Chapter 23: Go to dungeons to increase rank [1]
Chapter 23: Go to dungeons to increase rank [1]
Tti-ring
[Daily quests are available again]
A soft voice echoed in Erik's mind, slowly bringing him out of his deep sleep. Once fully awake, he found himself staring at the worn ceiling of his apartment, with a familiar state window right in his field of vision.
"Uaaah... let's see what today's mission is," Erik muttered letting out a long yawn, opening the window of information floating in front of him.
Tti-ring
[Daily mission: Clear Dungeon and Monster Hunt!]
Goal: Clear a rank E dungeon and eliminate monsters.
Dungeon - Rank E, 1 time: incomplete (0/1)
Monsters - Rank E, 30 times: incomplete (0/30)
Boss monsters - Rank D, 1 time: incomplete (0/1)
? Warning 1: If you do not complete the daily mission, you will be in a negative state for one week.
? Warning 2: If you do not complete the daily quests, you will be sent to a random dungeon area for 4 hours.
"This quest fits me like a glove," Erik exclaimed after reading the contents of the quest. He got out of bed and sent a message to Violet, telling her where to meet him, to start cleaning dungeons.
Once the message was sent to Violet, Erik headed straight to the bathroom to get ready. A few minutes later, he came out of the bathroom, dried his hair, and checked his phone, where Violet had answered the message: "OK, I'll be there in an hour".
After reading the reply, Erik finished changing and tidying up the place a bit, preparing a suitcase where he had stored the few clothes he owned. Then he left for the place where he would meet Violet.
....
Getting off the bus with ten minutes to spare before the appointed time, Erik entered a restaurant that, while not luxurious, was comfortable. He sat down at an empty table to wait for Violet, who would not be long in arriving.
As he watched people pass by through the windows, one of the waitresses approached him in a soft voice and asked:
"Is there anything you wish to order?"
Erik flipped through the menu the waitress handed him, thinking for a few seconds about what to have for breakfast. It was the first time he had eaten at this kind of restaurant, as he couldn't afford it before.
"I'd like some scrambled eggs with French bread and a chocolate, hot please," he said after reading the menu. It was a small luxury he was allowing himself as a reward for these days.
The waitress wrote everything down with a smile. Once she composed the order, she took the menu and headed to the kitchen to put it on Erik's list.
As he waited for his food, a woman of great beauty with white hair and black glasses walked through the door. She held a helmet in her hand and wore a white sweatshirt with a black and purple bunny pattern. She attracted the attention of all the men in the restaurant.
"This woman is really beautiful, will she have a boyfriend?"
"Of course, she will. Look how beautiful she is. It would be impossible for her to be single."
"What luck that woman's boyfriend has. I envy him."
"Yeah, me too. I hope the boyfriend doesn't work out well, then he won't be able to enjoy that woman."
The entire restaurant was filled with whispers with the arrival of the beautiful woman that was Violet, who watched as if she was looking for someone. Until she saw a raised hand that she immediately recognized and made her way to the table where a man was waiting for his food.
"Hi~, you're earlier than agreed," Violet said with a smile as she placed her helmet to the side and removed her glasses.
"Well, I live far away and don't have a vehicle to transport me," Erik replied with a smile, giving Violet a quick glance before averting his gaze to the street, where both normal people and hunters were passing by.
Violet, sensing that quick glance which, unlike the lustful glances of the men in the restaurant, contained no malice, flashed a satisfied smile and took a seat across from Erik. Shortly thereafter, the waitress arrived with the food Erik had ordered.
"Enjoy," the waitress said with a smile before heading off to serve other customers.
"What do you say we start with the association to upgrade our rank or go straight to the dungeons?" posed Violet as she watched Erik starting his meal.
Erik didn't respond right away, as he was chewing. When he finally swallowed, he replied, "I think we should keep our ranks for the time being. If we upgrade our ranks now, we might get the attention of some guilds, especially since we're still D-ranked."
Furthermore, the hunters' association was still overwhelmed due to the recent incident. If they rose in rank, they might attract the attention of the Luminis guild, especially Erik, who had registered as a hunter not even a month ago. Obviously, that would attract the attention of many emerging guilds.
Therefore, Erik decided for now to stay in rank while strengthening his skills. It was the safest option before Richard's father became aware of his son's disappearance.
Violet agreed with what he said and added, "And as for raiding the dungeons, we could look for a group."
Erik shook his head as he took a sip of his chocolate, really enjoying that breakfast. It really was worth eating at this place.
"We'll go just the two of us so as not to involve innocent people in our trouble. Besides, there won't be any trouble getting us arrested since there are only two of us, and that's the minimum requirement to enter low-ranked dungeons as E-ranked hunters," Erik explained as he wiped his mouth with a napkin.
"I understand, finish your food so we can explore a dungeon before someone else takes it," Violet said.
"And how many dungeons are available now?" asked Erik.
Instead of answering, Violet handed him his phone so he could check himself to see how many dungeons were currently available to explore. Erik took the phone and started checking it.
There were six free dungeons, all close to his current location. After checking these, Erik concluded his meal, asked for the bill, and prepared to meet the goal of completing the daily mission.
After paying for the meal, they both left the restaurant and Violet asked:
"Which dungeon are we going to first?"
"We're going to the nearest one before someone else takes it," Erik replied.
Violet ascended, verified the address, handed the helmet to Erik, and without delay they headed for the nearest dungeon. After a journey of about twenty minutes, they arrived at the dungeon guarded by an association worker.
Violet put on her wizard robe and pulled out her wand. For his part, Erik simply went into the bathroom and pulled out his spear to avoid awkward questions from Violet such as, "How did you do that?" or "Can I use space magic?"
"Just the two of you?" asked the association worker.
"Yes, just the two of us," Violet confirmed.
"Can I have your hunter cards?" requested the worker.
They complied and handed over their hunter cards, which the worker quickly checked before handing them back to them.
Since there was nothing else to do, Erik and Violet entered the dungeon.
....
On the top floor of the Luminis Guild, a man in his forties expressed with concern, "Is there any trace of my son?" his eyes turned to the huge window overlooking the city.
The secretary replied, "No, Mr. Alexander, we have found no trace of the young master."
Alexander Belmonte, who currently held the presidency of the Luminis Guild, which was experiencing rapid growth, and was one of the few B-ranked hunters in the city, was also Richard's father.
"What do you mean there's no trace of my son?", Alexander spoke with a neutral tone while letting his magic power flow.
"Ugh, I'm sorry, sir. Since yesterday, we haven't heard from the young master," replied the visibly nervous secretary feeling the pressure.
"Is there really no trace of my son?"
"No, sir, it seems he escaped with his girlfriend, Cristina, using some magical object," reported the secretary.
"And is there any trace of this supposed girlfriend?"
"No, sir."
"Hmm, this is extremely strange...," Alexander muttered as his eyes flashed coldly. He looked skyward, sensing that something bad had happened to his son, though he didn't know what. However, he was almost certain that some of his enemies had something to do with Richard's disappearance.
Given his status as a B-ranked hunter and president of a rapidly rising guild, it was obvious that his enemies were involved in some way.
'But how did the information leak out that he had a son,' Alexander was extremely paranoid when it came to his personal information or anything related to his son. Before reaching his current position, he had had to do inhumane things.
'I just hope my son is alive,' he thought to himself.
"Sir, what should we do then?" the secretary asked.
Alexander looked at him and replied, "For now, let's wait for him to show up. If he doesn't, order a thorough search, even under rocks."
"I understand!"
....