Chapter 6: Adventurer
Upon entering the city, I naturally found my way to the Adventurers guild quite easily as I simply followed the long line of people heading in the direction of a big brown building with a green roof and a silver crest which had an arrow piercing through a reptilian looking eye.
As soon as I entered the guild I remembered the fact that this world was once a fantasy world inside of a video game, because the guild looked exactly like a guild from some kind of adventure game or anime. There were tables with people drinking and eating with their groups, a board with commissions on it and a group of people looking over the commisions trying to decide which ones to pick. There were also people getting their ranks checked.
'Thankfully, this is still the same.. I was beginning to believe that this only looked like the world I knew.'
I sighed while I Made my way to the counter where I was greeted by a blank-faced woman, she had two small pinkish red horns sticking from the front of her head and medium length hot pink hair to match, with light green eyes and dark smooth skin. Her voice was smooth and monotonous as she spoke, trying to maintain her professionalism as much as possible but anyone could tell she was bored. It made sense, she had to sit at a desk for the majority of the day greeting any and everyone regardless of how they treated her, and had to repeat the same lines every time while also giving the same directions. Sometimes, even jobs that usually don't require a lot can get tiresome if you're doing it too often.
"Welcome to the Caerval's adventurers guild, also known as the Hunting Eye. Are you here to request an adventurer's help or to become an adventurer? If your answer is the former, please fill out this form here."
The woman said as she pulled out two papers and placed them side by side while still speaking.
"If you're here for the ladder, please fill out this form and when you are done filling out either form, we can continue from there. "
I nodded and took the second paper and sat on one of the high stools near the woman and filled out the form.
[Adventurers Form]
[Welcome to the Hunting Eye Guild, please fill out the form honestly to the best of your abilities. If you are unsure, simply leave it blank and you will be tested after you're finished. Any unanswered questions will be filled out for you afterwards.]
Name: Vaelis Verdanthel
Age: 356+
Sex: Male(Monoecious)
Race: Monster(Elf)
Species: Tree
Combat style: Mage
Skills:
Rank:
Survival knowledge (Low, Medium, High/ None, Common, Expert) : Common Medium
Combat knowledge: High
Experience:
After filling out the form I gave the paper to the woman at the desk and she briefly looked at it before nodding and speaking again.
"Well, Vaelis.. I've never heard of a Tree being a monster before, but you're going to be a mage, why did you not fill out the skills?"
She seemed curious and suspicious, the truth was that I didn't want the adventurers guild (or anyone really) knowing my skills, the less others knew the better it would be for me in the long run.
'Azeroth, is it possible to hide skills?'
[Notice]
[Yes, however.. while it's possible to hide skills you were unable to hide every skill. Furthermore, because you are unable to lie, all one would have to do is tell you to reveal your skills and you would not be able to hide them anymore. It is recommended that you temporarily remove them instead.]
Shocked by Azeroth's nonchalant attitude as if what they were saying wasn't insane, I had no choice but to sigh and nod.
' Will you delete all of them? That would be a bit problematic I think..'
[ Notice ]
[If you would prefer that I recommend keeping the "Analysis", "Graphing Location", "Self-Healing", "Authority", and "Fear resistance" skills for your own basic safety as well as your desire to become an adventurer. ]
' Hm.. While those are pretty good skills, are you sure they aren't too much? Would it be bad to become an adventurer with no skills? '
[ Notice ]
[ Because most people have at least one skill from birth, there are only a few cases where individuals were born without skills and even fewer of those individuals never developed a skill. While it wouldn't be unheard of, it may hinder your chances at becoming an adventurer which would in turn slow down the progression of your journey.]
Satisfied with Azeroth's response I nodded and allowed them to remove all of my skills and only kept the select skills. The conversation didn't take long, for all the time that it took to have that conversation with Azeroth, I had actually only been standing in front of the small pink haired woman for a few seconds. I had grown used to this strange occurrence, when I was still standing as a tree, I learned to be patient, yes. However, I also learned that time affects me differently somehow, I'm able to move faster and think faster than most people and creatures. That's the reason I'm able to hold long conversations with Azeroth's like this, if not for Azeroth's company I would be bored to death. Time moves so slowly for me that often seconds feel like hours, and hours feel like years. That's why for the past couple of years I've spent most of my time thinking about anything and everything really, I have nothing to do except that after all.
