Tarphus smiled warmly at his uncle, who, while only a few centimeters shorter was as imposing as he had always been. Tarphus could see the pained smile on his uncle's face. "Yer father had told me boot yer ability. I now see it ain't hogwash."

He looked at Tarphus with a smile. "Those fancy things might feel good; however, they will not help against a true foe. But, nevertheless, I will show ye in the yard." With that, the dwarf then had Tarphus bring out his rifle and set it up in a small courtyard on the third floor of the guild house.

Tarphus saw the glares from the servers and the people nearby when they saw his weaponry. However, Tarphus did not mind. The wars between the Federation and the Kingdom were harsh and bloody. 

The Federation used plague bombs on entire cities to weaken the defenders. However, the Kingdom does not like to mention the hired blood priests that curse generations of civilians in the Federation. Or the Magi that ripped a hole into the "weave," as his father calls it.

What Tarphus's father told him was that both sides did horrible things to either side. He agreed, but that was not a common thought as far as Tarphus knew. He was able to get into the sparring field.

There Tarphus found Werthine in full plate mail. His uncle smiled at him and spoke. "Yer guns may be fancy. However, foes will be able to deal with it." Tarphus looked confused, so far as long as he had enough firepower, the enemies of his squad would die.

Then the dwarf muttered something, and his armor started to glow. The air crackled with energy as the dwarf spoke. "Boy, take yer rifle an' try ta shoot me." Tarphus blinked and opened his mouth to deny the dwarf of his request.

What Werthine said shocked him; how could he shoot the man that taught him how to fight. He was there when his mother was poisoned; it was him that saved Tarphus from ending his own life. So why would he order Tarphus to shoot him? 

Werthine shook his head, braids flying as he admonished the child in front of him. "I have seen this with me own eyes, boy. Some fool picks up a rifle an thinks they can beat a dragon. I told yer father that I would accept ye if ye could follow me commands."

He raised his hand to silence Tarphus. "This world holds more dangers than ye think, boy, an if ye cannot sho-" With tears running down his face Tarphus pulled the trigger, he felt the gun recoil, and he heard the pinging sound of metal on metal.

He then heard a chuckle, "Good, next time, keep yer eyes on the foe." Tarphus then felt the dwarf's plated arms wrap around him. "I told ye, all that time ago. Ye cannot get rid of me that easily. Ye might be a man in yer kingdom, but I still see that boy I gave my dagger to oh so long ago."

Tarphus smiled through the tears as the dwarf patted his shoulder. "See, boy, yer weapon did not even scratch me armor." Tarphus then looked at the armor and noticed that there was not even a blemish.

"Hahaha, try again, boy, an this time, keep yer eyes on yer target." Tarphus stood, his hand shaking as he fired at his uncle. Tarphus did not look away as the bullets hit Werthine and disintegrated as they touched his armor.

Tarphus was shocked, then his uncle laughed, his entire body trembling with mirth. "I betcha ye did not think I had that in me." Werthine then smiled happily and patted Tarphus on the shoulder. 

"Alright, ye an yer troops are to rest here. I got me boys to gather some quests for ye; however, that will be in the morning." Tarphus smiled happily at his instructor as he gave him orders to rest.

He then went to his squad and had them store everything; they gathered the supplies and went into a nearby inn; thankfully, they had plenty of copper. He was able to find some rooms. The squad did not care about the small yet overpriced rooms, and he was not into fighting over the price.

They all settled in for the night though Gus went out drinking with a few of the squad. Tarphus smiled and waved them off, telling them how they deserved to have some fun. However, he did not join them as he was tired and wanted to be ready for the upcoming quests.

…

In the town of Cullivan, within the Governor's mansion, a maid is resting in the room of the late young Master Tarphus. It has been a day after the public announcement of the young Master's passing.

She is in the middle of a magic circle scrawled into the floor of the room. The maid is surrounded by candles shifting with blue and black flames. Casting shadows onto the far corners of the room. 

Those same shadows seem to writhe against the very fabric of the world, stretching out and clawing at the light before losing strength and retreating to the shadows. The maid does not seem to mind any of this, her focus solely on the bowl.

Her hands holding a bowl, the bowl's reflection showing the face of Ethira. A scowl upon her face, "Master, where are you." Tears stream down her face as she continues her search for her beloved Master.

The bowl glows faintly, and an image burns itself into the surface of the oil. She smiles with hope in her eyes. The image is of a village that was under construction. Her brows furrowed as she moved her hands. The water roiled like bubbling oil as the view changed.

