The adventurer's guild building came into view. It was surprisingly well-built, almost elegant for what I expected from a fantasy world hub.
"What is that strange tension in the air?"
"I'm not sure if you're just excited or what."
I pushed open the door and stepped inside. The first thing that hit me was the reception counter straight ahead. Several girls who looked like guild receptionists were handling adventurers with practiced smiles. And wow, there were quite a few cute ones. Off to the side was a bar area where a handful of people were already drinking even though it was still daytime. Classic RPG guild vibes. I couldn't help grinning. I had pictured it full of burly old men, but there were plenty of young guys and girls mixed in too.
I joined the short line at the counter and waited my turn.
"Hello! What kind of business brings you in today?"
The girl in front of me had adorable brown pigtails and greeted me with a bright, cheerful voice. Cheerful types are the best.
"I'd like to register as an adventurer."
"Registration, excellent! Here's the form. Do you need help filling it out?"
"I'm good, thanks."
Thanks to the reincarnation perks, I could read and write the local language without issue. Melfina really came through. The form only asked for name and occupation. Simple enough. I wrote "Kelvin" for the name and "Green Mage" for the job.
"Kelvin, please wait just a moment."
I picked Green Mage for a very specific reason. In this world, Summoner is an extremely rare class.
There's a similar-sounding job called Trainer. Trainers tame monsters through training and keep them as followers. No MP cost to maintain them, and higher skill ranks let you command more at once. Pretty close to Summoning in some ways.
But Summoners have bigger advantages. The contract works on way more than just monsters. Humans, elves, golems, basically anything with a will or magical structure. Subordinates get stat boosts from my magic supply, we can talk telepathically, and I can summon them anywhere within my magic range. The trade-off is the heavy MP cost, but the payoff is huge.
People who can become Summoners are so rare there's usually only one per country. The moment one gets discovered, every noble and big shot in the kingdom starts paying attention. That kind of spotlight would ruin my plan to enjoy a free, laid-back fantasy life. So I decided to keep the Summoner part hidden as much as possible.
"Sorry to keep you waiting! Here's your guild card."
She handed me a blue card with little wing designs on it. A big "F" was printed clearly in the rank spot.
"Now let me give you a quick rundown of how the guild works."
She explained that adventurers have seven ranks and pointed to a board on the wall.
=====================================
F-class (Rookie) ← Kelvin!
E-class (Fledgling)
D-class (General)
C-class (Proficient)
B-class (Master)
A-class (Expert)
S-class (Extraordinary)
=====================================
My rank was written in cute handwriting with a little arrow pointing at F. Super easy to understand.
"Since you just registered, Kelvin, you'll start at F-class. The guild collects requests from all over the world, ranks them by difficulty, and posts them for adventurers to take."
"So right now I can only accept F-class requests?"
"You can accept requests up to one rank higher, but if you fail, you'll get a penalty. Please keep that in mind."
Got it. No rushing into high-rank stuff like some reckless protagonist.
"Complete ten requests in a row without failing and you'll promote to the next rank. Starting from C-class though, there's an exam you have to pass."
"Understood."
"If you have party members ranked higher than you, you can accept requests up to their max rank. But even if the request gets completed, only the number of requests you've personally achieved counts toward your promotion. Oh, and it's not against the rules to get help from stronger people to finish a request. Feel free to do whatever works for you."
I decided to hold off on forming a party for now. I can't summon Melfina yet anyway. Still, isn't it kind of sneaky to borrow power for your own promotion?
"Then it wouldn't really count as my own achievement, right?"
"Exactly. To accept a request, you need to be at least that rank, but your companions don't have to be guild members. You could hire mercenaries, for example. But like I said, from C-class onward there are exams. You'll have to take those yourself no matter what."
Exams act as a gatekeeper to stop people from cheating their way up. Makes sense if you want real strength at higher ranks.
"There are four main types of requests: subjugation, escort, gathering, and special. For subjugation ones, you usually need to bring back a body part or proof from the monster you defeated, so don't forget that."
Proof required. Good to know. Makes sense. Can't just claim you killed twenty and expect payment.
"Do you have any beginner-friendly requests available?"
"Sure! How about these?"
Defeat Blue Slime × 3
Gather Medicinal Herbs × 5
Search for Lost House Cat (Special Request)
Nice, classic starter quests. Special requests are the catch-all category for stuff that doesn't fit the others.
"How about we start with the Blue Slime subjugation? Perfect chance to test a contract."
Yeah, Melfina and I were on the same wavelength. I wanted to try summoning something as soon as possible. Obviously, I'd do it discreetly.
"I'll take the Blue Slime subjugation request."
"Got it! Here you go."
I officially accepted the quest and left the guild. I heard her name was Ange later on. Looks like she'll be someone I deal with a lot. For now, though, time to gear up. I don't have much money, so I stuck to the basics: a wooden staff and some cheap recovery items.
"This wooden rod has zero physical attack power, but it gives a small boost to magic. It'll help you cast."
Most of my funds were gone after that. Time to find an inn for the night!