LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 118
Wherever there are people gathered, it’s bound to be noisy.
If even just one person speaks up, it quickly becomes a ruckus.
And the guild where adventurers gather is no different.
When I first walked in, I was greeted by an atmosphere that felt more like a bustling market than a guild.
Adventurers were clustering around a board to pick missions, while some were casually having a meal at tables set in the corner.
Fortunately, it seemed like they weren’t selling alcohol since this was a place for guild business.
Being adventurers, they all looked quite tough… well, maybe not tough, but definitely full of energy, especially the women.
Since this is a low-entry job, there were plenty of male adventurers as well.
Even though I had just barged in, thankfully, I didn’t draw much attention to myself.
Thanks to my hooded disguise, I was flying under the radar.
However, there were a few Gaia folks who recognized my party.
In other words… they saw me as an NPC.
Some of my party members had been adventurers long enough to be known by a few here.
Some even came over to chat with my party.
“Whoa, is that you, Hanbyeol? It’s been forever!”
“Who’s that cloaked person next to you? Heh, could it be your boyfriend?”
“N-no! What are you talking about…?”
Hanbyeol awkwardly denied with a frown at the teasing remarks of the adventurers.
It seemed my hood couldn’t disguise my whole physique.
After watching for a bit, I headed straight to the guild’s reception desk.
As I mentioned earlier, I was there to get a blacksmith and adventurer tag.
“…Welcome, how can I help you?”
The receptionist was a freckled woman, who seemed quite over the boring work she’d been doing, welcoming me with a rather lackluster attitude.
She stood up straight and asked me, “What do you need?”
“About the blacksmith… actually, I came to make an adventurer tag first.”
I said that while placing a pouch of money on the reception desk.
Making an adventurer tag was really simple. I had thought about making one since I was just a hermit stuck in the woods.
With just a decent amount of money, you could easily get an F-rank adventurer tag.
From there, you just had to slowly raise your rank by completing missions.
Alternatively, there’s another way. By investing more money to take a simple skill test.
This method involved battling an adventurer contracted with the guild one-on-one.
If you won against the respective rank’s adventurer, you’d instantly get that rank’s adventurer tag.
Of course, I would go for the latter option.
‘No need to fuss around breaking tasks to raise my rank.’
As I was thinking this, the receptionist, who had taken my money, spoke up.
“Alright, but could you please take off your hood first?”
“Umm… do I really have to show my face?”
“Yes, there could be a chance of adventurer tag theft, so at least our guild members need to know your face and name.”
Well, even if this was informal, some proof would be necessary.
With a sigh, I reluctantly took off my annoying hood.
As my heavily shadowed face became visible, the receptionist’s eyes widened a bit, and she froze after taking a quick breath.
After a moment of waiting, I urged her, “Aren’t you going to process my request?”
“Oh, right! Yes, I will. I have to…”
With that, she started her work again, but unfortunately, the commotion was just beginning.
“Hey, wait a second. Look over there.”
“What? I’m busy eating right now… huh?”
“Who is that? I don’t recognize them… Did a new adventurer come?”
“Forget that, look at their face! They look like someone you’d want to see after a long night.”
The mercenaries, who had been eating, started whispering amongst themselves.
“Hold on… isn’t that Yor?”
“No way, it really is! What the heck is an NPC avoiding the woods doing here?”
The otherworlders started pointing me out as they recognized me.
They thought they were speaking quietly, but with Amducias’ hearing, I caught all of it.
With an influx of handshake requests coming my way, I sighed internally.
‘Ahh, this popularity…’
This was exactly why I’d been wearing the hood to avoid the hassle.
But then again, the reactions were mostly positive, so I wasn’t feeling too bad.
However, that was short-lived.
As the otherworlders recognized me, the curious Gaia folks started asking about me.
“Who’s that guy? I feel like I know him. Who is he?”
“Is he somewhat known among the otherworlders?”
“Ah, um…”
Upon hearing this, the otherworlders began explaining who I was. It was no secret among them, so why not share a little, right?
However, the reactions from the Gaia folks were stark.
“What? Demon’s Blood…?”
As soon as that word slipped out, their faces soured.
“Damn… so that means he’s a manifestation, isn’t he? He’s surprisingly alive for his age.”
“Shouldn’t we just take him out right now?”
“N-no? I heard he was recognized by the emperor…”
“Right, maybe the emperor was a bit out of it! How can you leave someone who could explode at any moment alone? That’s insane!”
Those were some pretty extreme comments. If the Knights were around, they’d snatch someone for insulting the emperor.
The atmosphere was shifting gradually.
What began as mere curiosity and interest now turned into suspicion.
I could feel the adventurers rubbing their weapons with wary eyes around me.
Noticing the change, my party’s expressions stiffened a bit.
In that situation, I calmly asked the receptionist, “So… is everything ready?”
“Oh, well… yes. I’ve engraved your name already.”
She said that and showed me my adventurer tag. My name was inscribed small at the bottom of the palm-sized tag.
However, the center of the tag was completely blank—it hadn’t been graded yet since I hadn’t done the rating test.
