The Sheppard's Dagger

A day passed. Mariah, Tristan, and Rowan stood together outside the guild building, bags packed and ready for their evaluation exam, the final step before being promoted to D-rank and gaining access to proper quests.

Mariah looked at the other two and smiled. "It's been a slow process, but we're finally here. This is only the first step, though." She paused. "Thank you both for coming with me on this. I really appreciate it."

Tristan grinned. "Don't mention it. Rowan and I are having a great time too."

"Exactly," Rowan said, practically vibrating with excitement. "And the fun's just getting started. After this we can go on real quests and fight actual monsters. I can't wait, come on, let's go."

They pushed through the doors into the guild hall, which was bustling as always. Adventurers heading out called greetings as they passed; the three returned them easily. Over the past weeks, they'd carved out a place here. They were known. Welcome. It felt good.

At the front desk, their usual receptionist looked up and smiled.

"Good morning, Ellen. Your favorite rookies have arrived."

"Good morning to you too, Mariah."

Tristan and Rowan waved from behind her. Ellen nodded at them warmly.

"Good to see the three of you still together. Today's the day, I take it?"

"Yup," Rowan said. "I'm ready to rank up and get a real quest under my belt."

Tristan stepped forward. "We're all excited and grateful to you, Ellen. If not for you looking after us, we'd be a mess of a party by now. Mariah, Rowan, and I all appreciate your help."

Ellen's smile softened. She set a stack of documents on the counter. "You three are the ones who put in the work. I know plenty of people who give up on E-rank quests because of how tedious they are. Don't forget to give yourselves credit."

She pulled out a single sheet and turned it toward them.

"Your promotion exam is straightforward: hunt down forty goblins and collect their materials. It may sound like a lot, but goblins tend to work in groups, so you should find them quickly enough if you're careful. You'll need to bring someone along as a guardian just for safety. You have two days, so take your time. Get your camping gear, prep what you need, and come back when you're ready to set off." She looked at each of them in turn. "Do your best."

"Got it!"

They spent the rest of the morning moving from shop to shop, gathering supplies: bedrolls, water bottles, flint, dried rations. Somewhere along the way they picked up snacks because they were all getting hungry, and by midday they had everything they needed. They returned to the guild.

Ellen looked them over. "You all seem ready. Everything checked?"

Mariah nodded and glanced at Tristan. "We've got food, sleeping equipment, water, and extra bottles for refills. We should be prepared."

"All right. But be careful, and don't get complacent. Am I clear?"

"Yes, ma'am!"

She handed them the quest slip. They left to find a party willing to supervise them.

At first, most of the adventurers they approached were busy. It was the weekend, after all, and everyone had their own jobs to handle. Then, just as they were starting to worry, a group stepped forward.

"Hey, you three. Still looking for supervisors?"

Mariah turned. Four people stood before them: two men and two women. The one who'd spoken had a greatsword strapped to his back and the easy confidence of someone used to leading. The other man hung back slightly, potions clinking at his belt. One of the women had a warm, open smile; the other stood quietly, her face half-covered, eyes steady and unreadable.

"The name's Garrick," the swordsman said. "That's Edmond over there. This is Lillith, and the quiet one's Ana."

Lillith waved. "It's lovely to meet you. The four of us have been adventuring together since we left our village years ago."

Edmond nodded. "We're C-rank as a group, but Ana and I are B-rank individually. Garrick and Lillith are solid C. We should be more than enough firepower to keep you safe if something goes wrong."

He extended his hand. "If you'll have us, we'd love to help. We see how hard you've been working to make friends at the guild you're well-known around here. If the others weren't so busy, I'm sure they would've reached out too."

Mariah hesitated for only a moment, then shook his hand. "We'd be honored."

While all this unfolded, Minato sat alone in the academy library.

A pile of books sat to his left. He closed the one he'd been reading and let his head fall back with a sigh.

Magic is harder than I thought.

