Thirty minutes later, they finally arrived at the Adventurers' Association.
The building stood sturdy, a rectangular two-story structure. Its clean white color and very minimalist design reminded Fyar of some modern buildings from his world.
Upon stepping inside, their gazes were immediately drawn to a golden statue in the middle of the room. The statue depicted a winged woman sitting gracefully. The atmosphere inside felt quiet. Other than a few paintings hanging on the walls, there were only several high tables without any chairs scattered around the room.
At the far end of the room, a woman with white hair and sharp red eyes stood behind the reception desk. Fyar and Rasie approached her.
The white-haired woman smiled warmly. "Welcome, Rasie. What can I help you with this time? And oh, who is this man beside you? I've never seen him before."
"Hello, Lara. He's an adventurer who needs a new card made. His old one was lost," Rasie answered.
"Ahh, I see. May I know which association or kingdom he's from?" Lara asked again.
"I'm sorry, but I can't answer that." Rasie didn't want to reveal Fyar's situation to others. Robert was an exception because she had known him for years, plus the old man was the one making Fyar's weapons. Rasie was even prepared to go to another city if Lara refused her request.
"Ah, I see. Very well," Lara replied in a flat tone, as if she had expected that answer.
"Eh, you're not going to insist?" Fyar was a little surprised.
"Well, that's how it is. Besides, I don't really care. I only asked as a formality," Lara chuckled softly. After that, she retrieved a faintly glowing orb from under the desk along with a blank card.
She then handed the orb to Fyar.
"Grip this orb, then place one of your hands on the blank card," Lara instructed.
Fyar gripped the donut-sized orb with his left hand and placed his right palm on the blank, ID-like card.
Instantly, his vision went completely black. The scene in Fyar's mind transformed into a beautiful cosmos, filled with shades of dark blue and light green. He felt his body floating in the middle of the endless scenery.
What is this? An illusion? Fyar wondered.
Suddenly, he saw the figure of a man with green hair. The man had a pair of mismatched eyes, blue on the right and gold on the left.
"Don't panic. This is your subconscious," the man's voice was soft yet it echoed in Fyar's ears.
"Who are you? Are you the one who sent me to this world? Answer me," Fyar demanded.
"I am someone who was placed into your soul by 'him'," the man replied with a faint smile.
"By 'him'?" Fyar asked, growing more confused.
The man chuckled. "A truly difficult fate is what awaits you, young man. I won't tell you the details because you will find out for yourself. Mm, I'm just curious if the end will be the same as the first time. I can only wait."
"What do you mean? I don't understand at all. The end? The first time?"
"Go to the dungeon in the western region, young man. There, eat a golden-yellow fruit. Yes, that's all I can tell you for now. Oh, and don't tell anyone about our conversation. Until we meet again, friend."
After the mysterious man finished speaking, Fyar's vision returned to normal. He was back in the association hall.
"Are you alright? You were spacing out for quite a while," Lara asked.
"Fyar?" Rasie looked at him with a hint of worry.
I'm back. What was that? Fyar's mind was in turmoil. I'm sick of all these confusing things. What did he mean by a difficult fate? Damn it. For now, it seems I have to get stronger so I can go to the dungeon that strange man mentioned.
Fyar then forced a smile for Lara and Rasie. "I'm fine."
"Ah?" Fyar's attention was drawn to the card in his hand.
The card that was previously blank was now filled with text.
Fyar
Age: 26
Level: 000
Status: Active Adventurer
Class: Hunter
Level Up Status: 000%
I'm a Hunter? Fyar had thought he would be able to choose his own class, just like in the RPGs he used to play.
"Th-this is..." Lara couldn't hide her shock when she saw Fyar's card. In her entire life, this was the first time she had ever seen an adventurer's card with that many zeros.
On average, even a brand new adventurer would start at some level. Whether from life experience or from illegal adventuring, their card would at least show a level between five and seven. Even if a person had never adventured and never used magic at all, their card would still display Level 1.
But this was zero. Fyar said he had lost his card, which meant he had adventured before. So why was his level zero? Was he lying?
