Nobina and Her Strange Journey Through Another World

The sun’s light was entering the guild through its front windows as Nobina sat behind the receptionist desk, offering a kind smile to the adventurers coming and going. To anyone who saw her, they often returned a kind wave or just ignored her completely. Regardless, Nobina was merely content with how relaxing it was being in the front. Unlike the confines of the guild library, which she still enjoyed, the front was much more open. With everyone coming and going, there was never a dull moment for her at the front.

A few days had passed since Mimiki had returned. With her back, she was back to handling most of the on-field adventurer related matters, letting Lare go back to supervising. Sarah meanwhile was taking advantage of the fact that Mimiki was back to catch up on days off. As much as she wanted to hang out with Nobina and her newfound freedom, she needed rest like everyone else.

“Honestly, this isn’t bad,” smiled Nobina.

Looking at her Gaze bag, nothing had happened for a few days. She started to realize that the Gaze wasn’t always constantly on her. For the past few days, she had enjoyed a rather normal time working. Yet, she wasn’t sure why this was the case. The Gaze wasn’t always there, funnily enough. Some days, it was completely gone, showing no signs of it. Other days it was extremely active during normal conversation. She felt that the moment she understood how it worked, she’d have better control over her life. That being said, she started to sense the Gaze was back to its usual power.

“I wonder if that’s a sign of things to come,” she thought.

As that thought came out, Mimiki entered the guild, looking rather annoyed. Nobina was a bit worried, but she merely relaxed and decided to ask her what was wrong.

When Mimiki got close enough, she saw Nobina and smiled.

“Ah. How are things going,” said Mimiki, trying to change gears.

“Things are going,” nodded Nobina. “Rough day already?”

Mimiki shook her head.

“These adventurers take promotions too lightly,” Mimiki said as they took a seat behind Nobina. “Like. They don’t display what’s expected of the next rank at all, yet they act like they are acing these promotion tests. When I turn in my report later, they’ll think twice about trying to take the test with such lackluster effort.”

Nobina couldn’t relate to the adventuring lifestyle, making her a bit sad. She was merely a guild officer who hadn’t even been in the field once.

“What’s wrong?” asked Mimiki, noticing Nobina spacing out a bit. “Not finding my story interesting?”

“Of course not,” said Nobina, quickly trying to dismiss that thought. “It’s just… Talk of adventuring has made me wish I had adventuring experience.”

Mimiki’s eyes lit up upon hearing that.

“You want to become an adventurer?” she asked, practically breathing down her neck as her face got close.

“Well… yeah,” smiled Nobina innocently. “I’m writing a book about adventurers, so having some hands-on experience is par the course.”

Mimiki nodded vigorously, going into one of the cabinets and taking out an application.

“Let’s do it,” she nodded.

“But… you know I don’t have to fill this out, right? As a guild officer, I’m not allowed to be an active adventurer.”

“That’s not the point,” said Mimiki. “How are you going to experience being an adventurer if you don’t follow the right steps. Just fill it out and follow the process. We can give you a valid card and everything, but your status will always be guild officer, so don’t worry about that.”

Nobina thought about it and didn’t see a reason to decline. This was a chance for her to get the hands-on experience she wanted. In fact, she wanted to feel like an adventurer in general, like in the stories she read. The idea of traveling wherever you want, helping others, becoming strong, and experiencing things non-adventurers can’t experience was all perfect.

“You know what? Let’s do it,” said Nobina enthusiastically.

With that, Nobina began the process of becoming an adventurer.

The first step of being an adventurer was signing a contract to become an adventurer. It was a standard contract that stated what the guild was and wasn’t liable for. Any dispute between the adventurer and guild would be handled in arbitration by a neutral party. Generally, this was a high-ranking official in the town or above. It was someone who had the authority to voice complaints against the guild. Beyond those two things, the contract stipulated how an adventurer was to act in the guild’s best interest, but any problems they caused were solely their fault, as per the liability section. It was a well-written document, to say the least.

“As you might know, the initial contract is pretty detailed, but this is merely what is signed to become an adventurer. As you climb, you might sign more contracts and such, but all of that stuff is out of my pay grade,” said Mimiki as she nodded. “All you need to know is that once you sign this, you can become an adventurer. Well… honorary adventurer in this case. You’re still a guild officer but will be able to credit your adventuring card. Plus, you don’t even need to kill monsters to progress it either.”

Nobina knew what Mimiki was talking about. Adventurers weren’t all combat-oriented. Knowing how to kill goblins and such was just a good skill to have. Many quests the guild received involved either expected combat or just being able to fight, if necessary, in the case of guard duty. However, there were quests that just required someone with the skill to explore, collect, or research. That was why there were two adventurer ranks, Combat Rank and Non-Combat Rank.

“Signing the contract automatically gives you the F Non-Combat Rank. Once you demonstrate you can fight a goblin, you can receive the F Combat Rank.”

