Chapter 13.5 – Dragon’s First Guild Job

"What did you say?" (Nina)

Nina's tone is low and severely threatening. Best to do my part.

"It's okay, Nina, please relax. I'm not offended. Plus, he's just testing us after all. I'm sure your display yesterday has already started rumors about your short fuse and attachment towards me. So, he wanted to confirm those rumors himself. He also wanted to know whether I'd be able to temper your more violent impulses. Did I guess correctly?" (Mizuki)

Gerard raises his eyebrows in surprise at me, then after a moment, he bursts out laughing. Nina narrows her eyes at him, but I sense her anger subsiding. After collecting himself, he smirks at us and then responds.

"Hahahahaha…oh boy I guess what you lack in magic you really do make up for in wit. I apologize, I just needed to have a sense of the people I'm responsible for. While it wouldn't be fair to say that I meant no offense with my comments, I can assure you that I hold no negative feelings towards the two of you at present. Please, feel at ease." (Gerard)

Well, that's progress. Nina seems to relax some, but she's still glaring at Gerard.

"I'll let it go this time, but only because Mizuki asked. I suggest that in the future, you don't say such things without him here to protect you, though. Tests or no tests." (Nina)

Good grief…straight back to thinly veiled death threats. Gerard only seems to find that retort entertaining.

"Fair enough. So, I heard that you wanted to take the C-rank exam? Going from G to C rank in one day would be unprecedented. I run my guild as a strict meritocracy, though, so if you pass the guild regulations, loopholes or not, I'll still allow it. However, you're missing the requirements for D-rank progression." (Gerard)

"Ah, yes, about that. I was told that rare monster drops would suffice for that. Will these do?" (Mizuki)

I reach into my travel pack and pull out most of Nina's scale fragments, then walk over and set them on Gerard's desk.

He raises an eyebrow and gives them a cursory glance.

"Oh ho, dragon scales? My, that is impressive. Sadly, while dragon scales are somewhat rare, they're not rare enough for that alternative rank promotion." (Gerard)

I look him in the eye with a neutral expression.

"Really, not even if they're from an Elder Dragon?" (Mizuki)

Hearing that, Gerard snorts like I've made a joke, but makes a puzzled expression when my face remains serious.

He picks up one of the larger fragments and begins inspecting it closely. He pulls out a strange knife and tries stabbing the scale fragment, but it deflects off. Seeing this, his eyes go wide, but then he looks at us suspiciously.

"I can't really be certain that they're dragon scales from an Elder Dragon, but I'm sure that they're not from any dragon I've ever seen. They're way too tough. Let's assume you're correct…how would you two have come across these?" (Gerard)

Well, I definitely can't tell him the truth. Or, can I?

"Well, you see, before Nina joined my party, I was out in the forest alone and came across an Elder Dragon. I woke it up from a nap, and it tried to kill me. Hoping it would calm down, I just beat it a little bit with my bare fists, you know? After the fight, we parted on good terms, and I kept some of the scale fragments that I tore off." (Mizuki)

Gerard groans in frustration. Really? I thought it was impressive. I avoided adding 'now we're lovers' at the end because I thought it might be inappropriate. I sense a rush of amusement from Nina.

"Jokes aside, normally I only care about results. In this case, however, knowing how you got them might lend credibility to them being Elder Dragon scales. You need that to pass the rarity threshold for your rank up." (Gerard)

"Err…sorry, but does it actually matter if we prove that they're Elder Dragon scales, specifically? You've already demonstrated that they are dragon scales of a variety that the guild master can't even confidently identify. Wouldn't that qualify them as extremely rare?" (Mizuki)

These were my true feelings, but apparently Gerard thinks I was being snarky.

"Sure…technically. How far do you think you can keep getting on technicalities, though?" (Gerard)

I shrug and give him a carefree smile.

"Who knows! To the letter, I'm just playing by the guild's rules." (Mizuki)

With that, Gerard sighs deeply and nods his agreement.

"Very well, I'll accept them for now. On to your rank-up exam. I need help with a personal request, but you'd need to be B-rank to accept it – it's A-rank in difficulty. So, if you two are willing to take a special exam, and accept the request afterward, I can promote you straight to B-rank. Then, you'd be able to take anything except S-rank jobs, which hardly ever show up. What do you say?" (Gerard)

He has a sneaky looking smile on his face that makes me a little nervous, but I'm sure we can handle it.

"Sure, what's the exam?" (Mizuki)

"You and Nina will be fighting me and another A-rank adventurer. That's it. You win, you pass. There will be no technicalities for you this time, Mizuki. You'll either have to prove you can actually fight, or Nina will have to be strong enough for both of you." (Gerard)

[Fufufufu…Mizuki, this sounds like fun. Can I fight them both myself?] (Nina)

[Hmm…sure. Don't do anything crazy, though, and definitely don't kill either of them.] (Mizuki)

Well…this should be interesting. I glance at Nina and see a menacing smile on her face.

"We accept." (Mizuki)