Chapter 1 (1): The Capital, the Guild, and the School
A week and a half after I'd left for the capital, we arrived, and I discovered a problem... I didn't have any identification, so I couldn't enter it. Thankfully, Van and his party vouched for me, and so I was given a temporary ID (at the cost of one silver coin, which I also got from Van) and was let in. However, the ID was only valid for three days, and I'd have to return it before then or face arrest. I could get a permanent ID by joining a guild, enrolling in the school, or by buying one and having an interview. Come on, tell me this when I cross the border, not when I try to enter a big city. Anyways, time to go to the guild and help Van to sell his prey.
"Ah, Van, it's good to see you again, I assume you completed your request... also, who's that girl with you? She your new party member?" (Receptionist)
"I wish. No, she's just someone who saved my party from a pack of horned wolves as she was passing by, and... Well, Ryuu, can you show her?" (Van)
I pulled out eight of the dismantled horned wolves, a dismantled orc, and handed them to the receptionist.
"So, uh... how should I split the money? Does the girl have a guild card?" (Receptionist)
"Oh, this is just the things that Van's party killed, I'm holding onto the ones I killed, as I'm not a part of the guild yet. I was coming to the capital to enroll in the training school, you see" (Ryuu)
"I... I see... Well, that's eight horned wolves at 2 silver each, and an orc, so... 16 silver for the wolves and 4 for the orc, so 20 in total. Does that sound reasonable?" (Receptionist)
"That it does. How much was the meat worth on its own?" (Van)
"That would be... 4 silver for the wolves and 3 for the orc" (Receptionist)
"Thank you. Can I get 18 silver and the rest in large coppers?" (Van)
"Very well. That's 18 silver and 20 large copper, and there's also the 3 large silver for the request completion. Can you confirm the amount?" (Receptionist)
Van looked in the bag of coins that the receptionist gave him, and confirmed the amount. After that, we left the guild and he gave me 3 silver and 5 large copper coins as payment for half of the meat. Oh, right. The currency in both the human and demon lands is the same, being coins known as copper, large copper, silver, large silver, gold, large gold, and then there are some higher coins that aren't used for much of anything besides trades between large merchants and the government. Each one is worth ten times the lower one, and a good but cheap meal is usually about 5 copper, and a night's stay with no bath or meal in a similarly good but cheap inn is often around 3 to 5 large coppers, depending on the location and room. After that, we split up and I went to the training school, where I asked to enroll.
"Well, fill out this form. You'll need to write your name, age, planned role in a party, and what weapon or weapons you are good with, and if you plan to use magic, what your elements are. If you don't know, we can assess them for a fee of one silver. If you can't write, we can write for you, but be warned that you'll have to learn quickly if you get accepted to the school" (Woman)
"I can write, don't worry. Let's see... Ryuu, 15, midguard, I guess... Weapons and elements... Let's see, swords, spear, bow, axe, and daggers, and for elements... Uh, I never got my elements assessed, but I have had training in a few elements that I know I have, or rather, that I could find an instructor for. So, I can use fire, lightning, dark, and spatial, which means that I also have wind, though I don't know how to use it" (Ryuu)
"Very well... Wait... All of those weapons, and five or more elements? OK, you know what, I'm curious, so I'll waive the fee for elemental assessment... if you show me something good, that is. Sound fine?" (Woman)
"Sure. Let's go" (Ryuu)
We went in back, where I was told to put my hand on a crystal ball, and told that it would glow with the colors of the main and special elements that I had an affinity for, and then there would be another two that would show derivative and combination elements. I put my hand on the first ball, and it glowed red for fire, green for wind, blue for water, and yellow for earth, then black for dark, white for light, and grey for spatial.
"I... I don't believe it... you can use all of the main and special elements... Normally, there's a separate fee for the other balls, but I think I'll waive those too..." (Woman)
I put my hand on the second ball, which glowed blue for ice, yellow for lightning, white for dust, green for mud, red for explosion, grey for metal, and then black for shadow.
"A... a... all... all of the combination elements... please put your hand on the third ball..." (Woman)
Black for curse, white for healing, and grey for void. Again, all of them.
"E... excuse me... I have to get someone to see this... wait here, please..." (Woman)
She ran out of the room, and five minutes later, she came back with two elderly men and a young woman behind her.
"Miss Ryuu... this is the head of the magician's guild, which is across the street from here, the headmistress of the academy, and the royal court magician, who was visiting the magician's guild. Please, put your hand on the second and third balls again..." (Woman)
I did, and with each light, the faces of the three silent people went from annoyed to impressed to shocked to "I must be dreaming" and then, when I moved to the third ball, they were expectant. After I showed that I had all of the elements, the silence was broken by the royal court magician fainting, and then the two others were asking me to join their respective organizations, offering me better and better terms as they tried to outdo each other.
"Enough. I may have a lot of potential as a mage, and I plan to learn all I can to be the best mage I can be, but I like more than just magic. In case you didn't notice, I have a spear on my back, and a dagger and axe on each hip. I would rather learn to be an adventurer than be limited to being a magician in the guild, so I'm fine with joining the school with a full scholarship including room and board, as well as the ability to start at whatever rank I have the skills for at the end of the term, instead of the limit of C rank that the school normally has for its graduates. I don't need a fixed salary from the guild, nor an introduction to a good party or an increase in sale price on all of my materials. I don't want to stand out that much, thank you" (Ryuu)
"But- if that's what you want, we could be willing to allow you to do what you will with your swordplay and whatnot if you join the magician's guild. We've been wanting to research how to add magic to weapons in a flexible way in the middle of the fight, in other words, to allow swordsmen to use magic to bolster their swordsmanship as needed, the way magic weapons do, but with regular weapons. We-" (Mage)
"I don't want to spend my life doing research. Besides, you haven't measured how much mana I have. For all you know, I could have almost nothing, right?" (Ryuu)
"Good point... We still need to do that" (Headmistress)
"Also, is anyone going to wake up the court magician?" (Ryuu)
"I'll take him, I guess. Still, if you ever change your mind, our doors will be open to you always" (Mage)