The group had gotten into Julius's car and rode for an hour to the nearest guild office. They arrived to a small town with a population of 150 people.
Adam-"We're finally here"
Julius-"I remember back when I got my rank assessed. I just gave them my information and they assigned me a rank. Is this going to be the same as that?"
Adam-"Well they examine your mana output with a mana receiver crystal, but that raw output only grants you up to B rank. In order to become lower and upper A rank you also need to have high versatility, although you won't have a problem with that"
Julius-"What if you want to become S rank?"
Joe-"For S rank they have to be granted that rank by Atlas himself"
Elise-"I look forward to getting that A rank badge"
Adam-"I doubt we are A rank, I'm certain we have at least gone up to B rank levels of power at least"
Elise-"Maybe, you have only gone up to B rank. If so, I'm sorry for leaving you in the dust"
Damion-"What rank will I have?"
Adam-"You'll... oh shoot!"
Julius-"What?"
Adam-"We can't have them examine Damion's power, they'll know he has dark magic"
Julius-"We just got the cleared up for the second time though"
Marigold-"We did but Adam is right. Having them determine Damion's rank would be a huge hassle"
Joe-"But he's probably the only other one of us that will be A rank besides Julius. Would we be able to go to that training island with only one A rank?"
Elise-"I think that will depend on the rest of our ranks"
Joe-"Well I know I've got to have ranked up to C rank"
Adam-"You went through that training with me, but I don't think-"
Joe-"I gained a lot of power from that battle against that giant monster in the cave"
Marigold-"I believe all of our levels should have gone up from that battle"
Julius(in his head)-"Still strange to me that this world seems to operate on video game logic"
Voice-"Well it doesn't"
Julius(in his head)-"Leveling up, different skills. It's a video game leveling system"
Voice-"That's how it's translated to you, like the language"
Julius(in his head)-"Wait so that's translated too? Then what is it like for everyone else?"
Voice-"For everyone else it's innate, something that to them is a natural instinct. To compare it your world, imagine if after working out in the gym you can feel your muscles being bigger. However, after the workout you get to choose where part of your gained strength goes"
Julius(in his head)-"So when I was putting those level up points into perception and mana, it's like doing an arm workout at the gym but using that to improve my eyesight and stamina"
Voice-"Correct, I determined that translating this process to a video game leveling system would make it easier for you to understand"
Julius(in his head)-"Wow, I learn more about this world everyday"
Elise-"Hopefully battling that monster gave us enough of a boost to qualify for the Kaiju Archipelago"
Adam-"There it is"
Adam points out the car window to the big wooden guild office. The group exits the car. An old man walks towards the group and points at the car that the group just got out of.
Townsman-"What is that thing?"
Adam-"It's called a car"
Joe-"It's like a carriage with no horse since the wheels move on their own"
Townsman-"So it's an enchanted carriage. But why is it made of metal, and why does it make that loud sound?"
Julius flies up to the man.
Julius-"That's the electric motor. Trust me though it's not nearly as loud as a gas engine, plus it's better for the environment"
Townsman-"What?"
Julius-"Well a gas engine is-"
Townsman-"Are you like some kind of fairy?"
Julius-"Actually I'm a-"
Townsman-"I don't care, just make it not so loud anymore"
Julius-"Sorry sir"
Julius turns off the car.
Julius-"Would you like to learn more about-"
The old man begins to walk away.
Julius-"...It's the first ever car, it can transport people long distances, and stuff"
Damion-"Why were you acting like you were trying to sell it?"
Julius-"I just got excited"
Elise-"That an old man asked what your car was?"
Julius-"Well it's the first car in this world. I just want people to know about it. Remember how I talked about us being the technomancers, spreading technology around the world"
Joe-"Yeah, just think about all the money we could make"
Julius-"That's not the point!"
Joe-"Well yeah but you know, just like a little bit of money"
Elise-"I mean do you expect to give away all that stuff for free?"
Julius-"That was the plan. Money is the root of all evil"
Marigold-"There are things much more evil than money"
Julius-"In this world maybe"
Adam-"Let's just head in and get our ranks upgraded"
The group walks up the short flight of stairs to go through the entrance to the guild office. As the group walks through the door they look forward and directly in front of them there is the guild receptionist who is an old dwarf. The group walks towards the desk.
Guild receptionist-"Hello there, how can I help you lads and lassies today?"
Adam-"We were hoping to get our ranks reassessed, we've been on a few quests and we think we've gotten strong enough to rank up"
Guild receptionist-"I see, well follow me then"
The old dwarf man stands up from his chair and walks to the right with the group following behind him. They walk past a series of doors until they get to a door on the left.
Guild receptionist-"Here we are, right in here is a mana crystal that will measure your power output"
The old dwarf man opens the door and the group follows him inside. They all enter a small room with a large three meter tall crystal sphere.
Guild receptionist-"Alright, you ready to see your new ranks?"
End of chapter 99