Challenge Accepted
The time came at last to find his very first quest in the world of Fantasia, though undoubtedly he was starting from rock bottom.
"Bronze-rank, huh? I guess I have to start somewhere," he said, looking at the necklace after slinging it around his neck.
"As long as you prove yourself, you'll jump up the ranks in no time! Don't sweat it," Gunter assured him.
"Yeah, well…I can only prove myself with a bronze-level quest anyway," he responded.
The quest board was full of available missions, surprisingly, though it was likely due to there not actually being too many bronze-rank adventurers showing up first thing in the morning. Most of the options weren't exactly intriguing to his excitable heart.
'Exterminating rats plaguing a local farm–pass…Finding a girl's lost cat–super pass…Now hold on, this seems more my speed,' he thought.
What caught his eye was one of the quest documents pinned to the board:
["VANQUISH GOBLINS IN NORTHBORROW CAVE | 50 COPPER REWARD"]
While he didn't exactly have the best first impression with handling a single goblin, in Jett's mind, the past was the past, and the present was now–especially with the backup he had now and the new equipment at his disposal.
"Alright, how about this one?" He pulled the quest from the board, showing it to Edith and Gunter.
The scruffy-bearded warrior rubbed his chin for a moment, reading the paper before smirking, "Goblins? I'm always down to squash some green devils!"
Edith seemed open to it as well, "If that's your choice, then I will follow."
As always, the silver-haired girl was knight-like in her demeanor, always respectful and subservient, though Jett wished she would be more expressive–yet, that would definitely be a trick path to walk in discussing.
"Then it's settled!"
–In the very next minute, he excitedly slammed the quest paper down on the receptionist's desk, surprising the golden-haired woman at the quick decision from the man who had just received his bronze-amulet.
"Goblin extermination?...Alright, then. Please be safe, adventurer," Julia said before approving it.
"I'll be back in a jiff–don't worry," he assured confidently.
After getting the quest approved for his undertaking, the Northborrow Cave where the troublesome goblins were said to be lurking wasn't too far outside of Merdlum; directions were given by a local for him to go west of Merdlum and pass through a dirt path up a hill.
It only took twenty minutes of hiking before he found the entrance to the cave, though shrouded in shadows.
"Creepy," he mumbled.
"Nervous? Ga-ha-ha! Don't worry, we've got your back!" Gunter slapped him on the back.
Jett winced, "You're going to break my back one of these days…I'm not nervous, just excited."
Though he was excited, it would be a lie to say he wasn't at least somewhat nervous; the ferocity of goblins was imprinted on him from his very first encounter in the world of Fantasia. All that truly meant though was that he wasn't blindly overconfident.
'...Let's do this. This is where the name of 'Jett Levine' will begin its legend!' He decided.
As much as Edith was against it, he insisted on leading the way–even though the exchange made Gunter laugh, who kept going on about "let a man be a man", Jett felt it was the only way he'd cement himself.
The very first step into the dark cave, allowing his sneakers to place onto the moist mix of dirt and gravel that made for an uneven foothold, he was hit by a deathly stench.
"Urgh…What is that?" He covered his nose.
Gunter wasn't laughing anymore, taking on a more serious demeanor the moment they entered the cave, keeping his axe and shield ready, "That, my friend, is undoubtedly the smell of death."
"You're not gagging…? How can you be unaffected by this?" He asked, looking at the other two.
"A most unpleasant smell, indeed. I doubt one ever gets used to it," Edith admitted, "You can only learn to handle it."
A gut-wrenching stench of reality; it was a putrid sweetness that almost coaxed the bile from his stomach, but he moved forward, keeping his [Rare] dagger drawn.
"It seems we were too late; this group of goblins must've already gotten their hands on people," Gunter remarked.
"We don't know that for sure," Edith responded.
"Yeah, well, be realistic," Gunter said.
The air was dark and musty; it felt thick and hair to breathe, especially knowing what sort of deathly occurrences lay in its depths. Jett moved slowly and cautiously, constantly looking around, even reacting to the subtlest sounds such as water dripping from the ceiling or a pebble being kicked.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
"Master, ahead of you!" Edith urgently called out, raising her sword.
It happened quickly; he didn't register the presence rapidly racing towards him before his familiar had called it out to him.
In the darkness of the narrow cave, he heard footsteps tapping against the ground now, and ragged breaths of a fiendish creature.
'How can she tell in this darkness?!...I didn't even hear it until it got close!' He thought.
With hardly any gap to react, he raised his ice-forged dagger up just as something caught his eye, moving out of reflex–
CLANG
He surprisingly managed to intercept the swing of a rusty axe, belonging to a green-skinned creature now standing before him. The goblin was drooling, almost foaming at the mouth, standing half his height yet possessing a surprising amount of strength behind its swing as it caused him to stumble back.
'I stopped it…?' He realized.
Another surprise came to both him and the goblin: the axe it wielded began to ice over, becoming encased in ice quickly.
"Gra–?!" The goblin let out.
"The dagger…" He mumbled, "--It works!"
Before he could even attempt to re-engage with his foe, its head was suddenly lobbed from its shoulders before he could raise his dagger again.
Standing there with a triumphant smile across his lips, the booze-loving warrior held his blood-slick axe.
"That's one for me!" Gunter claimed.
[EXP: +5 | 5/10]
A short-lived fanfare was played in his ears with the meager, but meaningful gain of experience, though it hardly felt satisfying.
Edith huffed, "I hesitated. Apologies, Master. I assumed you wanted to handle it yourself."
The youthful man responded finally, "I did! I had that handled, Gunter."
"You snooze, you lose!" Gunter laughed.
It was annoying, but fair; if he wanted to establish himself, it wouldn't mean anything if he was letting his familiars hand it to him on a silver platter.
"Alright then, I'll just kill more than you, how about that?!" Jett challenged with a smile, pointing at Gunter.
The shaggy-haired, burly man looked pleasantly surprised by the offer, extending his hand to Jett, "You're on! If I win, we're heading to the tavern tonight–all three of us!"
"Then if I win, we're going to a normal restaurant! I want something quality–no, gourmet!" Jett yearned for.
Stepping in quietly, Edith added her hand to the mix, asserting herself shyly, "...I'd like in on this as well."
Both of the men looked frightened at the idea, knowing the efficiency at which the holy spellblade was able to dispatch her enemies.
"Err, alright…Yeah, that's not a problem, is it, Gunter?" Jett nervously glanced over.
Gunter shook his head, sweating, "No, err, of course not!"
"Then if I win, we'll get dinner tonight…at a bakery!" Edith's cheeks flushed when announcing her condition for victory.
A request certainly unfitting for a knightly warrior, though not surprising coming from the girl whose dream was to eat baked goods. Such a condition eased the tension Jett had been feeling, smiling as the terms were set.
The odds were certainly against him, but he led the way with vigor, unafraid of the shadow-filled cave as now he wished to find those green-skinned fiends with haste.
'I'll get the most kills and eat a fine feast when I get back to town!...It's been so long since I had a good, home-cooked meal!' He thought, almost salivating as the mere concept of it.