The next day, Noah and I visited the association counter early in the morning. The receptionist we had met before greeted us warmly.
“You’ve come,” she said.
As if she’d been expecting me, the receptionist pulled out a stiff piece of paper without me even saying a word. She handed it to me, and the paper felt rough in my hands.
[Hunter Card]
Name: Alice
Rank: 1
Sure enough, it was my hunter card. Finally! Beyond my name and rank, there were other fields, but since I was a brand-new hunter, most of them were blank. Rank 1, zero monster hunting experience, zero completed quests—it was the kind of record so dazzling that seasoned veterans might foam at the mouth and trail after me in admiration.
“Tsk…” Noah, peering at the card beside me, clicked her tongue.
To Noah, a hunter with five years of experience, I was nothing more than a fresh-faced newbie. Was that tickling sensation on the back of my neck just my imagination? Don’t lick the newbie, just look with your eyes, I silently pleaded.
I shot a sideways glance at the awkward Noah and ran my fingers over the hunter card. The coarse texture sent my heart racing—it felt like getting a toy I’d always wanted. I was so thrilled I could leap for joy. Truly, it was a joyful day.
“Congratulations,” the receptionist said with a gentle smile. “If you’d like to take on quests in the future, please come see me. I look forward to working with you, Hunter.”
Hunter! The word rang beautifully in my ears. Hearing it from someone else made my new profession feel real. I was a hunter now. Bring on the monsters—I’d slice them all into pretty star shapes!
“Alice, congrats,” Noah said, patting my head.
Don’t pat me! I jerked my head back and smoothed my tousled hair. Noah chuckled softly and slipped her hand into her pocket.
“I’ve got a little gift for you… Ta-da!” She pulled out a monster’s essence.
“This is…”
“It’s from the one-eyed Lugarak. Since you took it down, Alice, I kept this even if I didn’t save the other materials. Essences don’t drop easily, you know.”
She was right. Essences were rare materials—sometimes you could hunt all day and not get one. I took the Lugarak’s essence from Noah. It glimmered with a strange, reddish light. While it was great to have, one essence alone couldn’t craft anything. Still, it’d come in handy later—I’d have no choice but to use it eventually.
Even with just one essence, Hunter Land would be more fun.
“Noah, thanks.”
“Oh, I’m the one who should be grateful. You saved me, after all. So… how about we buy some clothes first?”
“…Huh?” Weren’t we going to start taking quests?
—
I’d been itching to slaughter monsters the moment I got my hunter card, but things didn’t go as planned. We couldn’t take quests yet—there were still too many loose ends. I was still wearing Noah’s hand-me-downs, and I didn’t have any armor to protect myself.
Worst of all was my greatsword. Ever since I used it against Pienos, the connection between the blade and handle had felt creaky. I’d inspected it multiple times at the lodging, but it was damaged beyond repair. It must’ve gotten wrecked fighting the one-eyed Lugarak—its hide and claws were too tough for the sword to handle. Forcing it into action had broken it for good. There was no way I could fight with such a worn-out, broken weapon.
“How about we hit the clothing store first?” Noah suggested.
I didn’t know my way around Antico, so I left it all to Noah. We were in the Antico commercial district now. Shops lined the shaded areas beneath the trees, but there were also stores up in the trees, linked by suspension bridges woven from ropes and wood. The paths were intricate—not as bad as the Mihok water area, but still confusing. The scenery was so fascinating that I kept looking around, only to realize Noah had already forged ahead. I scrambled to catch up. She climbed stairs and crossed a suspension bridge with ease, leading us into a clothing store.
Shopping, huh. I didn’t really want to waste time on this—it wasn’t what mattered to me.
“Can I pick anything?” I asked.
“Nope,” Noah replied firmly.
Her tone was so resolute that I shrank back and followed quietly. The store clerk was a young woman wearing a pendant shaped like a monster’s claw alongside a mysterious gem. Her outfit was odd—flowing garments so light they seemed ready to float away in a breeze. Clothes just need to be comfy and easy to move in, I thought. That’s the hunter way, right?
But Noah seemed to think appearances mattered too. She grabbed me and held up outfit after outfit against me, shaking her head as if nothing met her standards. Then she stopped abruptly and picked out a sleeveless top.
“Want to try this on?”
Wait, seriously? I stared at her. Noah swallowed hard and nodded, unflinching under my gaze. Fine, whatever. My hand trembled as I reached for it.
“If you don’t like it, we’ll find something else!” Noah said, yanking it back with a laugh.
If Noah really wanted me to, I could grit my teeth and wear it. But since I’d rather not, I kept quiet. I caught the clerk’s eye—she was hiding a laugh behind her hand. Noah kept shoving clothes at me, but nothing clicked. Constantly rejecting her picks felt rude, so I tried on a few. Seeing her light up with joy wasn’t half bad. The sleeveless one was cooler than I expected…
Next, we headed to the workshop district. The vibe was totally different from the commercial area—blazing heat hit me, and sweat beaded up instantly. The air rang with the clang of artisans’ hammers and the bubbling of molten metal.
“I’d love to get you top-notch gear, but hunters can’t just hand stuff to each other—it’s against the rules,” Noah said, sounding apologetic. “You’ve got to get your own equipment.”
I didn’t mind. There wasn’t a trading system in the game either.
“Any workshops catch your eye?” she asked.
