Taking a deep breath, I stepped into the outskirts of the village, ready to face down the infamous wild rat infestation. Confidence? Oh, I had that in spades. After all, if there was one thing I knew how to do, it was catch rats.
And I wasn't kidding. I liked to joke that I had a PhD in rat-catching—but honestly, it wasn't entirely a joke.
Let me explain.
Every summer during childhood, my family would visit my grandma's place. It was nice. Peaceful. Quiet. Except... the rats. Grandma's house was basically a luxury resort—for rodents. My mom couldn't stand them. So, naturally, my dad took it upon himself to "solve" the problem.
He bought a rat trap. Said it was foolproof.
Spoiler: it was not.
The rats ate the bait, napped in the trap, and slipped out like they owned the place. They were mocking us. I'm sure of it.
For the next four days, Dad and I launched a full-scale war. Traps, bait tricks, and even—get this—a rat-catching robot we ordered online. Thought we were so smart.
The rats? They chewed through the wires.
Just when we were ready to wave the white flag, we found this ancient rat-catching guidebook. Like, yellowed pages and everything. But surprisingly... it worked. We actually caught one. Finally.
So naturally, we marched into my mom's room, proudly showing off our victory. But before we could say anything, this black cat—just chilling on the bed like royalty—sprang into action, snatched the rat from my dad's hands, and strutted off like it had done all the work.
We just stood there. Dead silent. Eyes wide. Mouths open. My dad had tears in his eyes. Not because he was sad—but because the universe had just slapped us across the face with irony.
Anyway... I figured this time would be different.
"This'll be a piece of cake," I told myself with way too much confidence.
...
"Where the heck did all the rats go?!" I shouted, probably a little louder than I should have.
An adventurer nearby glanced over. "Hey, you new?"
"Yeah," I sighed. "Just started. I wanted to do the rat extermination quest, get some levels in."
He chuckled. "Well, hate to break it to you, but most of the rat quests have been cleared. Not much left to do unless you've got a party."
"Wait—what? That's it?"
He gave me a sympathetic shrug. "Yeah. Soloing right now's not ideal. If you're not in a party, you won't earn much."
"No, I can't…" I muttered, more to myself than to him.
"Well, your call. Good luck out there," he said, walking off.
I watched him go, frustration bubbling under the surface. Really? My first quest, and it's already a bust?
I wasn't ready to give up—not yet.
Maybe... just maybe, there was still a rat or two hiding out. I combed the village. Trash piles, alleys, barns—heck, I even poked around a sewer grate. Nothing. Not a single tail in sight.
Then, I heard it. A squeak.
My ears perked up like a bloodhound on a mission. I followed the sound to a quiet little hut near the edge of town. An old woman was sitting outside on a rocking chair, knitting like she didn't have a care in the world.
She smiled when she saw me. "Well now, what brings you here, young man?"
"I'm, uh... looking for rats," I said, instantly regretting how ridiculous that sounded.
"Rats?" she echoed, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah. I took the rat quest. But I can't find any. I'm kind of a rat-catching pro, actually."
To her credit, she didn't laugh. She just nodded kindly. "Ah, I see. Well, I'm afraid you're out of luck. The rats haven't been a problem for a while now. Ever since the cat came."
"The cat?" I asked.
She nodded. "A sleek little black one. Showed up outta nowhere, started hunting like it owned the place. Didn't miss a beat. Took down every last rat. Haven't seen one since."
My blood ran cold.
A black cat?
No... no way.
"Where is this cat now?" I asked, my voice shaky.
She gestured to a corner of the hut.
And there it was.
Curled up on a blanket, eyes half-closed... was the cat. Same shiny fur. Same smug little face. Same exact look that haunted my childhood dreams.
I froze. It looked at me. Right in the eyes. Smirked.
It was the same damn cat.
The one that had stolen my moment of glory all those years ago.
And now... it had stolen my quest too.