Ganersam Volume 1

“Is this...”

“The same tiger from yesterday? Probably.”

We weren’t aware of our position yesterday, but when we returned, we came through the west gate, and the description stated that the last sighting was on the west side of the city.

The blue tiger is considered a high-priority target. This is the third time high-level enemies arrived in this city. First the wyverns, second Nia, and now the blue tiger.

While Nia couldn’t be considered an enemy, thereisthat salamander that chased after her before.

The blue tiger is extremely dangerous for new adventurers, especially to those without a good physical attacker, like our team.

Alpha is a city where they train new adventurers, so it must be kept as a safe and controlled environment.

Other than that, its skin is also pretty expensive, its fang is used for jewelry, and its insides are highly nutritious.

One tiger is a whole week’s worth of paycheck, so many adventurers are keen on finding it.

“Should we try?”

“Blue tigers are smart. To think the one we met could be tricked so easily...”

Emma fell into deep thought.

“How do you know they’re smart?”

“I read about it in the library last night.”

“No wonder I heard some rustling.”

My back hurts from sleeping on the floor. If she’s going to head out to the library, she should’ve told me. That way, I could take her spot on the bed.

“But there’s something weird about this particular quest.”

Nia looked around, and a figure caught her eye. She pulled herself closer to me and whispered.

“Let’s go out.”

Hearing that, I gave Emma a code and we left the guild. We distance ourselves from the guild. Nia checked the surroundings before continuing.

“That request was posted by a noble.”

“Nobles existed here?”

“Yes... you don’t know about them?”

Nia wouldn’t understand, since she’s from this world.

Emma pulled me to the side and whispered.

“Human traits aren’t something you could just remove from someone. Naturally, there will be nobles and commoners, oppressors and heroes. It’s not something we could control easily.”

Nia looked at us suspiciously, but she didn’t bother pushing it further.

“So, should we accept?”

Emma asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement. Isn’t it weird how she’s so excited despite nearly getting eaten yesterday?

I really don’t understand how her passive shield works, but if she didn’t trip yesterday, who knows what would happen.

I looked at the two. One sparkling with excitement, the other sporting a concerned look.

“Of course not. Did you forget what happened yesterday?”

That tiger made a complete fool of us. I won’t go back and get chased again.

“Actually, I just remembered something, how are you doing Nia?”

“Huh? I’m fine. I have recovered from most of my wounds.”

I completely forgot about her wounds. It’s kinda funny how she’s supposed to rest, yet we kept bringing her running around.

“Actually, the noble offered support for anyone interested, which makes this quest even more suspicious.”

Nia continued.

“Support? Probably transportation or supplies. What’s so weird about that?”

“No, it’s neither of those.”

Nia looked at me, her face serious.

“Guns.”

“Guns?”

“Guns.”

“Guns?”

I exchanged looks with Nia. I really didn’t expect that.

“And that’s why we’re accepting it.”

Emma said loudly while pulling on my sleeves.

Guns alone didn’t surprise me, we have laser cannons.

But to be offered guns in order to take down a tiger, that’s really suspicious.

“Wait, wait a minute, how do you even know that? It isn’t listed in the request.”

“Actually, there’s a small writing at the bottom left of the request, stating the weapon you could choose. You’ll need a team of three in order to borrow one, and the gun has a tracking device to ensure you won’t steal it.”

“They’re hunting guns, right?”

“Nope, full-on military-grade sniper rifles. An AMP, to be exact. Either that or a small Block pistol.”

Emma said, her voice full of expectation. Is she... a gun geek?

An AMP and a Block, huh? Are they knock-offs AWP and Glocks, or is it an entirely different rifle? Regardless, if it’s an actual sniper rifle, something is definitely weird.

“Does an AMP count as a physical weapon, or is it a laser weapon?”

“The description stated AMP-P, which means it’s the physical version, the one that used metal bullets as ammunition. It’s more expensive and deals more damage than the energy-charged laser version. They also offered the AMP-L, Laser version, but there’s no reason to choose that one since both are free. The Block is only available in the laser version, though.”

Emma casually described the two weapons... well three, if we count the pistol.

The blue tiger already has a physical weakness, so to shoot it with a full-on sniper rifle is overkill.