"Ah.. it's just that, I'm not sure these skills are exactly..—"
I responded to the woman's question unsure of how to respond, since I had deleted the skills it wouldn't be a lie to say I didn't really have any, but the ones that I had left were skills that I still felt unsure about. "Graphing location" might be good for mapping out areas, but outside of giving me a visual representation of a selected area I don't think it has many useful features.
"Nevermind that, if you're worried about your skills being useful, there's no need to worry about that kind of thing. Just put your skills down and once you're done, go over there to the woman standing there by the ball on the counter."
Cutting me off, the pink haired woman handed the paper back to me and pointed her index finger towards the taller woman with long golden hair, fair skin, and a body that fit nicely in her black, white, and blue work attire. From her looks alone it was quite obvious why so many of the people crowded around her were mainly male adventurers. Not that the small pink haired woman wasn't beautiful, but she was more of the "strict, cute tsundere" or " tomboy childhood friend" type of attractive, while the woman near the other counter was more of the "Gentle but mature" or "Popular girl" kind of beauty. If you asked me who was more my type I wouldn't be able to answer however, yea they're both attractive and all but looks have never meant much to me. I'm glad though, in this world I wouldn't put it past someone to have the power to seduce and manipulate others with their beauty, so not being affected by that kind of thing seems like a power on its own. Though.. it is troublesome, the woman has eyes paying attention to her so much that if I went over there I'd attract more attention than planned.
Sigh
I finished writing my skills down and headed towards the woman. There was one person in front of me so I watched them to see what it was that I would need to do. The process was simple, stand in front of the counter and place your open palm over the crystal ball on the counter, it will scan your body and change colour according to your Rank. It will announce out loud your *Attributes and once it does, you will be asked what class you want to become. If your attributes are not suited for that class then you will be denied and a list of available classes will be spoken, if you don't choose any of the available classes then you will be forced to come back next year to try again, though it's nearly impossible to change your attributes so those who are forced to return usually just don't return at all.
The person in front of me was a shorter woman with pale lilac coloured hair that was tied into two small buns, one on each side of her head with long neat bangs curtaining over her big purple doe eyes. She had pale skin with a slight red tint and a sweet scent. She was wearing clothes that looked as though she were cosplaying to be a fantasy nobleman's maid, with a black dress with white frills at the bottom and long white sleeves that were puffy at the bottom and even a purplish pink tie that matches her hair and eyes in a fitting way. What's more, she had a wand on her back about the size of her forearm, shaped as a heart, it was seriously cute but also useless, her rank was called out and her attributes, she was a C rank with low wind attributes and couldn't be a mage, she didn't even want to hear the options on what she could be instead, she simply decided to leave in tears clearly devastated that her dream to be a cute mage had been shattered.
"Oh dear, she had such a distraught expression.. She has my sympathies."
The blond woman said as she held her arms across her chest, one arm folded over the other as she rested her face against one of her hands with a sigh. Then she turned her gaze towards me and smiled softly.
"Hello. My name is Mary, if you don't mind, may I ask that you please step forward, and also may I ask that you remove your coat?"
My steps were halted momentarily but I sighed and nodded, removing my coat and placing it in her outreached hand. I had seen that there were others like me who wore cloaks, coats, and the like. They also had to remove theirs, apparently it was a safety measure to protect people from cheating as well as to prevent them from carrying hidden weapons. All weapons were to be visible and out of reach, hence why the girl before me had her wand on her back before. Luckily for me, I had no such weapon.
***
[Mary's POV]
The entire day has gone by relatively quickly now as compared to normal so far. This is a good thing for me because it means I will be able to rest soon. Usually around this time in the afternoon, there are more people than any time of the day and that means more problems. However, today, there's about the same amount of people that there would be in the early mornings, which isn't many.
