Chapter 5

"Hmm."

He couldn't help but let out a smile.

The smile that the man let out in the middle of the street wasn't appropriate, but the joy was overwhelming, and it naturally came out.

According to Ex,

"Are you really that happy just because your level went up a little?"

But since he was happy, there was nothing he could do about it.

"Ex, you can't understand this joy. After crawling through sewers for months without being able to level up at all, I've managed to level up twice in just one day."

Indeed, after that, he had defeated the monsters in the sewers and raised his level by two in one go.

The level 3 text on the status screen shone brightly.

With this, he wouldn't be laughed at as a perpetual level 1 adventurer anymore.

He wouldn't be mocked by the customers at his part-time job or the dishes he washed.

He wouldn't be turned away from the adventurer guild as a mere nobody who couldn't even become a rookie.

He looked at the status screen again.

Chrom Melville, Level 3, Unemployed Adventurer

Strength: D

Endurance: D

Vitality: C

Agility: D → D+

Magic Power: D

Magic Defense: D

Intelligence: D

Faith: D

Overall Combat Power: 102 → 569

Weapon: Holy Sword Excalibur

Armor: Traveler's Clothing

Unique Skill: [Can Equip Anything]

Combat Skills: [Swordsmanship D] [Fire Magic F]

No matter how many times he looked at it, his cheeks relaxed.

With these abilities, he wouldn't be turned away at the door anymore.

A D-rank adventurer guild, no, with the holy sword equipped, even C-rank or B-rank adventurer guilds might be within reach.

When he said this, Ex casually replied,

"Why not aim for an A-rank? A man should be more ambitious."

...That was impossible, so he answered silently.

He had been turned away from A-rank guilds multiple times, and it had left a light trauma.

The disdainful eyes of the interviewers, the out-of-place feeling of being surrounded by top-notch adventurers in the guild.

Rather than experiencing that again, it would be more mentally healthy to lower the guild rank a bit.

Besides, just because he joined a C-rank or B-rank guild didn't mean he would stay there forever.

By advancing his career within the guild, he could be recruited to a higher-ranked guild, or he could transfer voluntarily.

Furthermore, if he continued to excel in the guild, the guild's evaluation could rise, and its rank could be upgraded.

For someone like him, who believed in steady and consistent effort, this might be more suitable.

With this in mind, he headed to the city to look for a guild.

"I'll avoid the guilds I applied to before."

It was only the day after he was rejected, and going for an interview would be awkward.

Besides, joining a guild that rejected him without considering his potential didn't seem to have any benefits.

So, to find a guild he had never applied to before, he opened the map of the labyrinth city.

All the major guilds were listed there.

Not only adventurer guilds, but also carpenter guilds, merchant guilds, craftsman guilds, mage guilds, and even the thief guild's location were marked.

This map was like a Bible for finding a job in this town, and it was worth the three gold coins it cost. It was quite useful.

He scanned the maze-like alleys to find his current location.

He intended to find the nearest guild from there, but the first thing he saw was surprisingly Ex.

"Ah, I found a good guild. Chrom, let's go here."

She pointed to a guild nearby with a bluish-white aura.

Although girls can't read maps, Ex seemed to be an exception.

Maybe it's because her body is made of iron.

He pondered this, but no matter how much he thought about it, it was futile, so he followed her suggestion and headed there.

The map read:

[B-rank Guild, Fenrir's Roar]

It was just right to stretch a bit and challenge a B-rank guild, so it was convenient.

With this in mind, he looked at the map and headed to his destination.

The B-rank guild, Fenrir's Roar, was located one step back from the main street of the labyrinth city.

It was in a slightly desolate area, but he didn't mind.

If this were a merchant guild, he might have felt uneasy about the lack of activity, but fortunately, this was an adventurer guild. Since it rarely received general visitors, it was not unusual for it to be quiet.

As he was about to knock on the guild's door, he noticed something.

He felt a sense of discomfort with the sign hanging in front of the guild's door.

He focused on the sign.

"What's wrong? Chrom."

The holy sword Ex asked worriedly.

"No, isn't this supposed to be a B-rank guild?"

"It should be."

"But the sign says A-rank in big letters."

"What, is that it? That's probably because the map is old, isn't it?"

"The map is old?"

Upon rechecking, the publication year was 270 of the kingdom's calendar. This year was 282, so it was a 12-year-old map.

"Indeed, it's old. So, this guild has probably been upgraded from B-rank to A-rank in these 12 years."

This meant that he would end up joining a guild higher than his original goal, but it would be a waste to turn back now. Besides, this might be some kind of destiny.

Perhaps the gods were guiding him to this guild.

With this in mind, he knocked on the guild's door.

The iron door knocker was a bit rusty, but it still did its job and announced the visitor to those inside.

After a while, the heavy door opened.

There stood a girl in a cute maid outfit.

She greeted him with a smile as bright as sunlight.

"Welcome to our guild."

Although the girl didn't seem to fit the image of an adventurer guild, this was indeed the guild he was looking for.

He gazed at her smile for a moment and waited for her next words.