Alderick waited for what feels like days in the inspection line. The wait made long due to the extra items he is carrying on his back because of the Devil Tusk. Eventually he got close to the front near the gate. “Hey you!” One of the guards shouted, and pointed towards Al. He then walk to Al, bends down, pat Al’s head and then showed a friendly smile. “Kid, where are your parents?” Al just looked at him and showed a sour face. He knew the guard. Or rather, the captain of the guards. Kolen, a commoner who had risen up to the rank of captain by pure skills alone. A master with the lance. No matter how you look at him, he looks just like any other guard or soldier in the army. Kolen doesn’t get to wear the special Captain armor due to his commoner background. Usually commoners can’t rise beyond the rank of a lieutenant, but he was an exception.
“Stop teasing me this early. Just let me through since you know who I am.” Al said still with a sour face. Kolen lets out a laugh. “Well, procedures are procedures. But we normally let adventurer pass.” He then reaches out his hands, as if to ask for Al’s Guild Card. Al hands it over to Kolen, and he carefully inspects it and hands it back. “Alright! Let this man pass!” Kolen shouted towards the other guards. He then turns back to Al and smiled. “Congratulations on becoming an adventurer Al.” “Thank you.” Al replied, and started walking inside the city. “Oh, Al! A few more things.” Al turns back towards Kolen. “Go visit the orphanage, my sister misses you.” Al then just stare at Kolen. Thought for a bit about the orphanage, then turns back and headed into the city. “OH! And next time just walk up to the front and show your Guild Card. They’ll let you in right away!” Kolen added and turn and laugh away, knowing he had pissed Al off. Al stopped in frustration knowing that Kolen had just made him wait in line instead of just telling him. “Damn that guy!” Al shouted in frustration and then continued on.
Al walked pretty fast to get to the guild as fast as possible, since waiting in line for the inspection had taken him too long. He still had to visit the blacksmith, the magic shop, and then the Temple of the Divines. He thought for a bit, and then added the orphanage to the list. As he continued to walk, he heard a familiar voice called out. “Hey Al! You back from your quest?” He turns to see Gendrol working at the forge, just stopping to put his hammer down and motions Al over. Al decided he might as well stop here first and then go to the guild, so he walked over.
“Yes, I finish it yesterday but had to spend a night outside.” Nothing like a night in the great outdoors after a hunt.” After saying that Gendrol smiled. His eyes then notice the fur that Al was carrying. “Blessed Divines, how’d you manage to get that?” “Ah, I helped another adventurer kill a Devil Tusk.” Al replied, and then showed the fur to Gendrol. Gendrol inspected the fur and then gave an approving nod. “This is in good condition. Not the best due to some of the cuts on it, but still good. What do you plan to do with it?” “I was planning to just sell it to the guild.” “What? You would just sell this? Tell you what, give it to me, and I’ll make it into a nice piece of equipment for you. A nice cloak to keep you warm at night while you sleep outside.” Gendrol lets out a laugh.
“But it’s only if you want. I also know an Enchantress who could enchant it with magic, but it’ll cost you some coins.” Al thought for a bit. An enchanted item could really help him in future request. “I don’t have any money right now, but I will once I turn in the quest.” “That’s fine lad. Give it to me, and then come back in a few hours, I will have it ready for you and you can pay me then. I’ll give you a discount too since I don’t get many chance to work with this kind of material.” Al agreed, and let the dwarf have the fur for now. He then said goodbye and continued on to the guild.
Al reaches the Guild hall and walks in. It’s busy as always. He looks over to the counter and sees Maria and the counter, working on paperwork. Seeing that there’s no line at the counter, he walks straight up to her, and waited until she notice him. She looks up to see him and smiled. “Hey, welcome back. How was your first quest?” “It went well.” Al replied, and started pulling items out of his bag. “There was six goblins in total. And can you check to see if these are Bladed Grass? I still can’t tell.” He placed twelve goblin ears on the counter and a pile of grass. “There was more than one goblin? I will run that with the higher ups, and give you the reward for six goblins. I will check on the grass right now.”
Maria then start inspecting the grass, “Analyze” She pick the up one by one. After she would check them, she’d place some on the counter, while some she tossed to the side. “You have eleven Bladed Grass.” She said and smiled. “Great, that means I’m turning in both the quest I have taken.” Al said, and hands over the quest papers to her. Maria takes the papers, and got up from her chair and moved to the back. After a short wait, she comes back with a small bag, and placed it on the counter. “Ok, for the completion of two quest, your reward with be two silver coins. I have put one silver coin and one hundred copper coins in this bag. One silver coin for ten herbs of Bladed Grass, sixty copper coins for slaying six goblins, and an extra forty copper coins for the unexpected higher numbers of goblins in your quest.” She pushed the coins towards Al, in which he took and placed it into his bag.
