"Did you, Band Captain, Ellaria De'loquint the Third of House Starry Oak," the clerk spat Ellaria's name, "along with the registered band Magic Mog, eliminate the slime threat described in this contract?"
"We neutralised the problem."
The crystal flashed blue.
"That is not eliminated, be specific."
"The king and queen slime and their pack no longer exist."
Blue again.
The clerk seemed irritated that she hadn't gotten what she was looking for but reached below the counter and angrily stuffed a fistful of coin into the purse already sitting on the counter. She shoved the purse toward Ellaria who smoothly scooped it into her dimensional bag.
"One last thing. That job should have given us enough points with AG to be moved up to silver plate."
The clerk who had been closing the book jerked and her hand nearly ripped out a page.
"You? Silver?"
"You can look for yourself, the AG will have given you our numbers."
The clerk slammed the book back open and furiously flipped through it until she found what she was looking for and ran a finger down the page.
She blinked and then snorted. "Unfortunately for you, no."
"Wait, what do you mean? Taking care of the goblins should have given us what we needed!"
The clerk held up her index finger and a smug look appeared on her face. "One singular point away from ranking up."
"What about the slime job? That would have pushed us over easily!"
"Sorry but that's not how it works. While the AG does reward it as an unofficially completed job, as you so defiantly stated, it doesn't count as points toward your ranking."
Ellaria rubbed her brow with the side of her finger and frowned. The worst part was she knew the damned clerk was right. If the clerk wasn't such a jerk she might have been able to convince her to tweak their numbers and push them over to silver. As it was, they were going to be stuck with bronze plate until they got around to completing another job. She had wanted to rank up today, she had ambitions for her band and she was irked that she was being snubbed- wait…
She looked up at the clerk who raised an eyebrow.
"There are other ways to get points apart from jobs."
"Oh?"
"Yes!" said Ellaria, giving her a winning smile, which on the elf was like being clubbed over the head with her attractiveness. "I happened to take on two apprentice adventures before coming here and while small the AG does reward bands who do such a thing. That will give us the requisite to rank up."
The green crystal flashed brilliant blue and the clerk scowled.
Ellaria put a uniquely elven smug look on her face and fished the band's bronze plate from her dimensional bag. She slapped it down on the counter.
"One silver adventurers plate please."
The clerk glanced between the plate and the elf and then sighed, her jaded attitude for the job overcoming her irritation with Ellaria.
She pulled up a white wooden box from underneath the counter with difficulty, the box was chained to the floor below with heavy irons. On the lid of the box was an engraving the AG's logo. The clerk tugged at a slim chain around her neck pulling an intricate key from her cleavage. She took the key and inserted it in a dark keyhole in the side of the box. The box clicked and a clockwork sound came from within, the top of the box then opened of its own volition, separating into separate panels that slid apart smoothly, unfolding like a blooming flower.
The inside was padded with black velvet. A stack of bronze plates was within one partition, in a smaller partition was a number of silver plates, and then separate from that again was a single partition with one dusty gold plate.
Ellaria raised an eyebrow. "A gold plate?"
"Yes, it came with the box when this branch was setup. Unsurprisingly we have never had cause to use it, gold platers are rare enough, vanishingly rare someone ranks up to gold in a small town out by the mountains like this."
"Hmm maybe someday. Please, carry on."
The clerk ran her fingers over the silver plates, rectangular pieces of metal inscribed with the AG's logo and a warrant of service from the Queen herself. She chose one, probably the one in least perfect condition knowing this clerk, but in the end it was all the same. Across the plate was engraved: Rank of silver of the -AG- by appointment of Her Majesty EXCALIVANIA the Dragon Queen, Dei Gratia Regina ⚜️
Ellara bit her lip. She had waited such a long time for this, years and years, longer than she perhaps should have as she had decided to spend her time more academically rather than practically.