On a bright and sunny Monday morning, the pitter-patter of a boy’s footsteps could be heard coming down the staircase. It was the boy’s first day of second grade, and he was excited, not for school, but for what came after.

His father had promised to take him to the movies, which was unusual since his father was always away for work or getting home late, so he rarely got to see him, let alone spend time with him.

The night before he wouldn’t go to bed, it took both his parents’ persuasion to get him to settle down. Only when his father agreed to move their plans forward an hour as well as promise to pick him up from school, did he go to sleep.

As he reached the bottom of the stairs, there was a big smile on his face. He wanted to tell his mother about the movie he was going to see for the 15th time. At this point, it was no less than torture for her to hear the title alone.

“Mom, I’m ready! Let’s go! Let’s go!”

Thump! 

There was no response, only the sound of something heavy being dropped.

As he rounded the corner, he slid across the hardwood floor in his socks and shouted again.

“Hey, mom! Did you hear me?!”

“A-ah, s-sweety, you’re already up? You should go back to bed. School’s canceled today.”

His mother’s voice was shaky.

“Really?”

He was a little disappointed that he wouldn’t get to see his friends, but that thought quickly faded.

“Does that mean I can go to the movies earlier with dad? He doesn’t have work today, so it’s fine, right?”

The boy’s eagerness evident in his voice.

“Y-Your father got a call for work and won’t be home for a while. I’m sorry, I know you were looking forward to it… Oh! How about I take you to the movies later? That’ll be fun.”

“Nooooo! I wanted to go with dad.”

The boy whined and ran into the kitchen where his mother was. He immediately spotted her hunched over behind the counter, but when he turned the corner, he froze.

“M-Mom?”

His mother stopped wiping up the liquid on the floor and slowly turned around to face him.

“…”

She stared at him silently; her eyes were hazy, yet there was strange clarity within them as if she had become aware of something lifechanging.

It was bone-chilling.

The boy trembled as he looked at his father on the ground. There was red splatted everywhere, on the cabinets, the floor, his mother’s clothes, and most of all, over his father’s entire body.

“W-why is dad on the ground?”

He already knew but still asked. What made him do that?

His mother nervously glanced between her son and the body behind her, before speaking.

“Ah, your dad just fell. Yes, that’s right. He fell, and mommy was helping him.”

She nodded as if convincing herself of the story.

“M-Mom, why do you have a knife? I-Is that b-blood?!”

The boy took a step back in fear.

His mother stood up and held her arms out as if she was going to hug him. She opened her eyes wide, exposing the full whites of them, making her look deranged.

“You see, your father wouldn’t listen to me when I told him about the colors. White. It’s all white. White, white, white, white… I couldn’t take it anymore, there was too much, too much white. I needed to see something else, a different color so…”

The boy shook his head, retreating from the approaching strange woman.

“S-Sweety? What’s wrong? Don’t worry. I fixed it. There’s no more white… Listen, I didn’t have a – Aaaahhh!”

The boy grabbed whatever he could and threw it at her before running away.

That might have been the smartest decision of his life, or maybe it was the worst.

He didn’t know.

---

Liam opened his eyes.

‘Damn, that dream again…’

Pushing himself out of bed, he sleepily walked across the room and began putting on fresh clothes, preparing for the day.

A week had passed since the scouting mission. Last week, when Liam reported his detailed findings about the nest, including the exact number of Viermins and estimate on the number of victims. He was half expecting the Association to withhold the reward for some bullshit reason. So, it was surprising when he got a bonus instead. It was only one nickel, but nickel was nickel; he wasn’t going to complain.

Two days later, there was a Viermin extermination mission on the board, which was ironic considering the title was, ‘URGENT: Subjugation of Viermin Nest.’ Liam figured it would be snatched up quickly by some Earthlings considering the generous reward of twenty-five nickel plus an additional five per Viermin head, but the next day it was still there. It didn’t take him long to find out why.

The reward per Viermin head had increased to six nickel. It would continue to grow every day until it was taken; this was the unique aspect of an urgent mission. In theory, it was supposed to incentivize Earthlings to accept it. Still, all the Earthlings waited, letting the reward ripen until it was ready for picking.

In this case, it was a huge jackpot. Everyone knew that the longer Viermins were left unchecked, the more their population would grow, and with it, the reward. As a result, the usually rowdy atmosphere inside the Association was gone, replaced by the tension that formed as people stared each other down with bloodshot eyes. None of them wanted anyone else to take the mission, but at the same time, they wanted the reward to keep growing – it was a standoff.

