A New Life (4)

"Are you serious!? This soft-looking kid is a Slayer-rank adventurer?"

"Y-yes… as far as we've confirmed, that's correct."

Slayer rank. The highest grade every adventurer aspired to. No wonder the adventurer who'd overheard the conversation was reacting so violently.

His shout drew the other adventurers in the guild over in a hurry.

"Slayer rank?"

"Who?"

"That guy over there?"

"No, they're saying it's the girl."

Too many eyes were settling on us. Clara had been doing better lately, and she'd never been one to care much about other people's stares — but even so, this had to be a lot.

…Same for me.

The atmosphere was turning strange, and the attention was piling on. I didn't like it one bit, and it was liable to get in the way of what we were trying to do.

I spoke quickly to the receptionist.

"About what we were just discussing. Could we take the test right now?"

"Pardon? …Ah, yes! Right away."

The guild receptionist caught on at once and ushered us along.

"This way, please!"

Thanks to her sharp instincts, we slipped out of the scene without delay. Whether the crowd had been weighing on her too, Clara spoke the moment we were clear of the place.

"…Thanks, Albrecht."

"Credit goes to the receptionist for picking up on it so fast."

When I deflected the praise, the receptionist gave an awkward little smile.

"I was the one who nearly put you in that spot."

"Not at all. You saved us."

She led us to a room and said,

"I'll help you get it confirmed right away. Just a moment, please."

"Of course."

The receptionist stepped into the room first, and I looked over at Clara.

"By the way — that's incredible."

"…Hm?"

"A Slayer-rank adventurer. I really was surprised."

Clara was an outstanding thief, no question — but a Slayer? That I hadn't seen coming.

Considering she'd only just come of age, it was an unusually fast climb. Even if she'd started adventuring young.

Most of the Slayer-rank adventurers you meet in Dungeon in Evil are at least in their mid-thirties, if you're being generous.

True to form for the top thief-class character in the story. The background setting checked out.

"…I-it's not that big a deal."

"Oh, come on."

I glanced sideways at Caesius.

"Being Slayer rank means you could take down a Hatchling like this one on your own."

"And why are you looking at me when you say that?"

"Because there's a Hatchling standing right next to me?"

Caesius furrowed her brow, clearly unimpressed. The look on her face was funny enough that I laughed lightly.

"Don't glare at me like that. It's scary."

"Then perhaps you might try not behaving in a way that invites a glare?"

She was mad, apparently.

"I was joking. Sorry."

Caesius didn't answer. I hadn't expected her to sulk over something this small — maybe I'd been too blunt. I tried to soothe her.

"Once we make some money, I'll buy you something good to eat again."

"…To think you would try to soothe this body's mood with mere food. How absurd."

Looks pretty soothed to me, though?

I laughed under my breath, and Clara, catching the same thing, gave a small smile of her own. Cheering up a young dragon wasn't that hard after all.

Then the closed door opened, and the receptionist called us in.

"Everything's ready! Come on in!"

"Ah — right."

We followed her inside and found a large mirror waiting.

"Please stand in front of the mirror!"

"Got it."

I'd known what to do the moment I saw it. This thing could probably read a person's rough capabilities — the same way I looked at status screens. Once I was in place, the receptionist continued.

"Just stay still. It'll get a general sense of your abilities. And in the meantime…"

She brought over paper and a pen and handed them to Clara.

"Would you fill out some personal information for me? We normally do this first, but given the atmosphere earlier we rushed you in here…"

Clara nodded. Come to think of it, she'd been alone since she was little — and yet she wasn't illiterate. How had she learned?

Someone must have taught her separately.

I was standing there with that thought when the mirror in front of me suddenly flashed.

"…What was that."

"Ah, you can step away now."

"It's done?"

"Yes. Let's see…"

The receptionist went behind the mirror and came back with a sheet of paper. She held it out for me to see.

"Your magical aptitude is quite high! Your stamina is excellent as well… hard to call you a complete beginner at this level."

The paper listed approximate ability values. Nothing as precise as the numerical stats I was used to, but every attribute was laid out together on a hexagonal graph.

My graph spiked hard on stamina and magic power. Divinity sat in a deep trough — I'd never had any talent for it to begin with.

"You've really never been an adventurer before?"

"No, never."

"Impressive. At this level, you could start as a Detector rank right away."

I never thought my pathetic stats would actually be useful someday. I'd only been looking at them the way you look at a game character's sheet — to ordinary people, they must have been genuinely impressive.

Detector rank means skipping two whole grades.

A smooth start. The higher an adventurer's rank, the harder the commissions — and the bigger the pay.

"I'll go report this to the branch director. Your rank will be assigned under the director's judgment. Would you wait in the lobby?"

"Understood."

I hoped the earlier fuss had died down. I was about to turn and leave when the receptionist seemed to remember something.

"Ah — going out there right now might be awkward for you. Would you rather wait here?"

"Is that all right?"

"Of course."

She left the room with a pleasant smile. I was grateful for the consideration.

"?"

Then I felt a gaze and looked sideways. Clara was staring straight at me.

"…Albrecht, do you like that kind of style?"

"Huh?"

The question came so far out of left field that I could only blink and ask back. Clara murmured to herself as if she'd already reached some conclusion.

