Finally, Combat! Wait, OH NO-

After a few parting words to those that accompanied me - in which Nia insisted she come with to offer her assistance, but was firmly rebuked by all other parties involved - I set out with my destination in mind.

Damien had said they would be in touch, one way or another, and that I was free to stop by their hideout when I was done. Nia insisted firmly that I do so, but I wasn't sure I could reliably find it again, without their guidance. Leo, meanwhile, offered a simple "good luck," which I definitely considered a step in the right direction.

The trip from the Guild to the gate was uneventful - I focused mainly on keeping the path in mind, so I could return to it unaided - and, in no time, I was once again set loose upon the world at large.

Out of curiosity, I consulted the absolute mess that was the signage right outside the capital, in search of my destination. Sure enough, nestled in the midst of signs was the word "Slyrest," printed on an arrow pointing slightly to the right. Consulting the map, I found the two to be in consensus. The path it indicated was larger than the one that led to Troph, and had significantly more traffic to match, but once again paled in comparison with the main roads that ran to the east, west, and north.

"Objective fulfilled: Read a signpost."

"Pretty sure I already did that by now. Several times, in fact."

"Objective fulfilled: Read a signpost while on a quest."

"...Did you just give me more XP just to correct yourself?"

Penta remained silent. I don't think I will ever understand exactly how her system works, but perhaps that's for the best.

Either way, I set off on the route to Slyrest, traveling light by virtue of not having the money or resources to prepare any further. It was my hope that that would change after completing my first quest and taking on others, but for now, penniless I would stay.

The scenery was not very different from the path from Troph, unsurprisingly. The road, at least at this hour, was well-traveled enough not to need the informal "buddy system" that Troph employed, meaning there was frequent run-ins with other travelers. It was possible it was less the town of Slyrest and more the roads leading to it that were under threat from the kobolds, now that I thought about it.

A weak monster had a better chance at success attacking someone on the road, after all, and if merchants felt threatened making trips to and around the town, commerce would surely be negatively effected. More than enough reason to put in a request with the Guild.

Time passed. I had forgotten, somehow, that the distances between settlements was not to be underestimated, especially traveling on foot. A horse, or some other beast, seemed like an ideal future purchase.

Come to think of it, I had only seen horses and strange oxen-type beasts of burden pulling the wagons around these parts. That seemed a little tame for a fantasy setting, to be honest. Where were the weird options for mounts?

Oh no, I was getting bored. My mind was beginning to wander...

Suddenly, I heard a scream. An event, how convenient! My introduction to the kobolds, no doubt. I'd pop in on a small skirmish, save some poor villager or merchant wagon, get some information, then go take on the nest. Classic.

How I'd deal with the kobolds, on the other hand, might be a little more challenging than pressing a few buttons on a controller.

I opened my ability list, to check and see what I even had at my disposal at this point. Naturally, all of my chef skills were completely gone - Nia and Leo would be devastated to learn my food magic was gone, potentially for good. In their place, though, was quite a different list:

"Tame. Charm. Intimidate. Cross-crack. Power strike."

Strangely, the class seemed to gear a bit toward psychological manipulation, rather than just being a "pet class." What the difference was between "Tame" and "Charm" was anyone's guess, but a few guesses I did in fact make...

I followed the direction of the scream and drew my whip as I did. I could only hope to whatever powers existed here that my class innately knew how to use this, because I sure as shit did not.

A short way down the path, I found myself in the midst of the scene: a woman and her child, cornered by...a very large creature made of rock...?!

"This was not what I signed up for!" I thought frantically, holding my whip at the ready.

The creature - could it even be described as a creature? - looked vaguely feline in shape, as if someone made a rough stone sculpture of a saber-toothed tiger and somehow brought it to life. The stone that comprised it looked like it was plucked from a pile of debris in a quarry - it was a plain, unrefined gray.

The only thing of color were it's eyes - two bright yellow orbs comprised of some sort of energy.

"Of course the thing I run into isn't even alive!" I muttered, watching as the stone monstrosity advanced on its two helpless victims. "To hell with it, Intimidate!" I shouted, pointing my free hand at the construct.

Nothing happened. Well, nothing on my end.

While my ability had seemingly failed, the sound of my yelling announced my arrival to the beast of stone, which slowly turned to regard me. I wasn't sure what it's aim was - it was made of rock, so it wasn't hunting, so maybe it was man-made and sent to kill these two?

