First Town

“Alright, we’re close to the nearest town. There’s bound to be a quest we can take, one with some good cash pay would be nice.” Freya suddenly announced.

{Freya Lv. 24}

State: Guarded

That was the extent of what my Greater Appraisal skill could gather on Freya. I noticed that after learning her name, the details I got from appraising her were updated. Since that notification about my Evolution options appeared, I’d appraised everything I came across, almost to an annoying amount.

“Look, it should be just over this hill.”

{Oak Tree} {Common Stone} {Twin Feathered Sparrow Lv.4}

Still not evolving, huh? I’m sure I’ve appraised four times the amount of stuff I did before the skill evolved, so what gives? Why isn’t it evolving again?

{Unable to provide information}

Freya turned to me and handed me a grey robe. As it landed in my hands, I put my Greater Appraisal to work.

{Low Value Cloak}

{Condition: Dirty. Slightly Ripped}

“Before I forget, here you go. We can’t have you walking around like a wild golem, people will freak.” She placed it over my shoulder with a grin and tied it to my bulky figure like a poncho. “There! Nice and snug, you really look the part now.” She looked all too pleased with herself.

The part for what, exactly? I’m not trusting that smile she’s got…

“I gave it some thought, and the best way for you to walk around and not draw too much attention is for you to pretend to be my familiar.” She wore her grin proudly. “Now then, let’s get this show on the road!” She tapped her staff on the ground and walked on, without any room for discussion.

I can’t believe she… Ugh, fine! I’ll pretend to be a stupid Familiar or whatever, just as long as I can get through the town!

The dirt trail we followed continued through the lush grass to where houses of brick and wood encompassed every corner of the road. Trees were replaced with buildings, and among the distant view of fields, were similar structures scattered among plots of stone and ground.

Whoa, a real town! I can’t believe I’m really here. I wonder if I’ll really be alright walking around like this?

Excited by the new sights, my eyes drifted from one spectacle to the next. Hanging signs carved from wood, pillars of smoke that rose from the chimneys of houses down the street, everything about this place stole my attention. Even though they were trivial, I couldn’t hold my excitement in.

{Stone House} {Common Weeds} {Female Human Lv.4}

“Hello there, travellers! Care for some bread?” A friendly woman called out from the door of a bakery, her slender hands extended out a fresh loaf that still carried an aura of steam.

“Ah, no thanks, just passing by.” Freya extended a greeting back. She turned to me so only I could hear her next, “I remember it being around here somewhere… Ah! There it is!”

All the accounts of adventurers from Rorick's books mentioned the Adventurers Guild, the place where you’d find local quests and other important info on monsters. It was also the place where someone could sign up to become an adventurer, officially, that is.

I expected something a little…grander, for the Adventurers Guild. Usually, in games, they were landmarks with massive funding or at least a bigger building.

We approached a large wooden shop, surrounded by loitering humans on the balcony and porch outside the door. Freya strolled in confidently, occasionally looking back to make sure I followed behind her. Once we entered, the vibe shifted to something a lot more tense as eyes darted across the room from their own private conversations to us, more specifically, to me.

“Freya, been a while since we’ve seen you.” The largely built man behind the counter turned to me. “Is that monster with you?” His eyes sharpened.

{Human Male Lv. 16}

{Condition: Guarded}

He seems pretty weary of me, well, that’s expected. I'd better make sure to keep to myself and play the part like she asked…

“Hey there, Harvey! Well, this is actually my new Familiar. Managed to tame him after conquering his dungeon on a job, pretty lucky, right?” She forced a smile and approached the counter.

Nobody budged. The more I looked around, the more eyes I noticed on me.

{Human Male Lv.13} {Human Female Lv.3} {Human Male Lv.9} {Human Male Lv.7} {Human Male Lv.9}

“I suppose you are. So then, what can I do for you, Freya?”

“Oh come on, Harvey!” Freya pressed her upper body over the counter to the man, her eyes locked with his. “Where else could I find a greater quest than right here? You always have the best sources, don’t you?” Her tone rolled out coyly as she pressed her chest against the counter.

Harvey flared his nostrils, “Hmph! That’s exactly the problem, I’m always doing you favours, but when are you going to come through on your end?”

Freya’s arrogant persona crumbled under his words and revealed a trembling expression. She looked to me for help, but I could only glance the other way.

“Last time you were in here, I helped you out with a pretty exclusive job, remember?” Freya’s eyes lowered when he pressed on the topic. “I could always call us even if you hand over that Golem over there, he looks like he’d fetch a handsome sum.” Harvey glared over at me.

W-what?! Me…? Freya glanced over to me next. Her expression told me she might have been thinking of accepting that deal. Freya, no! You can’t sell me out like that!!

“You’ve been a loyal client, Freya, so I’ll go easy on you. ” Harvey’s tone bordered on sympathetic as he lorded his bulky stature right over hers.

“Gulp.”

Did she just gulp?! What’s the big idea here? Just how much debt does she have with this guy?

“I’ve got a troublesome job that needs to be taken care of. Honestly speaking, with all the changes in leadership around the border, not many people are sticking around. That includes adventurers… I don’t have anyone else to take this one.” His arms folded against his chest as he retreated slightly away from the counter. “I’ll consider your tab washed clean, if you help me out.”

Her eyes softened. I expected her to crack under all that, but surprisingly, she looked confident, almost happy to hear that from him.

Freya straightened her stance and regained that confident aura she usually carried, “So you need a seasoned adventurer like me to bail you out of some trouble? How could I refuse an old friend after such a generous offer?”

If not anything else, Freya was definitely charming. I got a little worried, but it looked like things had taken a different course. At least I didn’t end up sold, thankfully.

Harvey’s brows dipped, and he rolled his eyes at Freya.

{Harvey Lv.16}

{Condition: Neutral}

Looks like he’s not so unhappy anymore. Freya is something else. I totally thought he was gonna throw us out. Now, they’re suddenly chummy?

They must have spoken for nearly an hour before things wrapped up. I wasn’t allowed in on the conversation, since I still had to play the part of the idle Golem Familiar, but everything seemed tamer now than when we arrived.

Freya offered a last wave goodbye as we crossed off the porch and into the street, “Thanks again, Harvey! See you soon!” Then turned toward the town, back to her regular, relaxed expression.

She must have sensed I had some questions. I know she didn’t tell me exactly where we were going, but I didn’t expect anything like that. Tired of my stares, she gave in and explained,

“You seem curious?”

(Why get. Quest. There?)

“I didn’t think you’d notice, wow, you’re really knowledgeable.” She praised me. “Most towns have an Adventurer Guild you can get quests from, yes, but this towns a little too remote and small for something that big. Not to mention, small intimate businesses like Harvey’s are a lot more in tune with the people around here. So they outsourced the job to him, giving him a few quests, mostly the smaller ones, but some important ones too.”

She glanced over the parchment with our quest info and her eyebrows shrilled,

“Looks like our one’s not gonna be so simple…”