2 CHAPTER 2: NEW EARTH (2)

"Dmitri, focus!"

I leapt towards him and tackled his bear-like body to the side.

'THUD'

The club meets the hard ground and left a mark there. We barely managed to avoid it.

"Chae--"

"Why didn't you dodge, you idiot!" I said, still rolling on the ground with him.

"Ah, I...Thank--"

"Sorry, no time to chat. It's getting ready to attack again."

I stood up and just then I noticed how huge that ice orc is. It's probably around 5 meters tall with huge muscles. Darn it. I was thinking of sneaking a kill to complete my quest, but I didn't intend to face off againts this muscle head.

Oh well, now that it's come down to this, I'm gonna need to use my head.

"Dmitri, let me borrow your shield!" I snatched his shield and threw it towards the ice orc.

'ROAR!'

Of course, it has no damage, but it's okay, since it is now agitated and looking towards me. Yes, that's right. Look at me you protein head. Let me look into your eyes.

[Enemy: Ice Orc, rank 8]

[Weakness: the mark on its forehead]

Got it. Now I just need to bring it down.

I snatched a sword from a nearby soldier and and soon as I dashed forward, the sword glowed bright blue.

"Huh?"

I was confused but right now, I focused all my strength to slash its achilles tendons.

'ROAR!'

Ugh, it's not letting me go behind its back.

'Slash!'

Suddenly, Dmitri slashed its right leg.

"I'll get its attention!" he said, while his red aura suddenly rose up. Perhaps he's using a skill that attracts aggression? Good job, Dmitri!

"Thank you!" I slide between its legs, and slashed its left leg, then right leg.

With a loud roar, the ice orc had been brought to its knees. Without wasting any time, I stabbed my sword from the back of its head, all the way through its forehead mark.

[You have completed your quest]

[5 stat points have been gained]

[Acquired beginner bag]

[Acquired random item box]

Nice. So it's real. I should think before using those rewards.

Dmitri approached me with a worried look. "Chaerin! I'm so sorry, are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm okay. Thank you for helping me." I smiled.

"You have blood on your face..." he said as he used his thumb to wipe off the orc blood on my left cheek.

"Ah, th-thank you."

'THUD'

The last ice orc fell down, and Jeanne came up to us.

"You. You said your name was Chaerin?" she asked, sheathing her sword back.

"Yes, uh... Nice to meet you?"

"I must thank you for helping us. It was an embarassing display from our side." Jeanne bowed.

"No, no... I was only lucky, and it's actually thanks to everyone that we survived, so thank you very much." I bowed back at her.

"However, there was... something rather peculiar in the way you handled that ice orc."

"Pardon?"

"I hope you don't mind our company a bit longer than planned." Jeanne said without missing a beat.

"Well, I don't have a choice do I?" I said while smiling sarcastically.

"You catch on fast. I like you." Jeanne's lips formed an amused smile.

She walked back and started to gather the soldiers, including Dmitri, and brief them. Well, I guess at least I won't be harmed until I meet the headmaster she was talking about. It's not bad to be under their protection until they finish deciding on whether or not I'm an ally. Basically, I'm their prisoner now, huh?

[Ding!]

Right as I was about to think about the headmaster, a new red window popped up.

[Quest: pick an alliance]

[Reward: 100 gold]

Hmm a new quest. So they do have a money system. I wonder what I can buy with that. Anyway, I also haven't figured out what alliance means here. And how many alliances there since I was told to 'pick', not join.

"Miss Chaerin, please don't lag behind."

"Ah, sorry, Miss Jeanne!"

For now, let's follow this squad.

As we walked along the plains, I chatted a bit more with Dmitri since he was tasked to watch me closely, again. Jeanne sure is a very careful person. I admire her decision-making skill honestly.

Suddenly, the person in question moved from the front of the squad towards where me and Dmitri is standing.

"Miss Chaerin, how are you feeling?"

"Very confused, but other than that I'm grateful for the Vanguards for keeping me company." I replied, kinda honestly.

"Sorry to bother you right after that fight, you must be tired. But can I inquire a few matters?" Now she's walking alongside me and Dmitri as we march onwards.

"Sure, though I'm not sure if I can help much since I don't remember much..."

"Good. I'll be direct then. What is your personal mission?"

"Personal mission?" I tilted my head slightly.

"Yes, everyone has one, don't they?" Jeanne narrowed her eyes slightly, "try opening your mission window."

What? She knows about windows? Does everyone have the same system as me? I need to check. Let's check my mission window first.

[Main mission: collect 3 serpent souls]

[Reward: ???]

[Personal mission: find *****]

[Reward: ???]

It's censored. This is a surprise. So there are 2 types of mission. Main and personal. And furthermore, it seems different than my quest window. These are blue. And sure enough, when I tried to open my quest window, it was open on a separate window.

Hmm... So to summarize, I have a quest window that they don't know about, and also have a main and personal mission that presumably everyone has?