"What seems to be troubling you today, Minato?"

He looked up. Caius had appeared behind him, silent as always. The prince picked up one of the books from the pile.

"Principles of Alchemy. Why the sudden interest?"

"I was speaking with the headmaster a while back. He mentioned that alchemy used to be practiced alongside magic and that it's almost completely forgotten now."

"'Almost' is putting it mildly," Caius said. "Even in the castle, I've never seen or heard mention of alchemy or books on the art. The academy might be the only place in the kingdom that still has them."

"That's unfortunate. But the books here should be enough assuming I can get the hang of it."

Caius tilted his head. "You really think you'll be able to master it? It won't be easy."

Minato opened the book again. "Easy or not, I have to try. Who knows what'll happen?"

"Fair enough." Caius set the book down and turned to leave. Then he stopped. "By the way, where are the others? Did they go somewhere?"

"Mariah and the rest are off on their adventurer exam today."

"Hmm." Caius frowned slightly. "I hope they're careful. There have been rumors of kidnappings happening around the country. Nobles and commoners alike have been taken."

"I heard about that too," Minato said quietly. "So I asked Celis to follow them and monitor the situation. If anything happens, she'll report back immediately."

"And if something does happen? You're in no condition to fight. You'd only make things worse."

Minato's hand drifted to his wrapped arm. Caius sighed and offered a small smile.

"That friend of mine will be here tomorrow. If you're up for it, come meet us and he'll fix you up properly." He waved once. "I'll be off. Good luck."

He left. Minato sat alone at the desk, staring at the closed book.

Everything will be fine. It's not like they're weak, anyway.

Deep in the forest, Mariah and the others were making good progress.

They moved through the trees in a loose formation, hunting goblins and taking down the occasional wild boar that wandered too close. Materials were gathered quickly and efficiently. Ana crouched beside a freshly downed boar, collecting what she could, when a goblin burst from the underbrush with a rusted blade raised high.

Tristan was there before it could strike. His sword came down clean and fast, and the goblin's head hit the ground before its body did.

"Are you all right, Miss Ana?"

She looked up at him. "Thank you. I'm sorry for letting my guard down."

The others gathered around. Garrick let out a low whistle.

"You're something else, Tristan. Your technique is some of the best I've seen from someone your age."

Tristan laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Thanks, Mister Garrick. But I'm still far from where I want to be. Back at the academy, I have a friend, a rival, really. He's stronger than I am. Strongest in our whole year, actually. It's a shame he's not here. He's recovering from an injury he got during a duel."

"If you're talking him up like that, he must be good. Hopefully he becomes an adventurer like you someday."

Lillith finished collecting goblin ears and stood, brushing dirt from her knees. "That's twenty. I think it's enough for today. How about we set up camp somewhere and organize ourselves for tomorrow?"

Rowan high-fived Mariah. "We're already halfway there! I can't wait. I almost want to keep going and finish it in one day. What do you think, Mariah?"

Mariah smiled but shook her head. "I understand your excitement, but we need to stay careful and organized. Twenty is a good stopping point. Let's do as Miss Lillith says: find camp, rest, and be ready for tomorrow."

Garrick and Ana took watch while the group moved deeper into the forest. Aside from a few more boars, things remained peaceful. Eventually they found a clearing dense enough to provide cover and set up camp. They cut back some of the underbrush, laid out their equipment, and did a quick inventory check.

"All the gear's accounted for," Edmond said. "Plus we've got boar meat for dinner. I'd say that's a pretty decent first day."

Garrick nodded. "Thanks, Edmond. Great work today, kids. You really impressed us out there. Honestly, aside from a little organizational polish, I'd say you don't even need supervisors. Well done."

Ana looked at Tristan. "Your blade is sharp. Precise."

She said nothing else and returned to silence. Tristan blinked.

"I thank you, Miss Ana."

