The guild bar was loud, filled with voices, laughter, and the clinking of mugs
"Sun and Moon," a man said dramatically, "The symbols of light that bring warmth, hope, and life to the world. One day, darkness will corrupt the sun, leaving the moon alone in the shadows. But a new source of light will be born. And together with the moon, they will shine again and bring hope to the world"
"Can you stop saying that prophecy already?" someone groaned, "It's annoying hearing it every day"
"I'm just saying," the man laughed, "what if I'm the one in the prophecy?"
"Come on. You just got your title last week and you already think you're a hero?"
"But that's how every hero starts!"
Laughter broke around the table
The guild doors opened
A young man with messy black hair with a ponytail stepped inside. Dark circles hung beneath his eyes, giving him the look of someone who hadn't slept in days. A katana rested at his waist as he walked calmly through the guild bar toward the quest counter
"Do you know that guy?" someone whispered
"I've seen him doing quests alone"
"I don't know his name" another voice replied, "Must be a copper"
For adventurers, they will get their rank after completing a certain number of quests in the guild
The guild itself had six ranks:
Copper, Iron, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Mithril
Those who reached silver rank will be granted a title as a reward for their services as an adventurers
The black-haired man stopped at the counter and placed his quest report down
"Thank you for completing this quest," the receptionist said with a polite smile, "Here's your reward. Would you like to take another quest?"
"Yes," he replied, "I'd like to take an iron-rank quest"
She hesitated "Umm… I'm sorry, but iron-rank quests require a party"
"I've been iron-ranked for a long time, I'm sure I can handle it alone"
"I'm really sorry," she said gently, "but guild rules require a party to take any iron quest. It's for your safety"
He exhaled slowly "Even a low-level one?"
"I'm really sorry. It's the rule"
He let out a quiet sigh
The guild doors creaked again
"Do you need a party?"
Two figures stopped behind him
An energetic young man with short red hair stood in light armor, a headband in his head, and a katana hanging at his waist. Beside him was a shy blonde girl in a simple dress, holding a magic staff with both hands as if afraid to drop it
"Why don't you join us?" the red-haired man said with a grin
He turned slowly to face them
"I just ranked up to iron" the red-haired man continued proudly, "I'm Rikka, as you can see, I'm a swordman. And this girl-"
"H-hello," the blonde girl said softly, "I-I'm Erin, a healer"
"We heard you were having trouble taking a quest" the red-haired man said, "So, we thought, why not form a party?"
He looked between them for a moment
"Can a party of three take an iron quest?" he asked the receptionist
She hesitated "It should be fine… but I can only allow you to take low-level iron quests"
"That's enough" the red-haired man said quickly, "Right?"
"…Fine. I'm Auel"
"Great!" he said, "You can take the quest while I register our party"
The quest board was crowded with papers, pins, and seals
While scanning the board, his eyes stopped on one particular quest
Red Wolves Repel Quest, but somethings wrong
A Red Wolf Quest? But Somethings wrong. The paper was worn. The number of holes at the top of this paper means that this quest has been reassigned a lot of times. And the corrections on the reward…
He touches the paper and analyzes the reward
Scribble? The reward had been increased more than once. A pack of red wolves should only be six to ten beasts, he thought. Even a party of five iron-ranks should be enough to handle that
"Excuse me," Auel said quietly to the receptionist, "May I ask something about this quest?"
She looked up "Of course"
"What happened to the parties who took it before?"
"Is something wrong with the quest?"
"The holes at the top," he said, "This quest has been reassigned many times. And the reward keeps increasing"
She answered "Wait here"
She turned and pulled a thick binder from beneath the counter, flipping through pages filled with reports and seals
"Umm…" she muttered, scanning the papers
The silence stretched
Erin shifted nervously, gripping her staff tighter
"I-I'm sorry," she said suddenly, "But is there a problem?"
He glanced at her
"I wanted to know what happen to the party who take this quest before"
"H-how do you know that the quest been taken before?"
"I just look at the number of holes on the quest; it means that this quest has been assign many times and never been completed before"
"Oh, I see" she nodded
"And can I ask you something?" said Auel
"Y-yes what's the problem?"
"Are you close with the red-haired guy?"
"A-umm no, we just met this morning, and he asked me to join his party"
"So, is it your first time being an adventurer?"
"Y-yes"
"You said you're a healer, how high is your skill"
"I only know low-tier healing magic," she continued softly. "I can close small wounds, reduce pain, and cast a few low-tier spells… but that's all. I-I have a lot of mana, but I haven't learned advanced healing yet"
She lowered her head "I-I don't think I'll be very helpful…"
"It's fine," Auel said calmly, "Just keep your distance from the fighting"
She looked up, surprised "Y-yes"
The receptionist hesitated, then spoke quietly
"All the reports say the same thing" she said, "The parties went missing after entering the forest"
"…Missing?"
"When villagers tried to search for them," she continued, "They either found nothing… or never came back themselves"
"How many people were in those parties?" he asked
"Some had four members. Some had five. One party had six"
A full party. Even then, none returned. A full party of irons went missing… This isn't a normal red wolf quest.
"Yo!" Rikka called out, "I finished the registration!"
He turned back
"So," Rikka grinned, "what quest are we taking?"
"I'm still looking at this red wolf quest"
"Red wolves?" he laughed "Easy. I can handle a few of those. What about you?"
"Same" he replied, "But something's wrong with this quest, the party that-"
"Come on," Rikka cut Auel's line, "What could go wrong with a red wolf quest?"
He turned to the receptionist "Can we take it?"
She hesitated
"I'm really sorry," she said, "but with all these reports, I don't think the guild can assign this quest to you"
"Aww, come on" Rikka disappointed
"But" she added, "it might be possible if you find additional party"
"…Additional party?" both of them repeated