I was sat with seven people around a table in the adventurer's guild. Their leader was a stout, heavy looking man, though he could not compare to the tank seated on his right. To his left was a pretty young woman dressed as a mage and welding a staff.
"Alright, I'll take your offer." I said.
"Splendid!" Sherby replied. "Welcome to the party."
I had been registered officially as an adventurer only a few minutes ago. After I had got that strange bull tattoo with a nose ring, the attendant had explained to me everything I had just done, and more.
Apparently, the first orb was to register me as a member of the guild so anywhere I went, as long as they could access the guild records, they would find that I was a member of the adventurer's guild.
The second orb however, was a form of proof for places with no access to the adventurer guild's records. Though it was possible to fraud this kind of tattoo, without an actual example and some professional help, the replica would be quite noticeable. This was because the tattoo was made using magic essence.
Every person had their own specific essence signature. This was like a way of identifying which magic essence belonged to who. The adventurer's guild used magic essence that is said to be gotten from a combination of several different species of magical beasts.
Magic essence naturally was not tangible but how they did it, not many people were privy to this matter. I was among the majority in this case.
She had explained that as an adventurer, there would be discounts to everything we bought, provided we bought from shops owned by, or in collaboration with the adventurer's guild. Selling our spoils would also come with an added bonus. Plus, being an adventurer would still allow one to enjoy some sort of prestige and fame which being in the King's army could not give.
Hearing all this, I understood why some would want to get a fake adventurer tattoo. It was surely good to become an adventurer if someone had all those bonuses.
After all that, I was led back outside the room and into the main hall of the adventurer's guild, where Sherby and the gang were waiting - surprisingly.
After the fight earlier had concluded, most people had left to go continue their business. Of the lot remaining, only Sherby's party waited till I got out of the room.
As soon as I came out, though, Sherby bombarded me with pleas to join his party, promising flimsy bonuses and whatnot. Of course, I refused this. Then, he dragged me to go take a seat and have a very long talk with him. Eventually, we came to an agreement and I joined the party.
"Alright then, how about we go have a drink or two at the tavern tonight? To celebrate?" Sherby asked.
"Aye, let's." I said.
"Oh no, not you." He quickly shut me down. I looked at him with a confused gaze to convey my annoyance. "You're underage." He added.
Suddenly, a familiar dark red screen came into view.
You have successfully joined the adventurer's guild.
Exp +50
Experience: 120/200
You have successfully joined a party.
Exp +30
Experience: 150/200
'Huh? So, this system doesn't only give rewards for fighting and defeating monsters or challengers. Ha, if I were to go about joining every organisation, would I get rewards for every single one I join?'
'Ah, but that would be way too stressful.'
"Jace!" A loud voice called out.
"Ah! What? Can't you call out in a lower tone?" I was clearly agitated after that fight, making me a bit sensitive to my name being called out so loud.
"A lower voice? We've been calling you for a few seconds now. You look like you were lost somewhere. Is everything okay?" A soft, tender voice commented. It was the young lady to Sherby's left, the mage in their party.
"Yes, everything is fine." I replied. "That's right, speaking of mages, who is a dark mage? You said El was a dark mage and not a mage, what's the difference?"
"Wow, you really are not from this world, huh?" She asked.
"Wha... Of course I'm from this world, I've just been a shut in most of my life." I retorted.
"Yeah, right. A shut in would never be able to hold a candle to Curry. Like hell we'll believe you." This time, Perriot was the one to talk back at me. Everyone nodded their heads at this. They clearly agreed with his antics.
"Yeah, whatever. Can you just tell me who a dark mage is?"
"Sure." Dana said - Dana was the name of the young female mage in Sherby's party. "You know how a mage is born gifted, right?" She started.
"Yeah..."
"Right. A dark mage is also born gifted. However, they are a bit different. They have mutations in their souls that cause them to have all sorts of weird powers. Take for example, a person born who can control the weather with his feelings. That is clearly unnatural, no?"
"Is that even possible?" I asked.
"Ho ho. Boy, you should have learnt by now that anything is possible in this world. Certainly, such a phenomenon would not be an exception, eh?" Perriot said.
"True." Dana confirmed. " However, to know a mage from a dark mage, you need mages for that."
"What?" This former statement just got me all the more confused.
"You know mages can be tested to know their affinities, right? After which they begin learning to hone those gifts of theirs. What you don't know is that before they can hone those skills, they are taught to detect magic essence. It is not entirely necessary to learn this, but you can't hear a person call themselves a mage if they don't know this much."
"So because you can detect his essence and it's difference, that's how you know El is actually not a mage, no?"
"Ding, ding. Right on the mark, Jace. You're a smart one." she said.
"Hey! You guys know I'm right here. Stop talking about me like I'm not." El demanded, giving off a rather angered feeling as he did so.
"Oh, right. The little kid does talk." I teased.
"Who... are you calling a little kid?" The voice El had used this time kind of felt a little choking, as though the voice itself felt a pressing urge to just kill me on the spot.
Suddenly, the temperature of the whole place rose and dropped at the same time - really strange it was, I thought to myself, until I saw something even more strange.
Ice and fire burst out of El's body and reached straight for me. The ice looked sharper than the sharpest blades I had ever set eyes on, and the fire, well the fire just burnt all it touched. Both reached for me and as they got magnified in my eyes, I knew there was nothing I could do to dodge this time. There was no escaping death.