“Hm,” said Nobina. “So do you want me to display my combat skills?”

Mimiki chuckled, shaking her head.

“You’re at least an E in my book, but perhaps that’s a bit too bias. I’ll approve you since I know your actual combat capabilities right now.”

Nobina finished up the application and handed it to Mimiki. In turn, she stored the document and filled out an adventuring card for Nobina. Once it was handed over, Nobina couldn’t help but be excited looking over her adventuring card. It might not have been necessary to have one, but it gave her a sense of pride to have it.

“Man… what’d I give to be like you Nobina,” smiled Mimiki. “To experience the whole process of becoming an adventurer and ranking up… I do miss it sometimes.”

“Ever consider returning to that lifestyle? After all, you just want to learn a move under Eric at least first, right?”

Mimiki shook her head.

“No… I think that I want to stay as a guild officer even if I learn that move. I might have initially became an officer to become Eric’s student, but my time under Eric has allowed me to build a bond with everyone in this guild. I rather not… just leave everyone behind for my selfish desire to become an S rank.”

Nobina understood her concerns. She felt the same way as well. Despite wanting to visit the rest of the world, she was gaining more and more incentive to merely stay put here and enjoy life. There was no rush for her to see the great things outside of their humble town. In fact, it made it perfect for writing a book, as she wasn’t constantly busy. Even if she ended up leaving for any reason, she wanted to return here to the people she cared about.

“That being said… One day I do want to become an S rank adventurer,” said Mimiki confidently. “We’ll need more capable officers to be able to hold down the fort while I’m gone, but I’m sure they’ll come.”

“We can only hope,” chuckled Nobina.

“Anyway, I’ll go inquire with Eric about letting you go on a quest, if that’s fine with you,” said Mimiki.

As she said that, a thought occurred to Nobina. Despite all her combat training, she had only fought a goblin once with a weapon that was one-time use. She had no practical combat experience with her sword, nor was her training complete.

“I’m not done with my sword training yet,” said Nobina. “What if I need to use it?”

“Don’t worry about it,” said Mimiki. “You’ll likely go on a F rank quest, E rank at most. You shouldn’t have trouble so long as you have at least a few capable adventurers. Plus, I vet everyone so don’t worry about running into anyone rude… Even if they are rude to me…”

“What was that last part?” asked Nobina.

“Nothing,” waved Mimiki.

With that, Nobina went back to managing the front. She wasn’t sure how long it’d be till she’d get a chance to adventure. However, it seemed that the chance was far sooner than she thought.

“Nobina,” said Lare, Mimiki following right behind him. “Are you fine going on an investigation quest?”

Investigation quests were quests with the goal of investigating a matter and reporting back. In some cases, the adventurers were tasked with resolving it, but for the most part they merely made a report. In this case, the investigation quest was to check out the area around the South Goblin Nest.

“We haven’t had reports of increased goblin activity in the south, but I want to be prudent and have a squad check it out. Normally, I’d ask Mimiki to go and assist, but I don’t suspect the south to be that dangerous. Plus, the intended location is relatively safe for larger parties. Of course, there is still a risk that I’m wrong, so I’m sending an extra member in the party and you, making this a six-person mission. Are you fine with that Nobina?”

She gave a nod, failing to hide her personal excitement. This was a chance to experience the adventurer life. Like Lare said, it was inherently dangerous, but she trusted that Lare was correct. Plus, she was a bit more confident in using her sword if she had people around her.

“I’ll do it,” said Nobina.

“Great,” nodded Lare. “The party is missing one more member. Once we get that, you should be clear to move out.”

With that, Lare departed back into the guild. Mimiki, on the other hand, looked fired up.

“Let’s do some pre-adventurer prep.”

Mimiki slammed a closed sign in front of the desk, prompting Nobina to stare at her confusingly.

“You can’t just… close the reception desk for a personal matter,” chuckled Nobina.

“Sure we can. This is an ‘important’ guild matter anyway, right Lare,” she said, yelling that past part.

“Come on Mimiki,” he groaned loudly. “Fine. I’ll cover for two hours. Make sure she’s sorted though.”

“Will do,” she said back. “Come on Nobina. Let’s go shopping.”

Mimiki began basically dragging Nobina from behind the guild receptionist’s desk to the outside. Once both were outside, Nobina could see Mimiki’s pure excitement as she began talking about the basics of adventuring. On Nobina’s end, she did know a lot of basics thanks to the basic adventuring book she received, but hearing Mimiki’s perspective was far better. After all, it was like reading a textbook compared to having a personal instructor who cared about the subject. There was no comparison.

The first stop was a store called Aldo’s Gear. Stepping inside, Nobina noticed it was a place filled with everything an adventurer could need. The majority of things were armor or cloth related, but there were also weapons, supplies and other essentials.

“Mimiki,” said the cashier behind the counter. “Haven’t seen you in a bit.”

