Adventurer of Many Professions

In the quiet report room, the two auditors and the recorder were still seated, their expressions neutral as Raymond stepped in alone.

"Why are you the only one here? Isn't sylph with you today?" one of the auditors asked, his curiosity evident.

"Oh... she's feeling a little unwell today," Raymond replied casually.

Beep!

The sharp sound of the polygraph cut through the room like a knife. The room fell into an uncomfortable silence.

Raymond's toes curled against the soles of his shoes as his head dipped lower. He avoided meeting their eyes, feeling the weight of the awkward moment. The polygraph had betrayed him instantly; no delay, no mercy.

Who could endure such humiliation?

"Ahem..." The examiner coughed awkwardly, forcing a weak smile to ease the tension. "The polygraph must be malfunctioning."

Beep!

The machine chimed again, as if mocking him.

"Ford, bring in a new polygraph," the auditor ordered, his voice firm.

The recorder quickly silenced the offending device, whisked it away, and returned moments later with a replacement.

"Alright, Raymond, let's get started," the auditor said, this time avoiding any unnecessary small talk.

"Sure," Raymond replied, eager to move past the debacle.

He placed a heavy bag onto the table, the sound of it thudding grabbing everyone's attention. The auditor's brows furrowed as he opened it to find it stuffed with mutant rat ears.

"You cleared out an entire nest of mutant rats?" the auditor asked, his tone tinged with disbelief.

"Uh... I think so," Raymond replied, scratching his head as if unsure.

As the auditors exchanged glances of surprise, Raymond completed the formalities, handed over his report, and received his reward, a satisfying twenty-two silver coins.

When he finally left the room, one of the auditors turned to the recorder, still looking puzzled.

"Raymond's a fighter, right? Why is he using a wooden stick?"

"Maybe he thought it was more effective against mutant rats? He did kill twenty-two of them single-handedly," the recorder mused.

The auditor nodded, but unease lingered. How does one man kill 22 mutant rats, survive a 15-rat siege, and leave unscathed? Even with excellent armor, it seemed almost too good to be true.

But he shrugged it off. The Adventurer's Guild had a simple rule: as long as adventurers completed their commissions fairly, their secrets are their own.

Still, the auditor left a note for the recorder. "Next time, don't rush to use the polygraph before the formal questioning starts. Let's avoid... incidents like this."

---

Meanwhile, Raymond had just descended the stairs from the second floor of the Adventurer's Guild. He paused midway, catching his breath, when the doors burst open below.

A breathless adventurer stormed in, his voice booming across the hall:

"The Gale Adventure Group has returned from defeating the Ogre!"

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

"The Gale Adventure Group? Isn't that the team with the best shot at being promoted to the Platinum rank?" someone whispered.

"Yes, it's them!" the messenger confirmed, excitement lighting up his face.

The hall erupted into murmurs of anticipation and awe as adventurers rushed forward to catch a glimpse of the famed team. Raymond, standing at the stairs, lingered a moment longer. His gaze sharpened, his thoughts swirling as he watched the commotion unfold.

"The ogre you're talking about; is it 'the' ogre? The one that wiped out an entire village half a month ago, then vanished into the Moonlight Forest? The one the guild issued a gold-level commission to take down?" someone asked, their voice tinged with disbelief.

Raymond's ears perked up. He knew the story of the ogre all too well. Working at the hotel, he'd overheard countless guests whispering about it in hushed tones. The tales were horrifying, an entire village wiped out, its inhabitants massacred, save for a few lucky ones who had been away at the time. The sheer brutality of it had left a chilling impression on him.

"It's that ogre," the man confirmed with a solemn nod. "The Wind Adventure Group killed it. They cut off its head and brought it back on a carriage. It's outside right now—go see for yourself!"

The news sent a ripple of excitement through the room.

"Let's go!"

"I've never seen an ogre before, let alone one this terrifying!"

The Adventurer's Guild emptied in a rush, a wave of adventurers spilling out into the square, eager to glimpse the monstrous creature and the team that brought it down.

Raymond followed the crowd, his curiosity piqued. He wasn't just interested in the ogre; he wanted to see the legendary Wind Adventure Group. They weren't just a gold-level team; they were the pride of West Town and the best candidates for promotion to platinum rank.

For adventurers, the road to advancement grew steeper with each rank. Moving up from bronze to silver was already a monumental task, requiring skill, determination, and a fair amount of luck. Silver-level commissions could vary wildly in difficulty. Some were manageable with a small group of silvers and bronzes, while others were so challenging they tested even gold-level teams.

When it came to rank promotion, the rules were unforgiving. Teams couldn't rely on adventurers of higher levels for assistance. They had to work within their rank, meeting strict requirements for group size and composition. These barriers thinned the ranks of adventurers as they climbed, making gold-level adventurers a rare sight, and platinum-level teams even rarer.