"…I wonder if growing my hair ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out would suit me."

"I think it would."

She didn't seem to be asking me, but it really would suit her, so I answered. Clara's hair was that gleaming silver — if she grew it long, she'd look beautiful for sure.

She blinked and looked at me.

"…Yeah."

With that brief reply, she lightly ran her fingers through her own hair.

We waited, chatting idly, until the receptionist returned before long. Beaming, she held out a small wooden plaque.

"Congratulations! You'll be starting at Detector rank!"

"Oh."

"…Congratulations."

Detector rank — D-rank adventurer. Considering most people started at First rank, it was an excellent beginning.

"Can I take commissions right away?"

"Absolutely. You're free to accept any commission of D-rank or below!"

She smiled brightly.

"If you'd like to take one, shall we head to the lobby? You can look over what's available on the commission board."

"Ah — yes, let's do that."

Her clear guidance made everything easy to follow. We came back out into the lobby behind her, and the adventurers who'd been going about their business turned their eyes our way again.

Not at me, of course — at Clara beside me.

Hm?

But the mood was different from before. The heat had cooled; no one was pressing in with blunt questions the way they had a moment ago. Their gazes were full of longing.

Admiration for a Slayer-rank adventurer. And ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠respect. Clara looked young at a glance, yet there wasn't a trace of dismissal in those eyes.

Something about it… the honesty of the reaction was almost comfortable. I was learning that an adventurer's bluntness could be a virtue sometimes. I'd always hated how openly they aired their resentment toward the hero's party.

"Adventurer Albrecht, this is the commission board."

"Ah, right."

I looked it over. True to an adventurer's guild, the board was thick with posted requests. Plenty of D-rank and below.

Goblin den subjugation…

E- and F-rank commissions tended toward odd jobs; from D-rank up, monster subjugation requests like this became common. I still wasn't confident about pure physical work, though, so I looked for something more specialized.

"…What kind of commission are you going to take?"

"Mm, just a second…… oh."

Something workable. I'd been hunting for a request that could use my ability, and there it was — perfect.

"This one looks good."

The commission sheet read as follows.

At D-rank, the pay was already pretty solid. If even Detector-rank commissions paid like this, Slayer-rank adventurers must have been raking in astronomical sums.

Well — they put their lives on the line. Fair enough.

D-rank or S-rank, an adventurer working at their level was always staking their life. Strong rewards were only natural.

"Let's take this one."

"…Witches?"

"Yeah. With my ability, I should be able to shut them down in one go."

"A sound choice."

Caesius seemed to think it was a reasonable pick as well.

"That all right with you, Clara?"

"…If Albrecht's fine with it."

"Good."

I pulled the sheet off the board and brought it to the counter. The receptionist took it with another bright smile.

"A witch subjugation request. It might be a little tough for a first commission — are you sure?"

"This actually seems like the safest option for me."

She tilted her head, as if that sounded odd. It was the absolute truth, but most people would find goblins easier to handle than witches, so her reaction made sense.

I added a reason so she wouldn't dwell on it.

"I'm thinking about the pay. I need cash on hand right away."

"Ah, I see."

She stamped the commission sheet with a solid thud and held it out.

"Commission accepted. Bring back the spoils and it'll be recorded as a completed job, and you'll receive the reward listed on the sheet."

"Ah — understood."

So that was why people collected spoils. I took the sheet back and said,

"Thank you."

"I'll be looking forward to your future work, Adventurer Albrecht!"

Hearing my name startled me for a second — then I remembered Clara had written down my personal details earlier, myself included, and nodded.

Now I just need to buy a weapon and head out.

First commission was witch subjugation, so a decent club would do. I'd spotted a weapon shop on the way here — time to go buy one.

"Let's go."

"…Okay."

Bang!

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

I was about to leave with Clara and Caesius when the guild doors burst open with a racket loud enough to turn every head in the building — ours included.

A woman in a robe, and a man in a matching robe.

A mage duo.

"Who here is Albrecht?"

Out of nowhere, my name came out of the woman's mouth. I stared at her, baffled.

Then voices rose from the side.

"That emblem…"

"That's the Red Magic Tower."

The adventurers seemed to have recognized their affiliation.

The Red Magic Tower?

A name came to mind.

Agresia, Lord of the Red Magic Tower — the woman I'd met at the auction house. The woman Allen had thoroughly kicked around before I took over this body.

……

A bad feeling settled over me. I was considering just walking past like I didn't know anything when Caesius spoke up.

"If you're looking for Albrecht, he is right here."

You dense little—! Why would you say that!

The moment they heard Caesius, their eyes locked onto me. The woman tilted her head, studying my face.

Then, for some reason, a flicker of fluster crossed her eyes as she asked,

"…Pardon? You're Albrecht?"

"…Yes, that's me."

I answered with the air of a man who'd already given up, and the woman went wide-eyed with shock.

"I-it was you?"

"…?"

I had no idea who she was or why she was saying that. She looked like she recognized me.

"Clara, do you know her?"

"…I've never seen her face."

If Clara didn't know her either, then we hadn't met as a party.

Confusion was mounting — and then the words out of the woman's mouth ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠told me exactly why she knew me.

"Y-you're the one who kicked our Tower Lord!!"