Investigation Quest

At the inn previously, Nikos handed gear to Marielle and Jarek. After they finished changing, the group headed out to the Adventurer's Guild.

Marielle walked gently beside Nikos, dressed in a loose-fitting white robe that concealed her curvy figure. Her long black hair rested softly on her shoulders and around her neck, beneath her slave collar.

She wore a magical pendant that enhanced her healing abilities and last she held a brown, medium-grade magic staff in her right hand.

Jarek followed behind the group, his tall and powerful physique is a testament to his reptilian heritage. His imposing presence ensured no one dared to mess again his master.

Jarek's armor covered his chest, stomach, and shoulders, leaving his back exposed to showcase his strong, metal-like skin. He wore a silver helmet and carried a massive greataxe by his side.

And in addition with Nikos and Liriel, they resembled a small party of seasoned adventurers.

As they walked, Nikos asked Jarek, "Jarek, what's your magic class?"

"I'm an expert warrior, Masster," Jarek replied, his voice carrying a faint hiss.

"Is that all? Do you have any other classes?"

"No, Jarek only hasss common talent. Why do you ashk, Masster?" Jarek looked at Nikos, curious.

"Common talent? What does that mean?" Nikos asked.

"People are considered to have a common talent if they only have one talent, sir," Liriel help clarified Nikos confusion.

"What if someone has more than one talent?" Nikos inquired further.

Marielle added, "Having two talents means that person is a genius, Master. But it's quite rare for people to have more than one talent."

Nikos fell silent, processing the new information. I have four class slots, and I can easily switch between them. Also I'm not the only one with this capability; Jarek has two, Marielle three, and Liriel also has three. Maybe the magic ball for detecting talents isn't advanced enough yet.

The group continued their walk until they reached the Adventurer's Guild and stepped inside. Nikos walked up to Nori's desk.

"Miss Nori, how are you?" he greeted her.

"Oh, Sir Nikos, I've had quite a bad day, but seeing you has made it a bit better. Are you here to take another quest?" Nori responded with a smile.

"What a poor lady. You can always tell me if you're having a hard time. As for the quest, I'll take one later. I'm here to register these two as adventurers," Nikos said, placing 4 gold coins as the registration fee on the desk.

Nori giggled, "It's okay, Sir Nikos. It's just work stuff. I'll register them now."

As Nori handled the registration for Marielle and Jarek, Reychard approached Nikos from behind. "Sir Nikos, nice to see you again."

Nikos turned to him, "Ah, Reychard, nice to see you. I've been busy with my business, and also I'm grateful for your help in promoting my stall," he said, giving a polite bow. "I'll give your party a good discount next time you come."

"You're welcome, Sir Nikos. You deserve all the praise. Your gifts were really helpful in the dungeon last time," Reychard said.

"I'm glad my items could help."

Reychard glanced at Jarek and Marielle. "Is this your new party, Sir Nikos?" he asked, pointing to them.

"Yes," Nikos replied.

"The lizard-man looks quite strong. He'll definitely keep you safe," Reychard commented, assessing Jarek's skills with a single glance.

"You're right. I'm lucky to have him," Nikos agreed.

Reychard nodded in agreement. "Alright, I need to go now. Good luck on your next quest, Sir Nikos," he said, bidding farewell.

"You too, Reychard," Nikos replied with a nod.

Before Reychard went out he turned to Nori, waving his hand. "Bye, Nori. Do your best."

"You too, Reychard. Don't push yourself too hard," Nori replied, her word producing a smile on Reychard's face as he left the building.

Nikos observed these interactions, finding them quite amusing.

He turned to Nori, "Miss Nori, have you known Reychard for a long time?"

"Yes, we've known each other since childhood. We both grew up in this town," Nori explained. "Why do you ask, Sir Nikos?"

"Nothing. I was just curious about your relationship with him,"

"Oh, we're just friends. We didn't had any relationship beyond that," Nori added, feeling the need to clarify.

Well that's going to be hard for him, Nikos sympathized while gave a polite smile to her.

Nori finished registering Marielle and Jarek and handed them their adventurer cards. "Here you go. All done."

The cards were bronze, signifying their start as F-rank adventurers. Nikos had essentially formed a new party.

"Thank you, Miss Nori. We'll take our quest now," Nikos said, guiding his party to the quest board.

"Good luck, Sir Nikos. I look forward to hearing more good news from you," Nori said with a smile.

Nikos returned her smile and turned back to the quest board, reading through the available beginner quests.

He picked one that caught his eye.

