Early the next morning, Altaïr's group of three parted ways with the seniors from the Desert Fins and piloted their Sandship back to Loc Lac.
The return journey was uneventful, but the three people and one cat on board, including the usually boisterous Asa, were much quieter than on the way there.
It wasn't because of a somber atmosphere or anything of the sort. Rather, the experience of this mission and the stories from their seniors had given them considerable inspiration.
The phrase "find your own place" had given Altaïr much to ponder.
But the ones more deeply affected by this statement were, in fact, the brothers Nuri and Asa.
Even if they were reluctant to admit it, they both knew in their hearts that they, too, belonged to the vast majority of the "mediocre."
A 1★ hunter approaching twenty and a 2★ in his early twenties, while not disgracefully inept, these were hardly achievements worth boasting about.
During this mission with Altaïr, they had gained an even more direct sense of the gap between themselves and a "genius."
If they continued on this trajectory, they might remain on duty with the Loc Lac Rangers for a long time, or they might leave in a few years and get promoted to 3★ before they turned thirty.
They would spend a long time accumulating experience and honing their skills. If they were lucky enough, they might be promoted to 4★ during their prime in their forties.
But just like the seniors from the Desert Fins, they might fail repeatedly, or they might lose their lives in the jaws of a wyvern. In the best-case scenario, they would live out their lives in obscurity and retire without any disabilities.
As young men in their twenties, still full of drive, the thought of such a future felt somewhat suffocating.
But the words of their seniors had shown them another path.
Who said the mediocre couldn't achieve something of their own?
Back in Loc Lac, the three of them settled the quest, collected their reward, and sold the Piscine Livers, which could now only be described as average quality, for a total income of over three thousand z.
Nuri distributed the earnings. His method was simple and direct: one thousand z for each of the three of them, with the remainder all going to Sajji.
Logically, as the team leader and the only 2★ hunter in the group, it would have been perfectly reasonable for him to take a larger share.
But the successful completion of this mission wasn't solely due to his abilities. Everyone had contributed a great deal, and an even split would make everyone feel comfortable.
"Normally, after a mission, there's a three-to-five-day rest period for recovery. The Loc Lac Rangers don't really have fixed teams, so you can go solo or team up for future quests. Just give a heads-up in advance. But remember not to slack off for too long, or the old man will get angry."
Handing Altaïr his share of the reward, Nuri continued, "Asa and I plan to go home for a few days. The address is on (---), so feel free to come find us anytime if you need anything."
"You can also come hang out with us if you're bored!" Asa slung an arm around Altaïr and bumped his shoulder against his.
"Alright, thank you for your hard work, seniors." Altaïr gave a slight bow.
"Don't be such a stranger! We're off!"
After watching the two brothers leave, Altaïr looked at Sajji. "What are your plans for the next few days?"
Perhaps because of their similar experiences, the bond between the man and the cat had grown much closer after this mission. Sajji scratched his ears. "I'm getting ready to go dig up some ore, meow. I've been wearing this Felyne Acorn set for a while now, and my Felyne Pickaxe made from Herbivore Bone is getting a bit dull, meow.
If I can dig up some better quality ore, I can get myself some new gear, meow."
Altaïr paused for a moment. Sajji's words had served as a reminder.
His original plan had been to switch weapons as soon as he was promoted to a full-fledged hunter. That was why his Hunter's Dagger had remained in its initial state, with no thought given to upgrading it.
But his teacher's message before her departure had changed his mind.
He calmed himself and asked, had he really decided to change weapons?
Besides the Sword and Shield, there were only two other weapons he could use effectively in actual combat: the Dual Blades and the Great Sword. In truth, they were the preferred weapons of his teacher and teacher Haifa.
If he switched to Dual Blades, could he still use his Great Sword charging technique? It seemed unlikely. He couldn't just drop his off-hand blade every time and use both hands to force a Charged Slash with his main-hand one, could he?
