Capítulo 89: Picking Quests And Exploring The Dungeon!
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Calming herself down, Gwendolyn wanted to slowly assess the situation and the capacity that Frank possessed.
"So this spell… when did you get it?" asked Gwendolyn.
"(I can't simply get it that I got it after maxing the level of my Farmer Job… Although Hilvera, Asterion, and Annabelle share the system with me, they are also quite clueless about it yet, so I can't hope for them to bring it to the table either. I will simply keep it a secret for now…)" thought Frank.
"I learned it this morning, when I was attending the crops, I felt as if some power appeared inside of my Mana Core while I glanced and touched the plants. Afterward, I began to be capable of 'hearing' the plants or something. Afterward, I tried to feed one with Mana and Life through my healing spell… and this happened," said Frank.
"I-Is that so…? Well, to be expected of the Hero… You're learning more and more spells naturally… Amazing," said Gwendolyn, a bit overwhelmed, but calming down as she simply thought 'he's a Hero after all'.
"Sigh… Well, it would be better to leave this as a secret, of course. We do not want you to create an army of plants and bring forth a monster wave all on your own… Nor it would be good if you were to make all the plants grow incredibly fast, as it would bring unwanted attention… Until you finally join the Magus Academy, revealing your powers now might prove to be a bad thing, or at least, not all the craziest of them, such as… your ability to create monsters out of plants," said Gwendolyn.
Gwendolyn felt quite bad in pressuring Frank with such a thing, as she knew that prohibiting him from using the abilities that he was gifted with might inhibit his growth as the future Hero, which might one day represent the nation as a whole.
"It's fine, I wasn't going to do anything of that. I had already thought about the consequences and decided to not make a fuss over this spell. I will keep it a secret and only use it while I experiment with it and a few plants that I can easily kill afterward," said Frank.
"Phew. I guess it is good that you understand… Sorry for forcing you to conceal this," said Gwendolyn.
"Ah, don't worry about that, miss. It is not only because you are asking me. I have considered things out," said Frank waving his hand with a gentle smile.
Gwendolyn could not help but smile warmly at Frank's mature personality, as she grew a bit more of admiration over the mysterious boy.
"Phew, it seems that I won't lose my job yet…" said Cathyl, resting her hand on her wide hips.
"Losing your Job?" asked Gwendolyn.
"Well… if the boy were to use his spell to simply make every plant mature instantaneously… Wouldn't that make my work obsolete? I mean, there wouldn't even be the need to have a farm, he could simply produce vegetables, fruits, and trees ready to be eaten!" said Cathyl.
"O-Oh…! Yeah, I suppose we should not try doing that… for now," said Gwendolyn, as her emerald eyes suddenly flashed with an eerie light, giving away a slight greedy smile.
When things were finally done talking, Frank resumed his work until one hour later, where most things were done for and he was finally able to relax a bit.
Because of having woken up near 5 am, Frank only worked up to 4 pm, which was the time when he decided to go with Hilvera, Asterion, and Annabelle towards the Guild in town, to finally pick up a quest for everyone to do near the dungeon named 'Dark Lair'.
"We are finally going into an adventure!" said Annabelle.
"It is not an adventure but a small trip through the dungeon for you to get a bit used to real-time combat!" said Gwendolyn.
"Okaaay… But do I have to wear this annoying leather armor?" asked Annabelle, trying to accommodate the leather armor covering her torso and her shoulders, which was nicely made and painted pink, having several lady-like decorations.
Before going to any adventuring, the mothers decided to arm their children well enough for any threats.
Annabelle was given her mother's leather armor, alongside a pendant that increased her magic power and a wand.
"You have to wear it, of course, you have, young lady! This leather was made by hardened leather of a Demon Boar, a strong Rank 2 monster, it will protect you from attacks of the monsters within the Dark Lair," said Gwendolyn.
"Alright, alright…" said Annabelle.
"Thanks to Miss Gwendolyn, you two are getting some armor too, so be thankful!" said Cathyl, as she made Hilvera and Asterion wear leather armor, whose Gwendolyn had to spare from the one she brought from the army.
"I feel my blood pumping, I can't wait!" said Asterion.
"We'll make sure to explore and learn a lot!" said Hilvera.
"Well said, make sure to not get in the way of Frank, and support him as much as he can… I am counting on you to protect my little angels, alright?" asked Cathyl.
"Leave them at my hands, they're talented, I will make sure to forge them into strong magus and warriors," said Frank.
"Huh… From where did you took that confidence? Ah well, you're the Hero I guess… Though I feel like every day, you mature a lot more, Frank…" said Cathyl.
