> Task: Collect Eye of The Great Tiger Lordvoyg
> Requester: Sword Saint (Self-proclaimed) Kyre
> Quest Rank: D-rank
> Rewards: 19 Large Copper Coins
> Description: After many battles over the course of the last decade (the guild assumes he is talking about a few days), Lordvoyg finally got the best of me, biting my hand off and carrying it with him as his trophy... This cannot stand be, if it has my hand, I deserve its eye as my own trophy! Go to the region near Simetra's Dungeon and defeat the Giant Tiger Lordvoyg in battle and bring me his eye!
> * The guild assumes that by giant he means a tiger of at most 2m tall, as no recent reports came of anything bigger than that in the region... It's still a fairly dangerous foe however, so be wary.
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Not knowing what to expect from this quest, Zinc decided to bring all of his weapons as well as his medical equipment. According to the reports, the two-meter tall giant tiger should reside somewhere around the Simetra’s Dungeon, perhaps an escapee of the dungeon itself. The self-proclaimed Sword Saint – Kyre – lost his hand to the foul beast without dealing much damage in return. Kind of a disappointment from this “sword saint”.
Anyways, back to the task. Sword Saint Kyre tasked the guild to find an adventurer or a party of adventurers who would be willing to venture forth, defeat the great tiger – Lordvoyg, and retrieve its eye as proof. Now, the task doesn’t specifically mention killing the giant tiger so hopefully Zinc would be able to obtain the eye peacefully? Probably not. Once the quest has been approved, the doctor headed to the map room to understand the general terrain near Simetra’s Dungeon.
The Arcane Dungeon of Simetra – located south of the continent of Nylla – was a hotspot of magical energy. The dungeon itself was filled to the brim with such energy. Now that he thought about it, perhaps Lordvoyg wasn’t really an escapee of the dungeon, but rather a lucky animal blessed with the magical leakage from the dungeon, which transformed what was once an ordinary tiger into the monstrosity it was now. Back to looking at the map of Nylla, Zinc hypothesized that Lordvoyg’s residence was most likely somewhere south of the dungeon near a small stream. No matter how strong a creature was, it could not survive without a source of water. Zinc placed the tiger’s residence somewhere along the path between the dungeon and the stream…a roughly 30-kilometer diameter worth of area to cover.
Taking along a rented horse as well as Silver and Cerium, Zinc headed towards Simetra’s Dungeon. It took them roughly six days with small breaks in between. Once Zinc arrived on the seventh day, the doctor dismounted and tied the horse to a nearby tree. Zinc decided to go on foot for the remainder of the path. After taking nearly another day of travels, Zinc finally saw a large cave in the distant woods near a small, clear stream. Just as Zinc decided to approach the mouth of the cave quietly, a roar exploded out, causing Zinc to flinch. Impossible! The great tiger shouldn’t have discovered him so soon!
With abated breath, Zinc brought out his Amputation Knife and held it close to his body. Once Lordvoyg sprang out of the cave, the doctor would engage immediately. Suddenly, a large figure pranced out of the cave and sped towards the stream. The giant tiger splashed its head into the stream, submerging its face completely. With a powerful roar that even Zinc could hear above the water, the tiger monster shook its head painfully. Through his years of observing his master at work and training, Zinc was able to deduce that something was wrong with the giant tiger's face or more specifically...its eyes.
After a long five minutes, the tiger finally calmed down. It stood up weakly and headed towards its cave when suddenly, its ears perked up. With a flash of its eyes, a powerful aura of intimidation flooded the vicinity, affecting even Zinc. This form of intimidation…it was similar to Zinc’s Tiger Aura but purer and more intense. Not wanting to give in to the intimidation, Zinc cast his own form of Tiger Aura. Though it didn’t do much, Zinc was at least able to surprise the giant tiger, allowing it to lessen the bloodlust.
You know Tiger Aura?
A deep voice projected into Zinc’s head almost causing him to falter. “Who’s there? Who’s in my head?”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Me you imbecile. The giant tiger flashed a toothy grin. Aren't you looking at me?
The only thing Zinc was staring at right this moment was the giant tiger. "Y-You can speak telepathically?"
Yes. Speak, mortal human, what are you doing here and what do you want?
