡± Fiore replied confidently.

    ¡°What Fiore said is true. There is nothing to worry about,¡± Rigel agreed.

    Although that was not part of their plan, with the two rank A Adventurers around, he doubt they will have any problems even if a Goblin General suddenly appeared in battle.

    ¡°Haha, you guys are right. I was worrying too much, sorry,¡± the Adventurer said sheepishly.

    They were now hiding on tree tops while waiting for their group of Goblins to go past their route. According to the reports from scouts, the group of slightly over 100 Goblins were expected to arrive in a few minutes and their job was to jump down and cause confusion to their lines when they arrive.

    Andric listened to their conversation silently. The orange light just now looked like magic. Hopefully the girl had not done something outrageous.

    ¡°Everyone!¡± One of the trees beside them rustled and a low and urgent voice sounded out Andric turned towards the sound and recognised him as the chestnut haired man by the name of Keith.

    ¡°A group of 30 Goblins have split up from the main group and are heading towards the east at an amazing speed!¡±

    ¡°What! Isn¡¯t that where the Guild Master is at?¡±

    ¡°Was it because of the orange light?¡± Rigel furrowed his brows

    ¡°That¡­ Is difficult to say,¡± Keith replied. He too, had saw the orange light, but was unable to figure out what it was.

    ¡°In any way, even if they get reinforcements, it is still not enough to pose a threat to us. We should focus on the enemies coming our way instead.¡±

    The other Adventurers nodded.

    Keith immediately jumped off the tree and dashed back to where he was supposed to be stationed.

    Sure enough, a few minutes later they heard the sound of footsteps running towards their direction.

    From their vantage, Andric could see a group of around 10 Goblin Riders leading the small army. The Goblin Riders were all equipped with long spears with iron tips and they waved it around menacingly as they hurried along atop Forest Wolves. Behind them, Goblins with pale blotchy green skin ran with ungainly steps. Their weapons were not as well made as the Goblin Riders, and some were even just holding stone clubs.

    Once the group of Goblins had passed by the vantage point of where Keith and four other Adventurers were at, they jumped down from their trees, surprising the Goblins.

    The Goblins let out shrill cries of ¡®kree¡¯ and quickly attacked the humans that had suddenly appeared within their ranks.

    With their weapons in hand, the five Adventurers worked together and unhurriedly started taking down the Goblins one by one. Although the strength of a Goblin cannot be compared to an adult human, a stab to the heart will still be deadly, so they were also careful to avoid getting hit by the untrained and messy attacks of the Goblins.

    Noticing that there was a commotion going on and their men had started lagging behind, the Goblin Riders in front turned their mounts around. Upon realising that they were under attack, they let out a battle cry and rushed towards the humans. However, before they could reach them, another group of  humans had appeared in front of them.

    ¡°I won''t forgive you for trying to harm the town I love!¡±

    Without waiting for the Goblins to react, Fiore dashed towards a Goblin Rider and landed a heavy kick on the jaws of the Forest Wolf.

    The Forest Wolf let out a whine and staggered sideways from the impact. The place where the kick had landed was bleeding and a couple of its teeth were loosened. The High Goblin on top of the Forest Wolf tumbled off its ride as the wolf moved around unstably. Ignoring that its rider have dropped off its back, the hulking grey wolf quickly regained its footing and bared its fangs before leaping towards Fiore.

    Fiore dodged the attack by rolling sideways and smoothly got back onto her feet a short distance away. Gathering inner energy onto her palms, she clenched her fists into tight balls and lept towards the wolf again, leaving sand flying up behind her.

    As the girl and wolf battled, the others engaged enemies of their own as well.

    Andric slashed open the chest of a Goblin holding a sword and quickly moved to block the attacks of two High Goblins.

    ¡°Be careful!¡±

    Before he could react, a wooden arrow was flying towards the back of his head.

    As he was caught in a deadlock with the spears of two High Goblins, Andric was unable to dodge, and could only shift his position slightly so that it will not hit a fatal spot.

    However, before the arrow found its mark, another arrow flew to intercept its path, knocking it off the air. The High Goblin Archer that shot the arrow stomped its tiny green feet in frustration. In the next moment, it stopped in its movement as two steel arrows embedded itself into its forehead, one below the other.

    Andric turned his head towards the tree that Rigel was standing on and nodded his thanks.

    ¡°Be careful of the archers! They are very crafty,¡± Rigel shouted as he raised his bow again.

    Aiming for a High Goblin Archer that was preparing to snipe, he released two arrows at a go.

    The archer bent forward, trying to dodge the arrows. While the first arrow flew over its head, the second hit its shoulders and red blood started flowing from the wound.

    Seeing that it was distracted, an Adventurer rushed forward and cut down on its neck with his axe, severing the head from its body with a sharp cracking sound. Blood splurted out from the wound, dyeing his metal armor red, and soaking some of his underclothes.

