Chapter 71: Reputation
In the deepening dusk.
Under the old locust tree outside the village gate, several villagers held torches and waited.
“Why haven’t they returned yet?”
“Could it be that he failed to save him and got himself into trouble?”
“Shh! Don’t say things like that!”
“Little Taylor, go home and sleep first. When you wake up tomorrow, your father will have returned.”
The old village chief, noticing the little girl’s drooping eyelids and reddened eyes, hesitated before speaking.
Nine‑year‑old Taylor was wrapped in a coarse, patch‑stitched cloak, barefoot on the cold, dung‑stained hard mud.
She lowered her head in silence, staring at her now‑red toes.
She originally had shoes, but near dusk today, some mischievous village children mocked her for “losing her father” and she fought back.
In the scuffle, her shoes were lost too.
“Will father really come back?”
As night fell bit by bit, her father—who should have returned home by now—had still not appeared at the village entrance.
Some uncles went searching nearby but found nothing.
Taylor had almost completely lost hope.
Then a handsome young man with expressive eyes had smiled and knelt beside her, promising he would do his best to bring her father back.
That promise sustained her last flicker of hope.
“…”
The old village chief couldn’t answer Taylor’s question.
He only sighed and patted her head.
Based on his years of experience, this situation likely meant some accident had occurred.
Randel was not a rookie hunter; he wouldn’t lose track of time or get lost in the forest.
What was blocking his return was danger—perhaps a wild bear, perhaps a group of monsters—but whatever it was, in the darkness it could be deadly.
Although a few young villagers had been sent out before dusk to search, finding one person in the vast forest isn’t that easy.
Even the young adventurer who had gone into the forest recently to help search for Randel probably wouldn’t be able to find the missing man in pitch‑black night.
“Looks like someone’s returned!”
Just as the old chief sighed inwardly, one of the villagers suddenly pointed into the distance and exclaimed excitedly.
Everyone followed his gesture, eyes straining to see afar.
Sure enough, under the moonlight, a figure could be seen slowly walking along the road’s end.
Before long, the figure became clearer.
It was a young man walking steadily, carrying a middle‑aged man with a pale face on his back.
“It’s Randel! He’s brought Randel back!”
Several villagers glanced at the young man’s attire and realized he was the adventurer who had only arrived in the village that very afternoon.
They hadn’t expected someone so unfamiliar with the terrain to successfully return with the missing Randel from the dense forest.
“Is there a doctor in the village? He’s injured.”
Gauss hurried to the village gate.
“There is, follow me.” The villager didn’t waste time, noticing Randel’s weakened state, and quickly led the way.
Everyone in the village was related; seeing Randel miraculously saved, they naturally felt joy—for him and for Taylor.
As Gauss followed the lead villager, he glanced down at the little girl hurrying beside him.
Taylor stared anxiously at her father, as if fearing he’d vanish again if she looked away.
“Papa, are you okay?”
“…Taylor, you should… go to sleep now.”
Randel forced himself to smile, gathering strength.
“I’m not sleepy.”
Taylor wiped away tears of relief at the corners of her eyes.
She exchanged a grateful look with Gauss.
As the saying goes, a poor child grows up quickly—and in that era, it was all the more so.
Though only nine, in Gauss’s previous life she would have been a carefree elementary school student lost in mobile games—but she already understood much about human nature.
Especially since her mother died of serious illness two years ago, her only dependence was her father.
She also knew that, when darkness fell, this unfamiliar older brother took great risks by entering the woods to look for her father.
“Big brother, thank you for saving my dad.”
“Yes. After all, I promised you—I’m glad I didn’t break that promise.”
Gauss looked at the tear‑filled yet joyful expression on the girl’s face, his heart filled with mixed feelings.
This era might not truly be a good time for ordinary people at the bottom.
No wonder there’s a constant stream of new adventurers being born—perhaps it’s the dissatisfaction of being powerless to change their own plight and having to pin their hopes on others that gives rise to it.
...
The next day.
Gauss woke up early and went to collect the reward from the villagers’ temporary commission from yesterday, which was paid from the village’s public funds.
The total was five silver coins.
While collecting his payment, he also inquired about Randel’s condition.
After all, it was someone he had personally rescued.
He learned that Randel, after being treated briefly by a local doctor, had already been taken by carriage to the nearest northern town for professional care from the Church.
Based on past experience, the odds were high that he would recover—his life had been saved.
Hearing that Randel was no longer in danger, Gauss breathed a sigh of relief.
“This is the agreed reward—five silver coins, please keep them safe.” The village chief took out five silver coins.
Just as Gauss was about to turn away, the village chief spoke again to stop him.
“Brave one, I wonder if we could entrust you with another task?”
“Please speak, Village Chief.”
“I hope you can help us eliminate the goblins nearby.” The chief looked toward the forest, his gaze growing solemn. “We will also send two strong lads to accompany you.”
“For each goblin killed, we’ll pay ninety copper coins—would you be willing to take this on?”
Generally speaking, if you see one goblin, it usually means there’s at least a nest nearby.
With Randel’s experience fresh in their minds, the villagers decided to commission this young adventurer to help wipe out the goblins.
Though he appeared young, after bringing Randel back last night and confirming his combat abilities with him, the other villagers were willing to acknowledge his strength as an adventurer.
Faced with this sudden request, Gauss naturally couldn’t refuse.
He had come here to hunt goblins in the first place—even without a reward, he would have gone.
Now that the villagers were offering extra payment, why not accept it?
Perhaps this was what people meant by “good deeds bring good fortune.”
He had taken some risks last night, saved a man, earned the villagers’ trust, and now they were willing to entrust him with another task.
If this were a game world, he felt like his reputation in the village must have increased considerably.
As for them sending people to follow him, he didn’t mind.
The villagers weren’t like the Adventurer’s Guild—they didn’t have special methods to verify the authenticity of quest items, so it made sense for someone to go along.
It would also help confirm whether the goblins had truly been wiped out.
After accepting this new commission from the village,
Gauss did a quick check of his gear and then followed two other weapon-carrying village youths into the forest.
...
“Screeeeech—”
The sound of cicadas echoed through the forest.
Compared to killing goblins, sometimes Gauss found that actually locating them was the more troublesome part.
He first led the group to the place where Hunter Randel had been surrounded the previous night.
He searched the area for any clues, but found nothing significant.
He couldn’t help but think—
Next time he returned to Graystone Town, he would visit Miss Andini the Halfling and ask if it was possible to buy a cheap, reliable detection or sensing spell.
At the very least, he should find out where such magic could be learned.
If he had a useful detection cantrip or spell at hand, he wouldn’t need to be an expert in it.
As long as it worked when needed, it would save a lot of time.