First Adventure
First Adventure
"What kind of request should we take? Let's all share our opinions!"
At a table inside the Adventurer's Guild building.
The three of us had taken a table and were putting our heads together.
The topic of the meeting was what kind of request to take next.
First, Mari offered her opinion.
"Since this is Lunia-ssi's first request, I think it would be best to start with the easiest Iron Rank request."
I agreed with that too.
It was also essential to know in detail how the adventurer society worked and what unwritten, implicit rules existed.
And Reed didn't object to that opinion either.
"Alright, then we should try to find something as close to Riverrun as possible."
The consensus was to complete a large number of easier requests instead of difficult ones.
Because the easiest requests wouldn't pay much.
"But isn't there something like getting a reward for catching any monster and bringing back proof of delivery?"
"Oh, there is! For monsters like Goblins, you cut off their ears, right? You bring those proofs to the Guild and they give you a reward."
Here, I fell into a bit of thought.
Honestly, the reason I became an adventurer was to become stronger.
And the Level Up notification that appeared when I killed Mark with my own hands.
Normally, you'd get experience for killing monsters, but judging by the notification, it must include other humans too.
That said, I have no intention of committing murder.
So, it's right to go in the direction of hunting monsters if possible.
But it's a difficult situation since that kind of thing doesn't earn much money.
And then, quick-witted Mari seemed to notice my concern.
"Then let's focus on Dungeon requests!"
"Dungeon?"
"Yes, Lunia-ssi, practical experience is important to you, isn't it?"
Ah, she misunderstood my thoughts in that way.
Well, honestly, it's the same meaning.
Because if I go through practical experience, I'll become stronger.
"Then, I think it would be good to go to a Dungeon where we can get separate rewards and also deal with monsters."
The one who tackled Mari's opinion was Reed.
"But Mari. Dungeons are too dangerous for us."
Although he tackled Mari's opinion, Reed's words were also true.
An adventurer is a dangerous profession where one can lose their life at any time.
"Ugh....."
Since Reed's words weren't wrong either, our discussion paused as if it had hit a snag.
They both must have their usual way of doing things, and I was the one who had intruded between them.
In that case, it's right for me to step forward and mediate the opinions here.
"Then how about this?"
As I opened my mouth, both of their gazes fixed on me.
So, I explained my opinion to them.
##
The next day, after everyone agreed to my opinion.
That is, today.
We were in the forest located outside Riverrun Castle.
And the reason we came here was,
"Goblins are very cunning and have pack instincts!"
It was to hunt Goblins.
One might misunderstand that we gave up on requests or Dungeons, but that wasn't the case either.
I heard that when they were adventuring just the two of them, they mainly focused on reconnaissance or exploration requests.
So, none of the three of us had ever been to a Dungeon.
Therefore, what I proposed there was this:
First, it's essential for all three of us to gain combat experience.
Therefore, we would gain experience by hunting monsters in the forest outside the castle.
Instead, the frequency would be about 2-3 times a week.
And on the remaining days, we would undertake requests posted at the Guild to recover insufficient funds.
Once we felt our skills had improved somewhat, we decided to challenge a Dungeon.
"Three Goblins ahead!"
"I'll use magic on the one on the right!"
-Swoosh!
Reed created distance from an approaching Goblin with a horizontal slash.
Then I immediately cast my water sphere magic at the Goblin on the right that was about to charge again.
-Whoosh! Thwack!
"Kiiieek!!"
I threw it at its head, but unfortunately, it missed and hit its shoulder.
Still, the damage was considerable for the relatively small-bodied Goblin.
-Thud.
"Kieek....."
Reed finished off the creature writhing in pain.
The remaining two Goblins were also killed without much difficulty.
"Whew...."
"Good job, both of you!"
Mari, who had approached unnoticed, handed over water and a cloth.
"Ah, thanks."
I also took the water bottle and drank some water.
And then handed it back to Mari.
"Um, Lunia-ssi."
"Hm?"
"If you're uncomfortable anywhere, you should tell me anytime, okay?"
"Ah, don't worry. It wasn't that."
It seems my expression must have worried Mari.
And that's because,
[You have gained experience!]
[You have gained experience!]
[You have gained experience!]
Only the notification that I gained experience,
My Level didn't rise that easily.
##
Our adventuring activities also developed a certain routine.
After about two days of hunting, we focused on requests for about three days.