"Um...I was just passing by. What's wrong with you? I'm a doctor, maybe I can help."
Passing by? Do you take me for a fool? You have the same smell as that idiot I disarmed a few days ago. You come from the same place! Speak! Tell me why you are really here or I’ll kill you and eat you for an afternoon snack!
“My name is Zinc and I’m an adventurer based in the town of Nagrand. The idiot you disarmed a few days ago had issued a quest for revenge.”
Hahaha! That self-proclaimed sword saint couldn’t defeat me and now wanted others to do his dirty work? Pathetic! So, I assume you are here because of that quest? Are you here to slay me?
“At first, yes. But, now I’m not going to.” Zinc replied as he eyed the tiger’s disproportionate glare.
Why? You scared? No matter what you say, I will not let you go.
“What about if I say I can cure your migraine.”
What migr-! ROOAAARRR!!
The giant tiger screamed in pain as its head began to throb irregularly once more. Lordvoyg rushed to the cool stream and plunged its head into the waters. The icy caress of the running water helped ease the pain that erupted from the giant tiger’s temples. After a few minutes of screaming and whimpering, the giant tiger raised its head out of the water and peered at the dwelf.
You really can help me?
“Yes.” Zinc nodded but a look of hesitation remained on his face. “However, you might not like it.”
Tell me! As long as I can rid me of this misery, I will do anything.
“I will need to take one of your eyes.”
WHAT? How dare you! You dare to play tricks on me?
“WAIT! Wait! Hear me out! Hear me out!” Zinc dodged the fierce swipe Lordvoyg threw at the dwelf out of anger. “Haven’t you noticed that one of your eyes are larger than the other?”
This one sentence managed to stop the giant tiger from its tracks. It glared at Zinc and grunted. Keep going. I’m listening.
“The bulging of your eye coupled with the increase in headaches and nausea…those all lead to signs of an eye tumor.”
Tumor?
“Yes, tumors are lumps of harmful flesh that grew out of control. These tumors will drain your lifeforce and the only way to treat them is to remove them. Since your tumor is located in your eye…you should understand what that means.”
No! How am I supposed to hunt if I lost an eye? What will the others say about me? Think of something else or I’ll kill you where you stand!
“There is no other method. If you don’t remove it, the tumor will continue to grow. Soon, you will become blind in that eye. After growing to a certain point, the tumor will cause the eye to explode. When that happens, who knows what other damage you might incur from it. Are you willing to risk that? Either way, you will lose your eye. So…what’s it going to be?” Zinc explained calmly as he looked at the giant tiger sternly.
This! Fine! You win! Take this wretched tumor out of me! Lordvoyg roared as it was just about to refute Zinc’s argument when another burst of pain coursed through its body.
“Then, let’s begin.” Zinc replied as he dropped his bag and began to dig through some medical supplies.
Hours later….
After putting the tiger into an alcoholic coma, Zinc dissected and removed the cancerous eyeball. Wiping it clean, he stored the eyeball in his bag and fed the giant tiger some hangover soup made from fresh mint he had foraged around the forest. As Lordvoyg shook itself awake, it glanced about as it tried to adjust with one eye.
Although Lordvoyg lost one eye, the giant tiger was still able to hunt some prey albeit some decreases in power. Luckily, there was some good news. The giant tiger’s head stopped hurting and it was able to look at its surroundings with more clarity.
Thank you, mortal.
“No problem. Happy to help. You helped me as well.” Zinc nodded as he cleaned his equipment.
As thanks, you can have this. Lordvoyg lifted a claw to its chest and pierced its chest slightly, drawing blood.
Before Zinc could respond, the giant tiger pierced the bloody claw into the doctor. “What the fuck!”
Zinc’s eyes began to blur as he fell over. The last thing he saw was Lordvoyg sticking the claw back into its chest. The last thing he heard before his mind fell into unconsciousness….
This mark of mine will help you in the future. All my descendants will come to your aid. From now on…we are brothers.
*****
Zinc woke up with a start and found himself lying by a tree on the outskirts of the town. His head rang like a bell as he tried to grasp what had happened earlier. Recalling Lordvoyg’s claw piercing his chest, he checked his body. The wound had healed completely, leaving behind a faint scar. With a confused grimace, Zinc headed back to the guild to submit the tiger’s eye.