Chapter 16: First quest hunting rats?

Lucian, Hestia and Ron finally arrive back at the adventures guild so they could look for work. Tommy, the blacksmith, had been right about the hood he gave to Hestia. It had done the job quite nicely, allowing them to avoid unwanted attention.

Lucian walked over to the quest board, seeing that it was pretty empty now, with the limited quests not offering a lot of money.

"How about this one?" Ron said as he pointed to a sewer clean up job.

Lucian looked over the details and could see that adventures were wanted to help kill rats that had been breeding in the sewers.

"Reward of 5 coppers per rat. It also says we can keep and remains to sell on for our own profit." Ron said as he also looked at the details.

Lucian couldn't see anything else of interest and decided it would be easy enough.

"Alright, I guess this will do." He said as he took the poster to the woman at the desk.

"Why hello again!" She said with a bright smile.

It was the receptionist that had stood up to the brute from the other night.

"Are you all registered now? I hope my sister looked after you. I put in a good word after all." She said.

"She did, thank you," Lucian said, returning the smile.

"So what can I do for you both today?" She asked.

Ron slapped the quest paper down onto the desk and gave her a confident smirk.

"We've got some pest control to do." He said.

The receptionist looked over the quest and pulled out a stamp that said in progress.

"Is this your first quest?" She asked.

"It is," Lucian said.

"Oh my, congratulations! Just be sure to collect the tails of any that you kill so you can cash in the reward." She said with a small smile.

She did a quick check of her surroundings, and then leaned forwards a little to whisper something to them.

"Also, make sure you take the ears. They sell for four copper coins a piece on the market. But I didn't tell you that." She said as she returned back to her side of the desk.

Ron was pretty surprised as he never knew that information.

"Really?" He asked.

"That much!"

"Yes. Anyway, be safe out there!" She said as she filled out the paperwork and bid them farewell as she went to tend to the next person in the queue.

Lucian and Ron took the hint and walked off back out of the guild, much to Hestia's complaints as she could smell food.

"Hold on a little longer. First, we need to earn some money." Lucian said, trying to stop her complaining.

"But im hungry!" She said, throwing her arms around in a tantrum.

Lucian just ignored her and turned to look at Ron.

"Which way to the sewers?" He said with Hestia shouting at him in the background. "Don't ignore me!"

Ron escorted Lucian and Hestia to the closest sewer entrance. It was a large steel gate with a sign saying warning, work access only.

There was also another saying, beware of giant rats.

"This is the place!" Ron said as he read the sign.

Lucian nodded as he tried his best to block out the smell. However, his nose was too sharp, and the scent was knocking him sick.

"Alright! Let me loose, master! I'll kill us some rats in no time!" Hestia shouted as she punched her hand, raring to go.

Lucian looked her up and down and decided this quest was a perfect opportunity to test her abilities.

"Alright, Hestia, lead the way. I want to see what you can do." Lucian said, getting a wicked smirk from her.

"It would be my pleasure!" She said as she turned and opened the large gate, charging in like a mad man.

"Will she be alright?" Ron asked, not sure if that was a good idea.

"I guess we will have to wait and see," Lucian said as he followed her inside.

The three of them walked further and further ahead until the light from the entrance faded away, leaving them in the dark underground system.

Lucian didn't have to worry. Thanks to his night vision, he could see just fine. Ron had been smart and lit a touch to help them see, but Hestia simply opened her palm and let a ball of fire burst to life, providing her with plenty of light.

"Wow... She really can use magic." Ron said, impressed.

Lucian was also impressed as she could do it without having to learn how to. He looked at his surroundings and could see a walkway on each side of the sewer water and waste.

There were lots of turns and bends and intricate pathways that spread across the entire underneath of the town.

"We should be careful we don't get lost," Lucian said.

Ron agreed.

"Yeah, even though there are lots of entrances and exits, people still get lost down here all the time," Ron said.

Lucian's ears suddenly picked up movement from around the bend, and he told the others to get ready. Not knowing what these rats would look like or how strong they might be.

"Get ready. Something is just around the bend."

Hestia smiled while Ron slowly drew his sword, gulping.

"Alright, bring it on!" Hestia shouted as she jumped around the corner, ready to test out her new power.

As luck would have it, there were two giant rats, each about the size of a large whiskey barrel.

