After leaving the room where we were, the manager bid us farewell. She handed us a kind of transparent certificate, and by infusing a bit of mana, it displayed all your information.
(Name: Bryan)
(Age: 17 years)
(Rank: Gold-D)
(Occupation: Adventurer)
(Guild: Lights in the Darkness)
Quite simple. She informed us that this card is unique, and if we lose it, we must pay the guild a certain amount of money to obtain another one. The reason is that it has a small space inside that allows you to store some things.
As we approached the place where the missions were posted, I examined them all in detail.
(Rank C Mission: Zone 5, eliminate the fallen creature, "steals souls", and bring its core; the hunter can keep the other body parts. The price of the orb is negotiable.)
(Rank D Mission: Zone 4, in a cave, a precious metal perfect for crafting weapons and armor was found. Bring 10 stones of considerable size; depending on the size, the price varies between 100-70 gold coins.)
(Rank F Mission: In Zone 1, there is a flower used for making healing potions. You can bring a sack full of flowers; payment is based on the quality of the flower.)
(Rank E Mission: Defeat the single-horned beast. Seek its eyes and horn; the hunter can keep the remains. For these items, receive a payment of 5 gold coins.)
Of course, there were many more missions, but the four caught my attention. The Rank C mission is out of the question, but the name "steals souls" gave me goosebumps. The reason being, it was mentioned in the novel. If I recall correctly, its most terrifying ability is, as the name suggests, stealing the soul of a hunter. But what's truly frightening about its ability is that it can possess the hunter's body, having all their memories and acting perfectly as if nothing had happened. It can blend into society, but that's just the beginning. It can infect more people, an organism that can divide into multiple parts. Nevertheless, its weakness lies in needing to kill the mother mind. However, just the idea of thousands of them trying to control you simultaneously is daunting. It's also too weak for physical fights, but in mental battles, it's a terrible master. The orb can be used to create artifacts that manipulate or corrupt the mind. The reason it's in the guild is because the guild wants it. Its more practical use is to remove mental problems or corruption from high-ranking hunters who, for some reason, almost get contaminated. And the only creature that can contaminate its corruption is the corrupt beings of immense power, Rank 6.
The Rank D and F missions were also dismissed. I'm not interested in the D mission, as it's just material collection, and the F mission is the same. I focused on the Rank E mission. It's the most practical and available for me at the moment. The good thing is that Zone 2 is always the most crowded with hunters, but also the most dangerous. Its large movement of people attracts all kinds of good and bad individuals. There's also the chance that you might encounter the other group. There are two possible scenarios.
1. They are hunter thieves, slavers, bandits, and worship cults. In these cases, they always kill men and violate women to later sell them. This generally happens very often. That's why it's recommended to form a group to have a better chance of surviving. Cults are more complicated and atrocious; they're not human for the acts they commit.
2. The hunters are good people and leave you alone.
You always have to keep your eyes everywhere. Taking the sheet, I tell Elsa that we are going to undertake this mission, taking her to the reception where they will tell you where the beast has been seen or where it usually roams. The mission's duration is 12 days. If you exceed that time, you have to pay a fine.
This guild has a teleportation site located in a small base near the forest. Of course, if you want to use it, you need to pay a gold coin per person.
"So Elsa, what do you prefer, traveling or paying 2 gold and arriving instantly?"
"To be honest, I prefer to arrive quickly."
It's decided then. Paying the guard in charge of setting the coordinates, we got on a platform with a drawing about spatial magic. I have no idea about magical runes...
We felt the space around us deforming. It was a very strange experience. At some point, I even felt like I didn't have a physical body.
After regaining our senses, I felt terrible nausea. Covering my mouth with my hands, I calmed down, and Elsa, apparently, was perfectly fine.
We were greeted by another guard, given a small settlement, and shown the way out.
We left a two-story building. I was struck by the forest in front of me. The trees were so tall they could reach about 40 meters high. The sky above them was gloomy and dim; it was very depressing.