BXBX NOVEL Chapter 192 191: Our First Requests
I had made everyone their own flavored pancakes, which had turned out rather well...
Anput had berries in and on her pancakes, the Jackalkin loving that extra bit of flavor in every bite.
As for Leone, she, of course, had some blood splattered across the top of her cinnamon pancakes, which, honestly, was a little...
Odd to see, but if you thought that the blood was say, strawberry sauce, then it was something that I could stomach...
Jahi simply wanted her plain, buttermilk pancakes, and while I did force her to eat some fruits on top of it, she devoured them swiftly.
As for me, I added some cocoa powder into my batter and created some chocolate pancakes, the bittersweet chocolate making me moan in delight.
Besides the large stacks of fluffy pancakes, I had also crisped some strips of bacon and prepared some small bowls of yogurt, enjoying the cool feeling of the creamy yogurt when paired with the warm fluffy pancakes.
All in all, I was also in bliss as I finished my breakfast, the other two giving me nods before turning back to stare at the content Demoness, smiles on their faces.
When Jahi eventually came down from her food high, we all grabbed our gear and prepared make our way down to the Adventuring District; since it was our off day, Jahi wanted to earn some more coin while also honing our skills.
More specifically, she wanted us to reverse our normal roles; Leone and I would be fighting physically, and Anput and Jahi would utilize their magic more often.
Of course, should we find ourselves in a sticky situation, like with the Coal Serpents, we\'ll fight with our strengths.
But until then...
Strapping my dagger to my belt and patting it a few times, I tightened all the straps on my armor before joining everyone outside.
Making our way down to the Adventuring District, we yet again drew attention, but this time, people remained away from us, lest the large Demoness decide to display her strenght again.
Entering the Guild Hall, we made our way over to the Request Board, where dozens upon dozens of papers were hung up for Adventurers to view.
Since we were Silver Tags, most of the board was available to us, and we all started searching for Requests that interested us.
We decided to go at it individually, so...
Looking at the \'Board\', which was actually the entirety of the wall, I read through various Requests, trying to find the sweet spot of large pay and easy objectives.
Each paper had a strip of metallic material at the top, letting people know the difficulty of the Request; currently in my hands, I held two Silver Requests that I deemed easy.
\'Silver Request: Acquire three liters of Firefang Blood
Reward: 3 Gold, 35 Silvers\'
\'Silver Request: Gather two stalks of Magma Nettle and one bushel of Obsidian Grass
Reward: 5 Gold\'
While I didn\'t know what those materials were, I was also rather curious about Alchemy in general, and this way we could gather some more for Leone as well.
Also, more money.
However, it would also be safer to accept the lower pay for the Firefang Blood, as I DO know where they are, and how to get it.
Walking over to Leone, I saw that she was nodding to herself as she read her own Requests, and she glanced up at me as I approached her.
"So... Magma Nettle and Obsidian Grass... Easy to find and get, or no?"
The Vampire frowned, looking down at the paper in my hands.
"Well... kind of? Magma Nettle grows near Coal Serpent dens, and Obsidian Grass is rather common, since it grows on the Plains in small clusters, but..."
Gesturing towards the other two, she said "It would be best to see what they\'re going to take before we accept any kind of Gathering Request. Since, y\'know, they tend to think about battles first..."
I nodded, and we waited for Jahi and Anput, who were reading through multiple Requests.
Eventually, the two walked over to us, a paper in their hands.
"I\'m taking a Request for a Ghoul Kings Talon, and Anput is going to be looking for a Coal Serpents ribs... which is weird, but whatever."
Hearing that, I placed the Firefang Request back on the board and told her about the herbs I would be gathering, while Leone said "I need to hunt some Obsidian Crabs, so we\'ll be making our way further into the Plains today."
Jahi shrugged, before gesturing towards the desk, where the woman from our first sale sat.
"Well come on; let\'s get this boring part over with."
Anput chuckled at that, walking behind Jahi, while Leone and I shook our heads.
Reaching the desk, we saw the woman give us a warm smile, though it stiffened as I smiled back at her.
"Ahem... welcome back! I guess you\'re taking Requests now?"
Nodding, I placed the paper on the table between us, letting her read it over.
"Alright; since I know you all haven\'t taken Requests before, let me go over the basics, okay?
Individually, you can take one Request of your rank or two of a lower level. Each Request completed successfully will go on your record, which we\'ll get set up when you return. For Silver Tags, you need to complete 30 Requests of your rank in 45 days in order to become Gold Tags, and then you need to complete at least a Gold Request or 5 Silver Requests in a month to maintain your rank.
As a party of four, you can take one Request above your rank or three of your rank. In order to rank up as a group, you need either 50 Requests of your rank in 30 Days or 5 Requests above your rank and 20 of your rank in 30 Days to rank up. When you advance as a party, you are all considered that Rank, but only as a party; if you try to adventure solo, you will be marked down a rank.
As for rewards; the Guild takes a flat rate of 5% for each Request no matter what; that is both our commission and payment for us to guarantee that the Request is going to be completed by the Commissioner. You can sell any extra materials related to your Requests to the Guild, or keep them for yourself.
Any questions?"
Glancing around, everyone shook their heads, so I said "Nope, that was clear and concise, thanks. Do you stamp these or something?"
The receptionist nodded, taking my paper and stamping the bottom right corner.
Handing it back to me, she explained "The acceptance stamp is a hollowed circle, which means you have taken on the Request. When you return and prove you completed it, you will receive the completion stamp, and we will file the Request paper away in your individual file, so the Guild can keep track of your progress."
I nodded again, and everyone gave her their papers, letting the woman stamp them.
Furling them up, I placed them in my pack, making sure they would remain secure and safe.
Smiling back at the woman, I said "We\'ll be back before you know it, and I\'m sure we\'ll have an excellent bargaining session again~!"
That made her smile back at me, a competitive glint in her eye as she nodded.
"Indeed~! Well, good luck out there, and be safe!"
As we were leaving the Guild Hall, I received a notification, surprising me.
[Oh shush. Kinda hard to do much of a job when all you do is-]
\'Please just let me read these...\'
[Hmph, fine. Whatever... I sleep for weeks and she treats me like this...]
Rolling my eyes, I read over the quest, a small smile forming on my lips.
[Quest: Help your Mistress with her Request
Reward: 1,000xp - 10,000xp
Additional Quest: Help your Mistress AND her fiancee\'s with their Requests
Reward: 10,000xp - 25,000xp
Additional Quest: Be nice to the System
Reward: Happy System]
My face deadpanned at the last lines, before sighing as it was erased, the system letting out another [Hmph!]
Ignoring it, I nodded as we walked towards Zhu\'Rong Caverns, and I started to anticipate our outing again.
The splashing of blood, the shrieks of agony...
And now, the coin and experience when I finish indulging my darker desires.
I was going to be paid to inflict suffering on monsters!
However, even though I was looking forwards to the rush of torturing anything I came upon, I was more excited with the thought that this outing might push me towards leveling up, which meant unlocking the Shop Function~!
[As well as a system update; you barely fit the mold as JUST a Servant anymore, so an overhaul is required. Maybe I can get a vacation..?]
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So, these Requests could be a good way to gauge strenght... kinda.
You can see where they place in the Guild based on the difficulty of the Requests, but it\'s still going to be hard to properly scale them.
Besides that, we\'re getting close to me changing the system, which hopefully will be easier for both you, the readers, and me, the author, to wrap our heads around...
Cause I clearly wasn\'t thinking straight with the original, nor have I really made this a \'System\' novel, despite the name of the novel...
Anyways, yeah~!
Back into the Caverns we go~!
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