### Chapter 4: The Side Quest Spiral
Elrik doubled down. "Side quests build character," he told himself, taking every D-Rank job: delivering letters (wrong town, sparked a feud), herding chickens (one pecked his eye), unclogging sewers (rat stole his coin). Each failure chipped at his ambition, but he pressed on.
He overheard Kael's party planning to storm the Demon Lord's castle. "This is it," Elrik thought. "I'll sneak in, save the day, and rewrite my story." Armed with a rusty dagger from a ditch, he followed. The castle was gothic chaos—spikes, fog, ominous organ music. Kael's sword now had a theme song. Lyria's spells bent reality. Zane's smirk was a war crime.
Elrik hid in a barrel, waiting for the final battle. The Demon Lord monologued about eternal darkness. Kael countered with hope. Lyria cried about her mentor. Zane posed. Elrik leapt out, dagger raised. "I'll end this!" The Demon Lord flicked him into a wall. Kael's party won, saved the world, and left Elrik concussed in rubble.
Mira bandaged him at the bakery. "You're persistent," she said. "Stupid, but persistent." Elrik's ambition, battered, whispered, *"One more try."*