"Let's become a Hunter"

  Elend stopped midway as he was about to bite the juicy sandwich.

  He scanned Dyland's face. His voice was controlled remarkably, or maybe he had been given too much credit.

  "Where does this come from?" Elend asks. He has a tingling of what it could be. But he will give his friend the benefit of the doubt. After all, they are already in college, no longer some brat running around acting as Hunter.

  Dylan's body quivered, and he gritted his teeth.

  "It's the girl, every guy in the Hunter major got a girl," He declared. His fist clenched in frustration.

  Elend's battle deep visceral need to sigh. To him, being a Hunter is a fool's errand. Risking your life to battle a monster is something very stupid to him. Yet, he does have the desire to be one beating inside of him.

  Dyland smashed his hand on the table. Frustration seeped into contorting his face. "Elend, are you coming with me?"

  "This is ridiculous, Dyland," Elend grumbled, mouth filled with stale bread. The bread lady really needs to step up her game.

  "Oh, you got a girlfriend?"

  "I will eventually get one," Elend said.

  Dyland leaned in, eyes colored with desperation. "And, I am telling you being a Hunter is the fastest path to get there."

  "I am not risking my life for this," Elend grumbled.

  "Fine then!" Dyland turned around, "I will find an actual friend who shares the same dream as mine." He made his way out. Then he stopped after three steps. "You will regret this!" He called back.

  Elend rolled his eyes. He watched Dyland retreat, his eyes drifting to the middle of the cafeteria. Eve, laughing. She snuggled inside a guy's embrace.

  He is not jealous, absolutely not. He certainly not going to risk his life. He is not stupid. There is no way. Risking his life for this is a mere tomfoolery. Who actually will do that? Facing a monster for such a reason? It's an epitome of grand foolishness. Such motivation is unbefitting. He is not a kid..

  But, then again. Dungeon crawling does bring great wealth. If he goes, that will be the reason. He is not fooling himself. Absolutely not.

  Elend walks out of the cafeteria. He sees Dyland with a smug grin leaning against the entrance.

  "I am joining," Elend said.

  "You will not regret this," Dyland stated. "I will gather some people with the same dream and Hope. We will have an army."

  "I will send you the location at 7:00," Dyland waved as he left.

  "Wait!" Elend called. "Is it going to be safe?"

  "It's an amateur dungeon that has just been opened for one week. It's perfectly safe." Dyland winked.

  ___________

  Elend's phone pinged.

  'Yo! I need you to pick some people up. They will be in room B9. Go with them to the location I sent you.

  He grumbled to his pillow as he read the message. The fact that Dyland managed to talk him into this is humiliating, the worst part is that he barely did any talking.

  With a groan, he stood. Dungeon did not love modern weapons. No one knows the reason. He wondered if he could bring a knife or something.

  Picking up a kitchen knife, he decided to bring it with him. What else? He scanned around his room. Eyes settling on a baseball bat. It's better than nothing, he decided to carry it. Knife in pocket, bag full of food, mainly just some biscuits.

  It's time to go.

  Room B9 is fairly close, just one floor below. But the location Dylan sent is quite far. Probably about an hour's drive to the middle of nowhere.

  Knocking on the door, he couldn't help but notice the naked anime character painted boldly. They said you could tell a thousand things about a person without having to meet them. His primal instinct is to just leave this person.

  The door flung open. Thick black rimmed glasses greeted him, his eyes peered suspiciously toward Elend.

  "Bird?"

  "Dragon"

  "Fish?"

  "Chtulu"

  "Elend Mireaux?" He peered closer to Elend's face, his bowl-cut hair swaying as he did.

  “That’s me.”

  He grips Elend's hand. Pulling him inside, instantly, his life story is bare to see. Let's just say it's no better than this door.

  But then, a poster of Davion Roland. Hung on the wall. An S-ranked hunter who held back a swarm of puppet monsters. Anyone would consider it an insult to put his poster around an unsavory other. But Elend noticed how it glimmered compared to the other poster.

  "Friends! My name is Oscar," he said eagerly. His voice buzzed with excitement, the kind that probably had been stacking for a while.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  "Nice to meet you," Elend muttered, scanning the room. He noticed there are two other beds. "Are we waiting for others?".

  "Oh, yes! My two other roommates are also coming. Oscar looked around, seemingly lost. "Wait a second, I will get them," he turns and runs out.

  Suddenly alone, anxiety thrummed inside him. He slumped into the wooden chair beside a desk, silence bred apprehension within him. Staring mindlessly at the poster, he couldn't help but think it's not too late to go back, but something inside him hissed at such a thought. A shudder of excitement tingles him, sending his arm hairs standing.

  Maybe he is a fool.

  Being a Hunter had been something he played around with in his mind. A small bubble of a dream that pulses inside him, he enjoys just basking in the feeling. But to actually do it now it's terrifies him.

  Elend smiled. Maybe it's not actually about getting a girlfriend.

  He just wants to burst the bubble. And move on with his life.