Also, how did Emma know all this? Nia, who’s literally an ex-soldier, had been relatively quiet. It’s concerning how an ex-angel speaks more regarding guns than an ex-soldier.

I thought about it for a while.

“Nah, we’re not taking that quest. I’m not dealing with politics in my first week after... Hey, where are you going?”

Emma started walking back towards the guild.

“Grabbing the AMP. It’ll be essential for this mission.”

“Not so fast, little girl.”

I grabbed the back of her dress and pulled her toward the west gate.

“We’re going scouting first.”

The distance between the gates and the forest is around 45-minutes of walking, so not too far. Emma is skipping in front of us.

The only reason I brought her scouting is to hopefully find a reason to stop her from accepting the quest. Guns and nobles are not a good fit.

We reached the forest without an issue, although the problem was in dealing with the blue tiger, like what to do with it in the case it found us.

We passed several knocked-down trees, presumably the trees I destroyed yesterday.

There are far fewer monsters compared to yesterday, so we manage to reach the marked area quicker.

“There’s nothing around here, are you sure we’re in the right place?”

“I think, yes. We’re definitely on the right road.”

The tiger was spotted last afternoon holding a stick passing through this road.

Is that tiger really a tiger? We’re not confusing it for some dog, right?

“It headed south from here.”

Emma pointed toward a row of trees. Nia climbed up a tree.

“See anything up there?”

Emma asked.

“Not really.”

Nia proceeded to head south, we followed her through the forest. She’s a fast mover, hopping from branch to branch like a skilled squirrel.

“This is...”

We arrived at the location where we saw the tiger yesterday. So the tiger indeed returned for us.

“Could you see anything?”

Nia shook her head.

“All clear, for now.”

“See? The tiger probably went far away from here. Let’s go back.”

I said as I turned myself. Suddenly, the sound of leaves shaking could be heard from behind me, I turned around, and froze at the sight of the blue tiger. The blue tiger appeared from below a fallen tree, hiding underneath the leaves and branches.

It approached us, holding the branch in its mouth. It approached Emma and put the branch below her feet.

Before sitting in front of her.

Shaking its tail.

Thisisa tiger... right?

Emma stretched out her hand and patted the tiger’s head. The tiger let out a small growl as it enjoyed Emma’s palm running through its fur. Nia and I stayed silent as we observed the events unfold.

Emma picked up the branch and threw it away. Like a little puppy, the tiger chased after the small branch as it flew away.

“Aren’t tigers supposed to be a part of the cat family? Why is this one acting like a dog?”

“I... I don’t know..”

Nia jumped off the tree and walked toward me.

“I don’t think this is an ordinary blue tiger. I faced one before, and it’s far more fierce.”

The blue tiger returned to us, carrying the branch in its mouth.

“And the eyes...”

Just as Nia said that, the tiger dropped the branch onto the ground and opened its mouth. It then breathed a thick layer of white smoke. I tried fanning the smoke away, but it didn’t work.

“Sleeping ga...?”

I felt a sense of dizziness and soon found myself lying on the soft green grass.

“William!? William!? Are you alright?”

I slowly opened my eyes, my head still filled with dizziness.

As I regained my consciousness, I could see the faces of Raben and several other adventurers around him.

“Teacher?... What are you doing here?”

“Just call me Raben, we’re not that different in age anyway.”

I looked around, I’m no longer in the forest. Currently, I’m sitting in the tavern.

“Where are the girls?”

“The girls? You were alone in the forest when we found you.”

I looked around again, the suspicious figure that caught Emma’s attention was nowhere to be seen.

You gotta be kidding me.

“I have a question. Do blue tigers breathe sleeping gas?”

Hearing me, the adventurers looked at each other with confused looks. Some tried to hold their laughter, and others looked at me with concern.

“Of course not, what makes you think that?”

I see, so that’s not a normal tiger. Nia also mentioned something weird about its eyes.

After thanking them, I left the tavern and headed up into my room.

As expected, it’s empty.

Sitting on my bed, I tried to calm myself down. Panicking won’t get me anywhere, I learned this valuable lesson when I missed a headshot because my enemy nearly killed me.

It was a 1 v 1. I knew where he was. All I needed to do as the defender was let the clock run down. There’s no way he would be able to plant the bomb with me hiding behind the box.

