"A task, sir?"It was Isamu who questioned Malic as he eyed the Guild Master with utmost curiosity on what their job is going to be.
"Yes." Malic nodded in response as he looked at the trio of Warrior, Mage, and Sentinel. "One of our scouts have confirmed that bandits have set up a bas.e.m.e.nt southwest from here at the town hidden in a cave within the Chadena Woods."
"Bandits." Isamu gritted his teeth in slight anger about the brigands who prey on the innocent and defenseless for their wicked self-interests. "Those d.a.m.n scourge of the outskirts. The roads are never truly safe for the civilians with those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds freely roaming around the countryside. It appears that their numbers have never dwindled despite the guild constantly hunting them, not even a bit."
"Bandits huh," Gray commented while rubbing his chin with a scowl. "Hopefully they are not planning something sinister again. When Isamu and I last encountered their kind three months ago, they were planning to attack the village of Oakwood. Thankfully, we were able to put a stop to it."
"Yes, I heard about that n.o.ble action of yours from Isamu. A splendid job for that by the way." Malic nodded approvingly in response and went back to the main point of the topic. "Although their intentions are quite straightforward most of the time, I still can"t help but dread about it since bandits are also capable to be quite cunning and organized under an effective leader with plots that are nothing but nefarious."
"Right, sir." Isamu agreed with the older Warrior. "So, what do you want us to do about it?"
"I need you three to go to their cave, eliminate them, and if possible, find out what they"re up to." Malic said as he gave the objectives that they need to fulfill in their task.
"Eliminate, sir?" Isamu frowned a bit at the second condition of the mission that was mentioned by the Guild Master. "I don"t mind some spy work every now and then since as a cat-folk, I"m rather capable in the sneaky arts but eliminating what I presumed to be a vast number of those outlaws? Not that I"m a coward or anything sir, but I"m just being cautious."
Gray as well shared the same sentiment with his cat-folk friend as he nodded alongside with him while Selena opted to remained still as she merely listened to the proceedings.
"I understand your hesitance, and yes, they hold a notable amount of number, ranging around from around twenty more or less as per the scout"s reports in his infiltration inside," Malic replied with a serious look.
"If that"s the case sir, shouldn"t a small militia of guards or guild warriors would suffice in this operation?" Isamu asked.
"Yes." The Guild Master nodded in agreement with the cat-folk"s inquiries. "I initially thought of your statement and was about to send a small group to deal with them. But then I heard from your masters that your training has come to an end and opted to send you three instead. Besides, there"s little to worry about since the bandits" levels and strength are left to be desired as what our scout reported, them being at levels 17 to 19."
Malic paused for a moment as he added. "With your new abilities, even the three of you are more than enough against bandits of such tier. Additionally, I"m sure all of you are dying to know the true extent of your capabilities that were earned by hard work and sheer effort for the past three months. After all, experience is the greatest teacher in the end and by applying the things that you have learned during training, that is where one can truly improve in his or her undertakings."
"Well, I can"t deny that I"m indeed anxious in testing out my new spells against some bandits, hehe." Gray said with Isamu and Selena nodded alongside him as they both shared the same feeling with the elf. "A question before we make our decision, if this is a job for guild members, why do you need us non-members and most particularly, magic users such us ourselves in this task of yours?"
"It was Rarsu who suggested it to me of course," Malic smirked in response. "With your apprentices.h.i.+p finally over, he deemed that real battles are a good experience for improving yourself even further instead of being secluded in those books and tomes of yours. Complete this task and a hefty reward will be waiting for you three."
u003cQUEST START!!u003eu003cAt the heart of Banditry IIu003e[Bandits are terrorizing the lands yet again and it is up to you and your two companions to put an end to their menace once more, this time with a more direct approach.]u003cQuest Completionu003e - Complete Malic"s task.u003cQuest Bonusu003e - (???)u003cQuest Rewardsu003e - (???), (???)u003cACCEPT QUEST?u003e YES / NO
Gray, Isamu, and Selena first looked with one another as they contemplated on their decision regarding the matter of the quest. After a short while, the trio nodded as they simultaneously accepted the quest by clicking yes.
"Alright, we accept." Gray spoke on his companions" behalf as he finally agreed with Malic"s task.
"A decision you won"t regret." Malic nodded with utmost approval at the trio"s choice. "Anyways, as much as I would love to dally further here in the reception halls with my beloved wife, I still have my duties and responsibilities as the Guild Master. Shael here will provide you all with more details about the mission."
After bidding his farewell to the trio, Malic took his leave as he went upstairs going back to his office for the performance of his daily work.
