1.15 – The Adventuring Guild

As Erik and Kriztan continued their back and forth, Rika saw the shape of their party’s situation for herself. And the more she saw, the more she thought they really couldn’t afford to be choosy. They’d been stuck in town for over a week, and nobody would fill in the fourth slot in their party. According to Chryson, Strikers were the most common role by far, so finding someone for the role should have been easy.

Their main problems, so far as Rika understood them, were twofold. First, their group was untested and unknown. Vilmos and Kriztan had made their way to Canyon Falls together. They had no experience or jobs under their belts, and already their relationship was one marked by friction more that anything else. Erik had been in town for about as long. Like the other two, this was his first ever job.

The second problem they had was the quest itself. They were to clear out a nearby goblin encampment. Rated at level five and recommending a party of four plus, the quest was just at the very limit of what the three of them should be able to handle. Assuming, of course, they could find an appropriate Striker to round out their party. But between the fact that the group was completely untested, and the obvious disharmony within it, nobody had taken them up on the offer.

“The Adventuring Guild’s quest rating system is fairly robust,” Chryson said when she asked about it. “The guild Administrators have a good sense of what level of threat an available job poses, and match that against recommended level and party ratings. Confident parties frequently take on missions slightly above their recommended rating, like this mission seems to be for this group, but usually only after they’ve worked together and understand how they’ll approach the extra challenge.”

The more Rika learned, the less convinced she was that this was a good idea. But good idea or not, she didn’t see many other options waiting around for her. Most adventurers, it seemed, viewed Canyon Falls as more of a stopping point. They came in as guards for a caravan, or escorts for a low level traveler, then moved on. Either deeper into the Ironbacks where more lucrative opportunities could more easily be found, or they hooked up with another caravan headed down to the larger settlements of the Chillwind Coast.

Very rarely would higher level parties snap up a job like the one Vilmos and his crew were on, taking it as an easy bit of coin before moving on. But Vilmos had taken it, and now it was his. Chryson said there was nothing stopping the party from abandoning this quest and trying something easier first. Rika put it down to either pride or sheer stubbornness.

Since Ariadne had left, the sun had risen to nearly directly overhead, and it didn’t look like Erik and Kriztan were getting any closer to resolving their differences. Vilmos kept looking at her as if he expected something. A not insignificant part of her wanted to simply walk away. She could probably hitch onto the next caravan that came through carrying supplies up to the higher mountains, or heading deeper in to pick up a shipment of iron. Find another town and another group.

Another part of her felt like she at least owed Erik something. He had saved her life after all. Also, from what she’d managed to pick up about the quest itself, it seemed like the perfect job to whet her blade. She’d dealt with goblins on her way up, and she’d done it alone. With a group at her back, no matter how dysfunctional, she was sure to have an easier time now. She could grab a level or two, help out Erik, then move on.

When Vilmos shot another glance in her direction, she finally spoke up. “Look, I know you don’t like me,” she said to Kriztan. “But I’m not really asking you to. The way I see it, you three are basically stuck. Nobody else is jumping on his job of yours. If they were, we wouldn’t be having this argument. You need another Striker, I can fill that role. I need to find my feet now that I’ve been kicked out of my home, and this is a good way for me to do that.

“I’m not asking you to like me. Hell, I’m not even asking you to let me stick around.” She met Vilmos’s firm gaze as she continued. “But you need me, and I need you. We do the job, maybe pretend we all get along, and when it’s done, I’ll go my own way without a complaint. You can all pretend you never met me, and I’ll forget I ever met you. At least this way, the three of you don’t have to sit in town until the Watchers wither away from old age waiting for someone who’ll jump into what’s clearly more trouble than it’s worth.”

From the way Vilmos’s expression went from a firm, thin-lipped half grimace to very nearly sighing with silent relief, she could tell she’d gotten through. Argumentative as the group may be, Vilmos clearly wasn’t an idiot. “Deal. We get this done, and then go our separate ways. If, somehow, we’re all nice and friendly by the end of things, maybe we can talk about sticking it out for one more.”

