Dreisterne

CHAPTER 2

The trio approached the local Freelancer's Guild hall with an air of excitement. They've agreed to call themselves "Dreisterne" over breakfast earlier, though Nathan and Keith forgot to ask what it meant. The building, a sturdy stone structure with a welcoming wooden door, seemed to hum with the promise of new adventures. Inside, the hall was bustling with activity, as freelancers of all stripes chattered amongst themselves, trading stories and exchanging offers.

Nathan, Harald, and Keith made their way to the registration desk, where a clerk was busy processing paperwork. They paid one silver florin for each registration form, and Harald directed his companions to fill them out with a theatrical air.

"Please, gentlemen," Harald said smoothly, handing Nathan and Keith their forms. "We must ensure our entry into the guild is impeccable. The details are crucial."

Nathan accepted his form with a nod. "Understood. I'll get these filled out."

Keith, glancing at the form with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension, remarked, "Blimey, that's a lot of questions. How do they expect us to remember all this?"

Harald chuckled softly. "Consider it a formality, Keith. Just answer truthfully, and we shall be members in no time."

It took some time, but soon the clerk returned with their new membership tokens: small steel plates engraved with their names and the Freelancer's Guild crest, each suspended from a modest chain.

The clerk, a young woman with a friendly demeanour, handed the pendants over. "Here you go, gentlemen. Welcome to the guild."

Nathan took his pendant and examined it with a sense of pride. "Thank you, miss."

Keith, grinning widely, admiring his own token. "Ain't this a sight! We're official now, eh?"

Harald nodded, holding his plate aloft. "Indeed. Now, let us get to work."

The trio then made their way to the job board, a large wooden bulletin covered in various flyers and notices. Harald meticulously scrutinized each advertisement with careful attention, though Nathan couldn't help but notice that he skipped several of them.

"What about those two you've skipped, Harald?" Nathan asked.

"Oh, those?" said Harald dismissively. "Just menial work, not worth our time. Now, this one..." he continued, pointing to a flyer detailed a task to clear out a den of troublesome kobolds that had been plaguing a local farmer. "It does seem quite manageable for novices such as ourselves. And the payment is quite generous."

"That's tempting", said Keith. "But d'you reckon we could do it, though? Clearing a whole den of those blighters, I mean."

Harald laughed. "Clearing a kobold's den is every enterprising freelancers' first job, Herr Nimbus. Go ask anyone who ever registered in this guild, and they always say that this job is a rite of passage to greenhorns like us. As long as we keep our eyes peeled, I don't see any cause for worry!"

"Don't forget to look out for highwaymen. They like going after freelancers, especially the tired ones who go home with loot after a job" Keith warned.

Meanwhile, Nathan frowned as he tried to recall Mr. Eriksson's lessons about kobolds during the nights when they read through the old man's bestiary, but he couldn't seem to remember any details about kobolds. But then again, monsters have been his weakest subject since he's barely interested in learning about them. He puts his reminiscence at the back of his mind as he returns to the matter at hand, saying "If you say as much, Harald. Let's go with that one."

Harald, always quick to seize an opportunity, clapped his hands together. "Excellent. I shall inform the guild clerk of our decision" he said, ripping the flyer off the job board and presented it to one of the guild clerks to accept the job.