First Quest!
After Eternus asked the shopkeeper for directions to a place where they could eat, the shopkeeper pointed in the direction of a not-too-shabby building just across the street.
"That's an old inn, you'll love their breakfast!!" He said while filling a pouch with coins.
The mention of 'Breakfast' seemed unusual at that hour, However, both of them were too hungry to ask or pay attention and turned around to leave.
"Hold on, young adventurer! You forgot your change…" The shopkeeper called out after counting 50 silver coins and handed them over to Eternus.
The Boy nodded in respect for his honesty, not knowing that the shopkeeper had thought a billion times about whether he should return the change or not.
Both finally leave and enter the tall inn, [Look at that, it's odd to see people having eggs and tea at this hour... The name 'Dusk-wake' is almost starting to make sense now.] Said Neko, her mind boiling with confusion.
Eternus hadn't been to a restaurant in the longest while… Being the clueless and careless boy he is, he simply went and sat at an empty table as the waiter stared at the unusual clothing that made him look like he just came out of a battlefield.
Neko on the other hand, seemed to be quite familiar with human norms and acted as the big sister, guiding Eternus on every little thing he didn't know, using telepathy.
He picked up the menu and narrowed his eyes since none of the names of the dishes seemed familiar to him.
" Get me bread... and meat. A lot of meat!" He asked the pale and skinny waiter bluntly who was staring at Eternus's eloquent and unique mask, tossing the menu to the table.
He looked at Neko to see if the order was okay with her and she nodded positively.
The waiter left to bring their food saying in his bored voice, "Of course."
As they waited impatiently for the food to come, two men at the next table spoke about something with fear in their tone.
"Tomorrow $%@ daylight Bandits $%%"
Eternus eavesdropped on the two strangers who were talking about some sort of 'Daylight Bandits'.
The term piqued their interest and when they could almost hear enough to make sense out of the words, the waiter returned with their food and both forgot about the Daylight Bandits as their mouths watered at the sight of the perfectly grilled meat and golden loaf of bread.
As Eternus brought the first bite to his mouth, the mask retracted into a tiny strip under his chin, revealing his wide open mouth that almost drooled without him even realizing it.
Both of them dug in like children and wiped out the whole table in just a few minutes. During that, Eternus did not even realize a thing about his mask and was surprised at the strip after they finished.
After finishing it all, Neko laid on the table with a potbelly and burped loudly like an impolite child.
It was yet again the second time when he had to pay that day. He looked around and saw that everybody was paying at the counter.
Copying what everybody did, he moved towards the counter as well. A beautiful lady attended the counter wearing a bright smile for all her customers.
"What do you want for my food?" Eternus opened the pouch full of coins and asked bluntly to the lady, not knowing what tone was proper.
Finding it rude, the accountant replied with an annoyed tone, "A table load of meat and 3 loaves of bread would cost you 5 silvers… Hmph" She turned her face away in irritation.
Meanwhile, Neko was still surprised at her partner's social skills which were at a level… around ten feet under the ground.
After somehow paying the Counter Lady, Both of them returned to the shopkeeper to enquire about something.
At the sight of his recent favorite customer with his two-tailed cat coming from across the street...
He popped up with joy thinking, 'That young lad again! He's probably here to buy something else…'
"Welcome back, young warrior! Have you returned to buy something else?" He greeted Eternus enthusiastically.
Eternus replied in a calm tone, "No, I've come for some more intel about this place... There are some things I find quite unusual."
The shopkeeper's smile disappeared at the mention of his odd town.
"So you're curious about why someone would name it Duskwake, I see. It is quite odd when people of a whole town work at night and sleep during the day..." he said with a sad face.
"I see, so there is something seriously wrong here.' Eternus held his chin, "I want you to tell me more about it."
The shopkeeper thought the boy was only satisfying his curiosity and because he happened to be his favorite customer, he did not mind educating him.
"You see, this town was not always called Dusk-wake. We were forced to change our ways and live like bats. Just because of some bandits who came out of nowhere."
The term Bandits reminded Eternus of what he heard at the inn.
"Are you talking about the Daylight bandits? I heard someone talking about them… Who are they?" He asked knowing that they had something to do with the problem.