“You added extra money, right…? You’re looking to take the skill test, correct?”
“Yes. But how is my opponent chosen?”
“Usually, we assign a guild adventurer, but sometimes you can choose your opponent yourself, as long as they don’t know you…”
“That sounds good. Let’s go with the latter.”
I said that with a smile and then turned back to the adventurers behind me.
“Hey, stop muttering like a bunch of cowards and just come at me if you have a problem.”
I didn’t raise my voice but made sure everyone in the guild could hear me loud and clear.
“······.”
“······.”
In an instant, the murmurs died down. All attention was now on me.
Adventurers selecting missions, otherworlders gossiping, even the receptionist stopped to look.
But instead, an icy atmosphere swirled around. The otherworlders looked around nervously, and some of the tougher adventurers frowned outright.
Noticing that, I couldn’t help but think, ‘Yeah… that’s a pretty normal reaction.’
Even though the emperor had given me an identification tag, that was a bold move on his part. It wasn’t like it was announced to the whole world.
If even nobles around the emperor protested, you can only imagine how regular folks would react.
It’s only natural for them to be on guard and draw their weapons.
While I vaguely understood that in my mind, experiencing it firsthand was a different story and was somewhat bittersweet.
But that’s all. I didn’t worry about it any further. I already knew how to handle this situation.
“What’s this? You say I’m a ticking time bomb that needs to be dealt with? And yet, I’m right in front of you, and you’re doing nothing?”
All I had to do was crush them with power. I had done that with the Knights, so I can do it again.
After all, I was recognized by the emperor.
What could some mercenaries possibly do, even if they were disgruntled?
“Ugh.”
“That bastard…!”
From every corner, I could hear the voices of the disgruntled. Regardless, I continued to speak to the adventurers.
“Actually, this feels like an opportunity. My weapon broke, so I have no choice but to fight barehanded. If I win, I might even get a reward.”
I kept provoking them. Still, surprisingly, nobody rushed at me immediately.
Maybe the fact that I was Demon’s Blood was weighing down on them more than I thought, or maybe they were just being cautious.
At one point, one of the adventurers shouted to one of my party members.
“Hey, Shin Hanbyeol, you’re A-rank! Can’t you just take the rank test for us?”
“Me? Pfft, no way. I don’t want to get hit.”
She laughed it off, but…
“Uh… actually, getting hit might not be that bad.”
…Some strange mumbling floated over, but I ignored it.
After all, it was something only I could hear, so I should respect that.
“Lame. I can’t believe nobody’s stepping up. Are you all scared of one guy?”
“Huh?”
“That jerk…!”
Looks like my last comment ruffled a few feathers. Finally, one person stood up.
“I’ll take him on.”
It was a woman with a rather mischievous face, wielding a morning star and clad in thick armor.
As she stood up, the crowd reacted.
“Go for it, Befri! Show him what you’ve got!”
“You can do it! If you win, I’ll treat you!”
Her reaction seemed pretty popular; looks like she’s somewhat famous.
As I tilted my head in confusion, Haneul, who had been watching from the side, chimed in with an explanation.
“She’s a well-known warrior of the Steel Guardian Clan… I’ve heard that she might even hit S-rank if she keeps it up.”
“That clan’s name is quite something.”
It’s been a truth since way back that the grander a name, the less substantial its value.
I stepped forward calmly.
All eyes were on me. The tables were cleared, and it felt like an arena had formed in an instant.
In the distance, I could see the receptionist looking troubled, but the adventurers’ excitement was reaching an uncontrollable peak.
The one called Befri swung her morning star, smirking, and said, “I’m not going to go easy on you just because you’re a guy. Heh, I actually can’t wait to see you cry like a baby with a broken face.”
“We seem to have similar tastes, huh? I like that sort of thing, too.”
Her morning star looked massive and heavy. Most people would struggle to lift it.
Compared to that terrifying weapon, all I had was my body.
Sure, I had other weapons tucked away, but I had no intention of pulling them out.
‘This is enough.’
I drew my mana up, then lightly scraped my skin with my nail.
With a sharp sting, a little blood seeped out.
I gathered the blood on the tip of my fingers.
Though it was just a small amount, it should hold up just fine.
“Die!”
The battle commenced in a flash.
The moment she realized I was preparing something, she charged at me.
The heavy morning star swung down from above.
And as always, if I can see it and recognize it, I can respond to it.
I took a step forward and deftly dodged to the side.
The morning star whiffed past me and embedded into the ground.
Bam—!
“No, not the ground!”
In the distance, I could hear the receptionist’s voice, but I decided to ignore it for now.
She wasted her turn; now it was my turn.
I threw my fist with full power into her exposed face.
Wham—!!!
A dull thud echoed as her face caved in.
Still seemingly full of energy, her head bounced off the ground like a basketball.
Then, she crashed down like a lifeless body. That was it.
The battle ended just as suddenly as it began.
“······.”
“Uh······.”
In the silence filled with shock, I calmly said, “So, does that mean I’m an A-rank adventurer now?”
No one answered.