After exiting the inn we’d spent the night at, my pockets felt slightly heavier. It had cost 30 copper coins each for a one night stay at the inn and because I hadn’t had any copper on me I’d been forced to pay using a silver coin. Now, I had 70 copper coins in my pocket along with the 12 gold and 49 silver coins. Orion’s situation had been even worse albeit, much more comical. He had been forced to pay with a gold coin as he’d only had the gold he’d gotten from the healing moss when we evacuated Fenroot. The innkeeper had nearly tipped over when he said he could only pay using a gold coin. She had managed to scrape together the 99 silver and 70 copper in change he needed but told him sternly that if he ever pulled that again she would refuse him lodging.
As we made our way to the Warrior’s guild I couldn’t help but notice the shops and stalls showcasing freshly cooked food to passing customers. The inn had offered a complimentary porridge breakfast but it had been bland. The cuisine we passed on the road however both looked and smelled delicious. Cooked meats, freshly baked bread, exotic fruits, and succulent sweets all tempted my nostrils as Orion and I made our way through the crowd. I suppressed my urges, arguments emanated from my stomach as it protested against my decision, at some point I would need to come back and try some of these dishes.
After turning down the main road the Warrior’s guildhall came into view. It wasn’t as large as I had imagined it, in fact it was actually smaller than some of the shops it shared the street with. It was a bit run down looking, some of its clay shingles chipped or cracked and its painted side was beginning to peel. Few people could be seen going in and out of the large double wooden doors marking its entrance. We pushed the doors open and went inside.
The small dimly lit area we entered was decently furnished. A few tables were dotted throughout the main entrance hall, some containing lightly armored strangers who, after a quick glance in our direction, proceeded to continue their conversations. There was a main desk with a human woman standing behind it, her bright blond hair stood out in stark contrast to the surroundings in which she found herself. A small message board with the word “Jobs” painted above it was located behind the front desk as well along with a door that must’ve lead to an area accessible to employees only.
The woman stared at a book on the desk as we walked forward and continued to do so when we reached the counter. After a few long moments of silence Orion cleared his throat, “Hi, we were looking to joi…” she cut him off with a raised finger, indicating that she was busy. He shuffled his feet slightly as he looked at me, his face pleading for advice on what to do now. I shrugged, there wasn’t much point in interrupting her, might as well wait for her to finish what she was doing.
After a few minutes had passed of us quietly standing there waiting for some kind of indication that she was done she finally spoke up, “Aaaaannnnndd… Chapter finished.” She looked up at us, giving us a once over before continuing, “How can I help you two? New recruits I presume?”
Orion responded, “Yes, we were looking to join the Warrior’s guild and were wondering how to go about that process.”
She looked him up and down and smiled, “Well it's not every day we get two beastmen in here looking to risk their lives to fight monster’s for humans. You sure you’re up to the task? We’ve had notoriously bad luck retaining your kind.”
Orion seemed to waiver slightly. This woman wasn’t coming off as racist per-se but the words she chose seemed to imply an underlying cultural racism towards non-humans. Seeing Orion struggling to respond I cut in, “That’s alright, we’ve both had some tough experiences with monster’s already so we’re pretty motivated when it comes to killing them.”
Her focus shifted to me, “Well aren’t you tall? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Ferrin as tall as you. And would you look at that full kit of iron armor, wealthy too huh?”
I was about to respond when someone shoved past me from behind. A man had pushed his way past and was trying to cash in one of his completed quests. I was about to speak up before I heard the receptionist was was already addressing the man, “... and your time is so much more important than these gentlemen? How about you go wait over there until I’m done so you don’t have to stand here and then if you’re good I might let you cash that in today?” The guy glanced back at us, probably trying to decide if arguing was a good idea before deciding against it and moving aside to sit at an adjacent table.
“Sorry about that. Sometimes people forget their manners.” She had turned her attention back to us, perhaps she was just sarcastic and condescending to everyone. I politely thanked her and reiterated our lack of knowledge on the process of joining the guild, “Well you two look like you’re well enough kitted out to join up. You’ve both got decent weapons and armor so the only thing you need to do is give me your names and levels. After I’ve got those records you’ll be good to go.”
After giving her the requested information she jotted it into a book giving each of us a whole blank page and walked into the back room. She emerged moments later with two copper medallions in the shape of a shield and two small purple pouches, “Here are your medallions for identifying you as a member of the Warrior’s guild. Know that you two are starting at copper rank so you can only take copper ranked jobs off of the board behind me. Please be aware that ten percent of all quest rewards are taken by the guild and as lodging will be provided at the guild hall for both of you. I’ll just go ahead and assume that you’ll be bunking together rather than opting to take different roommates.” We both nodded and she continued, “There is no membership fee but if you would like to purchase a magic pouch for 1 gold you are more than welcome to do that. If you are wondering what it does, it is just a pouch that holds large quantities of items despite its outward appearance.”
