"Great," Ed said with a half-smile, sitting back down. "Tracy will show you the way. When you're done, come back here."
"Right this way," Tracy said, stepping past me and opening the door smoothly.
"Lead the way, then," I muttered, following behind her as Kayda silently fell in step at the rear.
As we walked down the hallway, I glanced behind me to see Kayda giving Ed a look. She leaned in, just before the door fully shut behind her, and whispered something low and sharp.
"Ed, you're playing the wrong game here."
'I guess she knows what he's planning,' I thought aloud, not realizing I'd spoken until I heard Tracy's voice ahead.
"Hmm? Did you say something?" she asked, glancing back with a curious smile.
"It's nothing," I said quickly, brushing her question off while shooting Kayda a sidelong glance. She gave a tiny shrug.
We turned the corner into the guild's main hall, the bright glow of magic lights washing over us in golden hues. Tables lined the walls, packed with adventurers talking, eating, or checking quest postings.
"Hey, Tracy, you're back?" A familiar female voice called out.
We looked over to see a tall blonde woman with slightly pointed ears sitting behind a desk-Tracy's desk, if I remembered right. Her piercing green eyes sparkled with amusement, but a faint tightness at the corners suggested stress.
'An elf? No... Her ears aren't long enough.' I thought, studying her profile. 'Maybe a half-elf.'
"Kana," Tracy greeted her, visibly guilty. "Sorry! The Guild Master asked me to handle this sign-up personally before going back to my post."
Kana arched an eyebrow, then sighed. "It's fine. The front desk is just slammed right now because of the incident earlier."
"Yes, I know," Tracy said apologetically, lowering her head slightly. "I'll be as quick as I can."
Kana waved her hand dismissively, then returned her focus to the papers in front of her.
Tracy led us past the counter and to a pair of pristine white double doors near the far wall. With a smooth push, she opened them to reveal a simple but sterile room. A single pedestal stood in the center, atop it a sleek black status tablet that pulsed softly with arcane runes.
"Here you go," Tracy said, gesturing inside. "I'm sure you know how the tablet works. Kayda, here's the form."
She handed a scroll of parchment and a pen to Kayda, then gave me a nod and stepped out, closing the door behind us with a soft click.
"Don't use the tablet," Kayda said immediately, voice firm.
"I wasn't going to," I replied, giving her a shrug as I stepped away from it. "I don't trust that thing to not keep records."
"Good." She unrolled the form and adjusted her grip on the pen. "Now, what do you want me to write?"
"Make my first name, Nova, for this," I began. "And for skills, just put Flash Step, basic elemental magic, Sword Domain... and Dimension Storage. That's enough."
Kayda nodded, already jotting them down with clean strokes. "I'll lower your stats a bit to make things easier for you in the future. But I'll put your real level."
"Thanks," I said, watching her work. "Honestly, I still don't understand how this guild thing works."
"It's not too complicated," she said, glancing up. "There are just a few important rules. First-no fighting in the guild hall. You can challenge someone to a duel, but killing is never allowed. Ranks go from E to S, with XR being the special rank for god-tier beings. There are only three XR-ranked adventurers in the guild, and two of them work as royal bodyguards."
My ears perked up in interest. "Ah, that explains why the royals didn't have a large escort at the banquet. I thought it was weird at the time."
"Yep. But even those god-level bodyguards can't win against your mother," Kayda said, smirking.
I blinked, stunned. "Wait... What? She can beat god-level adventurers?"
"In a duel? Absolutely. In a fight to the death, it might be closer. But skill-wise? She's unmatched-especially when she uses Berserk."
My tail twitched with pride. "Damn... Mom really is a badass."
Kayda laughed. "That's putting it lightly. And the worst part?"
I raised an eyebrow.
"You'll be even stronger than her one day."
I couldn't help but grin. "You got that right."
Kayda smirked and tapped the paper once more. "Alright. Quests work like this: you can accept any quest if you meet the requirements-enough party members or if your level far exceeds the recommended one. But since you have my privileges, you can accept anything. No restrictions."
"Hmm. But I won't get an S-rank badge, right?" I asked, cautiously hopeful.
"Nope," she said with a smile, "but you also won't start at the bottom. You're technically part of the guild's employee network now, so they'll give you a B-rank to start."
"Ahh, right. Only B-rank and above can work for the guild directly," I murmured to myself, connecting the dots.
