"That simple? Because I?"

“Cirlan said, 'We have a member who must have just entered the age to do solo quests, call him.' “What a son of a mom. I've only had three days of rest, and I'm already being called to another mission.

“Okay, I accept."

“I hope a good-for-nothing magician like you can do this right" Kairy said.

“I wouldn't need magic to accomplish this task any better than a mere soldier"

Kairy approached and, taking advantage of the enormous difference in height, looked down at me fixedly. I took a step and faced him, I felt the pain of nails piercing my hands. A dark green aura overflowed from his body and a scary smile spread across his face, he opened his arms and gathered energy in his palms.

"Perhaps I should teach you manners. Don't think your fight against Zelforne was anything, everyone still knows you as shit" Now i am chipped. I wanted to break down and cry, his energy knocked out any hope I had, but doing this here would take away what little dignity I have left.

“I…I think you two better not fight." Said the guy who gave me the quest, his voice shaky spoke that.

My luck was that the waiter decided to approach and asked what was going on, his aura was like a dark blue and his confidence unshakable. He confronted a noble soldier just like that. Kairy just whispered a few curses as he left. The waiter apologized and went back to his work, while the guy in the overcoat inhaled slowly with his eyes closed.

“Well, sorry about that. I admit I would have failed to try to stop it" Making enemies was far from my plans, but that seems inevitable. Could he really kill me without suffering any consequences?

"It is not the first time. Proceed with the mission."

“In this paper you have everything you could need." He handed me a parchment. "The item I need you to get is in the Wood of Voices, it is a phosphorescent blue fruit with great potential for healing medicines combined with magic. You must deliver this directly to Berena at Karin's hospital."

This place… Mists, voices, red eyes. I would definitely like to go with company.

"And one more thing: It must be a silent mission, no one can know that you went or what you collected. Therefore, be silent and be as cautious as possible."

"Understood."

I returned home and began preparations. I put on my torn black gatherer's clothes, a brown bag, and my wooden shield and bamboo sword. The mission seems simple, reaching the forest of voices and picking fruits without leaving a trace is something I can definitely do. I let my parents know I was coming and gave Emy a really tight hug. The trees were swaying, the scarecrows had fallen, the clouds were in quite a hurry to get to their destination.

Running without flying like a potato was an arduous task, the closer I got to the place the stronger the wind got. My physique used to always be on the edge of the limit, I need to use one hundred percent of every cell in my body, unlike others who just strengthen their weak points with mana. Therefore, my muscles came close to being injured and had a slower regeneration, it could be even worse depending on the size of the fatigue that hit it.

The Wood of Voices was a place I would have loved to stay away from. I stopped a little over a hundred meters away and every hair on my body stood up at the sight. A small hill with dense vegetation, a mist that made me unable to see the second wave of logs, red eyes and small monsters devouring large insects. I swallowed hard and, even hearing the howl of creatures I don't know, I decided to walk.

Why did my legs shake? Focus, Lumi. Maybe it's cowardice, but I tried to encourage myself even though I know it's impossible for me to become an amazing person.

I walked into the mist, put my hand on the tree and sucked in as much air as I could. The subject was too specific for this mission to be silent, there must be something in this place that I missed. The winds suddenly ceased, the only sound that entered my ears was the sound of branches cracking under my boots. I kept my breathing controlled to prevent my heart from beating too loudly and a predator coming to eat me. I've heard several rumors about creatures appearing here from time to time; Yes, I know it's rare, but a goblin was also rare on top of Little Hill.

The silence remained for a long time, while I walked watching my every step. I noticed a few Nightbirds hanging from white branches, large Thunder Spiders, and creatures my size that had gray fur and very large eyes — to make matters worse, they were bipedal. I tightened my grip on my bamboo sword, felt my lips drop and my brow furrow. What the fuck was this place?

The only source of light soon went down, and the moon rose full and full from dark clouds of dubious shape. At that instant, the forest became a little louder, hissing and growling could be heard clearly. Total darkness has become my biggest enemy. I crouched behind a bush and picked up some random piece of wood. That should serve to make at least one torch.

