I stumbled back into Stone City looking pretty rough. My right arm that used to be there was now just a bandaged stump. First thing I needed to do was find something to hide this disability.
"Ma'am, I'll buy a cloak," I said to a middle-aged vendor at a roadside stall. She looked at me with surprise, her eyes widening as they fixed on my right arm.
"What did you go and do, kid... your arm..." She gaped at me. I closed my eyes and sighed deeply, raising my remaining left arm to brush at the air like I was dusting off invisible particles.
"Well, I'm a legendary-level Hunter, ma'am! Just got back from fighting a catastrophic-level demon! Total bloodbath, super intense!" I rambled on, putting on my most proud expression.
"Anyway, here's the money." I quickly handed over some coins, grabbed a dark-colored cloak and threw it over myself. At least it would somewhat hide the abnormality of my right arm, before rushing straight to the Hunter Guild without waiting for anything else.
"Hey kid! Your change!" the vendor shouted after me.
"Don't worry about it! Keep the tip!" I yelled back without turning around. Give what? I totally forgot there was change. Whatever, I've run this far already. Too lazy to go back for it!
Finally made it to the Hunter Guild. The atmosphere inside was still as rowdy and chaotic as always. The smell of sweat, alcohol, and rusty metal all mixed together into something uniquely this place.
"Rift!" A familiar greeting rang out. Ugh, what the hell? I ran into him again. Kylo! This guy really shows up everywhere, every time. Seriously gonna drive me crazy!
"What's up," I replied curtly in my usual style.
"Got something I need to talk to you about," Kylo said seriously.
"Let's go inside first. Too many people here," I said while leading the way to our usual corner table in the guild.
"That new cloak looks pretty good," Kylo commented as we sat down. "Oh! What's that? A short sword too. Where'd you get it from?" His eyes looked at the strange short sword I had strapped to my waist.
I didn't answer that question, but chose to look at Kylo's face instead.
"Got something important to tell you," Kylo immediately got to the point. He pulled some kind of equipment from a leather pouch at his waist. It was a short staff that looked simple but had some kind of energy I could sense.
"This is... a Soul Staff," Kylo's eyes sparkled.
"Know what this means?" He continued without waiting for an answer. "This is advanced equipment that's only given to those who join the Soul Order."
"Soul Order??" I repeated, confused. I'd never heard this name before.
"Ah... it's the organization that founded independent guilds like this Hunter one. You could say it's the main organization for Soul power users," Kylo explained.
"And the fact that you got this... means..." I started piecing the story together.
"Yeah... I went and took the exam, and I passed and joined," Kylo grinned widely with pride.
*ROAAARRRR!*
Before I could congratulate my best friend, a terrifying roar echoed from outside the guild!
Kylo quickly stashed his Soul Staff back in the leather pouch at his waist. His expression immediately turned serious before he shot out of the guild at high speed!
"Again?!" I cursed.
"Someone turned into a Soul Either again!" one of the hunters in the guild shouted.
I quickly ran after Kylo to see what was happening. What I saw was Kylo facing off against a massive Soul Either. Orange-red energy blazed up around both his hands, radiating heat I could feel.
He lunged forward and smashed the Soul Either's face with incredible speed and force! Not only that, he grabbed both its legs and slammed the giant body hard into the ground! Then he pulled out his Soul Staff again, gathering high-level energy until the staff glowed brilliantly, before firing a massive fireball precisely at the Soul Either's weak spot!
*BOOM!*
The Soul Either let out one final howl before dissolving into dust.
Kylo stood still, breathing heavily, sweat covering his body. People in the area were all panicking and running around in chaos. The hunters from the guild who had followed us out were all stunned by Kylo's power.
I noticed some kind of symbol I'd never seen before adorning Kylo's cloak. It had an intricate and powerful-looking design.
"Hey! That's the Soul Order symbol!" one hunter exclaimed.
"Yeah, that's definitely it!" another voice added.
"That kid really passed the Soul Order exam!"
"Well, we can all see that! Power like that!"
"But... wasn't he just B-rank?"
Whispered comments and speculation rose up from all directions before Kylo walked straight over to me with a gentle smile.
"Like you saw," he said. "From now on I probably won't be hanging around the Hunter Guild as much, Rift."
"But you can always come find me," Kylo said while pointing toward the massive stone castle that stood majestically at the edge of the city. That was the Stone King's castle. Everyone knew it was where the emperor who ruled this city lived. Some said this world really had gods, and the Stone God watched over this city from that very castle.
But that stuff was probably just fairy tales for kids. I didn't know much about it, and I wasn't interested either.
"See you around, Kylo," I said goodbye, though I felt a little sad.
"Yeah... of course, buddy," Kylo patted my shoulder lightly.
"Everyone too! Thanks for looking after me all this time!" Kylo waved goodbye to the hunters in the guild before turning and walking determinedly toward the Stone Castle.
What the hell... so sudden. I could only smile awkwardly, but deep down I knew I had my own things to handle too. And I already had a new mission in hand.
[C-Rank: Find lost item in Rusty city / Reward: 677 Credits]
Finding lost items... right, Hunter Guild work isn't just killing Soul Either. Like F-rank jobs, you might have to take photos of them, or find lost cats. But this is C-rank to find a lost item... hmm, pretty interesting.
Wait... but what exactly is the lost item? I flipped the mission sheet to check the details again.
[Item to find: Stone Wolf Mask]
What the hell does it look like? But whatever, I need to find it today. Otherwise I'll be late for my appointment with that guy in Sliver town. Damn it! Nothing but things to think about, nothing but things to do non-stop. And I just lost an arm too.
Good thing Kylo didn't notice or ask about my arm much. Phew... dodged a bullet there.
Whatever... let's just get going. Rusty city... I've heard it's a pretty good place. Even though I've only been in Rust Forest before, never actually in the city. Hope I don't run into any more trouble.