Chapter 20: The Exiled Marquise Finally Becomes an Adventurer, Part 2
The atmosphere inside the Adventurers Guild, the attitude of the Guild Staff—it was all quite simple once I understood the reason.
It was because of the unreasonable demands from my master, a Rank 9 adventurer (albeit in another country), and my fellow disciple, who, unlike me, was a full-time adventurer and already Rank 7.
It goes without saying, but no matter how high-ranked an adventurer is, unless they’re a complete idiot, they wouldn’t threaten the Adventurers Guild.
So naturally, when the adventurers heard that such idiots were apparently coming soon, and then two people matching the rumored description walked into the Guild, of course they’d attract attention.
The Guild Staff, having been threatened… or rather, requested things by high-rank adventurers, would naturally be intimidated.
Seriously, what had those two done?
I felt a genuine headache coming on.
Once the misunderstanding was cleared up, things proceeded very smoothly.
As expected of the Adventurers Guild in Hecate, also known as the City of Adventurers.
The registration process was very efficient, and Erica and I were registered as adventurers with almost no waiting time.
Erica gazed with interest at the thin, card-like Magic Tool commonly known as a Guild Certificate.
Incidentally, since I already had one from the Faltar Kingdom, they just added the Orclaugh Kingdom Adventurers Guild information to it.
Functionally speaking, it’s really just an identification card.
It’s classified as a Magic Tool, but most of its functions are dedicated to anti-counterfeiting measures. As a bonus, you can check things like your name, current Rank, and Subjugation records.
“Still, you seem to be quite famous, don’t you?”
Erica said this as we were walking towards the city exit.
“Defeating a Needle Spider Queen single-handedly is something to boast about, even by our standards.”
“By our standards,” probably meant by the standards at the academy.
“Even if I was alone, my master was nearby,” I said, making sure there was no misunderstanding. I had certainly defeated the Needle Spider Queen by myself, but it was part of my master’s training.
It happened while a Rank 9 adventurer was watching over me from behind; I couldn’t consider that purely my own strength.
“Even so,” Erica refuted, looking strangely happy about it.
“I thought I would no longer underestimate you, but it seems I still was.”
“I’m really not that impressive.”
“Oh? Are you being modest?”
Erica said this as she leaned in to peer at my face.
It was such an adorable gesture that I instinctively turned my face away.
“I see, you’re just embarrassed.”
Erica laughed as she said that.
Despite the slight delay, we stuck to our original plan and headed out for our first Monster Subjugation right after registering as adventurers.
That was why we had gone to the Adventurers Guild so early in the morning.
Incidentally, it was Erica’s suggestion.
She had said something like, “Since we’re doing this, wouldn’t it be fun to actually live as adventurers, not just in name?”
I couldn’t tell if this was just a convenient excuse for her to get through this Farce, or if she genuinely meant it.
But one thing I could say was…
“She looks like she’s having fun.”
I muttered this as I watched Erica subjugate Monsters one after another, turning the entire area into a sea of fire.
We were in a grassland about a two-hour walk south from the City of Hecate using Physical Enhancement.
We had randomly picked a request asking for the Subjugation of Monsters that frequently appeared on the road between the city and one of the farming villages that supported Hecate’s food supply.
Perhaps it was too easy a first job for someone like Erica.
The sighted Monsters were ape-like creatures with long claws called Bonbo.
Although they formed packs, they were only strong enough for Rank 2 adventurers to target; frankly, they were weak.
Even I felt that way. For Erica, dealing with them was like swatting away gnats.
If there was a problem…
It was probably that someone had neglected to teach this person named Erica the meaning of “holding back.”
Bonbo, despite being ape-like Monsters, often appeared in grasslands. Their defining features were claws about the length of a human pinky finger and their tendency to move in packs.
When the Bonbo spotted us in the grassland, they attacked.
Well, to put it bluntly, they ended up seeing hell.
As soon as they entered Erica’s line of sight, they were incinerated by Pillars of Flame erupting from beneath their feet.
Multiple pillars rose simultaneously, precisely targeting only the ground beneath the Bonbo.
Around thirty Pillars of Flame erupted at once.
From my perspective, being able to see Magicka, it was a hellish scene: Golden Magicka would momentarily sparkle over the charging pack of Bonbo, followed by Pillars of Flame and screams of death.
Perhaps it was just good timing for the pack to gather, as I estimated the total number of Bonbo was probably a little over a hundred.
But Erica sank the entire pack into a sea of flames without letting any of them get close, regardless of whether they charged in a tight group, spread out to surround us, or tried to sneak up using decoys.
Bonbo are widespread Monsters, even appearing in the Faltar Kingdom.
They’re weak, but because they attack in packs, novice adventurers who underestimate them often learn a painful lesson.
They’re sometimes called “beginner killers,” and despite their weakness, they are disliked by adventurers.
This is evident from the fact that they have a proper, un-Monster-like name like “Bonbo,” unlike many Monsters with simple names.
But this time, they picked the wrong opponent.
Watching Erica annihilate the Bonbo pack in mere minutes, I felt a little sorry for them.
“Well, good work for now.”
I approached Erica, who had turned the surroundings into a sea of fire—though she hadn’t let it spread—and said that.
It could be called a Supreme Skill, supported by incredible precision and Magicka reserves, but because the enemy numbers were so large, the grassland was now dotted with numerous scorched patches.
Within my field of vision, the only area without scorched patches within a ten-meter radius was right around Erica.
“There were surprisingly many of them, weren’t there?”
There was no sign of fatigue in her voice as she said this.
If anything, she looked satisfied.
She had probably used her magic to her heart’s content for the first time.
The skills she had displayed at the academy were like child’s play compared to the hellscape she had just unleashed before my eyes.
Using magic without worrying about those around you is difficult at the academy.
There are simply too many people, and the space is limited.
So, just because she went a little overboard on her first try, it probably wasn’t something to criticize her for.
Probably not, but I still had to say something.
I sighed inwardly.
“Erica, well, uh…”
My hesitant words made her satisfied expression turn into one of questioning. Cute.
“This is hard to say, but…”
“What is it?”
Ah, this is really hard to say.
“The request is a failure.”