One-Eyed Monster

After eating his fill, Igor leaned on his elbows, his belly round and full, contentedly belching.

"Didn't you say there were no living things on this mountain? How did you catch this?" Igor asked Kadi, who was likewise full and round-bellied.

"That was about Dawn Peak; we're not on Dawn Peak anymore," Kadi said, rubbing his own round belly and letting out a burp.

"Uh, then where are we?"

"This is Ghost Wind Valley! Between Dawn Peak and Grey Eagle Peak."

"Ghost Wind Valley? Why have I never heard anyone mention it? Guru Mountain has a place like this?" Igor scratched his head, looking puzzled.

"Er, I really don't know where you get your nerve, wandering around knowing nothing. I really want to ask you, what would you do if you were captured by villains on Guru Mountain?" It struck Kadi once again just how naive some people could be.

"If I were captured by villains, it would just mean my journey as an Adventurer had only progressed that far," Igor said, moving the elbows that supported him and lying down completely.

"This…" Kadi couldn't comprehend Igor's mindset. In his eyes, the many unknown and unsolved things in the world were like a massive pie. The part he understood was the piece he had already eaten. Sometimes it wasn't that he didn't want to keep eating, but that he genuinely couldn't. His stomach was only so big; if he ate any more, he felt like he'd burst.

"Actually, I don't know what would happen to me if I were captured by villains. But someone once told me that if life's path was entirely predetermined and known, then life would become devoid of joy."

"Now that you put it that way, I kind of understand. It's like eating; if I knew what I was going to eat for every meal, every day, then the anticipation I usually feel for mealtime would disappear, and there'd be no joy in eating." For Kadi, everything could be measured in terms of eating.

A few stars hung in the night sky, twinkling along with the moon, as if competing in a singing contest where neither would yield. Lying on the ground, Igor and Kadi chatted idly. It seemed the misfortunes they'd encountered recently had been all but forgotten.

"In the summer, you can see more stars on Guru Mountain, and on the day of Extreme Summer, shooting stars will streak across the sky. If you're lucky, you might even see a meteor shower," Kadi began, telling Igor all about Guru Mountain.

"Sounds interesting. I really want to stay here longer. With good food and beautiful scenery, it's a great place." Igor crossed his legs, resting his head on his arm as he imagined the scenes Kadi described.

"Well then, stay. When the time comes, I'll introduce you to that old guy, Kevin."

"I'd like to, but I can't. I have to go back to Yonder Travel Academy."

"Why go back? Didn't you say an Adventurer is the kind of traveler who just packs up and leaves whenever they please?" Kadi asked, puzzled.

"That's true. But I'm not an Adventurer yet. I don't have the Courage Medal, so I can't join the Association of Adventurers."

"Association of Adventurers?"

"Yes. Only by joining that association will others recognize you as an Adventurer. Otherwise, even if you shout yourself hoarse, people won't acknowledge you."

"I don't understand." Kadi shook his head, lost in thought.

Originally, Igor thought his goal was simple: catch a monster on Guru Mountain, return to Yonder Travel Academy, and exchange it for a Courage Medal from the small vendor next to Clarisse, the flower seller. As long as he had that Courage Medal, Spratt, the scribe for the Yonder Travel Academy's Adventurer Society, would write his name on the Association of Adventurers' roster. Then, he would be a proper Adventurer.

But things were far more complicated than he'd imagined. Igor had never thought he could befriend a monster. In his mind, monsters were supposed to be vicious villains. Such villains wouldn't speak to humans, nor would they understand human language. Therefore, the moment he met a monster, the Scale of Faith within him would surely tip to one side, never to right itself.

Yet, in reality, he had become friends with a monster. Now, to ask him to defeat this monster and take it back to Yonder Travel Academy in exchange for the Courage Medal—he just couldn't do it. Of course, the Scale of Faith in his heart wouldn't permit it either.

Igor felt a little lost. He didn't know if he could still obtain the Courage Medal. Although boar pelts and beautiful seashells were easy to acquire, they were far too insignificant compared to a monster. Spratt, the scribe, might not even recognize a Courage Medal obtained for something of that level. After all, Spratt had once said that members of the Association of Adventurers at Yonder Travel Academy were all elites. Ordinary people couldn't just mix in.

"Hmm, there's no Monster Association in this world, yet you still call me a monster. Why is being a monster so simple?" Kadi abruptly sat up from the ground. This question, he thought, was a bit complicated and also a bit strange.

"Monster Association?" Igor was also unprepared for Kadi's question.

"Exactly! Look, you've decided you're not an Adventurer because you haven't joined the Association of Adventurers and haven't received others' recognition. But I can't confirm I'm a monster. Why isn't there an organization called the Monster Association to come and tell me, 'Hey Kadi, your name has long been written on our Monster Association's roster. You're a monster, long since recognized'?"

"Uh..."

"So, going by the rules of your Association of Adventurers, it's much less difficult to be a monster than it is for you to be an Adventurer. Being a monster doesn't require any medal, nor does it need anyone's approval. I just have to stand somewhere, and everyone will call me a monster."

"What you're saying... seems to make a lot of sense, but I still feel like something's not quite right." Igor began to scratch his head habitually.

"Being a monster is clearly a troublesome business, yet those rules of your Association of Adventurers make being a monster seem easier. This means that association is basically a fraud!"

"How could the Association of Adventurers possibly deceive people?" Igor couldn't believe it.

"Because then becoming an Adventurer would be too easy!"

"How would it be easy?" Igor still didn't understand.

"As long as someone has that Courage Medal, they can join the Association of Adventurers, right?"

"That's right. That's what Spratt said. And to earn a Courage Medal, you can only use courage to—"

"Fool! A Courage Medal can obviously be stolen or robbed!" Kadi cut Igor off before he could finish.

Kadi's words struck him like a thunderbolt, leaving Igor stunned.

Could it be that being an Adventurer... is actually an insignificant profession?