Chapter 21

In the end, I ended up giving in to Nina's usual teary-eyed attack and allowed Rena to join the party.

"Of course, it was the right choice."

I was irritated but decided to ignore it. Still, the city of Kama is home to a variety of races. Humans, dwarves, and elves are of course present, but there are also those called "beasts," or sub-humans.

It seems that "sub-human" is a discriminatory term, so it's taboo to use it in front of them. There are also half-dragon people and half-giants.

"I'm going to get my guild card made now, but don't talk about my status like you did with that guy."

"Ugh... I know, talking about it in public is forbidden, right?"

"You never know who's around."

"...You're cautious, Yu."

"You guys are the ones who are careless. And if you say or laugh about my tone or attitude at the adventurer's guild, I'll punish you later. Anyway, I'll play it low-key until we get the guild card made."

"Wow... that's big."

I can understand why Nina is surprised. Compared to the guild in Ressel Village, this one is about ten times larger.

Moreover, it's a three-story building with an even larger structure behind it.

"...This is one of the popular bases for adventurers. As a result, a lot of money comes into the guild."

Rena's parents were adventurers, so she has a lot of knowledge like this in addition to magic.

When we entered the guild, there were many adventurers. Some were discussing quests at tables, while others were looking at the bulletin board. At a glance, there were over a hundred people.

There were three female staff members at the counter.

(Haha... they really are making a lot of money.)

As we approached the counter, a chestnut-haired woman greeted us with a business smile.

"Welcome to the Adventurer's Guild. What brings you here today?"

"Yes, I'm here to get a guild card made."

I spoke in a formal tone and with a smile.

"!?"

Nina and Rena had their mouths open wide, but I couldn't deal with them one by one.

"Understood. Just to confirm, is it for identification or for adventuring?"

"Both."

The receptionist's eyes narrowed slightly at my words.

"May I ask where you're from?"

"Ressel Village."

"You should have been able to get a guild card in Ressel Village..."

Before the receptionist could finish, I showed her a fake guild card.

"You have a guild card—!?"

The receptionist took the guild card and examined it. I could see magic power gathering in her eyes.

【Guild Card: Fake】

I had already confirmed that this receptionist has the skills "Appraisal LV2" and "Analysis LV2."

"Th-this is!!"

Collette Maysel, the receptionist at the Kama City Adventurer's Guild, didn't work here for three years for nothing. She had heard stories of quest rewards being skimmed by using illiterate children in rural villages and racial discrimination. In this boy's case, it was probably both.

He looked to be around 10 to 12 years old, with black hair and black eyes, suggesting he had faced discrimination.

"Could you please hand over this guild card? I'll take the appropriate action!"

"No, that won't be necessary. I just need a new guild card."

"But—!"

"I don't want to cause any trouble with the guild, but I also don't want to make a scene..."

"Understood. I'll proceed with the creation. Would you like me to fill out the form for you?"

(This woman thinks I can't write? Or is the literacy rate in this world low?)

Nina, standing next to me, was sweating coldly. Rena had a calm expression, so I decided to include some classroom training in Nina's future training.

"No, I'll fill it out myself."

"You're quite educated for your age."

I filled out the required fields and received an explanation of the guild card.

D to G ranks can take quests on the 1st floor, while C rank and above can register on the 2nd floor. Since I already knew most of this, I only asked a few detailed questions.

"I'll go get your guild card, please wait a moment."

As I thought we would get the guild card without any issues, a man about 180 cm tall with a medium build approached us with a smirk.

"Hey, girls, you're not adventurers, are you? Especially you, black-haired boy and blonde girl."

"Yes, that's right. We look forward to working with you in the future."

This response caused some snickers around us.

"Give it a rest. This is the city of Kama. You'll just die in vain if you don't have enough skills. Since you're making a guild card, you must be rookies. I'm not saying this to be mean, but why don't you go home... or back to your village?"

This time, it was a loud laugh.

Nina, who is usually smiling, had a blank expression. Rena, who is always expressionless, was hard to read.

I checked the status and equipment of the man who approached us.

