Chapter 16: Mission Selection
Lev stared at the mission board, feeling completely overwhelmed. The wall stretched before him, covered from floor to ceiling with hundreds of mission requests, each one a small piece of paper pinned to the board with different colored borders that seemed to indicate some kind of ranking system. The sheer volume of choices made his head spin.
How am I supposed to pick just one? he thought, his eyes darting from notice to notice, trying to make sense of the chaotic display.
The board was organized in sections, he could see that much. At the bottom, dozens of copper-bordered notices covered the lower half of the wallâregional missions, mostly, with descriptions that ranged from "Escort merchant caravan to Millbrook" to "Clear rats from basement of the Golden Goose Inn." As his eyes traveled upward, the notices became fewer but more elaborate, with bronze borders, until at the very top, silver-bordered missions sat in their own section, protected by a small railing that kept them separate from the common requests.
Gold and diamond missions must be kept in private areas, he realized, remembering what the receptionist had said. As a copper rank, I can only take copper missions.
But even limiting himself to the copper section left him with dozens of options, each one representing a different path forward, a different way to prove himself as an adventurer. The variety was staggeringâmonster hunts, escort jobs, material gathering, dungeon exploration, city maintenance. How was he supposed to know which one would be right for him?
"First time looking at the mission board?"
The voice came from beside him, cheerful and slightly nasal. Lev turned to see a young man he recognized from the testing Finn, the scrawny kid he'd talked with while waiting for their evaluations. Now he wore the same copper adventurer badge that Lev had just received, and his face was split in a wide, enthusiastic grin.
"Finn," the young man said, extending his hand. "Great to see you again! Congratulations on passing!"
Lev shook the offered hand, noting how thin Finn's wrist felt in his grip. The boy was indeed scrawnyâtall but wiry, with sharp features and bright eyes that seemed to take in everything around them with eager interest. His brown hair was tousled and slightly greasy, and his clothes, while clean, showed signs of frequent wear and careful mending.
"Lev," he replied. "And thank you. You passed too, I see."
"Just barely!" Finn laughed, the sound high-pitched and infectious. "But hey, passing is passing, right? Now we're both official adventurers!" He gestured toward the mission board with obvious excitement. "So, first time looking at all this, huh? It can be pretty overwhelming at first."
Lev nodded, feeling a mixture of relief and wariness. It was nice to have someone offer help, but he'd learned to be cautious around strangers, especially those who seemed overly friendly. Still, Finn's enthusiasm seemed genuine, and Lev could use all the guidance he could get.
"It's... a lot," Lev admitted, gesturing toward the wall of notices.
"Tell me about it!" Finn said, moving closer to the board. "When I first saw this, I just stood here for like an hour trying to figure out what everything meant. But don't worryâI've got you covered! Consider me your big brother mentor for the day."
The phrase "big brother mentor" made Lev's eyebrows rise slightly. Finn was clearly older than him, but not by muchâmaybe seventeen or eighteen to Lev's fifteen. The idea of this scrawny, enthusiastic stranger acting as his mentor was both amusing and slightly concerning. But there was something endearing about Finn's over-the-top personality, even if it felt a bit forced.
"Thanks," Lev said, trying to keep his tone neutral. "I could use some guidance."
"Perfect!" Finn clapped his hands together, his eyes lighting up with obvious pleasure at having someone to help. "Okay, so here's how this works. The board is organized by rankâcopper at the bottom, bronze in the middle, silver and gold at the top. Since we're both copper rank, we can only take copper missions, but that's actually not as limiting as it sounds."
He moved closer to the board, pointing at different sections as he spoke. "See, copper missions cover a pretty wide range of stuff. You've got your basic escort jobsâmerchants who need protection on the road, that kind of thing. Then there's material gatheringâpeople need specific herbs, ores, monster parts, whatever. Some of the more adventurous types go for dungeon delving, though that's more common at bronze rank."
Finn's finger moved across the board as he continued his explanation. "There's also monster population controlâvillages that are getting overrun by creatures, that kind of thing. City pest control tooârats, giant insects, whatever's causing problems in the urban areas. And then there are the really specialized onesâpeople looking for specific cards, rare materials, that kind of thing."
Lev found himself nodding along, impressed by Finn's knowledge. The young man clearly had done his research, and his enthusiasm was infectious despite Lev's initial wariness.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
"The pay's not bad for copper missions," Finn continued. "Usually a few silvers each, though you do have to pay guild taxes on whatever you earn. But the real advantage is that you can start to specialize. Find the kind of missions that match your abilities, build up experience in that area, and eventually you can start taking on more complex jobs."
"What do you specialize in?" Lev asked, curious despite himself.
Finn's face lit up with obvious pride. "Metal detection and ore finding! I've got this amazing card that lets me sense metallic materials from pretty far away. Dungeons, caverns, old ruinsâanywhere there might be valuable ores or metal artifacts, I can find them."
