It was about time. Oswald stepped towards the crystal golem, while the others watched in silence, Lucy still fuming at the sidelines, Varus with his arms crossed.

  Up close, the golem was even more imposing. It loomed over him, still as a statue, waiting.

  Oswald reached for his sword, drawing the blade from its scabbard. Let’s see what this thing can take.

  Holt watched him with a measured look before speaking. "You can start further back if you want. Buy yourself some time to channel your mana core before engaging."

  But Oswald didn’t move. "I’m fine right here."

  Holt exhaled, giving a small shrug. "Suit yourself. One more thing, if your sword breaks, the guild provides free replacements for examinees. So don’t hold back."

  "Good to know, I'm ready."

  "Then you may begin at any time."

  The instant Holt finished speaking, the golem lunged. Its fist, thick as a tree's trunk, carved through the air with a force that sent a rush of wind howling through the chamber. The ground trembled beneath its weight, a resonant thud echoing as it advanced.

  A lesser fighter might have been petrified by the sheer power behind that attack. But Oswald had sparred with Selene. Compared to her, this thing may as well have been wading through syrup.

  He easily dodged as the golem’s fist came crashing down where he’d stood an instant before. The impact was devastating. The floor beneath it ruptured, creating a jagged fissure that split outward like shattered glass.

  But more importantly, he was fast. Way faster than this hulking brute. This is gonna be easy.

  Oswald surged forward, closing the distance before the golem could recover. He ducked low, slipping around its flank. His blade flashed, steel biting deep into its crystalline torso. A sharp pulse of red flared at the point of impact.

  He didn’t hesitate. Fluid as a shadow, he pivoted, shifting his weight as he struck again, this time across its shoulder. Another red pulse. His eyes narrowed, tracking the way the glow flared bright before dulling. So that’s where it hurts most.

  A low, grinding noise rumbled from the golem’s core, its towering frame twisting. Suddenly, its massive leg swept outward, a brutal attempt to crush him under sheer force. Oswald reacted in an instant, dropping low as the air above him howled from the speed of the strike.

  The moment the attack passed overhead, he shot forward, carving a deep line across the golem’s lower torso. The glow that followed was fainter, tinged yellow rather than red. His frown was slight, but telling. Not as deep… Guess this part’s tougher.

  He didn’t dwell on it for long. Keeping his momentum, Oswald leapt backward just as the golem’s arm came crashing down, barely missing his retreating form.

  The boy weaved through the golem’s reach, darting in and out, striking different areas, testing its defenses. Some spots pulsed a deep crimson, the wounds more pronounced. Others, particularly its arms and lower legs, only let out a weak pale green glow.

  Those spots are useless. But the sides, shoulder joints, and— He lunged in low, driving his sword just beneath the golem’s chest plate. A deep red pulse flared. There. That’s a weak point.

  A rumbling groan echoed from within the golem’s core as it turned, attempting to track his movements. But it was too slow compared to Oswald.

  He shifted his stance once more. Now that I know where to hit… Let’s have some fun.

  Oswald shifted his grip around the hilt of his sword as he pushed forward. His blade cut through the air in a brutal, fluid arc, slamming into the golem’s shoulder joint. A brilliant pulse of crimson flared from the impact. Yeah, that’s the spot.

  The golem lurched, struggling to react. Its massive arm lifted, trying to swat him aside, but Oswald was already gone. He ducked low, pivoting around its flank, striking just beneath the joint where the crystalline plates overlapped. Another pulse of red appeared in response.

  It tried to turn, to bring its weight down in an overhead strike, but Oswald surged forward, pressing the attack. His sword found another weak point, slashing into the exposed ridges of its torso. The golem shuddered, the cracks along its surface spreading further with each strike.

  A sharp grin tugged at his lips. C’mon, big guy. How much more can you take?

