It's been many weeks since the tragedy in the village, but no one knows or has heard anything about what happened there. It appears to have never existed in the first place.
The master-disciple duo stood at the food booth, staring at the grilled meat with seasonal vegetables, salads, and various sauces. Everyone wants to nibble on that piece of meat because of the perfume it emits. "Can we eat?" Gura asked while salivating at the dish in front of her eyes. "Nope," Screw said, while his stomach grumbled. "You got money?" he asked.
"None," she cried.
[The system suggests working as an adventurer]
The system suddenly suggested the most efficient way to earn spare money. As he read the system prompt, Screw started to create a future plan for him and his daughter, Gura.
"I think I know what I should do." Screw walks away from the food booth, and Gura follows him into some dark alleyways, turning right from the corner. "Where are we going, master?" she inquired. "Adventurers Guild," he said truthfully. The pair proceeded to stroll through the alley, turn left at the roadside, and then turn right. It was nearly midday when they arrived at the adventurer guild.
The two are standing outside the Adventurer Guild's main door. "As you can see, Gura, this is an adventurers' guild," he explained, pointing to the guild's sign. "Woah, the doors—it's huge." Gura was astonished by its sight.
"We've been looking at this building for hours already; good thing it's not a waste of time," she continued. Screw nodded and gently caressed Gura on the head.
[The system wants to hit you]
[You've been looking for this location for several hours, yet it was merely near the food booth previously]
'This is what we called ADVENTURES~'
-----
There are plenty of things inside the Adventurers Guild building; once you enter, you can see a large bone of a monster displayed at the very center.
There are plenty of things inside the Adventurers Guild building; once you enter, you can see a large bone of a monster displayed at the very center. People with tattoos of different races are inside, gathering and accepting odd jobs from the clerks.
"Anyway, come right here, Gura." Screw led the way toward the receptionist.
"Hi, how may I help you?"
"The receptionist is a woman in her twenties with blue and a shade of green thread at the tip of her hair. People notice her cute and round face since she has a huge eye with a velvet hue and spherical spectacles."
"Wow, you're so knowledgeable, Master! Gura's approval," she raised both of her hands and gave Screw a super thumbs up.
"Dear sir, could you please stop saying nonsense to this pitiful child?" said the receptionist, who had been observing this fool from the beginning. Some receptionists had previously patted her on the shoulder and encouraged her to contact the other adventurers in order to deal with Screw, but the receptionist was patient and kind.
Gura and Screw looked at her with disgust.
Looking at them, the receptionist became irritated but continued to smile. She is, after all, a professional. "Hello, dear sir, welcome once again to the Loreborn Adventurers Guild; how may I assist you?" Screw smiles and approaches the receptionist. "You see, I need a job."
"What kind of job, dear sir?" she asked Screw, using her business grin. "A job that... well, you could say what you think I can do, I might accomplish?"
"I see. A job you can do right?"
"Yes, yes," Screw agreed with pleasure.
"May I have your adventurers' card first? So, I can check what rank you are and give you the most appropriate job for your rank," said the receptionist.
"Card?" Screw wandered. The receptionist's right eyebrow raised when she saw Screw's reaction. "Every guild member has a membership card; within are the records of their accomplishments and achievements," the receptionist added.
"This is Loreborn City," the girl with the fascinating white eyes said as she joined the conversation between him and the receptionist. "Is this your first time here?" he asked the lady next to him. "Of course!" said the lady, "the reason I've never been here is because it's too far away and I can't find a suitable courier job to this location."
"Why? It seems easy to get here from your location."
"Listen, Mr. Screw, it's difficult because it's too far away; it'll take several years just to set foot in this city," she stated as she walked towards the quest board.
"That long, huh?" He considered how long it would take if he went to her present city, but before he could finish, the receptionist cough, "Ehem."
"Sir, I'm not sure who you're speaking with, but I believe you should leave right now."
"Why?" he inquired.
"You can leave now if you don't want to register as an adventurer."
Gura tugs at his clothes. "Master, I want to be an adventurer," she said, looking at him with expectations. Screw couldn't help but hug his daughter, saying, "Of course, love, I'll register you as an adventurer!" Gura's eyes lit up, and she cheered that she could get a job.
"All right, does the little miss here want to be an adventurer?"
"Yes," she confirmed. "I'm sorry, but you cannot," the receptionist replied bluntly. "Why?!" they both yelled at the receptionist at the same time.
"Sir," the receptionist says, "we can't apply for this child right now because she's underage." "As far as I can tell, she's three or near six," the receptionist predicts based on her height. Gura was six this year, but Screw doesn't want the other villagers to know the truth, so he lies and claims she was ten when they came. "She's fifteen already; it's just that her height doesn't match up."
"Alright, but do you have any supporting documents for me to check?" She said this, knowing that the man in front of her, wearing a bird mask, was lying. This causes him to break out in a cold sweat because he doesn't have one, and he's now thinking quickly about how he can manipulate this scenario to his advantage.
[The system suggest to offer that card]
"Card?" He said. "Do you perhaps have an adventurer's identification card, sir?" The receptionist smiled because if he already had an adventurer's card, it would be a smooth process with less hassle on her part.