    The man looked down at his armor in disgust. Although he was not foreign to blood staining his clothes, he particularly hated Goblin blood as it had a stench that was difficult to wash away.

    ¡°Don''t get distracted, Blake¡± a woman with short spiky black hair said wryly as she parried away the club of a Goblin and went to stand behind her brother. Not giving up, the Goblin rushed towards her again with its club raised.

    Dodging the blunt weapon, she lowered her body and slashed at the throat of Goblin with the dagger she was holding with her left hand and stabbed her right dagger into its chest to finish it off.

    ¡°I know, I know,¡± the man with black hair pulled back to a half ponytail said irritatedly to his sister, Bianca.

    Even if they are B+ Adventurers, he understood the dangers of letting his guard down during a fight. However, they had been fighting Goblins for many days, and he had gotten tired of hosing down and deodorizing his armor everyday.

    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    Sometimes he really feel that he should have chosen a long range job class instead.

    ¡°Ahhhh!!! Damn it! Since it''s like this, then another stain will not matter right? Take this, you vermin!¡± Shouting loudly, he held the heavy double edged axe with both hands and cut down mercilessly on the Goblins surrounding him.

    Rigel, who was watching the battle from the top of a tree, saw the black haired man going berserk in a corner of the battlefield and could only shake his head.

    ¡°Only eighteen Goblins left! Don¡¯t let any get away or they will call for reinforcements!¡± He commanded.

    The eight Adventurers fighting on the ground immediately doubled their efforts. Within the next few minutes, they managed to kill off the last of the Goblins.

    ¡°Good job everyone! Those injured, stay back and I will treat you. The rest, search the area nearby for stragglers. Report back here once you are done.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Andric wiped the blood off his sword on a clean patch of grass.

    He looked towards the east, where the light had originated from. The battle there should have have ended with two rank A Adventurers around.

    Hopefully Elise had not gotten herself injured.

    *****

    Elise cursed her luck. She had been meeting nothing but bad situations since she woke up in this body.

    She eyed the group of twenty odd Goblins and Forest Wolves in front of her. Several bloodied arrows were thrown on the ground by injured Goblins and dead bodies with arrows on them were strewn across the ground.

    Titan stood in front of her protectively with his shield and sword raised. His dark blue hair were plastered on his forehead from the sweat and his shoulders heaved up as down as he breathed heavily. His metal armor were also covered with blunt marks and dents. Battling the huge group of Goblins and Forest Wolves at a go had taken its toil and even then, he only managed to kill a handful of them.

    They were travelling through the forest, back to town when they suddenly found themselves face to face with this group of Goblins.

    Why did such a big group suddenly appear in front of them? Didn''t the scouts say that there were only two groups in the area? Where did this bunch come from?

    ¡°Miss Elise, when I give the instructions, you need to run as fast as you can,¡± Titan said in a lowered voice. His eyes darted around as he desperately tried to think of a way to let the girl live. He was instructed to bring the girl out of the forest safely, and he intend to complete his mission.

    However, it seems like this might be the last mission he will take. Although he had confidence in his skills, it was impossible for him to win against a group of around 30 Goblins with 10 Forest Wolves. He did not think he could outrun Forest Wolves either.

    Thinking of that, he gripped his sword and shield tighter.

    Elise saw his action and frowned. ¡°Even if I run away, the wolves will catch up with me. So instead of running, we should work together and take them down instead.¡±

    ¡°No, it''s too late. Just staying here will lead to our deaths,¡± Titan disagreed vehemently.

    It wasn''t the first time Elise had battled with her life at stake. While she could see the danger of the situation, there is no reason for her to run away alone when she is sure she will be caught up to.

    ¡°But-¡±

    ¡°Look out!¡± Titan shouted when a Forest Wolf without its rider that was circling them jumped towards Elise with its jaws wide open.

    Elise flashed out the dagger under her cloak,  just in time to sink the blade into the soft flesh under the wolf¡¯s neck as it close its mouth around her arm.

    Both the girl and the wolf stopped in their movement as blood flowed down their wounds.

    Elise gritted her teeth as she endured the pain and twisted the dagger, sealing the wolf¡¯s fate.

    ¡°Miss Elise!¡± Titan rushed over and tore the corpse of the wolf away.

    ¡°I-I''m okay¡­¡± She replied with a thin smile.

    She clenched her right arm that was dripping with blood.

    This was bad. The bite of the wolf seemed to be quite deep. Even if she doesn''t get killed by the Goblins here, she is probably going to die from blood loss if she don''t stop the bleeding soon.

    Ah, why did she use up all her mana in that attack? She deeply regretted her decision now.

    Not letting the chance go away, the other Goblins started to move towards the two humans again.