But that fucker had a molotov.

He threw it at me, burning the left side of the box. The fire shouldn’t have reached me, as he threw a bit too far to the left, but I panicked and jumped out.

I had pre-aimed at his head, but because I panicked, I missed and got killed instantly.

And that’s how I lost a tournament.

But yeah... Most of my knowledge comes from games.

I piece together what I know so far.

Both Emma and Nia went missing. The blue tiger is definitely not a natural tiger.

A noble is the one who requested for the tiger to be taken out and offered military-grade weapons as support.

Something is definitely not right. The fact that we went along with it probably means we’re complete idiots.

Actually, we didn’t go along with it, instead, Emma is the one who went with it.

I thought Emma is supposed to be lucky, where did all her luck go?

Something’s definitely wrong with this game. Isn’t it weird how I’m forced to deal with nobles this early into the game?

It would be fine if I were with the noble, but assuming the noble is the one who kidnapped the two, I’m now forced to go against them.

Just as I was thinking about it, a knock came on my door.

I stood up and headed towards the door. The first knock was then followed by three louder knocks. I was about to open the door when there were five more knocks.

Curious about how long this could go, I decided to just leave the door closed.

And there was a loud bang.

I finally opened the door and found a mysterious cloaked figure standing in front of the door.

“Greetings hu-”

I closed the door.

This isn’t the time to deal with a prankster or some random salesman.

“Hey open up! Don’t you want to save your friends?”

The muffled voice came through the closed door.

I opened the door again.

“I thought you were a random salesman.”

"Sigh...Why couldn’t people here have a little sense of humor?”

“I don’t think what you said is funny, to be honest.”

“Exactly! You people have no sense of humor! I’ve been preparing that line for a while now.”

She said as she excused herself into my room.

She casually sat on my bed, as if this was her own room. She pulled her hood off and inside was a beautiful girl with shoulder-level yellow hair.

“Say, do you always wear that black cloak everywhere you go?”

“No, I just thought it fits the occasion.”

I could sense even more trouble coming from this girl. If it wasn’t for Emma and Nia, I would’ve kicked her out by now.

“My name is Amel, nice to meet you.”

“William.”

I shook her hands, and she gave me a bright smile.

“Anyway, regarding my friends.”

Hearing that, she reached out into one of her pockets and pulled out several pieces of paper. Among them are a map, a blueprint, and some pictures.

Just how long have I been asleep? She looked like she’d been preparing for this from days away.

“I’ve been investigating this noble for a while, he’s been involved in some very suspicious activities.”

She said as she laid the papers on the table.

“His official name is Alexander, yet I’ve been tracing several transactions of weapons and suspicious goods under different names like Mr. A, Mr. B, or Mr. X.”

That dude really has no creativity in making fake names.

“I knew I should’ve asked this before, but who are you, and why are you interested in helping me?”

She looked up as if I’m asking the obvious.

“I’m Amel, and I’m interested in this noble.”

“That’s not what I meant. I mean, why are you interested in this noble? Are you the police or something?”

Amel shook her head.

“I used to be a bounty hunter, although now I’m just an adventurer. My friend is investigating the man, and once I knew your friends were kidnapped, I thought maybe there’s something more to this weirdo than what meets the eye.”

A bounty hunter...? Just what am I dealing with?

And I don’t think weirdos should call their fellow weirdos, weirdos.

“Why do you quit?”

“I’m bored.”

...

Isn’t this a bit suspicious? We’ve already fallen for this noble’s tricks, assuming he’s the one behind this. Am I really supposed to team up with this stranger?

Actually, how do we know that noble is actually the one involved? And why didn’t they take me as well? As I was wondering those things, Amel started drawing on the blueprint.

“The mansion’s sewer system is connected to Alpha’s sewer system. We could take the maintenance tunnel near the guild, and make our way underground. Once we are under the mansion, there should be a maintenance tunnel near the inner garden. Since it’s located behind the inner walls, there shouldn’t be many guards near it.”

“Wait, wait, wait. Couldn’t you do this alone?”

She looked at me, and a bright smile appeared on her face.

“Of course not. Having a lot of info and connections is essential to a bounty hunter. By dragging you there, you’ll know how great I am. You’ll feel blessed to be in the presence of the great Amelia Weedwagon-”

I snorted at her name, she paused and looked at me, puzzled.