Lillith appeared behind Mariah and Rowan with a grin. "You two were amazing! Mariah, I've never seen such graceful swordplay before. It was like watching a dance. And Rowan you're an absolute brute, but it's fine because you've got that big smile on your face the whole time you're beating monsters to a pulp."

They all laughed. Garrick raised his voice over the noise.

"All right, team! Let's cook up some boar and call it a night. Great work, everyone!"

Lillith took charge of the cooking. Garrick and the others shared stories from past adventures, close calls, strange encounters, jobs that had gone sideways in the best and worst ways. It was a night of warmth and easy companionship. By the time they settled in for sleep, the two parties felt less like strangers and more like friends.

The next day went much the same, though the goblins appeared less frequently as the hours wore on. By mid-afternoon, they had finally reached their target: forty goblins, confirmed and counted.

"Hell yeah, we did it!"

Roars of celebration echoed through the clearing. They returned to camp to organize their things before heading back to the guild.

Garrick handed out the last of the food they'd prepared. "You all did a great job on this exam. Eat up and get your strength back. We're making one final push out of the forest today, so everyone needs to be ready."

Mariah accepted the food with a grateful smile. "On behalf of the team, thank you all so much for being our supervisors. You were all so helpful. We owe you."

"Oh, come on," Garrick said with a grin. "This was nothing. We've all been newbies once. Gotta share the welcoming spirit around."

After they ate, Garrick and Mariah huddled together to discuss their route out. Rowan and Lillith noticed Tristan sitting alone by a tree, meditating, his food barely touched.

"What's wrong, Tristan? Not hungry?"

He opened his eyes. "Oh Rowan, Miss Lillith. It's not that. I guess I'm too excited, so I decided to meditate for a bit and calm down while we wait to leave."

Lillith smiled. "You really are something else, little Tristan."

Then Tristan's eyes snapped open. He stood quickly, hand going to his blade.

"Everyone we have company. Lots of them." He turned. "Rowan, are you ready to"

He stopped.

Rowan was on the ground, unconscious.

"Rowan!"

He spun around. Mariah was down too, her body still and unmoving. Panic flared across his face. He looked to Lillith, who seemed just as confused as he was, then called out.

"Mister Garrick, we've been attacked! Mister Garrick!"

Figures stepped into the clearing. Edmond led them, a group of rough-looking men and women at his back. Garrick stood off to the side, expression cold.

Tristan's breath caught. "Mister Edmond Mister Garrick what on earth is going on?"

A blade flashed toward him from the side. He barely raised his sword in time to block it. Ana stood before him, dagger in hand, and shoved him backward. He stumbled, his legs weak beneath him.

Lillith stepped between them, arms spread, voice shaking.

"Garrick. Ana. Edmond. Explain yourselves. Who are these people, and why are you attacking these kids?"

Garrick's expression twisted into something ugly. "Would you shut the hell up? You're nothing short of annoying, you know that? Always asking dumb questions. What do you think we're doing?"

Edmond crossed his arms. "Listen, Lillith. We enjoyed this little adventurer thing for a while, but it's not enough. We're being paid an insane amount of money for this enough to buy our way into nobility if we wanted. Isn't that what you've always wanted? A way to make sure you never lose your son again? Come on. Forget these kids and join us. We can make it to the capital and get a place there at this rate."

Tears ran down Lillith's face. She raised her hands, magic flickering at her fingertips. Tristan forced himself to stand beside her, blade raised despite the weakness dragging at his limbs.

"I won't let you lay a hand on them," Lillith said, voice steady despite the tears. "If you want these kids, it'll be over my dead body."

Edmond sighed. "Suit yourself. We only need the kids. Kill her or sell her for parts doesn't matter to us. As long as we deliver the kids to Him, we're fine."

Hidden in the trees at the edge of the clearing, Celis watched it all unfold.

She turned and disappeared into the forest, moving fast and silent.

She had to reach Minato before it was too late.