  "Maybe I should listen to some senses," he muttered out loud. Elend whipped out his phone, a black Dekim Seven. He called his mother.

  "Elend?" Her familiar voice answered

  "I need to talk about something.." Elend started, not sure how to put it into words. Telling your mother he's about to fight a monster.. How to do that.

  "Oh, honey," His mother sighed. "No matter what kind of surgeon you become, we will always be proud of you."

  Elend's mouth curved in annoyance. She still thought he going to be a surgeon. Even with the healing prowess of Hunters, and the miraculous healing of awakening and level up.

  "Mother, I'm not going to become a surgeon," He grumbled.

  A silent answer to him, cold sweat froze his neck.

  "Oh! That is fine! An engineer then? That's amazing," His mother gushed.

  "Not planning to be that one either.."

  "Lawyer?"

  "No"

  "Elend," She said. This time, he could imagine the cold fury brewing. His heart skipped a beat, steadying his breathing. "A programmer, then? That's barely acceptable. I strongly suggest you consid-"

  "No, mother, I do not plan to be a programmer either," And put some respect to programmers! He wanted to add. Those people are basically magicians. Second only to an actual Mage-based Hunter.

  "Are you going to follow your brother's footsteps then!? Being a Pro Gamer! No! Absolutely not! DO YOU HEAR ME?" Elend turned off the phone, more of a startled reflex of his.

  He let out a groan, of course, his brother mentioned.

  Elend knew Dyland had an inferiority complex toward his own brother, he always complained how his parent always compared him to his successful fund manager brother.

  He wishes he had the same problem, which at least will take his parents' gaze off him. But even before his brother moved into Old Kroy to pursue his e-sports career. Their parental focus has zeroed in on Elend.

  Elend is proud of her brother, more so than of his parent, who both are a doctor and a lawyer. Eduard got a contract offered by the Aladin Guild to be in their E-sports team.

  The top Hunter Guild in the entire world, that been branching into various businesses. Davion Roland is one of many strong Hunters of the Aladin Guild.

  His phone rang, and he battled a sigh crawling up his throat. Opening it, he distances it far, far away from his ear.

  "You should go," his brother's voice said.

  "Eduard?" Elend blinked. Why is he calling him? I see, mother called you"

  " 'Called' is putting it lightly," Eduard laughed. "Dude, she pretty much accused me of brainwashing you!"

  Elend winced, genuinely feeling for him. "I'm sorry."

  "Not your fault," He casually replied, then he paused, stretching the moment. "You will be a Hunter then?"

  Elend raised his eyebrow. "How?"

  "Elend, you're still Herald rank in Aota," He said, the game name. "You being a Pro is harder than aiming to be a Surgeon."

  "That is not what I'm asking?"

  "You always wanted to be one," Eduard said casually, very laid back as if it's not something he's been trying to hide. "I think father will understand, he is a doctor, the power of Hunter almost makes him unemployed." He laughed.

  Elend smiled; he remembered all too well.

  "I will go," He relented, still full of apprehension. But, no need to deny it anymore, he wanted to awaken at least.

  "Good," Eduard said, then he cut the call.

  The door lurched open, suspiciously right after the moment his call ended.

  "Elend, let me introduce you! This is Andrew and James." Two guys enter, nodding to him. Andrew is jittery with nervousness, not a good sign. James, on the other hand, seemed as excited as Oscar.

  "Our driver!" James, the red-haired one, cheered. He has a jovial face.

  "I am also going into the dungeon," Elend grumbled.

  "It's nice to meet you," Andrew said, bowing. He is tall with bulky features. It's like watching a stone statue trying to bow.

  "Please, there is no need to bow," Elend laughed, his hand gesture forward to stop him.

  "This guy is just way too nervous." James smacked the back of Andrew's head, somehow not even earning him a glare.

  What makes this big guy so nervous? Elend wondered.

  CLANK.

  A clatter of steel rustles. Elend looks at Oscar, the sound source. He holding a long wrapping, struggling to tie it.

  Elend caught a flicker of steel. Could it be?. "Is that a sword?"

  Oscar grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, we'd rather not risk the university to find it." He groans as he ties it tight.

  "There are three of them? It's for each of you guys?"

  James nodded.

  "Did you know how to use it?"

  "We did have practice," Andrew stated.

  "You guys are prepared," Elend hummed.

  "Well, we're entering a dungeon. Amateur or not," James remarked.

  Elend gulped on that. He fingered his baseball bat, heat crept into his face. Their eyes followed it.

  "Dude, are you taking this seriously?" James question.

  "This does not feel real yet," Elend admitted.

  "Now, now," Oscar said, smiling, "Having a blunt damage in the party is wise, that is smart of you."

  Apparently, we are a party now? "It's just a coincidence," Elend twirls the baseball bat. "I played baseball quite a lot. I scored the record homerun back then," He grinned, good time.

  "Well, that is reassuring," James commented, rolling his eyes.

  "Is this everyone?" The three guys look at each other. There is something they did not say, they have an expectant look on Andrew. Who, in turn, gulped nervously.

