The next day, I awoke to the wonderful smell of breakfast. I rushed downstairs to find one of the guild maidens cooking. In contrast, the guild receptionist continued her daily routine of organizing paperwork, as the Guild Master directed them to the urgent requests before the "regular" requests.
I saw a table, and the guild maid then brought me a plate of food: a serving of eggs and morning pancakes with a hint of gentle honey on top. I handed her a gold coin; she gladly accepted the reward and bowed as she continued to carry food to serve others.
I was busy eating as I overheard an argument at the Guild tavern's reception desk, with the Guild master and the guild receptionist trying to calm down the situation.
"HEY, old man, don't you know, I'm the leader here of TEAM OMEGA!" the cocky jerk proclaimed as he drew his short sword.
The guild master and guild receptionist gently reminded him that even drawing a weapon in the tavern is a sign of disrespect, and it doesn't increase any pay as submitted by the request.
He would sneer and snap his teeth as he and his team members snatched the payment away from the guild receptionist.
I watched in utter disgust as I swallowed the last of my food. I'd leave a few silver and copper coins for the guild maid who came to clean the table I was eating at as I stood over to confront the guild receptionist.
"Oh, hi, wh-," the guild receptionist began.
"Who were those jerks?" I demanded.
The guild receptionist frowned, "Well, you see, ever since the Corrupted Nobleman had been taken down, it's been hard for adventurers to…find jobs to support their needs, especially bigger squads or parties."
"I see. Well, have you heard any-" I began.
The guild receptionist answered my question immediately without any delays, "Nope, haven't heard or seen them for the past few weeks now."
I looked down at the flooring of the guild tavern, "I see. Thanks anyway." I began to walk towards the request board.
"You know, if you truly miss them, I could always send a request for you?" the guild receptionist added, with a genuine smile, as she intended to help me with good intentions.
No. I don't miss them. I keep repeating that to myself; perhaps I miss having some company. I could get some adventure done to get rid of that empathy.
I'm about to tear off a simple request to chop down some lumber when a hand snatches away the request before me.
It's the jerk from before, along with his snobby party, the 4 of them just eyeing me while looking at the request form.
"Cutting wood? For 10 gold? Miss you should party up with us; we'd get it done MUCH faster than if you're by yourself." The leader bragged.
"Thank you, but I believe that I'd be fine on my own." I resisted.
"Come on, Missy, we'd like to get paid too, and maybe perhaps a bit more…" The side guy sneers as he licks his lips.
Eww disgusting, gross humans.
"L-leave her alone!" the guild receptionist yelled, "If you're trying to get a request off the board, go about it and leave other adventurers be, before I call up the Platinum Enforcers here!"
They'd sneer and snap their teeth in disgust as they were about to do what they always do: insert their dominance.
"You're lucky this time, little rabbit." They'd head out, taking my request paper with them.
The guild receptionist would head over to check on me: "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine."
"Adventuring by yourself is one thing, but perhaps it's time you started looking for a party? It's very dangerous for a woman, especially an elf, to be adventuring solo all the time; accidents tend to happen a ton," the guild receptionist informed me.
"Miss, are you alright?" a young teenage boy asked me.
Another party, beginners as their gear foretold me. They included their leader, the teenage boy, his sister, and two other friends, possibly a cleric and an archer.
I stood in front of them unfazed, "I'm fine, thank you."
"Miss, we overheard the commotion and figured, why not join us? We can use more people, plus, you seem to know what you're doing. After all, strength in numbers!" The teenage boy smiled a proud smile that reminded me of Noobie.
"Well, why not!?," the guild receptionist self-inserts my own thoughts into the conversation, "You'd be able to teach them more, hehe."
This girl, I swear, she's the first to eat, yet the last when it comes to wanting to work.
"Sure…let's go together." I accepted.
Their unsure smiles and weary looks faded away as soon as I accepted. It sparked their morale and spirit, and they all looked at one another with renewed hope.