Heavy steps knocked me off balance, large branches fell, small animals ran desperately snarling. I grabbed onto the tree and climbed as fast as I could without a second thought. I covered my mouth and curled up in the fetal position until the footsteps receded. I knew! If anything bad could happen, it would be when I was there. Anyway, I had a mission and I needed to accomplish it.

Feeling refreshed, I got up and put my hands on my hips.

"Wait for me!" Several birds took flight at my guttural cry.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

I jumped up with a big smile and brought my feet together to slide down the trunk, adrenaline raging through my veins. Even when I landed facedown in the mud and hit my belly on a damn rock, I kept the urge to run. The absence of sound soon took over the place again. I crouched the rest of the way until I saw a phosphorescent blue glow. I leaned my arms against the tree and stood up, I was dirty and my energy had abandoned me, but I was here.

I entered a small clearing and saw an infinity of flowers illuminating the place, forming a perfect circle right in front of a cave. The fruits were right on top of them. I whispered to myself that I was closer to completing the quest and opened the bag, I just needed to collect a few and get the hell out of here. But because of fate, a frightening dark aura came from the cave, which made standing up a difficult task.

Voices rose from all sides. It would be hard to tell if they were human or wraith, but the only sensation coming from them was agony. I turned my head, looking for any living thing, but there were none. As I directed my gaze into the darkness of the cave, I felt something watching me. Something big. All the hairs on my body stood on end, I hurried and put as much fruit as the bag would allow and ran. The mud allowed me to slide downhill, I quickly reached a considerable speed and realized that braking was impossible when I saw a fallen log right in the path.

I raised my wooden shield and blocked the log, I fell and rolled like a potato and hit my back on a damn rock. I thought - for a moment - of staying here, lying down, waiting for the energy to return and continuing with my objective. Unfortunately, the red eyes I saw in the bush came closer and became small gray creatures with small, square-tipped claws. The big-eyed humanoid beings just stayed behind a tree or two, and honestly, those are the ones I least wanted to fight.

I stood up aiming the bamboo sword and countered the claws of one. Without having time to position myself well, I had to redirect another creature's blow, which had jumped over its partner. They were taking turns. Every strike I parried was a step back, my shoulders growing heavier and tighter with the impact, as my eyes began to blur from the continued attacks. It's a good strategy, it looks like it's good for hunting big prey; far from me being one.

I counted six of them, I needed to escape. As I took another step back, I positioned the sword beside my ribs and pierced the small being's belly. As expected, he retreated and two others took the attacks. I did a quick side slash to open up some distance and glanced back. My shield had flown away. Shit. We went back to our blocking game, only my gun looked terrible.

Being defensive... I got scolded like that all the time, but attacking... Why the hell was I so afraid to attack?

I dropped the sword on the floor, took a deep breath and positioned myself. I slammed one of their heads into the ground with a punch and instantly felt something hit my ribs. I threw a kick to the stomach of two and took two simultaneous blows to the back. What fucking claws. I turned to block the next one but it was too late, they joined hands, leaving all claws together, and landed a joint blow to my belly. I flew until I hit the tree, opened my eyes I didn't remember closing and spit out a mouthful of red.

Too many memories came flooding back, my emotions got mixed up. The minotaur scene was being replayed in my mind as a form of torture and… motivation. The monsters were laughing, they approached in their bizarre formation. I knew that without magic it was impossible, it was clear to me the difference. So why… why did I get up with a smile on my face? What excitement is this?

Blood was still running hot down the side of my face, my hair was plastered to my forehead. The pains and wounds lost their effect of afflicting me. I raised my fists and let out a guttural scream.

"Come on!"

At that exact moment, trees fell in flames and a giant bear on fire appeared. Its red and white fur, its yellow serpent-like eyes, and its sharp, sparking claws. I screamed along with all those damn little beings. They all passed by me as if I wasn't even here, they came close to my chest… They're a little bigger than I thought.

I prepared to run and put my hand where my purse should have been. I looked away looking for her, my heart was racing. I was certain to go home with my hands tied if I failed to find her, it would tarnish my reputation as a collector. The bear was pulling a tree out of the ground on strength alone, unfortunately my bag was between his legs. He spat out a huge blast of fire, burning all the surrounding plants and hissing echoed throughout the Grove.

