"Help you with something, son?" the man called out, his voice carrying that distinctive roughness that came with age but still plenty of strength behind it.
Cid stopped a respectful distance from the porch. "Are you Gerald Thornfield?"
"That's me. Who's asking?"
"My name is Cid Raimon. I'm an adventurer with the Springvale Guild." He pulled out the quest paper and held it up so Gerald could see it. "I took your pest control quest. I'm here to eliminate the Killer Weeds on your property."
For a moment, Gerald just stared at him, his expression unreadable. Then his weathered face broke into a smile so wide and genuine that it transformed his entire appearance.
"You're here for the weeds?" The old man stood up from his rocking chair with surprising speed for someone his age. "You actually took the quest? Thank the gods, I was starting to think no one would bother. It's been two days since I posted it and you're the first to show up."
The relief in Gerald's voice was palpable, and Cid felt a pang of sympathy. This was not just an inconvenient problem for the old farmer. This was his livelihood. His entire life's work. The difference between prosperity and ruin.
"Those damned weeds showed up three nights ago," Gerald continued, his words coming faster now as the relief loosened his tongue. "Never seen anything like it. Went to bed with perfectly healthy fields, woke up to find those things sprouting in the middle of my best growing plot. Thought maybe I could handle them myself at first. I'm old but I'm not useless."
The farmer's expression darkened. "But those things are tough. Cut one down and it just grows back. Try to pull it up and the roots go so deep you'd need a team of horses to yank it free. And they move. Actually move and grab at you with those vines. Nearly got me wrapped up before I managed to get away."
"How many are there now?" Cid asked, hoping the answer was still two.
"Still just the two, as far as I can tell. But I know how Killer Weeds work. I used to see them sometimes when I was younger and working in different lands. They reproduce fast in good soil, and my soil is the best in the region. That's why my crops grow so well. But it's also why those weeds are going to spread like wildfire if someone doesn't stop them soon."
Gerald's eyes were pleading now, the earlier relief mixing with desperate hope. "The rainy season ends in two weeks. I need to get my crops in the ground for the winter harvest. If those weeds spread and ruin my fields, I won't be able to plant. And if I can't plant, Springvale is going to have a very hungry winter. I supply most of the town's grain and vegetables. Losing even one season would be devastating."
'The stakes are higher than I thought,' Cid realized. 'This is not just about one farmer's business. This is about food security for the entire town. No wonder the quest reward was relatively high. The guild understood how critical this is.'
"I'll take care of it," Cid said with more confidence than he felt. "Where are the weeds located?"
"Back field, eastern section." Gerald pointed toward the farmland behind his house. "About two hundred yards that way. You'll see them easy enough. They're big and purple and definitely do not belong in a crop field."
"Purple?"
"Yeah, purple stems and leaves. Never seen Killer Weeds with that coloration before, but I'd recognize the shape and behavior anywhere. They're Killer Weeds alright, just a weird variant maybe."
'Purple coloration,' Cid thought with a mental grimace. 'That suggests demonic influence or corruption. Great. So these are not even normal Killer Weeds. These are corrupted versions, which might explain why they appeared suddenly overnight rather than growing naturally.'
But he kept that observation to himself. No point in worrying the old farmer more than necessary.
"I'll head back there now and handle it," Cid said. "Should not take too long."
Gerald looked at him with an expression that mixed hope with concern. "You sure you can manage, son? No offense, but you look pretty young to be taking on monsters, even F rank ones. And you don't seem to have any weapons or gear."
Cid gestured to Regulus and Rimuru on his shoulders. "I'm a summoner. My familiars do the fighting. I just coordinate."
The old farmer's eyes focused on the tiny cub and the palm sized slime, and his expression shifted to clear skepticism. "Those little things are going to fight Killer Weeds? Son, I don't mean to doubt you, but are you sure you know what you're doing?"
Through his bond with Regulus, Cid felt a surge of renewed indignation. Little things. The Lion Emperor did not appreciate being called little. The determination to prove himself intensified even further.
"They are stronger than they look," Cid said with complete honesty. "Trust me."
Gerald did not look entirely convinced, but he also seemed desperate enough to accept help from anyone willing to offer it. "Alright. You're the adventurer. I'll trust you know your business. Just be careful back there. And if it gets too dangerous, you run, understand? I'd rather have living adventurers who failed than dead ones who tried to be heroes."
"Understood. I will be careful."
The old farmer nodded, then his expression shifted back to that earlier relief, the genuine happiness of someone who had been carrying a heavy burden and finally saw the possibility of it being lifted.
"Thank you, son. Really. Thank you for taking this quest. You have no idea how much this means. If you can eliminate those weeds, you will be saving my business. Saving my life's work. Hell, probably saving the whole town from a hungry winter."
Gerald's eyes were actually getting slightly misty, emotion breaking through the weathered farmer's stoic exterior. "I've been working on this land for fifty years. Fifty years of planting and harvesting and caring for these fields. The thought of losing it all to some damned weeds that showed up overnight, it's been eating at me something fierce. But if you can stop them, if you can save my farm."
The old man trailed off, overcome with emotion, but the gratitude radiating from him was unmistakable.
Cid felt the weight of that gratitude settle onto his shoulders alongside his familiars. This was not just a quest for experience points and silver coins anymore. This was real. A real person's real life depending on him succeeding. A town's food supply hanging in the balance.
'No pressure,' he thought wryly. 'Just my first quest and already the stakes are life and death for an entire community. But this is the reality now. Quests are not just game mechanics anymore. They are real problems affecting real people. Every quest matters.'
He looked at Gerald's hopeful, grateful face, at the elderly farmer who had poured his life into this land and now faced losing everything to an overnight infestation.
And Cid made a silent promise to himself that he would not let that happen.
"I'll take care of the weeds," he said firmly. "Your farm will be safe. You have my word."
Gerald smiled, genuine joy breaking across his weathered features like sunlight through clouds. For the first time in days, the old farmer allowed himself to hope that everything might actually turn out alright.
That his life's work would be saved.
That his farm would survive.
That Springvale would have food for the winter.
All because a seventeen year old summoner with two adorable pets had walked up to his red door and accepted a quest that others had avoided.