"Well, since those jerks took my request paper, let's see what you have," I asked the teenage boy.
"Hmm, sure." He takes out the crumpled-up request papers from his satchel that had been stuffed in there disorganized and messy, reminding me of Noobie and his inventory gate scuffle. "Ah, this one, my sister's been asking that we do this one!"
I take the request paper and uncrumple it as I read it.
"Look for the missing puppy: color: white like snow." I looked outside, and it's still snowing.
The quad started arguing about the weather and how we'd be unable to find a white puppy in this type of weather. The cleric recalled they don't have winter gear; the rogue agreed to take up a different request; the sister asked to save a puppy that might have been lost for who knows how many days now.
I didn't say anything; instead, I just closed my eyes, thought for a moment, and then exploded, "Okay, let's go!"
They immediately stopped arguing and stared at me in confusion.
I smiled proudly, then relaxed and explained to them, "Adventuring is what you make of it, whether you contribute to help others or defend those who can't be defended."
They then stopped and apologized to one another.
Wait…why did I say that? Who once said that?
The guild receptionist smirks as she secretly nudges my side, "Hmm, hmm, I see he's rubbing off onto you, perhaps you miss him?"
I was irritated, so I set out with the beginners to look for the lost puppy, using the requested paper to show us the general area where the puppy might be.
I had to slow down for the beginners to keep up with me. I saw their health bars this time.
Tim was the leader, Tina was his sister, their cleric was JohnMacruly050698, and their archer was Shadowhunter8765.
What weird names I've never heard of or seen.
I was wearing a cloak like Noobie's when he was carrying me through the blizzard, but it was to keep the snow debuff from affecting my gear and status.
"How much farther?" Tim asked while he constantly helped his party up the ridge.
"About another 15 meters or so," I replied, looking at the request paper.
Suddenly, I felt a rush of killing intent, and I moved to deflect an arrow aimed at Tim's head.
Tim, upon spotting the first one, took out his shield to block the incoming ones from hitting his sister by shielding her in the process.
Their two friends in the rear weren't so lucky and were hit with almost every single one.
"WHO'S THERE!?," I roared.
"My, MY, MY, miss little rabbit elf. Why did you have to make things harder?" a familiar voice echoed around the ridge.
"Are you guys alright?" I whispered to Tim while holding my stance.
"Yeah, Tina and I are fine, but John and Shadow are heavily wounded and bleeding," Tim answered me as he attempted to help John up.
"Dispel mana!," Tina casted.
The dense fog suddenly revealed a high ridge, and on top of it sat 4 silhouettes, readying another wave of arrows to rain down on the beginners.
I hissed.
"Tina, Tim, take your friends and run back to the guild Tavern, I'll buy you guys time!" I shouted.
"No, we're a party, we stay-" Tim started.
"HURRY UP AND GET GOING!!!!!," I yelled at the top of my lungs.
He'd swallowed his tears and quietly but quickly helped his friend over his shoulder, while his sister helped their other friend up. As I then lure the jerk party into the cannon of the ridge.
As I made distance, I heard Tim shout, "We'll be back with help!! You HOLD ON NOW!!"
God damn it, I must fight disgusting freaks. At least now they won't slow me down.
I then came to a dead end…an opening that the area of the ice ridge formed around like that of an arena.
Oh no, a dead end…Th-this can't be it.
I turned around, and there were 4 of them cornering me as they came closer like predators trapped prey.
"Look at what we've caught here," the jerk leader sneered.
"Looks like we're eating good tonight," the side guy added.
"I call first dibs," the bigger man claimed.
I then noticed my health bar was no longer present with Tim and his party, and it was alone once more. However, I also recalled one more thing.
These adventurers were no good compared to those I've killed in my cave in my early days.
As they advanced closer with their weapons drawn, I used my copper sword to unclip my cloak from my neck, causing them to get even more excited.
