“You fucker! What did you do?!” Some men—I assumed they were friends of the fallen asshole—stood up to threaten us. I took a quick glance at them. None of them seemed especially strong.
Ahh, of course this would happen. Too bad I’m not patient enough to just wait this out and let them get their hits in... Oh well, it’ll all work out somehow!
Suddenly, I was assaulted by an incredibly loud voice coming from right next to me. “Shut up! You got thrashed by a newbie, and you think you can get angry about it?! You louts!”
I flinched—mostly in surprise, but also slightly in fear—and whirled around. It was the receptionist lady. She was glaring at the adventurers with a scarily intense expression.
Her outburst had caused them to freeze on the spot.
Oh wow. That’s crazy cool. Of course you’d need this kind of impact to control these ruffians.
Still, one of them tried to argue back. “B-But there’s no way we can just let that go. She hurt our friend...”
“So?! This girl is a newbie! You’d be a disgrace to adventurers everywhere if you laid a hand on her! I would’ve let it go if you’d only teased her a little—like a hazing ritual—but to retaliate just because she fought back?! Have you idiots even considered the possibility she’d actually defeat all of you?!”
“Th-Then how about after she becomes an adventurer...”
“Huuuh?! You want to drag in stuff from the past?! Of course that shit doesn’t count! If that’s how you want to play, I could go and dig up all the dirt from your filthy history and turn you in! Would you like that?! The only reason you useless twats get to survive is because you follow the adventurer’s rules! You know what happens the second you break one, right?! Listen to me—lay one hand on this girl for what happened today and see what happens!”
Uhhh, yeah... She’s a total gangster. Monsters are like that too, but I never thought I’d see a human like this. Wait, wouldn’t that mean that we’ve just been fighting in some kinda turf war?
As for the angry adventurers, they trudged their way out without another word. It didn’t seem like the others would try anything either.
“Sorry for yelling like that. I just got a little heated up,” the woman at the counter said.
“Oh, sure. No problem,” Suama replied, super alarmed. Well, that’s a given—even I was a little scared at that display.
“However, I would ask that you please refrain from such behavior in the future. Conflict between adventurers is strictly forbidden. You could be met with strict punishment.”
We’d just been warned in no uncertain terms, so Suama bowed her head meekly. “I understand. I’ll be careful.”
Ahh, I might’ve been too gung ho just now. I need to start handling this sort of thing better. Still, I can’t get rid of the idea that I can just let loose and go wild in the worst-case scenario, and it’ll all work out somehow! I wonder if that part of me comes from being a disposable monster... Well, that’ll go on the list to be worked on later.
“All right then... If you want to be an adventurer, you just need to register to become one. Anyone can apply and call themselves an adventurer, after all. Just fill in the required information on this form.”
The receptionist handed Suama a pen and a paper, and Suama immediately reacted with a troubled look.
“We do offer scribe services for a fee,” the woman added.
I didn’t want Suama to be embarrassed, so I poked her a little before saying, “Let’s borrow a table over there.”
“Ah, okay.”
We occupied the table vacated by the adventurer whose shin I’d broken earlier and his friends. I had to change into my form with a complete lower half. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to sit in a chair.
“I have Human Language +2, so I can read and write.”
“Wow, Harumi—you’re really skilled even though you’re a monster.”
I quickly jotted down the necessary information on the form. They only required the basics, like her name and place of birth. There were also entries for special abilities, equipment, and other traits. This section was included to make it easier for other adventurers to notice and recruit newcomers. However, there wasn’t anything special to note there for now.
Hm? Why are the surroundings so noisy?
“We stand out a little, don’t we?” Suama noted.
“Ahhh, yeah you’re right.”
I guess a mimic with a woman’s lower torso would stand out—especially if she were sitting and actually writing too. Not that it really mattered. We would probably be subjected to rude stares like this from now on, but it’d be best to ignore them and keep our heads held high.
“I can teach you to write,” I added.
“Really?!”
“Later, okay?”
Suama seemed pretty smart. I had a hunch that she’d pick things up quickly once I taught her.
At any rate, I’d finished filling out the form, so I turned it in to the receptionist. It seemed that there were no problems with the form, so she retreated to a back room and returned quickly.
