"Please give me the 92 gold you stole."

"No."

So goddamn shameless.

"Nat, please don't look at me like that. It doesn't suit your pretty face."

Damn it, don't call me Nat.

But wait a moment. The main objective of the quest is to witness the end of the world. Do I really need to pay back all this money?

"How long do I have to pay it back?" I try.

"A year?"

Huh? I know that I might not have to pay it all back, but what the heck!

"You said a level 50 soldier makes 1 gold a year."

"Yes."

"I am level 27 now."

"Yes."

How does this make sense?

"Your angry face is funny."

Okay, let's calm down.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Repeat.

"So after 12 months, I need to have 200 gold and pay it back, right?"

The second floor might end much earlier than that, so it would be perfect.

"Nope, monthly payments."

"Are you messing with me?"

"A bit, it's funny. Master can probably forgive you a bit if you miss a payment or two - if she likes you, but if you push it too much, she will feel as if you are disrespecting her, and who knows what will happen then."

Great.

"What are good paying jobs?"

"Soldier is pretty well paid."

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

"You just said again that they make 1 gold a year if they are level 50."

"Yes."

She is quite special, this woman in front of me.

"Anything else?"

"You can sell your body."

Huh?

"For experiments? Or selling body parts?"

"Nope, as a prostitute."

"…"

The what?

"Your face isn't that bad, and even though you are missing an arm, there are some people that are into this kind of stuff. You are a drifter too, so that makes you exotic as well, and your body is quite nice."

She looks me up and down.

"Oh, and your eyes are quite unusual. One gray and one brown, that's rare. Plus, some people might enjoy controlling someone as strong-willed as you."

A smile blooms on her face.

"I can be your first. 10 copper."

So, I am not worth more than 4 loaves of bread.

"Anything else?"

"I can go up to 50 copper if you agree to one or two role-plays I like."

Please stop looking at me like that, I am getting scared.

"We can do it if I become too desperate."

"Wow, some people would pay quite a few gold coins to even have dinner with me."

I can imagine that she seems to be a fairly strong and influential person, so it might be worth it for a chance to get closer to her master.

"I think there is something super rude going through your head."

Hm?

Anyway, let's try to explain to her my stance.

"You are pretty, and your offer sounds good too."

"But?"

"Instead of messing with you, I should focus on growing stronger, so I can not only pay off my debt but also be prepared for the future."

"So you don't even have a bit of time?" she teases me.

"Even as we talk, I am training, and if we didn't talk, I would be training even more." That would free my second [Focus].

She crosses her fingers under her chin and uses them to support it while she looks at me.

"But you said you wouldn't mind doing it if you were desperate. Does it mean you are not attracted to me? I am curious."

"I think you are pretty, but I try to think more logically. Sure, if you really want to, we can do it right away, even for free, if it means getting on your good side. It might also help me to relax a bit, but I think you're mostly teasing me and not meaning it seriously, so I would only make a fool of myself if I agreed at the start. Plus it would give you more reasons to make fun of me."

Our eyes meet, and she nods.

Another bright smile.

"You guessed right. But it's interesting to see your thought process. So you wouldn't mind selling your body in some cases, you don't mind kneeling, and I'm sure you would beg and lick my shoes if I asked you to do so."

I nod.

"Do you not value your pride?"

I've been asked this question multiple times in my life.

"Isn't the pride you are talking about something only the strong can have?"

There is some curiosity on her face, so I continue.

"I obviously dislike it, but isn't that a low price to pay? Kneeling or dying, it's obvious which one is better. Licking your shoes? Some people would even pay you to do that, as they enjoy this kind of stuff. For me, the pride you're talking about is something useless and others can have it."

I look up into her eyes, making sure she pays attention.

"My pride is different. If I have to eat rotten food, I will do it. If I have to kneel, I will do it. If I have to bite, scratch during a fight, or spit and kick my opponent's crotch, I will do it. If I have to stand naked in front of dozens of people and watch as they stare at me while they shave my hair, I don't mind it." I pause for a second.

Ruby is listening carefully without smiling.

"I will do it all If it means it will help me to survive. And then, after everything is over, and I am still alive, I will come back."

She listens without a single word.

"I will pay back for everything. Not in the same amount. I will be unreasonable, I will be petty. I will be cruel."

I always did it that way.

"That's the way I live, and that's my pride."

 

---

 

So in the end, I decided to become a freelance hunter, adventurer, or however Ruby called it.

They are individuals who go into the wild and hunt monsters or animals. Obviously, the owner of the land and the intermediary take a cut and the amount of money a person can get starts at a few copper and can become much higher.

The reason I picked this path is that I can level up while making some money at the same time, so that's quite good.

There are three ways hunters make money.

First is hunting monsters and bringing back their bodies for people to make use of them. Skins, meat, bones, teeth, nearly anything can be used.

Second, killing monsters that have multiplied way too much or pose a risk to roads; they can even get hired as guards for caravans if they want to.

Third is hunting monsters alive. This one is probably the best-paying one, as they will buy a live monster from you and sell it off to someone rich. The main reason is that rich people can kill them inside the safety of their houses and gain some experience to level up. I heard it's pretty popular among super-rich people, even though the amount of experience they gain isn't much.

So yeah, there are a lot of options.

Before I left with an average-looking sword, a few pairs of clothes, some food and paperwork, and owing a bit more silver, Ruby warned me not to run away and to come back every week to report to her and her master. It looks like her master left some sort of marker on me, and I still can't find it.

It also surprises me how easily they let me go.

I could die out there, you know. Aren't you worried? Is it because of her master? Is it because of Ruby? Is it the system's work?

Well, it works for me. It's just annoying not to know.

So here I am, walking through Stonehaven, alone. It feels weird now that there isn't anyone leading me somewhere or giving me orders.

I stop by the side of the road, making sure I'm not in anyone's way.

The last thing I want right now is to bump into a hotheaded individual.

I open the community.

Noname (Hell, group 4) - Anyone?

Brainiac (Hell, WhiteWing) - Sup, Noname. Grumpy was super worried about you, dude.

Sset (Hell, group 4) - Hello, you are late. The other two already spent their allotted time.

Yes, that's true. But it's not like I could use the community in front of Ruby.

Noname (Hell, group 4) - I couldn't help it.

Sset (Hell, group 4) - Is everything fine?

Noname (Hell, group 4) - Yes, you said you were a hunter, are you near Stonehaven?

Sset (Hell, group 4) - They took us to another city and still keep us on a leash, but we are leveling up.

That's good to hear. Still, it looks like I will be on my own. I don't mind it that much; it just means I will have to be more careful.

I terribly lack any useful information, and I am sure they're not for free. Plus, a single high-level monster probably means the end.

Brainiac (Hell, WhiteWing) - Oh, Noname and Sset! I wanted to tell you something. When both of you were away, a new guy joined the community. I'm only telling you because he is batshit crazy, and I haven't seen him before.

At first, I almost ignore him, not curious about this kind of stuff, but then he says something that catches my interest.

Brainiac (Hell, WhiteWing) - He was from your group, so you probably know him. He named himself "FoodFood" and kept spamming in the chat, the one word only, and all the time. Either "Food!" or "Food?" or just "Food."

I sigh.

Why am I not even surprised?

Goddamn it, Biscuit.

I'm glad you seem okay, you little twerp.