    Titan battled bravely against the horde, but it was soon clear to the both of them that the numbers were too overwhelming.

    Was she going to die here? Elise thought desperately. She had finished her arrows, and her dagger was still embedded in the wolf, so apart from the wooden shortbow in her hand, she was weaponless.

    When Andric had fought groups of High Goblins by himself, he had seem so effortless. Wasn''t the Adventurer in front of her also the same rank as him? Why was he having so much trouble as compared to Andric?

    Elise ''tsked'' under her breathe. If only she had more mana, then they wouldn''t be in such a situation.

    As a Goblin got closer, she swung the wooden bow towards its head. A red abrasion mark appeared on the forehead of the Goblin, and blood started flowing. Despite its injury, it only jittered and jumped towards her together with another Goblin.

    Elise swung the bow again. However the combined weight of two Goblins were too great and the wooden shortbow cracked and broke into half. Just as she was about to be crushed by the two Goblins, Titan rushed over and pushed the Goblins away with his shield.

    However, this would become a fatal mistake as the High Goblin that he was fighting with took the chance and threw its spear towards his defenseless back.

    The iron tipped spear went through the armor and pierced through the front of his chest.

    ¡°Urgh-!¡± Titan let out a pained groan.

    Elise came forward to hold the man by his shoulders as he collapsed on his knees.

    ¡°D-Don''t move or you will lose more blood!¡±

    The man let out a sad smile. ¡°It seems like I have failed my mission. I am sorry that it had come to this stage¡­¡±

    His voice got weaker and weaker as blood continued to ooze out from the wound.

    ¡°You should¡­ before they¡­ you.¡±

    Elise held the dying man closer to her. ¡°What are you saying?¡± She asked urgently.

    ¡°If they capture you¡­ They will do horrendous things to you¡­ So it might be better for you to kill yourself first.¡±

    Elise¡¯s heart grew cold when she heard his words.

    However before she could take her next action, in a corner of her eyes, she saw the brief figure of a green creature swinging down a stone club.

    Although she was never religious, she could not help but pray.

    Dear Goddess, when on earth am I going to wake up from this dream?

 Chapter 15 - What Happened After

    Rigel raised his right hand and his tamed monster, the Creachadoir bird, flew through the window of the meeting room and landed on his arm. His arm lowered slightly from the weight, but as he was used to it, he did not let out any signs of discomfort.

    ¡°Thanks for your hard work, Crecha,¡± he murmured softly as he stroked the head of the grey bird.

    ¡°Coo~¡± It cooed softly in return as it rubbed its head on his cheeks.

    He untied the note on its leg and opened the paper up.

    ¡°How is it?¡±

    Rigel turned to look at the russet-haired man with steady eyes. Even though he was also a man, he had to acknowledge that his looks was one that would make women drool. However, the person in front of him now had disheveled hair, stubble and dark eye rings under his eyes. It was a far cry from the well-groomed man he saw two days ago.

    Heaving a sigh, Rigel shook his head. ¡°They have not spotted her so far.¡±

    The shadows under Andric¡¯s eyes darkened and his grip on the wooden table tightened. Just as everyone thought that he was going to lash out, he sat back down on the chair wordlessly. Fiore who was sitting beside him casted him a worried look.

    ¡°I am sure Miss Elise will be okay. Everyone is working hard to search for her for the past two days. And the Guild Master has went out personally to look for her today. We should be able to find Miss Elise soon,¡± she comforted.

    The Adventurers in the room exchanged looks silently. Although no one said anything, they knew in their heart that the fate of a woman captured by Goblins was¡­ Unpleasant.

    Rigel rubbed his temples as he sat back down on his chair. He closed his eyes as he thought back to the events that happened two days ago.

    After Rigel and his group had returned back to town, they heard from Reina, the receptionist who was left to look after the Guild, that Elise and Titan had not returned back to the Guild. As they had started off much earlier than the rest of them, it was strange for them to have yet to return, unless they had lost their way or met with an accident. As Titan was an experienced and reliable rank B Adventurer who knew the forest well, it was impossible for him to have lost his way. Hence, the most likely scenario was that the both of them had met with an accident.

    Remembering the group of 30 Goblins that had split up from their group of 100, Rigel rubbed his temples. Given the timing and direction, it was most likely that they had met the group while returning back to town. The best thing that he could hope for was that they were able to escape and were hiding in a concealed place now.

    He sent out instructions to organise a search party for the both of them immediately. A team of six Adventurers who specialised in fast movement were gathered and sent out. Andric wanted to join them as well, but was promptly stopped and commanded to rest as he had just returned from a serious battle.

    When Reuben and Seymour returned, they were worried upon hearing the news, but as they needed to discuss matters with the Mayor, they were unable to wait for news and moved speedily to the Town Council. Only a small group of Adventurers including Andric and Fiore moved to the gates of the town to wait for the search party to return.

