I had to earn money immediately to pay off the debt to the inn.
“If we fail this time, we’ll become debtors.”
The first quest to subjugate the Arachne failed.
Thanks to that, I demanded compensation from the guild equal to the reward for the failed quest.
I’m completely cornered without money.
That’s why I absolutely couldn’t fail this time.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to succeed somehow.”
Even though it wasn’t Kayla’s intention, she felt responsible in her own way.
Erina also looked at me with a determined expression.
Her determination not to repeat the mistake was evident.
“Let’s go to the quest center. We must succeed this time.”
After leaving the inn, we headed straight to the quest center.
The quest center wasn’t far from the inn.
As expected, there were many adventurers near the quest center.
There was no reason for the three of us to go in together.
“Wait here for now. I’ll quickly take the quest and come out.”
Handling the quests was something I could do alone.
There was no reason to gather in crowded places for no reason.
Suddenly, I could sense a strange atmosphere between the two.
They were fighting with each other a little while ago.
Even if they reconciled, it would be awkward for them to be alone together.
After glancing around for a moment, I met Erina’s gaze.
“Kayla will wait for a while. Erina, come with me.”
“Oh, okay.”
At my words, Kayla’s shoulders drooped.
Although her face was covered with a robe, her disappointment was evident.
But it was dangerous to take Kayla to crowded places.
That was the only reason.
“I’ll wait here.”
Still, Kayla didn’t show any reluctance and waited outside.
Then, I grabbed Erina’s hand, which was right next to me.
“Erina, let’s go in.”
“Yes…!”
Erina looked at me blankly for a moment before responding to my words.
Come to think of it, it was the first time I had held Erina’s hand.
Since the argument with Kayla in the morning, Erina had been consistently depressed.
Her morale was at an all-time low as she had to go on a quest right away.
I had to somehow cheer Erina up.
“Be careful. You might get lost in the crowd.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll follow you well.”
I opened the door and entered the quest center. As expected, there were many people gathered.
As it continued towards the center, it formed an impenetrable sea of people with no room to step a foot.
At the same time, the clasped hands formed a tight grip as if promising never to let go.
We maneuvered through the crowd and approached the center.
Finally arriving at the destination, there were four giant bulletin boards.
From left to right, they were categorized as low, intermediate, high, and expedition quests, each adorned with quests.
‘I need to find a quest that can be finished as quickly as possible.’
They were classified into low, intermediate, and high difficulty levels.
Naturally, the higher the difficulty, the greater the difference in rewards and the fewer the number of quests.
The remaining one was an expedition quest. It allowed for taking quests from villages other than the capital.
Expeditions inevitably took a long time, so they were unsuitable for the current situation.
Approaching the intermediate quest board, which seemed the most manageable with decent rewards, I quickly scanned the quests posted on it.
Among them, I pointed to the most suitable quest with my finger.
“Erina, how about that one?”
On the request I pointed to with my fingertip, there was a drawing of an orc’s face.
It was a quest to subjugate an elite orc group.
While it might take other parties about two days, it would be different for us.
Erina checked the quest and immediately nodded.
“It seems simple enough.”
“How long do you think it’ll take?”
“It can be done in four hours.”
“It takes four hours to deal with orcs?”
“No, it includes the time to depart and return from the quest.”
If others heard this, they might snicker.
It could be seen as empty boasting without substance.
But it was not a voice coming from arrogance.
Already knowing Erina’s strength, I believed her words.
The reward was also reasonable. It was enough to cover the debt to the inn and have some left over.
With this, I could worry less about money for at least two days.
I quickly took the quest posted on the board and found the reception desk.
“Hello. Are you here to accept a quest…?”
The receptionist, who was waiting, initially bowed politely.
But as she confirmed my face, she suddenly frowned.
“Hello. Are you planning to accept an intermediate quest?”
A condescending attitude seemed to emerge, as if she was looking down on us.
Upon closer inspection, it was the receptionist who had handled the Arachne quest last time.
“Is there a problem?”
“As far as I know, you failed the last quest.”
It looks like my face is already remembered among the receptionists.
Their expressions were not bright. It was a bad sign for me.
“But even so, I’m worried about you attempting an intermediate-level quest again.”
It wasn’t a concern for our well-being.
Although she spoke politely, there was a prickly edge to her words.
Nevertheless, I tried to ignore it and request the quest.
However, the receptionist didn’t accept the request.
“I’m sorry, but due to internal reasons of the quest center, we can’t accept the request.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Instead, we can accept low-level requests. Please understand.”
She was speaking with a smile, as if she had said everything she wanted to say.
In short, it meant that since we lacked the skills, they couldn’t accept our request.
Watching her attitude, I was stunned.
It was just one failed quest, after all.
It wasn’t even easy to consider it a failure.
However, the receptionist still looked at me with suspicion.
“Fine, just accept it. I’ll take full responsibility.”
Anyway, there was no chance of failure this time.
If we completed the quest in a day and returned, they would shut up.
After a bit of insistence, the receptionist finally accepted the request.
Meanwhile, the receptionist’s face was contorted. It was expected.
“If you fail again, will you be okay with paying compensation?”
“Yes. Please accept the quest quickly.”
“If you can’t do it properly, please cancel it by today.”
It was a very considerate warning.
But I had no intention of canceling the quest.
Instead, I smiled and responded.
“Don’t worry. We’ll finish and be back today.”
With that, I turned away from the reception desk.
Who would have known that accepting a quest would be so difficult?
While having a subtle mental battle with the receptionist, surprisingly, Erina remained quiet.
While accepting the quest, I cautiously pushed her back, worried she might rush at the receptionist.
Fortunately, Erina just watched quietly.
“Erina, are you…”
“I’m fine. I’m not upset at all. I held back even when you were insulted. I wanted to cut their throats right then and there, but I held back for you…!”
Her eyes were empty.
Her expressionless face and lost gaze resembled a ghost from a horror movie.
Unknowingly, the hand I was holding had been released. Instead, it was now on the hilt of her sword.
Only now did I realize the chilling aura.
Trying to maintain composure, I gently patted Erina’s shoulder.
“You did well.”
“I swore to endure it for your sake. I want to keep the words I said to you… But,”
Squick, the blade emerged partially from its sheath.
It wasn’t fully drawn, but the sharp blade protruded.
“If the receptionist had insulted you, I wouldn’t have stayed quiet.”
The receptionist may not have been rude, but at least she had some sense.
If Erina had stepped in, she wouldn’t have been unscathed.
In the past, she might have rushed to the receptionist in anger, but thankfully, nothing happened this time.
“You endured well. I’ll continue to rely on you.”
As a sign of comfort, I patted her head. Fortunately, her rigid expression softened slightly.
A faint smile returned, and her cheeks flushed.
“Yes. I’ll continue to endure for you.”
There was a time when I thought Erina was like a puppy.
But now, she was no less than a fierce beast, like a lion or a tiger.
A loyal beast that only listened to me. Whether to call her loyal or stubborn, I wasn’t sure.
After that, we left the quest center without any further incidents.
Outside the door, another companion was waiting.
“Kayla.”
“Yes.”
I showed her the quest we just received.
“Thirty elite orc soldiers in the forest. Can we do it by tonight?”
Kayla smiled faintly.
Her expression was more confident than anyone else’s.
“We can wipe them all out before dinner.”
She was quite excited.
In truth, elite orc soldiers were not to be underestimated.
But I didn’t think she was being arrogant.
“Okay.”
Finally, the time had come for a proper quest.