"As the name indicates... The Daylight Bandits are a group of powerful bandits who showed up weeks ago. They ride through our town and rob anyone who comes in their way." He continued with a hint of anger and self-pity, "Because of that, all we can do is hide in our houses during the day… but still, sometimes they break in. It is a nightmare in broad daylight!" The shopkeeper yelled.
Eternus and Neko got the gist of what was going on in this strange town,
"So it is a group of bandits, I see... I saw a few knights patrolling the town. Why don't they help you out?" Eternus asked, finding it strange for them to not do anything about it.
The shopkeeper slapped the table with anger in his eyes and yelled angrily, "Those so-called knights are nothing but empty shells of armor. They only come here to collect taxes and drink booze. They think that helping us weak ones would be a waste of their 'valuable' blood... Tch Bastards!" His anger dissipated after that and his tone showed sadness again as he continued, "If only there were someone strong and noble enough to help us out."
Hearing the word 'weak' had already triggered Eternus and adding to it the condition of the people of that town was not acceptable. Both weakness and inability were the two things that he hated because it was a reflection of his past self… and probably the current as well.
His brows furrowed as those knights resembled Inura, He put his hand on the shopkeeper's shoulder and said to him with unbreakable determination in his eyes,
"How disgusting it is for those knights to fill their bellies while the people suffer. Those bandits will not torment you anymore... Because I will put an end to them... Tomorrow!"
The shopkeeper's eyes couldn't hold tears inside any longer and his mind couldn't believe that he was betting his hopes on the words of a 12-year-old.
'I don't know why... But I want to believe his words. There's something about him… I think he can do it. Because... Those eyes are not lying.' He said inwardly as his mouth was left open with surprise when he looked at the Boy's eyes that held the fire of vengeance as well as loss.
He realized now that this boy was different and wanted to play his part.
"I don't doubt your skills, but I want to help you out. Tell me what I can do to aid you tomorrow." He said patriotically, "After all, it is my duty… I can't burden an outsider with all of it."
Eternus instantly refused, "There is no need for that." He said.
The shopkeeper insisted and held on quite stubbornly to his resolve to help out... "No, I must help you! Anything at all!"
Neko jumps into the quarrel, [Hey... I don't think he's going to back down.]
Eternus agreed to the shopkeeper releasing an irritated sigh, "Fine... You can help by telling me everything you know about those scum called Daylight Bandits!"
After discussing their mode of action for tomorrow, Neko yawned and it was finally time to get some sleep, "Is there someplace where we can spend a night?" He asked the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper replied with a little hint of sadness, "Yes, of course. You must be tired. I forgot that not everyone is used to staying up at night like us bats... Hahaha…" He laughed at his self-mockery, "You can find a room at the inn over there." He pointed toward the same inn where they had food earlier.
"I'll be seeing you tomorrow and please do not tell anybody about me." Eternus said while leaving the shop.
The shopkeeper nodded with respect and got back to work.
On their few steps to the inn... Neko said with a yawn, [Hey Eternus, I'm too sleepy to lecture you right now. So be more polite to the attending lady this time.]
When the attendant at the inn saw him enter the door, she exclaimed inwardly while staring at Eternus bluntly, 'Ugh... Him again!? The start of my night is not going very well...'
"Miss... could you please see if I can get room to stay the night at your inn?" Eternus came to the counter and talked to her in a more polite tone this time.
The accountant did not expect such a change in his tone just the second time. She didn't know how to react anymore as her eyes were wide popped with Eternus' charm.
She took some time to regain her composure and handed over a green gem to him.
"T-take this token, It will measure your time of stay here. Your room number is 12, upstairs. The token will also work as a key. And you may pay us whenever you check out on this counter." She recited her attendant script while smiling awkwardly at the Boy.
Upstairs, Eternus entered his room no. 12 which was casually decorated with a medium-sized bed and a table nearby a large window.
While sightseeing his new room which was fascinating to him, Eternus noticed that Neko was already fast asleep and curled up on his shoulders.
He placed her on a pillow and began removing his gear, starting with his knee pads. He set Inura's sword with support on the table. Then he took off his mask and placed it on the same table. The same with Vankolv's cloak and Inura's Pauldron.
Relieved of the burden of his tight armor, relatively heavy sword, and sturdy mask he fell on the bed with a grunt.
"I won't fail tomorrow. I've trained for the past four years, I will accomplish my first quest!" He said to himself, determined to win.