The morning sunlight bathed the entire city and dormitory. Birds were chirping, and the sound of roosters crowing filled the air.

“Tweet… tweet… tweet,” chirped the morning birds.
“Cock-a-doodle-doo,” crowed the roosters.

Then, Syura slowly opened his eyes, rising from bed gently.

“I slept really well,” said Syura, yawning.

He quickly got up and went to the bathroom to freshen up, then stepped out and got ready to head to the guild.

“It’s time for me to take on a mission,” said Syura with enthusiasm.

Then, Syura walked out the door to his room.

Click — the sound of the door being closed from the outside.

Syura walked down the hallway, then slowly descended the stairs.

Tap… tap… tap — the sound of Syura’s footsteps.

Then, there was Valmila preparing food for the adventurers.

To the right, a door was open, revealing a room with a round wooden table and matching chairs.

The atmosphere inside was lively, with adventurers eating breakfast and chatting.

“Syura… you’re already up.”
“Don’t you want to have breakfast first?” Valmila asked.

Syura had just come down the stairs.

“Thank you for the offer, Valmila.”
“But for now, I’ll take on the mission first.”
“I’ll be back later, so please keep the room I rented yesterday.”
“Here’s the key, I’m returning it,” said Syura.

Valmila, who was pouring orange juice, looked toward Syura.

“Hold on, I’ll get you an apple.”
“So your stomach isn’t empty,” said Valmila.

She placed the glass of orange juice on the table, then packed five apples and two grilled fish for Syura.

“Syura, here’s a bonus… just for today.”
“Don’t worry, it’s all free,” said Valmila.

Syura’s face lit up with a wide smile.

“Thank you, Valmila, you’re so kind!”
“Well then, I’ll be going,” said Syura.

“My pleasure,” said Valmila.

Then, Syura stepped toward the exit.

Tap… tap… tap — the sound of Syura’s footsteps.
Click — the sound of the door being opened by Syura.

Then the door closed again behind him.

Syura was ready and on his way to the guild.

3 minutes later

Syura arrived at the guild entrance and stepped inside.

Click — the sound of the door opening.

Tap… tap… tap — Syura’s steps heading toward the mission board.

But before he reached the board…

A piece of paper from the second-floor mission board came loose and floated down toward the first floor. It hit Syura right in the face as he was walking toward the board.

Crack — the sound of the paper hitting Syura’s face.

“Wha… what is this?” said Syura, grabbing the paper from his face.

He looked at the paper — the rank wasn’t clearly visible.

[Mission]

Rank §<
The Opened Ice Gate
Location: Northern Black Forest
Threat: Unknown
Reward: Unknown

Syura mumbled casually,
“It’s just an ice gate, probably just a rank F mission,” he muttered.

Then Syura walked toward Silvia to tell her he wanted to take the mission.

Tap… tap… tap — Syura’s footsteps approaching Silvia.

“Good morning, Silvia. I want to take this mission,” said Syura.

Silvia looked at Syura.
“Let me see that paper,” she said.

Syura handed it to her, and Silvia took it.

“This mission doesn’t clearly show what rank it is.”
“Where did you get this?” Silvia asked.

“That paper… just flew out of nowhere and hit me in the face.”
“Maybe it’s just a low-rank mission for beginners,” said Syura.

Silvia believed him without question.

“Alright, you can take this mission.”
“But remember, be careful,” said Silvia.

Syura stepped away from Silvia and walked toward the exit.

Tap… tap… tap — the sound of Syura’s footsteps.

Creek — the door opened.

Syura stood outside the guild.

“My instincts tell me this is going to be an easy mission,” Syura murmured softly.

He gave a faint smile, and a faint aura began to emit from his body.

Syura walked away from the guild, heading north — toward the Northern Black Forest.