But the difficultly of the mission was out of Liam’s league, so he paid their shenanigans no mind. Instead, over the past week, he had been focused on completing subjugation missions in order to get more accustomed to combat; lack of experience and knowledge were his biggest weaknesses, and there was no better way to learn than hands-on experience.

The Association classified monsters into four simple categories based on their threat level: Easy, Medium, Hard, and Very Hard. Each category could be further broken down into three ranks: lower, middle, and upper.

The ones that Liam fought belonged to the Easy-lower rank and were all small, weak creatures such as the Horned Rabbit. However, for as weak as they were, there was still something to be learned.

Each species had a unique trait; some were nimble, while others had a strong defense. As Liam continued to fight them, he gathered knowledge and formed strategies that he could use as a reference for any similar monsters that he might encounter in the future.

Liam had improved. He still had a long way to go, but his ability to track, stalk, ambush, and even trap monsters were far better than a week ago.

At first, he struggled to kill ten Horned Rabbits in an entire day. Now he could kill the same amount in a third of the time. The only thing that prevented him from killing more was the number of pelts he could carry back to town. While he had bought a small bag after his first mission, it was filled with survival supplies and there was no room to fit any monster materials.

However, it was time to hunt something else — this time, something bigger.

Liam finished putting on his equipment and left the inn.

Today his routine was different than usual, he had decided to participate in a collective mission along with other Earthlings.

Goblin Hunt. The objective was to wipe out a settlement that had formed inside the west section of the forest, near the base of the mountains surrounding Kelm. It was an opportunity that Liam wasn’t going to miss, not only was it a chance to learn about an Easy-middle rank monster, it was also a chance to learn about the other Earthlings fighting styles.

Liam arrived at the meeting point; it was the plaza near the Church, where all the Earthlings had arrived when first entering Kelm. There was already a small group of about ten Earthing’s gathered near the center, so he approached them.

A handsome man with a chiseled jaw and blonde hair, stepped out and waved at him.

“Hey, are you here for the Hunt?”

“Yeah.”

“Awesome, that’s great to hear!”

The man walked over to Liam with a grin on his face.

“Mannnn, it’s always good to have a Ranger around. Things are wayyyy easier when you’ve got someone sniping targets from afar. It’s so cool, too! You’re all-like KABOOM! BAM! BAM! Damn, makes me jealous thinking about it…”

He waved his arms in the air, making exaggerated gestures as if reenacting a scene from an action movie.

“So…”

The man got close and slung his arm around Liam’s shoulder. His eyes darted around suspiciously, on the lookout for something, before he whispered in Liam’s ear.

“…Are you alone? Or, you got teammates you’re waiting for?”

Liam’s eyes narrowed as he pushed the man’s arm off his shoulder.

“Is it a problem if I am?”

The man waved his hands, assuring him it was fine.

“No, no, of course not! It’s just… you see, my team’s been lookin' for a Ranger, so when I saw you alone, I thought, ‘hey, wouldn’t it be perfect if we team up?’ So, whaddya think? Interested?”

It wasn’t a bad offer. Competing against the other teams was going to be less efficient than working with them. If not for the man’s suspicious attitude, Liam might have jumped at the offer.

Suddenly, a stern female voice was heard.

“Connor…”

The man stiffened, hearing his name.

“…You’re not causing trouble again, are you? Don’t tell me you already forgot our little talk the other day?”

A familiar woman walked up behind Connor, adjusting her glasses. It was Sherry, the woman who had treated his wounds in the castle during the Tutorial. She looked the same, less the bloodstained clothing from back then; her brown hair, tightly tied into a bun, and her face wearing the same stern look.

Connor put on a bright smile, acting as if he had just run across an old friend.

“Ah, Sherry… I didn’t know you were here yet… Why didn’t you say anything? Did you sleep well? How’s your morning been so far? Hey, isn’t the weather just great today? It sure is shaping up to be a fine day.”

His manner of talking had swapped from casual to polite in an instant.

Sherry’s brow creased slightly in irritation.

“I’ve told you already. It’s Ms. Williams to you. And don’t try to change the subject. Who is this man?”

“Oh, him? He’s someone I just met. I was having a friendly chat with him about joining our-”

“I see. So, you were harassing him, weren’t you? We’ll have-to-have a talk about this later it seems.”

After hearing the word ‘talk’ again, Connor shuddered before desperately pleading.