"A-Ah, is that so? Well, I am in the age where I am maturing very quickly, so it might be that?" asked Frank.
"Hm, maybe?" asked Cathyl.
"Anyways, time to go, let's go everyone," said Frank.
"Let's go!" said Annabelle.
"Good thing we are all registered beforehand, it will make everything smoother," said Hilvera.
"Indeed, even Annabelle, right?" asked Asterion.
"Yeah, I have registered long ago as well!" said Annabelle.
"Take care!" said Cathyl.
"Annabelle, make sure to behave, and don't act rashly, okay?" asked Gwendolyn.
"Okay~!" said Annabelle.
"We'll be careful," said Hilvera.
"I am going to finally use this axe in a mighty foe!" said Asterion.
The three younglings were in very high spirits, making Frank feel a warmth within his heart, their innocence combined with their dreams of adventure made him feel happy to bring them to such experiences, something that they wouldn't naturally be able to do so.
"Alright, follow me!" said Frank, as his party, which included the three younglings and Ruby, walked towards the town.
Making sure to leave Ruby inside of his shirt into a small lizard-size, Frank entered the guild with his friends, walking towards the receptionist.
The moment the party of young kids entered, most people, especially those veteran Adventurers within Rank 2 or even 3 glanced at them with strangeness.
"Is that a party of kids?"
"They'll get wiped out in no time…"
"Hey, someone stops them before they kill themselves! Gahaha!"
"Who are those kids?"
"They just… they're all Rank 1, barely,"
"What? They'll die in any dungeon…"
"Having killed Horned Rabbits doesn't make you true Adventurer, kids! Go back to your parents, they must be concerned about where you could be! Gahahaha!"
"Hey, stop picking up on kids, man! Are you a grown-up?"
"What do you care? Mind your own business!"
"The kid in front seems like of a decent age, but even he gives me the feeling that he's a carefree fool…"
"Poor kids…"
"Poor what? They'll learn a good lesson in the dungeon, dying, of course!"
"You're sick old man, stop saying fucked up shit!"
"Shut up!"
Frank could hear dozens of people discussing all over the guild, some were pitying them, others laughing at them, and some were fighting against the ones laughing at them, while another group was fighting against the ones laughing at them… It was a confusing scene, to be honest.
Frank sighed slightly as he walked towards the front desk.
Thankfully, Hilvera, Asterion, and Annabelle completely ignored the people's words, showing their strong mental fortitude.
"We'll show them that they're wrong! That's why there is no point in telling them anything or confronting them," said Annabelle with a proud smile.
"Hm, we'll bring a big bounty and laugh at them back!" said Asterion.
"That's right, we'll prove them with actions, not words!" said Hilvera.
"You're more mature than I thought…" said Frank with a slight smile.
"Ah, Frank-kun, hi! You came! Did you come to take a quest? Oh! You brought a party too!" said an adorable girl with pale white and green skin, a Frog-kin beast-girl, Clishya.
"Hi, Clishya-san, I've come with my party to register for a quest in the Dark Lair, is there any subjugation one?" asked Frank.
"Ooh! T-There are a few ones…" said Clishya, moving her papers around and bring forth four quests, each one was about the subjugation of a certain monster, only one was needed, but if people were to bring more down more, more money would be paid.
The Subjugation Quests specifically asked for certain body parts of the monsters, and others for their whole meat, except the most precious part, the Mana Core, which the Adventurer could keep.
"Aside from these quests, if you bring proof of the monsters you have defeated, such as the ear of a goblin, you will be given some monetary compensation as well… And of course, you can also sell the Mana Cores to us for some extra money, which you can spend on the second floor in our special Adventurer shop!" said Clishya.
"Amazing, I will take the four then," said Frank.
"Very well then!" said Clishya, asking for the names of all the younglings and registering them all as a party within the Guild archives.
The quests in specific were:
'Defeat a Giant Scorpion and bring me the meaty pincers! They're a top delicacy in my restaurant!'
'I hate Goblins more than anything, kill a Goblin and bring me his corpse, kill more and I give you more money.'
'I heard that Demon Rats have a special kind of fat that can become a delicious oil! Kill one for me, the more the better though! Oh, make sure to bring the fat!'
'I need fresh Mandragoras for a special Potion, bring me one freshly killed Mandragora, the more you bring, the more rewards you'll get.'
Each quest was quite charismatically written, it was clear that such quests were set by the people of this town.
"So we have to kill one Giant Scorpion, a Goblin, a Demon Rat, and a Mandragora! Got it, let's do it!" said Asterion.
"Let's go!" said Hilvera.
