Registration

"If he were a teammate, you'd feel completely safe..." He Xi thought. "He looks like he could punch a Goblin straight into the ground like a turnip. Maybe he has some giant or orc blood in him?"

Unfortunately, the full-face helmet hid his features, making it impossible to see what he looked like.

Perhaps because He Xi had been looking at him for a little too long, the "Iron Tower" suddenly turned his head. From the eye slits in his helmet's fierce-looking faceplate, it seemed as if two invisible gazes pierced through and fell on He Xi.

He Xi felt a slight tension in his chest, but kept his composure and gave the other man a friendly smile and nod.

He figured that with such a striking appearance and impressive strength, being stared at wherever he went must have been an everyday occurrence.

A voice rang out nearby.

"Zander, the commission's confirmed. Let's go."

The steel giant known as "Zander" looked away and strode off toward the door, his heavy steps accompanied by the clanging of metal. The ground seemed to tremble faintly beneath him.

He Xi shook off the various speculations running through his mind and walked over to the counter.

Someone was making an inquiry at the window on the right, while the one on the left was empty.

A young woman with neat, short hair sat behind the counter. She had delicate features and a warm, approachable look.

When He Xi approached, a flash of surprise lit her eyes, then her lips curved into a professionally friendly smile.

"Good day, sir. I'm Clara, one of the receptionists. How may I help you?"

"Hello. I'd like to register as an adventurer," He Xi said.

"Certainly. You'd like to register as an adventurer." Receptionist Clara deftly picked up a form and a quill. "Do you have an official occupational certification issued by one of the professional associations?"

He Xi shook his head. "No."

"I see." Clara wasn't surprised; many newcomers were in the same situation. "Then would you like us to arrange a strength assessment for you?

"If you're confident in your abilities, you'll be assigned an initial adventurer rank based on the results of the assessment. You could start as high as Silver Rank V, and the registration fee would be waived. Otherwise, you'll start at the lowest rank, Black Iron Rank V."

This must have been the kind of test Annis had mentioned before.

But his own strength was only Level 8. If he took the test, he probably wouldn't get a very good result.

"How much is the registration fee?" he asked to confirm.

"One Silver Scale."

He Xi promptly took a Silver Scale from his money pouch and set it on the counter. "No need for an assessment. Please register me directly."

Clara nodded without asking any further questions and began writing in the register before her. "Certainly. May I have your name?"

"Galen." He Xi used this temporary identity again.

"Galen..." As she wrote it down, the young woman asked quite naturally, "And what's your occupational focus? Warrior?"

He Xi froze, wondering if the name sounded that much like a warrior's.

Seeing him pause, Clara's gaze fell on Bruce by his feet, and she immediately corrected herself. "Ah, I'm sorry. Ranger?"

He Xi quickly asked, "What exactly does 'occupational focus' mean?"

"Oh, that." Clara patiently explained, "It means which school of skills you're mainly studying and specializing in before you obtain an official occupational certification.

"We record it mainly so the system can recommend suitable commissions to you, and so that teams recruiting members can narrow down their choices.

"Of course, if you're already a certified professional, you can simply enter the name of your profession."

He Xi understood. It was like a category for "professionals in training."

He considered it for a moment, then answered, "Mage."

"Mage?"

Clara looked up, visibly surprised.

She studied He Xi again: young, plainly dressed, without a staff or robe, and with a dog at his side... This combination was certainly a far cry from what most people imagined when they thought of an Apprentice Mage.

Apparently realizing she had let her surprise show, she hurriedly gave him an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean anything by it. It's just... spellcasters registering as adventurers are quite rare here in Rose Town."

He Xi nodded to show that he understood.

He knew the reason himself.

Take mages, for example. Low-level mages lacked effective means of self-defense and the ability to fight for long periods, so they relied heavily on their teammates for protection.

Thinking back to when Plint had fought the Goblins, his Earth Spike Technique wouldn't have been much use if the guards hadn't held the line in front. The mine incident had been even more one-sided, since the Goblins had been locked up and unable to move.

Another important reason was that many people with a talent for spellcasting came from well-off families or were recruited by mage organizations at an early age. They had no need to start out as low-level adventurers, with their high risks and uncertain rewards.

"That's all right."

"All set. I've finished registering you." As she spoke, Clara took a smooth, unmarked black metal badge from beneath the counter.

She placed the badge on a rune-engraved stone slab and lightly touched another spot beside it with her fingertip.

A few glimmers of light flashed across the back of the badge, and characters quickly formed as though they were being branded onto it by an invisible engraving tool.

She picked up the badge and handed it to He Xi. "This is your adventurer's badge. Please keep it safe."

"Congratulations on officially becoming an adventurer, Mister Galen."

As she spoke, the short-haired young woman took another look at He Xi, finding his appearance more and more agreeable.

"Thank you."

He Xi accepted the badge.

It was made of hard black metal and felt somewhat heavy in his hand.

The front bore the guild's "Iron Crown Wreathed in Frostflowers" emblem, with a small "Ⅴ" beside it to indicate that his current rank was Black Iron Rank V.

He turned it over. On the back, his newly registered name had been engraved in simple Common script—

Galen.

After completing his registration, He Xi fastened the black iron badge marking his new identity to his clothes, then took Bruce with him toward the huge commission board on one side of the hall.

The board was made of thick wooden planks, densely covered with commissions written on sheets of parchment.

Under the standards set by the Viran Family, commissions, like adventurer ranks, were clearly divided into areas for Black Iron, Bronze, Silver, and other ranks.

The parchment and border designs differed by rank, making it easy for adventurers to find commissions suited to them at a glance.

The guild rules stated that adventurers could generally only accept commissions at their own rank or lower.

He Xi first scrutinized the Black Iron section.

"[Lost and Found]: Find a lost pet cat named 'Ahua.' Notes: calico, white tip on its tail, lost near the marketplace, very fat. Reward: 30 copper nails."

"[Escort]: Escort a batch of ale to the mill in the west of town. Half an hour's journey. Reward: 50 copper nails."

"[Odd Job]: Help the stonemason carry some goods. Pay per item. No sneaky types—someone slacked off last time."

"[Help Wanted]: Old John's barn roof needs repairing. Lunch provided; pay negotiable."