“Is there anything else you would like to report?” Maria added. “Oh, uh, Earlier today I helped another adventurer kill an adult Devil Tusk.” Al replied, having forgotten about it for a moment. “What?! You killed a full grown Devil Tusk?!” Maria shouted, bring the entire hall into silence. Everyone looked over to Al. “Y-Yeah… I helped an adventurer by the name of Darretta. We both took turn to attack it, and eventually we killed it.” Al replied, feeling a little embarrassed and awkward from all the attention he is getting. “Are you injured? Where did you fight? Do you have any proof of killing it?” Maria started bombarding Al as he just blanked out, unsure of what to say due to shock of how she was acting. He could only utter a “Um…”
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“I’m sorry. It’s just that an adult Devil Tusk is usually a rank Iron quest, and even sometimes a rank Silver only quest. It’s hard to believe a copper rank took one down, even with the help of another adventurer. May I ask what rank Darretta was?” Maria asked, a little excited from hearing a copper rank had killed one. Al started to compose himself, and then tried to answer all the questions. “Um… No I’m not injured. We fought it on the Northern Plains near the fork in the road. I have it’s tusk and some meat. I’m afraid I have given it’s fur to a blacksmith to make me something. Darretta’s rank is also copper.” Maria’s mouth opened wide, not believe what she had just heard. Two copper ranks taking down a fully grown Devil Tusk is something that doesn’t happen very often.
“M-May I see the tusk and the meat to confirm this?” She stood up, eagerly waiting for Al to pull the items out. Al then pulls out the tusk and a piece of the meat onto the table. Maria then started inspecting the items. She then placed it back on the counter. “Please give me a moment.” She said as she started running to the back, and into the back door. A few of the other adventurers had gotten up and started forming a crown to see the tusk. “Did you really killed one?" "Are you really copper rank?" "As expected of someone who passed Master Hudsonus’ test.” The adventurer started saying and asking questions around him.
At this moment, Maria came back from the door, and so did Kreyg. She directed him to the items, and he picked up the tusk and started inspecting it. Then help placed his hands on both ends of the tusk as if to measure it. After a few seconds, he nodded. “This is indeed the tusk of an adult Devil Tusk.” He then place it back on the counter. He looks at Al and then smiled. “Glad to see you are doing well. But I’m afraid we can’t give you a reward for this just yet. We will have to wait for the other adventurer to come back and confirms this story. In the meantime, we will buy any materials you had gather from it.” He then bowed, and walk back to back room. Maria then looks at Al, and then smiled. “Congratulations of killing a beast that gives even a Iron rank a hard time.We will buy any items you have for the current market price.” “I think I will keep the meat, so the only thing I have to sell is the tusk.” Al said, putting the meat back into his bag, but leaving the tusk on the counter. “Ok, the current price for one adult Devil Tusk’s tusk is two gold coins.” Maria replied, and then took the tusk to the back. She soon came back with two gold coins and hands it over to Al. Al takes it and put it into his coin bag he got just a little while ago. A little nervous from the attention, he quickly left the hall.
After leaving the Guild hall in a rush, Al made his way to the Temple of the Divines. The temple is where people go to pray to the divines and learn new skills. There are many divines, but the most well known and worshiped is the three major ones. Bravius, the god of Honor, Strength, and Courage. Marellda the goddess of Love and Magic. And Senpai, the goddess of Justice and Redemption. Most people prayed to these three to learn their skills, with their choice usually depending on their class.Most warriors, slayers, and berserkers pray to Bravius. Spellcasters such as Spell Masters, Enchantress, Priest, and Mystics pray to Marellda. While Assassins, Slayers, and Paladins prays to Senpai. People are born without their class and roles, and when they reach the age of five, then then choose which Divine to serve and pray to. Then from there, choose their Class, but their role is up to the Divines, who chooses depending on the person and what talent they have for the future.When praying to the Divines, most people will actually speak to them. They are taken into a state of meditation, and from there can make their reports to the Divine, and then request more skills. Most people describe the experience as being taking high into the sky above the clouds, the space filled with bright colors and they would feel warm.
Al reaches the stairs to the temple. There he is greeted by the priests and allowed passage into the temple. He moved to a open area away from other people who are praying to their divine. He then gets on one knee and prayed. He then feels shadows rising from the ground and surrounds him. He feels cold air blowing against him, and a sense of dread and fear. He opens his eyes to complete darkness as if he never opened them. He could see a small, faint light. From there he could make out a huge shadow figure approaching him. Unlike most people, he prays to a lesser know Divine. He prays to Death, the God of Fear, Death, Destructions, and the Guardians of Souls. As Death reaches him, Al feels a cold as if he was standing in the middle of a blizzard, and such a heavy pressure that would crush him if he so much as moved.
All Al could see is a giant shadowy cloak. Death had no face or features, only darkness. “Well… Look who we have here. Alderick, my only human worshipper.” When Death spoke, it sounds as if he spoke directly into Al’s mind, almost to the point of driving him insane. “I’ve come to offer you a gift.” Al said, and he pulled his short sword from his waist and placed it in front of him. Death looks down on it, then waved his hands over the sword. The sword glows, and seven light float up from the sword. Six small light, and one really big one. They float to Death, and he lifts his hands in front of him with an open palm. The light gathers to his hands then cluster up and faded into his hands. He then closes his hands.
“I appreciate this gift Alderick. Rarely do I get offer the soul of a Devil Tusk. It was a most enjoyable fight that I got to witness.” Al was shocked to learn that Death watched him fight the boar. “I know and see everything that you do Alderick. And remember, whether alive or dead, you belong to me. You shall serve me for eternity.” “Yes. I’m honor to serve. Now and forever. “For such a nice gift, I shall grant you three new skills. Use them well to continued to serve me.” “I do not deserve such a wonderful reward.” Death then surrounds Al in a cloud of darkness. Al feels as if his body was going to get crushed from it. But the knowledge of new skills came to him. “I am done with you now. Go back and serve me well." The shadows then dropped Al back down. He opens his eyes, he was now back in the temple.
Skills Learned:
Aura of Agility
Aura of Strength
Aura of Sacrifice