First Contact and a Mission

Another unfamiliar ceiling. However, this time, the bed was soft, perhaps even softer than my old bed back on Earth. A pleasant smell filled the room, some kind of citrus. I sat up, rubbing my eyes but a sharp pain in my chest had me hacking and gasping for air.

"It'd be for the better if you remain as you were." came a familiar voice. I looked through my tears up at the table in the corner of the room. It seemed to be a rather fancy inn, lodging fit for the person I now faced: Elise von Mercia in the flesh. 

"You, why are you here?"

Her brows furrowed. "I'm sorry, have we met?"

"Ah," I cleared my throat. "No, I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else. Thank you for saving me."

What? Elise? Why was she here? Why would she bother traveling all the way from Mercia to this town fit only for beginner adventurers? I racked my brain. Hold on, why did I even know this town from the story of 「Sword of Dismarais」? It must have appeared somewhere in the game... that's it! Elise had suffered a traumatic experience at the hands of bandits here in Sardonia! The prince apparently began to grow more distant from her after this incident. My thoughts were cut short.

"If you are awake then I will take my leave. I have places to be after all." she said as she got up. "A proper antidote has been ordered, it will arrive shortly." And with she began to leave.

"Wait!" 

She looked back. 

"How can I repay you?" 

She scoffed. "The first daughter of House Mercia need not receive handouts from a vagrant such as you. However," she signaled to someone standing outside. In stepped Gideon, her right-hand knight. "I am due for an important meeting come midnight. I would appreciate more hands, however incompetent they may be."

And like a storm, she was gone. To the uninitiated she might come across as a rude, insensitive blue blood but each and every one of her actions was tinged with her own strain of kindness. She saved me and provided me with the best antidote at no cost, gave me a room at an extremely high class inn, and then even offered an opportunity to earn some money under the guise of paying her back. This is why she was my favorite character in the game: a true textbook tsundere!

Gideon cleared his throat. "Once you have taken the antidote, please make your way to the dining hall. We shall discuss our plan of action there."

"Ah, of course. Could I quickly go complete my request first?"

He nodded and departed as silently as he came. He seemed to be as mysterious and loyal as he was in the game. They had even made him a mini boss who stood in the protagonist's way before reaching Elise - the very image of chivalry.

Once the antidote was administered by a doctor, I headed straight for the guild hall. It was already late in the evening as I burst through the doors and greeted Anna.

"You had me worried sick!" Anna scolded me. "Please come and complete your request the moment you are done or we will have to dispatch a search party next time! You're lucky you made it in time, we were just closing up for the day!"

"Yeah, sorry, a lot happened on the way." I couldn't tell her that I willfully smothered myself in poisonous plant extracts just to lure in rabbits and almost died in the process.

I pulled the required amount of nightshade out of my inventory and got a strange look from her. Oh crap, I forgot that's probably not normal. She didn't say anything, however, and retaining her air of professionalism, stamped the request and handed me a small pouch.

"Here is your reward," she said with a well practiced smile. "Congratulations on your first job!"

Request completed, I headed back to the inn's dining hall where Gideon and three others were gathered. 

"This is Alphonse, as Lady Elise mentioned." Gideon gestured to me as I sat down.

"Hey, I'm Jurgen" said the relaxed, lanky male knight.

"And I'm Sara!" the female knight said energetically.

"Do we really need this guy?" said the frizzy haired male knight, clearly displeased.

"Shut it Ralph. Lady Elise has already decided that more hands will be needed." Gideon snapped back. 

Ralph sighed and put his hands up. "I don't know if I'm ready to trust this guy with my life just yet."

He was right. I was a completely unknown variable for them. 

"I'll help out wherever I can. I don't know how to use a weapon so just keeping watch is also fine by me."

Gideon stroked his chin. "That work for the rest of you?"

They nodded. "Sure, as long as he doesn't have a weapon even Sara can take him one-on-one."

"Hey!" Sara pouted. "I win a third of my duels against you."

"Hmm, I think a quarter is more accurate." Jurgen chimed in.

Gideon sure had a lot on his hands. He waited for the three to stop arguing before continuing. 

"Lade Elise is scheduled to meet the head of the Breier Trading Company in secret at midnight in order to procure more grain for drought-stricken regions of Besfort. However, there are some who would rather have the grain for themselves. Lips have been tight but to ensure the safety of Our Lady, we are to act as covert bodyguards."

The three seemed bored out of their minds. I guess they were more interested in the actual job rather than the details.

"So we just have to protect Lady Elise, same as usual, no?" Sara summarized.

Gideon sighed. "Yes. Now let's head for the meeting place." He handed each of us a hooded cloak and went to fetch Elise. 

"You're an adventurer right?" Ralph inquired as we waited. "Can you introduce me to that receptionist girl? Boy was she a looker!"

"There you go again, chasing after each and every girl who takes the slightest bit of care of herself!" reprimanded Sara. 

"He's got a success rate of..." Jurgen made a show of calculating something very hard, only to say: "Zero percent so far."

Ralph kicked at Jurgen who just hopped out of the way. The three continued to squabble until Gideon returned, Elise in tow.

"So then, are we ready?"

"Yes Lady Elise!" The three said in unison, snapping to attention. Wow, she had them trained well if only just for herself. Elise nodded at me and walked out with us behind, justifiably preoccupied. I tailed behind the group on high alert as I knew for sure that something was bound to happen.

Whatever it was, I had to stop it to save Elise from the fate that was in store for her down the line. But first, I had to find out what exactly the threat was.