Kayd stood with Ishmael, he tried his best to hide his worrying breathing.

“Captain Ishmael, what other information do we have on them?” He asked. She turned to him with a smirk.

“They’re just a horde of rats, no different than other animals here. Like ants. They have a queen in each group, and when she dies, the rest will perish.” She explained, Kayd took in every ounce of information, forming up what he could with what they experienced before.

Ishmael pushed away the thick bush in front of her, revealing the camp. The sight brought quick shock to Kayd.

A horde of fifty or so vermin stood inside the ruined camp, its makeshift walls overturned and ripped apart. No sign of life could be found.

Upon closer inspection though, Kayd noticed that many of the rats had blood staining their mouths, along with chipped weapons and clothes scattered inside and outside the camp.

Some scurried around the camp, patrolling the area for any intruders. But in the middle housed beneath a barely standing tent. The queen.

She was double the size of the other rats, with more jagged teeth, and visibly thicker fur.

I have never seen rats this big, nor ones this disgusting looking.

“Just the guards and queen, should be easy to handle,” Ishmael remarked.

“So our best bet is to simply reach the queen and kill her?” Kayd asked. She nodded in response.

“The hard part is getting through the rest.” The two eyed the camp carefully, hopefully finding anything to use as an advantage.

“So, any ideas?” She asked. Kayd looked around him, with Ikari’s arm injured, they just lost their only ranged markswoman, and Kayd wasn’t as focused on bows as his old classmates.

“Anything else about the rats?”

“They have a strong nose, I’m shocked they couldn’t smell us from here though. Back then we used to tie rotten meat and wait for the horde to get it.” Suddenly, an idea appeared in Kayd’s mind.

“That’s it, a bait! The question is what will we use?” He looked around, noticing Lia crouched away from the group, staring at a growth of mushrooms near a tree.

Quellin sighed in disappointment upon seeing this and marched towards her.

“Get back into formation, uncharted territory is the worst place to wander off.” He ordered in a strict tone.

“I’m sorry- I was just curious of the-”

“Get back to formation, you may do your nature-watching when this place is safe.” He cut her off.

“I’m sorry, please don’t yell. The mushrooms smelled like meat and I became curious.” Lia hastily joined back with the team with a frightened expression on her face, partially hiding it with her cloak.

“Meat?” Kayd approached the mushrooms, with a single whiff, Lia was right.

“Maybe we can use this to lure them away.” He spoke. Ishmael walked to him, plucking one from the ground.

“White flesh, I heard of hunters using these to hunt other animals here.” She explained. From behind Ikari looked deeply interested, joining with them and taking it from Ishmael.

“Back where I’m from we eat this kind of stuff, sometimes tying it in a bundle for traps.” She eagerly spoke.

As he heard the two of them, more ideas for a plan came to his mind.

“Ikari, can you tie them up in bundles? ”

“Sure can, just give me some time and places to hang them.”

Ishmael smiled as the team began concocting the plan. Quellin stood by her, still bearing an emotionless face while staring off at the rats.

While gathering some more, Lia knelt next to Kayd, notebook in hand.

“I don’t know if this can help but-” She dropped a small vial in front of her, hastily grabbing it and placing it in Kayd’s palm.

“Nobles used it to make the smell of food stronger, the mushrooms reminded me of it. Hope it helps-” She explained with sadness and uncertainty in her tone.

She really has a problem with self-deprecating.

Before using the vial, Kayd handed some of the mushrooms to Lia. Her eyes lit up like a torch in a cavern.

“You can study this like the flower in that Overseer’s building.” She slowly took it, glancing at Kayd repeatedly as if expecting something bad to happen.

“Thank you so much!” She placed the mushrooms in her bag and started writing on her journal.

Half an hour passed, and Ikari held up multiple bundles along with Lia’s vial.

“You can use it all, I still have two more.” Lia explained. The team was hard at work preparing their weapons and bait, now with a well-crafted plan from Kayd and Ishmael.