"I can't wait!" said Annabelle.
"Calm down you three, don't get ahead of yourselves…!" said Frank, following the three.
Within the tavern, a shady group of adventurers glanced at the kids with annoyed expressions…
"Did you see those leather armors?"
"Are they rich kids? Who they think they are?"
"We should teach them a lesson to be humbler, as their senpais, of course,"
"Yeah! Good idea, we will help them out! Heh…"
The shady group slowly walked out of the tavern, following the group of kids from afar.
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NEW NOVEL IS OUT!
Check "The Protagnist's Sister Is Actually the Strongest"!
Capítulo 90: Challenges For The Novice Adventurers! And... A Shady Group?
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Frank, Annabelle, Hilvera, and Asterion walked through the busy streets of the town of Acacia, often filled with people selling their farm products, such as meat, vegetables, and fruits.
There were some people selling eggs, young chicks, and fresh cow milk, in such place is where Cathyl once sold her milk to gain some money to maintain her children, who were now about to explore a Dungeon after having awakened their Mana Cores, something that she never thought would have ever happened.
Using Annabelle's lead, which seemed to be quite well versed in the town's geography, Frank's group walked around the streets, reaching the outskirts of the town and then a paved road, which was surrounded by a peaceful forest.
Many Adventurers of all shapes and sizes walked through this road, some walked in the same direction as them, while others walked in the opposite direction, there were at least three to four more parties that were going to explore the Dark Lair Dungeon, which was only a few meters ahead.
"(This place is exceedingly crowded of people… Not at all like the often-empty Hunting Domains of the Clan back on Earth. This world's 'Dungeons' are a whole different thing, I guess… Well, if I could get Mana Cores from my Hunting Domains, I would have probably not come to any Dungeon until very later on… But well, that is how it is. If I want to increase my Cultivation, I gotta grind Mana Cores. And this place is a good spot)" thought Frank.
"Uwah! So many people!" said Hilvera.
"Indeed, it is quite busy today, seeing as we are getting near the weekend, people like to rest, so many adventurers are trying to gather some money before that, so they can relax!" said Annabelle.
"You sure know a lot, Annabelle-san!" said Asterion.
"Indeed, she's surprising me," said Frank.
"S-Sheesh! Of course, I know these things, my mother always talks to me about these things. Do you think that I simply forget about them?" asked Annabelle.
"Well, you're young, so I wouldn't blame you if the things your mother said to you entered from one of your ears and exited the other…" said Frank.
"H-Hey, don't say that!" said Annabelle with a bit of anger and a strong embarrassment on her face. She cried quite loud, making many Adventurers glance at her.
Which immediately came with many comments about people laughing at them for being kids or pitying them for going to the dungeon to die, as they assumed they were very weak.
"Is that a party of children?"
"Why does the Guild let children register as Adventurers?"
"Don't they know that they could easily die?"
"Well, who cares about some stupid kids?"
"Yeah, mind your own business, if they want to die so badly, let them alone! Hahaha!"
"Hey, don't get near them, maybe they're the lackeys of some of those shady organizations that send kids to dungeons,"
"B-But they're kids…"
"Why do you worry so much? They're probably street kids, some fancy leather armor doesn't mask their ugly poor kid faces!"
"Aw, you're so mean!"
"We got our own lives to take care of, forget about faceless kids,"
"Poor brats, they're getting themselves killed inside of there,"
"Can they even kill a Goblin?"
"If any of them is sting by a giant scorpion, it's their sure death. I mean look, they are not carrying anything aside from their weapons!"
Many Adventurers wanted to intervene but were stopped by other adventurers that did not want them to get involved in shady business.
It seems that Frank's Party was somehow attributed to a small organization that had suddenly appeared within Acacia, which employed kids found on the streets, forcing them to go to the dungeons and risk their lives to bring materials or monsters corpses.
Aside from this, some Adventurers laughed at them because Frank's party was not carrying anything other than their weapons… This was because Frank decided to save everything inside his inventory for convenience's sake.
Frank was also a strong healer, strong enough to heal a god, so he was confident that he would be able to heal the kids if they were to be injured.
Although the kids had shown mental fortitude in the Guild, as they walked through the road and kept being showed by more and more odd glares, they felt a bit overwhelmed, getting angry and frustrated.
"Tch, why don't they stop glaring at us?" asked Asterion.
"It feels weird, can't they glance elsewhere?" wondered Hilvera.
"Those annoying adventurers! They think they're the bosses in here because they got some years of experience ahead of us!" said Annabelle.
"You three calm down, there is no point in getting angry over strange stares, let's go explore and have some fun, moderately, that's it," said Frank.