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Quest: Investigate Northeast Jungle

Level: Beginner

Description: 

On Northeast Jungle side of Oakheart, the monster activity been decrease tremendously. Investigate that part of the jungle, and bring back information to the adventurer guild.

Time Limit: 7 Days.

Rewards: 11 Gold 5 Silver

System Rewards: 25SC – 700 Exp

| Accept | — | Decline |

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Nikos turned to his party. "Since we've just formed a party, we'll take this beginner investigation quest. Any thoughts?" he asked, handing the quest parchment to them.

Liriel took the parchment and read it, with Marielle reading alongside her.

"This is definitely a good start for our party. You've thought this through, Master. I have no additional comments," Marielle said.

"I agree, sir," Liriel echoed.

"Jarek?" Nikos turned to Jarek.

Jarek replied, "I can't read, sso I will follow after you, Masster. I'll protect you."

Liriel handed the quest parchment back to Nikos, and he placed it in his magic inventory bag.

"Alright, then let's get going," he said, leading his new party to complete the quest.

In the heart of Oakheart, a sizeable building stood tall. Inside its main hall, a few adventurers were buying potions from rows of wooden shelves. However, the number of customers had been decreasing lately, which was quite unusual.

In the back room, within the manager's office, a half-elf slept soundly on a comfortable sofa. Meanwhile, outside, the sun was high in the sky, signaling that it was midday.

On the outside the residents of Oakheart were doing hard work during the day, in stark contrast to the half-elf, who was lazing around in his office.

Knock knock

A knocking sound came from the door.

"Come in," the half-elf said in a sleepy voice.

A human male entered the room and stood before the half-elf. "Manager Lark, I'm here to inform you that our sales this week have shown quite a decrease from the usual," he said with a worried tone.

The half-elf, Lark, remained silent for a moment, still drowsy. Then he spoke, "Well, these things happen sometimes. It will go back up eventually. Now go back to your work. I'm still sleepy," he said, waving the human away.

The human staff member sighed, nodded, and left the room.

Lark closed his eyes again. "Why worry so much? It's not like some new competition will show up and crazily compete with the associations," he mumbled as he drifted back to sleep.

Meanwhile, In the northeastern jungle of Oakheart, Nikos and his party had been exploring for a few hours. The jungle was relatively calm, with only the occasional small monster appearing, which Jarek easily dispatched.

We've encountered fewer monsters than expected. That means we should check out the monster dens to see what's going on. Nikos observe the surrounding area as they explore the area.

The group were also gathering Silverleaf and other herbs for basic potions. This time, Nikos instructed them to collect two new herbs for a new potion recipe.

The first ingredient was 'Wind Moss,' a magical moss that grows on cliffsides and has a small magical attribute that enhances agility.

The second was 'Mandrake Root,' the root part of the mandrake plant, which counteracts magical and natural poisons.

The group collected these materials as they explored the jungle. As evening approached and night began to fall, Nikos decided to find a safe spot to camp for the night.

Nikos turned to his teammates, "Does anyone know how to find a safe area in the jungle?"

Liriel and Marielle shook their heads.

"Masster, I know how to do that," Jarek hissed.

"Show me, Jarek. bring us to a safe spot."

Jarek nodded and guided the group to a secure area deep in the jungle. Nikos also watch after him and learned how Jarek do it.

Once they reached a safe spot, "This will do," Nikos instructed his party, "Jarek and Liriel, go find some firewood. Don't stray too far. Marielle, you and I will set up the tent here."

"Should I bring any animal for dinner, Masster?" Jarek asked.

"Do that if you found some. Otherwise, focus on the firewood."

The trio nodded and set off as instructed. Jarek and Liriel went to gather firewood, leaving Marielle with Nikos.

Nikos pulled out a variety of materials for the tents from his magic inventory bag: magical fabric to keep warm at night, animal skins for the tent's sides, magical vines for the basic structure, and more.

He laid all the materials on the ground, and Marielle began assembling the tent.

Marielle who seeing Nikos help creating a tents, said softly, "Master, you don't need to help. Let me do it all for you."

"No, it will be faster if we work together," he replied, continuing to construct the tent.

"You're a strange person, Master Nikos," she remarked, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Is that a bad thing?"

"No, it's not bad. You're just so... nice," she explained.

"I'm not that nice. I could be bad too. Do you want that?" Nikos turn to look at her.

Marielle's eyes met his, locking onto his blue gaze as if she were entranced. She quickly turned her head away, flustered. Nikos smiled softly and continued working on the tent.

As they finished setting up the tent, Liriel and Jarek returned, bringing firewood and two deer for dinner.