Chapter 8

Regardless of what she did next, Lorna was going to need more money. And considering the hubbub around town surrounding the natural disasters, she thought it would draw too much attention to sell the stuff she’d collected in the woods… Besides, she wasn’t confident that what she had on hand would net her enough money anyway. There has to be some way for me to get my hands on some shil… Lorna immediately started searching the internet for ways to make money. “Um, forex…? Virtual currency? Gamble online? What is all this? Oh! ‘Congratulations, you’ve been selected by lottery to win a fabulous prize!’ …What?! I’ve never won anything before! So I just have to tap this button and I get the money?!” Apparently, unbeknownst to Lorna, the world was full of ways to make money. “Wow, look at this one. It says that even if you don’t have a skill, you can make one million a month with a side job! All I have to do is buy these cheap teaching materials! That sounds like a real bargain!” Lorna pushed the APPLY NOW button as soon as she spotted it. This kept up for a while. Lorna was completely absorbed by the joys of the internet. Until… “…Huh?” …she suddenly snapped back to her senses. She’d finally realized how much time had passed. She looked around in a panic and saw that everyone was staring at her suspiciously. Uh-oh. Looks like it’s pretty easy to lose track of time when I’m looking at the internet… I should probably be more careful when there are people around. Lorna, her face now flushed with embarrassment, rushed off. Once she was clear of the area, she pulled herself together. Anyway, I should probably see how much I can get for what I have. I need money if I want to sleep indoors tonight. Right now, she didn’t even have enough to stay at the cheapest of inns. But before any of that, she figured she ought to start by registering as an adventurer. But if I want to register, I have to take a test, don’t I? Urgh… I hope I can handle it… The thought made her anxious. But without much choice, Lorna headed for the Adventurers Guild headquarters. Around the time Lorna was filling out the paperwork to take the adventurers exam, a certain exchange was taking place at the guild’s training hall. A teenage girl walked over to the middle-aged examiner. The young woman was dressed like a witch, and her hair trailed down her back like a red shock of flames. She flashed the examiner a piercing look. “Um, excuse me. You’re in my way.” “P-pardon me…! I-if it isn’t Lady Elmina!” The moment the examiner realized who he was dealing with, he fell to his knees in apology. His reaction made perfect sense, of course, for the girl in question was none other than… …Elmina Manaflame, the Witch of Conflagration. Elmina was a prodigious witch who had manifested the A-Rank skill, Inferno Magic. She was also the master of the Adventurers Guild, and all at the young age of nineteen. But even more importantly, she was a personal mage of the Guugelheit family, who governed this domain. “To what do we owe the pleasure, Guild Mistress? I was under the impression that you were out investigating the recent natural disasters…” “Hmph. That should be obvious. I, an elite among elites, the Witch of Conflagration, Mistress Elmina Manaflame, am here to serve as special examiner!” “B-but…Mistress Elmina! Every time you proctor an examination, all the participants fail. And that’s not to mention the countless injuries—” “Excuse me? Is that whining I hear? I’ll have you know that this is a direct mandate from the Guugelheit family. Or are you saying you wish to defy me, an elite among elites and the Guugelheits’ personal mage?” “N-no, I…” Elmina haughtily pointed at the badge on her chest. It was emblazoned with the seal of the Guugelheit family. “I’m only going to tell you this once: There’s no room in this guild for people who irk me.” “I—I beg your pardon…!” the examiner said, bowing his head low. In the town of Aiphoné, the power of the Guugelheit family was absolute. They’d placed their agents in charge of the town’s various industries, and no one dared stand up to them. “Anyway…I hear there’s a girl taking the exam today,” Elmina said. “Lorna Hermit. Ring any bells?” “Oh, um, yes,” replied the examiner. “I believe I recall seeing that name on the—” “Fail her.” “…Pardon?” “And make her suffer. Enough that she never wants to try again. Got it? That’s an order from above.” “B-but why?” “This is a direct command from the House of Guugelheit. Is that not reason enough?” “…Oh! V-very well, Mistress Elmina.” In truth, Elmina didn’t know many details herself. The night before, she had received the following message from her employers via a communications crystal: “If a girl named Lorna Hermit shows up, make her suffer. And then fail her.” Though they hadn’t given her an explanation, Elmina had an idea of what this was about. I recall the Guugelheits had a girl of about fifteen years old named Lorna, and they mentioned this Hermit girl was a nobody with a worthless skill… She probably manifested some useless trash skill and got kicked out. Oh, it must be so dreadful not to be an elite. Strength was everything in this world. That was why no one could stand up to the Guugelheit family, and