D-Rank Quest

  Quest: Exterminate the nest of rats in the manufacturing warehouse

  Reward: 10 gold

  Yup, I’m pest control.

  Sure, taking out overgrown rats wasn’t the best first quest, but it was sure as hell better than, say, taking out a bandit camp.

  We weren’t a high enough rank for that kind of work anyway. All the greats started off small and worked their way up; I wasn’t worried. Especially not about some damn rats. The afternoon receptionist - that slow oaf – had told me these rats were supposedly a lot tougher than the regular kind. Something about a magical infection or spill that made them more formidable.

  As if I cared! They were just a bunch of rats!

  Alice grew quieter as we approached the warehouse’s entrance. I could tell she was nervous; her passionate stories about the Goddess Nina and the nonsense about her faith finally ceased to be the constant topic of debate.

  In all honesty, it was for the best; I was close to telling her to shut up. She just went on and on, as if I wasn't every bit as anxious about the job as she was. I wasn’t wary of the rats, however; I just didn’t know what to expect.

  I walked up the stairs to the door and knocked on the hollow chunk of metal three times. Shuffling back down the steps, we both waited a moment before a rather stern older dude with a gruff physique answered. He eyed us up and down like we were meat on a bone. I wouldn’t taste great even if he tried to eat me - I thank the alcohol and tobacco I stuff down my gullet for that.

  “You’s from tha’ Frenren guild?” he said, with a distinct, street-level accent.

  I cleared my throat and engaged with the guy. “Yeah, buddy. I’m Barn, and this here is Alice. She’s a high-level healer and cleric!”

  He eyed her before spitting. “I hired ya’ to bash some rats. How’s healing gonna help? Ah, forget it. Come in ‘ere and I’ll show you’s where they are.”

  ‘Well, that was pleasant.’

  We followed behind the guy-dressed like he worked in a warehouse cause, well, he did. Workers were buzzing around us like bees.

  Even with this ‘infestation,’ they were still open for business. I supposed he couldn’t risk losing money even for one day. I suspected he was leading us to the basement.

  “Damn things kept scurrying in the walls,” he grumbled. “I told my employees to keep things clean n’ hire pest control while the situation was at bay, but there was a slight leak from one of our products. Damn magic contaminated the basement. They must’ve been nesting down there for months and then - POOF! Fuckers are the size of a small kid, resilient too, and vicious.”

  “We’re uh… Sorry to hear that, sir. I…I mostly heal, but I promise to do my best,” Alice said, sounding confident at first, before her voice wavered.

  “Yeah, we got this.”

  “I sure hope so. Otherwise, I’ll have to ask that other guild on the other side of town.”

  Ravenhead were the rivals to Frenren on the north end of the town. As far as I knew, fights only happened when one guild stepped on another guild’s foot by taking their jobs or working their territory. Honestly, the whole thing felt like a gang, I - in no way wanted to get involved in.

  Just as I’d guessed, this gruff, warehouse dude led us to a door tucked away out of mind and out of sight. Opening it, he revealed a set of stairs that descended into darkness. I peered into the dark, hoping to see something, but I couldn’t. Light blinded my eyes as he grabbed a torch nearby and tossed it down the stairs.

  As soon as it hit the ground, I finally saw what was making those chewing and squeaking noises. Well, I already knew, but now it was confirmed.

  ‘Jeez…’

  The rodents were huge - as large as some dogs, definitely large enough to kill and devour small children.

  Alice covered her mouth and backed away. Meanwhile, I started to count how many I could see at the bottom of the stairs alone. Four or five came to investigate the torch that was thrown; they sniffed at the fire and then retreated, maintaining enough distance to keep it in view. They were, however, oblivious of our presence.

  “Yup… they sure are big.”

  At that point, could you even call them rats? How about child-devourers? That sounded like a better name for them… hairy child-devourers.

  “Are you’s gonna’ continue to stare at em’ or get to whacking? I ain’t got all day–“

  “Yeah, yeah, pal. We’re headin’ down. Hand me one of those torches too.”