  "Yes," Andrew choked. "Shall we go then!" He said with forced enthusiasm. He started walking in a hurry.

  Elend followed suit. Sending the other two a questioning book.

  "It's not a big deal," James said as he walked beside him.

  Oscar carefully catches up with them, trying not to rattle the swords. "He worried his girlfriend would stop him."

  "That is ridiculous."

  James laughed out loud, "Oh, you did not know her?"

  Making their way down the stairs, Elend held the sword wrapper to keep it from rattling. Oscar muttered thanks

  "She is in the Hunter major, one of the best," Oscar explained.

  James held out the door leading to the parking lot. "One of the reasons he is coming is because he is way too embarrassed to be teased."

  "People are suck" Elend mutter. Night wind swirls around him. The ripple of eagerness rushed through his veins.

  Andrew stood, eyes desperate, scanning around. "Which is your car?"

  "The best looking one," Elend did a swipe gesture toward the parking lot filled with hundreds of cars. Some of the students had a Sari car parked very close to the entrance, obviously, somehow buying the spot.

  James chuckled. Followed by Oscar holding his laugh.

  "Dude, I'm serious. All four of us will be murdered brutally if we do not hurry," He begged desperately.

  "It's the Delton Dreagh Jeep." He pointed towards the line of cars. "Yellow. C395"

  Andrew lurches into action, he finds the yellow jeep instantly. Elend has been lucky enough to get a good parking spot.

  Starting up the car, Elend relaxed into the seat. Out of the corner of his eyes, he notices Andrew is crying.

  "We survive, we actually go into the dungeon," he sobbed. Oscar, who was seated beside him, patted his back.

  His eyes were also teary, "finally..."

  Elend coughed uncomfortably, sending a look toward James beside him, who just shrugged. Where does Dyland find these guys?

  "Are you sure you are not smuggling a drug or something?" Elend asked. He meant the question.

  "Ignore them, we have just been looking for this for a long, long time," James said, his eyes far away.

  -----

  There is no traffic, so it should take about 30 minutes or so. The drive is quite peaceful.

  "Elend," Oscar abruptly called. "What are you going to go dungeoning for? Are you just going for awakening?"

  "Honestly, I am not sure yet, I just want to experience it first before deciding further. What about you guys?"

  "All of us are planning to be S-ranked Hunters," Oscar said.

  Elend is about to spit out some joke. But, as he scanned their face through the car mirror, none of them had humor playing on their face.

  “Huh” Elend muttered.

  This feels like having three of his past selves in the car with him.

  "Why don't you just join the Hunter major in the first place?"

  James spat out on the window, "That will take too long, it is the Safeway. But we would rather find a Hunter Guild."

  Elend hummed. That kind of makes sense, he has heard, people around his age have joined Hunter Guild. The rule to enter the dungeon is pretty lax. You just need to be 18 years old.

  "There are a lot of cars here," Andrew noted. They arrived at the GPS point. Cars were parked messily to avoid the main road.

  Beyond the mess of cars, a huge clearing of green was filled with people. Elend could make out the Blue portal shimmering in front of the crowd.

  "It's a blue dungeon," Oscar muttered, voice awed in amazement.

  Dungeons generally group into several groups. Blue dungeon is graded by letter, and usually, the monster is not going to come out of it. If you're are amateur or want to awaken generally, it's recommended to go for the blue dungeon.

  Red dungeon is a problem as big as a disaster. The monster will invade the real world, and usually Hunter Guild will take care of the red dungeon by killing the dungeon core. The Empire will step up should they keep falling. In the past, plenty of kingdoms have been ruined because of the Red dungeon.

  Then there is Grand Dungeon, dungeons that manifests in the real world. These dungeon is an epitome of mystery and wonder. The great tree dungeon of Eleyses. For example. It sprouted out of nowhere, and it has been the source of economy for nine major cities around it.

  Part of Elend died, he has to park his car in place like this, but if someone is going to steal his car, they will try to steal others' first.

  "Let's go," Elend said, slinging his bag.

  "Ugh, I hated the car ride," James said as he stretched.

  "I wonder why they haven't enter," Andrew wondered. True, it seems the crowd is waiting for something.

  "I have to find my friend," Elend said. Dyland shared his GPS location. It looks like he is in the middle of the crowd. Elend grunted internally.

  Well, might as well gather information.

  "Ugh!," Oscar grunted. He held his stomach in pain, his Legs quivered. He fell on one knee, struggling to breathe.

  "Oscar! Don't die!" Andrew shouted, steadying him.

  A jolt of panic burst inside Elend. He knelt, examining Oscar's face. He looks like he's about to pass out

  "What happend!" Elend stammered.

  Weakly, he pointed at the crowd. "T-Too many people," he croaked.

  Elend deadpanned. "I will see you guys later," He waved at them and left to find Dyland.

  "This is a serious sickness!" Andrew's voice echoed as he left.

  "Well, that's sickness called Chuuni!"

  "Meet us in the dungeon entrance!" James shouted.

  "Sure will!" Elend yelled back.