[Randall's POV]
"Haaa…."
Each step taken by these new feet of mine led me further and further into the area we were meant to explore. An area that is located on the other side of the town's closest river, to be exact.
The same one I used to wash some clothes… Without soap, of course, as that'd be dangerous for the river. Then again, that half-destroys the point of washing clothes.
Anyway, a rather large pickaxe rested on Jack's left shoulder. He carried it with both hands, further heightening the tension in his face. On his waist, a makeshift leather bag dangled slightly after each step he took.
And it's normal that he's acting more carefully than usual. At least considering where we are.
'The place beyond the river,' is but one of the names given to this rocky land by the townsfolk of Fernbedie. It is inhabited by quite a few dangerous monsters, but it's also home to a particular material Jack needs…
'No, someone asked him for that. The letter he got said it was for one of the blue leaders.'
The material in question would be a green-ish metal, named Repemtite. It is commonly found in the mountainous Himperlon territory, and its borders, both of which are quite far from here.
However, we could find some of it around the surface. There's also the underground, where the higher quality metals apparently awaited.
'And that's our– no, that's Jack's goal.'
Our job is merely to be… silent aides.
Both the male titan and the female fiend kept their guards up. Nothing in the surroundings caught my attention, besides a couple of minerals. Their presence did raise a question.
Why are we even here?
"Doesn't the town have some Alchemists? Can't one of them create it through that thing called Alkahest?"
Anne glanced around multiple times, but eventually shook her head. "Not how it works. I'll try to give you an in-depth explaination later, but just know that using Alkahest is a common method to create counterfeit Repemtite."
One of them raised their hands, and we hid behind a rather large rock.
Ahead of us, a gray beast with a large shell on its back wandered almost aimlessly.
"A gray bettle… Seems to be in the Muscle refi– I mean, it's a Rank 6 beast." voiced Jack. Anne simply nodded at his statement, though didn't prepare herself for combat.
"How do you know?"
"The energy it emanates, it's strong enough to belong to a Creature-class monster. Can't you feel it?"
… Somewhat, if I focus. But it's still not a strong feeling.
"Not much."
He didn't give me a reply, instead opting to focus on the monster again.
The monster, a strange mix between a snail and a beetle, proceeded to stroll in a direction similar to ours, not minding the sunlight pouring down on its dirty, gray shell.
Its feet came in contact with the ground, and whatever stones hid underneath the thin layers of brown. Leaving footprints behind, like we all do.
The three of us stayed in our spots. Then Jack motioned for us to follow him, who was taking the same route as the monster.
"Are we going to kill it?" I asked.
"No, it's too risky. Failure to assassinate a bettle of their kind will cause them to yell. The sort that attracts many other members of its species, both from above and below…"
Jack's face showed some concern. "Ignoring how this place is inhabited by dozens upon dozens of these monsters, a majority of which are already in Rank 6… Many of the beasts living underground are a rank above that. We can't face them."
Anne seemed to have taken note of that, too.
The beetle eventually passed by another beetle, slightly smaller in height. Neither of them attacked the other, but a notorious hole was located near the unmoving one.
"..... It doesn't look like the small one is planning to move."
The gray one in our sights laid down. It closed its hazy eyes.
"Not at all. Rather, it's planning to sleep," muttered Jack, with a mildly annoyed pitch in his voice.
"I suppose it's safer to kill it now," I voiced.
"... You're right."
Anne cleared her throat. "Why should we kill it, Randall?"
That… The answer is obvious, isn't it?
"Because we're heading into the nearby cave. It'd be dangerous if it somehow let out a yell when we're leaving."
A very slight arc drew on her lips. "Correct, but there's more. We need to cut off its pincers properly and wound Jack with them once we're done with the cave."
Eh?
"Why??"
His protesting claim wasn't heard too much, only we caught wind of it.
"Jack, as far as the town's syndicate knows, you're heading to a zone full of Rank 5 monsters on your own. And you're not even in the Flesh refinement realm, so there's no way you'll be a match for them."
The tension in the air dissipated lightly after Jack heard the last part.
"... So you're saying it won't make sense if I return unscratched."
"Yes, but there's a more concerning detail. If you succeed greatly here, do you think you'll have a reason to consistently back off from requests similar to this one in the future?..."
His eyebrows sank quite a bit.
"... I guess I can accept it."
He took out something resembling a large egg from the bag, only after the pickaxe had been placed down on the dirt. His head peeked out of the stone slightly.
"Should be doable. Be ready to grab the kill."
My eyebrows jumped lightly. Alas, they jumped even further, seeing the flying egg.
Jack's hatchet appeared on his grasp, similar to how Anne's gray pen had long since appeared on her hand.
The egg landed on its head, somehow. And it broke, leaving a notorious orange and yellow spot in the monster's forehead.
Expectedly, the impact jolted the monster awake. It looked up a few seconds later, and it stuck its dark tongue out.
"Wait for it."
The gray beetle tried to lick the contents of the egg. Its initial attempts did not bring it anywhere near close to achieving it, so the beast rammed its own head against the floor.
"Not yet." Jack's voice delivered another message again.
"What…"
The beast made a few noises, though none of them alarmed Jack. Only after spending about twenty seconds doing… that, did it stop with its own self-humiliati-
And nevermind, now it's trying to flip itself around.
A pathetic sight, even for me. And I've been a witness– more often than not, unwillingly– to a fair share of those.
"Strike now."
Jack and Anne emerged from our cover, rushing to land the kill on the bettle. The wings on the fiend's back appeared quickly, granting her an obvious lead.
The grey pen chopped the monster's head off quite cleanly.
"Such a pathetic way to die. All over a single egg," voiced Anne from afar.
"Gray beetles go crazy when coming into contact with these eggs. Don't let it surprise you."
I watched the monster's final moments. The embrace of the grim reaper came rather quickly.
'... Yes. That's how it has to be.'
A pity I couldn't help with its execution.
… Regardless, it didn't take long for us to reach the medium-sized gap in the floor. The dark, yet potentially rewarding insides of that natural structure awaited us. Alongside its dangers.
Monsters far above the level we had just witnessed here on the surface. Tough enough to force the hand of Fernbedie's strongest individuals, at least in normal circumstances.
But sadly for us, this situation is far from normal.