  He whisked away and returned with a lit torch for me. I took it and started down the steps, with Alice hesitantly behind me. The further down we went, the darker and more intoxicating it became; a potent scent filled the air, probably residue from whatever magical substance had spilled.

  The little – well, big - rodents squeaked and scuttled backward from the flame. Picking up the other torch, I waved both at the festering clump of them. There were definitely over a dozen, all stuffed together and lacking any personal space. They’d made a fair-sized hole in the wall on the far side, seemingly to travel around the warehouse without being seen.

  ‘I hate rats!’

  After swatting at them with the torches, it dawned on me: how in the hell could I kill these things and still be able to see?

  Alice stepped past me, clutching her staff.

  “Get behind me. You don’t have any strong attack spells, remember?!”

  Before I could grab her, one of the rats snuck up beside her and lunged. She was fast - messy, but fast - when she booted it in its head. Despite its size, its skull caved in from the force of Alice’s blow; its body staggered side to side and then collapsed moments later.

  “What the - “

  The rest of them started beating their feet and then came at us all at once. I threw both torches at the first few, winning us some time to run, and then grabbed Alice by her hood.

  The rest was blurry, but I’m sure I tripped over a stair or two - our escape was in no way graceful.

  “Huff! Huff!” I panted.

  Our employer stood leaning up against one of his machines; he darted over to us, eyes full of wonder.

  “What happened? Is it dealt with?!”

  Bent over and still trying to catch my breath, I shook my head until it felt heavy.

  “They aren’t normal rats!”

  “I know that! That’s why I called you’s!”

  He had a point. Unfortunately for him, we were the most bottom of the barrel – barely functional D-Ranks. He couldn’t have received worse people for the job.

  “How is this a D-Rank job!” I screamed.

  I paced up and down for ten minutes or so. Alice sat on one of the crates while our employer went for a walk as we ‘figured’ out a plan.

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  I felt completely useless and pathetic. Running away from a bunch of rats like that - and the worst thing was, a beautiful woman of faith saw the whole thing.

  She probably thought I was less of a man.

  “Right, right. We had to make a tactical retreat. We managed to see what we’re dealing with. Clearly, they’re a bigger threat than advertised; with the darkness down there, I don’t feel comfortable swinging and counting on luck - even if mine is the best…”

  Alice nodded along, but I was sure she wanted to disagree.

  If we attacked head-on, we’d get overwhelmed and eaten. Alice didn’t have any attack spells that could help; I did have a bomb or two, but when I suggested using them to the boss, he flat out - threatened to charge me for any damages I caused.

  That left us with very few choices.

  I perched on a crate and racked my brain over the possibilities.

  ‘We’re just not strong enough to take them all on. And what was with that freakish strength Alice had?’

  As weirded out by her surprisingly strong attack as I was, I had bigger problems to worry about. Then it dawned on me. Luckily for us, I’d brought just the right item for the job: a poison vial I’d bought a while back and lugged around in my pouch just in case.

  Well, now it was needed.

  Without telling Alice the plan first, I bolted after the boss and asked him for some leftover scraps. Then, with the help of Alice, who’d caught up with me, we carried the food back to the basement.

  It was there, I poured the whole vial evenly on the leftovers and then threw them down into the dark.

  Just to make sure they all had eaten it and it had time to take effect, we waited around thirty minutes before venturing down with another torch.

  The two torches I dropped earlier had withered and gone out. When we ventured back in, every overgrown piece of filth was either lying on their side groaning or already dead. I handed the torch to Alice and then – one by one - used my dagger to finish off the rest.

  If the smell already wasn’t enough, the stink their corpses started to emanate made me sick to my stomach. That, and some of the blood getting on my gear, was a real pain in the ass.

  We returned to the surface, where we found the boss leaning with his arms crossed and a real mean look on his face; he probably didn’t want any more bad news.

  “Job’s all done. Thank God...”

