The oppressive heat of the day seemed to fade as I stepped under the canopy of the Grandwood Forest. After leaving the guild with a simple fetch quest find a lost bag I muttered to myself, "Honestly, how does someone even manage to lose a bag deep in a forest?"
I sighed, looking around. "Alright, let's see. Trees, trees, and... oh look, more trees. I'll never find that stupid bag." I spotted a thick oak and leaned my back against its rough bark, trying to think.
"Hm... Maybe it's not just near the edge. If they lost it, maybe they wandered in a bit. Best to check deeper," I concluded, pushing off the tree and heading further into the woods.
The shadows grew longer and the ground crunchier beneath my boots. As I walked, my eye caught a flash of brown. I bent down and picked up a piece of torn, cured leather.
"Leather? The bag might be here, but... it's damaged." A prickle of caution ran down my spine. "Better be careful." I instinctively grabbed the handgun holstered at my hip. Then, I pulled out my silver coin and began to flip it, the familiar 'ding' sound resonating as it spun and caught a charge of ambient mana.
Ding. Ding. Ding.
As I moved deeper, I saw more fragments of the bag ripped cloth, scattered trinkets, and finally, the shredded remains of what was once a satchel. I immediately stopped flipping my coin. The metallic 'ding' was a beacon, and if something had torn the bag to pieces, it wouldn't be safe to advertise my location.
Silence.
"Clever thing, aren't you?" I whispered, looking around.
A low growl answered me. I spun just in time to see a squat, ugly creature a Goblin pop out from behind me, its rusted dagger raised.
Bang!
My reaction was immediate. I fired a single, charged round, and the creature fell over dead, its momentum carrying it into the dirt. Before I could process the easy kill, more rustling erupted from the surrounding bushes. A ring of Goblins ten of them, maybe more emerged, completely encircling me. Their eyes were tiny, malevolent sparks in the gloom.
"Come on then, you jerks. Meet your maker," I growled, bringing my gun up.
I squeezed the trigger, spam-firing until the charge meter dropped twenty points.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Ten charges were released, but the chaotic spray only managed to hit seven Goblins.
"Dang, I need to train my aim," I muttered, seeing three Goblins still standing.
They didn't hesitate. They let out a ragged shriek and charged toward me. Before they could close the distance, I fired the remaining ten charges in a more deliberate burst.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The last three Goblins dropped in messy heaps.
"Man, seriously, first thing on the agenda: fix my aim," I said, holstering my gun and surveying the carnage.
Then, a thought struck me as I looked at the ten dead monsters. "Wait, can I sell their ears or something?" I paused, recalling the Guild. Some adventurers had shown up with bags of Goblin ears and had been paid for them.
"Best to take their ears. I do have an Inventory, after all... Wait, do I even have one?"
I quickly called up my system interface. Sure enough, a small, blinking Inventory button was on the bottom right.
"Lucky," I grinned. I scavenged a rusty, chipped knife from a dead Goblin and set to work.
"Man, that took a while, but well worth it," I sighed, dropping the last severed ear into my Inventory.
The instant the task was complete, a series of satisfying notifications flooded my vision.
[50xp x 10]
[10 gold x 10]
[ Level Up ]
[Name: Chance
Lv: 2 (250/2000)
HP: 100
SP: 100/100
MP: 100/100
Strength: 3
Perception: 3
Endurance: 3
Charisma: 7
Intelligence: 5
Agility: 3
Luck: 10
Gold Coins: 450
Kills: 16
Stat Point: 3]
"Nice!" I immediately dumped all three Stat Points into Agility. The number ticked up, and a subtle sense of quickness settled over my body.
[Name: Chance
Lv: 2 (250/2000)
HP: 100
SP: 100/100
MP: 100/100
Strength: 3
Perception: 3
Endurance: 3
Charisma: 7
Intelligence: 5
Agility: 6
Luck: 10
Gold Coins: 450
Kills: 16
"I just need 50 more gold to get a new character," I mused, before grabbing the most intact piece of the destroyed bag as proof and heading back toward the Guild.
As I entered the Guild, the familiar, annoying sense of all eyes on me returned. I ignored it, walked straight to the Receptionist, and showed her the proof of the destroyed bag. She simply nodded and handed me a single Silver Coin.
"I also killed some Goblins while I was out there. What do I get for that?" I asked, using my coat to shield the hand that pulled out the small, blood-soaked bag of ears from my Inventory.
The receptionist's eyes widened slightly, but she quickly recovered her composure.
"Hm... For these, you'll get ten Copper Coins," she said, taking the bag and sliding the payment across the counter.
"I guess I'll take on another quest," I decided, turning toward the Quest Board. I found a simple fetch quest: gather some healing herbs from the same forest.
"I guess it's good enough," I muttered, grabbing the paper and returning to the Receptionist for approval.
"Be safe out there," she said, stamping the paper.
"Yeah, thank you," I replied, heading for the exit.
I didn't make it. Just like before, a big mantaller and broader than any of his crew blocked my path.
'Seriously? Have they not learned their lesson?' I thought, my hand instinctively tightening near my gun.
"So, you're the girl that was roughing up my guys," he rumbled, his voice thick and rough.
"Yeah, that's me. What of it?" I replied, my voice hard and serious, ready for a fight.
The big man's face split into a wide, surprising grin.
"Hahaha! You're something special, lady!" he boomed, a hearty, honest laugh that echoed in the hall. "Don't worry about them, they won't bother you again. You've earned some of my respect. Defeating C-rank adventurers is something else."
He squinted at me. "I never took you for a magician. Then again, magic is always bullsh*t to me." He laughed again at his own joke, and I could feel the tension rise from the other side of the room. A few Magicasters started muttering, their hands twitching near their wands.
"So, are we cool now?" I asked, wanting to move on.
"Yeah, we're alright," he confirmed, finally stepping aside and giving me a clear path.
"See you later," I said, hurrying out of the Guild and heading for the forest, already flipping my coin.
Behind me, the big man turned, unaware of the storm he had unleashed.
"She's something else, am I right?" he asked, looking for a nod of agreement.
Instead, he saw a wall of angry Magicasters. Their staffs and wands were raised, their focus intense, and multiple magic circles glowed on the floor, ready to send spells toward an unlucky target.
"H-hey! Wait, can we talk about this? I didn't mean it," he stammered, his bravado gone, his face paling.
CRACKLE!
"And don't you dare say magic is bullsh*t!" one of the Magicasters yelled before casting a bolt of lightning that struck the center of his chest.
"Yes! Yes, yes, yes, I won't do it again!" he pleaded, already being bombarded by a ton of different magical spells. The sound of sizzling flesh and panicked yells was quickly muffled by the Guild Hall's thick walls.