The basilisk contract was standard C-rank work.
Swamp clearing. Northern marsh. One adult basilisk. Territorial. Killing travelers.
Pay was two gold. No rifts mentioned in the contract description.
Jak took it anyway. Needed to maintain reputation for normal work. Couldn't only take rift contracts or the guild would notice the pattern.
The marsh was two days travel. Wet. Humid. Miserable terrain.
Basilisks were ambush predators. Eight feet long. Venomous bite. Petrifying gaze if you met their eyes.
Dangerous. But predictable.
Jak tracked the basilisk for six hours. Following signs. Disturbed water. Shed scales. Kill sites.
Found it in a deep pool. Coiled. Waiting.
The fight was technical. Jak kept his eyes down. Watching the basilisk's body movement instead of its head.
Shade circled. Drew attention. The basilisk lunged at the fox.
Jak struck from the side. Blade severing the spine behind the head. Clean kill.
Basilisk died. Contract fulfilled.
Simple. Professional. No complications.
Jak returned to the city with the basilisk's head. Turned in the contract. Received payment.
The clerk barely looked at him. "Good work. Clean kill."
"Thank you."
"You're building solid reputation. Reliable. Efficient. Keep it up and you'll get priority on better contracts."
Jak nodded. That was the goal. Appear normal. Competent but not exceptional.
Hide the cultivation work behind a facade of standard adventuring.
♢♢♢♢
That evening, Marcus found Jak in the training yard.
"Heard you cleared that basilisk," Marcus said. "Clean work."
"It was straightforward."
"Most C-rank work is. If you do it right." Marcus sat on a bench. His hawk perched beside him. "You're getting better. Technique's improving."
"Your training helped."
"Training only goes so far. You're applying it well." Marcus pulled out a contract. "I'm taking a B-rank job tomorrow. Behemoth sighting. Eastern mountains. Needs elimination before it reaches settlements."
"Why tell me?"
"Because I'm taking a party. Need four people minimum for behemoth work." Marcus gestured to the contract. "Two warriors. One mage. One tamer. Standard composition. You interested?"
Jak read the contract. Behemoth. B-rank threat. Massive creature. Could destroy buildings with casual swipes.
Dangerous. But also valuable experience.
"Pay?" Jak asked.
"Five gold per person. Plus salvage rights. Behemoth parts sell well."
"I'm interested."
"Good. Meet at east gate. Dawn tomorrow." Marcus stood. "This will be harder than anything you've fought. Behemoths are B-rank for a reason. Don't get overconfident."
"I won't."
Marcus left. Jak stared at the contract.
B-rank threat. Above his current capability. But he'd have a party. Experienced B-rank warriors. A mage for support.
And if he survived, he'd learn. Gain experience fighting threats beyond his rank.
That was valuable. More valuable than gold.
Through the bond, Shade's readiness. The fox wasn't afraid. Neither was Jak.
They'd face the behemoth. Learn from it. Grow stronger.
That was the pattern now. Every fight was cultivation opportunity. Every threat was growth potential.
♢♢♢♢
Dawn came cold. Jak met Marcus at the east gate.
The party was already assembled. Marcus. Another warrior named Gareth. A mage named Lyra. And Jak.
"Everyone knows the objective," Marcus said. "Behemoth elimination. Eastern mountains. Three days travel. We track. We engage. We kill. Questions?"
"Rules of engagement?" Gareth asked. He was older. Scarred. Experienced.
"Standard B-rank protocols. Warriors front. Mage support. Tamer flanks." Marcus looked at Jak. "You're the rookie. Follow our lead. Don't improvise. Behemoths are not forgiving."
"Understood."
They left the city. Headed east.
The journey was long. Hard terrain. Mountains. Narrow passes.
But the party moved efficiently. Everyone knew their role. No wasted movement.
Jak watched how they operated. How Marcus and Gareth coordinated. How Lyra positioned for optimal spell range. How everyone communicated without excessive talking.
Professional. Experienced. This was what high-level adventuring looked like.
On the second day, they found behemoth tracks. Massive. Each footprint was five feet across. Recent. Maybe six hours old.
"It's moving toward the settlements," Marcus said. Studying the tracks. "We need to intercept before it reaches populated areas."
They increased pace. Following the trail.
Found the behemoth on the third day. In a valley. Grazing. Fifty feet tall. Covered in thick hide. Massive horns.
B-rank threat. Devastating if it reached a town.
"Formation," Marcus said quietly. "Warriors front. Draw attention. Mage targets legs. Tamer exploits openings. Standard behemoth protocol."
Everyone moved into position. Practiced. Coordinated.
Marcus charged first. Sword glowing with mana reinforcement. His battle cry echoed across the valley.
The behemoth noticed. Turned. Massive head swinging toward Marcus.
Gareth flanked left. Jak and Shade went right. Lyra stayed back. Staff raised. Chanting.
The behemoth's front leg swept toward Marcus. He blocked with his sword. The impact was enormous. Should have killed him.
Instead, Marcus's mana reinforcement held. Blue light flaring. He stood his ground.
Gareth struck at the behemoth's rear leg. His blade bit deep. Drew blood. The behemoth roared.
Lyra's spell completed. Fire bolt. Massive. Struck the behemoth's other rear leg. The creature stumbled.
Jak saw the opening. The behemoth's neck was exposed. Lowered. Vulnerable.
Shade moved first. Void step. Appeared on the behemoth's back. Claws finding purchase in the thick hide.
Jak climbed. Using Shade's position as anchor. Pulled himself onto the behemoth's back.
The creature thrashed. Trying to shake them off. Jak held on. Moved higher. Toward the neck.
His blade found the gap between vertebrae. Drove deep. Not a killing blow. But critical damage.
The behemoth collapsed. Front legs giving out. Head hitting the ground.
Marcus and Gareth moved in. Coordinated strikes. Both targeting the exposed throat.
The behemoth died.
Silence. Just heavy breathing from the party.
"Clean execution," Marcus said. "Jak, that was good positioning. Risky. But good."
"Thank you."
"Gareth, solid strikes. Lyra, perfect timing on the fire bolt." Marcus surveyed the corpse. "Let's harvest. Behemoth hide sells for ten gold per square foot. Horns for fifteen. We've got salvage rights."
They spent three hours harvesting. The work was messy. Hard. But profitable.
By the time they finished, each party member would make twenty gold. Plus the five gold base pay.
Twenty-five gold. From three days work.
That was B-rank pay. Significantly better than C-rank contracts.
But more importantly, Jak had learned. Watched how B-rank adventurers operated. Saw the coordination. The technique. The efficiency.
That was valuable. More valuable than the gold.
On the journey back, Marcus pulled Jak aside.
"You performed well," Marcus said. "Better than most C-ranks in their first B-rank engagement."
"I had good teammates."
"True. But you also adapted quickly. Saw the opening. Took it." Marcus paused. "You're growing fast. Faster than normal."
Jak said nothing.
"That's not criticism," Marcus continued. "Just observation. Most adventurers plateau early. You're not plateauing. Keep that momentum. But be careful. Fast growth attracts attention."
"I know."
"Good." Marcus returned to the group.
Jak walked with Shade. Thinking about Marcus's words.
Fast growth attracts attention. True.
But slow growth meant mediocrity. Meant staying C-rank for years. Means never reaching the power needed to truly protect Mira.
Jak would rather attract attention than plateau.
He'd just have to manage that attention carefully. Control how much he revealed. When he revealed it.
For now, he looked like a promising C-rank. Good but not exceptional.
That perception would hold. For a few more weeks at least.
Then everything would change.