  Oswald wove through the golem’s failing defenses, his steps light against the fractured stone. His blade cut through the air in a sharp arc, striking true at the construct’s core. A tremor ran through its body as cracks split across its chest. The impact sent tiny shards scattering, glittering as they caught the dim light before clattering to the floor.

  The golem staggered. Its once-fluid movements faltered, turning rigid and sluggish.

  Oswald’s eyes flicked to the spreading fracture. One more.

  He raised his sword and drove his blade down. Steel met crystal in a final, decisive strike. The force of the blow sent another fracture ripping through the golem’s body. For a moment, the construct stood locked in place.

  Then, with a sound like glass shattering under immense pressure, it crumbled. Chunks of broken crystal rained down, crashing into the chamber floor.

  The remnants of the golem scattered in a gleaming heap. Before long, the last flickers of red light pulsed weakly within the shards, then faded into nothingness, snuffed out like dying embers.

  Oswald couldn't help but smile. The tension in his muscles unwound, the rush of battle ebbing into the quiet aftermath. His grip loosened on his sword, and he flexed his fingers, feeling the faint tingle where his hold had been ironclad. Not bad. Not bad at all.

  The silence that followed felt almost strange, the kind that settled after something loud and violent. Dust swirled in the air, catching in the light as it drifted lazily down.

  Then, Holt stepped forward as he studied the wreckage. He lingered for a moment, his gaze tracing the shattered remains before lifting to meet Oswald’s. "That was impressive, it’s not often an examinee manages to destroy the golem completely."

  Suddenly Oswald went rigid. Oh, shit. His stomach dropped as the thought hit him like a brick. Holt never actually said I could destroy the damn thing… Do I gotta pay for that?

  He nervously looked at the instructor. "Uh… Am I in trouble for destroying that thing?"

  For the first time since the test started, Holt smiled, just ever so slightly. "No, the guild has plenty of backups. You don’t have to worry."

  Oswald let out a sharp breath, running a hand through his hair. "Whew. So. this mean I can get my license now?"

  "Once the other examinees finish their tests, you’ll be able to collect your license from Erin at the front desk." Holt said

  "Got it." Oswald said, sheathing his sword, letting the hilt click into place before turning his attention to the others.

  Lucy stood frozen, mouth slightly open, her previous arrogance stripped away entirely. She looked like she was still processing what had just happened.

  Varus, on the other hand, looked like he was just about the most bitter man alive. Oswald doubted he could do much better than him, so he didn't pay the mercenary much thought.

  ***

  Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

  At the front desk, Erin was practically bouncing on her feet as she rifled through a small stack of adventurer cards. Her fingers fumbled more than once, sending a few slipping onto the counter. “Oops! Not that one… ah-ha! Found it!”

  She plucked a card from the pile and beamed as she looked up, her eyes locking onto Oswald. “Oswald! Congratulations, here's your official Astral Wing guild card!” she chirped, thrusting the card toward him with both hands as if it were some kind of sacred treasure. "You're now officially an Astral Wing adventurer!"

  Oswald took the card. His name gleamed across the front in bold letters, the Astral Wing insignia embossed along the bottom corner. The rank etched beside it stood out immediately: DDD-Rank. Finally… I made it, I'm an adventurer!

  “You did amazing on your aptitude test!” like, seriously! A DDD-rank right outta the gate? That’s really rare!" Erin said excitedly.

  Oswald tucked the card in his cloak. "Thanks… I uh, appreciate it."

  "Don't praise him too much just yet, he's only just getting started." Selene said, stepping closer.

  Erin perked up at the sound, her head swiveling instantly. "Oh! Lady Whiteheart! I didn’t see you there!"

  Oswald turned just as Selene strode toward them. Vivi was perched gracefully on her shoulder, her golden eyes scanning the room with that ever-watchful gaze. But the moment Selene came close enough, the black cat wasted no time.

  With a smooth leap, Vivi landed squarely on Oswald’s shoulder, settling against his cloak as if she had never left. A soft, satisfied purr rumbled against his ear.

