Task: Nooo! My son!

Requester: Sirla, Gromak's mother

Quest Rank: E

Rewards: 7 Large Copper Coins

Description: Once, Gromak's fervor upon the adventurers was calmed down when someone tricked him and told him lies about some legends... after seeing the fight between a golem and the heroic adventurers, Gromak has been overexcited and wish to become an adventurer, a hero or so he said! Please dissuade him from wasting his life!

Zinc arrived at the house of Sirla and her child – Gromak. The doctor knocked on the wooden door and was soon greeted by a middle-aged woman. The woman looked up at Zinc suspiciously and asked what he wanted. Zinc flashed a gentle smile before holding up the quest he had decided to take.

“Ma’am, didn’t you post a quest today about your son? I’m here to solve your problem.” Zinc replied.

“Really? That’s great! Please, please come in.” Sirla smiled widely as she opened the door wide and beckoned for the dwelf to enter. “Ever since Gromak saw a group of adventurers defeat a stone golem, he’s been fascinated about being an adventurer himself. I don’t mean any disrespect but please persuade him that adventuring is not a stable job. Please show him that it is not his calling.”

“No offense taken. I know the dangers of adventuring and the hardships of earning good money. No worries, if Gromak truly doesn’t have what it takes to be an adventurer, then I’ll do my best to dissuade him.” Zinc smiled as he spotted young Gromak swing a wooden sword in the backyard.

“Thank you so much. I’ll be in the kitchen. If you need me, please ask.” Sirla bowed in gratitude as she moved into the kitchen to check on the oven.

Zinc walked out the backdoor towards the young boy who was practicing his sword. Judging by his swings, Zinc could tell that Gromak had no prior training and that he was just swinging about randomly. When the young boy saw Zinc walked up to him, he drew his sword close as he stared at the doctor vigilantly.

“W-Who are you mister?” Gromak asked after a brief pause.

“My name is Zinc. I’m an adventurer.” The dwelf responded with a smile.

“Did mother asked you to come and persuade me to give up adventuring?”

“Yes.”

“Hmph! I’ll tell you…I’m never going to give it up!”

“Why not? Is it because it’s cool?”

“Yes! Ever since I saw that swordsman cleave that golem in half, it has been forever engraved into my mind…that coolness…that aura. When I saw that, I vowed to my self that someday…I want to be that great!” Gromak exclaimed as he clinched his fist in excitement.

“And so here you are…training to be that great?” Zinc gave the boy an once-over.

“That’s right. And I gotta say…I’m pretty good at it.”

“Oh? Is that so? How can you tell?”

“Just yesterday, I fought off a goblin with my wooden sword. If I had a real one, that goblin would have been dead.” Gromak replied as he brandished his sword.

“Goblin eh? Do you think goblins are one of the weakest monsters?”

“Naturally! They’re even shorter than me and their arms are so scrawny. Even if they have weapons, they could only obtain wooden ones at best.”

“I see. Say, what to come with me on a little adventure?” Zinc suddenly suggested.

“Really? Sure! What are we hunting?” Gromak clapped his hands in excitement.

“Goblins.”

“Goblins? Ehh? But they’re weak.”

“We’ll see about that. Anyways, you coming or not?”

“I am! I am! But mother….”

“No worries, I’ll persuade her to let you come with me.”

“Awesome!”

Zinc walked back inside and noticed that Sirla had just brought out a fresh baked pie. Sirla looked over and asked. “Do you want some pie?”

“That sounds good.” Zinc nodded as he took a seat.

Sirla handed the dwelf a slice of what looks to be blueberry pie and asked him. “So, did you manage to dissuade Gromak? Will he give up adventuring?”

“Not yet. But I will soon with your permission. Mhmm! Delicious!” Zinc beamed with satisfaction while he took a bite of the pie.

“My permission? For what?”

“I want to take him to one of my adventures.”

“No! Absolutely not! You’re supposed to help dissuade my son, not take him adventuring! Out…get out of my house!”

“Wait! You misunderstand me. Right now, your kid is overconfident in himself. He claims that he had defeated some goblins. My purpose of taking him with me for an adventure is to show him the reality and hardships he will have to suffer. Only that, will I be able to dissuade him from any further thoughts on adventuring.”

“This…fine. I see some logic in your explanation. I…For my son’s sake, I trust you this one time.”

“Great. Then, it’s settled. Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of him.”

After finishing the pie, Zinc notified Gromak of the situation. After getting Gromak some basic equipment suitable for an E-ranked adventurer, the duo set off for the city gates. Zinc decided to take Gromak west of the city where a small goblin nest was discovered not long ago. Along the way, Zinc explained to the young boy what was to be expected when taking on a quest.

“Now, for a beginner like you, a typical E-ranked quest involving goblins would be eradicating a nest or defeating a goblin camp. This is different from your one or two goblin fights. What we’re dealing are 10 maybe 20 goblins. And since it’s an E-ranked quest, you’re expected to complete it alone.”

“10…20…100, easy! They’re still just goblins.” Gromak boasted as he swung his new sword to test its feel.

“Even 100?”

“Okay, maybe not 100 but 20 goblins is still an easy task in my opinion.”

“Well, in my opinion, you won’t last against 5 of them.”

“Five? That’s easy! I bet I can last against 10.”

