Lila slumped in the Guild lobby's least-broken chair, her boot propped up on the table, a fresh gash running down her arm. The white bandages wrapped around it were already turning pink. She scowled at the ceiling, muttering curses under her breath.
"Sewer rats. Of course it had to be sewer rats."
The mission had been simple—clear out a nest of mutated rodents in the city's underbelly. But "simple" in Hunter terms usually ant "disgusting and likely to bite your face off." She'd taken an arrow to the shoulder and a claw swipe to the leg before finally putting the last one down.
The lobby doors creaked open, and Lila glanced up, half-expecting another rookie covered in monster guts. Instead, she saw Fin—fully healed, no bandages, no limp, just the sa scuffed boots and slightly-too-big vest.
Her eyebrows shot up. "Well, look who's back from the dead."
Fin spotted her and grinned, sauntering over. "Miss ?"
"Like a hole in the head," she said, but she shifted her boot off the table, making space for him. "How's the whole 'almost dying' thing treating you?"
He dropped into the chair beside her, stretching his arms. "Eh, overrated. Hospital food's worse than slum stew, and that's saying sothing."
She snorted. "Yeah, well, enjoy the luxury while it lasts. Soon you'll be back to eating whatever monster you just killed."
Fin shuddered. "Please tell that's not a real thing Hunters do."
"Only the desperate ones." She tilted her head, studying him. "So, what's the deal? Mara just let you waltz back in after that ss?"
His grin faltered for a second. "Sothing like that. Let's just say I've got a new boss."
Before Lila could press him, a sharp voice cut through the lobby.
"Fin. Office. Now."
Mara stood by the hallway, arms crossed. She didn't wait for a response before turning on her heel and striding away.
Fin sighed, pushing himself up. "Duty calls."
Lila gave him a mock salute. "Good luck, soldier. Try not to get fired before lunch."
---
Mara's office was small, neat, and slled like paperwork and disapproval. She sat behind her desk, fingers steepled, watching as Fin shut the door behind him.
"Sit," she said.
He sat.
She slid a folder across the desk. "Your first assignnt. A Rank 2 dungeon clear. You'll be accompanying a team as a porter."
He blinked. "Porter?"
"Carry the bags, hold the gear, stay out of the way," she said, as if explaining to a particularly slow child. "Basic grunt work."
He opened the folder, scanning the details. A Rank 2 dungeon—"The Hollow Caves," so kind of underground network infested with rock-crawlers and the occasional tunnel snake. Not the worst thing he could face, but definitely not a walk in the park either.
His stomach twisted. A Rank 2? His first mission? He'd just read about dungeon ranks in the guide book. Rank 1 was beginner stuff—weak monsters, easy layouts. Rank 2 was where things started getting nasty. And the scale went all the way up to Rank 20, where only the craziest (or stupidest) Hunters dared to tread.
He swallowed. "Uh... how much does this pay?"
She didn't even look up from her paperwork. "Ten thousand credits."
Fin's mouth fell open. "Ten thousand?" That was more money than he'd ever seen in his life. More than enough to cover a month's rent in a decent place, food, maybe even so actual gear that wasn't held together by hope and duct tape.
She finally glanced at him, unimpressed. "Problem?"
He snapped his mouth shut. "No. No problem."
"Good. The team leaves at dawn tomorrow. Be here by 7:30. And Fin?"
"Yeah?"
"Try not to die. It would be inconvenient."
He stepped out of Mara's office, his mind buzzing. Ten thousand credits. A Rank 2 dungeon. A team.
He found Lila still in the lobby, now picking at her bandages.
"Well?" she asked. "What's the verdict? Cleaning duty? Monster poop scooping?"
He plopped back into the chair beside her. "Better. I'm going into a dungeon."
Lila's fingers paused. "Wait, what?"
"Rank 2. The Hollow Caves. I'm a porter."
She stared at him. "You just got out of the hospital, and they're throwing you into a Rank 2? That's... actually kind of brutal."
He rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, well, Mara's not exactly the 'ease into it' type."
Lila leaned forward, lowering her voice. "Look, don't take this the wrong way, but... you know what a Rank 2 ans, right? Those rock-crawlers? They're fast, they're an, and they bite."
He grimaced. "I read the book."
"Reading and doing are two very different things." She sighed, then reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, crumpled map. "Here. Take this. It's not much, but it's got so basic layouts of the Hollow Caves. Might keep you from walking straight into a nest."
He took it, surprised. "You've been in there?"
"Once. Got out with all my fingers, so I call that a win." She smirked. "Just don't tell anyone you got help from the 'Bow Nobody.'"
He grinned, tucking the map into his vest. "Wouldn't dream of it."
She stretched, wincing as her injuries protested. "Alright. Go get so rest. Tomorrow's gonna suck."
Fin stood, nodding. "Yeah. Thanks, Lila."
She waved him off. "Don't thank yet. If you die, I'm keeping your boots."
He laughed as he walked away, but his fingers brushed the map in his pocket, a small comfort in the face of what was coming.
He stepped out of the Guild, the afternoon sun glaring down at him like an unimpressed spectator. His stomach growled, loud enough that a passing rchant gave him a weird look.
'Right. Food. Shelter. Both of which cost money.'
He patted his pockets out of habit, knowing full well they were empty. The thieves had wiped him clean, and Mara's "generosity" hadn't extended to a signing bonus.
'Guess I'm sleeping in an alley.'
He sighed, shoulders slumping. The thought of crawling back to Mara so soon made his pride itch, but hunger and common sense won out.
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