  His disgruntled look didn’t change much, except for the raise of one of his eyebrows, as if to say, ‘Good, that’s what I paid you for anyway.’

  “I’ll notify the guild. Thank you’s for the help.”

  Holding out his hand, first, I wiped the blood on my pants and then shook the man’s hand.

  The guild was quiet that evening. There were a few regulars at the bar, some parties idled by the job board, and a few other adventurers looked like they’d just returned from a quest.

  The afternoon and night receptionist were switching over. The afternoon worker was a young guy, maybe around my age, dressed in a black waist coat, a white shirt, and white pants. He had one of those moustaches that curled up like it was unsure where to go. He was alright, I guess - a little slow in the head, maybe.

  The night receptionist taking over was a strong-looking woman; she had a scar down her right cheek and youthful but strong brown eyes. Everything about her screamed ‘beware.’ That was mainly because she used to be an adventurer, too, but along the line, she decided for a different career path.

  I doubted the guild would receive word of our success for another few hours, so I straddled a seat across from Alice and ordered something easy to drink.

  “That hits the spot,” I groaned.

  Alice wasn’t paying attention, though; she was staring down at the table, fidgety.

  “Something wrong?”

  She gazed up at me with those innocent eyes. “I’m sorry I was so useless today. I’m a cleric, a holy warrior and follower, yet I was s-so scared of those rats... you did all the work while I stood back and watched.”

  “Hey, it's okay. Even a B-Rank like me couldn’t have taken them all on. I’m a tactician, after all – a rogue. What is most important is your safety and mine.”

  As I sipped my beer, my mind went back to that crazy strength she had used on one of the rats. When I first saw her stats, I didn’t believe that crazy strength stat, but now, maybe it was true. If that really was the case, then with a little push, she could be very useful down the line.

  “You have a radiant and earnest smile,” she said.

  ‘Am I smiling? Shit... it was more of a grin. Gotta pay attention around her.’

  “I guess you really are happy – with how the job went...”

  “You’d probably feel as good as me if you had a drink. Can’t holy sect followers drink wine in celebration?”

  She looked flustered for some reason.

  “Only for certain ceremonies. It’s usually just a s-sip. Though we have other gatherings where they push you to drink until ‘the goddess is satisfied and your body is light.’”

  That sounded way too suspicious for me not to raise an eyebrow.

  “Tell me about those gatherings...”

  That flustered look was back. Don’t get me wrong, she looked cute when she did it, but with the strange things she was saying, I was starting to get a little concerned.

  “Well, we always started with prayer. After we recited the scriptures and said our prayers, all of the men of the church and women would dress in something more comfortable and appropriate for praising fertility. It was a special kind of ‘lingerie,’ they said. Once we favoured the drinks of the goddess, we would usually pair up into sleeping bags and embrace... I, um... never had a partner.”

  ‘What the f - ‘

  “I don't – that’s... Wow, yeah. So? They had orgys?”

  Alice stared at me like a wounded puppy. “An o-orgy? What's that?”

  ‘Jeez, she is so dense.’

  “Um... actually, don't worry about it. I'm curious – why didn't you ever have a partner?”

  She averted her gaze, preferring to gaze at her staff leant against the table.

  “I’m sure you’ve seen my strength stat. It’s been high ever since I was born, and sometimes, when I lose control, I can hurt people. They would often approach me at first, convince me to drink a lot of the wine, and then... I'd lose control of my strength. Eventually, they stopped asking me questions and offering me drinks... it was lonely."

  I was sure my mouth was wide open, my focus completely on her, and yet it felt as detached as a damaged retina. So her whole provocative dress sense held weight; her sect was full of a bunch of predators and weirdos. Heck! It could of been a cult for all I knew.

  If I tried to debunk her faith and the fact that she was basically groomed since a kid, it could ruin moral.

  “Maybe we should get you a drink. Waiter!”

  She reached over and grabbed my arm frantically. “Didn’t you h-hear me? I can’t drink!”