    They watched silently as guards in full battle gear guarded the gate in shifts. Everyone was on full alert as they had heard from the Adventurer Guild about the happenings in the forest. Goblins were a well known threat for the town, but they only attacked people who enter the forest so it was understandable for them to be wary when they heard that the Goblins had attempted to attack the town in a large group.

    Soon after night fell and darkness overcame the land, faint lights started approaching the town from the distance.

    All the Adventurers heaved a sigh of relief upon recognising their comrades. However, their feelings of relief were soon overcome by heaviness as the leader of the group walked forward with a bulky item covered by a piece of white sheet.

    ¡°This is¡­¡± Rigel started uncertainly.

    The man heaved a heavy sigh. The five Adventurers behind him all had the same sorrowful look so he could guess what was under the sheet.

    ¡°Put it down. Let me take a look,¡± Rigel commanded.

    The man complied, and Rigel walked forward and uncovered the top of the sheet. Upon recognising the identity of the person, he closed his eyes and uttered a simple prayer before he placed the sheet back. The job of an Adventurer was dangerous, so it was not the first time he had seen the fall of a comrade. Even then, it was difficult to not grief for the loss of a bright young man.

    He looked at two Adventurers who were standing behind him and gestured for them to take the man away.

    ¡°Contact his family and let them know of his passing. If we are unable to contact them, then we will hold his funeral the usual Adventurer way.¡±

    The two men understood what he was talking about and nodded before hoisting the body off the ground.

    Once the two men had left, Rigel turned to the leader and asked, ¡°Where did you find him?¡±

    ¡°We found him together with bodies of Goblins in the middle of the forest. It was within the area that we predicted they would have met the group of Goblins.¡±

    ¡°And the girl? Did you find a blonde haired girl?¡±

    The man shook his head. ¡°No. We did not spot a girl around the area. But there were signs of another person together with the Adventurer who have passed away. We picked up this shortbow as well. It seems to be the Guild¡¯s property?¡± The man asked as he handed over a broken wooden shortbow.

    Rigel took over the wooden shortbow and turned it over to see the insignia of the Guild carved into its wooden handle. It was as he said, this shortbow was a property of the Guild.

    Seeing this Fiore spoke out, ¡°Miss Elise borrowed one of our bows because she didn''t have her own¡­¡±

    Rigel sighed. What on earth was the Guild Master thinking, bringing a girl who did not even have her own weapon during such an important mission.

    ¡°Any other evidences?¡±

    ¡°Assistant Guild Master, we found this dagger embedded in a Forest Wolf,¡± a female Adventurer with shoulder length auburn hair voiced out and stepped up to hand it over to Rigel.

    Rigel turned it around to see if there were any signs that showed its ownership. It was a well crafted cross-hilt dagger with brown leather wrapped around its handle. Even though the blade was covered in dried blood, it still shone silver when fire light reflected of its edges.

    ¡°Andric, do you recognise this dagger?¡± Although he was unsure of the exact relationship between him and Elise, he heard that the both of them were staying in the same inn and were friends. He was also the person whose face had changed the the most upon hearing the news so they should be quite close.

    ¡°Yes. This is Elise¡¯s,¡± Andric replied in a constricted voice. He recognised the dagger as the one that Elise had on her.

    ¡°I see,¡± Rigel replied with a nod.

    Addressing the group of six Adventurers in front of him, he said, ¡°As informed earlier, you will be rewarded for your efforts. Please report back to the Guild for the completion of your quest before going back to your inns to rest. Please come back to the Guild tomorrow morning as we will have more quests for you.¡±

    The group of Adventurers nodded before heading off silently; their job done for the day.

    Rigel turned to face the two people left behind. Fiore was easy to handle, the problem was with the stony faced man. He ruffled his hair with a hand as he sighed once again. Why does the Guild Master always give him extra work to do?

    ¡°Andric, you are an Adventurer so you know how dangerous this job is. At this point, I think we can conclude that Miss Elise has been captured by the Goblins. It is very regretful that such an accident had happened and we will definitely do our part to search for her,¡± Rigel said solemnly. ¡°However, you are not allowed to enter the forest for the next three days,¡± he continued after a slight pause.

    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    Andric furrowed his brows and clenched his fists. ¡°Why not?¡±

    ¡°As you might have heard from the Guild Master, we have discovered what should be the base of the Goblins. However, the Goblins number far greater than what we imagine. In order to counter this, we will be striking at them before they hit us.¡±

    He paused for a moment to let the information sink in before continuing, ¡°Three days later, we will gather all the Adventurers and lead a preemptive strike on the base of the Goblins. Although it is slightly earlier than what we have planned, the  number of Adventurers we can gather should be sufficient. This is the reason why we need you to rest and save up energy for the battle.¡±

    Looking at Fiore, he added, ¡°The same goes for Fiore as well. You are not to enter the forest either. However, you will be participating in the quest three days later as a B+ Adventurer. Do you have any objections?¡±

    Fiore shook her head. She grew up in this town and loved all of the friendly townsfolk. There was nothing more she could ask for than to be able to protect the people she love.

