"Here's your Adventurer Guild plaque" the receptionist handed it to me. It was closer to the size of a military tag that you see in movies, but slightly larger with a hoop near the end. It already came with a leather string attached to it so I could wear it around my neck.
I ran my fingers across the dark material — it felt cold and metallic, but I was unable to tell what material it was made out of. My name was engraved on the back, along with the words "Hollow's Reach" and "No. 417", probably to indicate the branch I registered in, as well as the serial number. The front of the tag had five grooves, with the first already filled with a small Bronze strip. The other four were empty, probably placeholders for when an adventurer ranked up.
"Thank you, err... I forgot to ask for your name the last time. Should I just call you Miss Receptionist?"
"Ah right, everyone calls me Ms. Sennika. Though just Sennika is just fine"
"Thank you, Ms. Sennika. So does this mean I can now accept requests from the Mission Board?" I asked.
"Yes but before you go, I need to let you know that if you lose your tag, it'll cost you one small gold coin to replace it. If you do take the assessment to rank up in the future, we'll use the same tag and upgrade it." she pointed to the front side of the tag where I was touching the empty grooves.
I had spoken to Marta two days ago regarding my decision to become an adventurer. I had expected her to start berating me — that I was taking unnecessary risks, that I would risk exposing myself, or that a 9 year old boy had no business hunting monsters and beasts. Surprisingly, she took a few minutes to think it over before asking me to make sure to be careful and to still stay in the orphanage unless I took an overnight mission. She seemed to have come to terms with the fact that I wouldn't be able to stay out of trouble.
Marta had probably come to terms with the fact that I would not be able to escape military service since I was unwilling to run away by myself. Perhaps this was her way of respecting my decision and giving me freedom to do what I wanted in the time I had left with them.
I walked over to the mission board to look through what missions were available. Garrick had mentioned that the local baron might occasionally post a mission or two and depending on the difficulty, I could potentially ask for a change in reward. I did not expect those missions would be available at Bronze but there was no harm in familiarizing myself.
"Let's see, hunting .... hunting ... foraging .... escort .... hunting .... escort... hmmm." The highest rank missions posted were Steel ranked missions, most of them being posted by some artisan or merchant that wanted to procure specific rare materials from beasts or parts of the forest that were dangerous. The rest were escort missions to another town, as large caravans tend to attract bandits during long trips.
"Hmm, no request from the barony." I put my disappointment aside as I would not be in a position to accept it even if there was one. Maybe it was a good thing that there wasn't any yet so that I had time to accumulate contribution and increase my rank first.
I looked over to the bronze section of the board, looking through what was available when Sennika walked up beside me.
"What are you looking for?"
"I don't know, anything that can make me money and grow my contributions quickly?"
I saw Sennika raise her eyebrows at that. She seemed to think for a bit before reaching for one of the posted missions. "Why don't you start with something simple? Goblin extermination"
"It is peak farming season now and the goblins are always a pain this time of year. Most adventurers hate taking this because it is boring work but pay and contribution points are decent" she suggested.
I thought it over. Hunting goblins probably was not the worst idea. Considering the things I have killed, this would be a good mission to ease into. I remember reading that goblin lairs were difficult to find but with some luck, it should be easy enough with my original Electro Perception.
"Alright, I'll take you up on your suggestion. Thanks" I took the copy of the mission from her. There were multiple copies up on the board as this was a repeatable mission and she didn't need to register me.
"Make sure you visit the apothecary to stock up on the basic supplies~" Sennika called out to remind me as I was halfway out the guild hall. I had nearly forgotten in my enthusiasm to slay some goblins, following in the footsteps of a certain adventurer I saw in a show.
The familiar smell of dried herbs and brewed concoctions greeted me when I walked into Sylvia's shop. I recalled seeing the red and blue potions the last time I was here for the beast repellant. I assumed they were health and mana potions and was looking at them when Sylvia walked up to me.
"Oooh my~! A masked stranger, how mysterious. Can I help you with something?" I could hear the sarcasm oozing from her voice. This was probably not her first time dealing with people who hid their identities.
"Maybe just the basic adventurer kit? What would you recommend?" I asked. I saw her eyes drift to the Adventurer Tag around my neck, probably dropping her threat assessment of me in real time.
"A new Adventurer I see. I can certainly help you, Miss..." she looked at me, waiting for me to share my name.
"Mister actually, you can call me Damian" I said, annoyed that I had to keep correcting them.
"Apologies, it's hard to tell with the mask. If you're just starting out I would recommend some basic health and mana potions. The basic healing potions help to stop bleeding and accelerate recovery, should be good enough for light cuts or gashes. Anything deeper and you'll need to see a healer. The basic mana potions just accelerate your recovery. Don't drink it when your core is empty and expect it to refill instantly. I've had way too many beginners come back and complain when they don't understand the basics themselves." Sylvia prattled on.