“You can’t be serious,” Kriztan said, wheeling on Vilmos. “You’re actually going to let her join up with us?”

“You got a better idea?” Vilmos snapped. It seemed even he had his limits. “Besides ‘fuck her, we can do this alone?’ Because that’s not a solution, and you know it.”

As Vilmos and Kriztan turned their attention to one another, Erik hurried over to where Rika stood slightly apart. “Come on, let’s get you registered with the guild. Vilmos is the party leader, and he’s already agreed. Once you’re set up, he’ll just add you, and Kriztan will cut it out. Hopefully.”

Rika shoved the last of her apprehension into a dark spot where she didn’t have to think about it. They’d be fine. The quest was rated for four, and she’d level up with her next kill according to Chryson. With a proper group, and most importantly one with a Support, they should come out the other side relatively unscathed.

Inside, the guild hall was much larger than she would have expected. The spacious common area was decorated with weapons hanging from the walls, along with stuffed animal heads—some more monstrous in appearance than others. A fire blazed in a large brick hearth. A few sturdy tables sat nearby, and a stairway led to an upstairs balcony. On the wall opposite the hearth and to the right of the entryway, a young woman stood behind a counter. She was dressed in a blue double-breasted coat with ornate brass buttons. Her hair was pulled back in a no-nonsense bun, and a bright red kerchief was knotted around her neck and tucked into her coat. She also wore a pair of immaculate white gloves.

Name: Marieta

Class: Guild Administrator

Level: 42 (Grade II)

Grade II. So a partial answer to one of her earlier questions that Chryson wouldn’t give her. But then the level hit her.

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“Forty-two?” Rika asked before she could help herself.

Marieta smiled as if she were used to the question. “The Administrator class levels up mostly as you’d expect it to. Now, I assume you’re here to register?”

“Yeah,” she said, stepping up to the counter. “Looking to join Vilmos’s group.”

“Oh, excellent. I was hoping someone would round out their group. I’ll just need to link with your Oracle, if you don’t mind.”

She had no idea how to do that, but she didn’t mind. The moment she gave her mental assent, what she could only assume was Marieta’s Oracle appeared floating next to her.

Much like Chryson, it was a floating eye about eight inches across. Rather than Chryson’s infinite cosmos, this one had three irises, each shaped like a rotating gear. The two smaller ones flanked the larger central one, making a diagonal line of the black voids that served as this Oracle’s pupils. Rather than fleshy tentacles, eight spider-like appendages that looked like they were forged of copper radiated out from the central eye, each of them twitching independently of each other. The two Oracles locked their gazes onto each other, and a flood of awareness entered Rika’s thoughts. There was a brief pressure, as if the information was constrained somehow, and then it all sharpened to absolute clarity.

Name: Rika

Class: Dark Warrior (Basic, Rare)

Level: 3 (Grade I)

Affiliation: Adventuring Guild – Novice

• Party

  • Rika – Dark Warrior, Lv. 3

  • Vilmos – Defender, Lv. 4

  • Kriztan – Ranger, Lv. 4

  • Erik – Healer, Lv. 3

• Current Quest – Goblin Encampment

  • Clear the goblin raiding encampment threatening Canyon Falls.

  • Recommended Level – 5

  • Recommended Party – 4

  • Rewards

    • Experience (Large)

    • Guild Credits x200

“That’s it, you’re all set!” Marieta chirped. “The guild offers lodging, meals, and basic services and equipment to all members. Food and board can be credited against future earnings as a convenience. Although in a place like Canyon Falls, it’s usually cheaper to buy from the locals if you don’t need the advance. Guidance and training are also available to guild members in good standing. Good luck!”

As Rika came to grips with everything she’d just gained access to, mostly as a massive index of perks offered by the Adventuring Guild, Erik appeared by her side. “Great, it looks like Vilmos has already accepted you into the party.” Then his voice dropped. “Oh wow, those stats are…not what I expected.”