Chapter 2: A Silly Sweetheart?

It had been about ten days since he arrived in this world.

Though he didn’t understand why being killed had sent him here, it suited Li Xian just fine, so he didn’t dwell on it too much.

After spending roughly a day getting a basic grasp of this world’s circumstances, Li Xian quickly discovered a serious problem—he had no money.

Not a single coin.

He had no means to secure food, shelter, or even a place to sleep.

Left with no choice, he asked around and eventually decided to become an adventurer.

The job offered freedom, flexible hours, and high rewards for higher-ranked missions.

But once he actually became an adventurer, he realized there was a catch: most quests had rank restrictions.

Whether posted by individuals or the Adventurers’ Guild, tasks were usually limited to adventurers of a certain rank.

As a mere novice, the best he could do was hunt Fireball Mice and collect their tails.

That’s why Li Xian was so excited when he saw the quest sheet in the young girl’s hands—especially the reward.

This particular quest had no rank restrictions, meaning even a novice like him could take it!

No more dealing with those damned Fireball Mice.

‘And 10,000 gold?’ That was an absolute fortune to him.

With that much money, he could buy a house in town and never worry about expensive inn fees again.

So, fearing someone else might snatch the opportunity, he blurted out without hesitation, “I’ll take this quest!”

What he didn’t consider was how shocking those words would sound to everyone else.

This was the Northern Wildwood—a place teeming with dangerous magical beasts, even if the rumored demons didn’t exist.

Many of these creatures were threats even to high-rank warriors, and if luck turned against you, you might even encounter an Transcendent-tier beast.

In that case, even a Gold-rank adventurer like Morey would be doomed.

Only a Platinum-rank adventurer, someone who had also reached the Transcendent tier, could handle such a monster.

‘Was this kid just brainless, completely unaware of the Northern Wildwood’s dangers? Or was he some hidden master?’

‘No, no way,’ Morey thought, sizing up the boy.

He looked no older than sixteen or seventeen.

‘At that age, how strong could he possibly be? If he was even a low-rank warrior, he’d be considered a genius.’

Back when Morey was that age, he was still a trainee.

‘A low-rank warrior trying to cross the Northern Wildwood? That was suicide. Not even if the Goddess of Luck was his mother could he pull that off.’

‘But the Adventurers’ Guild had its rules. ‘

‘Since this quest didn’t specify a rank requirement, this fool really could take it.’

Morey didn’t care.

In fact, he was relieved the kid had drawn attention away from him.

If not for this idiot, he wouldn’t have known how to refuse the quest gracefully.

Sure, having the sheet snatched from his hand was annoying, but at least it got him out of a tight spot.

That 10,000 gold was tempting, but you had to be alive to spend it.

Morey wasn’t foolish enough to take the risk, so if this brat wanted to throw his life away, he wouldn’t stop him.

“Fine, if you want it, it’s yours,” Morey said, shrugging with feigned indifference.

Still, having the quest taken right from his grip irked him.

At the very least, he’d make things a little harder for the kid.

“But… miss, are you sure you want him to take this quest?” Morey turned to the girl with a stern expression.

“Eh?” Sara shrank back slightly under his gaze, her expression tinged with fear.

“Crossing the Northern Wildwood is incredibly dangerous—you must know that. Do you really think a rookie adventurer like him can successfully escort you to the capital?”

“I…” Sara hesitated, glancing at Li Xian’s youthful face.

Li Xian’s heart raced.

‘If he lost this job, he’d be stuck hunting Fireball Mice again.’

‘He couldn’t let that happen.’

“Trust me!” In his urgency, he stepped forward and gripped Sara’s shoulders, locking eyes with her pale pink ones.

“W-wah?!” Sara stiffened at the sudden contact, her mind buzzing as the clean-cut boy’s face hovered barely 20 centimeters from hers.

“I’m actually way stronger than I look—definitely more capable than this oaf,” Li Xian said earnestly, nodding toward Morey.

“I will get you through the Wildwood safely, promise.”

His gaze burned with sincerity—mostly fueled by desperation to avoid another damn Fireball Mouse mission.

“Um…” Sara ducked her head, stealing a glance at Morey.

The gold-rank adventurer’s face had darkened, his bulldog-like scowl enough to make children cry.

Sara bit her lip.

Morey wasn’t wrong—the Northern Wildwood was lethal.

‘Could this boy, who looked no older than her, really pull it off?’

Logically, no.

But she was out of options.

Succeed or fail, she had to try.

After a tense silence, she finally met Li Xian’s eyes and whispered, “Then… I’ll be in your care, sir.”

***

The guild hall fell dead quiet.

Aside from Li Xian’s triumphant whoop, every face wore identical stunned expressions.

[Did she just believe his obvious bluff?! Is she that naive?!]

’If this brat actually makes it through the Wildwood, I’ll eat my boot at the VIP table tonight…’ Morey thought, grinding his teeth.