' Oh how adorable, this girl reminds me of my younger sister Marurice. '
Looking down at the young girl in front of me with lightly coloured hair and deep wine-like purple eyes, dressed in cute clothes made me giggle a bit internally. She looked like she was glowing with confidence and anticipation as if she were sure of her future and had it perfectly planned out. All she needed was to hear the results out loud so that she could probably prove herself as well as everyone else that she was right. Maybe that's why when the callout was average she looked so depressed and shocked. Her already pale skin seemed to go ghostly pale and her big fawn-like eyes widened and teared up. Seeing this kind of thing never gets any less heartbreaking, no matter how common it may be. Simply speaking, many of the adventurers would be lucky if they were B class and dreaming of anything higher would just prove that they were definitely ambitious children to say the least.. it's not impossible, afterall, I myself happen to be in the B class. However, it's just not often, and that's why seeing so many people come in every year to become an adventurer just to leave with this kind of expression in the end is truly…
"So very, heartbreaking.."
I found myself speaking out loud and shook my head, sighing lightly. I remained professional and turned my attention back to the last person in the line. The figure was on the taller side, not exactly tall enough to be an adult but maybe an older teenager.. but that was all I could tell, they had on a very well made, high quality coat which immediately made me believe that they were some kind of noble. I sighed internally and spoke with a smile.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Mary. May I please ask you to remove your coat and stand in front of the ball."
I watched as their shoulders seemed to jolt and they stopped moving mid step, hesitantly they nodded and removed their coat. Immediately, everything froze in the guild tavern. All of the people who had been watching, along with the people who hadn't but had grown curious, froze. It was clear that we had all collectively come to the same mutual agreement.
'This person.. is unreal'
I thought. I hadn't even realised that I had frozen in my position, holding the coat and my mouth hanging slightly agape. I blushed and looked away for a moment and regained my composure as I sat the coat down next to me.
'Now's not the time to be distracted by their beauty…. Even if they are utterly… gorgeous..'
Ahem
I once again cleared my thoughts and gestured towards the ball next to me on the counter.
"Simply place your hand over the ball and wait a moment as it scans you please."
I watched as the long greenish-turquoise haired person(whose gender I dare not assume) moved their hand over the ball. Their skin was pale and smooth and pretty like a glass porcelain doll, they had long slim fingers and nails, and a face that was both a perfect mix of beauty and handsome elegance. Their body wasn't very wide, in fact they looked quite delicate and frail. They wore fashionable clothing that matched and fit their body nicely though and had a calm stoic expression and a cold minty air about them. To add to their already beautiful appearance, they had small plump pink lips and two slightly different sharp slender turquoise, rainbow like eyes. Like a diamond held in the light at the perfect angle, they had a beautiful and intense shine to them and if you looked closely they seemed to hold small galaxies in them. They had long curly green/turquoise eyelashes to match their hair and eyebrows perfectly, and their long hair was fixed into a neat and elegant looking ponytail that draped over their shoulder and stopped just above their chest.
Anyone looking at them would have no choice but to be instantly smitten. In fact, even if they turned out to not be very strong, I'm more than sure people would still fumble over themselves to have them. Not to mention that this beautiful face appeared to belong to an elf, they had long sharp ears that protrude out from behind their long side-bangs just enough to see their tips.
[Evaluation complete]
'Oh, it's finished. I'm dying to know what the results will be.'
It goes up only to Rank A, however…If they are at least Rank D, they will be able to work here. I'd rather them stay here and work beside us then to leave and we never get to see their face again.
'To live a happy life one should see beautiful things often!'
E-Ehem..
I shook my head and focused my attention on the ball which was beginning to read out their information.
[Named Monster: Vaelis Verdanthel Rank: A+ Attribute(s): Unknown Available Classes: Mage, SwordMaster, Navigator, Assassin, Magic Assassin, Magic SwordMaster, more options available: would you like to see the additional options?]
As the information was called out, the tavern went silent again for the second time, this time the sound of a glass breaking could be heard which broke the silence.
"W-what?!!"
I couldn't contain myself any longer. This person had appeared out of nowhere and I had mentally prepared myself for them to simply be another rare beauty who would come and go like the others, but to think that they were A class— no, A+ class and could pick from so many different classes.
"W-w-WHAT?? What even is A PLUS class, are you saying that this person is—"
***
"Enough, Mary."
I watched, a bit anxious since I had ended up garnering attention just as I had feared I would. I've never exactly been the center of attention very often before and so naturally I wasn't used to it. I felt.. uncomfortable and subconsciously found myself sighing as I ignored the eyes now blatantly watching me and the interaction between the two workers. The pink haired woman from before was now scolding Mary as she pushed Mary away towards the back and spoke. Mary tried to protest but it was futile.