Once everything was set, they all faced the camp, holding the equipment they need to do their part in the plan.

“Alright, Kayd start moving, as for you Ikari start hanging them. The rest of us will stay and kill the rats on my command.” She ordered. The two ran in opposite directions.

Just need to stay quiet until the rats smell the bait. Then the queen should be vulnerable.

Through the dense foliage, he ran, making barely any noise. Once he was at the rear of the camp, he stopped, kneeling behind a bush and staring at the rat setlement.

A feeling of nervousness flowed through him, along with a shiver up his spine.

Never fought rats this big before, can my sword even go through them?

He shook his head, ridding himself of the doubt.

Loud shrieks shook him as the group of rats guarding the queen were sent away to find Ikari’s baits.

It’s time

Emerging from the bushes, Kayd crept up on the rat queen’s tent.

As he got closer, the pungent smell of death and rot assaulted his nose, nearly causing him to freeze. He could vomit from the smell alone.

Around his path, black masses of flies flew around, hovering over remnants of corpses and flesh that still remained.

From the wrecked buildings, scenes of destruction and gore were on full display to him, each one covered in claw marks and broken wood, seemingly to get to the villagers hiding inside.

So much death and destruction, not even wolves in my skirmishes could cause this. And this was all from a small horde!?

His hands trembled, his mind trying to fight the growing fear inside him. His focus was starting to weaken, the smell becoming more pungent and the area becoming more drenched in destruction and rotting meat and weapons.

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He shook his head once more, ridding his mind of the worries, but they still lingered. From it, a thought returned to Kayd. Of words from Master Carwel.

Even the biggest beasts become simple prey with a calm mind.

Just Mere steps from the queen, the tension grew high, but his goal was crystal clear.

I have to kill it, my goals and THEY are counting on me.

The rat’s tail swayed just inches in front of his feet, and just from the backside, he could see arrows and scars adorning the beast. Wounds from attacking the camp.

It snarled while staring off to where the rats ran off.

With each step, Kayd remained quiet and avoided the tail, just to get a clear sight of its neck.

Just like all beasts, a clean cut ends them.

He felt a shiver go up his spine, seeing the true size of the thing up close.

Even the biggest beast….Becomes easy…With a calm mind…

Now next to the beast, Kayd raised his sword, hoping the cut would be enough and this would be over with.

A broken wooden plank snapped beneath him.

Kayd immediately swung down his blade on the thing’s neck before it could react.

But rather than seeing a stump of the creature’s neck, his sword was half stuck on it.

Oh no….

The beast shrieked violently, jerking its head to Kayd and latching onto his arm.

“No!” He grabbed the sword with his other hand, desperately trying to pull it off as the beast gnawed on the other.

In the distance, loud cries and wails echoed from the forest as the team started their attacks.

Get off the neck already!

He punched the beast in the face repeatedly, but each time, its teeth dug deeper into his arm.

He yanked the blade, finally managing to get it off. In pain, the rat threw Kayd away.

He slammed onto the rotten dirt ground, slathered in both gore and the pungent odor.

One look at his arm and a mix of terror and anger flowed through his head.

Its neck is too strong, I need another weakness…

His hand was useless at this moment, unable to even clench a fist or raise it upwards.

At least it’s not my good arm

The rat queen crept out of its tent, its appearance far worse than from a distance.

He analyzed the beast, searching for another weakness with time quickly running out before it would finish the job.

Wait, the head! I need to stab the head!

He stood up straight, left with a single arm to fight. But ready with a new plan.

The queen rushed towards him at high speeds, quickly getting within a meter of Kayd.

Got you

He dashed to the side, feeling the cold wind brush his mangled arm as the beast missed and crashed into the ground.

He jumped on top, and with a raised sword, dug it into the creature’s skull.

It started thrashing around, destroying more of the ruined village in its rampage.

