“Hello, Sandra. How have you been?”

It was Sandra, Ralph’s bride-to-be.

“Not good! Not at all!”

What could be wrong now? Rudis was taken aback by Sandra’s sharp response. It wasn’t long ago that she had been excited about living in a two-story house as their newlywed home…

“What’s the matter?”

Feeling somewhat uneasy, Rudis asked cautiously. Sandra sighed deeply and crossed her arms.

“Ugh. I never expected this. Listen. You know Ralph is the tallest and most handsome man in our village, right?”

Rudis mentally tilted her head at the sudden praise. The complaint that began with statements she couldn’t quite agree with ended with…

“I don’t understand why three times a day is impossible. It’s so disappointing. How am I supposed to spend the rest of my life with such a man?”

The conversation had turned into something Rudis really didn’t want to hear.

Why on earth is she telling ME this? Just as Rudis’s pupils began to quake, a system window appeared.

[New Quest Generated!

Quest Name: Ralph’s Destiny – 3

Quest Description: Help Ralph’s marriage by solving the problem. ??? 0/1

Reward: Invitation to an Extravagant Wedding]

‘Hey! How am I supposed to solve THAT problem? Wait, is that even a solvable problem to begin with?’

Rudis stared at the system window with confusion and then squeezed her eyes shut.

“…I’ll try to find a solution.”

“Will you really? I’m so stressed that I’ve lost a handful of hair already. I’m counting on you, Rudis! Otherwise, I might have to break up with Ralph.”

Sandra cheerfully passed on her worries and information that Rudis never wanted to know, then disappeared. At times like this, it was clear that Ralph and Sandra were truly made for each other.

Left alone, Rudis screamed toward the sky.

‘What kind of ridiculous quest is this?!’

* * *

“This has nothing to do with me.”

When Rudis visited Noah on the off chance he might help, she was turned away at the door.

“…Are you sure? You can make potions that restore physical strength, so maybe something for virility…”

“Please leave immediately.”

Fair enough, it would be strange for a priest to have virility enhancers. It was absurd that she had come here looking for such a thing in the first place.

Rudis’s steps were unusually heavy. She couldn’t ask the villagers about this like she normally would with other problems.

‘How could I possibly ask about something like that?’

Just imagining it made her feel unbearably embarrassed. Why had such a trial befallen her?

Until now, Rudis had always completed quests with a cheerful attitude. From finding flowers to decorate someone’s front yard to searching for a cat that wasn’t actually lost, and even ridiculous quests like finding a pet rock in the village plaza. No matter how perplexing or absurd, she had always enjoyed the process.

But among all the quests she had completed so far, none had been this awkward.

‘Why do I have to do something like this?’

‘I searched the entire mountain for flowers when someone wanted to confess, emptied my storage to build a two-story house when someone wanted to propose. After all that, shouldn’t they figure out how to live well on their own? Why do I have to deal with their bedroom issues too…’

Grumbling complaints she’d never voiced during even the most difficult quests, her trudging footsteps eventually led her to the tavern—the place where Xenon, whom she had been trying to avoid, would be.

* * *

“Welcome, Rudis. Today’s special is Bahala Jelly.”

As she entered the tavern, Xenon greeted her with a bright smile. Rudis’s face immediately stiffened at his words.

“Ugh… don’t joke around.”

Bahala? Rudis shuddered. While Bahala wasn’t a difficult monster to catch, it was the one Rudis hated hunting the most. Its disgusting appearance covered with slimy green scales was revolting to look at. 

The tail section was particularly horrifying with its bizarrely split form. The problem was that this tail was precisely what needed to be collected. The unpleasantness of feeling that sticky mucus squirt out whenever she cut off a tail was indescribable. Making jelly from that—even as a joke—was going too far. Just the thought made her stomach turn.

“I’m not joking. Really.”

“Who would eat something like that?”

Rudis looked at Xenon with eyes full of disbelief.

“Everyone else is eating it, see?”

Xenon tilted his chin toward one side of the tavern. Following his gesture, Rudis saw outsiders stirring green jelly with their spoons. Despite knowing it was impolite, she couldn’t help but grimace.

“It’s the trend these days. I hear Bahala jelly is good for virility.”

“What?!”