“If you can take on five of them at a time, then I’ll personally persuade your mother to let you become an adventurer.” Zinc chuckled but he soon showed a serious face. “However, if you cannot take on five of them without my help, then you must give up on adventuring. Deal?”

“This….” Gromak hesitated as he weighed the options.

Before letting the boy speak, Zinc sneered. “What? Didn’t you say you could handle 10 of them? Now, you can’t even handle five? How can you be an adventurer when you have no confidence or ability to back it up?”

“You’re on! Five it is! At the end of this, you can’t go back on your word.”

“Haha, same to you.”

The duo shook each other’s hands in agreement as a verbal contract was formed. Soon, they arrived at the entrance of a small cave. Gromak looked into the dark depths and murmured. “I-Is this where the goblin nest is?”

“Quiet.” Zinc held a finger to his lips. “The goblins can smell fear and you’re filled with it.”

Gromak gulped as he nervously clamped his mouth shut with both hands. Zinc smiled at the little boy’s action and dragged the boy into the cave. As they ventured deeper into the cave, Zinc briefed the young boy on things he needed to know such as looking out for totems which could denote the presence of a shaman or mage as well as paying close attention to hidden pathways which could spring out a number of goblins that surround them if they’re not too careful.

Luckily for them, they did not encounter such things. As the two made their way deeper, they came upon a large cavern. Laying on the floors below were close to 15 goblins either sleeping or eating. Gromak took one look at the goblins and murmured in panic.

“Why are they so strong looking? There’s even some that are about the same height as me! And their weapons. They’re all made from iron! T-This isn’t like what I had heard. This isn’t like what I had heard!”

“Quiet! Do you want to alert them of our presence?” Zinc smacked the young boy on the back of his head. “This is reality. Any beginner adventurer must deal with this sooner or later. The same will go for you. Now, let’s get ready.”

“R-Ready for what?” Gromak murmured as his legs felt like they could give way any minute.

“To fight of course. Did you forget our bet? Look, take on those five over there and leave the rest to me.”

Zinc reached over to his bag and pulled out a small container. When he opened it, a centipede slithered out. It was Arsenic. Zinc held Arsenic close and whispered. “See those 10 goblins eating near the fire? Poison their food and don’t get caught. Understood?”

The centipede nodded his head after listening to Zinc’s commands. It then crawled away. Minutes later, it returned. The centipede gave Zinc a short nod indicating that he had completed his mission. It did not take long until Arsenic’s poison took effect. Arsenic had just returned to Zinc when all 10 goblins grabbed their stomachs in pain before perishing. All that was left were the five that were asleep. Of course, because of the commotion, the five goblins were no longer asleep but rather cautiously searching for the enemy.

Without giving the young boy a chance to prepare himself, Zinc pushed Gromak out in the open. This sudden movement attracted all five pairs of eyes onto him. Helplessly, the young boy raised his sword and prepared for battle.

“It’s just goblins…nothing more.” Gromak murmured to himself as he tried to boost his confidence.

The young boy charged at one of the goblins and swung down with all his strength. However, the goblin grabbed a handful of sand and threw it at Gromak. The boy flinched and tried his best to avoid but the sand splattered into his mouth, sending him into a coughing fit. Before he could recover, another goblin jumped out and swung its club at him. The club smashed into his side, knocking the air out of Gromak. As the boy stumbled, he glanced up in fear just as a third goblin aimed a spear at his throat.

The only words he could utter in his state of panic was…help me. In response, Zinc flung out a couple of acupuncture needles which pierced into three goblins’ heads and instantly ending their miserable lives. The needles had accurately pierced into the goblins’ hindbrains, leading to instant brain death. Before the other two goblins could understand what was going on, the doctor rushed towards them with his Horse-Slaying Blade and cleaved both in half with one horizontal swing.

The battle ended quickly. If others saw the way Zinc handled the goblins, they would have thought it was very cool. However, for little Gromak, he was too stricken fear to notice. When he finally came to his senses, the young boy grimaced and looked sheepishly at Zinc. The dwelf smiled at the boy and asked.

“Now, do you know that adventuring is no joke? Just because you killed a couple of stragglers, doesn’t mean you are cut out for becoming an adventurer. It’s best if you give up and try another profession.”

Gromak rubbed the tip of his nose and remarked. “B-But if it’s so dangerous, why did you become an adventurer?”

“To help people of course. Before I am an adventurer, I am a doctor. Almost all adventurers either have another profession or they’re extremely good at combat. From what I can tell with you, you aren’t that good at fighting…you just got a bit of strength. Look…if you really want to become an adventurer, you should at least learn a different profession first before you venture towards that topic. What say you?”

“What other profession can I do? I’m not that smart so I can’t be a doctor like you.”

“Don’t you have strength? Why not try blacksmithing? Not only will you be able to make and repair weapons and armor, you will also be able to increase your strength by at least double. And if you still want to become an adventurer after you learned your trade…well, by that time, you’re already a young adult and can make your own decisions.”

“Okay. I understand.”

“That’s good. Come, let me check your injuries and then, we can head on home. Your mother must be extremely worried about you.”

“Ehm.”

After treating Gromak’s minor bruises, Zinc sent the young boy home. Sirla, upon hearing the boy’s decision to learn blacksmithing instead of going on adventures, was very happy about it and thanked Zinc profusely. Having completed his task, Zinc headed back to the guild to submit his report.