If he switched to the Great Sword, even if he could still activate Demon Mode, he probably wouldn't be able to run or even swing the weapon.
Looked at this way, the Sword and Shield was actually the most suitable weapon for him at the moment. Not to mention, he had just made some progress with Perfect Rush. Incorporating his charging technique into Perfect Rush was a reasonably clear goal to work toward.
Since he planned to keep using the Sword and Shield for a while longer, it was no longer appropriate to leave the Hunter's Dagger as it was.
This particular Sword and Shield had only used Iron Ore in its forging process. The blade wasn't hard enough, and its sharpness was too poor; it would chip even from hitting the bones of a small Monster.
However, this weapon did have one advantage, it was easy to upgrade.
As long as he could get his hands on higher-quality ores like Machalite Ore, Dragonite Ore, or even Bealite Ore, it would be easy to improve all aspects of its performance.
"Did teacher Haifa consider even this..." Altaïr muttered to himself.
"What did you say, meow?"
"Nothing." Altaïr composed himself. "If you're gathering ore, I'll go with you. I happen to be planning to upgrade my Hunter's Dagger as well."
"No problem, meow! But we have to go tell the boss first, meow, so he knows where we've gone, meow," Sajji said in a cheerful tone, clearly in a good mood.
Having a companion to look out for each other, even just to talk to, could relieve the boredom.
The man and the Felyne ran off to find Joda, who was busy with official duties in his office.
Hearing that the two of them had just returned to the city this morning and were already thinking of heading out again, Joda couldn't help but feel a bit emotional. "Young people are just so full of energy.
If you're mining for ore, I recommend the gobi to the northeast. There are a lot of exposed mineral veins over there. If you're lucky, you might even be able to gather high-grade ore materials like Lightcrystals.
However, since you're both going there, hmm, wait a moment."
Joda took a blank quest form from his drawer and began filling it out on the spot. Very quickly, he pushed the completed form in front of Altaïr. "How about you do this quest while you're at it?"
Altaïr accepted the form with both hands.
Slaying Quest: Roll, Roll, Bang! (★)
Quest Details: Slay 5 Konchu
Location: Loc Lac Northern Gobi
Time Limit: 5 Days
Reward: 600z
Possible Monsters: Genprey, Aptonoth
Client: Your boss, me. Not gonna waste the ink.
Altaïr: "..."
This was truly the first time he had seen a client write up a request form on the spot. Was this really okay?
"Don't worry, don't worry. Don't forget that our Loc Lac Rangers are an official organization." Joda took out a stamp, breathed on it, and pressed it onto the quest form. "Everything is reasonable, compliant, and legal."
Seeing that Altaïr was still a bit suspicious, Joda explained with a smile, "The quota for the Konchu hunt is set by the Guild. The total is seventy, covering the entire large region north of Loc Lac.
If the target hunt count is fifteen, the quest difficulty will be set to 2★. If there's a large Monster active in the target area, the difficulty will be raised further to 3★.
The stretch of desert you're heading to is very safe. A hunter just came back from there yesterday, and there were no signs of any large Monsters.
Plus, the quest target is only five, which is why it's set to 1★. Correspondingly, the reward won't be too high either."
"I understand," Altaïr nodded. "Thank you, Boss."
He knew Joda was looking out for him. Otherwise, why would he go out of his way to reduce the quest target, lowering its difficulty and barrier to entry?
"You can do it on the side while you're searching for ore veins and mining. By the way, do you know about the Monster, Konchu? Their shells are very hard, so don't try to brute force it."
"I know. My master showed me how to deal with them."
"Good, that saves me the trouble of explaining." Joda waved his hand, signaling that they could leave.
After walking out of Joda's office, Altaïr looked at Sajji and said, "How about we rest for half a day, maintain our gear, prepare our items, and set out early tomorrow morning?"
"No problem, meow! Don't forget to bring two extra iron pickaxes, meow!"