Quest Accepted

"Welcome to the Adventurer's Guild. How can I assist you today?"

The lady behind the counter regarded me with a warm, practiced smile. Although the Guild was home to many faces and it was unlikely she remembered every single one, I had a feeling she knew I was new.

"I'd like to register as an Adventurer, please," I confirmed for her, trying to sound confident and determined, like an Adventurer.

"Very well! Please, let me see your Identification Card."

I fished the card up from my pocket - thankfully, it was still there, despite the outfit change - making a mental note of it's official designation. I handed the card to the receptionist, and she took it off to the side and seemed to transcribe some information from it.

After a few moments, she returned and handed the card back to me. I immediately noticed the change:

"Job: Adventurer."

"Just like that, huh...?" I thought, frowning. If it was that easy, what did Damien mean by "entry exam"?

"Although your Identification Card has been modified with the appropriate title, you will not be able to take on official Guild requests until you've passed your Entry Exam," the receptionist explained, as if she was reading my mind.

"And what does that entail, exactly?"

"You must complete a level 1 request," she explained, gesturing to the quest board. "Which request you complete is up to you, but we at the Guild can offer some suggestions, should you require it."

So, the requests were divided up by level. Did that correspond to my actual level? I was tempted to ask, but this was the first I've heard a native of this world saying anything about "levels" at all, so I wondered if maybe that was something unique to my...predicament, as well.

"What do you suggest?" I asked, figuring their recommendation would be the best place to start.

"Let's see..." the receptionist began, gesturing for me to follow. We headed over to the quest-posting board. "Would you prefer a gathering or combat assignment?"

A gathering assignment - a fetch-quest, most definitely - would likely to be the easier of the two, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't itching for something more exciting.

"A combat assignment, please."

"Understood. There is a selection here, if you'd like to take a look."

The receptionist pointed to several pinned pieces of paper in sequence, and I took a moment to look them over. Each posting had a similar design - what type of quest it was, such as the two options she had given me, a brief description of what was needed, the location of the request, and a contact for said request were all included in each. Lastly, and it seemed to be a later addition, done by the Guild itself, there was a large number painted on the postings' upper left quadrant - it's level.

The ones the receptionist had indicated were all combat quests, as requested, and all level 1, but the subject matter they dealt with left much to be desired. Two were requests to exterminate a vermin infestation in a house and storefront respectively, and I had a feeling they were not talking about quintessential RPG giant rats, either.

"Can you really call a quest to play exterminator a 'combat quest'...?" I thought to myself, putting those aside for now.

Another quest was to get rid of a wasp's nest from someone's property.

"Again with the exterminator overlap?!" Did this world really leave this kind've stuff up to Adventurers?

Yet another quest was to take care of a troublesome boar that had taken up residence near a farm. This seemed more like an animal control or hunting problem, but it seemed a least a bit more in-line with the adventurer "image."

And yet another quest talked about a small band of kobolds that had popped up near a village. I had a vague idea of what a kobold typically was, but was this request really on the same level as exterminating some rats? Didn't kobolds usually have...weapons, and the like?

"Can you give me any more information on this one?" I asked, taking the kobold quest paper off the board.

The receptionist looked it over briefly.

"The village in question is not very far from Athelens, thankfully. Most of the level 1 quests take place in the immediate area, for convenience."

That was good to know, considering none of the names involved seemed familiar. Granted, I had knowledge of exactly one village in the region, and it seemed Troph was untroubled, at least by level 1 problems.

"And the kobolds?"

"A minor threat, though this could be considered on the upper end of level 1 difficulty, given the potential numbers involved," the receptionist explained, putting her finger to her chin thoughtfully.

"We don't know exactly how many we're dealing with?" I wanted to confirm said potential difficulties.

"Correct. Kobolds never operate solo, but it is not thought to be a major infestation, given the available evidence and their impact on the region. Therefore, the quest remains at level 1."

Judging by the way she described it, it seemed like if a problem was not taken care of, it could actually advance in its assigned difficulty. Either that, or if insufficient information was provided in the initial assessment and the threat was much larger than previously thought...

"I'll take this one, after all," I decided, putting my reservations aside for now. A lot had happened since I arrived in this new world - despite only a single day passing - but none of it really fit the expectations I had of what kind of world this was. I wanted to do a quest, where I fought something familiar, like the start of a proper RPG, damn it!

"Very well. Would you like some directions to the town of Slyrest?" That was the name of my destination, apparently.

"Yes, please." I was sure the signpost maze would have some indicators, if it was supposedly that close, but better safe than sorry.

The receptionist brought me back over to the counter and squared away some paperwork. Notably, the request would not be completely rescinded, and others were free to take it on as well, but I was given special consideration because it was part of my Entry Exam, and therefore would be free of competition for 24 hours.

This definitely set the pace for quest-completing after the fact, but for now, I wouldn't have to worry about anyone stealing my glory.

It made sense, but I hadn't really considered it - that there would be competition for assignments, even the more mundane ones. Adventurers operated like bounty hunters in a way, after all - all that ultimately mattered was that the request was completed and the client was satisfied.

"Is there any kind of rules for competing with other Adventurers for quests?" I decided to ask, just in case.

"Only that it must not cause any additional trouble for the client, or break any laws, obviously," she explained.

I wondered how strict this kingdom's laws were. To be honest, there was much about the country I now resided in that I didn't know. Including its...well, name.

"Thank you for all your help."

I took what the receptionist had provided - a copy of the posted quest and a rough map leading to the destination - and linked back up with Damien and the kids.

"Objective fulfilled: Accept a quest."

"You're done?! Which one did you pick?!" Nia asked the moment I approached, snatching excitedly for the paper. I let her have it.

"Kobolds, near the town of Slyrest," I summarized for Damien and Leo's benefit. Nia seemed more obsessed with the paper itself than the request.

"Kobolds, eh? Not a bad pick," Damien replied, scratching his chin. "All that talk about not minding the boring stuff, and you pick the most action-packed quest you could find for your first go?" he teased, giving me a toothy grin.

"I-I didn't check them all, there could be something worse!" I insisted, baselessly. Damien only laughed.

"A word of caution, then," he offered, suddenly getting serious. "Kobolds shouldn't be a problem, if you know what you're in for. But don't be afraid to high-tail it out of there if there's a lot more than the Guild says. Wouldn't be the first time the problem was under-reported until some poor bastard decided to take a crack at it."

I nodded. I had gathered that much from the conversation with the receptionist, but this only reinforced its importance.

"I'll be sure to know what I'm getting into, first. I wouldn't be able to die in peace if I ended up croaking on a level 1 quest."

"You're not allowed to die, Rhys!" interjected Nia suddenly, shoving the paper under my nose. "Not! Allowed!"

"Fine, fine! I'll live forever, don't worry!"