The oil swirled, and the bowl trembled as an image formed around her; she looked around the room as it disappeared. Sweat and tiredness were forgotten over the sheer joy of success that overtook her.

But she shook her head; finding her Master was of the highest priority as she swore to serve him and him alone. She looked around and saw the half-finished buildings and smiled. It was the northern front; she knew it from the way that there was visible snow on the mountains to the north.

She knew about the northern campaign but could not see any maps as that was not proper for a maid. She cursed that she could not defy Lord Cullivan's orders and stayed to learn where her beloved Master would be sent. Oh, if only he was not a noble… 

She then thought that about how her Master was no longer a noble… dark fantasies blurred into her mind. Maybe just maybe she could hold his hand, or kiss him, possibly even... She blushed, embarrassed by the shameful thoughts running through her mind.

She shook her head, Ethira now knew roughly where her Master was, and nothing would stop her from serving her Master. She did not remove Lord Cullivan because that would trouble her Master as they were close; she could even respect the man in some regards.

However, that did not excuse him for throwing out her Master like that, she would have to take revenge later, but her Master mattered more. The spell ended, and she was left in a room of roiling shadows.

The shadows stopped moving as the tension filled the air. "My Master was taken to the Northern Front; he will be fighting against the menace of the frigid cold. Give me his information, and you will become more than mere shadows."

Joy grew within each of them, but it was curbed by her following statement. "If you fail me by being noticed by anyone before you find him, I will never summon you again. So go and find him, help him do this, and be rewarded when I see him face to face."

The shadows were now excited despite the possibility of being forced to remain in the abyss. Though some lingered longer than others, they all left eventually. She smiled happily as the candles snuffed themselves out. "Soon, I will be by your side, Master."

…

Tarphus woke up with a chill running down his spine, but he could not tell where it was from.

"Someone must be thinking about me." He whispered softly to himself. He got up and smiled coldly as he looked at his squad; most were hungover. 

Though the Tech-Priest was just sitting there, and Tarphus would like to think he was smug over his squad. It was fitting with how they walked around meekly, hissing with pain at even the slightest change in the environment.

Tarphus tried so hard not to laugh; it was hard watching them stumble. However, he was looking forward to getting some quests together for his squad. He looked at the Tech-Priest and inclined his head in a come here motion.

The Tech-Priest came towards Tarphus and whispered. "The flesh is weak, Squad Captain, as your squad demonstrates. Nevertheless, the mechanicus is interested in you as you have been chosen by the Omnissiah."

Tarphus chuckles softly, "I will think on your offer, but I like this weak sack of flesh right now." An amused snort came from the red-robed individual. Tarphus then turned to him and said, "I will be leaving you and Kit here to fix up my squad, we are going hunting today, so I need them to be able to fight."

The Tech-Priest nodded and turned to the guardsmen that needed medical aid, needles dripping with detox. It was at that moment that Tarphus knew he was glad he did not drink yesterday. Tarphus then got to the front of the Mercenary Guild.

When he entered the building, the Tarphus was met with a smaller din of noise than yesterday; it seemed that going in the mornings is a lot less busy than in the afternoon. He would be sure to remember this. 

Tarphus looked around, sweeping his gaze around the room until they settled on the front desk. He noticed how she turned her head towards a door to the side of the main chamber. He nodded and made his way over to the room.

In it, a man was sitting with a solemn smile, the man was shot, he was still taller than Tarphus but compared to an average human, he was not that tall. The man was sitting behind a tall stack of papers. 

He looks up at the newcomer and frowns. "Your paperwork has been completed; Mr. Lorne and the Guild Master have given you many elimination quests. All for…" He turns his head and wrinkles his nose in disgust. "Goblins."

Tarphus could understand the disgust over the little wretches, the bastards destroyed cropped raided villages, and… well, the bastards ate their prey alive. Not to mention that the entire species is male; their reproduction was brutal and quick.

Tarphus hated these creatures and until recently thought that they were of the worst creations in this world. Now, however, he knew they could have been much, much worse. So, he did not say anything as he grabbed the bundle of quests.

As he stood up, he heard a chuckle, "Unfortunately, you do not currently have more than twenty people under your command, and no serfs do not count. Therefore, you cannot be considered a Mercenary band just yet."

Tarphus could only nod; this was something that the Mercenaries had founded to ensure that they would not be trifled with. As long as a registered Mercenary has paid a fine to the Mercenary Guild. 

A silver per twenty people under them, then they will be able to issue a duel to someone who threatens their life. Of course, it is not perfect; however, this has allowed the Mercenary Guild to earn the respect of the three powers of this world.

