Chapter 25: Chapter 25: Power difference

When Baleg called them to the front desk, they were worried. Was Armaros discovered? Were they getting kicked out of the guild for only taking easy quests?

They walked towards the half-orc like prisoners on death row. And he chuckled when he saw them.

"Relax, I have good news," Baleg pulled out three badges and handed them over. "You were busy bees, and the guild master thought you needed a reward."

"D rank?" Leander said in amazement. Dorian grinned and proudly showed off his C rank badge. Morris was also grinning, for he was now A rank.

"How did we manage that?" Dorian croaked out, not believing what he was seeing.

"You did the quota for ranking up. We took your injuries into account. Healer, you nearly made it to C too, but that one hospital stay where you had both your leg and arm broken took you out of the running," Leander nodded. He was not disappointed in the slightest. D was better than F by far.

"Anyway, your quota as a D rank party has risen to twenty quests per month. If you don't do it, you will drop to your old ranks," Baleg watched as the three paled and rushed to the quest board.

"What is the game plan?" Leander asked as his eyes scanned the F quests.

"We take as many of these as we can, and we keep on training," Morris stated and pointed at the F rank quests. There was one to walk a pack of dogs. Another to go and weed a garden. And, finally, one to babysit.

"What a joke. A bunch of bottom feeders," came a voice from behind them, and they all turned to look at the man who spoke. Their protests died in their throats. It was Jean. An S class archer. "Step aside. I hope there are some dragons in need of slaying."

They did so, and Jean and his party members went to stare at the S rank quests. The other two members were not as famous as the archer, but they were both A rank. So, an S quest wouldn't be outside the party's capabilities.

As the three stood awkwardly, they looked at the more experienced party. Their tank was more muscular than Morris. Their mage didn't have a single scar on his face, a proof that his barriers were top-notch stuff. And Jean was all muscle, but still lean enough to be flexible.

In short, those three were what the Morris-Leander-Dorian party wanted to be, but was a long way off from. Jean and his party left, and the three were back to the quest board.

"You know, we will never improve if we become bottom feeders," Dorian spoke, looking down at his feet. "We have to take risks."

"We still have a lot of training to go through," Morris countered. It didn't sit well with him, either. But the memory of seeing Leander in the hospital after every big mission was enough to wash away his hurt pride.

"We are ready. I won't hold you back," Leander was looking at Morris, and the axe warrior's eyes widened.

"I didn't mean that," Morris defended himself, but Leander shook his head.

"You didn't have to say it for me to know what you thought. I know I am the weakest link in the party," both Morris and Dorian began shaking their heads, but Leander continued on. "But I have a purpose now. Not getting hurt on a mission is going to help with that purpose. And, after we get back, we will go to the faucet and run, in place, with the children again. We can't let them hear that we only do F quests. They will be disappointed."

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"A bit of a low blow to use the munchkins," Morris said, and he looked at the C rank quests. "How about this one? It is worth five quest slots."

The other two traced his finger to where he was pointing.

Kill the snow vine that is nesting around Lone Hill.

Destroy the nest.

Pay: 20 gold coins per person.

Time: one week.

"That sounds doable," if they were going to face off just one vine, then it wouldn't be much of a problem. Even if snow vines were three meters high, on average, and could freeze people alive.

Morris placed his hand in the middle of their triangle, and the other two placed their hands over his. They raised their hands and went back to Baleg.

Jean and his party were just leaving, when the archer turned around.

"Let me guess? You are taking the dogs on a walk?" His tone was condescending, and the three adventurers did not like it.

"No, we are taking out the snow vine of Lone Hill," Dorian informed him, keeping his tone respectful. The last thing he wanted was for Jean to challenge their party to an honor duel and make them look like fools in front of the entire guild.

"Hm, you don't look good enough to walk the dogs, much less tackle the upstart weed. But, it is your funeral," Jean barked a laugh and his party members chuckled too. Then, they left, and the three partners stepped towards Baleg.

"You don't want that quest just because you were made fun of, do you? Because if you don't feel ready, I am not giving it to you," Baleg was frowning at them. His eyes would find the retreating backs of the other party, and they would narrow. Only for them to soften once he saw the people before them.

"It had nothing to do with the assholes," Morris said, not caring if Jean and his party could hear him. "We wanted a challenge. And we have a pack of admirers that are aged between 3-14 that we don't want to disappoint."

 Baleg nodded and handed them the license, having heard which quest they were taking.

"Enjoy the seaside. Make sure to take one day off to laze around the beach. While it is still summer," Baleg suggested, and the three nodded.

"See you in a couple of days, Baleg," Leander said, and they all waved at the half-orc, heading to the item shop. Baleg watched them go. Jean did this to every party. Some were stronger for it, some ended up dead. Baleg hoped that these three, whose party was yet to be named, fell into the former category.

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