    Andric¡¯s frown deepened, but he did not say anything.

    Rigel heaved a sigh upon seeing his reaction but did not add on either.

    He had initially believed that the man was calm and had a good control of his emotions. However, seeing the state he was in now, it seems like he was much more affected than he had initially imagined.

    Although Andric had adhered to his commands and did not enter the forest, his mind was always elsewhere and his concentration was poor. He would ask for updates every time his Crecha returned back with a message, and each time he told him that there was no updates, he would look as if he died a little inside.

    He did not regret his decision to force him to remain in town. However, he could not help but feel in the wrong.

    He looked up to study the young man who was staring blankly at his hands.

    ¡°Andric. You-¡±

    ¡°I am sorry but you can¡¯t go up just like this-¡± An urgent female voice came from outside the door.

    ¡°... ¡­¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m really sorry. But these are instructions so-¡±

    Hearing that there was a commotion happening outside the door, Rigel walked over to the door and swung it opened.

    ¡°Who is disturbing the meeting? Didn¡¯t I order to keep others from coming up to the second level?¡± He asked in a cold voice.

    ¡°Oh? So I am considered ¡®others¡¯ now?¡± A calm and steady voice replied back.

    Rigel widened his eyes when he recognised the voice.

    Outside, a black haired girl with her hair tied up in a ponytail gave an apologetic look before she stepped aside slowly to reveal the elderly man standing beside the staircase.

    The elderly man with snow-white hair was dressed smartly with a long sleeved white shirt and blue vest with matching blue pants. His peridot eyes shone merrily behind a pair of small, round spectacles perched on his high nose.

    Rigel immediately lowered his head. ¡°Mr Vilfred, I am honoured with you presence. Please forgive my rudeness.¡±

    The elderly man curled up his thin lips. ¡°I am glad you can still remember an old man like me.¡±

    ¡°Mr Vilfred will always be a distinguished guest in the Adventurer Guild. It is unthinkable for us to forget about you,¡± Rigel followed up quickly.

    ¡°Is that so? Then why wasn''t I informed about what is happening in the forest?¡± Vilfred asked pointedly.

    Rigel furrowed his brows and hesitated. ¡°That is¡­ We thought that since Mr Vilfred had retired many years ago, it would be better for us to not disturb you¡­¡±

    ¡°That is enough,¡± Vilfred cut in sharply. ¡°I have some words to say. Will it be alright if I enter your meeting room?¡±

    Rigel stepped aside and held out his hand immediately. ¡°Please go on ahead.¡±

    After the elderly man had entered the room, he instructed the black haired girl who was standing uncomfortably outside the door, ¡°Reina, please go and prepare some tea with snacks for us. Fiore, go and help her as well.¡±

    ¡°Sure sure,¡± Fiore said as she went out and pulled Reina up the staircase to the third level.

    *****

    The third level contained the living quarters for the the Guild Master and the Assistant Guild Master. As the Guild Master and Assistant Guild Master of each Guild were assigned by the Capital Guild in each country, they were typically not residents in the town they are assigned to. To avoid the trouble of having to rent or buy a separate house, the Capital Guild decided to just build their living quarters in the Guild building itself to save the hassle.  Depending on the size of the Guild, the number and type of rooms they will have will differ. For the Wivendale Guild, the third storey living quarters only consisted of two bedrooms with an adjoining bathroom, a small library, as well as a kitchen.

    As they were preparing the food in the kitchen, Reina couldn''t contain her curiosity and asked, ¡°Who is that elderly man? Why did the Assistant Guild Master lower his head at him?¡± Although their Assistant Guild Master was always a courteous person, it was the first time she had seen him act so respectfully to someone other than the Guild Master.

    ¡°Hmm~ Reina just moved to town a year ago so I guess you wouldn¡¯t know,¡± Fiore said thoughtfully as she looked at the dark haired sixteen year old girl. Reina had only started working as a Guild Receptionist two months ago and was also currently the youngest receptionist amongst them.

    ¡°The elderly man just now was the 1st Guild Master of Wivendale. And in case you don''t know, Reuben Wingsley is the 3rd Guild Master for Wivendale Guild,¡± Fiore explained. ¡°And don¡¯t underestimate him because he has aged. He is a rank A Adventurer as well!¡±

    Reina parted her lips slightly in awe. Rank A Adventurers were a rarity and each and everyone of them could be considered a celebrity. To think that that arrogant old man who refused to listen to her earlier was such an outstanding person when he was younger.