"Thanks for the warning. How many would you recommend I get?"
"Ah, a young man who listens. Hmmm.... You sound familiar... Have we met?"
Ah fuck, I need to buy an enchantment that changes my voice one day if I ever get the chance.
"Uh hmm." I pretended to clear my throat before deepening my voice "I don't think so. I get that a lot. I have that kind of voice you know. How many potions did you say I should get?" I quickly changed the topic.
"Ah right, I would recommend 3 of each to start. If you want my advice I would also recommend..."
In the end, I walked out with more than just 6 potions. She had recommended some other utility potions and items — I ended up spending slightly more than 1 small gold coin. Being an adventurer was expensive business, no wonder there weren't that many that registered. My mind briefly drifted to Gallum, wondering how he was doing in Tidehold.
I rested one hand on a smooth pouch I had around my waist. Sylvia at least had the decency to throw in a free potion belt as part of the deal considering how much I had spent and also being a good listener. The pouch probably did not cost much but it did make me feel slightly better.
I decided to buy some kind of baked bun as a quick lunch when I walked through the market square. It was close to lunch time by the time I was done with the guild hall and apothecary. This was honestly my first time trying food cooked by someone else other than Marta — I thought it would be a nice little treat to celebrate becoming an adventurer.
"Dat'll be 1 large copper" I handed the vendor the coin while I received my treat. I was about to bite into it before I realized I still had my mask on. Hmmm, I'll need to change this mask soon or it'll get annoying real fast whenever I have to eat.
In the end, I tore up bits of the bun to slide pieces of it under my mask to eat. The bun looked more like a hand held pie, a little flaky and crusty whereas the center was juicy and savory. I took my time walking south to the gate as I ate, towards where the farmers' fields were located.
I almost dropped my bun when a man ran into me as I was exiting the gate. "Hey! Watch where you're going!"
The man turned around and glared at me. It looked like he wanted to start a fight as I could see some fire mana coalescing in his right hand. However, his eyes darted to the town guards by the gate, and he let the spell fizzle before walking away without an apology.
What the f... someone should teach him some manners.
For some reason, the man looked familiar but I couldn't quite pin it down. Maybe he just looked like someone back on Earth.
I went through again the facts I read about goblins, at least the version in this world. They stood around 2 - 3 feet tall, with green-brown skin and long protruding hair extending from the back of their heads all the way down their backs. By themselves they were usually not a threat, but they tend to congregate into mobs of 10 or more and that becomes problematic for farmers and beginner adventurers.
Most of them possessed an Earth affinity with the occasional uncommon one being given a Wood Affinity. They mainly use their Earth magic to create their lairs and tunnels, as well as making basic stone weapons — usually in the form of javelins which they can throw.
"Hmmm, hottest time of day, which means they are usually all holed up in their lairs." The mission note had indicated that some had been spotted on the Western side of the farm lands. They would usually make their lairs near the edge of the woods, but close enough to the farms such that they could attack the livestock or steal any unharvested crop.
Usually I would drop by to say hi to Branwen in the smithing row whenever I was in town, but I did not want anyone to associate Damian's identity with Branwen or anyone in the orphanage. Always good to be careful, I thought to myself.
My slow walk down to the farms had given enough time for me to finish my lunch despite the awkwardness of eating with the mask. Farmers usually did not work around lunch because they had to eat too, but mainly because it was the hottest time of the day and the easiest way to give yourself a heatstroke. Some were resting in sheds, while others were still finishing their lunch.
They all gave me weird looks for wearing a thick wooden mask, most adventurers did not usually hide their face. I spoke to a few who did not look away when I approached. They were wary at first but relaxed when I told them I was here to fulfill the request to exterminate goblins. One even pointed me to a specific area on the edges of the woods near them, indicating he had seen a few run away in that direction with their stolen supplies.
I kept my Electrolocation on, alongside the Tier 1 version of the spell in my eyes. While my new Electrolocation had a 360-degree view in a bubble around me, I could not really see through the ground as it relied on getting feedback from my discharged lightning mana. The Tier 1 version of the spell allowed me to pick up electrical signals in living beings from much further away, especially after the spell had been upgraded to Tier 2.
The downside was the same as before though, I had to physically look with my eyes to pick up any signals. I was trekking through the woods but keeping close to the edge while scanning the forest floor, looking for any potential burrows or mounds that indicated a goblin lair. I could see why this would be annoying for Adventurers, especially a team without any sensing spells.
Before long, I detected something in my vision. It was slightly blurry as the signal was partially obstructed by the soil but I could see a mass of signatures in a small mound in front of me.
Gotcha! It was time to slay some goblins.
Adventurer Tag design. Ignore the random letter design