Nozue's First Quest - Rebirth God

"Nozue, want to join me for a jog?" I asked, tapping his shoulder with a cheerful smile as the early morning sun cast a golden hue over the city of Druzka.

"Yeah! I'll join you every day. I need to train my body before I can become a full-fledged adventurer," Nozue replied, returning the smile with equal enthusiasm as we began to run.

"Great! By the way, do you want to go to the Guild and register afterward?"

"Sure!" Nozue said eagerly, his excitement evident in his quickened pace.

"Alright, after we finish our route, we'll stop by the Guild to get you signed up. They say you only need to show a basic grasp of mana and skills to become an adventurer, so you should pass easily."

After a refreshing, grueling morning jog that left us both sweating but energized, Nozue and I approached the grand, bustling Adventurer's Guild.

"This is it. This is where you'll register," I explained, gesturing toward the imposing stone building adorned with the crossed-swords emblem.

Inside, the Guild was abuzz with its usual chaotic activity. Adventurers of all ranks bustled about, sharing loud tales of their latest quests and exchanging tips over mugs of ale. Missy stood behind the reception desk, her face lighting up the moment she saw me.

"Good morning, Kazu! Are you here to pick up a new job quest?" Missy greeted, her tone warm and welcoming.

"Good morning, Missy. Actually, I'm here to help Nozue register as an adventurer today. Can he sign up?"

"Nozue?" Missy asked, turning her attention to the shy boy standing slightly behind me.

"H-Hello, Missy. I'm Nozue, Kazu's friend," he introduced himself, his voice slightly nervous but filled with determination.

"Nice to meet you, Nozue. So, you want to register as an adventurer?" Missy inquired, her curiosity piqued.

"Yes, that's right," Nozue said, trying to muster his confidence.

"Alright, there are a few basic requirements. First, you need to physically show us your skills and abilities. Second, you must be at least twelve years old. Third, you need to possess active mana. Understood?"

"Yes, Missy."

"First, show me a skill you can use for adventuring. What can you do?"

Nozue took a deep breath, focusing as he extended his palm over the counter. "I can use Water magic. Like this..." He concentrated, and a swirling sphere of water formed in the air, rapidly freezing into a thin, perfectly clear sheet of ice.

Missy's eyes widened in admiration. "That's a very good skill... Is that all?"

"I can cast my spells without incantations, too," Nozue added, a hint of pride bleeding into his voice.

"That makes spell-casting much faster in combat. Impressive. Now, let's measure your mana capacity."

"You can do it, Nozue! I'll wait right here," I encouraged, giving him a reassuring smile.

"Thanks, Kazu!" Nozue said, visibly feeling his nerves settle.

"Place your palm on this crystal. It's the mana meter," Missy instructed, pulling a smooth, glowing orb from beneath the desk.

"Like this?" Nozue asked, carefully pressing his palm against the glass.

Missy's eyes widened in absolute shock as the orb glowed with a blinding, pure white light mixed with swirling blue. "You... you have a dual-element magic affinity! Water and Light!"

"Light affinity?" Nozue echoed, puzzled.

"Yes! Light affinity is incredibly rare. It's usually only wielded by high-ranking clerics to fight against Dark affinity users and undead monsters. You have the potential to learn skills like area purification, high-tier healing spells, absolute immobilization, and mass detoxification."

"Really?!"

"Yes, and based on the crystal's output... your mana capacity is ranked A!"

"A-Rank?! Wow!" Nozue exclaimed, his jaw dropping in astonishment.

"Congratulations, Nozue! Wait here while I go to the back to forge your Guild card," Missy said with a beaming smile.

"Thank you so much, Missy!" Nozue practically bounced on his heels as he turned back to me. "Kazu! It's done! I just have to wait for my card, and I'll be an official adventurer!"

"That's amazing! What rank are they starting you at?" I asked, equally thrilled.

"My mana capacity is ranked A!"

"Wow, A-Rank? I started out as an F-Rank anomaly... You're really lucky!" I laughed, clapping him on the shoulder.

"I know, right?!"

"You seem so happy today. I remember when we first met, you were so quiet and reserved, but now you're showing a completely different side of yourself. Keep it up, Nozue! I'm so happy for you!"

Nozue smiled softly. "It's all because of you, Kazu. I finally have a real friend. Thank you."

"As your best friend, I'll always be here for you," I promised. "By the way, we should look for a Construction Quest on the board. We need to physically strengthen our bodies."

"Alright, let's look!"

I scanned the sprawling quest board and pointed to a pinned notice. "How about this one? 'Transport heavy logs to the Druzka Lumberyard.' The reward isn't bad, and all that heavy lifting will definitely help us build our Strength stat."

"I don't know much about quests yet, so I'll leave the picking to you," Nozue said.

"Okay, let's take this one! We just need to wait for your Guild card so we can officially register it as your very first quest. I'm so excited!"

"Me too, Kazu!"

