"The number one hunter? Don't make me laugh, that's going to be me," yelled the troublesome boy, visibly irritated by Selene's words.
"Come on... I think you know how things work in the real world. It's not about who works the hardest, it's about who's the smartest," Selene responded with a sly smile, challenging everyone with her attitude.
"She's the thief who stole the weapon! You shouldn't be congratulating her for this!" exclaimed William, enraged. But Selene remained unfazed.
"Uh... I understand your point, aspirant, but as the girl says, hunters need to be more efficient than honest. That's the reality," intervened the representative of the Roman faction, supporting Selene.
"But..." Seeing it was a total defeat, William decided to stay silent.
("Calm down, William, I understand you. That's the reality of hunters, they only care about achievements,") thought Martyn, crossing his arms, somewhat frustrated.
"Alright, alright, we get it! Let's get to the important part, finish this!" yelled the troublesome boy, eager to go home.
"Ah, of course. Well, guys, as I said before, it's a great achievement to have passed the hunter test. With the power vested in me as a representative of the Roman faction, you are all now officially hunters!" said the representative, snapping his fingers and placing a star and an insignia in each of their hands.
"These are your hunter stars. As you already know, every hunter has the opportunity to affiliate with one of the different factions, but that's only possible if you achieve several accomplishments. In the meantime, you'll work for the general headquarters," explained the representative.
"I hope in the future you decide to affiliate with us, the Romans. After all, you did your test here and already have great esteem from our side," he added with a businessman's smile. "The God Jupiter will be very grateful to help you. Besides, we're not as strict as the Greeks or Egyptians."
After speaking, another door in the room opened, indicating the exit.
"That's all from me, aspirants, or rather, hunters. Make Neo Tyran proud and remember to complete your registration outside. You will be given an initial bonus of one gold coin to start your journey."
As if he had never been there, the guild representative disappeared.
"Awesome, we're all hunters now!" exclaimed Boris as he approached Martyn and William, raising his hand in victory.
"Don't get too confident, samurai boy. This is just the beginning. Many hunters end up dead on their first mission," said William, trying to be logical and bring Boris back down to earth while heading to the door.
"See you, Martyn. Hope you don't die."
"Same to you, big guy," replied Martyn with a slight smile, also heading to the door.
After crossing the door, Martyn had to wait several minutes in the waiting room until he was called. Each waiting room was different, accommodating only five aspirants at a time. Unfortunately, Martyn did not meet anyone he knew.
"Hello, dear hunter, I'm Emma. I'll be adding details to your unaffiliated hunter insignia," said a smiling girl who received Martyn. It seemed he would have to answer several questions.
"Could you give me your information? What was your first blessing and which god gave it to you?"
(Damn, she started with the worst possible question.) Martyn's face immediately turned grim. There was no law that said an impure couldn't be a hunter, but it was quite uncomfortable.
"None. I didn't receive any blessing," replied Martyn after calming down.
"You didn't receive any blessing? That means you're an impure..." The smiling, cheerful face of the woman turned cold and somewhat disgusted as she looked at Martyn.
"Yes, I am, and I have two marks," said Martyn, deciding to make his status clear to the woman.
"Do you know what you're trying to do? Do you think you can be another Keila? I hate to burst your bubble, but you know better than anyone that it's impossible," the woman responded curtly, trying to advise Martyn. Keila Juhn is known as the Impure who defied the gods. No one knows how she did it, but she obtained a divine-ranked weapon she was able to control. Many impures look up to her as an example, but everyone knows it's a matter of luck.
"Miss, I'd like us to finish this. I'm not going to change my mind," said Martyn, tired of the situation.
"Fine, I won't worry about you anymore. You probably think getting lucky in the hunter test is something, but in the real world, things aren't as easy as you think," said the woman, showing signs of anger while finishing Martyn's registration. Apparently, she no longer cared, as the only questions she asked were his date of birth and name. The rest of the details were filled in randomly.
(Damn, I forgot for a moment how those bastards were,) thought Martyn to himself as he left the place.
"But I have to admit, having this is great..." said the boy as he looked at his insignia. Besides, now he had enough money for a month.
"I think I should go quit my job. I won't need it anymore," said Martyn with a confident look, heading to the place where he worked.
"Hello, good evening..."
"Oh, look who it is, the sneaky little thief, Martyn," said his boss, attacking him immediately. Apparently, he had a bad impression of what happened yesterday.
"Excuse me, sir. Here's what you asked for," said Martyn, not feeling pressured, handing the bags to the man.
"Seems you didn't steal my money like I thought, but that doesn't mean you can disappear for two days. You'll have to work a week without pay to make up for it," ordered Mr. Ardenson, taking the bag from Martyn. Apparently, he was going to take advantage of the boy's absence.
"Sorry, sir, but that won't be possible. I'm quitting this job as of now," said Martyn bluntly. "It was a pleasure working for you."
"What?! Did I hear that right? Are you really quitting, Martyn?"
Victor couldn't help but shout when he heard his friend's words. He didn't expect this great news.
"Yes, I got a better job now," replied Martyn with total confidence.
"A better job than this? You, an impure...? Don't make me laugh. Who would give a job to someone like you?" Mr. Ardenson began to laugh at Martyn.
"Yes, I have it. After all, I'm a hunter," said Martyn, full of confidence, showing his hunter's medallion.
"Wait... You, a hunter? What kind of joke is this? Let me see that medallion!" Unable to believe Martyn's words, Mr. Ardenson took the medallion from him to confirm if it was true.
"I can't believe it... This medallion is like my son's... You, what...? What did you do? An impure shouldn't be a hunter," said Mr. Ardenson, astonished and unable to believe what he saw.
"Wow, Martyn! Are you really going down that path? It's dangerous for an impure," said Victor, full of concern.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I promise to treat you to a fancy restaurant later, my friend. For now, I'm leaving," said Martyn, taking the medallion from the man's hands and heading to the door.
"Ha! You think you look so cool being a hunter? You won't last a second out there, you impure bastard. You'll regret this, Martyn!" yelled Mr. Ardenson, full of rage. But Martyn had already made up his mind. He needed to dedicate all his time to becoming stronger.
"Well, let's see what Odin has for me today," said Martyn when he got home. He was getting ready to sleep. Since he received the notification of the limiter, he had been eager for bedtime to come.
Without much effort, due to his exhaustion, Martyn fell asleep instantly. He no longer had to work for a month, so he could sleep as much as he wanted and spend more time in Valhalla.
[Welcome back to Valhalla, representative]
With the usual message, Martyn opened his eyes. But instead of finding himself in the usual enchanting garden, he found himself on a giant rock in what seemed to be a desert of dark gray sand.
"Really...? You're the representative Odin found? I like you a bit more," said a mischievous and sharp voice, similar to that of a circus clown.
"Who's there...?" Somewhat used to these kinds of situations, Martyn turned around, finding a giant violet serpent, on top of which someone was sitting.
"Hey, you just ruined the surprise, but let me introduce myself," said the person, jumping off the serpent's head and standing in front of Martyn, showing a sly smile.
"I think you know me. I'm the God of Mischief. Call me Loki."