“Is there something wrong with my name?”

“No... no... please continue.”

I said while desperately trying to hold my laugh.

WEEDWAGON

And to make it worse, her name is in English.

“Anyway...”

She continued, still looking at me with suspicion.

“You’ll feel indebted to me. It’s great to have a Amnesia Clansmen as a contact, they tend to be powerful and wealthy. It makes the job easier.”

“You’re just using me then? Heck, is this a setup? You must be the one kidnapping my friends, and using that as a bargaining chip.”

Hearing that, she reached into one of her pouches and pulled out a small device. It looks like a small tablet.

After clicking the screen a few times, she turned it around and showed me a footage.

It’s an aerial recording of the events, on how we were drugged. After the drug had taken effect, two men clothed in black approached us and took Nia and Emma away.

“What’s the relation between me asking about your hidden intentions to this recording?”

“None. I just thought it would shut you up.”

...

“Why am I not in there?”

I couldn’t see myself in the video. I was there before the tiger breathed the gas, but after the gas settled, neither I nor the tiger could be seen.

“After drugging you, the mechanical tiger accidentally hit you when it was leaving the area. You were thrown and hidden underneath a fallen tree. Had that white-dressed girl been hidden too, they wouldn’t take her.”

“Their target was Nia?”

“Yes. Cademons are high-ranking members of the demon army. Once the demon’s army knew about her betrayal, they came hunting for her. They are offering a huge bounty for her, the noble is probably interested in that, or he’s just interested in catgirls.”

So he’s a pervert?

“But how about the doctor that lives in this town?”

“... which doctor? You do know Alpha has more hospitals and clinics than average, right?”

I didn’t get their name last time, so I don’t know.

“The one that had a cademon wife?”

“Ah, Miss Julia? Every cademon is created with a specific task in mind. In Nia’s case, she’s a fast learner. Despite her low stats, she could use any piece of equipment in an instant. She’s originally a part of the research department of the demon’s army.”

If that was the case then it would make sense if the demons want her dead, she could spoil any weapons they were developing.

“Miss Julia, on the other case, is originally created to heal as a support mage, yet there’s an issue during her production, resulting in her being significantly weaker compared to other cademons, and unable to do her tasks, she was abandoned. She met her husband when she was alone in the wilderness.”

That’s pretty cruel of them. I guess they are demons, after all, but still...

“How do you even know all this?”

“I did my research. This Alexander guy, on the other hand, is suspected of having dealings with the demon’s army. You remember my friend that I mentioned earlier? His client is linked to the royal family. They don’t have any proof of Alexander’s wrongdoings, though.”

“Couldn’t you just inspect him? Surely the royal family is more powerful than a mere noble, right?”

“What are you talking about? If the royal family interferes without any proof whatsoever, they’ll lose the respect of the people, and they could be taken down.”

I guess the system here isn’t as bad as Earth’s.

“Anyway, back to the topic. What do we do once we infiltrate the mansion?”

“There’s an underground floor in the mansion. That’s the place where they’re most likely kept. The problem is, we don’t know where the entrance to the basement is.”

“... Isn’t that bad?”

“From previous scouting, I could rule out any place outside the main building. We have two options here, stealthily check each room one by one, or go in gun blazing. Our goal is to capture Alexander himself and force him to tell us where the girls are. If we go at it stealthily, we’ll take a longer time to reach them, but our exit would be easier, probably. But if we go in guns blazing, we’ll reach the girls faster, but we need to fight our way in and out.”

“Could we do a hybrid of the two? Stealthily sneak around until we’re caught?”

“Well, technically that would fall under the stealth category, as we don’t want to get caught.”

“What if Alexander didn’t want to tell us anything.”

Holding her device, Amel gave me a sinister smile.

“I have my way around that.”

“If that’s the case, we’ll go in guns blazing then.”

I gave her my answer.

“Interesting, I wasn’t expecting you to decide that quickly. What makes you choose that?”

She asked as she packed the papers.

“I trust those two would be able to help us on our way out.”

Well, to be honest, I don’t really trust them, but I would rather get to them sooner than later. Who knows what that noble would do to them.

“Very well, we’ll meet behind the guild tonight.”