Unearthing Greatness (1)

I jump out of bed, full of excitement. With a clear goal in front of me, I can't help but feel motivated.

[Why are you so excited? This is bad! We might lose the library.]

True, but now we get to help your parents.

I throw on my clothes and fall back to let the kid take control.

Eat breakfast and head towards the Adventurer's Guild; I'm going to think about some things.

[Isn't it dangerous, joining the Adventurer's Guild?]

If you've got a better idea, I'm all ears.

[...]

I pull back and the kid walks down for breakfast. His parents try to cover up how anxious they are about their impending dues but it shines through with their every action; clenched jaw, tapping foot, easily distracted, and short. Even the kid starts to pick up that they aren't acting normal. I point out the tells I notice while he eats, which only makes him grow anxious as well.

Sorry to dump all that on you but it's important to notice when your loved ones are uncomfortable.

[No, it's fine. Thank you.]

"I'm going out for a bit." He says to his parents and Carroll sees him out the door.

A heaviness sits in our chest as we walk down the street.

Don't give up. There's still plenty we can do; no use worrying about things we can't.

[Right.]

We firm our resolve as we open the large wooden door to the Adventurer's Guild.

The hall is massive. the ceiling stands at least three stories above my head and several dozen tables are spread across the floor. Despite its size, only a small corner is occupied. At the far end of the room appears to be a counter where the guild staff helps the Adventurers complete their quests, and directly next to it is a bar. I can only see about twenty people lounging around the area.

"Hello there!" A young bunny woman greets me at the door. Her long white ears stand straight above her head. She smiles sweetly at me from behind a small receptionist desk.

"Hey! I was thinking about joining the Adventurer's Guild; I was wondering if there was anyone I could talk to about this?"

"Of course. Why don't you take a seat at one of the tables nearby and I'll send someone right over.

"Okay, thanks." I take a seat and continue looking around the room. It feels lonely; as if so much hope was poured into this building's construction only for it to be abandoned. I can't help but feel uncomfortable.

"Hi! I hear you're thinking about joining the Adventurer's Guild?" A woman with floppy dog ears says as she approaches.

"Yes. I'm Nick."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Ashley," she smiles as she sits down on the other side of the table. I was expecting her to at least extend her hand for a handshake but I don't really mind the informallity. "I have some pamphlets here you can take a look at that might give you an idea of what's expected of you as an Adventurer. If you can't read then I'll do it for you."

"Thanks." I quickly reach for the pamphlets and Ashley jerks her hand back to avoid me. A look of fear flashes past her eyes for the briefest of moments but I'm sure I saw it.

"Sorry," she smiles and hands me the papers. "I guess I'm just a little jumpy today."

"Right. Today." I prod at her behavior with my words and grab the papers.

The Wonderful World Of Adventuring!

The headline of the pamphlet feels like something you'd see for a Disney cruise.

Fight, Hunt, And Explore To Earn Money!

I can't help but smile at the simplistic language. These are likely targeted at people who aren't good at anything else and can now only make money by spending their bodies.

I suppose I'm not much different on that front. Ten-year-olds aren't known for their technical prowess.

"Is something the matter?" Ashley asks.

"No, it's just funny. Are there jobs I can do around the town that aren't dangerous?"

"Of course, we have plenty of quests that merely require physical labor. They don't pay well but it's something to do if nothing else."

See? We can just do simple jobs. It's not like we need to support ourselves.

[I guess.]

The kid's uncertain tone is starting to get on my nerves but I do my best to hide it.

"Sounds great, where do I sign up?"

"Don't you have any other questions?"

"No, the pamphlets answered pretty much all of them for me. As for what's expected of me? Just accomplish quests at my leisure and don't break the law. There are no quotas to meet and you even have and introductory course."

"You only looked at the pamphlet for a minute, though. Are you sure?" She asks with concern in her eyes.

"I skimmed it. Is there some catch that you're not telling me about?"

"No."

"Is there anything stopping me from quitting if I decide I don't want to be an Adventurer?"

"No."

"Then where do I sign?"

"You sure seem confident."

"I'm confident that this is difficult to screw up."

"You say that, but I've seen many an Adventurer disappear into those trees and never return." She cautions.

"Then we'll fight in the shade."

"What?"

"Uh, then we'll just stay in town. I can just do the simple missions." I quickly deflect from the random reference I blurted out and describe my plan.

"If that's what you want then I'll go get the paper work."

"Thank you, and please sign me up for the introductory course as well."

"There's an entry fee for the course." Ashley warns.

"I can just take out a loan from the guild and pay it back by completing quests, correct? That's what it said in that pamphlet."

"Well, yes. But, that would mean you'd need to continue working as an Adventurer for at least a couple years to pay it off."

"I understand." I reply flatly to end the conversation before she tries to talk me out of joining again.

[She's nice.]

I can only nod. She's a kind person which makes me all the more concerned about her behavior.

I drift off into thought as I watch her leave.