"Exactly. Anyway, we're done here," Kayda said, rolling up the form. "Let's head back to Tracy so she can make your guild card."
I followed as she opened the door.
"Oh! You're finished already?" Tracy asked brightly.
"Here," Kayda said, handing over the form. "Can you make her guild card?"
"Sure thing. Let's see-what the... Kayda, did you add an extra zero to her stats?" Tracy blinked at the paper. "These numbers are insane for a 14-year-old. She doesn't even have a class yet!"
Kana peeked over her shoulder. "Whoa!"
"That's her real status," Kayda said casually, waving Tracy off. "Now get her card done."
"Right, right," Tracy mumbled, still staring at the form as she walked off toward the enchanted printer behind the counter.
"Come on," Kayda said to me, gesturing to the quest board. "Let's get you your first mission."
I nodded, tail flicking as we made our way to the towering wall covered in quest slips. The wall opposite the guild's dining and drinking area was bustling with adventurers of every shape and size-humans, demi-humans, and even a couple beastkin.
"I assume you want an elimination quest?" Kayda asked, scanning the board beside me.
"Of course," I replied, scanning the papers. "What else is there?"
"Well, there's dungeon raids, but you're not ready for those yet. Collection quests, escort missions, delivery work..."
"Boring."
She smirked. "Thought so."
"There. That one-orc elimination," I said, pointing near the top of the board.
Kayda reached up easily and yanked the slip off the wall.
As we turned, a voice spoke behind us. "Hey, are you two taking that orc quest?"
We turned to see a tall man with silver hair and a bulky build standing behind us. His armor gleamed with polish, and a heavy tower shield rested on his back.
"Do you already have the recommended number of people?" he asked. "Or can my party join you? We're all C-rank or higher."
Kayda was already shaking her head. "No, we're good-"
"Wait," I whispered, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Let them join. I've never seen how this world handles combat firsthand."
Kayda blinked, then smiled. "Ahh, right. Good point."
Turning back to the man, she nodded. "You're in. How many are you?"
"Five," he said quickly. "Two mages, two swordsmen, and I'm the tank."
"Perfect."
"Nova, your card is ready!" Tracy called from the counter, waving it above her head.
"That's me," I said cheerfully, snagging the quest slip from Kayda. "Be right back."
Yo, I am still really confused at how my novel is doing so well.
I went and looked through my reading list last night and saw that my novel has 50 fewer chapters than the novel has, but my novel has 5 times the more views and collections.
Please, explain to me how this is possible. I really think my novel isn't that good.
TheRealSkolliecreators' thoughts
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Chapter 81: The guild isn't very...
It had been a couple of hours since our two groups had departed from the bustling guildhall. Now, the atmosphere had shifted. We were standing quietly at the edge of the Emerald Forest, a dense, emerald-green expanse that stretched far beyond the horizon. The wind rustled the trees gently, causing shadows to dance across the ground beneath our feet. The silence between our groups was heavy-not uncomfortable, but thick with that awkward tension that comes when strangers are forced into cooperation.
I adjusted the straps of my combat outfit, the material snug and worn in all the right places. My usual gear-form-fitting black cloth with reinforced joints-offered maximum mobility. At my hips, the two white katanas gleamed in the sun, each one strapped with a crosswise loop to rest diagonally along the back of my waist. I didn't have to say anything for people to understand these weren't for show.
Beside me stood Kayda-well, Kay, as she preferred to be known in disguise. She wore the same elegant-yet-practical attire she had on when we first met at that restaurant: black pants, a fitted crimson top, and a lightweight dark cloak that fluttered softly in the breeze. Her hair was tied back, keeping her horns subtly obscured. From a glance, no one would think she was anything more than a standard adventurer.
After several long moments of silence, I finally sighed and decided to break the ice.
"Well," I said, clearing my throat and offering a relaxed smile, "why don't we introduce ourselves?"
The five adventurers across from us shifted a bit, standing in a rough semicircle. Kayda was still beside me, arms crossed loosely, eyes cool and unreadable.
"I'll go first," Kayda said in a calm, confident voice. "My name is Kay. I'm a Fire Sage. A high-level one."
She gave a nonchalant shrug and continued, "I'll be keeping my guild rank private. I'm only here to supervise this troublesome fox." She ended with a sideways glance at me before giving my shoulder a light smack.
I blinked and dramatically placed a hand over my chest, right above my heart.
