章節 11: First mission

'Ugh, all these people staring at me are getting annoying... Well, at least they aren't getting in my way anymore, and a rumor would now spread because of this that would make people more cautious when approaching me,'

Lucas thought as he was busy swiping on the tablet, finding a suitable mission for himself. After a while, he finally found a mission that interested him.

--------------------------------------

Mission type: Dungeon conquering

Difficulty: C rank

Description: A remote village called Haeril has requested help to conquer a dungeon before a breakdown happens. The inhabitants don't have enough manpower to do it by themselves.

Time limit: 4 weeks remaining until dungeon break.

Reward: 5000 golden credits.

--------------------------------------

Unlike in Lucas's previous world, this world had decided to have the same currency everywhere since the emergence of other races. The currency is called Golden Credits, founded by the Golden Alliance.

(AN: 1 Golden Credit = 1 Dollar to not make people more confused)

Reading the mission, Lucas felt satisfied with the reward and difficulty, so he decided to accept it before anyone else would.

He pulled out his sapphire card out of his [Inventory] under everyone's gazes who were still watching him out of fear and curiosity.

The moment Lucas pulled his sapphire card and scanned it on the tablet to accept the mission, everyone froze and stared at him wide-eyed.

"T-that is a special card..." someone said under his breath, not believing his eyes.

"H-Hey, am I seeing things or is that the L-lunar Guild logo on it?" someone else said with a pale face.

'Just who the hell is he!?' everyone thought at the same time.

Lucas nodded, satisfied that confirmation succeeded and he accepted the mission. Every adventurer has a card, and the card holds their data as well as their mission. They don't need to go to a specific guild when finishing a mission; they can just go to any guild and scan their card for everything. Really convenient.

Ignoring everyone who was watching him like a monster with wide eyes and mouths hanging open, he started walking and left the guild.

The moment he left, everyone let out a breath of relief, not realizing how tense they were at the man.

"J-Just who the hell was he!?" someone said, still scared at remembering the man's overwhelming presence.

"N-Noctis, that was his name, right? A-and that was a sapphire card of the Lunar Guild. He obviously is someone with considerable strength," someone else said.

"Dammit, Karl! You almost got all of us killed," an adventurer said in frustration at the bald man who was still on his knees looking at space while lost in thought.

"He definitely was strong; even we 4-star swordsmen and mages didn't stand a chance under his pressure... Why did a monster like him decide to come to this guild? I don't understand..." the swordsman who previously asked for Lucas's name said.

It wasn't as if they were weak; it was that Lucas was too strong already. It would be ridiculous if people found out he is already at the master stage in a few months, something that rivaled the talents of the best of the best in Myrniel's new generation, which is called the 2nd golden generation after the first golden generation who thousands of years ago fought against the demons and managed to take control over Myrniel again.

***********

After booking a cab, Lucas finally arrived at Haeril, now in his disguise as Noctis. Haeril didn't boast tall, luxurious buildings since it was a village, but he could see people walking around, and kids played with laughter and smiles. Observing this, Lucas entered the village as Noctis. Instantly, the children and adults noticed the man in black and became wary and cautious. The children felt scared looking at him, while the adults were on high alert, sensing his strength.

Suddenly, the man in black locked eyes with one of the adults who was holding the hand of what he presumed to be his girlfriend or wife.

'I don't remember having a girlfriend in my previous life. Well, I don't even remember my previous name, which I thought was a side effect of having all these memories absorbed from this world, but I don't know...'

"Where does the village chief reside?" Lucas suddenly spoke to the man holding his girlfriend/wife.

The man, meeting Lucas's blood-red eyes, felt a chill run down his spine as if he were being watched by a predator.

"There is no need to look for me; I am already here." Suddenly, Lucas turned to his right and saw an old man walking with a cane. He had grey hair, a grey beard, and wore a gentle smile.

"My name is Oliver, also known as the Village Chief of Haeril," the man called Oliver said to Lucas.

"May I know your name as well, sir?"

"Noctis. I will be the one dealing with the C rank dungeon you guys requested to get rid of," Lucas said to the village chief called Oliver.

"O-oh, I see. So you will be the one to help us out then, Noctis," Oliver said in a hesitating tone.

"D-does that mean you will be going to conquer this dungeon all on your own?" Oliver said nervously and worriedly.

"That is correct," Lucas said without an ounce of worry.

"I-i see, Noctis. I don't want to sound rude, but may I ask to see your Identification card?"

"Sure, I don't mind," Lucas said and pulled it out of his [Inventory].

"Here."

When Oliver and the adults saw the card, their eyes widened, and they felt a chill run down their spines. Oliver originally wanted to ask for his card to see what rank he was, since he didn't want to see a young man die out of arrogance and confidence, but instead, that same man was someone who was a holder of a special card. A special card doesn't have information of the user's rank since the card itself should symbolize that there is no need for such a thing as rank to be told.

"L-lunar guild!?" Oliver said as he looked at the sapphire card that he was holding with trembling hands.

gulp

The adults and Oliver, seeing the sapphire card and hearing the words "Lunar guild," didn't know how to react since they knew how big and prestigious of a guild Lunar is. After all, it is the number 1 adventurers guild in Moon City.

"Seen enough?" They suddenly heard and snapped their heads back at the man in black who asked this question as if it was no big deal.

"A-ah, yes, please excuse me for my rudeness earlier, Sir Noctis. I didn't mean to offend you," Oliver said while handing back his sapphire card and bowing his head as an apology.

'I can't make him angry or he could punish me by unleashing hell on the villagers,' Oliver thought.

"Mm, I don't mind. Just take me to the dungeon," Lucas said, while not caring about his change of tone or anything.

"Y-yes, please follow me," Oliver said, guiding Lucas towards the C rank dungeon under the eyes of the curious and confused kids and the scared adults.

Arriving at the dungeon, which was a little outside of the village, Lucas could see a huge metal ancient gate out in the open, adorned with weird ancient engravings that no one could understand. These enormous ancient gates were the entrances that led adventurers into the depths of the dungeon, sealing whatever lay inside for a limited amount of time.

"Well, I will be going inside then," Lucas said in an excited tone to Oliver, as this would be the first time he would get to really fight monsters and test out everything he had been practicing.

"Alright, let's do this," he said to himself, calming down his nerves. He could feel the adrenaline and excitement coursing through him, but also a sense of nervousness for entering the dungeon for the first time, and doing it alone. His heart beat loudly and rapidly in his chest.

Most people would call Lucas a fool and suicidal for entering a dungeon for the first time in his life alone, especially a C-rank dungeon. But Lucas didn't see it that way. He knew he was exceptional and one of the strongest in his generation. He believed that if he couldn't conquer a mere C-rank dungeon on his own, then he wouldn't be able to face Lucielle and William anymore, considering all they had taught him.

As Lucas entered through the gates, which opened automatically as if sensing his approach, he did not know that entering this dungeon would forever change his fate and that of Myrniel.