why that same family had no issues expelling a weak daughter at the drop of a hat. But if you were powerful, you were entitled to anything you wanted. Oh, what a perfect world. If you’re me, that is. Elmina gracefully took a seat, raised a wine glass, and began to swish around the liquid inside. Those like Elmina, who possessed an A-Rank skill, were born with a silver spoon in their mouth and guaranteed easy success in life. Those with D-Rank skills were thought of as quite powerful, and those with C-Rank skills were considered practically superhuman. Naturally, no one could defy Elmina. The people of her hometown feared her, and she was the undisputed top of her class at the Institute of Magic. By the simple grace of possessing an A-rank skill, she was able to become retainer to the Guugelheit family and take over the Adventurers Guild right after graduation. Heh-heh-heh… Not that being guild master of some Podunk little town could ever satisfy me. She had plans to increase her favor with the Guugelheits and, slowly but surely, carve a path for herself to become a wealthy noble. To Elmina Manaflame, the story of her elite rise to power was only just beginning. “Now, then! Bring out the examinees. Or do you plan on wasting the time of an elite?” “Y-yes! I mean, no! Right away, Mistress!” At the guild master’s command, the examinees all filed into the training hall. There certainly are a lot of them this time around, thought Elmina. For one reason or another, getting rich quick by exploring dungeons seemed to be all the rage. This batch of young people must’ve caught the bug. That said, they all looked like weaklings. Sigh. What a chore. Oh well. Mana Scan! Elmina activated a skill that allowed her to visualize a target’s MP. MP was, after all, necessary for all magic and skills. In other words, one could judge a person’s strength based on how much MP they had. Let’s see… Fail. Fail. Fail… Look at all these failures. Not a single elite in the bunch. With one glance, Elmina began to write big X’s next to each name on her list. I don’t know which one of these losers is Lorna Hermit, but I don’t see anyone here with a high-ranking skill. In fact, I’ve already grown weary of this rabble. I suppose I’ll simply fail them all. Elmina brought her wine glass to her lips and took a sip of Ipple juice. But just then, she heard a voice from somewhere near the training hall entrance. It seemed someone had shown up late. “Ohhh geez… I’m so, so nervous…” The final examinee was a lone girl. She seemed to lack confidence, and her shoulders slumped pathetically. But the instant she entered the training hall… Fwoooooooooooooooooosh!!! A massive aura engulfed everyone present. It seemed large enough to reach the sky. It might as well have turned the other examinees to dust on the spot. The guild master took the full brunt of it head-on. “………………………………” Juice dribbled out of Elmina’s mouth uncontrollably. Wh-what is this…thing that’s just entered the hall…? Elmina unconsciously rubbed her eyes in absolute disbelief. Is…is that…the Demon Lord…? Elmina took a close look at the young girl. She was staring around vacantly, and quite honestly looked like a complete fool. But the powerful aura she was draped in… Fwooooooosh!!! …stretched skyward like a massive tornado of flames. Elmina was looking at a veritable geyser of mana. It was as though the incarnation of despair itself had come to pay her a visit. N-no… This can’t be… Surely, something’s wrong with my Mana Scan. There’s no way any human could have that much mana. If she did…it would mean the second coming of the Demon Lord…or something comparable, at least. Just as Elmina convinced herself of this… Crrrack! …the MP-sensing crystal behind her exploded into pieces. “Oh my. What’s happened? Was it damaged?” asked the examiner. “And it was such a useful crystal, too…” “………………………” “Mistress Elmina? You seem unwell all of a sudden.” Elmina’s mouth was agape. She was frozen stiff. That crystal was theoretically capable of detecting up to 999 MP. But without the girl even touching it, it had shattered. …………This is really happening, huh. Wait. Wait. Wait, wait, wait. This isn’t right. Why haven’t I been informed of this? Why would this monster, whatever it is, come to this town out in the middle of nowhere to take the adventurers exam? With that much power, she could easily make the whole world her plaything. “……” Elmina had a sudden realization. The girl she had been told to torment and fail was called Lorna Hermit. A fifteen-year-old with black hair. No, no, no… There’s no way she’s…Lorna Hermit…is there? That makes no sense. Why would they chase out someone like that…? It can’t be. Please tell me it’s not her. Please, please, please, it can’t be! “…?” The black-haired girl noticed Elmina looking at her, almost like she was praying. Taken aback, she bowed her head. “I’m Lorna Helmet! I mean, Hermit! It’s a pleasure to—” “Ahhhhh!!! This can’t beeeee!” “Wh-wha—?!” Elmina broke out in a cold sweat all over her body. No, no, no, no, no, no, no! This makes no sense! What the hell were they thinking, throwing out a girl this powerful?! What happened to her being a loser with a trash skill?! Are they stupid?! Are they blind?!