No Gold, No Glory

We’d been walking for what felt like forever.

Down muddy, winding roads. Through mist-choked hills where the sun barely peeked past the grey. Every now and then, we passed other travelers—hooded, cloaked, armed. Most gave us that look—the kind you reserve for people who are either incredibly brave… or incredibly stupid.

I couldn’t blame them.

After all, our party looked like a complete joke:

A silver-haired girl in an oversized hoodie and fuzzy slippers.

An idiot with a beat-up jacket that still had a 7-Eleven rewards card in the pocket.

And a scruffy mutt peeking out of said goddess’s hoodie like a smug baby kangaroo.

Yeah. We were that group.

“I’d give anything for a bath,” Lyssa moaned, dragging her feet like a noble lady forced to do her own laundry.

“I’d give anything for dinner,” I muttered. My stomach growled like it was trying to pick a fight with the wind.

Luffy barked in solidarity from Lyssa’s hoodie pouch. His little tail thumped against her chest with each step like this whole thing was some fun camping trip.

“You sure we don’t have anything left?” I asked, checking my nearly flat coin pouch for the third time that hour.

Lyssa didn’t even look. “You’ve got one copper. Technically. Also—why is he still in my hoodie? He’s heavy.”

“I think he likes you,” I said, sighing. “Maybe he has a soft spot for lazy NEETs.”

“Excuse you, maybe he just recognizes my divine presence,” she huffed. “Or maybe I smell like old potato chips and that’s comforting to him. Either way, he’s not getting out until I get a hot bath and five meals.”

I shook my head. “What if we melted that last coin and sold it as a ‘divine relic shaving?’”

She smirked. “Hey, don’t knock hustle magic. I’d buy it.”

Eventually, we crested a hill, and that’s when we saw it.

A town—or maybe a really ambitious village—ringed by palisade walls and nestled between golden farmland and distant woods. Wooden windmills turned lazily in the breeze. The scent of cooked meat floated up the hill like a holy signal.

A worn wooden sign stood at the entrance:

[Welcome to Elderglen – Home of Adventurers and Ale]

“Seems far enough from the kingdom,” I muttered. “Maybe no one here’ll care about—”

“You had me at ale,” Lyssa mumbled.

“I didn’t even say—you know what, never mind.”

Guild of Grunts

We wandered through the village until Lyssa’s eyes lit up like she’d spotted the gates to paradise.

“Ren! Look! A guild hall!” she said, pointing dramatically.

The building was hard to miss—half-tavern, half-castle, and totally noisy. Warm light spilled through its windows, and from inside came the clash of tankards, the clang of armor, and the occasional drunken roar.

“If my extensive RPG gaming history means anything,” she said, puffing her chest, “this is where poor adventurers like us go to earn coin and build reputations.”

“…Or die horribly,” I added.

“Details.”

Inside, the scent hit me first—burnt bread, cheap ale, rusty steel, and wet dog. Well, maybe that last one was us.

There was a giant board plastered with fluttering quest slips, and the place was full of people. Some wore hoods. Others had tails. A few floated. I swear one guy was talking to his sword. A wild mix of beastkin, mages, rogues, and mercenaries, all coexisting in chaotic harmony.

And at the front desk: a woman in armor with one eye, zero patience, and the kind of energy that screamed “don’t waste my time.”

“Next!” she barked.

We stepped up.

She looked at us—me, Lyssa, and Luffy—and blinked. Then blinked again.

“…Are you here to post a missing pet notice?” she deadpanned.

I took a deep breath. “No. We’re here to register.”

She glanced at Luffy. “That your summon?”

“Technically, yes,” Lyssa said proudly.

The receptionist raised a brow. “Name?”

“Ren,” I answered. I hadn’t said my name to anyone in months. It felt strange. Like I was waking up again.

“Class?”

“…Tamer.”

She looked at Luffy. Then at me. Then back to Luffy. “…Tamer. Of that.”

“Yes.”

Her silence said more than words.

“Combat experience?”

“Not… really.”

“Survival skills?”

I hesitated. “Lived in a car, if that counts, oh and staying hungry for really long periods of time?”

That actually made her pause. “…I’ll… count that as a maybe.”

Lyssa leaned over the counter. “We also bring positive vibes, divine charm, and fantastic fashion.”

The receptionist didn’t flinch. She slammed a scroll down in front of me.

“Sign here. F-Rank. One job per day. Don’t die. We don’t cover funerals.”

I nodded and scribbled my name. Lyssa signed too, adding a tiny crown over the ‘i’ in “Lyssaria.”

Of course she did.

First Mission

The receptionist handed us a wrinkled slip of paper.

[F-Rank Quest: Assist Old Man Velo with Mushroom Gathering in Greystone Forest]

Reward: 5 Copper

Time Limit: Before Sunset

Caution: Beware of Greystone Squirrels

“…Five copper?” I muttered.

“Wait—what even is a Greystone Squirrel?” Lyssa asked.

The receptionist just smiled. “You’ll know when it’s chewing your leg off.”

“Since you’re broke,” she added, “you can stay in the guildhall’s inn for now. One night only. You pay us back after you get paid—or you sleep outside.”

A Place to Sleep

We stepped out of the guildhall and stared at the paper.

“Five copper. For mushrooms,” I said. “And squirrel attacks.”

Luffy barked happily, wagging his tail like we’d just won a jackpot.

“No weapons. No armor. No dignity,” I sighed. “This is our big break.”

Lyssa grabbed my arm and leaned against me. “Look on the bright side: we’re official now. Certified adventurers! We’ve got a quest, a place to sleep, and dreams. Glorious, starving dreams.”

“Homeless, broke, and hunted by squirrels.”

“Hey, every hero starts somewhere. Just be glad it’s mushrooms and not a dragon.”

I looked down at Luffy.

His tail was still wagging. His eyes full of excitement.

And for the first time since I woke up in this weird world… I smiled a little.

Maybe we were broke.

Maybe we were a joke.

But we had each other.

“ Man, who am I kidding!! We’re completely screwed here, we have no combat abilities, no money and no weapons and no money to buy weapons, and lyssa is in slippers.”

“Hey, I’ll have you know Ren you actually got lucky with me. Believe it or not as a goddess I do have some divine power!”

“Really? Oh lyssa our divine savior thank you, maybe things will be okay after all”

“They will so just relax yourself, I can actually predict enemy attacks in the RPG games I’ve plaid which has helped me defend against countless raids”

“ARE YOU JOKING- That’s your power? That’s what you got? Even I can do that in video games”

“ Oh lyssa our divine neet idiot thank you for nothing”

“HEYY WHAT ABOUT YOU?? You have muscles, how bout you use them for something!!!”

“I don’t think my muscles from training at world fitness translates to battles with magical beast in a fantasy realm.”

“They better, I need protection I am a goddess after all”

“Yeah sure! Whatever you say”

We headed out to meet old man Velo and begin our first quest “Get some money for food” or I mean “ Assist Old Man Velo with Mushroom Gathering in Greystone Forest”