“We rarely get new adventurers nowadays Diladar. Oh, this is Nobina. She’s a guild officer who’s training to be combat-ready.”

“Oh? So thinking of arming her to the teeth?” he grinned, likely hoping she’d confirm his guess.

“More so preparing for an adventure,” said Mimiki. “Can you give me the basic list? I’ll trim it down to suit her needs and then we’ll talk any optional stuff.”

“You know it,” he laughed.

At that moment, Mimiki and Diladar began going through all the items in the store, gathering a large variety of things like armor, general equipment, and even items like rations. From Nobina’s perspective, it was like watching two hobbyists working together to get someone started in their hobby. For Nobina, all she could do was track the coins slowly disappearing as she kept a mental note of how pricy the adventuring equipment was.

“Ten gold, twenty silver, five copper,” said Diladar.

Nobina was about to reach into her pocket, but Mimiki dropped eleven gold coins instead.

“Keep the change,” she grinned.

“Happy to do business with you,” laughed Diladar.

The end result of the shopping trip at the store was as follows.

One large adventuring bag, a set of leather armor that comfortably went over Nobina’s current clothes, a rope, a tinder box, five sets of rations and water, a small axe, and a bucket. When she put on the bag, it was a bit heavy, but she wouldn’t let that slow her down.

“This should cover the basics,” said Mimiki. “Next up are potions. A bit pricier, but I want you to be prepared.”

They left the gear store and headed to what appeared to be another medical office. However, the large potion sign on the front differentiated it. Plus, it was called Siva’s Potions.

Once they stepped through the door, the inside showed a long counter with a long set of display cases behind it. In the displays were the potions for sale, most of them being various shades of red, but the rest being different colors completely.

“Hello Mimiki,” said the woman behind the receptionist’s desk. They had their light-brown hair tied up in a bun behind them. They had to be at least sixty, though they gave off an energetic energy as they said Mimiki’s name.

“Siva,” smiled Mimiki. “How’s the potion sales going.”

“Bleh as usual,” she sighed. “People are being too stingy about money. A good set of potions can ensure almost one hundred percent success.”

“When someone needs to do, like, ten quests for a set, you can understand the stingy part, right?”

“I know,” she said with a defeated look. “So, are you going to introduce your friend?”

Mimiki gave a nod.

“This here is Nobina. Fellow guild officer. Soon to be combat-capable. She’ll be going on an adventure, so I want to make sure she’s decently prepared.”

“The full set?” said Siva, her face excited.

“Yeah,” she responded, dropping fifty gold coins in front of Siva.

“Woah there,” said Nobina, finally putting her foot down. “That’s way too much money to spend for me.”

“Don’t sweat it,” said Mimiki. “I’m treating this as an investment and a thank you for everything. You wouldn’t deny my gift, right?”

Nobina hated that she said gift at the end because she could only sigh and accept it. She wasn’t one to deny a gift.

“Alright… Fine.”

“Glad you get it,” said Mimiki, patting Nobina on the back.

Siva began getting to work, setting up what appeared to be a potion belt. She invited Nobina over to try it on, checking to see if it fit comfortably.

“Yeah… it looks good,” she nodded.

“Great,” smiled Siva. “Let me explain everything. So those three light red potions are ‘healing potions, diluted to ten precent effectiveness. They will heal minor injuries with half a pour, and serious ones if you use two full ones. Next, the two light blue one is an antidote diluted to twenty-five. Should heal minor poisons but get those checked out afterwards regardless. Never know if it fully cured a poison or merely delayed the effect. Lastly, the orange one is an energy potion. If your tiring, drinking half should keep you perked up for an hour, but the crash is hard so make sure to get out once you finish it.”

“These are so useful,” said Nobina.

“A staple for a C rank or above adventurer,” said Mimiki proudly. “Of course, due to the price, make sure to be very careful in not wasting them. However, don’t be too frugal if these potions can save your life.”

Nobina gave a nod.

“Anything else Mimiki?” asked Siva.

“That’s all. Thanks Siva,” she nodded.

With that, the two left the potion store. As they left, a guilty look overcame Nobina’s face, prompting Mimiki to stop and address it.

“I want you to be perfectly safe Nobina,” said Mimiki. “The guilt would eat me alive if you got hurt. Of course, you can feel guilty that I spent so much money on you but know that this is my love. I would rather spend it on adventuring stuff and things like fancy food or a nice house. Got it?”

Nobina, hearing her resolve, nodded.

“Thank you… for everything Mimiki.”

She gave a nod.

“Enjoy the adventuring life Nobina,” said Mimiki, continuing to the guild.

Nobina couldn’t help but be excited about the quest. It was a chance to experience something new. It was part of the lifestyle that Mimiki lived and loved. It was something she previously could only read and watch. Now, she was getting a chance to live that same life.

“I’ll enjoy this opportunity,” nodded Nobina, following right behind Mimiki.