  “Like you said, - celebrations and ceremonies. This is our first quest! Live a little.”

  I ordered myself and her a drink while she sat there and brooded. I think she knew best not to turn down a reward from a handsome guy like me. Plus, our first successful quest really was worth letting loose a little.

  A few hours passed.

  I was relatively drunk; I was no lightweight, but I think I overdid it. My legs were agreeing with me on that one.

  Chug, chug....

  Alice quickly went from being hesitant about one drink to being some sort of liquor beast. She drank like she was in a competition offering a hundred gold. Her cute eyes and usual nervous expressions had diminished into an aloof barbarian as of sorts that said whatever came to mind.

  At one point, I had to try and drag her away from trying to bless a party’s round of drinks. She walked back willingly - thank God - and plummeted into her chair.

  “My gracious goddess would approve... hiccup... if I have another...”

  Even if was at my limit, my face and gut burned with an internal heat for this girl.

  ‘Oh yeah! I see the looks you’re giving me!’

  “I bet I can throw this table all the way across the guild!” Her little outburst wasn’t all talk; she actually stood up full of false confidence, lifted the table, spilling and smashing our drinks, and started to wrestle me for the table.

  “Calm down, Alice! Put the table down!”

  “Nooo! I can do it! I'm not too... hiccup... If I have one more I can do it!”

  “I never said you couldn’t!”

  And that was how we got kicked out of the guild that night.

  For some reason, maybe out of a sudden care for this girl, I took her back to the Crackle and Spark. Even just getting her inside caused a commotion with the receptionist there.

  Once we finally arrived at my room, I slung her from under my arm and onto the bed. She bounced at first and then lay on her back staring at the ceiling.

  I put her staff in the one wardrobe in the room and sat beside her, moderately drunk myself.

  “You sure are a handful, Alice,” I said.

  “Goddess Nina...” she groaned.

  “This damn girl... tsk. Hey – how about you get out of those clothes and get into bed? I’ll sleep on the floor.”

  She was in no way, listening to me.

  ‘Damn it. I’ll do it myself.’

  Dragging myself up right, I heaved her forward and slipped her hood down. Her hair was raven black and a lot longer than I thought. Her eyes, wild for once, watched me like a hawk as I flicked at the fabric over her shoulders.

  “Oh, Mr Barn. So k-kind of you to check if I'm wounded – but y’know... I’m okay!”

  “I'm getting you ready for bed, Alice.”

  My hands stopped as my heart fluctuated; it was getting hot in here - hot in my nether regions, too. This chick was super cute when she was drunk, and she totally didn't mind me unwrapping her like a Christmas present. If I made a move, she’d probably go along with it, especially since those freaks in her sect totally groomed her.

  ‘Hehe....’

  “Alice why don't we embrace? You want to, right? This is a celebration, after all.”

  Before I could utter another word, she wrapped her arms around me, making it near impossible to undress her or – escape! She was freakishly strong; even as I tried pulling her arms away, they wouldn’t budge.

  ‘Can’t breathe!’

  Trying to suck in some air, she was saying something to me, but I was fighting for my life.

  In one quick motion that seemed to take no energy from her, she pushed me back on the bed and climbed on top of me. She was grinning like a fool and had pulled half of her habit off. I was halfway between in the mood and frightened for my life.

  “Mr Barn, let’s consummate our p-partnership! But you have to be devoted, or Goddess Nina will punish us.”

  I tried to squeeze out a ‘yes,’ but her hand was pushed down onto my chest as she tried to balance herself on top of me. Nothing about it was hot; it was more like I was wrestling with an orc trying to have its way with me. I couldn’t feel my legs. The other me was up and ready, bulging between her thighs, but I wouldn’t make it; my HP was draining.

  “Alice... can’t.... breathe - “

  “Sleepy now...”

  I didn't have any time to react to her head slamming down on mine; her whole body went rigid as she passed out on top of me. I too was concussed? Or maybe dead? I wasn’t too sure as my vision blurred and I lost consciousness...