Bridge 34 (Guilds don't make sense)

I was confident I had a handle on what this world was offering. All the signs were rather clear after all. The only sign it was missing was a prophecy of a saintess saving the world.

I may be bitching about this but being inside of an Otome Game was not that bad. At least there was a clear magic system that I could lean on here. I’m not sure if I could learn the magic here but it was worth trying. Which meant I had to pay the absurd price of admission to the academy.

I was not that worried about that as being the Gamer already brought immense wealth. Beyond that, the trading book would bring in countless profits.

Still, while those things would bring me money I did want to join the local Adventures Guild. If only because I would find it funny. It was not like I needed the Stat Card they offered as I had the Status window. On the other hand, having that card would make my give my identity a bit more grounding here.

A powerful adventure applying and paying the fee for the Academy made sense. If I just showed up out of the blue paying absurd fees with no background it would draw eyes. Especially since I was planning to apply during the year that the crown prince was going to attend the academy.

Becoming an adventurer will also let me get a better handle on the ceiling of this world. I figured Ringo and Tsuyukoi could run circles here but I did not know for sure. So I still might have to take my two bodyguards to a different world.

If this was a world of absurd magic then I was better off running. It should be fine as this was a low fantasy world but it would be better to check.

I’m sure my two retainers would appreciate appearing in a world that spoke Japanese. Which might be a bit difficult to get as most low fantasy worlds were Western fantasy ones.

Even now I could tell that they were frustrated at the people around them not speaking the same language. I was sure that they would get a handle on it rather quickly but not knowing what was going on around them was bugging them.

It made protecting me harder when they did not know threats were being spoken to them. For now, they were operating off of body language and tone. Which was fine for one on one confrontations but the knife in the dark is the most dangerous. That was something these two Shinobis were more than familiar with.

It also made their information-gathering skills rather pointless. 

We were currently walking towards the Adventuring Guild. The merchant looked me over with a perplexed look when I asked but he did send me to the place after some prodding. 

As we entered the building I could see why he was confused. The building was filled with rough and tough men. The type of guys who worked hard dirty jobs to bring in money. Which kind of fit the adventure image in my head but the observer skill told me that most of these men were barley better than a trained knight.

Not a fucking fantasy knight either. No, these men would fit in medieval Europe. They had some magical skills but nothing that would put them heads above the common people.

The scruffy image was also rather blatant. These men were not powerful figures in society they were just working gents. 

I looked like the odd one out in this room. Striking red eyes and the haunting beauty of vampires. A long bright red coat and perfectly-tailored clothes that would not look out of place on a noble. Two stunning women following me about but it was clear they were protecting me.

I 100% looked like a little noble heir wandering around for fun. The Adventure’s Guild was clearly not a place where someone like that would belong.

It made sense when you think about Nobility hoarding power. Yes, adventures were a thing but Nobility is where the real power is held. They would train their own knights and soldiers to protect their territories. Beyond that, the Royal Family had a knight order and a court of magicians. 

Anyone of real skill would not be wandering around fighting monsters in this world. Or at least that would be the case in this country. I could not say anything about the other countries but I figured it would at least be similar.

The notion of having a free-standing guild of adventures that held power but answered to no one was a fool's dream. In a world were Nobility ruled having that threat at their throat would be an annoyance that needed to be snuffed out.

I was honestly surprised that this place was running at all. Sure, they held no real power but the organization was still a thing. Maybe they were only created because the designer of the Otome Game wanted to add them. Ignoring the world they built around them and what Nobility would do in the face of such an organization. 

“What do you need lad?” One of the gruff-looking men here asked. He was bald with a beard going for him. He was sitting around with a drinking ale from a mug.

He was giving wary looks at the two women by my side. The other men in the room were too entrapped by Tsuyukoi's seductive beauty to notice the sheer danger radiating off of them. It made sense that he could see the threat that they were as he had the highest level here.

At least the punks around here kept their mouths shut. While they felt lust for Tsuyukoi that noble image I had meant danger for them. You do not want to anger the Nobility over one attractive woman. That was something that every single member of the peasantry would know.

“I was looking to sign up for the Adventures Guild,” I spoke out firmly as I walked towards the man. The bald man grimaced at my words but did not say the words he wanted to say. He clearly thought I was here to play around but he was not going to fight me on this.

“Well everyone is welcome here right boys!?” He shouted out breaking the spell Tsuyukoi had on the men here. They all cheered and started drinking from the mugs in their hands. He looked over at me with some caution but a welcoming smile that he might even mean.

“There is a small fee for registration and to get your Card made but it is just 30,000 Cents” He spoke out while he brought out some forms for me to fill out.

I blinked at the paper and the request for money. I should have figured signing up at the guild required some money. I looked over the form and it was not that invasive. Just my name and where I was from. I just put down the city we're currently in and my name. Thankfully it was all in English.

The money on the other hand was not something I could pull out of my ass. I did not think that it was an absurd number since he called it a small fee and the the look of the men in this room told me that they would not be able to afford anything too drastic.

I bit my lip for a moment before looking at the man before me. He was looking confused at my sudden hesitation.

“I do not have any cents on me currently but I do have this,” I spoke out as I brought a small golden statue from my inventory and placed it on the table. To make a profit I traded everything and anything on the market. With the VIP function, all my trades made bank. So I had little knickknacks I found interesting stored in my inventory.

The room fell in silence as the golden statue came about. I could see greed in the eyes of some of these men but they held themselves back still. The bald man let out a sigh as he looked over at it.

“I can lend you the 30,000 cents lad…..this is too much.” He spoke out as he motioned for me to put the thing away. Well I got to respect his good nature at least.

“No, it’s fine. Just take the Statue. Treat it as a bonus for putting up with someone like me. It’s not too big so I don’t know how much it’s worth but it should cover the fee and a round of drinks on me for the guild.” I spoke out with a grin on my face as I faced the rest of the men in the room.

My declaration had more cheers ringing out in the room. Men like this would not be sad when faced with free booze after all. The bald man still seemed hesitant about taking the statue but eventually, just let out a sigh and put it away.

“If that is what you want lad fine. Here is your Stat Card you are going to need to put some of your blood on it to activate the thing.” He spoke out while pulling out a needle for me but I had already pieced my fingers with my nails dropping some blood on my card.

He put the needle away sheepishly. I looked over the now active card with some interest but decided against opening my stat screen here in this room.

“So what sort of quests can I get as a newbie?” I asked the bald man with a grin on my face. He scratched his beard and looked at the people around him for some advice but everyone was ignoring him. I raised an eyebrow as it can’t be that bad right?

“Well…. usually we have boys your age cleaning the sewers.” He spoke out awkwardly and I blinked at that but before I could say anything he waved the notion off.

“But that’s clearly not going to work. You strike me as someone who wants to fight monsters so here is a light hunt request…..I have a feeling your ‘friends’ here can help you take care of it.” He spoke out giving Ringo and Tsuyukoi wary looks. The duo did not understand him but they got the feelings coming off of him. The both of them smiled at him promising pain for my foes.