    ¡°Do you think that he was good looking when he was young?¡± She asked wistfully.

    ¡°Huh? You like old men?¡± Fiore asked back with a shocked expression.

    Reina immediately shook her head wildly. ¡°I don¡¯t! I¡¯m not like you who like the Guild Master!¡±

    ¡°HUH?¡± Fiore exclaimed at the top of her lungs. ¡°Who said I like-?¡± Fiore covered her mouth before she screamed out something she should not.

    ¡°Who said something like that?¡± She hissed.

    Reina shrunk back. Although Fiore was usually very friendly, she was aware she would sometimes get violent when she gets excited so she was quite wary of her now.

    ¡°It-it was Lily¡­¡± She said with a small voice. ¡°She said that you always look very happy when you see him¡­¡± Sorry, Lily! She apologised silently towards her other colleague.

    ¡°That flowerhead¡­ Just because she has a boyfriend now¡­ Who is she to spread stupid rumours?¡± She cracked her knuckles as she thought of how to greet her colleague who was coming to work the next day.

    Come to think of it, she had not taken back the favour from that time she helped her to cover her duty. This time¡­ She should take it back all at once.

    Seeing the wicked grin on Fiore, Reina could not help but wish that she would just melt into the cupboard behind her already.

    She really should not have said anything¡­

    I¡¯m really sorry, Lily¡­

    <hr />

    Author''s note:

    The last scene was... Comic relief? ^_^;

    The next chapter will be about Andric as well.  Please look forward~

 Chapter 16 - His Feelings

    After the door had closed behind the girls, Rigel turned to look inquiringly at the elderly man.

    ¡°Mr Vilfred, is there anything that we can assist you with?¡± He asked politely.

    ¡°Are you sure I am the one who needs assistance now?¡± The elderly man asked with a raised eyebrow. Seeing the cramped expression on Rigel¡¯s face, Vilfred softened his tone. ¡°My words might have come out harsher than expected. What I was trying to say is that I''ll like to offer my assistance to you.¡±

    Rigel looked up in surprise. That was something out of his expectations.

    ¡°I may be old, but I can still contribute to the Guild.¡±

    Although it had been a long time since he had stepped down from the position of Guild Master, he still held fond memories of his time as an Adventurer. Furthermore, there was no reason for him to not give his strength in protecting the town that he had stayed in for the past 30 years.

    Seeing the steel-like will behind the old man¡¯s eyes, Rigel lowered his head. ¡°Then we will gladly accept your offer,¡± he replied formally. Even though this former Guild Master was in his sixties, he was a well known Mage when he was younger, and he heard he had been tinkering with magic devices since he retired from the post of Guild Master 15 years ago. Even if he took up just a support role, he was definitely going to be a good help in their upcoming battle.

    Vilfred nodded his head satisfactorily. He turned to look curiously at Andric. He remembered this russet haired young hair who came by his shop a few days ago. What was he doing here in the room? Although he could guess that he was an Adventurer, he should not be someone high ranking enough to sit in this room.

    ¡°You are Andric Kennings, correct? You look slightly different from what I remember,¡± he said with a slightly raised eyebrow. The young man before him now seemed like he was caught up in an internal turmoil. What had happened during these few days? ¡°How is that girl doing? Is she better?¡±

    The moment the words left his mouth, Vilfred felt the atmosphere in the room change.

    ¡°What is wrong?¡± He demanded as his eyes flashed around the room.

    Rigel lowered his eyes. Once again, it seems like the most difficult job has been placed on his shoulders. Heaving a sigh, he started to explain what had happened the past two days.

    After hearing from Rigel, Vilfred¡¯s face immediately changed colour. He took deep breathes to calm himself down before he placed his hand on his forehead.

    It was a well known fact that Goblins like to kidnap women and kids. As for what they did to them, it varied from story to story. Some were kept in cages like pets, while others were forced to do unpleasant things. There were even some who were worshipped and treated like Gods.

    Regardless, getting captured was a traumatic experience, and the fate of a girl in the hands of a group of Goblins who were preparing to wage war was something that nobody wanted to imagined.

    He took a glance at the silent young man sitting across the table.

    This explains his appearance. From what he could tell, the girl was probably a person very important to him.

    ¡°What do you intend to do now?¡± He turned his head towards the young man.

    ¡°I''ll save her,¡± Andric answered without hesitation.

    Vilfred furrowed his brows slightly. Although he could understand the reason why Andric looked dishevelled now, there was still something that puzzled him.

    Why was he holding back his emotions? It would be entirely understandable for him to be worried, or even angry. But instead, this young man was suppressing his emotions; acting calm and composed even though everyone could tell that he was distraught.

