Flint had two quest papers in his hand-
And an orange adventurer's card.
He had no idea who's it was and he couldn't really read it either.
Apparently not of this country-
This job smelled of trouble and sent various other red flags down his way. Yet, he still accepted them.
He had to-
The money was good.
Really good.
And that's why-
'Kinda small for a Baron?'
The land in front of him-
Was barren.
Dusty earth, dry, lifeless.
The houses were nothing more than tents, barely holding.
Slums.
And the master of the slums- the Baron's place wasn't really all that better either.
A typical two-story mansion, pretty worn down, and in great need of a reform.
'Do they really have money?'
Flint had doubts. But if something went wrong, he could always just never trust Aria's words again and that was that.
So-
Without wasting time, he stood by the gate and stared the guard down.
"Here for a quest-" he said, showing off the papers in his hand.
"Go right in," The guard said, opening the door.
The steel door had quite a few holes, so why it was still being used as a door was beyond Flint-
Loads of grass in front of the mansion.
No one had bothered to cut these in a long, long while.
Knock!
Knock!
Flint knocked on the entrance- and prayed that it didn't break down…
It didn't.
Someone opened the door, another guard. Rather old.
He let Flint in.
It was actually surprisingly nice inside-
At least that's what Flint wanted to say, but it wasn't.
It was just as shabby as the outside, if not worse.
The outside still had some class compared to the inside.
Cobwebs everywhere, each passing second made Flint feel like he was about to have asthma for real this time.
The walls had cracks, not paintings and the doors had termites…
"Do people really live here?" He mumbled…
Dusty, worn down, and awfully horrid.
"Indeed," The old guard answered.
Steps reverberating, they finally reached an end.
"Master an adventurer has come to accept our quests."
"Let him in," muffled.
Flint went in.
Finally-
Some clean air…
Of course, the room wasn't nearly as clean as even the one he'd slept at last night but it was still better than the rest of this place.
Some paintings, some books, a table, and a sofa.
And in the middle of that sofa- a middled aged man with a round belly.
"Good morning, Sir. I've come to accept these two quests."
Flint said, not sitting down. He did offer a nod, but no bows.
The man eyed him for a good second, and his wounds.
"I've been told this gentleman has sustained injuries from fighting a troll. He has bested five trolls so far-" The old man said. "OR so the guild has notified me."
'So, Aria already plotted this…'
It checked out.
However, something didn't.
Namely-
'How'd she know about the other four though…'
Anne had killed one, which Flint turned in.
He killed two and those were still with Erveine.
And yesterday he killed four which were with Amanda.
So, in theory Flint had killed Six but the guild should have known about only 1, but they knew about five. So, did Amanda go around flexing that they'd killed four trolls?
"Ah, Trolls. Those large things…" The man chuckled. "In that case, he's plenty good. Alright, show him to Samantha."
"Of course, Sir…" The old man was about to lead but-
"Sir, if you don't mind me asking. About the payment." Flint had doubts. Lots of doubts.
"You'll be paid rest upon the completion of your quest." The Baron waved at the old guard and he gave Flint a small bag.
500 silvers.
"Alright."
Flint followed the old man out, and up the stairs.
Creak-
Creak-
Bending and almost cracking-
But not cracking…
The floor could cave in at any moment now-
But-
It didn't.
"My work here is done…" The old man said, giving Flint a key.
And he just left…
Leaving Flint there.
"But which-" And only then did he realize- there wasn't a single damn door nearby- let alone a lock.
So-
He walked a bit further.
It was worse here. More webs, and this awfully wet dog smell… some fur on the floor… not pleasant.
At far end of the corridor, was a door. A chained door.
And a lock.
'What is this ominous feeling?'
But he'd come so far, and he'd also received payment. It was too late to turn back.
Gulping, Flint still unlocked the room-
Creak-
"Who's there!?"
Sharp-
High pitched-
Yet-
"Your escort for the day. I've been told you'd like to go out and-"
Jet black-
Dark-
"Really!"
Something grabbed Flint's arms-
It was too dark to see but the arms were kind of hairy and old man'ish.
Large nails-
Crooked.
"Yes…"
Chirpy-
Whoever this person was- was in a good mood.
Really good mood. "I'll get changed, wait."
The door slammed closed.
Cough! Cough!
Shrouding the small space in dust- making Flint's nostrils go crazy with snot.
'The hell was that?'
Who keeps their daughter locked up?
And what was up with those hands?
"Sorry for the wait-" It hadn't even been a minute but the woman walked out, dressed in a one-piece dress-
There was much wear and tear on the dress, patched up here and there.
But the dress wasn't Flint's concern-
The woman was.
Assuming she could be called a woman-
Head of a wolf-
Or rather- the bottom portion and the top portion that of a girl. The arms and legs were hairy and she had this odd complexity… a smell… a doglike smell…
Black fur-
Yellow eyes-
Glare- sharp.
"You're a demi human?" Flint asked…
"Not really. Just an abomination," She smiled.