Jeanne observed me as I was lost in thought. Her eyes studied my expression carefully and she opened her mouth, "...Can you tell me what your personal mission is?"

"Uh, I'd like to tell you, but I can't..." I should be careful on my words here. I don't know yet if it's safe to tell her my personal mission is censored. And even if it's not, I don't think it's a good idea to spill my info just like that.

"Alright then, is there anything else you see on your mission window?" She asked.

From the corner of my eyes, I can see her hand slowly moved to grip the hilt of her sword. She's ready to strike. I understand what she meant by 'everyone has one'. That simply means if I don't have a mission, that means I'm not one of them. Not a human. And she's preparing to deal with me if that's the case.

"Yeah, there's this main mission thing, it says to find 3 serpent souls?" No choice there, I have to speak or else I'll have to say goodbye to my miserable life. Probably not a bad idea to be struck down by a beauty, though.

"I see," her hand released her grip from the bloody sword, full of orc blood, "that's true. That's our main mission. I suppose Miss Chaerin doesn't have a recollection regarding that?" she smiled a little.

I let out a soft relieved sigh.

"Actually, yes... Do you mind explaining it, perhaps?" I said, a bit embarassed.

"Well, to make matters simple, humans were given main missions. Everyone's main mission is the same. We have been trying hard to clear those missions to advance," she started explaining, "and as for personal missions, everyone's is different. It's usually completed faster than the main missions, though. For example, in a few months or years."

"That long? Then how long do the main missions take?" My eyes widen upon hearing that.

"Well, it depends, but it typically lasts at least years." Jeanne replied.

I look at her with a dumbfounded expression, still trying to process everything.

"We have been trying our best on this main mission for around 3 years now, haven't we, Sir Dmitri?" Jeanne glanced at Dmitri.

"Exactly. It's pretty hard, but we've collected two souls so far. Not bad, eh?" he said with his usual carefree smile.

"Well... what about the personal missions then? Why does it take that much time? What are they based on if everyone's is different?" I asked.

"It's because each mission is often either abstract, or takes a lot of effort to complete too. We are still unsure about what it's based upon. That's what we are trying to find out, too." Jeanne replied, looking into the distance. Somehow I see a flash of loneliness in her clear blue eyes.

"Yeah, but when it's completed, we usually get some reward, like a new skill or even some food." Dmitri chirped in.

So skills do exist in this world, too. And it's safe to assume that most people, if not all, can use some type of skill.

"That makes me curious, what are your personal missions?" I asked while trying to sound casual.

"This is a bit embarassing, but mine is along the lines of improving one thing I've been struggling with, hahahahah." Dmitri said with a shy smile while scratching the back of his head.

"That's not embarassing, I admire you for working hard to improve yourself, Dmitri." I smiled. He may look like a bear, but he sometimes remind me of a teddy bear.

I chuckled a bit, and Jeanne replied to my question earlier, "well, I'm afraid I can't tell you for now. I'm sure Miss Chaerin understands, don't you?" Jeanne smiled at me.

Well, I thought as much. She's too smart to give out info to a suspicious stranger, especially since I also was unwilling to share my info. Good thinking on her part.

"Yeah, that's a great choice. I respect you." I said earnestly with a little smile.

"Dmitri, you shouldn't give out your personal info that carelessly. I don't mean to offend you, Miss Chaerin, but we as Vanguards have to be very careful for the sake of the people."

"No offense taken. I agree with your view."

We walked a bit more until we came across a huge dome-shaped barrier. It's so wide that I can't quite see the entire dome shape. Beneath the semi-transparent barrier stood a massive wall towering over 30 meters high. It might be way more than that, I'm not quite sure as it's hard to estimate the height from here.

The squad moved closer until we're in front of a bridge. I see they made a moat for extra precaution. Right at the end of the bridge, I can see the barrier separating us.

"This is our nation. We call it Alistair, hoping this nation could be a safe haven for us. Those monster can't come inside the barrier, but we humans can come and go as we please," Jeanne explained while she urged both me and Dmitri to follow her to the front of the squad, "as you can see, we still built a moat and a wall just in case a breach happens again."

"Again? So there's been a breach before?" I asked, slightly surprised.

Instead of answering, Jeanne motioned me to come forward. I now stand face-to-face with the barrier. I took a quick glance towards Jeanne, and sure enough, her eyes are still fixed on me.

"Go on, Miss Chaerin, you can go in first. I've told those guards inside the barrier that you're with us."

I saw the guards placed in front of the gate, just a few meters from where I'm standing. They don't look threatening, but I can see they're alert. She wants to test me if I can pass this barrier. If something happens and I'm not proved human, I'm sandwiched. Damn, she's very careful. I feel like I'm doing those are-you-a-robot tests everytime. I know I'm a human, but I mean what if, you know? Kudos to her on being extra careful though.

I took a deep breath and reached my hand out towards the barrier.

---

Note: Alistair generally means 'defender of men'

Thank you very much for reading! Do let me know what you think and a critic or feedback is always very welcome, thank you! :)