Vincent was pondering his dilemma. He needed an excuse to interact with this avian. He glanced at the status window again.
~[Name: Kyōi Woodsworth]
There! There, written clearly in the status was his opportunity. Woodsworth was the surname of the adventurer Zoryn. Scanning the room, he noticed that Zoryn was indeed seated at the same table as the young avian, digging into a large plate of chicken. Beside him were his two companions, Leilani and Malak.
It was not uncommon for him to invite adventurers to dine with him, and he often threw grand parties for both nobles and adventurers. All he had to do was invite Zoryn's team to his home!
He approached the group with a friendly smile. "Hello Zoryn, Leilani, Malak. Did you return from your trip to the Beast Forest today?" The archer tilted his head to one side before his eyes lit up in recognition. "Oh, Baron Larkcaster! Nice to see you. And yes, we returned earlier this morning."
Vincent nodded before quickly moving on to his reason for interacting with them. "Well, would you and your group like to dine with me tomorrow?" Zoryn shook his head with an apologetic smile, "I was planning on showing my son here around the city tomorrow. I'm sorry my Lord. Maybe another time?" "Ah, that's quite alright." Vincent quickly walked away. He lowered his head, so no one could see the faltering smile on his face.
Kyōi glanced over at the retreating back of the man. "Who was that?" Zoryn went back to his food, taking a couple of bites before answering. "That was Baron Vincent Larkcaster. His family rules a large majority of the city." "So he's important?" Zoryn nodded, but from what xey could remember, Barons were one of the lowest-ranked nobles, only higher than the commoners, knights, and baronets. "How are adventurers ranked compared to nobles?"
"Adventurers are ranked according to their power, measured in levels based on your age. For example, you would be ranked in the S class, since you are nearly double, almost triple the average level for your age, although you can't register as an adventurer until you are at least 15. We are A class since we are almost level 40. The S class adventurers in our age group are around level 40-50."
Here, Kyōi interrupted. "You should be ranked S class now. You are level 40, Malak is level 41, and Leilani is level 42."
"Hell yeah!" Leilani shouted, gaining several odd looks from the surrounding adventurers. Malak and Zoryn instantly shushed her as Kyōi gestured for Zoryn to continue.
"The average level of a 15-year-old just starting as an adventurer is 20-25, so with the pace you level up at, you most likely will be an A class or maybe even S class adventurer once you become of age. That is if you want to be one."
Kyōi nodded slightly. Becoming an adventurer seemed fun, and it would mean that xey could explore the world.
Back in xeir old life, xeir life was boring and repetitive. Day after day, all xey would do was study. Partying, nope. Hanging out with friends, nope. Sports, nope. Xey only were allowed to play video games if xey were number one in xeir grade. Xeir motorcycle, Gaius, was the only means of escape xey had.
But now, Kyōi had an entire world available to xem. There was no one to nag at xem, no one constantly controlling xeir life. Well, now that Zoryn had adopted xem, xey did have a new parent, parents, if one were to count Malak, which xey did.
The group headed for one of the nearby inns, quickly booking a few rooms. Malak and Zoryn decided to share a room, while Leilani and Kyōi each got xeir own. Since it wasn't too late yet, they decided to all hang out in Zoryn and Malak's room, which was the biggest. That was when Malak decided to tell Kyōi more about the nobles of the world.
"In this city, there are three ruling noble families. Of course, you have already met Baron Larkcaster. His family manages most of the finances in the city. Then, there is the Baron Charlie Soluss, he's a kind man. His family provides the training and manpower for the guards of the city. Then, there is the Krow family. They are officially a Viscount's family, but they tend to avoid shows of power. They are involved with a lot of magic and are the family that found one of the kingdom's highest-ranked academies for young adventures. Once you reach age 15, you can apply to train there if you want to become an adventurer. The Krow family also has a lot of bad rumors surrounding them, but you shouldn't believe them. Most of them are untrue or greatly exaggerated. They have a bad reputation because most of their magic users tend to have an affinity to Dark magic, which is considered evil..."
Malak trailed off, a slight frown on his face. Noticing how down he looked when he said dark magic was considered evil, Kyōi decided to quickly change the topic. "Oh yeah! In the forest, when we first met, I heard you mention a phoenix. Why are you looking for it? Is seeing a phoenix a big deal or something?" Zoryn nodded, smiling brightly. "Yup! Supposedly, seeing a phoenix brings good luck. They were thought to be extinct, so seeing one would be rare. Also, their feathers are said to have a great healing capability. According to a lot of different myths, burning a feather creates smoke that can heal even a cursed wound."
Kyōi thought back to xeir nest, which was filled with feathers xey had used to line the nest. The feathers at the nest where xey had hatched would be fine since it was in a volcano after all, but the ones at xeir nest xey would have to get rid of as soon as possible. Thinking back to where xey had hatched, xey started thinking. Xeir egg meant that there was at least one other phoenix around since at least one of xeir parents had to have been a phoenix. Xey wanted to know why xeir egg had been just left alone in the lava zone.
After chatting a bit longer, they all decided to go to bed. Once the adventurers had all gone to bed, Kyōi transformed back into xeir black kite form. Xey decided to return to the forest for the night before xeir polymorph skill ran out. Xey snuck out through the window in the room the adventurers had booked for xem, not bothering to check for people nearby.
If xey had, xey might've noticed the unfriendly gazes of several men who were up to no good.