NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 51: Adventurer’s Guild
It’s November now. I have a half-day off today.
“Are you going out now?”
I was eating lunch when I heard a voice from the head manservant, Rickel. This was at the servants’ dining room on the first floor. He seemed to have noticed that I was not wearing my usual servant’s uniform, but my normal clothes. These everyday clothes were also lent to me. It’s quite a magnificent outfit.
“Yes, I think I’ll go out into the town.”
“Well then.”
As expected of the head servant he doesn’t ask much. It seems that there is no curfew, but if I am too late, the butler will get angry. The basic rule is that I have to be home between 9pm and midnight. It’s a good thing that there isn’t a curfew of 9pm or so.
When Rickel finishes work at 5:00 p.m., he goes out to bars in the city. He goes out two or three times a week. Sometimes he sneaks out around 3 p.m., and the butler gets very angry with him. He tells me stories like a saga. He tells me anything I want to know.
I was told that I must carry the coat of arms of the Granvelle family with me, so I took it and left the dining room.
(Shall I go to the Adventurer’s guild today?)
On the way to the grocery store, I stopped at a place where I usually couldn’t. It is difficult to stop by here when at work time.
I passed by a person who was wearing armor and carrying a ridiculously large sword on his back. He looked like an adventurer to me.
In this world, there are adventurers, people who hunt magical beasts for a living. When I go out to buy groceries, I see a lot of people who look like adventurers. I learned from Rickel that there is an organization for adventurers called the Adventurers’ Guild in this world. The Lord sometimes asks the Adventurer’s guild to take down magical beasts.
Of the four gates of the city, I heard that the Adventurer’s Guild is located near the south gate opposite the north gate of the noble district. It’s quite a distance from the end of the territorial capital. I decided to go to the Adventurer’s Guild on my half-day off. There’s something I want to check out.
If I walk to the market in the center of town, it will take two hours. On the other side of town, it could take four hours if I walked. I might be late getting home, so I’ll run.
(Oh! More adventurers are coming. There are swords, spears, and wands.)
The south gate appears large in front of me. And there’s the Adventurer’s Guild facing the main street. I guess this big building where adventurers are coming out of is the Adventurer’s Guild. There seem to be many bars and inns around here.
Allen entered the building.
(Hmm, there are a few adventurers here. It’s pretty empty.)
It’s just before three in the afternoon, so it was not crowded. As I looked around, I noticed a lot of stares. Maybe it’s the color of my hair or maybe it’s because I’m just eight years old. Either way, I’m glad it’s not too crowded.
(Can I be an adventurer?)
The receptionist was also staring at me. She’s a beautiful lady.
“Excuse me Miss.”
“Yes, what can I do for you?”
“Can I become an adventurer?”
“Hmm, how old are you?”
“I’m eight years old.”
“You have to be at least twelve to be an adventurer. I’m sorry. You can’t be an adventurer.”
(Hmm… I can’t?)
Allen became a manservant.
He became a servant as a reward for Rodan’s contribution to the development of the village, so he was thinking of staying a servant. However, he has no intention of living a life of a servant for the rest of his life.
Since I’m only eight years old, I’m thinking of staying a servant for a few more years, and then I’ll become an adventurer. However, the lady said that I can’t become an adventurer until I am twelve years old.
When I quit being a servant, I would tell Rodan that I tried being a servant for a few years, but it just wasn’t for me.
Today, I have something else to confirm besides becoming an adventurer.
“I see. I’d like to know more about the magical beasts around the city, do you have any kind of resources for that?”
“I’m sorry, but you’re not allowed in the Adventurer’s library.”
Apparently, she can’t tell me anything. I left the counter. I came here to find out what kind of magical beasts are around this city. I want to gather as much information as possible, because it would be a waste of time if I just leave. I started looking around the building.
(Oh? This is a leaflet for a request to take down a magical beast.)
