Ganersam volume 1

Chapter 8

After that, we went back to the guild. The inn had a one-week limit on free lodging, so we needed to find a way to make money. Initially, I asked Nia to rest, but she insisted on going with us. Since I'm also curious about how strong she is, I decided to let her join. It's not like we're picking up any hard quests anyway.

We were standing in front of the board when Lisya approached us.

"I heard about your identity. The guild would do its best to keep it a secret, but please be careful."

She whispered that to Nia's ear, before smiling at us and leaving us.

Hearing that, I looked at Nia. To my surprise, she seemed calm in this situation and put no attention to the adventurers looking at her from a distance. Now that I think about it, so far she doesn't seem worried about anything at all. Maybe she's used to dealing with threats like this?

Well to be fair, acting calm is the best thing to do in this situation. She's using her hood to cover her ears, so it's not like people would realize anyway.

"This one looks good."

Emma said as she grabbed a quest.

"Defeat the king salamander near the lake."

"What is this king salamander anyway?"

I assumed it would be related to a salamander... but I shouldn't be assuming things.

I mean, 'bouncing' watermelons.

"It's a large salamander that is known to eat animals like cows and sheep. They're normally not an issue since they eat wild ones, but it seems they've been hanging around the lake the past few days, eating the farmers' animals. That's why there's a subjugation quest for it."

Emma explained. I looked at her.

"How did you even know these things?"

"I read it in a newspaper back at the library."

Just how much did she read? Well, that itself isn't the issue. The issue is the salamander itself. A salamander that eats literal livestock. Isn't that dangerous? But before I could stop her, Emma brought the paper to the receptionist.

"We'll accept this."

Fuck.

We arrived at the lake. Located eastward not far from the city, the lake is surrounded by a small group of trees, not enough to be called a forest, though. In the distance, you could see the eastern mountain range span throughout the horizon.

"Are we on the right lake? Shouldn't the salamander be visible now?"

We were told that the salamander is a very large salamander. Based on its dimensions, It's roughly two times the length of a school bus. Something like that should be easy to spot, yet no matter where we look we can't find it anywhere.

"You think it's underwater?"

I asked as I kneeled, lowering my face close to the water. The water is clear, and no salamander is visible from here.

"You think it's behind us?"

Emma said as she looked behind. It's common in stories for random enemies to suddenly sneak up on you from behind, regardless of the type. Emma's probably checking for that possibility, but this time nothing is behind us. I rechecked the quest. We were supposed to be on the correct lake.

"Let's just wait. It will appear eventually."

I said as I sat on the ground. Nia pulled out her tarp and started putting lunch on it. The menu is simple, some cheese sandwiches with orange juice. We enjoyed the refreshing atmosphere as we waited for the salamander to appear.