  Selene’s violet eyes softened at the sight. "She certainly looks happy to see you again,"

  Oswald chuckled, reaching up to scratch behind Vivi’s ear. "Yeah, guess she missed me."

  Selene regarded him for a moment, then tilted her head slightly. "So, how does it feel? Now that you're officially an adventurer?"

  "Feels good, but I know I’ve still got a lot to learn."

  Selene nodded in approval. "That’s a good attitude to have."

  Then, sShe turned her gaze back to Erin. "Can he start taking quests immediately?"

  "Yep!" Erin confirmed, clasping her hands together. "All he has to do is pick a quest from any of the boards around the guild, then bring it to me so I can register it."

  "I'll go and take a look around then." Oswald said.

  He glanced toward the wooden boards scattered throughout the guild hall, each covered in various requests. Some of the papers were neatly pinned, others slapped on haphazardly with barely legible handwriting.

  So this is it, huh? Time to pick my first job.

  Selene shifted her weight slightly, tilting her head toward the quest boards. "Go ahead and choose whichever quest you’d like. Though I’d advise picking one that takes place around Volstarn. I have some plans there."

  Oswald’s brow furrowed at the mention of the name. "Volstarn? Where even is that?"

  "It’s a town in the eastern part of the kingdom. Right now we're in Loria, which is at the center, so if we’re heading there, we’ll have to travel for a few days at the very least."

  "And is there any particular reason you wanna go there?" Oswald asked, arching a brow.

  "I have my reasons." Selene said.

  And that was all she gave him. Of course.

  Oswald sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Fine. I’ll go grab a quest then."

  Turning on his heel, he wove his way toward one of the emptier quest boards. A few adventurers lingered nearby, scanning parchments pinned to the wooden frame, but the space wasn’t as crowded as the other boards. Less competition, which suited him just fine.

  He skimmed over the postings, looking for any mention of Volstarn. Most of the lower-rank requests focused on routine monster exterminations, material gathering, and escorting supplies. His brow furrowed as he flipped through the layers of paper, but nothing jumped out.

  Then, a soft meow broke his focus. Vivi, still perched on his shoulder, lifted a paw and tapped at the air.

  Oswald followed her gaze and spotted a set of quest postings higher up on the board, slightly out of reach. Huh. Didn’t even notice those.

  He stepped back to get a better look. The higher postings listed Volstarn multiple times, far more frequently than the others. He arched a brow and turned his head slightly, glancing at Vivi.

  "I dunno if I'm losin' it, but you actually understand what people are sayin', don’t you?"

  Vivi stared up at him, golden eyes sharp and unblinking. Then, with a tiny tilt of her head, she let out a short meow.

  Oswald squinted at her, arms crossing as he studied the little furball. Yeah. She’s special, alright

  Shaking his head, he reached up and ruffled the fur between her ears. "Good catch, Vivi. Thanks."

  Returning his attention to the board, he sifted through the listings. There was one that almost immediately stood out.

  Adventurers needed for herb collection

  Assistance is required in the procurement of Duskbloom, a vital herb for the preparation of medicinal supplies.

  Adventurers intending to accept this request are required to present themselves at my estate prior to commencing the collection.

  —Doctor Cecilia Silversong

  The listed reward was fifty silver pieces. Not bad at all just to deliver some plant.

  Oswald tapped the parchment, his eyes drifting to the name at the bottom before flicking back to the quest details. His brow furrowed. Wait a minute… why does a simple herb-gatherin’ quest need a D-rank or higher?

  Curiosity prickled at the back of his mind, so he scanned the other Volstarn-related postings. There were a lot of them, and all of them involved either gathering materials, delivering herbs, or transporting relatively common supplies. The town's hiring adventurers for supply runs? That can't be cheap.

  Even Oswald knew that adventurers usually only get paid for delivery quests in cases of emergencies, or if the cargo is especially valuable. So, a town having so many delivery related quests is very odd.