There was a piece of parchment (medieval paper) on one of the walls that looked like a request for defeating a magical beast. The name of the magical beast and the reward for defeating it was listed on it. It was written in Japanese so I could easily read it.
(Hmm, the leaflets are loosely pasted. You have to peel them off to get a request?)
Allen understands that it’s a form of taking requests by peeling off the leaflets. There were some papers that looked like they had been torn around the leaflet.
On the leaflet, the rank of the magical beast, it’s name and the reward for defeating it were written.
E rank Horned Rabbit: 1 Copper coin
D-rank Goblin: 5 Copper coins
D-rank Big Toad: 8 Copper coins
C-rank Orc: 3 Silver coins
C-rank Armored Ants: 3 Silver
I record them in my Grimoire. There were quite a few different kinds of magical beasts.
There are many kinds of magical beasts. But there’s no information on where they appear. Does that mean they can be found anywhere?
The ranks seem to go up one by one.
“Hey, kid, what are you doing here? This is not a place for a kid.”
As I was lost in my research, I heard a voice behind me. I turned around and saw an adventurer with a sword at his hip. He was probably in his early twenties. There were numerous scars on his arms and cheeks.
“I’m sorry, I was just leaving. By the way, why isn’t the location for magical beasts listed here?”
Apparently, I shouldn’t stay here too long. I don’t want to get in trouble with the adventurers. I decided to leave. But before that, I asked a question to an adventurer who spoke to me.
“Oh? Well, these guys are all over the place.”
He told me with a hint of annoyance.” The higher the rank of the beast, the closer it is to the White Dragon Mountains.”
(Hmm, isn’t the White Dragon Mountains just beyond the village of Kurena? Does it reach close to the city as well?)
I haven’t seen a map of this world or the territory yet. I’m sure there’s a map somewhere in the mansion, but I can’t get into the mansion’s library. I’m just a manservant with limited access to places.
According to the adventurers, they leave the city to hunt the beast according to rank. I’ll make sure to keep track of them.
-E-ranks: Around the city
-E and D-ranks: One day on foot
-D and C-ranks: 3 days on foot
-C and B-ranks: 7 days on foot
“No one is able to subdue this Madegarsh?”
I asked him some more questions. I wonder why people haven’t subdued this magical beast even though it has such a high reward.
-Rank B, Madegarsh, Lamba Village, 200 gold coins.
(That beast is in Lamba Village area now. 200 gold coins? The reward is also very generous.)
He tells me that Madergarsh is the only beast that neither adventurers nor knights have been able to defeat. Apparently it is one of the most powerful magical beasts.
The parchment on the far end of the page was discolored and looked like it has been there for decades.
“Hey, how long are you going to keep asking me these questions?”
“This was the last one.”
(A rank, White Dragon, White Dragon Range, 1000 gold coins)
There was another parchment on the wall.
It has a reward so high that it overshadows other rewards. Looks like no one can defeat it as well.
“What about that one?” I asked, pointing at the discolored parchment.
“The White Dragons of the White Dragon Mountains are too strong for anyone to take that request. White Dragon Mountains have a vein of Mithril ore, one of the rarest substances in this world. However, they can’t mine it because of the White Dragons.”
(Oh, so that’s why the reward is so high.)
“Raven, I’ve finished reporting to the guild. What are you still doing…?”
The adventurer who was talking to Allen was called out by a lady. She seemed to be a companion of the adventurer in front of me. She had a dagger on her. She was wearing clothes that showed her navel. She seems to be in her late teens.
“Hmm? What’s the matter with this kid?”
The female adventurer noticed Allen.
“No, I was just asking about magical beasts. Thank you, Raven-san.”
I thanked the man politely and left the Adventurer’s Guild.
(Hmm… so, there are only low-ranked monsters near the city. I guess I have to go far away to find higher ranked monsters.)
I was able to get valuable information from the Adventurer’s Guild. Allen decided what he would do next.