“This is your adventurer’s card. Keep it on you at all times. Most adventurers keep them in card holders hung around their necks so that they can be seen easily by others. You can get a card holder from over there.”
We followed the receptionist lady’s line of sight to what looked like a store.
Wow, that’s cheap.
“Excuse me, but does our card work in other guilds?” Suama asked.
“It does. You can use it as a form of identification in this town, as well as others. However, your achievements are listed on the card. If you haven’t accomplished much, it may be hard to gain others’ trust. Please be aware of that.”
I see. It’s nice that you can use it in other places too.
“Also, you’re required to choose a job and register for it. Jobs determine what equipment is available to you. For example, if you choose to become a warrior, you’d get a sword and shield. Mages get staves, and so on and so forth. You’d like to be a monster tamer, correct? If that’s the case, you’ll need a monster training staff. We sell those here as well!”
“Sorry, I don’t really understand. If I get a staff, does that mean I’ll become a mage? Will I be able to cast magic?”
“You’re half right. If you don guild-approved mage equipment, you’ll be treated as one. However, you won’t be able to use magic just because you have the equipment. That requires study and training to be able to use, just like using monsters. Well, it seems like you’re fine on that front, Suama.”
My first thought was, Hm? Then what are jobs? Maybe it’s just a way for guilds to categorize abilities? Oh well. If she needs a staff, then we’ll just have to buy it at the store.
“Umm, I don’t have any money...” Suama said hesitantly.
“Don’t worry, I do,” I replied. “Still, you’d be up shit creek if it weren’t for me, huh?”
“Yeah...but if you hadn’t arrived, Harumi, I never would’ve lived long enough to run into trouble like this.”
Oops. It sounded like I thought she owed me. I didn’t mean to put it like that.
I opened my lid and pulled some money out—loot from adventurers I’d killed in the Aldora Labyrinth. Their currency was worthless to monsters, but I saved it just in case.
“Tell me if it isn’t enough. I still have more.”
“These are...gold coins, aren’t they? I’ve never seen them before.”
Whoops, that was a little dangerous. Looks like I’ve still got things to learn.
I had no idea about human values or how they determined such things. Well, it wasn’t like I expected the guild store to rip us off...too much, anyway.
We ended up just buying the essentials: a monster training staff and a card holder. We had no idea which staff would be best, so we’d left it up to the store clerk.
“It looks kinda like...how should I put it? Like something you’d use to beat dust out of a futon.”
“Yeah...it’s like a royal fern, I guess?”
The staff was long enough that it could reach Suama’s shoulders if it was placed upright on the floor. The tip of the staff was shaped like a swirl, much like a fiddlehead.
Apparently, the swirled tip was used to hit monsters in order to train them. Also, we were told that it could extend and act like a makeshift whip if the staff was swung hard enough.
“Okay, this completes your registration as a monster tamer.”
After returning and showing the new staff to the receptionist, we finished up.
“Umm, is this really all it takes to become an adventurer? I heard that they can easily recover from serious wounds, or even come back to life.”
Oohh, I remember hearing that too. She has a point—if you could gain such amazing powers just by filling out some forms and buying some equipment, everyone would become an adventurer.
“Well, yes, but neither of those things are simple processes. Well, it’s true that you could say that you’ve stopped being human, though. With the paperwork down, you’re now a follower of the Adventuring God, Est. The advantages adventurers gain are all referred to as the Divine Protection of Est.”
“Oh, but I’m a follower of the Harvest God, LocoMeco.”
“You didn’t know? Becoming an adventurer is like converting religions. Also, Est does not allow a change in beliefs, so you can no longer go back.”
“I see... Okay, I understand.”
Suama seemed totally floored, but I guess she’d steeled herself after hearing the news.
By the way, apparently most humans tended to balk at the idea of changing patron deities. Though the protections of the Adventuring God were wonderfully strong, adventurers had to live by a strict set of rules, so there weren’t many who were willing to become one.
“Well, my job as a receptionist is done. From now on, it all depends on you. Why don’t you find a senior monster tamer to learn from?”
Makes sense—of course we can’t just name ourselves monster tamers without more work.
The receptionist lady told us about several other colleagues we could see.
Okay, let’s go meet one of them!