  Still, Oswald was curious, so he decided to take the herb delivery quest for now. Plucking the parchment from the board, he turned back toward the front desk.

  Selene was still waiting as she glanced toward the entrance. Erin, meanwhile, perked up at his approach.

  "Found one," Oswald said, handing her the quest listing.

  Erin took the paper from Oswald with both hands, looking the text with a slight furrow of concentration. Then, she looked up, tilting her head. "Oh! So you’re takin’ the Duskbloom delivery quest to Volstarn? The one posted by Doctor Cecilia Silversong?"

  "Yeah, that’s the one." Oswald said.

  "Alrighty, gimme just a sec!" Erin chirped, already turning toward the stacks of paperwork behind the counter.

  Oswald turned around as he waited. His eyes flicked to Selene, who had a distant gaze as if lost in thought.

  Then, without looking at him, she spoke. "What do you think of the quest?"

  Oswald shrugged. "Doesn’t sound too bad. Duskbloom’s not rare or anythin’, is it?"

  "Not rare, no. However, where it grows, monsters are usually present."

  That gave him pause. Right. Of course. Wouldn’t be a D-rank quest if it were that easy.

  He nodded, processing that little detail. "Still, somethin’ about this is weird. Volstarn’s got a ton of delivery-related quests up. I don’t get why a town would need so many adventurers just to haul supplies. Is it some kinda massive city or somethin’?"

  "Volstarn is a decently-sized town. According to the last publicly available census from three years ago, its population stood at approximately ten thousand. However… complications have arisen since then."

  "Complications? And wait, how do you even know all this census stuff?"

  "Census data is publicly available, Oswald. If you have ever been in a large enough library, you would know that."

  "Uh… I ain't ever actually been in a library."

  Selene blinked, then let out a soft chuckle. "Ah, that explains a great many things."

  Oswald huffed but let it slide. "Alright, alright. But what about those complications you mentioned? What happened?"

  "You see, Volstarn has developed a rather poor reputation over the last year or so. People there fall ill frequently, and for no clear reason. It has reached the point where many caravans and courier services avoid the town entirely. They fear their people may fall sick, or worse."

  That made Oswald pause. A town full of sick people… and a bunch of supply quests. His mind worked through the pieces, but something still wasn’t clicking into place.

  "That’s… weird, if folks are gettin’ sick all the time, wouldn’t they have more healer-type quests up instead? Like, askin’ for potions or healers?"

  “You do realise that the quest you accepted came from a doctor?”

  "Yeah, but that don’t explain why the other ones are just for regular stuff: haulin’ firewood, movin’ sacks of grain, runnin’ letters across towns. Ain't seen a single request askin’ for healers or clerics. If folks are gettin’ sick that often, you’d think they’d be screamin’ for that kinda help."

  Selene didn’t answer right away. A brief silence settled between them as she considered his words, her gaze distant. Then, she turned toward Erin, who was still hunched over the counter, sorting through a stack of parchment.

  "Erin," Selene called out.

  The receptionist perked up instantly. "Huh? Oh! What’s up?"

  "You handle the listings, what do you know about the quests coming from Volstarn?"

  Erin paused mid-motion, fingers still gripping a sheet of parchment. Her brows furrowed as she thought. "Uh… well, most of the requests from there are for daily necessities. Y'know, stuff like food shipments, clothes, tools, normal things a town needs. Anything medicine-related only ever comes from Doctor Silversong. No one else from Volstarn posts similar quests."

  "Have there been any requests for healers?" Selene asked.

  Erin blinked, then spun around to a shelf behind her. She plucked a thick ledger from its spot and flipped it open, brushing over the inked pages as she scanned the records. A good minute or two passed before she shook her head. "Nope. Not a single one. At least, not in the last six months."

  Oswald’s frown deepened. A town where people keep gettin’ sick, but no one’s askin’ for healers? That ain't right.