    Why was he doing this?

    ¡°We will all save her,¡± Rigel added. ¡°Miss Elise is a fellow Adventurer. Plus she met with such an accident while under our watch so the Guild will do our best to help her.¡±

    ¡°What Rigel say is right. We will all do our part to search for the girl,¡± an Adventurer with curly ash purple hair spoke up. He was part of the group that Elise joined and he knew Titan personally as well, so his passing had greatly saddened him.

    A woman Adventurer wearing plate armor nodded. ¡°Although I did not get the chance to talk to her, Elise helped us a lot by using her magic. I will definitely do my best to save her, and I won''t forgive these Goblins for looking down on women,¡± she said through gritted teeth.

    ¡°Louise, Corwyn, it is great that we are all on the same page for this. I will be counting on the both of you tomorrow then,¡± Rigel addressed the two B+ Adventurers with a slight smile.

    ¡°Andric,¡± he said in a softer tone. ¡°You should go back to the inn and rest earlier today. We have an important mission ahead of us tomorrow.¡±

    Andric looked outside the window. It was only afternoon, what was he going to do with all the extra time at hand?

    Looking at the unwillingness on his face, Vilfred decided to give the poor Assistant Guild Master a hand.

    ¡°There is nothing much you can do here anymore. Might as well go back early and get rid of that unsightly stubble of yours. This is no way to see a girl!¡±

    Andric gave a wry smile. He could tell that everyone was seriously misunderstanding about his relationship with Elise, but he himself had contributed to this mess so he had nothing to say.

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    *****

    After Andric had exited the Guild, he did not return to the inn immediately. If he had returned then, he would need to spend a few hours facing the four walls of his room. Compared to that, he would prefer wandering around outside.

    As he strolled through the streets, he could see that the number of Adventurers on the streets had increased exponentially compared to his first day of arrival at the town. Adventurers wearing their full armor and carrying rucksacks and bags walked down the street as they conversed cordially with their party members.  The word of the special quest had spread quickly. Although it was only slightly over a week since the notice was sent out, they should have gathered over 200 Adventurers. With such a number, it will hopefully be enough to hold off part of the Goblins¡¯ forces.

    Andric continued wandering around aimlessly until the sky turned dark.

    By the time he returned to the inn, it was already past the peak dinner period and the employees were all busy tidying the dining area.

    Mari saw him walk pass the dining area and gathered up her courage to approach him.

    ¡°E-Excuse me¡­¡±

    Andric looked at the young girl curiously. ¡°Yes?¡± He was aware that the girl was always looking at him whenever he was in her line of sight, but this was the first time the girl had approached him.

    ¡°Um¡­ Do you know where Miss Elise went?¡± Mari asked timidly. She had been meaning to ask about it since Elise did not return to the inn two nights ago. However, she never managed to gather enough courage to ask him until today. Although they had only spent a short time together, she really liked the older girl¡¯s company.

    ¡°She¡­¡± Andric paused as he thought of what to say. ¡°She will be back,¡± he said finally.

    He watched as the girl¡¯s face scrunch up from hearing his vague reply.

    ¡°Will Miss Elise really come back?¡± Although she was a child, she was old enough to know what kind of job an Adventurer does. Fighting monsters was a dangerous job and she had heard stories of people getting injured or even dying. Could it be that the pretty blonde-haired big sister will never come back again?

    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    Andric flashed a comforting smile and patted the girl¡¯s head. ¡°It will be okay. Thanks for worrying. I¡¯m sure Elise will be happy to hear about this.¡±

    Mari cheered up slightly upon hearing his words. Putting on a brave face, she nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll ask Papa to make add more eggs into her food when she returns!¡±

    Andric raised an eyebrow. Elise¡­ like eggs?

    *****

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Andric asked as he paused in his steps.

    In front of his room stood a certain blue-haired man. He was supposed to have went out with the Guild Master to the forest. Were the things settled already?

    Seymour let out a tired smile. ¡°Can I talk to you for a while in your room?¡±

    He nodded reluctantly. ¡°Come in then.¡±

    The door closed behind them with a soft click.

    Andric litted up the oil lamps on the wall before crossing his arms. ¡°So, what do you want to talk to me about?¡± He had not seen, much less talk, to Seymour much for the past few days as he had been extremely busy running between the Town Council, the Guild and the forest. What does he want to talk to him about?

    Seymour lowered his eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll like to apologise about what happened to Elise. Even though I promised that no harm will come to her, she still ended up getting captured. I have nothing to say about my incompetency.¡± He gripped the frame of the bed so tightly that his hands shook slightly.