Both of the rats squeaked at the sudden light, and they rushed at Hestia in uproar.

"Take this, you damned rats!" She shouted as she extended her hand, blasting them with a ferocious fire blast cooking the rats alive in an instant.

Ron couldn't believe she had dealt with both of them so easy as he got a look at the size of them.

"Well, that was easy," Lucian said as he walked over to the monsters and cut their tails and ear off, throwing them at Ron to put in the bag.

"Keep them safe, Ron, remember without them, we won't get paid," Lucian said as he put his knife away.

Hestia ripped a piece of cooked flesh off of one of the rats and started to eat it.

"Yummy!" She said as she finished the meat in one bite.

Lucian sighed as he took another look around, seeing if he could detect more of them. He still found it strange how things had turned out. Being summoned into a video game world, watching your friends die and ending up in a sewer, killing giant rats for money. He would never have imagined something like this could happen in a million years.

"Master you have to try the meat! It's delicious." Hestia said between mouthfuls.

"I think I'll pass." He said, snapping out of his thoughts.

"Still, I wonder if I could learn how to use magic like that?" Lucian then thought as he looked at the cooked monster.

"You should try using magic sense first." The demon lord Satan, suddenly said.

Lucian had gotten used to him speaking up randomly from time to time and was starting to become unfazed by it.

"And just how do I do that?" He said back.

"Hmm... Now that I think about it, I have never had to explain it to someone before." Satan said as he pondered.

"I guess you should start by closing your eyes and trying to sense the magical energy around you. Every living thing is made up of this energy, and when you become aware of it, you will understand it better." The demon said.

Lucian sighed.

"That doesn't make any sense." He said not understanding.

"You fool, I've never had to teach a child like you before! This stuff just comes naturally to me!" The demon shouted.

"Yeah yeah, I'll give it a go," Lucian said, getting him to shut up.

"So close my eyes..." He thought as he did so.

Everything was dark as he tried to focus his senses.

"Now, what am I supposed to do?" He said as nothing happened.

"Look, master more of them!" Hestia suddenly shouted, breaking his concentration.

Lucian opened his eyes and could see she was right. A whole army of giant rats was hurrying towards them at a rapid pace as the sound of their scurrying feet started to get louder and louder.

"Oh shit! there must be over a hundred of them!" Ron said, turning around to start running.

"Hold on! Lucian shouted as he grabbed the back of Ron's clothing, pulling him out of the way of an attack at the last moment.

Ron screamed as the rat flew past him falling into the water where it was washed away.

"Where did that one come from!" Ron shouted.

Lucian had seen the number above its head said four and guessed the others would be the same.

"Hestia, think you can take them?" Lucian asked as he put Ron back down, making sure the coast was clear.

The Hobgoblin smirked as she let fire ignite in both of her hands.

"Leave it to me, master." She said as her eyes flickered with power.

If each rat was at a rank of four, then they were about the same strength as Ron, and with so many of them, it would be hard to fend them off.

However... That's where Hestia's fire magic came in.

"Take this!" Hestia shouted as she extended both her hands, letting a massive burst of fire to expel throughout the entire sewer.

All of the rats, even combined, didn't stand a chance against such powerful fire magic, and Lucian made a mental note of just how strong magic really was.

Ron was utterly gobsmacked, not believing his eyes as he watched Hestia kill all of the rats in one go, leaving all of their bodies burnt to a crisp after the fire exploded shaking the very foundation of the sewer system.

"Just what the hell is she?" Ron asked.

"I wouldn't worry about that if I were you, Ron," Lucian said with a smile.

"She's on our side, after all."

Ron nodded slowly as Hestia turned back around, flexing her arm to both of them.

"Did you see that master! Did you see me kill all of them, just like you asked!" She said, running over to Lucian for praise.

"I did, Hestia. It was awe-inspiring." Lucian said as he patted her on the head.

Hestia looked just like a little kid as he rubbed her hair, reminding him that she was still the little goblin he had rescued.

"Alright. Let's get to work collecting the tails and ear and get out of here." Lucian then said, getting back to business.

"Y-Yeah," Ron said, agreeing with him.

"Can I eat them!" Hestia asked, getting excited.

"Yes... Just don't eat the tails or ears!" Lucian shouted as he watched her run off towards them.

"Man, I really need to learn how to use magic." He then thought as he took another look at the aftermath of her attack.