Honestly, I found requests more comfortable too.
Not only did they earn more money than Goblin hunting, but there weren't many dangerous requests that an Iron-rank Adventurer would take on.
Repeating this, about two weeks passed.
Reed and Mari both became somewhat proficient in combat.
And there was something that had changed for me too.
That was,
ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ
Level: 6
Health: 2
Mental Power: 3
Stamina: 5
(Creampie Point: 1)
ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ
My Level.
On days we went Goblin hunting, I would literally spend the entire day killing Goblins and recovering Mana.
Repeating that and hunting them like crazy, my Level eventually did rise.
I raised a total of 4 Levels, investing 1 point in Mental Power and 3 in Stamina.
If you ask why I invested more in Stamina.....
There's a bit of a story to tell.
When I first leveled up from Level 2 to Level 3,
Since I had to invest evenly anyway, I just picked anything and raised it, and that was Stamina.
And then, when I leveled up again to Level 4.
Actually, I just thought of it as a gamble, and pretending to be crazy, I raised Stamina one more time.....
Incredibly luckily, my magic usage count increased!
That's how I realized that raising Stamina increased my total Mana.
It was truly a gamble, but if it succeeds, isn't that a jackpot?
So, I increased Stamina at Level 5, and I considered raising Stamina again at Level 6, but.
Still, isn't there a reason for a stat like Mental Power to exist?
I couldn't ignore that, so I eventually invested one point in Mental Power.
Until I figure out exactly what Mental Power increases, I'll probably invest in a 2:1 or 3:1 ratio.
Anyway.
That's enough of my explanation.
So now, after two weeks, we finally took on our first Dungeon request.
Actually, even though it's called a Dungeon request, it's not that grand.
It was a request to clear out respawned monsters in a Dungeon that had already been cleared by another high-ranking adventurer.
Just because a Dungeon was cleared once didn't mean it collapsed or disappeared.
After a certain period, monsters would respawn in the Dungeon,
Because if they weren't cleared out at regular intervals, they would eventually emerge from the Dungeon, attack nearby villages, or nest in the forest.
The rank of the Dungeon we were heading to was Bronze Rank.
Originally, it was a request that two Iron-rank Adventurers couldn't take, but with me, a Bronze Rank, in the party, and the number of members being three, we barely met the conditions.
Moreover, to reach that Dungeon, it would take about a day's walk.
Since we inevitably had to camp for a day, we decided to spend a night outdoors midway.
So, we accepted our first Dungeon request from Riverrun's Adventurer's Guild and departed for the Dungeon around the afternoon of the next day.
##
"They say the main monster in the Dungeon we're going to is a Golem."
Reed was surprised by Mari's explanation.
".....A Golem? Are we sure we can handle it?"
"Yeah, it doesn't seem to be the kind of Golem we know."
Not the kind of Golem made of stone that I know.....?
To satisfy my curiosity, Mari added an explanation.
"They say it's smaller than a regular Golem and its movements are sluggish. The receptionist lady said it's a Degraded Version? She said it's easier to understand it that way."
"Aha....."
Reed, who heard Mari's explanation, nodded his head.
Then, suddenly, Reed spoke as if he had realized something.
"Then my sword won't work, will it?"
"Hmm, for sharp weapons, it's best to aim for the joints or the Golem's core if possible."
If sharp weapons like swords don't work, does that mean blunt weapons do?
"Then my magic should work well, right?"
"Ah! Lunia-ssi's magic was essentially a blunt attack! I forgot because it's water-attribute!"
My water sphere magic.
Its attribute was water-type magic, but the attack method was to create a sphere of water and throw it at the enemy.
I also initially thought it was magic that dealt damage by bursting water droplets,
But unexpectedly, it was magic specialized in striking enemies.
If Mari's words were true, my magic, which almost acted as a blunt weapon, seemed quite useful and important.
I also raised my Stamina Level by 3, so my magic usage count increased from 3 to 4.
Moreover, I had also brought plenty of Mana Recovery Potions.
Dungeon requests give rewards upon completion, and you can also sell the byproducts of monsters caught in the Dungeon, so the earnings are quite substantial.
It's time to definitely increase the earnings that were slightly insufficient from Goblin hunting and a few requests until now.
To put it crudely.... shall we say, 'let's make a killing'?
Indeed, the profession of an adventurer, which involves risking one's life, seems to pay quite well, even for low-ranked ones like Mari and Reed.