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She handed me the pouch and I reached in. After my arm had disappeared up to my elbow it finally touched the bottom of the pouch. I immediately paid her a gold and Orion did the same. The extra storage was expensive but it was too useful to pass up.
“Now this may be obvious but we have a strict policy on using the guild’s name in nefarious ways. That means no extortion, no shady deals, no blackmail, or anything else of that nature. If you break any of the guild’s rules then we have the right to take away your membership. Any questions?” She asked as she finished her spiel.
This time it was Orion who spoke up, “We met someone from the Merchant’s guild the other day and she mentioned that copper members have some limitations in her guild, do we also have limitations?”
“Good question, yes you do. You cannot accept any quests rated higher than copper and you can also not use your membership outside of this province. If you look on the back of your medallion you’ll see Valenta stamped into it, this is to prevent people unfamiliar with other areas from accepting quests that could lead then to face unfamiliar monsters. Too many copper members died before they implemented that rule, luckily the mortality rate of copper members after it’s implementation went down to 53 percent!”
53 PERCENT?! The thought of a 53 percent mortality rate being an improvement was staggering in its absurdity! It was no wonder there were barely any people sitting in the guildhall, not many people were crazy enough to try their luck with this guild. Orion had even caught that number and when the secretary caught both of our looks of shock she quickly corrected herself, “Oh no no no, you misunderstand! You have to understand that many people come to us in desperation, starving, homeless, and with nowhere else to turn. The guild loans them a copper dagger and sends them out on jobs. Some end up coming back to repay their loan and buy the dagger and some don’t. A lot of these people just steal the dagger and when they don’t return they’re counted under the mortality rate. Some do actually perish on their first trip because they lack any kind of protection but you two don’t look like you’re those kinds of people.”
That put my mind to ease slightly. Of course this world would have poverty and theft. Still though, even factoring in the people who steal, this world was much more accustomed to and tolerant of death and hardship. Basically, the guild’s philosophy was, “Loan the poor a cheap dagger and see if they either die or get stronger. Part of me was happy I’d discovered such a valuable resource and hadn’t had to start from scratch.
After all was said and done, we signed our pages in the book. The secretary introduced herself as Tether and welcomed us aboard. Motioning over to the board to see if we wanted to take up any quests right away. Looking them over they were all pretty basic and low paying. Delivery quests that would have us run across town paid the least at an average of ten copper for a delivery. There were some that had us picking things up from adjacent villages that were slightly more lucrative at about 30 copper on average. There was one copper quest to eliminate a local pack of wild dogs and paid 75 copper but Tether explained that it had only been listed copper because the client hadn’t wanted to pay for a bronze contract.
Looking over at some of the higher level contracts I noticed they paid fantastic amounts of money. Four silver to clear out some wolves as a silver contract, two silver to guard a caravan for a bronze contract, and many others like them. Making money on top of leveling wouldn’t have been so bad if I’d been able to start at a higher rank. I looked over at Orion and could see the same frustration written on his face.
“Give us the one with the wild dogs.” I looked over to Orion who’d spoken, shocked that he’d want to do something so difficult for our first quest.
“I’ve been told to direct copper members away from that quest by my superiors.” Tether said with a frown, “I doubt either of you two could handle it at your levels, even with your equipment. Those dogs are each level two and the quest giver said that there are five of them total. Are you absolutely sure you want to accept this quest?” She tore the contract off the board behind her and placed it in front of us.
Orion nodded. I couldn’t help but admire his spirit, he really did want to get stronger. He was going to get himself killed, “Fine, but if we die I’m going to kill you.” I exclaimed as I signed my name on the paper.
Tether wished us good luck as we headed out of the guildhall. After reading the contract I tucked it into my magical pouch. The farmer was just west of the city in the village of Goart and if we were quick we’d be able to touch base with him before nightfall. I watched Orion leading the way. The steps he took were filled with purpose, his spear gripped tightly by his side.
With this quest we would prove ourselves worthy to live in this harsh world. We would gain experience and level up, we would get stronger, we would survive.
My hand had found its way to the hilt of the sword that rested on my hip, gripping it tightly as I walked towards the city gates.
Feral dog (Level 2)
0/200 Experience
30/30 Health ----
40/40 Stamina ------
0/0 Mana --
10/10 Spirit ---
‘0’ Stat Points Available
Racial Ability - Call Pack
Skills: (None)