[The card that inside your bag]
[The smooth one]
Screw tossed his backpack on the floor and rummaged through his belongings until he came upon a black-tinted card. He takes it and hands it to the receptionist to examine.
She gladly received the card, but as she checked it, her expression twisted in perplexity and fear. She glanced at him with terrified eyes and questioned, "Is this really yours, good sir?" Her voice was frantic. "Yeah, that is mine."
The receptionist placed his card on a handkerchief and dashed inside, carefully holding his card. "Hey, what's up?" the lady with gray eyes asked, tapping his back. "Did the little girl next to you register?" she inquired. Gura glanced at his master, puzzled, and inquired, "Master, why did that woman suddenly run inside, just like the end of the world?"
He rubs his mask with uncertainty; he doesn't know what to say. He had completely forgotten the history of the black card and just obeyed what the system suggested without inquiry. "What did you do?" the lady asks. "Don't ask me. Even I don't know what she's thinking."
The receptionist returned with a friendly and compassionate expression. She approaches him and Gura outside her table, smiles at both of them, and asks them to follow her inside.
The two agreed and headed to the fourth floor. When they arrived at the sliding door, she asked them gently, "Please go inside; the guild master is waiting for you." When they entered the guild chamber, they noticed a young, attractive elf sipping tea, waiting for them.
The door opened, and they both stepped inside. The elf gave them a quick glance; she emanated a guild master aura and a higher rank as an adventurer at the time. But when she spotted a man wearing a bird mask, a bluish-dark scarf, and an atmosphere of distinctiveness, her demeanor vanished.
She couldn't believe her eyes. If an abyss looks at you, don't dare to look back; that's a forbidden scripture passed down from her forefathers. She couldn't keep her cool; she knew whomever had this black card wasn't a regular person.
The elf had believed she could maintain her cool under pressure because she had met other people who possessed this type of black card, but now she is unsure if she will survive this encounter.
"Why are you still holding your cup? You don't want to put it down?" Gura asks the guild leader, and the elf believes that this small girl gives her a chance to live and free herself from the abyss.
When she awoke from her nightmare, she glanced at Gura and murmured, "Thank you." She grins happily at this girl, despite her chilly perspiration. Gura lifted an eyebrow to inquire, "Why'd you thank me?" She doesn't do anything at all.
The man in question took a glance at her; the elf was stunning. Her blondish white hair and long ears reveal that she is a true high elf.
She set her cup down and looked at them, especially the tiny child, to evaluate her. "Hello, and once again, welcome to the Loreborn Adventurers Guild; my name is Luscia Lightsight, and I am the guild master of this branch," she added, bowing to greet them respectfully. Screw says abruptly, "Do I know you somewhere?"
Hearing his question brought her joy; she felt her frigid heart melt away. "Yeah, actually—" but before she can answer, he intervenes, "Well, it doesn't matter; anyway, stop looking at Gura and look at me." He saw her gaze and realized that she was only looking at Gura.
'How should I do that? Do you want me to die?' She kept silent by crossing her lips. 'Don't look at the abyss. Don't look at the abyss!' This is her new lifelong mantra.
"Well, if you know me, then don't ever say my name," he instructed. The guild master almost died when she heard it: "I won't, I promise you."
"So can I get back my card now?" He stood up and tried to reach the scared elf girl on the other side of the table. She jolted, quickly touched the card with care, and pushed it to him without looking at him or touching him. After that, she retreated and said, "All the documents will be completed; you don't need to worry about it."
"Then she can register as a guild member now?"
"Yes, yes, yes," she rapidly replied. She almost felt that her soul would leave her.
Gura suddenly sprang up happily: "Master, I'm an adventurer now!"
"Not so fast; you still don't have the guild card." He smiled happily at her, content that there would be no problem or delay in her registration.
'Ma-master?' when the elf heard her call him master she suddenly froze again. She felt the same dejection from thousand years ago.
"Well, if that's all, we will go now." Screw and Gura stood up and left the room, while the guild master didn't move for half an hour, even though the receptionist did her best to wake her up. "Don't you ever dare tell anyone what happened here or who the girl guardian is," the guild master warned the receptionist as she exited the room.
"Why? Guild leader, I cannot do that; you already know it needs to be reported to the other higher-ups." The receptionist rejects the guild master's plan to keep all information on the master-student duo hidden.
"Let me tell you this once, and only once."
"If that woman asks me to spread my legs right here right now, then I will be grateful to do so". She continues, "Even though she didn't say, I would ask her to spread my legs, and I'd be happy for the rest of my life." The receptionist couldn't believe what she heard. This is the guild master, once called the "Highest Frost" when she was in her prime.
"I'll give you a higher bonus on top of your previous bonus, and I'll give you a much larger bonus on top of your current bonus, which I'll give you later at your paycheck."
"Then I'll obliged," she said, bowing down and leaving the room.
The master and student have already left the premises. "What's the problem with that guild master?" the lady in white asked while walking alongside them. "Who knows?" he shrugged.