"Aniki… Okay!" said Asterion.
"If Frank-kun is with us, I feel at ease," said Hilvera.
"Well, not me. I still feel a bit nervous!" said Annabelle.
"But didn't you wanted to come by yourself? Don't chicken out now, Annabelle…" said Frank.
"W-Who are you calling a chicken?! I will not chicken out! I'm going to burn those monsters!" said Annabelle.
"Make sure to not completely, we need their corpses as well," said Frank.
"O-Oh, right," said Annabelle.
"We're here!" said Asterion, as the party glanced at the mythical entrance of the dungeon, made entirely out of dark blue bricks, the entrance was dark, but slightly illuminated by torches, it was particularly clean and peaceful inside, but Frank assumed that as they entered deeper, the monsters that are hiding of a large number of Adventurers would show up.
"It is a bit cold inside…" said Hilvera.
"D-Don't worry, it is the lowest level dungeon…" said Annabelle.
"Ah, this place looks more disappointing than I thought. Well, it is small because it is a low-level Dungeon, I guess…" said Frank.
"What did you really expect?" asked Annabelle.
"Well, something more grandiose, I guess… This looks more like the entrance to an old and subterranean temple filled with moss and darkness… Oh, I guess 'Dark Lair' fits," said Frank.
"Anyways, let's get in, other Adventurers are waiting for us to get in behind us…" said Hilvera.
"Oh? So there is a system of the first enter first serve?" asked Frank.
"It's nothing too fancy. The entrance may look small, but according to my mother, the dungeon expands a lot as we walk in through the vast corridors, and it's easy to get lost. Due to its vastness, it is rare for parties to meet within the dungeon," said Annabelle.
"You're like a little guider, you know?" asked Frank.
"I-I'm not a guider! But this is all of what mother had always taught to me about it," said Annabelle while crossing her arms.
"Very well, let's get going then…" said Frank, walking alongside the rest of his party through the corridors, and reaching long stairs that conducted towards the dark depths.
"There are torches everywhere, so it is not as dark anymore," said Annabelle.
"It kind of kills the thrill a bit…" said Asterion.
"But it would suck to not be able to see anything, Asterion!" said Hilvera.
"A-Ah, well, yeah…" said Asterion.
"(I will leave my threads connected to the stairs. A small and thin thread that is invisible should work. With this, we can backtrack if we ever get lost, although my other Skills greatly enhance my perception of the whole place… Though, an Auto Mapping Skill would be ideal… Ah, I got some Skill Scrolls in my Inventory, but they are random, so hoping for it would be unrealistic… I will use them at night, no time, for now, to sit and use them)" thought Frank, as he left a thin and almost invisible thread connected to the stairs' wall.
As Frank and the trio walked through the vast corridors, the Dungeon began to slowly felt bigger and more expansive.
"It really does get bigger as we go…" said Frank.
"See? Mother never lies about this stuff, she knows all of it after all! She explored many dungeons!" said Annabelle.
The walls of the dungeon were damp and filled with moss, and the smell of torches burning filled the ambiance, giving it an old and rustic feeling. And due to the ancient-looking scriptures within the dungeon's old walls, the entire atmosphere was almost mystical, very different from any Hunting Domain that Frank had ever explored.
As the group finally made a good distance from the entrance, monsters finally began to show up.
And it was a tiny Demon Rat who greeted the party.
It had the size of an adult cat… but it was cataloged as 'tiny' by standards, as Demon Rats can easily get to the size of an adult dog, or even a young cow.
"A Demon Rat! Is it part of one of the Quests?" asked Asterion.
"Yeah, we need their fat, but I will just save the whole corpse in my Inventory," said Frank.
"We'll catch it!" said Hilvera, as she ran towards the Demon Rat, who was glancing at the party intensively with its crimson eyes.
"Grryyaarr!"
The Rat roared, jumping towards Hilvera, and evading her knife!
The rat's fangs were directed towards Hilvera's face, they were sharp enough that they would easily pierce through her skin and flesh if it were to bite at her tender face!
"G-Gust!" cried Hilvera, releasing a gust of green winds that made the Demon Rat lose its balance in midair, flying to the wall and hitting it with great force.
Although clumsy, Hilvera managed to evade a strong attack that might have left an ugly scar on her face.
"I got it now!" said Asterion, raising his axe and hitting the rat with it!
Clash!
However, the Rat was faster than any Horned Rabbit, evading in time!
"Gryyarr…!"
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NEW NOVEL IS OUT!
Check "The Protagnist's Sister Is Actually the Strongest"!
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