[Contamination Cleanup in the Cave]
Over the past half-month, the quality of the town's backup water supply has deteriorated noticeably, accompanied by a foul odor.
A preliminary survey has confirmed the presence of slimes inside an abandoned cave along the subterranean river of the backup water source. Their secretions are the primary cause of the contamination.
To safeguard the drinking water and health of Blackstone Town's residents, we are recruiting a reliable, efficient adventurer party to proceed to the abandoned cave and carry out the following commission:
Quest Rank: Normal
Quest Objectives:
Eliminate all slimes inside the abandoned cave and investigate the situation.
Bounty:
Three silver coins per slime, with slime magic cores serving as proof of kill.
Association Note:
The interior of the abandoned cave is dark and damp. Please ensure you prepare sufficient lighting equipment.
"Not bad. Let's go with this one," Zelier agreed with a nod.
Slimes were not much of a threat, and since he had learned the Light spell, it would come in handy.
"By the way, is it just the two of us on this quest? Won't that be a little risky?" Zelier suddenly remembered to ask.
"Count me in, then," another familiar voice chimed in.
Vallis, the half-elf ranger, had just arrived at the Adventurers' Association. Carrying his longbow on his back, he wore his usual poker-faced expression that warned strangers away.
Even so, Zelier held Vallis's combat strength and character in high regard.
He was cold on the outside but warm on the inside. Even toward Gray, whom he could not stand, Vallis had stepped in to treat his wounds rather than leave him to die.
"Then that makes three of us." Marcus pondered for a moment, looking between Zelier and Vallis. "Do we need to recruit anyone else?"
"Should be enough, shouldn't it? Slimes aren't all that dangerous. Calling anyone else would just be a waste," Vallis said.
Zelier agreed.
The danger level was low anyway.
Besides, with fewer people, each of them would take home a larger cut of the reward.
"Speaking of which, what about Gray? Have either of you seen him lately?" Zelier asked.
"I saw him outside the tavern last night." Vallis let out a snort. "That guy has the constitution of an ox. Bandaged across his chest and shoulder, yet full of vigor—hurt like that, and he still didn't forget to visit his little coterie of lovers."
"Gray can't sit still. Asking him to stay put is like asking him to die." Marcus shook his head. "Then it'll just be the three of us for this quest."
Marcus the low-rank warrior, Vallis the low-rank ranger, and Zelier the Magic Apprentice.
With the party set, Marcus led them to the counter to accept the quest. The team agreed to assemble at the Blackstone Town checkpoint the next morning.
Leaving the Adventurers' Association, Zelier began preparing for the commission.
Although he was a mage, until he reached the point where he could fling low-tier spells at will and drape protective wards over himself, he still needed to buy some essential gear.
Lest he capsize in a gutter, after all.
Zelier was not very familiar with Blackstone Town yet, but there was no need to search for a blacksmith's shop—all he had to do was follow the rhythmic clanging of hammers.
On a street not far from the Nightflower Inn, Zelier picked out a smithy.
The shop was open-fronted, resembling a three-walled stone cavern that fully displayed the fiery scene within.
Just standing by the entrance, Zelier could feel a wave of scorching, metallic heat wash over him.
Tongues of fire licked from the forge's mouth, warping the surrounding air in shimmering waves.
A bare-chested man was working the bellows, sweat streaming over corded muscle in a display of raw, wild strength.
"I'm Brown, the owner," the man said in a raspy voice. "You looking to buy ready-made gear, or place a custom order?"
"Uh... ready-made." Zelier was a bit intimidated by the display.
"The finished wares are all over there. If you fancy anything, let me know and I'll take it down for you to try." Brown gestured toward a room on the right. "Go ahead and pick."
The room was divided into two sections: armor on display in the front half, and weapons in the back.
Zelier's goal was to get a suitable piece of protective gear and a handy weapon.
As for armor, cloth was out of the question.
It offered far too little protection, and since he wielded fire magic, a single mishap might set himself ablaze.
Chainmail was too expensive and unnecessary—he was not a frontline tank meant to absorb damage.
After weighing his options, Zelier settled on a studded leather cuirass.
The main body was made of boiled, wax-treated cuirbouilli reinforced with riveted iron plates, providing solid defense against slashing attacks.
For a weapon, Zelier browsed around and chose a rapier.
It was light and easy to swing.
Even without any formal swordsmanship training, he could wield it freely, mainly using it for situations where casting magic was unnecessary.
The two pieces of equipment set him back eighty silver coins in total.
Stepping out of the smithy and looking at his thinning coin purse, Zelier felt a twinge of melancholy.
He had only a dozen or so silver coins left.
He felt like he had barely bought anything, yet the money had simply vanished.
Sure enough, the path of a mage truly burned gold... His biggest expense over the past few days had been the ash wood wand base, which had swallowed three gold coins in one go.
And that was merely a single component of a finished wand.
Zelier sighed.
Alas... he had to work hard on quests to earn some coin.
At noon the following day, Zelier arrived at the meeting point on time, where Marcus and Vallis were already waiting.
During their last quest, Marcus's buckler and battle blade had both been destroyed.
This time, he had upgraded his gear, replacing them with a larger single-handed shield and a better battle blade.
Vallis kept to his usual setup: a scimitar at his hip and a bow and arrows on his back.
With the party assembled, they set off toward the abandoned cave.
According to the map provided with the commission, the destination was not far from town, roughly a three- to four-hour trek on foot.
If they moved briskly, they might even make it back to Blackstone Town in time for dinner once the quest was wrapped up.
Nothing eventful happened along the way. After traversing a sparse patch of woods, Marcus finally spotted the outline of the abandoned cave.
"This is the place." Marcus put away the map.
Straight ahead lay a dark cave mouth, about three to four meters high and wide enough for several people to walk abreast, so the terrain would not hamper their fighting strength.
The outer rock walls were blanketed in dark green, slick moss, while the rock face beneath showed a deep crimson hue that looked faintly eerie.
Vallis crouched down and inspected the ground closely.
"What are you looking at?" Zelier squatted down beside him.
"Slime."
Vallis pointed to glistening trails on the ground.
"When slimes move, they leave a trail of slime behind. By reading these, you can get a rough estimate of how many there are."
Following Vallis's guidance, Zelier looked closer.
Sure enough, thick, viscous fluid coated the stone, trailing off deep into the dark interior of the cave.
Chapter 20