"B-but Eli—"
She tried speaking again but was cut off.
"I said enough. Instead of making a fuss, how about reporting to our boss."
In response to the pink haired woman's words, she sighed, looking at me and then the woman and then nodding and turning around. I watched as Mary's figure disappeared into the back behind a door. The pink haired woman spoke this time to me, turning to face me and introducing herself, something she hadn't done before.
"So, you're not just some boring person. A named monster like me, and talented too. I'm Elise, since Mary has to go away for a while I will take care of your registration. Please pick your class."
While her tone was still pretty blunt, it sounded more friendly and as if she had just acknowledged me. It made me want to sigh and I rubbed the back of my neck lightly as I looked over the options again.
Originally, I was going to be a mage, however, the other classes all looked very interesting to me. Some of the classes like the assassin and swordmaster were classes that I knew but the magic assassin class and magic swordmaster class both were new, so was the navigator class.
' I had expected to get the mage class.. but why would I get so many other classes…? It's not like I have many skills and the ones I do have don't feel all that useful for things like assassin class and swordmaster let alone their magic counterparts. '
[ Notice ]
[Sometimes, because classes are less determined by skills and more determined by a person's attributes, a user may receive many class availability options like this depending on their attributes. While it is rare because having more than one attribute isn't common, it is not unheard of. However, my knowledge on the "Unavailable" status report is 0. My apologies.]
Azeroth's voice was low and hesitant. They sounded truly dejected as they came to the realisation that they wouldn't be able to provide a sure answer. It was surprising to say the least, Azeroth usually has a confident and calm voice, sometimes smug or sarcastic but I've never heard them sound so disappointed before.
' Woah, Azeroth.. I don't think I've ever heard you apologise like this before.. there's nothing to sound so sad about, your knowledge on things is already way more than expected and I'm thankful for your help. Don't be hard on yourself. '
Azeroth went silent and didn't respond afterwards which made me feel nervous but I decided not to say anything since I figured leaving them alone for the time being would be for the best.
" I will be.. a Magic SwordMaster. "
I looked at Elise and spoke with a sure voice as I removed my hand from over the ball. I watched as she seemed to study me for a moment before nodding and filling out something on a paper. Shortly after, she chants something under her breath and a small magic circle appears beneath her fingertips. After the circle appears, a small black card with beautifully carved silver writing appears and she stamps it with a small diamond shaped magic imbued stamper and hands it to me.
[ Adventurers License ]
[ Name: Vaelis Verdanthel Age: 300+ Gender: Male(Monoecious) Race: Monster(Elf) Class: Unknown Position: Magic SwordMaster]
[Date Issued: Xx.398]
" With the stamp of the guild imbued with magic and engraved into the license, you are now an official Adventurer. Congratulations. may your Feet guide you through a fruitful and victorious journey. "
Elise spoke with a wide grin and looked genuinely happy as she waved her hands. Honestly, she was adorable but seeing her acting so kindly and smiling so much after getting used to her previous strict and stoic expression was slightly surprising. She told me that the owner would need to reach me and so they(The guild) would provide me with a room and meals for the time being. I nodded and quickly made my way to the adventurers board and picked a job, I needed money and unfortunately as I've never once left the forest since coming to this world, I had none. I picked the most basic job there was, the cliche job that probably every adventurer has to pick at least once.
' Escorting a noble through a dangerous terrain.. huh? '
It didn't seem like a particularly hard job, yet it pays a whole 3 gold Taleons. In this world, 3 Taleons is probably enough for your average person to live comfortably for several weeks. 1 Gold Taleon = 20 Silver Taleon = 190 Copper Taleon.
' Hm.. it's suspicious. '
Afterall, anyone with a brain would be able to tell that anything that seems way too easy is probably not safe to trust.
' If all one had to do was simply escort the noble to their location safely, I'm sure the job would have been completed already. The fact that it hasn't must mean that the noble must either be a real drag or they're going through an area that's overrun with strong monsters. Either way, I will simply have to be prepared. '
I nodded and plopped down on the bed. It was a firmer mattress but not uncomfortable. Warm and spacious. Because I didn't have my skills, it would seem that getting tired was no longer out of the question. I found myself mentally exhausted after travelling and dealing with so much today. While I didn't need to sleep, I decided to do it to rest my mind and mentally prepare for my quest tomorrow.