The quest board was chaos.
Cid stood at the edge of the crowd, observing before attempting to push his way in. Bodies pressed together as people reached for quest papers, voices raised in complaint when someone snagged a posting they had been eyeing, occasional arguments breaking out over who had grabbed a particular sheet first.
'Everyone wants the good quests,' he thought, watching the dynamic play out. 'Or what they think are good quests. Competition is fierce.'
He listened carefully to the conversations happening around him, picking up fragments of information that painted a clearer picture of the situation.
"Another gathering quest? That's the third one this week. I need something that actually pays decent money."
"The escort jobs are all taken. Every single one. How am I supposed to earn a reputation if I can't even get a quest?"
"Did you see the starless board yesterday? There were maybe twenty quests total. Today there's like fifty and they're still disappearing in minutes."
"I heard the guild is creating more quests just to keep up with demand. Too many new adventurers, not enough work to go around."
Through the crowd, Cid spotted what he had suspected. Most of the people clustered around the starless section of the board showed the telltale signs of being former players. The slightly awkward way they moved, like they were still adjusting to bodies that followed different rules than they expected. The expressions of frustration mixed with determination. The occasional person who would pull up an invisible screen, check something, then dismiss it with a gesture.
'We're all at the same level,' Cid realized. 'Iron rank. Starless. Starting from the bottom regardless of what we accomplished in the game before this. Everyone here is in the same position I am. Trying to establish themselves. Trying to survive.'
It was a strange sort of equality. Someone who had been a max level player with legendary gear was now competing for the same basic quests as someone who had barely played at all. The reset had put everyone on equal footing.
'Which means knowledge is the real advantage,' Cid thought. 'Game knowledge. Understanding of mechanics and monster behaviors and quest systems. The players who paid attention to details will have an edge over those who just button mashed their way through content.'
He waited for a gap in the crowd, then pushed forward, Regulus and Rimuru still perched on his shoulders. People made way for him, mostly because the sight of a teenager with adorable pets was non threatening enough that they did not mind letting him through.
The starless section was exactly as described. Three rows of quest papers, color coded by type. Green papers for gathering quests. Blue for escort work. Yellow for search and retrieval. White for miscellaneous tasks that did not fit other categories.
Cid scanned the green papers first. Gather ten medicinal herbs from the forest. Collect twenty bundles of firewood. Find and bring back specific types of mushrooms. Simple work, probably safe, but also tedious and low paying.
The blue papers were mostly taken. Only two escort quests remained visible. One to accompany a merchant to a nearby village, estimated to travel two days. Another to guard a noble's child during a shopping trip through town. The first would take too much time. The second sounded like babysitting.
Yellow papers showed search jobs. Find a lost cat. Locate a missing piece of jewelry. Search the woods for a rare flower. Again, simple and safe, but not particularly interesting or lucrative.
Then his eyes landed on a white paper near the bottom right of the starless section.
The header read simply: PEST CONTROL
Most people would not give it a second glance. Pest control sounded mundane. Boring. The kind of quest farmers probably posted all the time for minor nuisances. Nothing exciting. Nothing worth taking when more interesting options existed.
But Cid had three years of game experience. He knew that pests in this world were nothing like pests on Earth. In a fantasy setting, pest control could mean anything from dealing with giant rats to exterminating swarms of carnivorous insects to eliminating magical parasites.
He reached up and pulled the paper from the board, ignoring the disappointed grunt from someone who had apparently been considering it.
Moving away from the crowd to a quieter corner of the hall, Cid read the quest details carefully.
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QUEST: Pest Control
Rank: Starless
Reward: 15 Silver Coins
Client: Gerald Thornfield
Location: Thornfield Farm, Eastern District
DESCRIPTION:
Client Gerald Thornfield, elderly farmer and primary food supplier for Springvale, reports pest infestation on his farmland. Pests appeared suddenly overnight and are threatening the current season's crops.
With the rainy season ending soon, successful harvest is critical for town food supply through winter. Failure to eliminate pests quickly will result in crop loss and potential food shortage for the Springvale population.
Pests identified as: KILLER WEEDS
Current count: Two (2)
Threat classification: F Rank individually
WARNING: Killer Weeds reproduce rapidly in fertile soil. If not eliminated quickly, infestation will spread. They possess regenerative capabilities and display basic hivemind coordination when multiple specimens are present.
Task: Eliminate all Killer Weeds on Thornfield Farm before they reproduce further.
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Cid read the description twice, his mind automatically analyzing the information through the lens of game knowledge.
'Killer Weeds,' he thought, recognizing the monster type immediately. 'F rank individually. Plant based enemies. Regenerate health quickly if not dealt sufficient damage in a short time. And they work as a hivemind when multiples are present, coordinating their attacks instead of acting independently.'
The quest said two weeds currently. But the warning about rapid reproduction was critical. In fertile farmland with ideal growing conditions, Killer Weeds could spawn new specimens every few hours. Two could become four by tomorrow. Four could become eight the day after. Within a week, Gerald's entire farm could be overrun.