Rudis’s eyes widened at Xenon’s quietly whispered words.

“I’ll have some Bahala jelly too, please!”

To think there was such a simple solution! The answer was at the tavern all along. She usually visited the tavern first whenever problems arose, yet somehow hadn’t thought of this until now. The day spent racking her brain and suffering emotionally suddenly seemed foolish.

“I’m really sorry, but we’re sold out.”

“…Then you shouldn’t have recommended it.”

Another trial. Xenon smiled slightly at Rudis’s expression, which had twisted with disappointment.

“So, can I ask you a favor?”

[New Quest Generated!

Quest Name: The Great Bahala Jelly Shortage

Quest Description: Make the sold-out Bahala…]

‘Hmph. Another request for materials, I bet.’

Rudis smirked without even checking the full system window. For a veteran adventurer like her, this was routine. Fortunately, thanks to her new dagger that had proven so effective in spring hunting, she had already collected plenty of Bahala. Confidently, Rudis pulled out all the Bahala tails from her bag and placed them in front of Xenon.

“Will this be enough?”

Xenon looked slightly troubled at Rudis’s triumphant expression.

“I appreciate it, but we actually have plenty of materials. The problem is that it’s complicated to make. Would you help me make it?”

“What?”

Rudis belatedly checked the system window completely.

[New Quest Generated!

Quest Name: The Great Bahala Jelly Shortage

Quest Description: Make the sold-out Bahala jelly.

Reward: Bahala Jelly]

* * *

Rudis entered the tavern’s kitchen with Xenon. Though she visited the tavern daily, this was her first time in the kitchen. Surprisingly, it was clean and organized. There were signs of age, but it had the cozy feeling characteristic of an old kitchen.

To think such strange food comes from such a normal kitchen…

The ordinary appearance of the kitchen made it even more peculiar. The dishes served at the tavern were consistently bizarre…

As Rudis followed him in, Xenon put on an apron with practiced movements and arranged the workstation. Then he laid out a pile of Bahala tails.

“They look pretty gross, don’t they?”

“Yes… honestly, they’re disgusting. They feel weird too.”

Rudis frowned as she looked down at the Bahala tails. The sticky mucus glistening on the tails was creepy just to look at.

Xenon smiled lightly as if it were nothing and taught her how to prepare them.

“Hold it like this, peel off the skin, and cut out the inner bone. Then you need to keep only the flesh.”

Rudis put on the gloves Xenon handed her and began preparing the tails according to his instructions. The slimy mucus made her hands slip, making the work difficult. Moreover, each time she cut a tail, a unique smell rose up, making her wrinkle her face.

“Who would ever think to eat something like this?”

The complaint came out naturally.

Xenon, busily working with a tail in his hand, chuckled.

“Well, during wartime, food was scarce. There wasn’t much choice then. You had to try eating whatever you could see. But the taste is actually quite good. Back then, catching a Bahala was almost like a festival.”

War? Rudis’s eyes sparkled at this unfamiliar story.

“There was a war?”

“Yes. A rather long one. There are fewer monsters now, but they used to outnumber humans by far. It was common to wake up and find an entire village had disappeared overnight.”

“When was this?”

“Hmm… about 200 years ago?”

Realizing it was quite ancient history, Rudis laughed awkwardly. Xenon had spoken about it with such a reminiscent tone that she almost misunderstood.

As they chatted about various things, the horrible form of the Bahala tails gradually disappeared, leaving only a concentrated liquid of a terrible color.

“Now we just need to transfer the concentrate to the container. I’ll go get some other ingredients.”

Xenon left after saying this. Meanwhile, Rudis began transferring the remaining concentrate to a large container. She frowned as she watched the thick green liquid flow into the container.

It splashed a bit?

While she was casually looking at the concentrate that had splashed onto her hand, Xenon came running back.

“Rudis. Wipe it off quickly!”

Rudis was puzzled by Xenon’s urgent cry as he dropped the ingredients he was carrying. It wasn’t hot anymore, so why…

“It’s fi— Huh!”

Just as she was about to say it was fine, her heart suddenly began to race. Heat rushed from her toes to the top of her head in an instant.

“Ah… I feel strange. Why is this… mmph.”

Her entire body felt itchy and hot. Especially certain important areas.