The Adventurers

“Come on, this way. We’ll miss it,” Arlas said, running towards the gate. The gate opened and three people walked through. “I-It’s them. The Adventurers...” I watched as the people went from dead silent to screaming the adventureres names out. “Who are they?” I asked. “L-Lief, are you kidding me?! They are The Adventurers! The party that is responsible for taking down the dragon! No one else could do that. Ever! Man, I wanna be just like them when I grow up!” The conviction in his voice was something I had never seen before. But those times are behind me now.

3 years later, on the same day, all three adventureres were slain. They died trying to protect the village. Another dragon showed up, and almost lit fire to the whole village. One of the adventurers died being a human shield for Arlas. Even for a 16 year-old, that must’ve been traumatic. Seeing one of the people you admire most, the one you think are unstoppable, being burnt alive in front of you. He has never been the same since. Arlas is now an adventurer... Just like me. After that day, we learned something. Mankind isn’t all that strong. One creature almost wiped out the entire village. Alone. And the entire village, together, couldn’t defeat it. The week following the incident, I met another adventurer. He refused to give me his name, instead he told me to call him Eisen. Eisen, Arlas and I formed a party. A party of adventurers. To continue where our heroes left off.

“Hey, Arlas? Arlas! In front of you, a monster! Take it out!” Eisen yelled out. He signalled me to get Arlas away. As I did, Eisen drew his sword and swiftly took the monsters out. I stood there, astonished by his skill. “Another group taken out, Eisen. That makes a total of... 23! Now, you’re just showing off.” Eisen and I shared a laugh. Arlas looked embarassed. “I-I’m sorry, guys. I froze again. And Eisen had to save us again.” Suddenly, another monster appeared out of the forest. “I got this one!” Arlas said, running to kill him. On his way there, He slipped. Eisen and I laughed uncontrollably as the orc hit his stick on Arlas’s head. Finally, Arlas got up. As soon as he did, the orc took his dagger and started chasing him. Eisen and I continued laughing as Arlas screamed in terror. I laughed so hard, my stomach hurt. The orc continued chasing him for the next hour. Finally it got tired and went back. “Hey! Give me my dagger back!” Arlas screamed out. The orc roared back. “O-Okay, You can keep it. You can keep it,” Arlas turned to us. “Hey guys, I need a new dagger. Can I borrow some money?” Eisen and I looked at him. Almost immediatly, I started laughing. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. It’s just that the way you screamed when the orc chased you.” I broke into laughter again. “Come on, let’s go get your dagger back,” Eisen said, barely holding in his laughter. “Just don’t scream this time.”

A couple hours later, Eisen and Arlas showed up. Arlas was looking a lot more happier. “Got your dagger back?” I asked. “Not only that, but he also killed the orc. And he took his stick as well. Truly a devil.” Eisen replied. “Yeah, yeah. Let’s just go back and eat already. I’m starving!” We walked to the gates of the village. The guards tell us whether we took all of the monsters out or not. A mage hidden within the castle uses his magic to do so. “I’m sorry Lief, the Mage told us there were a couple more left. And you know the rules. I can’t let you in, until you kill all of them for today. I’m sorry.” The three of us went back into the forest once more. I’m sure we killed all for today, but the Mage is never wrong. So there must be some more. “Hey, Arlas. Go look on that side. Eisen, you stay here in case some more show up here. I’ll head that way. If you see them, call the other two.” I instructed. Not even five minutes passed, and I heard Eisen calling out my name. I ran back to him, only to see the dead bodies of the monsters in a pile. Eisen made a smug look. As he saw me, he put his sword back in its sheath. "The monsters have been slain, and the sun has set. Now, it's time for... A feast!" He said in a deep voice. Arlas came back running, and saw me and Eisen talking in deep voices. "Uh... I-I'll go back to the village." Arlas said running towards the village.

We all sat down on our tables. The atmosphere was cheerful. As soon as our food came, Eisen started eating. As usual, he dropped quite a bit on the ground. "Everyone, may I have your attention. Today is dedicated to the adventurers that work day and night to keep us safe. Today's dinner is on Eisen," Announced the store owner as he slowly walked towards Eisen. "Consider this payback for all the food we have to clean up from the ground." He snickered. "You're planning on making me go broke, aren't you? Oh well, guess I'll have to pay for all the food. How much will it be?" He asked. "Good. It'll be 124 silver coins." Arlas and I laughed uncontrollably while Eisen looked in his sachel for the money. He made a dumb face. "Hehe, I... Uh... Don't seem to have that amount. I'll pay you back. I promise!" Eisen said, rubbing his head.

We headed out for our hotels. Since we're adventurers, We don't have a permanent residence. Instead we're allowed to stay at any hotel at a discount. As we headed back, we heard bells. "It's back! The Dragon! All adventurers, to the front gate! Now!" All of us shocked. The Dragon?! It's back?! This is not good. We're not prepared for this. I thought. "Arlas! Help with evacuation! Eisen and I will head to the front gate."