"Really? Wow, you fight so well!"
Pallabi said, impressed by Shyam's fighting skills. Of course she would be—the way Shyam fought was nothing like the way she did.
"I appreciate the compliment, but... why are you still following me even after I freed you?" Shyam asked, noticing Pallabi still hadn't left his side. A sense of unease lingered...
"That's because I'm heading in the same direction as you, so..." Pallabi said, closing the gap between them.
"Yeah? Well, okay. But stop following me after we reach our destination, GOT IT?"
Shyam didn't want to form any close ties in this world. Whether it be business, friendship, or anything deeper.
"Okay!" Pallabi replied, and they both fell silent.
Soon enough, they reached the village entrance. From there, Shyam headed straight to the Adventurers' Guild—but Pallabi still didn't leave.
"I'm not even going to say anything now," Shyam whispered as he entered the guild.
Just like before, the guild was quiet, with only a few people around. Shyam walked toward the counter, noticing a different lady was stationed there. She seemed more serious than the last one.
Her posture, the way she sat, her focus—
SHE WAS ASLEEP!
"Umm... hello?" Shyam said, trying to wake her up. She didn't respond.
Suddenly, Pallabi stepped forward and shouted,
"Arna!!"
The woman jolted awake, her eyes wide in shock.
"Don't scare me like that!" said the guild lady.
Her heart was pounding so loudly Shyam could hear it from where he stood. Or maybe it was just how quiet the guild was—so silent that even the ticking clock echoed through the room.
"I completed the quest," Pallabi said, handing over a paper.
"Oh! Thank you. Here's your reward, Miss Pallabi,"
the guild lady said as she handed Pallabi a bag of coins. Not much—but what could one expect from an F-rank quest?
"Miss?" Shyam whispered to himself. He'd been calling her 'Miss' sarcastically this whole time, but now it seemed others from the village used it too.
The guild lady turned to him, noticing he was standing there staring off into the void.
"Uh... and you?"
"Oh, sorry. Here—I've completed my test task as well," Shyam said, handing over the slime energy stones he had collected.
"Oh, okay! Here's your reward, including extra payment for the additional energy stones," the guild lady said, handing him a bag of coins too.
"Thank you," he said, turning toward the door.
"Hey, wait!" Pallabi called out.
"What now..." Shyam muttered, trying to stay calm. He just wanted to find an inn and rest, to process everything that had happened—but Pallabi just wouldn't let him go.
"I... um..."
She stopped him, but even she didn't know why. Her eyes darted around the guild hall, searching for a topic—anything—to avoid embarrassment deep enough to jump off the Taralaya River.
Then she saw the quest board.
A particular quest caught her eye: Kill ten goblins blocking the trade route. They had made it difficult for merchants and travelers to pass. Completing it without getting injured was nearly impossible.
"Uhm, would you like to do that quest with me?" Pallabi asked, her voice barely audible.
Shyam looked at where her finger pointed and saw the quest.
He was about to decline—until he noticed the reward.
"Five silver coins?" he whispered in surprise.
While searching for the slime in the forest, he had asked Raitha about the currency system in this world. She had said:
"There are three main types of coins—copper, silver, and gold. Twenty copper coins equal one silver coin, and twenty silver coins make one gold coin. In villages like this, even having one gold coin is considered rich. For comparison, you could stay at an inn for five days with just one silver coin."
That's what she said. But if that was true, why was the reward for this quest so high?
Then again, if the reward was high, so was the risk. There weren't many adventurers here, so if this quest were easy, someone would have taken it already.
He thought for a moment, but it didn't take long to say yes.
He had power and confidence. And, worst case—he had legs. Legs were for running.
"Sure, but can we do it tomorrow? I'm tired."
A lot had happened today. He just wanted to dive into a bed and sleep like a log.
"Of course! See you then, then!" Pallabi said, walking away with a shy, awkward smile—like she just confessed to a crush.
"She's weird," Shyam murmured and left the guild.
"Map," he whispered.
A window appeared midair. He had learned that he could access any feature of the ii system with just a command—no need to call Raitha every time.
"Alright, time to rest," he said, walking toward the village's only inn: The White Sun Inn.
Along the way, he passed several stores—blacksmith, medic, magic shop. He marked them as waypoints while walking.
Finally reaching the inn, he took a deep breath and opened the door.
"Welcome," said an old lady as she cleaned a wooden table.
The inn was quiet, with a faint, calming smell in the air. Just what he needed.
"Hello, I'd like to take a room, please," Shyam said.
"Of course. That'll be 4 copper coins per night. Is that okay?"
The innkeeper led him toward the stairs. Shyam followed her.
"Yes, thank you!"
He had earned about seventeen copper coins from the slime energy stones—enough for four nights.
The old lady opened a door.
"This will be your room."
"Alright, thanks," Shyam said and stepped in.
It had almost everything a person could need—for just four copper coins, it was more than worth it.
A bed, a table, and a closet.
"Would you like something to eat? Dinner's ready," the old lady offered. She could tell Shyam was both tired and hungry—he walked like a zombie.
"That'd be great. Thank you, ma'am," Shyam said. He went downstairs, ate dinner, came back up, and slept like a stone.
---
"SHYAM! WELCOME BACK!"
Who are you? Where's your face? I asked as I opened my eyes slowly.
"I'm Varnika, your wife! Come on, let's enjoy life together."
Oh, okay...
But—who is Varnika? I don't know anyone like that.
"Oh, don't worry. I'll tell you everything!" she said, grabbing my hand as we ran for hours.
I should wake up now, I whispered.
I pinched myself—everything went black.
Mom!!!
---
"Woah!"
Shyam woke up, his body sweating, heart racing like a V8 engine.
"That was a dream, huh..." he muttered, trying to calm down.
The sunlight stretched across the village, whispering peace into the day. The villagers were already up and working.
"I feel hungry. I should eat something," Shyam murmured and came downstairs. The same old lady stood behind the kitchen, making breakfast.
"Oh! You're up, boy? Go take a shower before breakfast."
Those words reminded him of his mother.
Barely holding back his emotions, Shyam nodded and went into the bathroom. The water came directly from the nearby river.
After eating a freshly cooked breakfast, he went to the Adventurers' Guild. Surprisingly, Pallabi was already there, holding what looked like a contract—but it wasn't.
"Oh! Hi Shyam! Good morning!"
Pallabi ran toward him. Those jiggled. Not much.
"Good morning," Shyam replied.
"Shall we go?" Pallabi said, holding up the paper.
"I already took the job."
"So... where exactly is this road?" Shyam asked. He was new—not just to the village, but to the whole world.
"Oh, don't worry. It's not far," Pallabi said.
"Okay then, let's go," Shyam said, and they began walking toward the quest site.
Moments passed in silence. Quiet.
This was the kind of adventure Shyam always dreamt of—until Pallabi broke it.
"So... what weapon do you use for fighting?" she asked. She'd been curious ever since they first met. He never used weapons—just hands, legs, and some strange, fast movement she didn't recognize.
"Oh, about that... do you have any spare knife or sword I could borrow?"
Shyam made a silly face—the kind little brothers make when asking older siblings for something.
"Ehh?!"