Chapter 21: Adventurer Registration
By the end of June, I finally left the Royal Capital. I was waiting in the hotel lobby, dressed as an adventurer, to return to Egdra in the Marquis’s carriage.
“Kaito-sama, the carriage of Marquis Hamawar has arrived.”
“Thank you. I appreciate your help.”
As I stepped out of the hotel, the Marquis’s carriage was parked nearby, with the knights guarding it standing in an orderly line. Behind them, the maids and attendants were waiting in their own carriage, while adventurers from the Royal Capital were mounted and ready around us. The manager saw me off as I approached the carriage, and I could feel the curious gazes of the guests who were used to seeing me around. It was only natural, considering I was dressed as an adventurer and boarding the Marquis’s carriage. Since I was hired for protection, it made sense to be in adventurer attire.
“Thank you for waiting, Your Excellency the Marquis. Your Excellency the Viscount.”
“Stop it, Kaito. It’s creepy.”
Once the carriage started moving and we were out of sight, I couldn’t help but let my usual banter slip out.
“However, ever since Fiene was saved by you, the Hamawar family has had its fair share of difficulties, but luck has been on our side. I never thought I would be allowed to call myself a Viscount without having inherited the title.”
“Jumping from Viscount to Count and then to Marquis all at once, huh? It’s all thanks to a man who only has pride.”
“I received more jewels than I could ever use, and with the cancellation of the Magic Tournament, it’s all good fortune. I’ve received countless thanks and gratitude from those who once looked down on me for not being able to use magic.”
“But is the Nagayar Kingdom really okay? Hearing the nobles’ responses regarding the Magic Tournament makes me worry, even if it’s not my business.”
“I spoke with His Majesty, and it seems he plans to crack down on the lazy nobles. Those who are spineless will face demotion or land confiscation, and lower nobles with some ability will be appointed instead. His Majesty was furious at the cowardice of Jacksen Nagyar, the Duke.”
“When His Majesty said that he was trembling behind a shield when they were attacked, I couldn’t believe my ears.”
“You’re lucky he didn’t just execute him on the spot. He got off easy with just a demotion.”
“Nobles have it tough, huh?”
“Yes, it’s quite difficult. Please continue to help me.”
“When I return, I will register as an adventurer, so if you have any requests, I will consider them and get back to you.”
“Huh? Kaito, are you still going to be an adventurer?”
“Sure, I’ve saved up some money, but I have no intention of pretending to be a high-class idle. Besides, I haven’t even registered as an adventurer yet. I’ll be turning 16 next month, so I can finally register.”
“Kaito, the Marquis has the authority to grant three baron titles. Why not become a baron?”
“Marquis, I just said that being a noble is tough. I don’t want to be a noble!”
By the time we returned to Egdra, July was drawing to a close. In towns where other lords resided, we stopped by their mansions to pay our respects and were warmly welcomed, often staying one or two nights. The nobles, especially those grateful to Fiene, offered extravagant hospitality; they must have had a lot of pent-up feelings.
I had intended to blend in with the adventurers, but since I was directly hired for protection by the Marquis, I ended up sitting with the servants. After safely returning to the Marquis’s residence and exchanging farewells, Fiene handed me 500 gold coins. I tried to refuse, saying it was too much, but it was in vain.
“Thanks to your advice, I received 1,000 gold coins from His Majesty along with words of praise, and a jewel box filled with gems. When I received it, I almost toppled over from the weight. The value of the gems alone is easily worth ten or twenty times that of the gold coins.”
“Even so, I feel bad for giving you the same amount as Fiene. I received 1,000 gold coins and became a Viscount all thanks to you.”
“Consider this a token of gratitude for my unexpected promotion to Marquis.”
As I grumbled about my adventurer life, ten leather bags were brought out, and the three of us burst into laughter. I felt overwhelmed by the increasing number of gold coin bags, but I decided to store them away for now.
I spent one night at the Marquis’s residence but couldn’t stand it and fled. The mansion was crowded with influential figures, wealthy merchants, and local governors who had come to celebrate the Marquis’s promotion, and the stares of “Who is that?” were unbearable. I was glared at for speaking casually with Hyalda, making the atmosphere even more uncomfortable. I informed the head butler, Eforl, that I was escaping, and he kindly arranged for a carriage to take me back to the hotel.
Welcomed by the manager of the Egdra Hotel, I settled into my usual room. The next day, I informed them that I would be gone for four or five days before heading straight to the Adventurers’ Guild.
“Good morning, Iirisa-san. I would like to register as an adventurer.”
“Oh, Kaito-kun, you’ve turned 16!”
“Yes, I finally turned 16.”
Having spent a long time visiting the guild for medicinal herb gathering, I was finally able to register as an adventurer. I was familiar with most of the regulations, but I listened attentively as I placed my hand on the rumored crystal ball to register. I also placed my hand on the Mana Measurement Board, but my Mana Grade was still 40.