Name: Larit Nets

Race: Human

Job: Thief, Assassin

Level: 27

HP: 536

MP: 266

Strength: 213

Agility: 255

Vitality: 117

Intelligence: 87

Magic: 58

Luck: 59

Passive Skills:

Dagger Mastery LV4

Detection LV4

Trap Detection LV3

Stealth LV3

Assassination LV2

Night Vision LV2

Active Skills:

Dagger Techniques LV4

Assassination Techniques LV2

Combat Techniques LV3

Stealth LV3

Appraisal LV2

Lockpicking LV3

Stealing LV3

Unique Skills:

Retribution Bag

Equipment:

Weapon: Damascus Dagger (Grade 4): Has a chance to poison on attack.

Armor: Dark Hood (Grade 5): Increases resistance to darkness.

Stealth Suit (Grade 5): Increases agility.

Thief's Gauntlets (Grade 4): Enhances thief skills.

Wind Boots (Grade 5): Increases agility.

Accessories: Amulet of Protection (Grade 5): Reduces surprise attack probability.

Amulet of Poison Resistance (Grade 5): Increases poison resistance.

Amulet of Paralysis Resistance (Grade 5): Increases paralysis resistance.

(Is this guy not incredibly strong? His equipment has skills attached... and he has two jobs, what's that about?)

"Hey, Larit, what are you doing!"

Collette rushed back in a panic.

"Collette, we're not fighting."

"You said the same thing when you chased away the new adventurers earlier!"

(Huh? Could the adventurers who were making fun of Rena be...?)

Larit, not with a fake smile but with a serious face, extended his hand.

In his hand were four silver coins, each held between his fingers.

"What are you trying to do with the silver coins between your fingers..."

Nina also seemed confused about what Larit was trying to do. Larit smiled and, without much effort, the silver coins between his fingers began to fold in half.

"See, you understand now, right? You kids are not ready for this place yet.

Besides, the timing is bad right now."

He handed over the folded silver coins. Is he telling us to go back to the village?

I straightened the folded silver coins, stacked them, and crushed them between my index finger and thumb. Literally, I didn't fold the silver coins in half but crushed them from the middle.

"What!?"

Not only Larit but also the surrounding adventurers were wide-eyed.

"You're a kind and gentle person, aren't you?"

This statement caused a burst of laughter. Unlike before, it wasn't mocking laughter.

"Hey, hey, it's obvious that you're a kind Larit!"

"Your concern for the rookies is clear!"

"Damn..."

Larit, with a red face, left the guild.

"Then, um, Collette, right? Can I get my guild card now?"

"Hmm... I apologize. Please, just a drop of your blood on this guild card to complete the process."

By dripping blood on the guild card, personal information is entered and automatically updated thereafter.

"Here, the guild card creation is complete."

"Thank you. The creation fee is one silver coin, right? I also want to take a job."

"Yes, I've received it. You can take a job in the back room. The fee is one silver coin. Also, if you say 'status' with your guild card, you can check your status."

"Is that so... then please guide me to the back room."

"Eh? You're not checking your status?"

"No, I don't want my information to be known, so I won't check my status with the guild card."

As I said this, Collette's face turned pale.

"W-What do you mean?"

"When checking your status with the guild card, magic power comes out of the guild card."

"That's... of course, magic power is activated when checking your status, so it's natural!"

"Is it? The magic power seems to send information from the guild card somewhere."

This was something I noticed after Rena taught me how to see magic power. The guild doesn't belong to any country. The guild's power is so great that no single country can match it. This is because the guild holds information on adventurers and can provide suitable adventurers for requests from various countries.

If you make the guild your enemy, you won't get excellent adventurers when threatened by monsters, leading to significant damage.

So, how does the guild gather information on adventurers? I suspected the guild card and decided to test it, and it seems I was mostly right.

"Eh!!?"

Nina and Rena looked surprised, and the surrounding adventurers were murmuring.

"N-No... such a thing... doesn't... exist!!"

(You're overacting. You're a bad liar.)

"Maybe it's just my mistake, but I'll refrain from checking my status here."

"Yes! It's just a mistake, Yu..."

Collette, while talking, was gathering magic power in her eyes. I had taken precautions, but she seemed to be using "Analysis" to check my status.

"Then, I'll guide you to the job room."

I followed Collette, who was sweating profusely. She was indeed a bad liar.