"Such a heartless Dragonoid you are," I said in mock pain, staggering back half a step. "Wounding me so publicly!"
Kayda just stared at me. Deadpan. There was not even a twitch of amusement on Kayda's face.
I held the pose a few more seconds. Nothing.
"You really are heartless," I added, letting my arms drop with an exaggerated sigh.
Clicking my tongue, I turned back to the others with a more genuine smile.
"Well, you guys can just call me Nova. I'm a Dual Warrior, low level. Same guild rank as all of you."
I tapped the hilts of the two ice-forged katanas strapped to my waist and gestured casually.
"Ooooh! Two exotic classes? That's so cool!" The girl with twin daggers at her thighs exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with excitement. She bounced in place like a kid at a festival. "I feel so honored to be fighting alongside you two!"
She gave a flourishing bow. "I'm Mary! Assassin class, mid-level, and C-rank."
"I'm Nat," said the boy beside her. He was dressed in simple red robes with faint flame symbols embroidered along the hem. His expression was stoic. "Fire Mage. High-level. Same rank."
The golden-armored man beside him puffed out his chest theatrically, placing his fists on his hips and lifting his chin toward the sky.
"I am the wonderful and most powerful swordsman in the capital! My name is Dalton!"
"Dalton, can you not?" The silver-haired man next to him sighed, rubbing his temple with visible regret.
He turned to us, offering a small bow of apology. "Please ignore this idiot. My name is Gaby. I'm the tank of the team. High-level. B-rank."
I eyed the enormous tower shield strapped to his back and nodded.
"Cool," I said honestly. "Never seen a tank in action before."
"And that leaves me," said the last girl with a warm smile. She was shorter than the others and wore brown and green robes with earth-toned accents. "My name is Catrina. I specialize in Earth and Wind magic."
She gave a polite bow, her robes swaying slightly.
"Alright, now that's out of the way," Kayda began, pulling a paper from her cloak and holding it up for all to see. "We're here to eliminate five orcs. It's a quest normally meant for a ten-person party, but given your collective rank and strength, it was approved for a smaller group. I'm not included in the fighting, so you six will handle the actual engagement."
"Wait... only five?" I asked, blinking in disappointment. "That's it?"
"Don't underestimate them," Gaby said, his tone serious. "They're strong. Even if you're an exotic class, you'd need to be at least level 400 to take one solo."
I tilted my head slightly, thinking. "So... about 1700 in strength and defense stats?"
"More or less," he said with a nod. "Speed's a bit lower. Around 1300."
"Don't worry, though," Dalton chimed in with a confident smile, his teeth sparkling like some overzealous anime character. "I can handle one easily."
He gave me a wink.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and rubbed the back of my neck with mock embarrassment. "Ha... I murmured under my breath, "I'm not surprised that they are slow."
Mary leaned in toward Catrina and snickered behind her hand.
"It seems Dalton has charmed another maiden."
"Charmed?" I said, raising an eyebrow. "Sorry, but I don't swing that way. Better luck next time."
Mary and Dalton both froze, wide-eyed.
"Wha-!?"
Before they could say anything else, I lifted my shirt slightly, revealing the defined lines of my six-pack.
"Oh my~," Mary and Catrina said at the same time, noses almost twitching.
The boys looked at me with complex expressions-somewhere between impressed and jealous.
'Hehe. That got them.'
"See? I'm as close to a male body as you'll find without the third leg," I said, letting my shirt fall back down. "So... does 'maiden' still apply, Mary?"
Mary tilted her head, grinning. "Hmm, you're still adorable in your own way. I bet a ton of girls would line up to date you."
She gave me a thumbs up, then turned to Dalton and patted his shoulder.
"Seems you lost this one."
"Can we please move on?" Kayda said, visibly annoyed. Her tone made it clear the banter had gone on long enough.
Mary, never one to miss a beat, smirked. "Huuuuh? So you're-"
"She's right. Let's go," I interrupted quickly, stepping past the group and into the forest's shaded trail.
"Aww, I wasn't done talking!" Mary whined, following me with a dramatic pout.
"Just let it go," Catrina said, bopping her lightly on the head.
"Fiiiine," Mary sighed, trudging along.
I glanced over my shoulder at the group as we walked deeper into the woods.
'At least Catrina has a level head... even if she's only a sage around level 400. Gaby's probably the strongest, clocking in at 530. Still, it's weird to call that high level. Is the social structure here just that different from the Black Ops system?'