In West Town, the Wind Adventure Group stood at the pinnacle, the only gold-level team with a chance to reach platinum.

By the time Raymond stepped outside, the square was packed with adventurers. Every eye was fixed on the city gate, the crowd buzzing with anticipation.

"They're here!" someone shouted.

All heads turned as two figures appeared at the gate, flanked by two carriages trailing behind them.

The adventurers in front drew everyone's attention immediately. One wore light armor, a spear glinting in his hand. The other, clad in heavy armor, carried an enormous sword strapped to his back and held a massive shield in front of him. The shield was battered and scarred, pitted with dents and claw marks. Their armor was no better, dented, scratched, and torn, with patches of blood staining their exposed clothing beneath.

Despite their battered appearance, neither bore any visible wounds. It was clear that the priest in their team had already used healing magic to mend their injuries.

Behind them, the carriages rolled forward, and as they drew closer, whispers rippled through the crowd. Everyone strained to catch a glimpse of what lay inside.

Raymond squinted, his heart pounding in anticipation. This was the Wind Adventure Group; the strongest team in West Town. And today, they had brought back the head of the monster that haunted everyone's nightmares.

The square buzzed with excitement and awe. The Wind Adventure Group wasn't just a team anymore; they were heroes, and their success brought a glimmer of hope to adventurers and townsfolk alike.

"Those two up front must be the warriors of the Wind Adventure Group, Tresed Rosero and Rondo Diers," someone in the crowd said, pointing toward the armored figures.

"Yeah! The good-looking one with the spear is Tresed, and the big guy with the shield is Rondo!" another chimed in.

Raymond stifled a laugh at the overly simplistic description. But they weren't wrong, Tresed was undeniably handsome, with a chiseled face and a confident posture that made him stand out. Add to that his rare choice of weapon, the spear, and it was no wonder the female adventurers in the crowd were gazing at him with starry-eyed admiration.

However, the crowd's attention quickly shifted to the carriage behind them. All whispers died as everyone's gaze locked on the grotesque prize it carried.

Sitting on the cart was a huge, frozen head, preserved in shimmering ice through freezing magic. The monstrous face was terrifying even in death. The head was easily a meter tall, its golden eyes still visible through the ice, each the size of a human fist. A pair of jagged black horns jutted from its skull, and its face was covered in coarse, black hair. The ogre's sharp fangs stretched its mouth into a gruesome, eternal snarl, each tooth razor-sharp like a sawblade.

This was the head of the Ogre.

"That's the Ogre's head? It's massive!"

"If the head is this big, how tall was the whole thing?"

"It must have been at least seven meters tall! Maybe even eight! No wonder they're the gold team with the best shot at becoming platinum; look at the size of that thing!"

The crowd buzzed with amazement, their awe palpable.

Raymond's gaze lingered on the head as the carriage rolled closer. That's when he noticed it, a single arrow lodged deep in the Ogre's right eye, its feathered fletching made from green leaves.

Just then, the curtain of the lead carriage was pulled back, revealing a woman wearing a magic hat. Her features were elegant, and she smiled charmingly as she leaned out to address the two warriors.

"Tresed, Rondo," she called, her tone playful, "could you two stop showing off already? Louise and the others don't enjoy being stared at like this. The Adventurer's Guild is only a hundred meters away, do you plan on parading all day?"

Her teasing hit home. Both warriors glanced at each other, visibly flustered. Tresed scratched the back of his head awkwardly, while Rondo mumbled, "Oh, uh… right. We'll hurry."

And with that, they quickened their pace, leading the carriages toward the center of the square.

When they reached the gathering spot, Tresed stepped forward, his voice ringing out confidently:

"Everyone, feast your eyes on the Ogre's head!"

Cheers erupted from the crowd as he gestured to the carriage carrying the grotesque trophy. Leaving the carriage behind for the adventurers to inspect, Tresed and Rondo turned to lead the second carriage, carrying their team members, toward the guild.

Adventurers swarmed around the Ogre's head, eager to examine it up close. The size, the horns, the teeth; everything about it spoke of a powerful, deadly creature.

But Raymond stayed where he was, standing at the guild's entrance. His sharp eyes followed the second carriage, which stopped about ten meters away.

The curtain was pulled back once more, and this time, he saw the rest of the Wind Adventure Group. Alongside the magician from earlier, there was a serene-looking female priestess sitting inside. But what truly caught his attention was the third figure:

A female elf.

Raymond's breath hitched slightly. Elves were rare, and to see one sitting among a team of gold-ranked adventurers only added to the Wind Adventure Group's mystique.