Kazuma looked at the paper in his hand that contains all the details about the quest he took. He scratched the back of his head for a while and then sighed for the umpteenth time before putting the quest paper back to his pocket.

It was his first quest, the one that marks his debut of being a good citizen for Orchidia and a good wizard for his guild, Lamia Scale. If that's the case, you might be wondering why he seems so bummed out. Well, it was due to the fact that he is actually a lazy guy who wants nothing more than to sit in the guild hall, watch his guildmates interact with each other while listening to music from his headphones and drinking whatever Strawberry-flavored drink he could find. But that's exactly where the problem lies. Due to his Strawberry related needs, he was actually short on money and he had no choice but to get his lazy bum off the table and do a job for once. Hence, the present time.

He was walking with his hands in his pockets, begrudgingly making his way to the Forest Outskirts in Town. While his body was walking on autopilot, his mind was constantly repeating the name of his client, a girl named Seheda Linas. This continued for a few more moments after he had arrived at his destination. He turned his head from left to right, his eyes scanning one lady who looked the part.

"Seheda Linas." He said to no one in particular, well it was directed towards the girl, but since no one was there...well you get the point. He stopped looking around for a second before face-palming himself. As if she would show up by just uttering her name like that. He was really an idiot sometimes-or was he?

"You called?" Said a slightly high pitched voice from behind him. He whipped around to face the girl that was now looking at him with a smile etched on her face.

"Y-you're Seheda?" He asked shakily as he was taken off-guard.

The girl just nodded, keeping the smile on her face. "And you must be the one who took my request, right?"

Rather than answering her though, Kazuma moved closer until they were just inches apart which flustered the girl. Unfortunately, that wasn't the end of it. Before she could even ask what's up with him, he suddenly but gently patted her head. The girl's face turned crimson before muttering: "Wha-wha-wha??" over and over again.

Kazuma then realized what he was doing and swiftly removed his hands from her head and quickly took a few steps back. When he saw that the girl was still muttering continuously, he put his balled up right fist close to his mouth and cleared his throat. That seemed to work and wake the girl up. He then looked away awkwardly while his cheeks had a slight blush along it.

"Sorry, it's just a habit of mine with girls. I apologize for making you uncomfortable. It's just that this is my first quest ever and I-" But he was cut off from his ramblings by the giggle that came out of the girl. He looked at her in shock before she dismissed it.

"It's alright, there's no need to apologize. It doesn't matter to me if this is your first quest either. Let's start over again. My name's Seheda Linas, a Mercenary. And you are?"

This seemed to pull away Kazuma from his shyness. After all, he can't let the girl down especially now that she had taken the initiative.

"Kazuma Snow, D-rank Mage from Lamia Scale. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"The pleasure is all mine Kazuma."

The guy nodded before finally getting on to business. "So I reckon you need help with your training."

The girl's features then changed from the playful one she sported ago to a more determined look. She nodded once then point to a far distance.

"I want you to accompany me dash through the forest while avoiding obstacles along the way."

"I see. Sounds easy enough. We should get started then. Starting with the warm ups."

The two stretched around for a good while before finally deeming that they were ready. Kazuma looked at the girl to his left and saw that her eyes still had the same amount of determination it held when they finally began talking about the quest. He decided that he would ask her to explain her situation to him during their training.

"Let's go!" Seheda then shouted before sprinting deeper into the forest. Kazuma then followed slightly behind her for a few moments. He watched as she jump to avoid a tree root, evade different trees along the patch and duck to avoid its branches. He then noticed that she was now getting a little slower and that's when he deemed that it's the right time. He then sprinted before finally catching up to her.

"So?" He asked with uncertainty.

"Hm?" Was the only response he got.

'She's really into this.' He thought.

"What made you so determined like that? I mean, I read about it. You know, about you failing three times to get into some combat academy but I just can't seem to get why you want to go in the first place. You're kind of like an assistant to mages right? Mages who can fight? So why do you need to as well?"

Seheda suddenly stopped and faced him. She looked down and had a solemn look on her face.

"That's true but still, Mages aren't the only ones we assist. We sometimes act like bodyguards as well for other people and if you lack the skills for combat..." She trailed off.

Kazuma then understood. This girl, she wants to be ready for when the time comes that she had to save a life. And this just skyrocketed the respect he held for the said girl. He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder before talking when she looked up.

"Hey don't worry so much. You would definitely succeed this time. I saw that today. The way your eyes were focused from the task at hand and the way you easily left me behind your dust is an indication that you've improved greatly."

The girl then seemed to brighten up.

"Thank you." She smiled.

Kazuma nodded before finally taking notice of their surroundings.

"Come on, let's go back. It's gonna be dark soon and this forest would be dangerous by then."

Seheda nodded and took a step towards him until she suddenly tripped over a log and face planted. Kazuma was then quick to move as he help her get up and dusted some dirt off her face.

"I-I-I..Thank you for today!!!" She suddenly shouted as she gave him his reward and sprinted away.

Kazuma chuckled before looking at the money on his hands.

"Fun and rewarding. Maybe some quests aren't so bad after all. I'll definitely do this again some time." He then went home.

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