"Where to next?" Zhenyel asked as she walked beside Winford, avoiding branches and roots while she matched his pace.
To answer her question, Winford brought out the quest parchments from his inventory and opened them in front of him to read the next quest.
[ Quest - Novice II : Cave Investigation ]
- Location: Reit Forest
- Safety: Abandon the quest if it is too dangerous for you
- Data: Grab information from the place and record it
- Task: A cave emerged deep inside Reit Forest, and a witness said that gremlins inhabited the said place. Check out the cave and investigate.
- Requested by: Melia from Blacksmith Guild
- Reward: 1x - 5x silver coins depending on the data gathered and possible scarcity rate of the information and resources
[ Quest - Novice II : Gremlin Campsite Subjugation ]
- Location: Reit Forest
- Quantity: Camp
- Class: Gremlin
- Task: A group of Gremlins began camping near the path of the small trading companies' route. Eliminate and destroy the campsite of Gremlins and cut their ears as proof of the subjugation.
- Requested by: Ophelia from Merchant Guild
- Reward: 3x silver coins and 5x copper coins
Zhenyel read the second quest all over again before nodding in understanding. Winford then rolled the quest back and hid it in the pouch by his waist, unrolling the map that came with the quest and pointing at the marked route.
From their position and the next location, it'll take a few hours to get there on foot. Especially since Zhenyel didn't plan on staying a day or two outside the city and in the forest. So without wasting any more time, the two set off again. Occasionally, they stopped to replenish their supplies and collect whatever they deemed useful for their travel.
"Shihoa, we're almost on the route. Let's take a breather here first." Winford said as he took a seat under the nearest shade against a thick tree, patting the spot beside him and inviting her to join him.
Zhenyel paused for a moment before walking towards him, sitting beside him as she stared at the direction they would walk in.
"Lachlan, did you grab Bladeborn class?" Zhenyel asked as she glanced at him, thanking him for the food while she took a bite off it.
Winford watched her for a bit then began eating himself, occasionally switching to observe both Zhenyel and the path they're gonna take.
"Yeah. That's right." He answered as he finished his food, taking out his water bottle from his inventory and drinking half of it in one gulp.
Zhenyel joined him and finished. When they both rested and ate enough, they continued their journey.
It didn't take long for them to arrive at the site, at the side of the route was a gremlin camp just what was stated at the quest.
She observed the campsite with calculation while Winford tapped her shoulder, quietly signaling that they'll attack the campsite soon.
With a determined nod, Zhenyel followed Winford's lead and approached the camp with stealth.
Then Winford enchants himself before darting forward, jumping above the nearest camp pillar and swinging his greatsword down.
"Slash!" He shouted as he used a skill, a wide energy slash that deals damage to enemies in front and destroyed one of their pillars.
Zhenyel watched in awe, despite Winford's greatsword that looked extremely heavy, he was able to use it with ease. Even going as far as throwing it and kicking the weapon to the gremlins.
Shing! Fwoosh! Crack!
Winford was able to deal with the gremlins on his side and destroyed three more watch towers of the gremlins. Then he glanced at Zhenyel's side and saw her move with agility and flexibility.
She wasn't using any skills so she was fighting solely with her own combat capabilities.
"Whirlwind!" Winford activated another skill as he used a flash step to reach Zhenyel in time and cut the gremlins behind her in half, assisting her with her side seeing that the gremlins were much more than his.
He spun rapidly and dealt damage as well as knocked back some enemies away when they blocked his attack. Then he used his weapon for Zhenyel to jump on, swinging her swordstaff down and delivering a finishing blow to the last of the gremlins.
After they confirmed the successful subjugation of the gremlins, Zhenyel destroyed the remaining pillars and cut off every gremlins' ears as proof, burning the whole campsite before she had Winford store the pouch of gremlin ears.
"Let's go? I can't wait to feel the comfort of my bed again." Zhenyel said as she pats Winford on the shoulder, turning on her heels and walking, following the route back to their city just in case they could hitch a ride from traders and merchants that will pass by.
Winford stared at her back for a moment with an unreadable expression before he joined her, matching her pace and looking out for possible enemies in their area.
The two quietly track the path while Zhenyel mutters incoherently, reading and jotting down notes on her journal while Winford watches her silently.
After a few minutes of walking, both of them heard horses and carriage.
When Zhenyel looked behind them, she saw a wagon driven by a merchant. So she stretched her hand out to ask for a ride, but Winford stopped her and did it himself.
"Oh my. Adventurers? You two must be the ones who cleaned up the route, hop on." He said as he stopped the wagon in front of them, behind him were three Adventurers sitting with their weapons shimmering under the sun.
Both Winford and Zhenyel thanked him for his kindness and hopped on the vehicle, greeting the three adventurers with a polite nod before the merchant started the wagon again.
Zhenyel took out her journal again and began writing down the events that happened, grabbing her map and marking the spots where she did her quests as a commemoration for her first quests.
Meanwhile, both Winford and the three Adventurers watched her with interest and listened to her incoherent mutterings.