And with everything said and done, Gray and his two companions were then briefed by the elven receptionist about the things to be expected for their bandit hunting outside of town.
***
Reaching to the outskirts of Chadena, the now formed party of duo are witnessed to be walking alongside with each other as they continue their trek into the cave"s location that was marked in the map by Shael herself.
Being a Sentinel, Selena was bounded to Gray as her master technically and as such, the System considered the soul-siblings as one ent.i.ty in the party, like a relations.h.i.+p of master and pet of some sort in most RPGs. As a result, the girl was not counted in the party member limit but nevertheless will retain the benefits of being at a party if Gray is in one. Meaning, it does not really matter in the end. As a matter of fact, this only served to benefit them as they could technically have eight members overall if every member of the party of four each has their own pet.
Of course, Gray never treated Selena as a pet since the girl is his soul-sister and their time spent with one another for the last three months has only served to strengthen their sibling bond even further.
But still, Selena could not help but be utterly annoyed at the prospect of the System not considering her as a genuine mortal-being despite possessing the soul of one.
While cruising through the outskirts, Gray decided to have some chat with Isamu to kill some time.
"The Guild Master sure is a nice guy," Gray said as he made conversation with Isamu. "He seemed to possess good faith on us three in handling this mission."
"That"s the Guild Master alright." Isamu smiled in response as he thought about Malic. "If he"s that confident that we"ll succeed, then the end result will definitely be it. The old warrior"s judgment is always spot-on, that I can a.s.sure you."
"If you say so." The elf simply responded as he ended the conversation, with them now in front of the entrance of the Chadena Woods. He then questioned the cat-folk as he a.s.sumed a serious expression. "Any sign of people moving around? I don"t want those crooks ambus.h.i.+ng us from the bushes and trees."
"None so far." Isamu shook his head after using his tiger-like senses to detect potential bandits that are in the hiding. "But that may change once we delve deeper in the forest. Keep your wits about."
Gray and Selena nodded in response as the three of them prepared to enter the woods with caution, being alert at all times.
Gray volunteered to be the navigator of the party as he opened his Map in his UI and guided his fellow party members to the marker that was provided to them.
Thankfully, Isamu"s racial ability of u003cSharp sensesu003e is incredibly useful in these kinds of situations where they are currently in unknown enemy territory.
The Chadena woods hummed an ancient vibe that resonates all around the surrounding area in its portentous grandeur. The forest is quite dense, with trees and other flora close with one another and is indeed a perfect hideout for bandits and rogues alike.
The trio upon delving even deeper inside the forest area could also hear the flowing of the cool river nearby, the water source most likely used by the bandits in sustaining themselves with their thirst. The wildlife that they confront mostly retreat back to their secluded homes, in fear of being hunted like the prey they are for their meat and skin.
After around twenty minutes of hiking, Isamu gestured his two companions to stop on their tracks he raised his hand with a grim look gracing on his face.
Gray realized the cat-folk"s intent as he saw that they are now close in their designated location.
No words needed to state the obvious, the trio begun their walk but this time with silence as to not alert the bandits who are most probably nearby.
Indeed, Isamu could now detect a distinct scent and movement of people the more they made their approach.
In a short moment, the three found themselves hiding in a bush from a significant distance as they observed two armed bandits, a human and a lizardling, both clad in a set of chainmail armor performing their lookout duties at the entrance of the cave.
Unlike the bandits that they encountered last time three months ago, these two took their jobs seriously as they are on constant alert with their weapons sheathed and ready to strike whoever dare to blatantly wage battle against them.
Gray inspected their status bar and found out that their stats are true as what Malic said to them during the mission brief.
Bandit WarriorLevel 17Health: 1,958 / 1,958Stamina: 951 / 951Mana: 310 / 310___
Bandit WarriorLevel 18Health: 2,003 / 2,003Stamina: 1,121 / 1,121Mana: 330 / 330
"So, what"s the plan?" Isamu whispered to Gray and Selena. "We could go with the old fas.h.i.+oned way and ram their skulls with both blade and spell. Of course, I wouldn"t recommend it as one of them may run off quickly to warn the others inside."
A sinister smile instantly a.s.sumed on Gray"s face as he told the cat-folk of his intent, his eyes glowing with Arcane magic as he directed his hand pointing at the lizardling bandit in preparation for his next course of action.
Selena seemed to have realized what her brother is up to as she eyed him with a knowing look.
"Leave it to me." Gray merely answered Isamu as he excitedly unleashes a brand new spell from his growing magic a.r.s.enal.
"I call this one… u003cMana Slaveu003e."