Ch.9Toward the Tinder (5)

Jingle~ Jingle~

Whether it was because I earned a lot of money yesterday, the bell of the Adventurer’s Guild sounded incredibly sweet.

“Hmm?”

But something was strange.

Police officers, who normally wouldn’t be caught dead near the Adventurer’s Guild, were gathered around the reception desk?

As I approached to find out what was happening, the receptionist pointed at me and said:

“That’s him. Viktor. A Straw-rank adventurer.”

“…That kid?”

What? They gathered because of me?

As I stood there awkwardly, not knowing what was going on, a detective whose beard was starting to turn white approached me.

“Are you Viktor?”

“What about it?”

“No surname?”

“Unfortunately not. I’m an orphan, you see.”

“I see… an orphan… Let’s have a little chat. It’s about those bandits you killed yesterday.”

“…Alright.”

No matter how I looked at it, there was no escape.

Even though I killed three bandits, my current opponents were much stronger police officers, and there were seven of them.

And most importantly, if the police had wanted to bury me, they wouldn’t have waited in the guild where there were so many witnesses.

As I sat down on a nearby chair, the aging detective also sat beside me.

“How old are you?”

“Sixteen. Just had my birthday.”

“When’s your birthday?”

“February 3rd.”

“Hmm…”

The aging detective made an indecipherable sound, either impressed or lamenting that I was younger than he expected.

Personally, I’d prefer if it were admiration, but judging by his expression, it seemed more like lamentation.

His expression wasn’t particularly pleasant.

“First, let me tell you that we’re not here to arrest you. Those three bandits were criminals we’d been pursuing. When we heard they were dead, we came to the guild to confirm.”

“I see.”

“Did you really kill them by yourself?”

“Yes.”

“Can you explain in detail?”

I told him how I had dispatched the three bandits.

After hearing my explanation, his eyes widened, and then he smiled.

“Well, the guild has stolen a valuable talent from us. If you were a bit older and not an adventurer, you could have made an excellent police officer…”

“Sorry, but I have my reasons for living as an adventurer. If I get the chance in my next life, I’ll consider a career in law enforcement.”

“Ha! Right. In your next life.”

The aging detective laughed heartily, then grabbed my shoulder and said:

“After consulting with the guild, we’ve decided to promote you to Flint rank.”

“…Is there a precedent for that?”

“Oh, there are countless precedents if you look. Surely even an orphan like you has heard the fairy tale about a five-year-old who drove away robbers from his home?”

I nodded.

“Originally, guild policy states that life-threatening quests like bandit elimination can only be accepted by Flint-rank adventurers and above. But I’m guessing you’ve killed before?”

“…Yes.”

“Was it in self-defense?”

I nodded.

At least on this point, I could stand proud before Karil, the Blood God.

Even if I had lived in poverty, I had never stolen from others, and that was my pride.

The detective, either reading my eyes or simply deciding to trust me, didn’t press further and stood up.

“From Flint rank, you can start real adventures. Traveling from city to city, listening to the concerns of villagers.”

“You seem to know a lot about adventurers?”

“My father was an adventurer. He had eyes like yours. I hope you become an adventurer like my father.”

With those words, the group of police officers opened the door of the Adventurer’s Guild and left.

*

“Congratulations on your promotion to Flint rank. You have made history in this city’s Adventurer’s Guild by skipping two ranks in the shortest time at the youngest age.”

The receptionist, showing rare emotion, congratulated me on my promotion.

Youngest, shortest time…

I had become an adventurer who would go down in the history of the Adventurer’s Guild in this port city of Parcival.

Thump! Thump!

My heart was racing.

Could killing people feel this good?

With my trembling heart, I headed to the quest board to receive my first Flint-rank mission.

I could feel the change in the gazes of the surrounding adventurers.

“That child killed three bandits?”

“The verification is already complete. It’s no longer something for us to debate.”

“Good heavens… but he’s younger than my son…”

There were no words of jealousy or envy.

Adventurers were those who jumped into danger without any safety net, and those who had been in this field knew how heavy, yet how light, life could be.

And I had proven that my life was at least more valuable than those three bandits.

Even the usually indifferent muscleman was looking at me with a hint of respect, reminding me of how to earn the respect of adventurers.

Survive. And succeed.

If you survive, you gain experience; if you succeed, you get rewards.

For an adventurer, nothing else mattered.

I reached the quest board.

I picked up a quest to escort a merchant caravan to another city, and then left the Adventurer’s Guild.

“Flint rank…”

Having instantly achieved a rank one level higher than my original goal of Tinder rank, I felt a bit dazed.

I felt good, but also a bit directionless.

But I had no intention of stopping.

The quest I accepted was to escort a caravan from Parcival to another city called Rascal.

It’s the classic caravan escort that comes to mind when thinking of adventurers.

For the first time in my life, I’m leaving this city.

And for the first time, I’m going to another city.

I’ll be treading on gravel and stones along the long, winding road connecting the cities.

Calming my racing heart, I entered the Iron Trout Inn and spoke to the employee.

“I’ll only be staying until tonight. Can I get a refund for the remaining balance?”

“No.”

“I see.”

It’s unfortunate, but there’s nothing I can do. If that’s the establishment’s policy, what can I say?

*

After my excitement subsided, I began to scrutinize the quest details.

First, there was no clause about providing water or food, meaning I had to purchase my own supplies, which meant I needed to gather enough food for the three days it would take to reach the other city.

“I’ll need to visit the market.”

And I’d need a large bag to store those items.

“…Should I buy a horse?”

I have some knowledge of horsemanship.

When I was about 12, I worked as a farrier. Being small and light, I was often placed on young ponies by jockeys to help train them for the racetrack, trotting around the course.

Of course, this was because the racetrack was financially struggling and couldn’t afford proper trainers. Once they hired a proper trainer, I went back to being a farrier, but after about four months, I had to quit after being kicked by a horse’s hoof.

Come to think of it, that was probably the first time I drank an entire potion at once.

“Alright, I’ll buy a horse.”

Horses are expensive, but since I won’t be swinging a sword from horseback, I can get a pack horse at a fairly cheap price.

Feed is expensive, but with the money I’ve saved, I can afford to fatten up a pack horse for a few months.

I felt relieved at the realization that I had ample pocket money.

If I had little or no money, I would have had to struggle just to buy and carry water and food for three days, let alone a horse.

Having made up my mind, I headed first to the horse market.

*

The horse market, filled with the pungent smell of horse manure.

There, I looked around and found a decent-looking merchant, whom I approached.

“You want to buy a pack horse?”

“Yes. With a saddle since I’ll be riding it.”

“Hmm… Do you have money?”

The old man looked at me with suspicious eyes.

Dressed in leather armor with a long coat and carrying two swords, I must have appeared a bit short on funds.

“About 200 silver coins?”

“In that case, you can pick a good one. Follow me.”

Following the hunched old man, we arrived at a pasture where horses of various colors were grazing.

“Let’s see… That one and this one are the better pack horses.”

“Which one is younger?”

“Then this one would be best.”

“I’ll take that one.”

I chose a spotted horse with tiny dots, and paid the ranch owner 160 silver coins in one lump sum.

Pleased with receiving such a large sum at once, the ranch owner threw in a saddle, horse bags, horseshoes, and stirrups as a service, and I rode the horse to the market to gather water and food for the three-day journey.