That theory was quickly dashed as its focus completely shifted to me, it's original targets now forgotten. I wasn't sure if its ire was directed at random, or the weapon in my hand made me a more threatening target, but either way, it was now very much my problem.

"Oh shit," I breathed, taking a step backward. "You two, get the hell out of there while its distracted!" I shouted, gesturing to the cowering woman and her child. She seemed stunned at first, but quickly composed herself enough to stand, her child in her arms, and hobble down the road. I hadn't noticed until she started to move, but her gait suggested she was injured.

In response to the woman's frantic escape, the stone beast swung back around threateningly.

"Oh no you don't, Power Strike!" I shouted, lashing the air with my whip. The leather implement took on a reddish tint and massively increased in speed, shooting out at the construct like a bullet. The stone beast tried to move to the side, but part of its shoulder was caught in the path of the whip's tip, causing a chunk of stone to explode off in a shower of shrapnel.

"Well, that one worked," I muttered to myself, giving the construct a defiant smirk. I was NOT dying on a level 1 quest, god damn it!

The beast seemed to care little about it's new "wound," but at least its attention was firmly in my direction. By now, the mother and child had disappeared from view down the road, so, at the very least, I had succeeded at minimizing casualties.

That being said, it was only a matter of time before someone else came down this road. Odds are, it wasn't going to be an experienced adventurer, or a platoon of soldiers.

"Just gotta take it down, here and now!" I shouted, pulling the whip back. The stone beast moved forward at the same time, letting out an eerie hiss. "Power strike!" I shouted, and again the whip took on a red tint and surged with added strength. This time, however, the construct was ready - it leapt with surprising agility for a thing made of stone at the last moment, sparing it further damage.

"Alright, how's this?!" I continued to shout, pulling the whip back a third time. "Cross-crack!" I roared, watching in amazement as the whip seemed to take on a life of its own, snapping back and forth in rapid succession in what appeared to be an X pattern. The stone beast hissed again and leapt, only to get caught in the impact of the attack anyway, which covered a large chunk of the roadway.

The part of the attack that missed its mark etched a massive cross pattern in the soil, but for the portion that struck the construct, I found it had no lasting damage.

"Shit..." The attack had the width to catch it out of its movements, but not the strength to harm its stony hide. "Durable AND fast, that's some bullshit right there!"

"Objective fulfilled: Use an attack skill."

"A bit late, again, aren't we?!"

"CHALLENGE OPPORTUNITY: DESTROY THE CONSTRUCT WITHOUT YOUR WHIP."

"SO WHAT, MY HANDS?!"

These two were not helping, as usual. Though, the calm of mind that came with Penta's experience gain was a welcome effect, at least.

"Power strike!" I shouted, and again the whip took flight. I had no idea how many times I could use an ability in quick succession like this, nor if doing so would have any lasting consequences. But for now, I didn't have much of a choice, if I wanted to get out of this encounter with my life.

Unfortunately for me, even before the whip was imbued with the energy, the construct was on the move. When the attack finally came, the beast ducked low, letting the attack sail by its head and back. I tried frantically to recall the weapon, but my enemy was already in the position it needed to strike.

It leapt, hissing its unnatural sound, ashen claws reaching out in front of it. I didn't know if they were sharpened stone or not, but even the sheer weight of the construct crashing into me would be enough to deal serious damage.

"Damn it!" I cursed inwardly, falling backward in a desperate attempt to get out of the way. Time seemed to slow, as it often did in a life-threatening situation. I desperately raised my free hand to shield my face and neck. "If only this thing wasn't made of stone! If only it was a normal animal, I might've had a chance to tame the damn thing!" I cursed my fate bitterly, as if I had been cheated. But this incident only proved how unstable this profession - and, indeed, this world - really was. You never knew what was waiting around the corner. Literally.

I hit the ground hard, my hand still in front of my face. I quickly brought up the hand holding my whip as well, expecting a close-range struggle.

Time passed. I waited, tense.

"Isn't time moving a bit too slow?" I thought, as even more time passed. I was pretty sure the construct would've been on me by now...

I glanced through a gap in the limbs protecting my face, and nearly jumped out of my skin - the stone beast was mere inches away, it's face staring into my own.

But what shone back to me, however, were rays of blue, not gold.

"I...uh, what?"

"Objective fulfilled: Tame a creature."

"THIS is what you call a creature?!"

"Objective fulfilled: Gain a companion. Objective fulfilled: Use a tamer skill. Objecti-"