Kayd tossed and turned, holding onto his blade. Rubble and broken wood fell on him, some even stabbing him on the back, weakening his grip.

One more should be enough

In a moment of the beast resting, Kayd pulled out the sword, and mustering the strength he still had, dug it into its head, deeper this time.

It slumped down with another shriek, motionless.

Finally…Is it dead already?

Kayd jumped off the creature, wiping his sword. As he looked on, the fur of the rat queen started to disintegrate in front of him, similar to the scraps of paper, simply turning into dust and being carried away by the wind.

In the distance, the rabid screeches of the queen’s guard rats turned silent.

Kayd took in deeper breaths, feeling the pain start to set in and grab his arm in pain.

Great, just like Ikari

Ishmael and the others arrived to his aid, quickly smelling the odor and witnessing the true scale of carnage that occurred.

“Ugh, this smell.” Lia gagged, covering her nose with her cloak while tending to Kayd’s arm.

They stood around where the rat queen once was, inspecting the nearby destroyed buildings, piles of bones, and puddles of dried blood.

Their clothes were covered in cuts and blood, fortunately not theirs.

“Looks like it dropped something.” Ikari grabbed an object on the ground, dropped by the rat queen.

It was a large sharp tooth, from the rat’s mouth. Next to her were two more items, a bundle of rat hair and a slab of meat. All three items gave off a faint but noticeable yellow glow as if to make their presence known to the team.

“Great, the queen dropped some gifts for us!” Ishmael laughed, staring at Ikari and the dropped items next to her.

While feeling the effect of Lia’s pain-dulling potion take effect, a windchime rang in his ears.

The trial of fire has been bested, and the team has been brought the reward they have been owed. With this, the splendor seekers have begun their true journey towards their desires. This gift may be found in deep concentration when all turn black and all they are left with is their thoughts. For now though, only one may receive the gift.

Oh come on! another riddle!?

The paper disintegrated like the rest. Kayd pondered on what that gift was.

Stuck in thought, he glanced back at Lia as she nearly finished patching up his arm, noticing something new.

“What’s that on your arm?” He asked. Lia looked down and her eyes widened.

“What is this!?” She yelped, trying to scratch it off.

There were 10 black bars stuck to her arm. Looking at his arm, Kayd noticed the same marking on his arm and the others.

“Oh sweet, another tattoo!” Ikari exclaimed.

What are these for?

But in his thinking, he noticed something as he blinked. Something glowing in the void of his closed eyes.

Fully shutting them, he found his answer.

A yellow glowing square, similar to what he saw before entering this world.

Above it, the words ‘SKILLS’ Were written. To his dismay, the board was empty.

Is this what that paper before talked about? What a waste, there’s nothing here!

The others quickly found out about this new but bizarre ability. All but one held faces of disappointment, Lia.

“Healing, what is this?” While closing her eyes, her staff began to glow bright green.

“Woah.” She was mesmerized by what was going on, waving it around, a smile grew on her face.

“Is this my magic? My magic came back!” She laughed like a happy child and aimed the staff at Kayd.

“Let’s see if this works.” A concentrated wave of green light launched off the staff heading straight for Kayd.

It wrapped around Kayd, removing his pain and any discomfort at that moment, leaving just as fast as it came.

Kayd slowly unfurled the bandages, and instead of seeing crimson or disfigured flesh, he saw his skin. Clean and smooth, like nothing happened.

Seeing this, Lia giggled with a bigger smile before turning to Ikari and healing her as well.

Both took off their bandages and were ecstatic.

“My shooting hand is ready again!”

After using her healing ability, she noticed that 2 bars from her arm had disappeared.

But the time to ponder their new abilities was cut short by Ishmael.

“It seems the area is cleared here, this is probably one of the easiest settlements we took care of.” She chuckled.

Easiest? Hate to see what the rest look like…

“Our next target should be a small wooden fort, after that, we will head to the red cave. A major breeding spot of the horde rats.