The city of Hyrem, capital of the Holy Arphil Kingdom, was home to numerous adventurer’s guilds, and more novice adventurers gathered there than anywhere else in the kingdom. They came because the royal capital’s holy knights had already culled the region’s most dangerous monsters, and those that remained were weak enough for a beginner to handle. Thus, many adventurers knew the capital as “Starting Town.”
But the holy royal capital of Hyrem was frequented by veteran adventurers too. For them, the main draw was the Arphil Kingdom’s first princess.
“That young adventurer we just saw was full of life and vigor, wouldn’t you say Mil?” The Arphil Kingdom’s king was on his throne, stroking the curls of his white mustache as he spoke to the young princess sitting on a second throne alongside him.
Mil Arphilia—first princess of the Holy Arphil Kingdom—clasped both hands before her and giggled. “Yes, father. It was riveting to hear the tales of his adventures.”
The baby-faced princess was so small and slight that she looked out of place on her great crimson throne. Her youthful appearance also made her magnificent white robes look mismatched and baggy.
His Majesty smiled. “No matter how many adventures I hear about, I never tire of them. Each one is like a chapter from a book.”
“Sometimes I feel like I’m the one holding a sword and facing the monsters,” Mil agreed. “The outside world has so many different types.”
“Indeed. You’ll only find goblins and kobolds near the royal capital, but far off to the west, close to the Demon King’s Castle, it’s said there are dragons tall as mountains.”
“Dragons big as mountains?!” Mil’s body lurched forward.
“And it’s said they breathe fire. It’s a good thing none live near—”
“Fire-breathing dragons as big as mountains?! That’s amazing! I wanna go see one!” Unable to contain herself any longer, Mil hopped off her throne and clenched her fists in front of her chest.
“Settle down now, Mil. You can’t see them anywhere near the royal capital.”
“Well I wish one would come visit us. A fire-breathing dragon big as a mountain...”
Mil slowly sat back down, her thoughts totally occupied with dragons. She pictured thick skin covered in large scales, a huge body with a long tail, a gigantic mouth with fangs bigger than herself, and massive claws that could shatter boulders. This was as much as Mil knew about them, and their exact appearance was left to her imagination.
She’d heard about dragons from fairy tales and legends, but they were scarcely mentioned outside of books. It was unlikely that even a single knight in the royal capital had seen such a beast firsthand.
“Ha ha ha. It would mean disaster if we saw one near the capital.” His Majesty held up a finger to her. “But I hope you aren’t considering slipping out of the castle to go see these monsters.”
He was right to be concerned. If the princess was injured in an encounter with a monster, he wouldn’t be the only one to panic. A calm and sensible princess would take no interest in the outside world and thus would need no such warning, but that description didn’t apply to Mil.
“What if I take guards with me? Couldn’t I go out and see just a few monsters?”
She dearly wished she could go outside. Hearing the adventurers’ stories always riled up her curiosity, and made her long to go adventuring herself.
“I think not. Even with guards, there’s still too much danger. If my adorable little girl ever got injured... No, the outside world’s too dangerous. You’re never going out there. Do you hear me?”
When Mil saw the fear on His Majesty’s face, she lost all motivation to escape the castle and go adventuring. “Yes, I understand,” she replied with a smile. Though she was still thinking, Maybe someday...
Mil hadn’t seen so much as a goblin or a kobold, let alone a mountain-sized, fire-breathing dragon. To Mil, monsters were just characters that appeared in stories.
“Good.” His Majesty nodded deeply, happy to know his daughter was so easily reasoned with.
“Father, was that adventurer the last one I’m to see today?”
“Ahh... There are still two more. The next is a beginner who’d like to hear about his potential.”
“Very well. Please call him in.”
His Majesty nodded then gave instructions to a member of the royal guard.
Before long, the large doors to the throne room opened, and a lone male adventurer entered.
He was only fifteen or sixteen years old, which made him about the same age as Mil. His leather armor was still pristine, and the broadsword at his waist was shining like new. He was obviously a newbie who’d begun adventuring that very day.
The poor youth was so nervous that his every step along the red carpet was stiff.
“Uh...” The newbie adventurer almost tripped over his own feet.
Mil simply smiled and told him, “It’s all right. There’s no need to be nervous.”
“Muh-My apologies!” the adventurer stuttered before finally getting close enough to the thrones to stop and kneel.
“State your name,” the king ordered.
“Y-Yes Your Majesty! I’m Rand Ulysses! An adventurer from Rolawand! I-It’s an honor to muh-meet with Your Majesty and Her Holy Highness on this day.”
The adventurer’s voice was cracking as he delivered what was probably a rehearsed line. Seeing him struggle with a new experience made Mil envious somehow.
Here goes... Mil gracefully rose from her throne and held out her hand toward the adventurer.
Name: Rand / Level: 1
HP: 42
MP: 8
STR: 15
DEF: 10
INT: 5
DEX: 31
SPD: 21
LUK: 12
Skills: none
In front of Mil appeared a status window containing text and various numbers. She was the only one who could see it.
The adventurer’s name, his stats, and his skills were all listed. If Mil wanted to know more about a particular item, she just had to touch it in the window, but there was nothing she could learn from this newbie adventurer.
Mil lowered her hand. “You have unusually high dexterity, and your speed is impressive as well.”
When Mil tapped the Skills list in the window, a new window overlayed it with more information, including that of a skill he could learn.
“It appears you have the potential to learn lock picking,” Mil told him.
“Oh...” The adventurer laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. “My dad was a lock picker. I’ve been watching him since I was little. I’ve even picked a lock or two just by copying him. That must be why.”
“It’s a wonderful skill,” Mil assured him. “If you register as a thief, parties will be fighting to have you!”
This was the main reason adventurers came to the throne room each and every day.
Holy Princess Mil was what was known as a goddess’s priestess. She had the power to see the stats and skills of others.