Menial Quests

As night settled in, August finalized his plans for the next day's meeting with a potential buyer. Tomorrow was his day off from the factory, and he'd use every minute to ensure the deal went smoothly.

But for now, his focus shifted to something he was equally passionate about—grinding in Enders Light.

He proceeded to log into the game, feeling the immersive pull of the virtual world wash over him as his avatar, Aleman, materialized in Tagharuim Kingdom.

He quickly accessed his player stats causing a soft glowing interface to appear before him.

←←←←←←←←

Name: Aleman

Level: 20

Class: Assassin/Mage

EXP: 7300/520,000

HP: 6000/6000

MP: 4300/4300

Gold: 250

Skills: Shadow Dance, Hidden Strike, Slash, Dash, Dual Wielding, Fireball, Arcane Shield, Lightning Bolt

←←←←←←←←

August smirked in satisfaction. His dual class and increased level had made a visible impact on his stats, and now he was ready to explore the quests available in Tagharuim Kingdom.

August moved swiftly through the streets of Tagharuim, searching for any indication of available quests. The kingdom was alive even at night, with NPCs going about their routines and fellow players haggling at merchant stalls or preparing for raids.

Eventually, he arrived at the Tagharuim Adventurers Guild. Inside, the wooden hall was buzzing with activity; adventurers crowded around bulletin boards, checking the posted quests or bragging about their recent victories. August approached one of the boards and his gaze swept over the list of available quests.

Unfortunately, nothing particularly challenging caught his eye. Most of the quests were either way above his level or seemed too basic to provide worthwhile rewards.

"No tough quests for level 20 players? Guess I'll have to settle for menial work tonight," August thought with a sigh.

Now that he could finally accept quests here, there didn't seem to be much that caught his interest.

He finally settled on a series of delivery quests, transporting valuable items from one city to another within Tagharuim Kingdom.

[ Deliver A Darklin Root From The Magic Bureau to Old Man Tim ]

[ Deliver The Magic Stopwatch To Sir Fergus ]

...

The quests were labeled "menial" but offered modest rewards in gold and EXP, enough to keep him progressing until something better came along.

The first two delivery quests proved simple.

August traveled across the kingdom's winding roads, moving from city to city with ease. His skills allowed him to evade minor threats on the path, and he quickly dispatched any low-level beasts that wandered into his way.

Each successful delivery earned him small, incremental rewards—gold coins in his inventory, along with a minor boost in EXP.

But as he accepted his third quest of the night, the stakes shifted.

The third delivery was slightly different, involving the transport of a rare artifact from one of the kingdom's cities to another.

August carefully loaded the item onto a horse-drawn cart and began his journey along the winding dirt roads that connected the cities.

As he rode along, the ambient sounds of Enders Light filled his ears—nature mixed with the rhythmic clatter of the cart's wheels on the path.

He was halfway through his journey when a system notification popped up, its message catching his attention.

<[Warning: Hostile NPCs Detected Ahead]>

Ahead, a group of NPCs materialized on the road, blocking his path. They were armed and armored. Their stances radiated menace as they eyed the cart.

August narrowed his eyes as he took in their details. Each of the NPCs had visible class markers hovering above their heads—two rogues, a swordsman, and a mage. Their levels weren't displayed, but their appearances indicated they were no pushovers.

One of the rogues sneered in arrogance. "Hand over the goods, and we won't have to hurt you. Make it easy on yourself."

August wasn't about to back down. He cracked his knuckles as his lips curled into a smirk. "I don't think so. If you want it, come and take it."

The NPCs exchanged glances, clearly amused by his defiance. They drew their weapons and closed in, their intent clear.

<[Quest Updated: Protect the Delivery from Hostile NPCs]>

The first rogue lunged forward with his dagger gleaming under the moonlight as he aimed for August's chest.

August sidestepped while activating Dash.

[ Dash Has Been Activated ]

A single step made him appear more than fifteen paces away from his initial position.

His movements turned into a blur as he countered with Slash, letting his dagger carve through the air. The attack landed, slicing through the rogue's armor.

[ -800 HP ]

The rogue staggered while gritting his teeth in pain, but quickly recovered. His companion, the swordsman, charged in from the side, raising his massive broadsword with a roar.

August reacted instantly, activating Arcane Shield to absorb the blow.

A transparent barrier flared around him, absorbing the impact of the sword's heavy swing.

[Arcane Shield Activated. MP -300]

The swordsman's attack rebounded off the shield, and August seized the opportunity.

He leaped forward, delivering a powerful Hidden Strike to the swordsman's exposed side. The blow landed hard, and the swordsman stumbled back, clutching his side.

[Critical Hit! -1400 HP]

The mage, stationed a few feet back, began chanting.

His hands glowed with fiery energy depicting an incoming spell.

August quickly countered with Fireball, launching a blazing sphere of flame directly at the mage.

[Casting Fireball. MP -350]

The two spells collided in midair, creating a burst of flames that lit up the dark road. The force of the explosion sent the mage sprawling to the ground, temporarily stunned while August slid ten feet backwards.

[Mage -700 HP]

Just as August turned to focus on the second rogue, he felt a sharp pain as the rogue's dagger sliced across his shoulder, a sneak attack that landed cleanly.

-400 HP

Gritting his teeth, August retaliated with a swift Lightning Bolt, sending a crackling arc of electricity toward the rogue. The bolt struck him squarely, electrocuting him with a surge of energy.

"Aahhhhhhhhh!"

[Lightning Bolt Activated. MP -500]

[ -900 HP ]

The rogue let out a strangled cry as he fell to the ground. His HP drained to almost nothing. August didn't waste time and proceeded to finish him off with a quick dagger thrust.

[Enemy Defeated: Rogue. +2000 EXP]

The swordsman and the mage were still standing, both looking visibly weakened but unrelenting. The swordsman roared while charging forward once more. On the other hand, the mage began chanting another spell.

A sinister red glow surrounded his hands.

August kept his cool and activated Shadow Dance.

[ Shadow Dance Activated ]

His form turned into a myriad of shadows that seemed to blend with the night as they moved like phantoms.

The swordsman looked around wildly, while swinging his sword but it constantly through intangible shadow afterimages.

He was unable to pinpoint the real August location.

August appeared behind him in an instant, delivering a deadly Dual Wielding attack.

Both his daggers cut into the swordsman's back.

[ Dual Wielding Attack! -1500 HP ]

The swordsman collapsed in defeat as his form flickered briefly while disappearing.

[ Enemy Defeated: Swordsman. +3000 EXP ]

Now only the mage remained. His eyes widened with fear as he realized he was outmatched.

He attempted to cast another spell, but August was faster. He unleashed Dash, closing the distance in a heartbeat, and finished the mage off with a well-aimed Slash.

[ Enemy Defeated: Mage. +2700 EXP ]

The road fell silent as the dust settled. August let out a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from his brow. His HP and MP had taken a hit, but the encounter had gone better than expected.

As the final NPC collapsed, a system notification popped up, confirming his success.

[Side Quest Completed: Protect the Delivery from Hostile NPCs]

[ Reward: +15000 EXP, +20 Gold, Item Drop: Mana Potion x2]

August smiled, feeling the satisfaction of a job well done.

He glanced back at the road now that the fallen enemies were nothing more than flickering shadows in the distance.

With the cart secured once more, August continued along the road.