Sacha Village lay along the eastern edge of the Runa Kingdom, a quiet fishing town nestled between cliffs and the sea. Despite its modest size and population, the village was considered a crucial hub—two major roads, one from the northeast and the other from the southeast, converged here before leading straight to Velhein.
Its strategic location, combined with the nearby Rivnya Lagoon—infamous for the monsters that prowled its murky waters—turned Sacha into a bustling waypoint for adventurers, merchants, and mercenaries alike. Bars, inns, alchemy shops, blacksmith stalls, and brothels lined the streets like a mismatched mosaic of vice and commerce.
Erik wandered through the town in silence, his thoughts empty, just letting the sights and sounds wash over him.
He felt numb.
Maybe it was the stress, or maybe it was the lightning. Or the dream. Or that strange woman's voice in his head.
Too much weird shit lately.
The sound of horses neighing echoed down the cobblestone street. Carts clattered past him. Vendors called out prices. Even the prostitutes lounging near doorways began their morning ritual—calling out flirtations to passersby with mechanical cheer.
The town, sleepy just moments ago, had come alive.
Eventually, Erik found himself in front of a bounty board nailed to a post just off the main street. He paused, reading the parchment notices pinned in crooked rows.
Three were new:
One bounty for a robbery that occurred on the southern road.
Another for locating a shipment of goods lost during a storm.
And the third—more prominent—was for a monster that had attacked the village outskirts a few days ago.
Erik leaned in, scanning the details. Just then, a man approached and slapped a new poster onto the board—right over the last bounty. Same monster. Higher reward.
Erik muttered to himself, "Guess a few hunters didn't make it back."
"I thought I'd find you here," came a familiar voice behind him.
Erik turned.
Yosul approached with Rud at his side. Rud offered a cheerful salute.
"Good morning, Master Erik," Rud said with his usual grin.
"What are you two doing here?" Erik asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well…" Yosul scratched the back of his head. "While you were passed out yesterday, we figured we'd hit up one of the local bars and have a drink. You know, relax a bit."
Erik narrowed his eyes. "And?"
"…We may have overspent a little," Rud admitted sheepishly.
Yosul smiled. "Luckily for us, this monster bounty popped up. It's the perfect way to make back some coin."
Erik smirked.
Looks like the wind's blowing my way.
He'd been wanting to test his second element—Electricity. He could feel it now, crackling faintly beneath the surface of his left hand. If he poured enough mana into it, he knew he could use it properly. He'd already watched Leena use it before. Mimicking her wouldn't be hard.
"Alright then," Erik said, nodding toward the board. "The monster was last seen near Rivnya Lagoon, right? I'll take care of it. You two can head back."
"Nope," Yosul said immediately.
"What?" Erik asked, confused.
"Rud's going after the monster," Yosul replied.
"…What?"
"He's good with a sword, but when it comes to monsters? He doesn't know what the hell he's doing."
"So…?" Erik asked cautiously.
"So," Yosul said with a grin, "you're going to teach him."
"What?"
"You're the best monster hunter we've got in the group. Who else could teach him?"
"Yosul," Erik said flatly. "Just because I know how to kill them doesn't mean I can teach someone else how to do it."
"You can at least try, can't you?"
"Huh…"
Erik looked over at Rud. The man was still smiling, completely unbothered by the conversation.
"…Alright. But if things start to go south, I'm stepping in and taking it down myself."
"Fair enough," Yosul said, satisfied. "Take the poster. I'll let the others know you two are heading out."
Erik pulled the bounty notice off the board.
"Let's go," he said.
Rud nodded eagerly, and the two of them turned toward the lagoon.
On the way to the lagoon, the three of them stopped near the Adventurers' Guild, a modest stone building with a fading sign and the sound of clinking steel and raised voices spilling out from inside.
They stepped through the doorway and made their way to the front counter, where a bored-looking receptionist sat flipping through parchment slips. Yosul took a seat on the nearest stool, while Erik and Rud remained standing behind him.
"Hi there," Yosul said, placing the bounty notice on the counter. "We'd like some details about this monster."
"Give me a sec," the woman replied. She ducked beneath the counter, pulled out a thick, worn ledger, and began flipping through the pages. After a moment, she turned the book toward them and tapped the entry with her pen.
All three leaned in.
Saltwater Crocodile.
Capable of growing over forty feet in length. Brown-scaled hide. Heavy armor along the back. Fish-like tail adapted for aquatic acceleration. Typically aggressive when provoked or defending territory.
The woman looked up. "According to the witnesses, the one in the bounty was estimated to be over twenty feet long."
"Twenty feet?!" Rud blurted out, eyes wide.
Yosul gave a polite nod. "Thanks."
He stood up, motioning to the others. "Alright—let's get moving."
They exited the guild and began heading eastward, the road slowly turning into a path of gravel and sand as they approached the outskirts of the town.
"I've heard of crocodiles before," Yosul said as they walked, "but I never knew they grew that big. Over forty feet, it said."
"Have you ever seen one?" he asked Erik.
"No," Erik replied calmly.
"Huh. So this'll be your first time too."
"Looks like it."
Yosul glanced at him. "What are you thinking about?"
"In that book, it mentioned that some crocodiles live in groups, while others stay alone," Erik said. His gaze shifted forward. "If this one isn't alone, and there are more around it... that could be a problem."
Yosul followed Erik's eyes—both of them looking ahead at Rud, who was walking a few paces in front, humming to himself.
"You think it'll be too much for him?" Yosul asked.
"No," Erik said flatly.
"Then I don't see a problem," Yosul replied with a grin, and the three of them continued onward, the scent of brine in the air as they neared Rivnya Lagoon.