Catpurr 10: Errand Cat

Catpurr 10: Errand Cat

[Collect a batch of cookies from Rosemjre Bakery]

[0/20]

[Possible Rewards; EXP, Gold, Pebble of Smiting, Fire Stone, Thunder Stone, Shadow Stone, Ring of Holding, Divine Catnip.]

[Failure: Death]

[You have Three Days to Complete the Task.]

[71:59:55]

Am I being used as an errand boy? Adam narrowed his eyes, processing the quest he'd been given.

***

ELSEWHERE

“Oh can you update it so it’s milk chocolate chip?”

“Yeah, yeah, then you stop bothering me and my experiment right?”

“For now.”

****

[QUEST UPDATED!]

[Collect a batch of Milk Chocolate Chip cookies from Rosemjire Bakery]

I’m totally being used as someone’s errand boy! Adam’s eyes widened, fury at the indignity of being used as a divine being’s cookie procurer.

[71:59:10]

Sigh…

Adam looked to the left, then to the right, wondering where exactly he was. Judging from the wall he'd been unceremoniously face-planted into, the glow of fire behind it, and the fact he was given a quest to find cookies from a bakery, Adam surmised that he was just outside of a village or town. But why did everything smell so smokey?

Acting quickly, Adam moved. Keeping one hand on the wall, while his other shifted and moved away the foliage while he crept along the town palisade in search of the entrance.

Finally he could make out the faint orange-red of torches and a small clearing of a dirt road underneath the moonlight and torches. The only problem was, he didn’t see any sentries, or gate guardians. It’d been awhile since he last used a town entrance, but Adam was pretty confident that there should have been at least one guard.

Then he saw it, the actual gate. Or, what remained of it in the form of splinters, wood chips, and shattered planks.

His alarm bells ringing, Adam hunkered low and edged toward the entrance where he peeked the corner of the broken down gate, only for his jaw to drop at the sight that lay before him.

Oh you gotta be kidding me! Why is everything on fire?!

From the building that read O.R.P.H.A.N.A.G.E in big bold letters to the shop that read Rosemjre Bakery, everything was wrapped and covered in orange flames!

"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO GET COOKIES IF THE BAKERY IS BURNING DOWN?!" Adam screamed, clutching at his red hair.

He closed his eyes, judging from the lack of people, monsters, or screams, and the intensity of the flames dying down, he quickly formulated a plan of action.

Alright Adam, the bakery hasn't burned down all the way just yet! There has to be some cookies remaining, right? Right?! Otherwise why would they give you an impossible quest.

Stepping over the splinters, Adam made his way across the dirt field toward the burning bakery, which, despite the roof being ablaze and the smoke exiting its upper windows, the building seemed perfectly fine. Adam quickly reached for the bronze door handle and turned it.

[-1HP]

“YOINCH!” Adam yelped, all the hairs on his body standing on end as he involuntarily leaped backwards with his hand scalding from the touch of the doorknob.

“Ow! Ow! Ow!” Adam waved his hand around, his usually pale appendage now bright red from the burn wound.

Adam clenched his fist, he was no stranger to pain, however without the pain tolerance skill everything seemed to hurt so much more. Suddenly a part of the building fell away, dropping the sign that swung on one axel and nearly decapitated Adam if not for him ducking at the last second.

Seriously?! Can’t I catch a break?!

***

Elsewhere.

“Hehehe. No.”

****

Ah this is so stupid! Adam yelled inwardly before he took a deep breath and charged at the door, throwing his shoulder against it as his timer ticked down.

Ow

Ow!

OW!

WHAT IS THIS DOOR MADE OUT OF?! ADAMANTIUM?!

Once, twice, three times. Adam threw himself against what he had ASSUMED was a simple wooden door, yet despite banging himself against the entrance way, it wouldn’t give.

Adam calmed himself, taking a moment before he walked across the field, almost back to the village entrance and took a breath.

“AAAAAAAAAAGH!” Adam let out, sprinting across the village and slamming into the door, finally breaking the wooden barricade and entering the storefront of the bakery where he was greeted by the heat of the flames. Eyeing the front of the bakery, everything on the ground floor seemed to be relatively intact, save for the ceiling being literally ablaze, everything else was fine.

