Chương 114: Getting a Quest

I eventually reached the monolith standing a short distance away from the group. Up close, it was even more imposing than it looked from afar. The white stone surface towered over me like some kind of ancient vending machine that had been left in the desert for several thousand years and somehow upgraded itself into a divine quest dispenser. Runes etched into its body glowed faintly beneath the sun, pulsing in slow rhythm like it was breathing.

I wasn't emotionally prepared to confirm whether magical rocks had awareness, so I chose denial. I raised a hand and pressed against the floating interface that appeared in front of it. The moment my fingers made contact, the system responded instantly. A translucent panel expanded outward in midair, unfolding like a digital scroll made of light. Clean. Neat. Way too organized for something buried in a desert full of things trying to kill us. I exhaled slowly.

"Alright," I muttered.

"Let's see what kind of nonsense the universe is offering today." I tapped the option labeled for quests tied to this floor. Immediately, the interface shifted. Rows of information appeared in front of me, neatly arranged and annoyingly readable. Quest titles. Descriptions. Rewards. Warnings. Some of them looked straightforward. Some of them looked like someone had written them while actively running away from something with too many teeth. I began scrolling.

My eyes moved across the list, scanning for something that didn't scream immediate regret.

"Escort mission."

"No thanks."

"Collect desert minerals from unstable zones." Absolutely not.

"Defeat sand entity nest." I paused. Then frowned.

"... Why does that sound like the sand has organized itself politically?" I kept scrolling. The further I went, the more my optimism tried to file for early retirement. Everything either involved fighting something, retrieving something from somewhere actively hostile, or surviving conditions that sounded like they were designed by someone who hated hydration. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Then I saw it. Something different. I stopped moving.

My eyes narrowed slightly as I focused on the entry.

"... Huh." I leaned in a little closer. The text looked normal at first glance. But the more I read it, the more it stood out from the rest like a calm voice in a room full of screaming bad ideas. I tilted my head.

"Well now..." I murmured under my breath.

"This one is interesting." ••••• QUEST Name: Beneath the Shifting Sands TYPE: Group Quest (Strictly 5 Members.) Description: The newly built desert village of Sirocco's Rest, established beside the oasis of Mirage Well within the Ashveil Expanse, has come under relentless attack from monsters emerging from beneath the dunes. The nomads of the Zahari Tribes claim the settlement was unknowingly built upon territory these creatures have guarded for generations.

With villagers living in fear and supplies running low, the village seeks a party willing to defend the desert's newest home before the sands reclaim it. OBJECTIVE: • Kill 15 Dune Skulkers (Common Monsters). • Kill 15 Glassfang Burrowers (Common Monsters). • Kill 1 Vorakesh, the Dune Matriarch (Elite Monster). REWARD: 30 Gold Coins (Each Member), Experience Points. ••••• I stared at the quest information for another few seconds. The glowing blue text hovered patiently before me. A village under siege.

Monsters crawling out from beneath the dunes. An elite monster with a name dramatic enough to suggest future therapy expenses. Thirty gold coins for each member. I narrowed my eyes thoughtfully. Then nodded.

"... Okay." I pointed at the quest window.

"This one actually sounds promising." Which, for dungeon standards, translated to:"This has the lowest probability of immediately ruining my day." I had learned to manage expectations. Normal people searched for opportunities. Adventurers searched for assignments least likely to turn them into cautionary tales. I looked over the quest details one final time. Village. Monsters. Protection mission. Reasonable rewards. The usual life-threatening nonsense. At least there would be people to save.

Preferably living people. I raised my hand toward the floating interface.

"Alright, magical bureaucracy." I sighed.

"Let's see what fresh disasters you've prepared for me." Then I pressed the accept button. The moment my finger touched the glowing symbol, the interface rippled. A familiar notification materialized before my eyes. [Quest: Beneath the Shifting Sands has been accepted.] The blue text shimmered briefly before fading away. Almost immediately afterward, golden light gathered near my feet. Thin strands of radiant energy wove together into a single luminous thread. The quest guide. The magical equivalent of GPS.

Except instead of occasionally telling you to perform illegal turns, this one led you toward things actively trying to kill you. Progress. The glowing trail stretched outward across the desert floor. It curved gracefully over the sand dunes before disappearing into the distance. Waiting. Patient. Helpful. Potentially homicidal by association. I stared at it. Then looked upward.

"You know," I muttered.

"I appreciate this feature." I pointed toward the thread.

"Imagine trying to navigate this place without it." I gestured toward the endless dunes surrounding us.

"It's all sand."

"Every direction looks identical."

"This floor is basically nature copy-pasting itself." I looked around.

"Without quest markers, I'd spend three days walking in circles before dying of dehydration while arguing with a cactus." Honestly, the cactus would probably win. I turned away from the monolith and started walking back toward the others. The sand shifted softly beneath my boots. Heat rolled through the air. The relentless sun continued its personal vendetta against moisture. As soon as I reached the group, I jerked my thumb toward the golden trail stretching into the desert.

"Alright." I nodded toward the glowing path.

"We've got our destination." I glanced toward the distant dunes.

"So let's move." I folded my arms.

"The faster we get there, the better." Then my expression grew slightly more serious. The humor didn't disappear entirely. It just softened around the edges.

"I'd really rather not arrive only to discover we're too late." Images from Floor Two flickered briefly through my mind. The aftermath. The people we couldn't save. The realization that sometimes being strong enough to survive wasn't the same as being fast enough to help. I exhaled slowly.

"What happened during our last quest..." I shook my head.

"... I don't want a repeat performance." I looked toward the shimmering trail again.

"Let's make sure we meet villagers." I paused.

"Not bodies." Silence lingered for a moment. Then I straightened. I forced some of the usual levity back into my voice.

"Besides." I pointed toward the desert ahead.

"I accepted this thing."

"If it turns out to be terrible, I need witnesses to verify that this was absolutely the monolith's fault." I started following the golden thread through the sea of sand. Behind me, the others fell into step. Together, we headed toward whatever awaited us beyond the dunes.