Luke scanned the group to see how everyone was reacting to the new quest they had received. It had been so unexpected that everyone had been thoroughly caught off guard, including himself. Theodore, who left not too long before, had rushed back once he saw the quest, while the knights had to be tracked down since they weren't privy to the quests.
[Quest]
[Wipe Out the Demon Infestation]
[A large group of demons has taken up residence in the forest near the castle and must be evicted before it becomes too large.]
[Locate where the demons are hiding and kill all of them.]
[You will be rewarded based on your performance.]
As it turned out, none of the other parties had received the quest. Luke wasn't sure whether he should feel worried or grateful. Of course, as soon as they mentioned that they had received the party, everyone else went crazy. They have the misfortune of being the first party to receive a quest since the last time. This made everyone else anxious about when they would receive their next quest.Before they set off, 'Kayla' cornered him in private. "This didn't happen last time, you know.""Obviously," Luke said. He was about to leave when he paused to ask her, "Do you have any ideas?""Of course not. After what you did to me, I haven't been able to listen to what the other angels are saying," she said with a scowl.He chose to concentrate on the quest rather than on her. As the party made their way through the forest, Lu
The more time passed and the more the group traveled, the more relaxed they became. Well, everyone except Luke. He couldn't blame them though. So far, nothing had attacked them, and there had been no signs of demons whatsoever. How could they not relax when everything seemed so peaceful? Luke was cheating a little since he had experience keeping his guard up for long stretches of time, even in seemingly peaceful times compared to his party and the knights.What concerned him was that the demons hadn't attacked them. There were several reasons he could think of that would keep them from attacking. One was that the demons were not nearby. However, the lack of animal life suggested that something wasn't quite right. Of course, it was possible that the animals had scattered because they had sensed the demons' approach and wanted to avoid them. This was the option he preferred the most.Anoth
Luke wanted to curse himself for jinxing them as a tree size rat towered over them. It had to be the leader. The only good thing was that its appearance meant they were close to completing the quest, as the rats would become lost without their leader. The group readied themselves for the fight of their lives as the rat let out a deafening squeak.He winced as he felt the vibrations ringing in his ears and realized he couldn't properly move his limbs. The others weren't in any better condition. One knight had collapsed to the ground, unable to move, while another had to use his sword to keep himself from falling to the ground. Bobby and Chris were unable to properly aim their bows. Theodore, on the other hand, swayed in place. Grace had fallen to her knees and looked like she was on the verge of vomiting.The demon rat must have activated its paralyzing howl skill to incapacitate them. Th
While they looked exhausted, they also looked proud and satisfied that they were able to take down the demon rat. He had to admit that he felt the same way, but it was directed at them rather than the fact that they had defeated the demon rat. It had been a tough fight for everyone, and they had all been injured, but they did it in the end by working together.Luke wanted to puke as soon as he thought of that. This wasn't some kind of fantasy where the power of friendship solved everything. Those only appeared in stories as a result of some deus ex machina. It was completely unrealistic, and thinking about it just ruined his mood. His thoughts must have shown on his face, as everyone was giving him strange looks.Probably intending to help him out, Grace spoke up, asking, "What do we do with the demon rat's corpse? Are we supposed to bring it?"Everyone
"If that's all you're here for, then you can at least wait for me to finish my bath," Luke said, exasperated."What's wrong with me seeing you like this? Isn't this normal?" 'Kayla' asked.Even by this world's standards, it wasn't. The only times someone else would intrude on someone's bath time are if it were a servant serving their master, for intimate reasons, or in an emergency. None of those things were true in this case unless she was willing to help him bathe, which he definitely didn't want. He didn't want her getting her hands on him. The thought made him want to scrub his skin harder. There was also something bothering him."You're an angel. Doesn't this kind of thing bother you?" he asked.'Kayla' had been the one to always complain about humans and act disgusted by anything they did. She even stated that an
Luke mulled over what he had learned from 'Kayla'. He wasn't sure what to do with the information, as it didn't aid him in any way. While it did add to the importance of the demon kings, given their title, it was obvious how important the demon kings were to begin with. Anything with king or something similar had to mean they were the leader or leaders in this case. Knowing more about them didn't help him in the slightest unless it helped him grow stronger."I hope we don't get another quest any time soon. I'm all worn out from the last one," said Bobby.His words were enough to distract Luke from his thoughts regarding his conversation with 'Kayla' while he had been taking a bath. It had been an uncomfortable experience, and one he would rather never have again if he could help it. They were fortunate that no one had seen them in such an awkward situation and spread rumors about
The archer looked ready to faint from fright, and Luke couldn't say that he blamed them. It was really poor luck that they were the next group to receive their quest. Actually, it wouldn't have mattered whether or not they went first or last. They were still out of luck, no matter how they looked at it. All they could do now was hope it wasn't a difficult quest like the one that had cost them a party member.Considering the quest that Luke's group had received and completed, he didn't have much confidence that they would be that fortunate. The looks on the party's faces seemed to support his thoughts. Everyone else was giving them pitying looks as it was clear that they would probably not make it out in one piece, if at all. However, there was nothing they could do to help them.Suddenly, the mage declared, "I refuse."In front of everyone's stunned eye
After the display, no one wanted to risk the system punishing them for not going through with the quest. Of course, no one has thought of it before, but if they had, this would certainly make sure they wouldn't do it. Obviously, things would have been different if the punishment had been less severe or if they hadn't been punished at all. The system must have taken that time before dealing out the punishment.Another group had left to complete their assigned quest, which had popped up not long after that group had rejected their quest a few days ago as it had been set in another town. No one knew for sure whether or not this was the same quest that the previous group had rejected. Because the individuals were still unconscious as a result of whatever had happened to them, they couldn't get their answers from them.Luke had managed to get a peek at their information before he was turned a