Chapter 37

"Phew... That turned out easier than we thought..."

"That's only because Eria-san was with us."

"Great work, Eria!"

I was eagerly complimented by my adventurer companions after I defeat the majority of the enemy monsters we lured out.

It's been three months since I came to the city, and despite Julian's warning, I still came to the guild to become an adventurer. That's when I met them.

Going to the guild, I learned that the stories Julian told me were true, but he definitely exaggerated a bit as well. There were indeed some ruffians who tried to hit on me and acted aggressively at first, but they were all small fries I was able to handle — they were not at all the cunning predatory kind he made them seem to be. All of them were simply brutes with huge muscles and no brains.

Another thing he told me that was partially true, was how Female adventurers were specially looked down on. The reason being, they were not as physically strong as men, and most of them never held a sword ever in their lives. Those born from poverty were also never taught magic. Anyone can join the guild as long as they're old enough, so despite their lack of any fighting capabilities, they were able to join. With that said, there were indeed some strong and respected women in the guild, their number simply pale in comparison to the men.

Despite not being an adventurer himself, it seems that Julian does have a deep knowledge of how the guild functions. Although he was clearly trying to scare me by telling me only half-truths. It was not surprising, knowing that he will have to deal with them too when he takes over the city.

Speaking of Julian...

Just a week after I came to the inn he recommended me to stay, he immediately came to visit me. He looked perplexed that I didn't come back to his place to work for him instead. After I told him that I decided to continue my plan on becoming an adventurer, he went away raging. I thought he was angry, but only a few days later, he was back again to check on me. He visited me frequently then after.

Back to the party I'm with...

As I mentioned, they were the blueprint of what an adventurer party in a fantasy world should look like. Their leader was Gilbert, a typical warrior class frontline with a handsome face. Senna was their offensive mage and Jessica was their backline archer — both of which were female. The last member of their party was Riger, a muscular beastkin with the head of a tiger. He was a warrior like Gilbert, but he was more armored, and he serves as a tank.

I met Gil and the others a month ago at the guild. Their party was apparently looking for an extra member for a big subjugation request, that's when they stumbled on me. They were a party of D-rank adventurers. I thought they were low in rank among the adventurers, but as it turns out, they were already veterans, and they were treated like big deals at the guild.

I was surprised to know that they were one of the strongest teams they have. Curious to see what they can do, I accepted their request. Since then, they've been inviting me to come, even when the quest was trivial.

"The way you skillfully combine your swordsmanship with magic always amazes me. I can't get tired of watching you fight."

"You're so good, Eria!"

After getting praised by Riget, Jessica-san jumped at me and hugged my back. It was honestly embarrassing, since she has such huge breasts. With her on my back, I can feel all their softness.

"Let's go back to the guild. We're done here," Gil said as he puts his sword back in its sheath.

As usual, Gil was acting tough and stoic. Fortunately, he was able to properly pull off such an attitude because of his handsome face and well-built physique. Even his hair was red and fiery, making him appear like a high-tier game character.

There were rumours in the guild about him being a pervert and a womanizer, but I can't truly believe them. When I asked them about it, Senna and Jessica defended him and told me that none of those rumours were true.

With Gil on the lead, we went back to the guild.

"Here's your share of the reward, Eria-san."

As the leader of the party, Gil split the reward. As always, I got the same amount as the other party members. To be honest, I thought I should get more. I did the most work after all.

After the ordeal of the rewards, the atmosphere turned casual again. Gil and Jessica-san were already ordering drinks, Riget took out his sword to clean it, and Senna took out a book and started to read on her own.

After taking a sip of his drink, Gil turned to me and spoke. I was about to leave, but I remained on my seat to hear him.

"We've been to a few adventures already, Eria-san. How about you finally join us permanently?"

Just when Gil invited me so, I felt an intense glare coming from Senna's direction. I noticed it before, but I guess she really likes Gil. Or could it be that hatred was because she's afraid I might steal her role as their party's mage?

"I can't... It's not like I'm on the same ranks as you guys."

How about that, Senna? I don't really have any intention of stealing your spot.

"Fuu..." Senna heaved a sigh of relief at my rejection.

"You should join us, Eria. You can easily increase your rank if you did. You'll be the same rank as us in no time!"

Jessica was right. Being in a party of higher ranking members will help me increase my presence in the guild. It would influence my chance to rank up significantly. More importantly, I will be able to participate in quests that are beyond the level of my current rank.

Ranking up was more difficult than I thought. Common adventurers spend months to get their first rank up from G to F, then to get to E would take an entire year. To get to Gil and the other's rank of D, I would need to have a lot of experience.

There were a few benifits I can get if I join Gil's party. However, there was one major problem — I was stronger than them by a long shot. I realized that when I saw them fight. That means that I can easily complete the quests they do to reach their ranks all by myself.

In that case, I won't really need to join their party to climb the ranks. In fact, they might even hold me back in the future if I ever join them. My potential to get a higher rank than them was significantly higher, while their strength was already stuck in rank D.

"I... I'll think about it."

If I join, maybe I can help them improve to rank up with me. I doubt I can do that, but they are fun to be with so I don't want to part ways with them yet. I don't want to get their hopes up, but I'll at least give them a chance.

"Understood. You can take your time on it," Gil optimistically replied.