Limits

We went outside of the city, and headed towards the north western direction. We walked for a long time, before the Golem said "The cave in question, is over there", and he pointed at a cave in the distance. When we arrived in front of that cave, I went forwards and examined it. I hacked at the rocks outside, but found nothing. I decided to enter, and check the insides.

The cave was occupied by few Lears, but they were not crawling around everywhere. I went deeper, and slashed at one of the rocks, that was still embed in the cave's wall. After a while, I noticed some energy coming out. It was the same colour, as the energy the stone dog had. 'So my guess was correct. That Slate needs to feed on a different type of energy, than the one that Golems feed on. No wonder it didn't want to absorb the stones, the owner provided for it' I thought.

I walked outside, and the Golem asked "Did you find anything". I replied "Yes, we need to bring Slate here. The quicker we do it, the better. This place has the energy Slate requires". The Golem nodded his head, and we hurried back to the city. Back inside the city. We quickly ran towards the mansion, and entered it. The Golem picked up the stone dog from its resting place, and we rushed towards the cave again.

Usually, these Golems were slow, and easy going. The change in his attitude ad liveliness, was eye opening. The Golem was running so much, that he left deep prints in the ground. His strength, as well as his weight, contributed to that a lot, but it was a weird sight, watching a running Golem. We arrived back at the cave. This time, the journey took us much less time, than before. The Golem asked "What now?". I replied "Place Slate inside, deep inside. If it doesn't start absorbing the energy by itself, I will help Slate absorb it". The Golem nodded his head, and entered the cave, while carrying Slate with him.

I followed suit, and walked inside as well. He placed Slate down on the floor, and the stone dog immediately started absorbing the surrounding energy. The absorption seemed slow in the beginning, but then the rate increased. Slate absorbed the surrounding energy to the point, where it glowed with the life energy.

It lasted about 20, maybe 30 minutes. Slate transformed in that time to a huge dog, full of life. The Golem was so pleased, he almost jumped with joy. I didn't interrupt their reunion, and waited patiently, for the Golem and Slate to exchange their feelings. The Golem apologised many times during their exchange, but Slate wasn't the least bit hateful. It still loved its owner. When the Golem and Slate finally reconciled, they turned towards me. The Golem said "Thank you. I lost hope a long time ago, yet the solution was so simple. I'm really grateful. Tell me, what can I do for you?".

I thought about it for a while, and nothing came to my mind. I said "It's fine. I will get my reward from the Mercenary Guild. Maybe there will be something in the future, that I might require. Would you be willing to help me then?". The Golem nodded his head, and said "Of course. Whenever you need something, come by my house. I will also put in a good word to the Guild for you. You should get a greater reward, than what I offered in that task".

That point was bugging me all along. 'Why was the reward so small? That Golem really cares for this stone dog, so why create such a low ranking task?' I thought. I decided to ask about it "Why did you place such a small reward on that task? I can clearly see, that you care for Slate. I don't understand, why such a small reward?". He replied "This is already fourth time, I placed that task inside the Guild. In the beginning, it was Silver Ranked, and the rewards were multiple times better. Yet no one that came, could solve the problem. I then lowered the standards, to Steel Rank and gave better rewards. Still nothing happened. Whoever came to try and cure Slate, was unsuccessful. Medicine only allowed Slate to stay alive longer, but as you already said, it didn't solve the problem. As a last attempt, I simply left a Bronze Rank task inside the Guild. I also placed that condition on purpose. It would deter those, who thought they could do something. I was tired of dealing with such kind of people, so if they wanted to bother me, they would be required to pay back the contribution, in case they failed. No one came to fulfil the task. Until you came, and cured Slate".

I nodded my head, and thought 'It makes sense. No wonder he said, that he lost hope'. I then said "Well, the task is done. I suggest that you come here often, or get these stones to your mansion. I also suggest looking for similar caves. I don't know how much energy is in this cave, and I don't know, for how long it will last. If you find more caves, this should solve the problem for a long term". He nodded his head, and said "Let us return then. Remember to visit me, if you need anything".

We went back to the city. The Golem and Slate headed straight to their home, probably to catch up on all of the missed time. I on the other hand, went to the Mercenary Guild. The Golem signed my task paper, and said that this would prove my task was completed. When I walked over to the counter, the Golem I usually spoke with, was not there. I went to another Golem, and said "I finished my task, here is the proof". The Golem looked at the paper, then at me. He asked "Can you wait a minute?". I replied with a question as well "Is there something wrong?".

He shook his head, and said "It's not that. The Golem you spoke with about this task, asked me to inform him, when you come back. I will go get him". I nodded, but still thought 'That's weird. I mean, I'm just handing in the task. Why would he want to deal with it personally?'. I had no idea, but I would probably find out soon. After a while, the Golem I spoke with usually, came over and said "So, you've completed the task. I'm amazed you know. There were many people trying in the past, and all failed to cure this pet permanently. Yet here you are".

I asked "Why did you want to deal with me personally?". The Golem laughed a bit, and said "I like you kid. I obviously know who you are, most Golems know that. I just wanted to see how you are going to develop, that's all". I thought about it, and said "You must hold some power here, for another Golem to go and fetch you". He laughed again, then said "Seems to be the case". Short silence later, he continued "For this task, you will receive the standard reward. You will also receive a bonus rewards for accomplishing it. The bonus will be provided by that owner, as well as me. This task has been on display for a very long time now, you solving it, gives us a good name as well. This requires a proper reward. Pass me your membership stone".

I passed him the stone, and he continued "The task itself, is worth 4 Red Hals and 200 Contribution Points. Besides that, you will receive a bonus from the owner of that creature. The Bonus is 2 Black Hals, and another 100 Contribution Points. From me, you will receive 500 Contribution Points. All together, you shall receive 2 Black and 4 Red Hals, as well as 800 Contribution Points". He registered all that onto my Membership Stone, then gave it back together with the money.

When that was taken care of, he continued "Congratulations kid. You are now Bronze Rank 2nd Tier. You have 900 Contribution points, and only 100 away from Tier 3. This is also a record, you are the fastest growing member. No one managed to gain that many contribution points, in two days. This has also been recorded onto your stone. Thanks to that achievement, you shall have access to Steel Rank tasks, before you achieve Steel Rank".

I didn't know what to say, no one really gave me so many benefits in the past. I could only squeeze out "Great". He continued with the same speech as before "You can now take on another task, or rest a bit. You have 100 days to complete another task". I nodded and said "I get it. Right, I'm off to see some more tasks". I went back to the area with those boards, but this time, I check out both Bronze and Steel Ranked tasks.