Hmm. I scanned the area. In the game, players only used one workshop in Antico. Out of all the options, the player hunter dealt with just one person. I studied the faces of the workshop owners scattered around.
“How about that one?” Noah suggested when I hesitated too long, but it didn’t feel right.
I kept searching, but the face I wanted didn’t appear. Since I wasn’t wandering alone, I was about to settle and give up when I spotted a familiar old man. His graying hair was tied back, an eye patch covered one eye, and his arms and body were unusually muscular for his age. It was Matilo, the old man from the Antico workshop I’d been looking for.
“Noah, over there,” I said, tugging her along.
His workshop was tucked away in the most secluded corner, rarely visited by others. It matched the location from my memory. “…This one?” Noah asked.
Matilo’s workshop was shabbier and more rundown than the others. It hadn’t been this dilapidated in the game. Still, I was certain it was him—the gruff yet caring tsundere blacksmith who worried about the player. I might’ve mistaken his face, but I’d talk to him anyway.
I rattled the doorknob with a knock. Clang-clang! Matilo kept hammering glowing iron, not bothering to look back.
“…Who’s there?” he growled, his voice sharp but familiar.
My suspicion turned to certainty. “A customer,” I replied.
“A-Alice?” Noah stammered.
Oops, my rude mouth just spoke casually to someone decades older. Noah was shocked, but I was even more flustered. Matilo finally turned at my informal tone, meeting my eyes. Now he’s looking.
“…Hmph, thought it was some insolent punk. A rookie hunter, huh?”
“S-sorry! She—” Noah started.
“It’s fine. That doesn’t even tick me off,” Matilo cut in.
We locked eyes for a moment. He snorted, set down his hammer, and stood. Peeling off his thick work gloves and hanging them on a chair, he stomped over to me.
“Miss Hunter,” he said to Noah, “this brat needs armor, right?”
“Uh, yes… that’s right,” she replied.
Why’s Noah ‘miss’ and I’m ‘brat’? Sure, she’s a bit taller and, uh, more endowed, but I’m not that childish. I glared at Matilo sulkily. He smirked at my look and crossed his arms.
“Listen, brat, I’ve been at this so long my back aches and my hands throb. I don’t take customers unless it’s a special order. You knew that coming here?”
“Nope.”
“Then what, got any rare materials?”
“I’ll bring some later.”
“Hmph, easy to say. You want my gear that bad?”
“Yeah. It’s gotta be you.”
“…”
Matilo rubbed his chin, mulling over my words. There was a reason I stuck with him despite his cold shoulder. In the game, he’d often give the player tasks—mining ore, hunting monsters, gathering materials. Bit by bit, he’d share his stories, mostly trivial stuff about his hunter days. I’d figured he was just a retired hunter, but the final linked quest revealed the truth: Matilo was a master hunter. He hid his past, running this workshop in Antico as a leisurely retirement gig. While blacksmithing, he met the player taking on tough foes and saw his younger self in them. Maybe that’s why he opened up to them—someday, he’d do the same for me.
“Alright, fine,” he said at last. “Prove your worth. Catch a Kakaari solo, no help.”
“…Isn’t that too much?” Noah interjected.
“Hmph, if it’s too tough, go elsewhere. Hunters these days don’t get what a challenge is…”
Noah took my side, but a Kakaari was doable alone. The firebird Kakaari lived in the water area, spitting flames from a red organ under its neck. It was around Pienos’s level but a tad stronger—a gatekeeper before tackling Hunter Land’s big shots.
“Alice is still rank 1,” Noah pressed.
“Ha, so you can’t do it? Or what, should I wait ‘til you rank up?”
“No, I’ll do it. Now,” I cut in.
“A-Alice…!” Noah gasped.
She probably couldn’t fathom why I’d go this far for a cranky old man. But he’d had a long bond with the player, and I felt that attachment too. I knew his gruffness was just social awkwardness.
“…Ho, not just a big talker, huh,” Matilo mused.
He liked hunters who didn’t coast—ones who craved progress. That was the player, and that was me. He was fated to craft my gear.
“I’ll do it, so wait,” I said, turning to grab Noah and leave. A rough hand clamped my shoulder—Matilo.
“Going like that? That’s not a quest, it’s suicide. Hold on.”
He shuffled to the storage and returned with gear: basic leather armor and an iron greatsword, bundled together and dropped before me.
“Ugh, my back… Brat, that greatsword on your back’s toast. How do you even wield it? Hand it over. Catch the Kakaari, and I’ll fix it. Use this one instead.”
Caught off guard, I gave him my greatsword. He set it on the workbench.
“Then go—”
“Gotta fit the gear first. Where’re you off to? You scream newbie. What’re you standing there for—put on the armor!”
I can’t keep up! I fumbled into the leather armor he’d tossed on the floor. With Noah’s help, I tied the belt and stood before Matilo. He scratched his chin, eyed me up and down, then adjusted the belt to fit me snugly.
“Tightened it, so it’ll fit. If it’s off, fix it yourself.”
“…Now I’m going.”
Matilo didn’t say bye—just turned back to his work. Finally, we stepped out of his workshop.
“…Is he nice?” Noah tilted her head, unsure.
“No clue,” I said. Still, I’d snagged gear and a quest out of it. Now, just the hunt remained.
…Let’s eat first.
—