One. No, two. Two dodges and I could get the bag, with all the noise caused by the animals and the fire I had a chance. He hit the nearby tree. He burst into flames and he went for another, the fire in his body releasing little white ripples. It was magic. I waited for the bear to move a little more than ten feet away and broke into a run. I grabbed my gear and rolled over to grab the bag.

I put my hands on it and the giant saw me, its huge flaming claw passing inches from my face as I leaned back. A small spark, similar to a strike, cut my collarbone. I scrambled to my feet, my eyes his prisoner as a single strike was enough to take my life. His claw came from above this time. I threw myself to the side and saw a blast of fire burst the ground, the pressure threw me away and I could see its beautiful circular attack create a path through the trees.

I smiled, clutched the bag tight, and — with a midair spin — I landed. I left the blessed Grove and got down on my knees. An explosion nearly caught me, so I decided to run further away. I watched the scenery of trees on fire and several beings running and fighting. It's like I never went there. I put my hands on my hips and walked towards Karin, let me relax. That was awesome.

I knocked on the door three times. The doctor opened and widened her eyes when she saw me, then her jaw dropped and her lips curved in a smile. It was the same one who took care of me before.

"You're a mess, but it's good that you're in one piece, unlike the last time... Was the mission successful?"

"Yes." I said as I handed the bag into her hand.

“Thank you, really. Here's your reward, collector." She handed me a bag of coins. That was a lot of money for a beginner like me. For some reason, I could feel her energy. Comfortable, light, honest.

"Anytime" I turned around and heard the door close.

I left smiling. The breeze hit my back and my body started to shiver. The streets were empty, littered with branches and dirt and darker than usual. Perhaps the winds were too much for the structure here.

I took a step and the same sensation as when I dodged Zelforne came, everything slowed down and a black energy formed in my mind. Blood, death, a smile. Memoirs? My vision became that of someone else, that of a person watching my back at that very moment. Holy crap.

I returned to the world and looked everywhere. My jaws ached, and my attention was on the empty road and dark rooftops. I lost control of my breathing some time ago, so I decided to run. The fountain was relatively close, I accelerated until I managed to reach it. Someone was here, I knew it was. I slipped and hit my shoulder on the floor. A loud grunt escaped, a headache hit me.

I propelled myself up and a fist dug into my stomach, I cleared my throat and found the ground again. I could see it clearly now; It was a person in a green hood, his entire body was covered, and a shadow covered almost his entire face. He was serene. I tried to get up, but a rain of punches made me regret it.

Many heavy blows at a speed that my eyes are unable to follow, I just found myself falling to my knees and felt tears flow. Everything hurt, a few ribs felt out of place, the blood that oozed from my wounds was pooling.

Was I going to die? I didn't want to die.

I pulled out the bamboo sword and attacked him, the individual just raised his arm and my sword broke. He lifted his leg and covered it with a thick layer of magic. I raised the shield, felt the impact, the shock, and I was thrown away. A new pain appeared, it was in the region of my left chest. I tried to bring my hand to the area of pain, but, like my shield, my arm was destroyed. My vision was blurry, my throat felt dry. Was the pain in my chest psychological? A hoarse scream escaped my mouth, and it was meaningless. Where's the guard? Anyone, please.

Internal screams, external screams. I screamed. Standing up was almost impossible, the pains throbbing and getting thicker. I wanted to live. Emy… Forgive me.

"You survived the minotaur, the goblin…" His thick, lifeless voice broke me out of my trance. "the Zelforne… and the bear.

"Who are you?"

"Let this be the epilogue."

Dark energy concentrated in his palm, a dagger, no, a scythe dagger, formed in his hand. The blow landed right on my neck, my current condition prevented me from dodging. I closed my eyes, I could only wait.

Divert.

One voice?

My spine bent and the scythe scraped across my shoulder. His mouth curved downwards, more energy emanated from him and the scythe. He tried again, only this time on my leg. Once again I dodged, and I could see his face get angry. His eyes were red, his features pure hatred.

He got it right on the third try. I felt the cut from my collarbone down to my navel, it was worse than the physical weapon. I understood that it was the end. My body fell to the floor and my vision went black.

In the end everything was dark, that's when that feminine, peaceful and distant voice reached the deepest part of my being.

Can you hear me?