    Andric heaved a sigh. ¡°There is no need for you to apologise specially to me.¡±

    ¡°But aren¡¯t the both of you¡­¡±

    Andric shook his head and laughed dryly. ¡°I have only met Elise around 10 days ago. My acquaintance with her is not that much longer than yours.¡±

    Seymour widened his eyes. It was true that he had always felt that there was a slight barrier between the both of them, but they had always behaved in a jovial manner around one another so he didn¡¯t think too much into it.

    ¡°10 days ago? How did the both of you meet each other?¡±

    Andric ruffled his hair with a hand. Since it has come to this, he might as well just explain everything.

    ¡°I met Elise by the lake in Spider Forest. Do you know where it is?¡±

    Seymour nodded. ¡°The only lake around this area would be the Luna Lake.¡± He heard that it was called Luna, which means ¡®moon¡¯, because the lake¡¯s surface had a special property of becoming milky white like the moon in the morning.

    ¡°When I saw her, she was standing by the edge of the lake, staring into space. Before I knew it, she had jumped into the water fully clothed.¡±

    Seymour widened his eyes once again, but he kept silent as Andric continued to speak.

    ¡°I jumped in and saved her. But when she woke up, she claimed that she has amnesia.¡±

    ¡°Amnesia?¡± Seymour asked with a slight frown. Although he had not met an amnesiac before, but a young girl who has lost her memories would most likely be frightened and uncertain. However, the Elise he knew switches between being bubbly and sly. It was difficult to believe that she was hiding such a secret behind her.

    Andric gave a wry smile upon seeing his unconvinced face.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t believe her either,¡± he said flatly. Having worked as an Adventurer for six years, he has met all sorts of conmen. None of them had been bold enough to commit suicide and then claim they had lost their memory though.

    ¡°If that is so, why are you so concerned about her well-being even though there is a chance she could be lying to you?¡±

    Andric paused. He had been wondering about this himself as well. Why is he unable to stop worrying about the safety of the girl that he had only met a few days ago?

    ¡°This is because¡­ Although she is lying, she does not seem like she is trying to harm anyone. On the contrary, it seems like she is trying to protect herself.¡±

    He thought back to the scene by the lake when she was seated alone and deep in her thoughts. Her grey eyes were forlorn, as if she was facing a hopeless situation. But when he approached her, she immediately returned back to her innocent act.

    What on earth is this girl¡¯s background? What is she hiding? He could help but get curious.

    He initially thought that she might be trying to get money from him. However, she had been insisting on paying for her own bills, and even decided to become an Adventurer to earn her own airfare, so that seemed to be unlikely.

    During their short acquaintance, Elise had shown herself to lack common sense in the strangest of ways as well. She was fearless in front of monsters, but extremely inept at certain life skills; he had never seen a person wash vegetables until they become mush before.  To say the least, she had brought him more trouble than he had warranted.

    Despite this, he found it difficult to part ways with her. Was it because of the cute smile she occasionally flashes when she is trying to scheme? Or could it be the determination she shows in pushing herself to her limits to complete tasks? When did this mysterious girl start appearing in his thoughts so often?

    Seymour studied the man in front of him who seemed to have come to a decision. He had always felt that Elise was more than what she looked, but to think that she would have such a background¡­ He had heard something interesting today.  A smile stretched across his face briefly before it disappeared.

    ¡°What do you intend to do now?¡± He asked softly.

    Andric looked at Seymour in the eye and said resolutely, ¡°Save her. I have already done it once. Doing it another time is not going to make a difference.¡±

    Seymour smiled gently. ¡°Then I will do my best to assist you as well.¡± Dipping his head slightly in apology, he continued, ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave first. See you tomorrow.¡±

    Soon after he finished his words, a shadow that had been stationary outside the door scampered away.

    Andric and Seymour exchanged a look. Seeing Seymour¡¯s enquiring gaze, Andric furrowed his brows. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s not like she can do anything with this.¡±

    ¡°If that is okay with you,¡± Seymour replied calmly before he turned around and exited the room.

    Finally alone, Andric took out a small blade from his pocket.

    That elderly shopkeeper had some sense in his words.

    Picking up the small mirror on the table, he studied his face with dark stubble with a frown. ¡°This really isn¡¯t a good face to meet someone with,¡± he muttered.

    Putting the small mirror back on the table, he murmured under his breath, ¡°Wait for me. I¡¯ll definitely come and save you, Elise.¡±

    <hr />

    Author''s note:

    I hope that this chapter clarifies the relationship between Andric and Elise so far. Although Andric and Elise had some cute moments, Andric''s feelings for Elise at this point isn''t love, but more like a mischievous stray he can''t leave alone. They have only met for a while and they are keeping secrets from each other, after all~

    The story will be on hiatus as I have exams coming up. The expected period is around 1 - 2 months. The fun part is just starting so I hope you will hang on for the continuation of this story!

    Please leave comments and drop a review if you have the time!