It would be nice to attain that goal. Tarphus then nodded and left. He gathered his squad and looked over the quests. Twenty-seven of them, all are goblin extermination quests, he could only sigh in defeat. 

Tarphus quickly chastised himself as he needed to earn his way to killing orcs or even trolls; this would be a great learning experience for his squad. However, when he broke the news that they were hunting lesser greenskins, they looked happily at him though everyone begged for the Flammer.

He gave in and replaced his Heavy Autogun for the Flammer. Tarphus and his squad then went to the first location without much fanfare. However, when they were nearby, Tarphus stopped them and had Kit scout for the group.

It took around thirty minutes before Kit returned. The four prior slaves asked Tarphus if he could train them. He decided that he would need some unsummoned guardians for when he was brought out of challenges.

He would work on them later, though one went to the Tech-Priest interest in her eyes. He did not mind the Tech-Priest as it helped repair the weapons and armor of his squad. The person was actually quiet. Tarphus and the Tech-Priest liked to be near each other as they found it nice and peaceful.

Tarphus was interrupted from his musings by Kit, an inch from his face. This caused Tarphus to jump, and that caused his squad to chuckle as copper was passed around. Then, he stood up and looked at the Servo Skull. 

"Report." His voice was calm and restrained. The Skull looked down and started 'reading' a report. One entrance, guarded by two heat signatures and in the route ahead, twenty goblin signatures are like the Gretchin. Still, they are Mammalian in nature, not fungal.

This caused the Tech-Priest to raise their head, "Interesting." It murmured Tarphus, then smiled at the robed individual. "We will get you a corpse to study." The Tech-Priest bowed its head in gratitude.

He went with his squad, leaving the Tech-Priest, Lucy, and the freed slaves behind while ambushing the goblins. Kit would point out where the goblins were, and they would get a knife in the back.

The noise would attract the other goblins, and Tarphus did not know if his squad could handle that situation. Nevertheless, the goblins died quickly and quietly. He did fear a few times that his men might alert the goblins, but they could dispose of them all.

Tarphus then got back to the Tech-Priest and had the wagons move closer to the goblin nest. But unfortunately, the guards were half asleep, lazy, and inefficient. So Tarphus had his squad move slowly in the bushes toward the guards.

The guards did not notice until eleven guardsmen quickly charged at them from the bushes. They were within five feet of the goblins, and the goblins could not even throw a punch. They were surprised.

Tarphus then sent Kit into the cave so that he and his squad would know what they were up against. The Skull came back quickly; twenty goblins were split between two rooms; they were sleeping, though there was a large metal door at the back of the last room.

It was bloody work. Tarphus's knife was slick with the green blood of these disgusting creatures; he and his squad were at the door of the last room. It was a large metal one, though it only had a single metal bar locking it in place. 

Tarphus then had Gus and Gubo open the door while he and the others would be on overwatch for them. It opened loudly, announcing their entrance into this half of the goblin hole. Thankfully only the shaman and war chief were left.

They cover their eyes as light blares from the open doors. Giving Tarphus and his squad enough time to put several bullets in each of their bodies. Screams ring out from the chambers; it seems this is where they hold their prisoners. 

Tarphus had his squad look over the few prisoners that were not driven mad by the pain of goblin mating. Then, finally, he nodded solemnly at the people who were left and had them taken to the carriage.

He told his squad to leave him with the flamer and tend to the wounded. When they left, he took out the autopistol and, with grim determination, executed the blubbering masses in front of him. He looked into their eyes as he did it, etching the looks of fear, confusion, and hate into his mind.

But it was the blank expressions that got him the worse. As if nothing mattered anymore in their weakened minds. It terrified him more than he would ever admit. So, after his duty, he looted the place finding several handfuls of gold, some potions, and horrible daggers.

He noticed some scrolls, and he was tempted to sell them, but he thought about the upgrade list; there still was some left that he wanted. However, after he gave the scrolls to the system, they were shoved out.

The items that the User tried to give are not from the galaxy of Earth; therefore, it is the User's to keep and use. The User will be told which items are which.

Tarphus shrugged and smiled; he did not mind at all over that.

…

Several days passed, and Tarphus managed to destroy several more nests, bringing back the sane to the nearest villages and giving the Emperor's mercy to the insane. He was growing more and more sure of his command.

Then on the last mission for the week, they saw a shanty town. Goblins were fighting each other and scraping things together. It was after Kit came back and gave their report did tarphus feel fear. "89% match between the orc fungus and the creatures ahead." 

It was then that he heard a high pitch, "WAAAAH!"