The copper clasp snapped free, and the cloak slid off my shoulders, drifting into the snow like a fallen shadow. Their eyes lit up with sick excitement, their breaths fogging in the cold air as they stepped closer.
Idiots.
They thought I was surrendering.
They thought I was scared.
They thought I was the same girl they cornered in the guild.
I straightened my back, rolling my neck until it cracked, my fingers tightening around the hilt of my sword. The cold bit into my skin, but it only sharpened me.
The leader licked his lips.
"Oh, she's finally giving up."
The big one chuckled.
"Told you she'd break easily."
I lowered my stance.
My heartbeat slowed.
My vision narrowed.
The snow muffled everything except the sound of their boots crunching closer.
Four against one.
High ground gone.
No escape.
Just like the cavern.
Just like the adventurers who screamed in the dark.
Just like the ones who thought an elf alone was easy prey.
I exhaled.
"You boys…"
My eyes lifted, cold and sharp.
"…have no idea what you've cornered."
Their smirks faltered.
Too late.
I moved.
And all at once, in all 4 of those players' screens, a HUGE RED HEALTH BAR APPEARED ON THE TOP OF all their screens, displaying Boss Girl, sealing the entrance to the arena area.
At the same time, the mouth of the canyon behind me shuddered — ice cracking, snow collapsing — sealing shut in a jagged wall of frost.
An arena.
A boss room.
No escape.
All four of them stopped dead.
The leader's grin twitched.
The big one's breath hitched.
The side guy's bow dipped an inch.
They knew exactly what this meant.
A boss.
A raid target.
A monster.
Me.
Their eyes darted from the health bar to the sealed entrance, then back to me — standing alone in the snow, cloak discarded, breath steady, stance low.
"W-wait—" the archer stammered.
Too late.
I stepped forward, the snow cracking beneath me like splintering bones.
"You wanted first dibs," I said quietly.
My voice didn't echo.
It vibrated.
The leader stumbled back, boots slipping on the ice.
"H-hold on—this wasn't—she's just a Copper rank—!"
I tilted my head.
"Come test that."
The wind howled behind me as I lunged.
And the fight began.
The arrows came fast — too fast for them to track — but not too fast for me.
I slipped past the first volley, snatched one from the air, and drove forward. The big man staggered back as I struck, dropping his weapon and collapsing into the snow.
The leader panicked, firing wildly. I pivoted, caught another arrow by the shaft, and sent it spinning back toward the side man. He yelped and fell, clutching his chest. He hit the ground.
The scout turned to flee, only to slam into the shimmering haze sealing the arena. He bounced off it with a cry, scrambling backward as I advanced.
The leader's breath hitched.
His boots slipped.
His bravado was shattered.
I walked toward him slowly, each step deliberate.
"Come now," I said, voice low and steady. "Don't be like that. I thought you liked women who fight back."
He whimpered, stumbling away from me as I reached down and retrieved the arrow I'd thrown.
The snowstorm howled around us.
The arena walls glowed faintly.
And the red boss bar above us pulsed like a heartbeat.
He wasn't hunting anymore.
He was trapped.
With me.
"Pl-please let me go!" the leader whimpered.
I don't think so. Letting you live makes another woman like me, or the guild receptionist, a target.
I was going to deliver the killing blow to the leader when a flashback hit me in my head.
(flashback of them, the 3 who were able to defeat me….and then MERCY…Mercy to let them be punished by the guild laws…laws that had been established to protect instances like this…)
The remaining two whimpered as they begged for their lives. And I knocked them unconscious with my copper sword still sheathed.
I'd drag them all 4 of them tied up and battered and injured from the fight, but not dead. Suddenly, the haze disappeared. As a HUGE UI flashed on all 4 of those players' screens, DEFEATED, as I advanced out of the arena's mist and began dragging them back to the guild tavern, a little bark startled me as I picked up the puppy shivering from the cold and put the puppy into my adventurer's satchel as I dragged the tied-up convicts.
Geez, what is happening to me?
I hate you, Noobie…