Loki and Rika arrived at the guild hall and immediately caught the attention of the adventurers inside. All of them were watching Loki's every movement with their attentive eyes. All of them were trying to analyze his capabilities based on his appearance alone, but no one could come to a conclusion.
While walking through the massive dome, his eyes wandered around, noticing the set of clothing the people around him were wearing. 'Hmm... I just realized that the clothes I am wearing are completely out of place here. I am sticking out like a sore thumb—but in a bad way because of how unusual my clothes are.'
Loki shifted her gaze to Rika who was walking beside him, wearing her dress, which made her beautiful face and body feature more pronounced. Loki's eyes were drawn to her pouty lips. As if Rika noticed him looking at her, she looked up at him and smiled brightly. Although Rika was completely ignoring them, many eyes were drawn to her.
'Man... I still can't believe that this girl is into me. She's so cute!' Loki stopped and faced Rika who also stopped while looking up at him.
"The office of the guild master is upstairs. I'll wait here." Rika said.
"I'll go now," Loki said and walked upstairs.
At the end of the staircase was a wooden door. Loki walked towards the wooden door and knocked twice.
"Come in." A voice from inside the office sounded.
Loki slowly opened the door and found an old man standing at the window located behind the office chair. His eyes were watching the street outside, he saw the arrival of the carriage Loki and Rika used, so he knew he was coming. The old man had white hair due to his age. He wore a brown suit, slacks, and brown leather shoes which made a wood sound in his every step as he walked toward Loki.
The room had wooden walls and floor and had picture frames, trophies, and medals hanging on them. Circled in the middle of the room were four white sofas. Loki wandered his eyes around but immediately darted to the man approaching him.
"My name is Rupert Swain, I am the guild master of the Adventurers' Guild of Satirica branch," Rupert said as he raised his hand toward Loki. In his lips was a both strict and gentle smile.
Loki grabbed his hand. "I'm Loki Morningwood."
"Loki Morningwood, I heard about you... You made quite a ruckus inside the guild yesterday. Unfortunately, you suddenly disappeared before I could even have a chance to talk to you and congratulate you for reaching the highest rank of the adventurers' guild so easily." Rupert said and pointed his hand to the chairs. "Please take a seat, Loki."
"Thank you," Loki politely said and sat on one of the white sofas circled in the middle of the room.
Rupert sat in front of him while not removing his eyes from him. "I've read your information, it said on your sheet that you are not from this kingdom. You just came out of nowhere and dominated this guild without even trying. Is it fine to know where you are from?"
"As of now, I have no place I call home... Wherever I stand, that's where I live." Loki answered. "Is this by chance an interrogation?"
"No. Let's just say that question was just out of curiosity. It just is not every day I can get a chance to meet such a powerful person like you." Rupert said and weakly clapped once. "Do you know how many living Class S adventurers Earthish have? You are only the 29th in the entire world." He slowly leaned backward and waited for any reaction coming from Loki—but received none. Loki's expression remained unchanged which piqued Rupert's curiosity.
'29th? Like fucking hell! It's super rare!' He kept his scream inside his head and slowly nodded. "The 29th, but I wonder how strong the others are? Are they strong? I hope so. Because it would be a shame if they don't live up to their ranks." Loki said using a baritone tone with a smirk on his lips.
Loki's confidence brought a smile to Rupert's face. "There is only one way to know... To see their capabilities in person."
Loki leaned back and crossed his legs. "But I don't think you invited me here just to hear my thoughts about becoming a Class S adventurer. I don't have time for small talk... Let's get to the point already." He said. 'I want to leave this place now and spend the rest of the day with the cute red fox girl waiting for me downstairs!'
Rupert slowly nodded and his smile became more prominent. "Straight to the point... I am a big fan of people like you." He said and put his reading glasses on. "We have received a piece of very horrible news about the summoned hero and his journey to defeat the dark lord. A few days ago, a brutal battle had occurred between the dark lord against the summoned hero and the god of luck himself, the most powerful god of Earthish, Lak."
'Lord Lak? Lord Lak fought the dark lord?' Loki thought to himself and leaned forward.
Rupert shook his head. "Lord Lak and the summoned hero are defeated. The summoned hero was killed, Lak had managed to escape but we still don't know his current state—but the only thing is sure... He was severely weakened after that defeat."
Loki's eyebrows rose. 'I met Lord Lak about two days ago... Does that mean I met him after he was defeated and fled? That old man didn't tell me about this!' He screamed inside his head.
"The guild is one of our last lines of defense... Specifically, the Class S adventurers." Rupert paused for a second. "Now, I am asking you on behalf of the entire Adventurers' Guild to aid us to fight the dark lord... In exchange, you will receive compensation for your cooperation."
"Compensation for cooperation?" Loki asked.
Rupert nodded. "One million gold coins a month, by just being a Class S adventurer—a beacon of hope, and that without mentioning the rewards you will get by fighting with us against the dark lord." He said. "Loki Morningwood, does the sound of it appeal to you?"
'That's fucking a lot! I can buy a freaking mansion in a few months with that!' He thought. Loki put his hand on his chin. 'Actually, you don't have to pay me... Because that's the main reason I am here, to stop the dark lord no matter what. But all in all, one million gold coins a month is one million gold coins a month—and I will receive a fortune doing nothing.' Loki thought.
Loki stood up. "Then, you have got yourself a deal." He raised his hand.
"Thank you very much," Rupert said and grabbed Loki's hand. "Thank you very much, Loki Morningwood."
Loki smirked. "It is my pleasure."