However, despite successfully accomplishing his task of breaking the door, there was just one problem.

Oh… Oh you’ve gotta be kidding me!

Adam was stuck, his charge only serving to send his upper half into the bakery with his back end sticking out.

“Gah! GAAAAAAH! WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS?!” Adam screamed in frustration, his body wiggling too and fro as he tried to pry himself free of the wooden door.

Suddenly a burning support beam from above fell into the storefront, kicking up debris and flames that rapidly expanded and covered the entire store front, coating nearly every inch in fire.

Adam remained motionless with a blank expression, taking in the scene of hell that had spontaneously combusted around him.

He closed his eyes.

“This is fine.”

Despite the intrusive urge to let the flames consume him to end this nonsensical string of events, Adam grit his teeth and pushed, using every bit of his forearm strength to pop himself free from the door.

“Hulk!” Adam landed with a thud, his hands hitting the warm wooden floor.

Quickly, the little catboy made his way through the bakery, avoiding the flames and gazing around madly for his quest objectives.

Cookies! Cookies! Adam searched high and low, shifting through cabinets, containers, and unburnt boxes that were yet untouched by the encroaching flames.

"*Cough! Cough!*"

Sweating heavily, Adam spotted a door behind the counter, no doubt a kitchen. Luckily unlike the front entrance it wasn't locked and had been left slightly ajar, allowing Adam to enter into the backroom which was filled with jars, boxes, bags, and masonry ovens.

Then, he saw it. A clear jar filled with cookies pocketed with bits of black pieces. No doubt, the chocolate chip cookies he'd been sent to find.

Finally.

Adam grinned, his luck looking up for once. Without wasting a second he bolted and leapt over the center table that was used for cooking and grabbed the container just as the fire began to intensify around him.

Making a beeline to a nearby window, Adam lightly tossed the jar into the dirt before leaping out as well and scooping up his prize, eager to complete the trial and be rewarded.

Suddenly a loud snap sounded, just as Adam got clear of the bakery. He turned, eyeing as the roof of the building bucked under the strain of the flames, caving in and finally collapsing the bakery.

"Crapbaskets!"Adam exclaimed, falling to the ground to avoid the hail of debris and splinters that were sent in every direction from the bakery's destruction.

Huffing, Adam stood up, his prize, fortunately still intact.

"Great… Now what do I do?" Adam said aloud, exhaling heavily as he tried to catch his breath and eyed his timer that was still ticking down.

After several moments of sitting in the field and eyeing his timer, Adam began to grow worried, wondering if there was a trick or something involved with the quest description.

Out of curiosity, Adam opened the jar, wondering what was so special about the cookies. However the moment he took a cookie out and inspected it, was the moment he short-circuited.

Raisins…

The cookies he'd salvaged weren't chocolate chip but actually raisins!

"NO! NO! NOOOOOOOO!" Adam weeped, standing up and smashing the jar into the ground out of desperate fury.

"WHY DO YOU INSIST ON HURTING ME?!" Adam screamed, falling to his knees with his hands raised to the heavens.

There had to be some trick, maybe a gimmick, or some ploy. There was no way he was just going to die because he grabbed raisin cookies instead of chocolate chip, right? Right?

Suddenly, a droplet of water hit Adam's skin, one drop, two drop, three drop, four.

It was raining.

[CATSIFICATION!]

[YOU ARE WET!]

[-20% To all stats UNTIL DRIED!]

STATS CHANGED!

STR: 7 < 6

CON: 10 < 8

DEX: 12 < 9

ARCANA: 20 < 16

SENSE: 9 < 7

CHAR:10 < 8

[!WARNING! ARCANA BELOW STAT POINT THRESHOLD! MANA RECOVERY BUFF LOST!!]

Immediately Adam was hit with a wave of fatigue, his body straining under the debuff of his curse.

It just keeps getting better doesn’t it… Adam sighed, before turning and slogging his way towards the ruins of the bakery, hoping to find one batch of chocolate chip cookies for his quest.