I wanted something that could measure my Mana Capacity, but if such tools weren’t known to the public, no one would think to create them.
As I took the adventurer registration card, I saw a line-drawn portrait of myself on the front, along with a horizontal line indicating Iron (Rank 1) below it, and my name and age recorded underneath. On the back, it listed my registration location and the magic I had received, Earth Magic (since I was self-reporting, Spatial Storage and Transfer Magic were kept secret). It noted that I was of Human descent (60%), with Dwarven (20%) and Elven (20%) ancestry, along with my Mana Grade of 40. I was shocked to learn this for the first time; it was more of a “Huh, interesting” realization than a shock.
There were no special notes listed below. As I examined the card closely, a hand reached down from above and snatched it away.
“Kaito, you start as a Bronze Rank 2. With your extensive experience in herb gathering and your ability to take down a Black Wolf boss, it’s a waste for you to be an Iron Rank 1.”
“Eh? Guildmaster, I have no intention of going on hunts. I’m focused solely on herb gathering.”
“But if you encounter one, you’ll hunt it, right?”
“No, I’ll run away! I don’t like scary things. Back then, I was planning to escape, but Orlan-san caught me. I had no choice but to fight. Thanks to that, I ran out of Mana and collapsed twice, almost collapsing a third time!”
He laughed derisively and handed me a new Bronze card. The new adventurer card displayed two horizontal lines indicating Bronze Rank 2. It seemed they decided to add lines instead of rewriting it, which was a hassle.
Since I still had plenty of food stored, I headed straight for the town’s exit. It was time to check how much magic I could use after a long time. I made my way to the campsite where I had practiced magic with Hyalda and the others, and my ability to sense presences was still intact.
Upon arriving at the campsite, I realized something foolish—I had my camping house in my Magic Pouch! (Oops!)
I pulled out the camping house (which I named) from the Magic Pouch and set it down with a plop. Ah, how convenient this world is!
The exit was sealed, so I used Transfer Magic for a short jump of 1 meter to get inside. Once I lit the Magic Lamp, it felt like a delightful home. I was surprised at the magic tools in the magic shop; the Hot Wind and Cold Wind were just heaters and coolers! I laughed but immediately bought both for 40 gold coins each; it was a bit pricey, but I could afford it, so I paid 80 gold coins.
Since my ability was small, I hadn’t seen them in noble mansions, but in my house, it was no problem.
With everything from dishes to mats and bedding set up, I quickly boiled some water for tea and entered relaxation mode. I thought I might be the first adventurer in this world to take herb gathering so lightly.
After taking a breather, I climbed up to the lookout tower, sat on the mat, and observed my surroundings, confirming that no one was around before starting with Stone Lance.
I ran out of Mana after casting Stone Lance 37 times. I cast Stone Arrow 78 times before running out of Mana. I fired the small shotgun 73 times before running out of Mana, and the large shotgun 54 times before running out of Mana. My Spatial Storage was just over 3.6 meters.
As for Transfer Magic, I used it for 400 meters seven times before running out of Mana, 200 meters fourteen times before running out of Mana, and I estimated 60 meters forty-six times and 20 meters one hundred forty times.
It took me two days to gather all this information, and after collapsing from running out of Mana, I fell asleep on the mat. To avoid the hassle of back and forth with Transfer Magic, I built Domes at both the 400-meter and 200-meter locations and transferred within the Domes. In the end, I lost track of which Dome I was in.
Starting from the third day, I practiced shooting moving targets while gathering medicinal herbs, using my keen senses to locate prey. When I spotted a Horn Rabbit, I decided to take it down with a Stone Arrow.
My accuracy improved, and I managed to catch over twenty of them, which I stored in my Rank 2 Magic Pouch. Since they would spoil in six months, I figured they would last for about three to four months, so I should be fine. For Goblins, I aimed for their heads, but I didn’t want to bother retrieving the Magic Stones, so I just buried them and called it a day. On the sixth day, I returned to Egdra and handed over the twenty-three Horn Rabbits to Yahan at the Adventurers’ Guild.
“Hey, Kaito, is this really what you bring back after registering as an adventurer?”
“Well, it took me five days, so it’s not that bad, right?”
“Do you have a Magic Pouch?”
“Yeah, it’s a small Rank 2 one, but I bought it for thirty gold coins. It’s pretty handy.”
“Oh, right. You took down twenty-one Black Wolves and then made some good money guarding the Marquis, so you must have plenty of space in there.”
“Exactly. Since I’ve learned Earth Magic, I don’t even need a camping tent. Though, having a magic power of 40 is a bit underwhelming. Still, it’s useful enough to catch Horn Rabbits, so it’s a decent way to earn some coin.”
“Horn Rabbits are worth three copper coins each, so that totals to six silver coins and nine copper coins.”
I thanked Yahan and made my way back to the hotel.