'That's why the quest reward is relatively high for starless rank,' Cid realized. 'Fifteen silver is triple what most gathering quests pay. Because if someone takes this quest and fails to complete it quickly, the problem gets exponentially worse. Time pressure. Real consequences. Higher risk means higher reward.'
The classification caught his attention. F rank individually. But fighting multiple Killer Weeds simultaneously raised the effective threat level. Two weeds working together would be E rank difficulty. Ten would be D rank. The hivemind coordination meant they would not make basic tactical mistakes, would cover each other's weaknesses, and would focus fire on isolated targets.
'Most starless adventurers would struggle with this,' Cid assessed honestly. 'F rank enemies are manageable if you have decent combat skills and basic equipment. But the regeneration mechanic means you need to deal burst damage to finish them before they heal. And the coordination means you can't just pick them off one at a time. They'll protect each other.'
He looked down at Regulus and Rimuru on his shoulders. The Lion Emperor in adorable cub form. The demon slime was reduced to palm size.
'But I'm not a typical starless adventurer,' he thought with grim satisfaction. 'I have an EX rank familiar and an S+ rank familiar. Even sealed and nerfed, they should be more than capable of handling F rank plant monsters.'
The real challenge would be doing it without revealing their true nature. Gerald's farm was in the Eastern District, which meant it was near residential areas. Near people who might witness the fight. If Regulus transformed into his full Lion Emperor form or Rimuru expanded to demon slime size, questions would be asked. Attention would be drawn.
'We need to handle this while maintaining the cute pet facade,' Cid concluded. 'Fight in their reduced forms. Prove we can complete quests efficiently without relying on overwhelming power. Build reputation as a competent summoner, not as someone with suspiciously powerful familiars.'
He made his way back to Rina's station at the reception desk. She was helping another adventurer but glanced up when she noticed him approaching. Her eyes went to the quest paper in his hand, and when she finished with the current customer, she gestured for Cid to come forward.
"That was quick," she said with an approving smile. "Find something that caught your interest?"
Cid placed the pest control quest on the counter. "This one. I'd like to take it."
Rina picked up the paper and read through it, her expression shifting from casual interest to mild surprise.
"Pest control?" She looked at him with new curiosity. "Most new adventurers avoid these. They tend to go for gathering quests or simple escorts for their first assignments. Something safe and straightforward."
"Is there a problem with me taking it?" Cid asked.
"No, not at all. You're registered and it's a starless quest, so you're fully eligible." Rina studied the details more carefully. "It's just interesting that you chose this one. Killer Weeds are trickier than people expect. The regeneration makes them hard to put down, and if there are already two on the farm, time is critical. You'll need to eliminate them before they reproduce."
"I understand the urgency," Cid said. "That's part of why I chose it. High priority quest means it matters. And the reward is better than most starless work."
Rina's expression shifted to something that looked almost like respect. "You actually read the full description and thought about the implications. That's rare for a first timer." She pulled out a logbook and began writing. "Most people just grab whatever sounds easiest and figure out the details later. The fact that you're approaching this analytically suggests you might actually have what it takes to move up in rank."
She finished logging the quest in his name and handed the paper back to him.
"Gerald Thornfield's farm is in the Eastern District. Head east from here for about ten minutes, you'll hit the residential area. His place is at the far edge, backs up against cleared farmland. Big property, can't miss it. Look for the house with the red painted door."
"Got it. Thank you."
Rina's expression became slightly more serious. "Be careful with the Killer Weeds. F rank doesn't sound threatening, but those things are nasty if you don't handle them right. They have root systems that let them anchor firmly to the ground, and their vines are strong enough to restrain a grown man. Plus the regeneration means you need to deal significant damage quickly or they'll just heal through whatever you throw at them."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"And Cid?" Rina met his eyes directly. "If the situation looks like it's more than two weeds, or if it feels like you're in over your head, don't be a hero. Come back and report. The guild will upgrade the quest ranking and send more experienced adventurers. No one expects starless rank to handle situations that turn out to be worse than advertised."
There was genuine concern in her voice, and Cid felt a pang of appreciation for it. She was not just processing paperwork and sending him off. She actually cared whether he came back safely.
"I'll be careful," he promised. "And if it's more than I can handle, I'll retreat and report."
"Good." Rina smiled again, the concern fading back to friendly professionalism. "Then good luck with your first quest. I'll be curious to hear how it goes when you get back."
Cid tucked the quest paper into his pocket alongside his guild card and the informational pamphlet, then headed for the exit. As he walked through the crowded guild hall, he noticed several other adventurers giving him curious looks. Word had probably already spread that the new kid had taken the pest control quest that others had been avoiding.
'Let them wonder,' he thought. 'In a few hours I'll be back with proof of completion, and that will establish my reputation better than any amount of posturing.'