He held out his hand, and a translucent image of a compass with metallic elements embedded in its surface appeared above his palm. Lev watched with interestâit was a common practice among card wielders to project images of their bonded cards when explaining their abilities to others. The magical projection showed the card's artwork without revealing the full details that only the wielder could see through their personal interface.
metal_detector_compass [https://i.imgur.com/3ef2VQp.png]
"It's a common card, but it's perfect for what I want to do. I'm planning to focus on material gathering missions, maybe some dungeon exploration once I get more experience."
"That sounds nice," Lev said, though he couldn't help wondering how profitable that kind of specialization would be.
"Oh, it is!" Finn said, his enthusiasm undimmed. "You'd be surprised how much people will pay for rare metals or ancient artifacts. And once I get good enough, I can start working with teams on bigger projects. But that's getting ahead of myself."
Lev found himself curious despite his wariness. "Since when did you get interested in finding shiny stuff? I mean, metal detection seems like a pretty specific thing to specialize in."
Finn's expression shifted, his usual cheerfulness dimming slightly. For a moment, he looked almost reluctant to answer, but then he shrugged. "Well... it's kind of a long story, but I guess it started with my family. My father's a blacksmith. A good one, tooâhe's got a shop in the merchant district, makes weapons and armor for adventurers and guards. He always wanted me to follow in his footsteps, you know? Learn the family trade, take over the business someday."
He gestured toward his thin frame with a self-deprecating smile. "But I never had the talent for it. My brother, thoughâhe's a natural. Strong, good with his hands, understands metal in a way I never could. Dad was always comparing us, and I always came up short."
Lev found himself feeling a pang of sympathy despite his wariness. He knew what it was like to feel inadequate, to be compared to others and found wanting.
"So when I got my awakening money from Dad," Finn continued, "I had a choice. I could buy a card that would help me with blacksmithingâfire control, strength enhancement, that kind of thing. Or I could buy something that actually interested me."
He gestured toward the translucent compass image still floating above his palm. "I chose this. I've always loved metal, ore, shiny thingsâthere's something about the way light catches on polished steel or the weight of good iron in your hands. But I couldn't work with it the way Dad wanted. So I thought, maybe I could find it instead."
Finn's expression grew more somber. "Dad didn't take it well. Said I was throwing away my future, that I was being selfish and stupid. When I wouldn't change my mind, he... well, he told me to get out. Said if I wasn't going to be useful to the family, I wasn't welcome in the house."
Lev felt his heart clench with unexpected sympathy. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.
"Don't be," Finn said, his cheerfulness returning with obvious effort. "It was actually the best thing that could have happened. I've been living on the streets mostly, but I've been getting by. My card helps me find useful stuff in trash heaps, abandoned buildings, that kind of thing. I can sense when there's metal nearby, even if it's buried or hidden."
He gestured toward the mission board. "And now I'm an adventurer! This is my chance to start over, to build something for myself. I can specialize in ore finding, material gathering, maybe even treasure hunting someday. It's a fresh start, you know?"
Lev found himself genuinely moved by Finn's story, though he tried not to show it. The young man's determination to make something of himself despite his family's rejection was admirable, even if his methods seemed a bit naive.
"That's... that's really impressive," Lev said, meaning it. "Thank you for sharing that with me. And thank you for all the adviceâit's going to help me a lot."
Finn's face lit up with obvious pleasure. "No problem! I'm just glad I could help. And hey, maybe we'll be able to work on a mission together sometime, you know? Team up, share the rewards, that kind of thing."
Lev nodded, though he felt a familiar wariness creeping back in. Finn seemed genuine, but Lev had learned to be cautious around people who were too friendly, too eager to help. Especially when they knew he was Sapphire. It was possible that Finn's kindness was real, but it was also possible that it was a facade, a way to get close to him for reasons that weren't immediately obvious.
"Sure," he said, keeping his tone carefully neutral. "That could be interesting."
Finn seemed to sense Lev's hesitation, but his enthusiasm didn't waver. "Great! Well, I should probably let you get back to looking at missions. Don't want to keep you from your first big decision!"
He moved toward the board, scanning the notices with practiced eyes. "Let me just grab one of these material gathering jobs, and then I'll get out of your hair."
Lev watched as Finn selected a notice from the board, reading it quickly before tucking it into his pocket. The young man turned back to him with a wide grin.
"Perfect! This one's looking for iron ore from the old mines near Millbrook. Should be right up my alley." He extended his hand again. "Good luck with your first mission, Lev. I'm sure you'll do great!"
"Thank you," Lev said, shaking the offered hand. "Good luck to you too."
Finn waved cheerfully as he headed toward the reception desk, leaving Lev alone with the mission board once more. But now the wall of notices felt less overwhelming, more manageable. Finn's explanation had given him a framework to understand what he was looking at, and his story had reminded Lev that everyone had their own reasons for becoming an adventurer.
Okay, Lev thought, turning back to the board with renewed determination. It's clearer now. Let's see what I can do.
The mission board stretched before him, full of possibilities and opportunities. Each notice represented a chance to prove himself, to earn money, to take another step forward on the path he'd chosen. He just needed to find the right one.
Time to find my first mission.