Lara shifted her gaze to Fyar and asked with a probing look, "Can you use magic? And why is your level zero? What does this mean? When you first had your card made, was your level also zero?"
Fyar thought quickly to answer Lara's barrage of questions. If he said his magic was sealed, she would surely ask about the seal. If Fyar then said it was because of memory loss, he was afraid Lara could detect his lie. Fyar could sense that the woman before him was high-level; it wasn't impossible that she had an ability to sense falsehoods. Even if it was just a possibility, no matter how small, it could still happen.
Fyar sighed and decided to answer with blunt honesty.
"I don't want to answer that."
"Why?" Lara pressed.
"I just don't want to," Fyar repeated, his tone firmer this time.
Lara's brow furrowed. She let out a long sigh, then a professional smile returned to her face. "Very well. Please take your card and leave if you have no other business." Lara didn't want to waste her energy thinking about unimportant things. She was too lazy for that. Besides, she felt that if Fyar dared to cause any trouble, it would be very easy for her to kill him.
Fyar nodded, took his card, and slipped it into his pocket. He then returned the glowing orb to Lara.
The two of them exited the association building and immediately took in the fresh air. Fyar breathed a sigh of relief. "I think we were lucky that woman didn't demand more answers," he said to Rasie.
Rasie nodded. "Sometimes she's very lazy, other times very diligent. You met her at the right time. Yes, you were lucky." She paused for a moment before adding, "My task is done. I'm going back to training. You can return to the inn. Is there anything else you want to ask?"
"I'm a Hunter right away? I couldn't choose a class?" Fyar asked.
"Are you an idiot? A person's class is determined at birth. Don't tell me you forgot something as basic as that too?" Rasie answered bluntly.
Fyar decided not to respond.
Rasie added, "Alright, I'm leaving. Tomorrow you'll be training with me and Zaefal. I can finally hit you! Haha, I can't wait. Goodbye, weird hair!" She walked away from Fyar, waving a hand without looking back.
Weird hair? It's not that weird, Fyar protested internally.
He sighed again and looked down at the katana sheathed at his waist. I never thought I'd find a katana in this world, he murmured to himself. On Earth, Fyar was a master of all types of weapons. He had trained with a katana at the academy and had used one on a mission in Japan. At times, he had even used a pencil as a weapon.
Fyar then thought about what he should do to spend the rest of the day. In his world, he would usually train, play chess, or sometimes read a novel and play games on his phone in his spare time. In this world, there was no chess and no phone. As for training, he was feeling lazy.
Returning to the inn just to stare at the ceiling until nightfall was not an appealing option. After a moment's thought, Fyar decided to walk around the city and buy some new sets of clothes. The problem was, he didn't know where to find a clothing store.
So Fyar began to walk without a destination, letting his feet carry him through the city's bustling streets.
The afternoon air was warm. The main street was made of neatly laid flagstones, wide enough for two horse-drawn carts to pass. On either side, the buildings stood with a unique architectural style. Most were two-story timber-framed houses with the sloping roofs typical of the medieval period, but some of the larger public buildings, like the town hall and the library, were built from marble with sturdy pillars and grand arches that reminded Fyar of Roman Imperial architecture. The combination created a cityscape that felt both familiar and foreign.
Fyar's gaze shifted to a merchant's stall selling a variety of fresh fruits. Their bright colors and diverse shapes caught his eye. Since he was fond of fruit, he decided to buy some.
"Mister, how much for this fruit?"
"Ten fruits for one gold coin!" the merchant answered with a wide smile.
Pretty cheap, Fyar thought. Wait, what is the actual value of a gold coin anyway? I'm a bit confused now. Ah, whatever, it seems I've been infected by Lara's lazy way of thinking.
"Alright," Fyar replied, handing a gold coin to the merchant.
"F-Fyar!?"
Suddenly, Fyar heard a woman's voice call his name from behind. He turned and saw a figure who was not unfamiliar to him.
A sweet-looking woman with white hair and emerald green eyes, wearing an elegant white dress.
Cyhas.