Chapter 8:
Monster Hunting
MARIE AND ROSE WALKED BESIDE ME AS WE all followed Mr. Graste through the clamor. We were in Istria today. Coming here had become routine, but today something felt different. Marie and Rose had serious gazes. Their swords were stashed on their waists more visibly than usual.
The same went for me. My heart thumped in my chest, and my legs trembled ever so slightly as I stepped. Thick and jumbled nerves impeded every motion of my thoughts. Yet, I kept moving forward.
It wasn’t often that we got to be a part of a crowd, so the chaos felt novel. I spent most of my time at home, and even when I traveled to Istria, I normally stayed in the carriage. I spotted all kinds of townspeople in the throng—merchants and mercenaries, men and women both young and old. I didn’t see any demi-humans, though. I’m not in the furry fandom or anything, but I wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to see something like that.
Next thing I knew, I was standing next to Graste.
“Don’t be nervous, kiddo,” he grunted. “Yer safe with me.”
I saw the tension in Marie and Rose’s faces loosen slightly.
Graste looked unconcerned and overflowed with confidence. That was just how strong he was. We needed strength like his, given today’s objective.
“Thank you for doing this, Mr. Graste,” I said.
“Don’t mention it. I did some monster hunts as a lad back in the day. You’ve just gotta build up some solid experience. First stop’s the guild. It’s the best place to accept a monster hunting quest, ya know. There are all kinds of guilds about, but we’ll be heading to the Adventurers’ Guild today. Basically, they act as a mediator for quests coming from the government, organizations, or even individuals. You can find all sorts of quests, too, be it hunting or capturing monsters, escorting travelers, or even just helping out with chores. You can find these guilds all over the world.”
I’d heard of an Adventurers’ Guild before, and it turned out this world had them too. I never even knew that until today. Most people would check a place like that out as soon as they appeared in a fantasy world, but I’d just too focused on my magic.
I had only recently developed an interest in monsters once I realized that they possessed mana. The problem was I didn’t know if that only applied to goblins, or all sorts of other monsters.
“Can I ask why we’re going to the guild? Why can’t we just go hunt some on our own?” I asked Graste.
“Well, we could do that,” he replied. “But using the guild has some perks. First, we can earn a reward. That’s the big one. Having a reward at stake gives you a big boost of motivation. Also, when you accept a guild quest, you receive intel about the monsters: like species, population, and their location. Once you register at the guild, you’ll be permanently registered. Anytime you complete a quest, you’ll be evaluated on that success, and eventually go up the ranks. When you raise your rank, you’ll be able to accept more difficult quests, and the guild will start coming to you directly for quests. You can even earn special privileges.”
That made sense. Registering at the guild would certainly be advantageous. There didn’t seem to be any downsides, at least.
“What special privileges?” I asked.
“Permission to enter restricted areas and the like,” he said. “There are certain mines and forests that ordinary folks can’t enter. You can also get discounts at certain shops. Only drawback is you could be called upon to help in emergencies, so keep that in mind.”
Guild registration could be big for me, helping me move forward on my path. Gaining access to restricted areas sounded especially promising.
There was still so much that I didn’t know about magic. Why did some Etten trout have mana? Why was the goblin wounded by my mana? How did thundercite function? I wouldn’t find the answers to those questions in my bedroom at home. Those answers and more lurked in the outside world. To find them, I should become an adventurer and earn a high enough rank to access restricted areas. I was still young, so none of this would come immediately, but I saw a road forward.
“That’s why guild registration is the first step,” Graste said. “For kids, you need a recommendation from an adventurer of at least Gold-rank. I’m Platinum, so no issue there. The ranks are Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Orichalcum. There are only a few Orichalcum-ranked adventurers in all the world. They’re basically legends.”
The ranking system seemed familiar and simple enough. I glanced at Rose and Marie, who were both still on pins and needles. I realized this was natural as we were planning to face off against monsters, after all. Monsters were fearsome beasts. I would be a lot more concerned if the two of them were cool and confident.
However, Graste seemed a bit worried about Marie. “Don’t push yourself, eh? We don’t need to do this today. Shion’s still eight, and you’re only ten, right? Sure, there are some kids your age who go fight monsters, but that doesn’t mean you ought to.”
Marie shook her head. “No, I’m fine,” she said. “I can’t run away. If I do, I’ll always be a coward, and I won’t get stronger. I want to get stronger. I want to be strong enough…strong enough to protect Shion.” Marie turned to Graste and clenched her fists.
“I shan’t retreat, either,” said Rose. “I also need to grow stronger.” Her eyes sparkled with fighting spirit.
Graste looked between Marie and Rose and beamed a spectacular grin.
“That so, eh? But just to be clear, you three have absolutely nothin’ to fear. Nothin’ at all, because I’m here. I’ll protect you, be sure of that. It’s your first fight after all. I’ll take some load off yer shoulders.”
They nodded. Seeing my sister’s conviction lit a fire in my breast. I knew just how determined Marie had been since the goblin encounter, and how focused she was on overcoming her fear of that day. I knew that she was deeply traumatized from the battle. Instead of running from her fear, she battled against it, face to face. I knew her struggle well and remained silent. Long ago, we had pledged to fight by each other’s sides.
Rose, whatever her reason, sought strength too. I never heard about the circumstances around her motivations. I watched her train countless hours with a blade, in pursuit of conquering some unseen foe, but why? Was it all for self-defense? Or another cause altogether? I didn’t have a clue. Maybe her motivation was the same as Marie’s.
As for myself, I wanted to embark on a monster hunting mission to verify whether magic could effectively eradicate monsters. Such a venture was far too perilous, and I knew Dad would never let me do it alone. When I heard that Graste had impressive fighting skills, asking for his assistance turned out to be just what the mission needed. Between this and the Spark Gauntlet, I wondered if I asked too much of him, but Graste didn’t hesitate to accept my appeal.
“I’m thinkin’ we’ll go hunting for kobolds today. They’re perfect for newbies as they’re pretty much bottom of the barrel when it comes to monsters. The main monsters out there are goblins, kobolds, and orcs. Kobolds are the most common. They reproduce like crazy, but each individual one is weak. Goblins are scarce, but each individual specimen’s got serious strength. Then orcs are even rarer and more powerful as individuals. That’s about it.”
“Are there other kinds of monsters?” I asked.
“You bet, but those three are pretty much it for this general area. You’ll find most quests at any guild in the region are mostly for hunting those three species. Anything else is a rare find.”
Monsters were a constant risk for humans in this world. It sounded as those three species were the major ones. One of them had even laid waste to my own home.
So, there’s no downside to killing them? I wondered.
We discussed more as we made our way through the city and arrived at our destination. The Adventurers’ Guild was an impressive institution. A constant stream of people flowed in and out of the massive, wooden building, and it looked like there was a constant chatter of activity from within. The scene had an air of drama and Arthurian romance to it. Not bad, not bad at all.
Graste immediately went through the front doors. We followed him in.