“No, wait! You’re misunderstanding! I swear, I wasn’t pushy like before. This time I made sure to be polite and respectful… You see, I’ve thought about it a lot since last time, and I realized that I might be a little… well… forceful at times, but I promise I’ve changed.”

Sherry raised one eyebrow.

“Oh, really? Is that so?”

Connor clasped his hands together, begging; it wouldn’t have surprised Liam if he fell to his knees.

“Yes! Yes, it is! Please, believe me! I know that might not mean much coming from me. So, if anything, believe in me as your teammate! I’ve never let you down in the field, right?”

“Hmm… Well, yes, that is true. On missions, you’re a completely different person, dependable even.”

“So then, you’ll…”

Connor’s eyes glistened with hope.

“No.”

Sherry looked at Connor with scorn.

“Had I known what you were like off the battlefield, I never would’ve joined this team.”

“Sherry, even for you… that’s a little harsh…”

“Am I wrong?”

“Well, no… but don’t you think everyone deserves a second chance?”

“You’re on number fifty-six.”

Connor’s jaw dropped.

“Y-You… You’ve been counting!?”

“No. I stopped on the third. At that point, I realized what kind of person you were and gave up hope that you’d correct your ways… I don’t expect much from you.”

“Then why do you keep lecturing me all the time!?”

Sherry snorted, “Because even if you’ll never change. It doesn’t change the fact you cause problems for the rest of the team and me. Someone has to keep you in line, or you’ll end up creating an even bigger mess.”

“You… You think that poorly of me!?”

“Not just me, all of us do… Alright, I’ve heard enough excuses. Apologize and wait with the others. Or would you like to continue this discussion later.”

Connor hung his dead in dejection and muttered under his breath.

“No…”

“Good, then hurry up and apologize.”

Connor turned to Liam.

“Sorry for bothering you…”

He trudged back to the others.

When he was gone, Sherry let out a sigh.

“I’m sorry you had to listen to that, and for any trouble, he may have caused.”

Liam shook his head.

“It’s fine. He was just offering me a spot on your team for the Goblin Hunt.”

“I know that, but he tends to go overboard. If he’s left unchecked, he’ll… Wait… Aren’t you…?”

Sherry paused and began studying Liam’s face.

“…Have we met before?”

“Yeah, you treated me back in the Tutorial. I never introduced myself, though. I’m Liam.”

 “Ah, I was under a lot of stress back then, sorry, I’m not usually that coarse… Oh, and call me Sherry…”

Her eyes gravitated to the bow strapped to Liam’s back.

“Liam, are you by chance a Ranger?”

“Yeah, that’s why your teammate was talking to me earlier. He asked me if I wanted to team up for the Goblin Hunt… If the offer is still available, I don’t mind.”

After thinking it over, Liam had concluded that from a cost benefit perspective, teaming up was the best choice. If it was just Connor, he would have declined. He didn’t mix well with people like him. But it appeared that Sherry kept him under control, and based on what she said, the rest of the team seemed to support her in that regard.

Sherry gave a swift, curt nod.

“Of course, it is…”

Spinning around, she started walking towards the group.

“Come. I’ll introduce you to the others.”

Liam followed, wondering if this entire situation could have been avoided if Connor had explained himself better.

When they joined the others, Sherry got right to the point and introduced Liam to the others.

“This is Liam. He’s a Ranger and will be participating with us for this mission.”

Connor shouted and threw up his hands in protest.

“Woah! Hold on a minute! Didn’t you just get mad at me for trying to recruit him? Why is it wrong when I do it, but its fine for you?!”

Sherry glared at Connor, holding her chin high.

“Given your history, I don’t think my actions were unjustified. For all, I knew you could be extorting him.”

“When have I ever extorted someone!? Do you think I’m some petty thug?!”

Ignoring Connor, Sherry’s teammates introduced themselves. Along with Connor and Sherry, there were three others, Brett, Jackson, and Maggie. All three of them, as well as Connor, were Warriors. While Sherry was a Cleric, fitting given her actions in the Tutorial.

Brett was a tall, well-built man in his thirties that wielded a one-handed mace. Jackson and Maggie were siblings in their twenties, with Maggie being older by a couple years. Both had similar curly, frizzy brown hair and freckles.

The remaining six people participating in the mission were part of a different team. None of them bothered to introduce themselves, and all Liam knew was the leader was called Clint. Unlike Sherry’s team, they had a rough, unfriendly air about them. When Liam noticed a few of them greedily eyeing his equipment, he made a mental note to stay away. They were the type that stabbed you in the back without a second thought.

After a few minutes, they headed into the forest…

The Hunt had begun.