After about ten minutes, Missy returned from the back room with a freshly stamped copper Guild card in hand. "Here's your card, Nozue! You're officially an F-Rank adventurer, but with your A-Rank mana, you'll level up quickly."

"Wow! Thank you, Missy!"

"No problem. Just doing my job."

"Missy, we're taking this Construction Quest," I said, sliding the parchment across the desk.

"A Construction Quest? Why?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "You're an S-Rank, Kazu."

"As part of our training, we're trying to build our raw physical strength. Is that okay?"

"I suppose," she sighed, stamping the paper. "But you're both quite young for such a demanding, back-breaking job. Do you think you can handle it?"

"We'll manage, Missy!" Nozue replied confidently.

I looked at Nozue with a profound sense of pride. "That's right. We'll manage."

Missy smiled. "Alright, but be careful. Construction quests are tougher than they look."

The Lumberyard

At the edge of Leafa Forest, we met our quest leader, a rugged, incredibly muscular man with a no-nonsense demeanor.

"Are you the boys who took my job quest?" the man asked, his voice gruff as he looked down at us.

"Yes, sir. Is this the right camp?" I asked, showing him the stamped quest paper.

"That's it. I'm Hacho, your foreman. We need to load all these freshly cut logs onto the heavy wagons and manually pull them to the Lumberjack shop in the city."

"We understand, Foreman Hacho," Nozue and I replied in unison.

"Good. Less talking, more lifting. Let's get started."

We worked incredibly hard under Hacho's watchful eye, hoisting the massive, sap-covered logs onto the wooden wagons. Despite our endless mana, the sheer physical exertion was grueling. We moved the logs in a steady rhythm, our young muscles straining and burning under the immense weight.

Hours passed before we finally finished loading the very last wagon.

"We're done, Foreman Hacho!" I gasped, wiping a thick layer of sweat and sawdust from my brow.

"Is that really all of them?" Nozue panted, collapsing flat onto the grass.

"Yes, that's all. Take a half-hour break, then we'll strap in and haul them out," Hacho instructed, tossing us a waterskin.

We sat in the shade to rest, sharing a simple meal of dried meat and catching our breath. Suddenly, I felt a familiar, thrilling tingle in my mind as a blue system notification appeared before my eyes.

[Notification: Strength stat reached Level 12] [New Active Skill Unlocked: Quick Wield] [New Passive Skill Unlocked: Sword Play]

[STATUS] Level: 79 Name: Kazu Gonomiya Age: 13 Job Class: God

Passive Skills:

Divine Knowledge

Infinite Mana

Maximized Self-Healing

Sword Play

Active Skills:

Blink

Explosive Blink

Bloodlust

Blood Steal

Rage (Locked)

Quick Wield

Magic Spells:

Fire Pierce

Fire Spirit Flare

Unique Skills:

Exploration (Level 89)

Assassin (Level 91)

Cooking (Level 8)

Mining (Level 1)

Smithing (Level 1)

Strength (Level 12)

Huh, new combat skills? I mused, staring at the screen. But I haven't even held a sword before...

"What are you thinking about, Kazu?" Nozue asked, noticing my intense, thoughtful expression.

"I just unlocked some new skills. Maybe I should actually try using a sword," I said.

"A sword? But your class is Assassin, and you use a dagger. Won't a heavy sword be hard for you?" Nozue wondered aloud.

"I'll just have to train myself to use it," I decided firmly.

"You're amazing, Kazu. You're always pushing yourself to learn more," Nozue said, admiration clear in his voice.

"Thanks for your support, Nozue."

"Alright, boys, break time is over! Grab the harnesses! Time to pull!" Hacho called out, clapping his massive hands together.

"Coming!" we responded together, our spirits lifted by our camaraderie.

"You really are my best friend, Nozue!" I grinned, grabbing the heavy leather straps of the wagon.

"Yeah, we think exactly alike!" Nozue laughed, grabbing the straps beside me.

We hauled the heavy wagons for two grueling hours back to the Lumberjack shop in Druzka, where we finally unhooked the payload with a massive sense of accomplishment.

"Here's your reward: one thousand silver coins each. Thanks for the hard work, boys. You're tougher than you look," Hacho said, handing us two heavy coin pouches.

"No problem, sir!" Nozue beamed, holding his very first reward pouch with absolute pride.

"How was your first official quest, Nozue?" I asked, eager to hear his thoughts.

"It was exhausting but fun! So this is what being an adventurer actually feels like!" his eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Let's head back to the Guild to report our success and log the completion," I suggested, already looking forward to our next physical training session.

"Okay, Kazu!"

As we walked back through the city streets, my system chimed again.

[Notification: Strength stat reached Level 15] [Notification: Exploration reached Level 90] [New Active Skill Unlocked: Whirlwind] [New Skill Developed: Item Space] (Item Space: An infinite pocket dimension inventory that allows the user to store and summon items from thin air at will.)

[STATUS] Level: 80 Name: Kazu Gonomiya Age: 13 Job Class: God