Chapter 189: Special Quest (1)

Although the Noble District was quite a distance away from the Adventurer's Street, it didn't take Cole and Aiden too long before they arrived back at the Guild's Hall. Whilst completing an urgent assignment such as the one they just did, had increased rewards due to its limited and critical allotted time frame, Cole couldn't think about it at all.

He had a worried look on his face as he stepped inside and with Aiden next to him, made his way towards Mary, who was already giving them a friendly and cheerful smile, eagerly awaiting their return ever since they left.

"Hey, you two! Did you complete the rat infestation assignment already?" She asked cheerfully looking at both of them with an expectant smile.

Nodding, it was Aiden who responded to her question, as Cole was still busy with his own troubled thoughts. He was way too deep in his own doubts about his own strength and his ability to overcome such a hurdle.

"Yeah, we got it done, even if we weren't really appreciated by the staff." Aiden spoke with his usual calm and nonchalant attitude.

"What? What happened?" Raising her brows due to his reply, Mary asked with a questioning look.

"Nothing serious, don't worry about it." Aiden shrugged his shoulders, refusing to give any further explanation about the matter. 

Seeing that it would be futile to inquire any further, Mary turned her face to look at Cole who kept acting rather strangely. 

"And what is up with you Cole? What's the matter?" She continued with her bombardment of questions. "Also, do you have the tails as proof of the kills?"

Without answering any of the questions, Cole reached for his belt and took the small, brown leather pouch in his hands, and silently gave it to Mary. After doing so, he heaved a heavy sigh while taking the occasional glances towards the door at the right side of the hall. The same door where Aiden went through during his registration day to test his skill and rank.

Confused by the brown-haired boy's actions, Mary looked at Aiden.

"What is up with him? Did something happen? I mean... Besides the trouble with the staff?" She asked, hoping to get some answers at least for the reason for Cole's behavior.

Turning his head sideways to look at his friend, Aiden smiled wryly. 

"He is afraid of his upcoming Rank Up test. You know, he is afraid that he will not qualify like most of the others before him…" He answered the girl's question after a while.

"But…" Mary immediately wanted to retort but the words froze in her. How many did manage to pass through the test? 10%? 5%? It was hard to guess, but it was true that a successful result was incredibly rare. Nobody was sure, why was the bar set so high, or what were the passing standards of the examiners, but it was a fact that most failed to get a successful result, and even worse, injuries or even crippling outcomes could be the end for some of the unlucky ones.

"Just…" She continued after a few seconds of silent lamentation, trying to find the right words to pass over to her friend. "...Just try to calm down. Being so nervous will not help you. Also, you have Aiden, who you can rely on! Try your best, and just focus on keeping your safety as your first priority! Being rash or unreasonable will not only make you fail to pass the test, but it can result in injury! Aiden and I will be rooting for you!"

Although first her words were rather weak and did not sound confident at all, gradually during her improvised speech, it got more and more power under its tone, turning into a real, believable encouragement towards the end. Her right fist was also shot above her head as she got more and more into it.

Seeing her elated, fiery look in her eyes, Aiden couldn't stop to let out a small chuckle, as he cheekily remarked.

"Yes, just what she said! We will be rooting for you Cole, don't you worry!"

Realizing how much she got lost in her own speech, Mary's face turned beet red upon Aiden's remark, quickly hiding her face in her hands. 

"S-stop it Aiden! D-don't make fun of me!" She meekly squealed behind the cover of her palms, which just resulted in a burst of laughter from the boy in question much to her continued chagrin.

Cole's mindset began to gradually calm down as he enjoyed the scene of his friends playing out in front of him. A small, barely perceptible smile began to creep up on his face, contorting his facial muscles to a much better outlook than before. Even a small cackle managed to escape his previously closed lips, prying its prison open in the process.

"Heh, much better!" Aiden gave a pat on his back with a friendly smile noticing his friend's much better state. 

"Y-yeah, you should be fine now. Just keep calm and everything will be alright!" Mary added, albeit still embarrassed that it was her embarrassing actions that lead to Cole's change of state. To change the topic and clear her mind, she opened the leather bag and turning it upside down, she poured its contents on the table. The twisting, pretzel-looking gray-hairless rat tails fell down, piling up on each other, creating a rather twisted, uncomfortable sight.

Still, neither Aiden, Cole nor the lady amongst the trio, Mary minded the scene at all. She separated the tails, quickly giving them a headcount.

"Okay, this is 11… no, sorry 12!" Noticing a small one under a larger she quickly corrected herself. Pulling a small wooden tray from under the desk, she piled the tails on it, whilst she gave the leather pouch bag to Cole.

"I will quickly bring these to the back, and we can then credit you both. I will be back in just a moment!"

Turning around, she quickly left through the back office door, not giving the boys a chance to react. 

Smiling at the vanishing figure of Mary, Aiden shook his head slightly at her action, then turning to the side, he focused on his friend once more. The smile on his face began to fade, and worry began to resurface as the girl left their group.

"Didn't you just listen through Mary's speech? Why are you worrying so much about it?" Aiden spoke up, the smile not leaving his expression.

"You just don't understand this Aiden…" Cole answered after a few breaths with a saddened look in his eyes. "You are strong, incredibly strong… almost to the point of being inhuman, you can't understand the woes of the average folk." 

Turning his head towards the door on the right side, he heaved another heavy sigh, trying to calm his racing, agitated mind.

"...This whole test is very terrifying for me. Not just the fact that I might fail, but I could be injured or even worse, crippled for life. I have seen people being thrown out like a sack of potatoes only to be left lying on the floor for hours, unconsciously. Lost or broken limbs aren't that rare either… The fact that you went inside and came back victorious and without any injuries… that was a first."

Taking one last look at the door that meant hellish torture, a nightmare to Cole, he looked at his friend with a sad expression.

"I just... " He took a brief pause, grabbing the hilt of his blade, gripping it tightly as he continued. "I just… don't want to lose my chance to become somebody just to some stupid test that has no real value besides giving me a star under my name in the Guild's Catalogue…"

Aiden, gave a compassionate smile, not speaking a word, but gently placing his right hand on his friend's shoulder.

"If you want, I will go in with you and make sure no harm will come to you. You just focus on passing the test, okay?" He gave his reassuring words after a few moments.

Surprised by the offer, Cole couldn't answer at first, he could only look at his friend as a mixture of emotions flashed through his face. His initial sadness was replaced by shock and surprise, then with joy only for the realization to set in and the sadness to return.

"No, tests needed to be done alone, you can't go in with me. Not unless we are trying to rank up our party itself."

Aiden only shook his head, the smile not leaving his face.

"You don't have to worry about that. I can assure you that I will be able to go in with you and nobody will question it."

Just as he said his reassuring words, the back office door was sprung open, and Mary rushed back towards them, with a flushed face. 

Arriving, she huffed for air for a few brief seconds before looking at Aiden as she raised her right index finger in the air.

"Aiden… *huff* *huff* I'm sorry, but… *huff* *huff* ...the leader of the examiners is expecting you! *huff* There is an urgent quest that they need you for especially. You…" turning to Cole with an apologetic face, she continued" you can't accompany Cole for his test I'm afraid…"