A hot cup of tea and a few biscuits were served for Liora, by Mira, when Mark finally arrived. She took a sip of the tea and found the taste to her liking, all while looking at Mark, very intently.
"Are you ready to leave yet?" Liora asked, dipping a biscuit in her tea before bringing it to her mouth and taking a bite.
Mark sighed, lazily rubbing his eye "Yeah, I'm still a bit sleepy though." Mark said, and Talon out a small roar as he now perched on Mark's shoulders.
Liora smiled as she put the tea down on the table and rose to her feet, "Good, we can start going now." Liora told him as she hastily walked past him, not even bothering to finish her small meal, and left the room to go outside.
"What about breakfast?" Mark asked, but his words fell on deaf ears as Liora was too far to hear. He sighed as he reluctantly got onto his feet and started to follow her, with Mira following closely behind.
'I guess we'll have breakfast over at the guild.' Mark thought as he left the mansion and stepped into the courtyard.
----
The grinds of wheels against the stone of the road, rumbled beneath them. Mira was operating the carriage, sitting at the front outside, while Liora and Mark were inside and waiting to be dropped off at the guild.
After a few minutes of waiting, the carriage came to a stop and Liora and Mark climbed out.
"Be safe, alright?" Mira said to them, before returning back to the mansion with the carriage.
Mark smiled as he waved her off, before turning to face Liora again, frowning as he saw her already speeding off to the guild doors. A sigh left his lips as he ran to catch up with her.
Liora entered the build and walked up to the receptionist, the receptionist smiled warmly upon seeing who had returned to their guild again "Good morning, young mistress." The receptionist greeted warmly with a small smile, "Are you here to take on a quest?"
"Yes," Mark's voice sounded behind Liora before she could even answer, leaning onto the counter with his arm, a smug smile on his face. Feeling annoyed about being interrupted, Liora frowned a little before shaking it off, it didn't matter who was going to answer, they were still taking on the quest together.
"Please grab a quest from the billboard and we'll finalize it." The receptionist said to Mark, looking at the billboard in the distance where many of the adventurers were at.
Mark nodded and placed a hand on Liora's shoulder, "Go sit down, I'll bring us a quest, and you can tell me what you think." Mark said as he walked towards the quest billboard.
Liora understood and walked over to a nearby table, pulling a chair and sitting down on it. The sounds of adventurers talking and conversing with each other, echoed through out the building.
Some were drinking beer and celebrating about a recently conquered quest, and others, just like her, were too young to drink and simply conversed instead. Liora's eyes widened slightly as a young girl with short black hair approache her.
The girl had a short sword on her waist, just like her, but also had a broad shield attached to her back, suggesting she was most probably a knight.
"Good morning, young mistress." The girl said with a bow, "I've heard alot about you, Beast Tamer of the Rohart family."
Liora scoffed, already hating the title she was given by the public. "Yeah, right.." Liora muttered to herself, not wanting to be associated with her family name.
"Anyway, I should get going now, my party is waiting for me." The little girl said as she waved goodbye and walked back towards her group.
"Who was that?" Mark asked as he returned with the quest in his hand, looking at her with a raised brow, confusing written over his face.
"Just a stranger," Liora replied casually, before turning to face him "You got the quest? Let me see."
Mark smiled as he handed her the paper, "Tell me what you think." Mark said, "If it's too intimidating, we could grab something easier."
[Goblins]
[Rank: E]
[Objective: Inside the forest north of the Royal Capital, there lies a group of goblins that attack traders and merchants. The goblins were reported to have built a small fort, and are claiming the forest as their own. Kill them all and collect their ears as proof.]
[Location: Northern Forest]
[Rewards: 50 Copper Coins and 1 Silver Coin]
Liora's eyes scanned the paper as she read the contents of the mission, the quest ranking, E, made her a bit hesitant to accept the quest, but she had to accept this mission and prove to herself, that she wasn't weak anymore.
"Let's take it." Liora said to Mark.
Mark smiled, taking the quest from her hands "Sure, be right back." Mark said as he walked over to the receptionist to finalize the mission.
----
Chris continued on with his journey to Stone Bridge, the dirt road stretching endlessly before him. The sun hung high in the sky, its rays beating down on his back as he trudged forward.
Each step kicked up small clouds of dust, and the weight of his pack pressed heavily on his shoulders. Yet, Chris's determination never faltered; Stone Bridge was still far, but he refused to stop until he reached it.
As the afternoon wore on, Chris paused at the crest of a hill and looked out over the landscape. Stone Bridge was still nowhere in sight, hidden beyond distant hills and the vast stretch of road ahead. A tinge of weariness crept in, but he pushed it aside. Rest could come later; for now, the journey demanded his resolve.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Chris pressed on, his boots thudding rhythmically against the ground. Stone Bridge awaited, even if it was far, and his journey was only just beginning.