I recited the description of Kyle from the novel while I nervously leaned away from the table:
"Tall, with spiky blonde hair and sharp red eyes that seem like they could throw a knife at you… With a grim expression, always appearing angry, but in reality, he's kind…"
It really was him. I wouldn't cause any commotion—I'd just sit here quietly and leave.
"He looks just as handsome as the novel described."
I murmured while staring at the wooden table below me. Honestly, despite it being a wooden table and chair, it was surprisingly comfortable. Maybe it's because of how heavy my cloak is? The Inkeer has good taste.
I raised my head to take a look at Kyle's team... 'Silver Spear Team' was their name, it's okay to take a little look right?, I raised my eyes but what I saw put me in a state of extreme pressure and tension as if a large rock had been quickly placed on my shoulders.
Kyle was staring directly at me with wide eyes and a baffled expression. He wasn't impressed, nor did he look hostile—I was sure of that. That gaze meant he sensed something was off.
And then I realized. It was no ordinary look. When my eyes met his, I felt something hit me deep inside...a strong, illogical, but real feeling. He wasn't just a character in a novel anymore. No... this was someone I really knew. And that scared me.
"This is bad… I stared for too long."
I quickly looked away, and Kyle didn't take long to regain his composure. But what was that? I don't understand what just happened…
"Here's your order, sir!"
The waiter placed my drink on the table, wished me a good meal, and left. I tried to focus on finishing my drink, but then it hit me…
"Huh? Kyle doesn't have a team…"
I froze with the cup near my lips, my mind racing. In the novel, Kyle only joined two teams throughout the entire story. The first one was wiped out long before the novel began, and the second was the team he created himself and led to… the end.
Calm down! Okay, so I'm here during the events before the fall of the Golden Spear Team. This works in my favor, kind of. The major events are still a bit far off.
"Maybe this is my first step…"
I didn't want to linger here for too long. I quietly placed the cup down and went to pay for my drink… but, uh, how much does it cost?
I glanced at the small pouch on my right hip, filled with a variety of coins. Ugh… five, ten…
I had five coins of each type: Til, Terra, Mon, Muro, Dally, and Stella. To give you an idea of their worth:
One Til was enough to buy a carrot, while Tera was enough to buy an average and good meal of meat and rice, as for the Mon coin, it is worth a lot, you can buy a wooden chair, the Moro coin was a rare coin to see, it is worth a new iron sword and new clothes, as for Dally and Stella, only rich people use them, such as aristocrats and rulers, one Dally is enough to buy full-body armor, rent an apartment for several days, and maybe even hire mercenaries! As for Stella, it is enough to buy an average house with simple furniture.
"Am I… rich?" A drink is something small, so maybe it's around three Til…?
"This is kind of fun in its own way…"
I stood there for a long time calculating the coins, enough to draw a few curious stares. Among the chairs and adventurer groups, I made my way to the counter, avoiding Kyle's table as much as possible.
I left the shop, and the fresh air outside felt like it cleansed me of the tense atmosphere inside the restaurant. People were still bustling about on the wide street, the trees rustled softly, and the number of carts seemed to have increased.
I made my way toward the Adventurer's Guild. It wasn't far, as it was just across the street from the restaurant.
Within two minutes, I arrived. Near the gate, I had to weave through a large crowd of people, some of whom were barely human!
"Amazing…"
There were people with tails and ears! And others had wings?! I entered the gate onto a stone-paved floor. To my right were several tables where adventurers sat, and to my left were what looked like mission boards. Straight ahead, about half a minute's walk away, was a wall lined with roughly ten windows, each with a guild worker attending to adventurers.
The atmosphere here was lively… though I wasn't sure if it was entirely positive. Ah, I'll approach that boy over there… Talking to younger people is less intimidating, haha. I headed to a window manned by a boy who looked around sixteen years old. He had medium-length, wavy golden hair and bright blue eyes. His uniform was formal yet practical—a sleeveless black suit over a white shirt with black trousers. A silver pin bearing the guild's insignia adorned his outfit.
"Welcome~! How can I assist you, sir?"
He greeted me cheerfully, though the noisy adventurers weren't helping me feel at ease despite his friendliness.
"Uh… I want to activate the system feature."
I wasn't sure how to phrase a registration request, but would this do?
With his rabbit-like face, he paused for a moment before his face lit up suddenly.
"Ah-ha! You want to register for guild membership~!"
Haha, his expression was kind of funny. I guess I'm becoming an adventurer… This is kind of exciting.
He led me through the counter and opened a door in the wall behind him. Inside, there were still adventurers, but fewer, and the atmosphere was much calmer. The space was surrounded by administrative rooms, and at the center was a platform-like square. The boy, who introduced himself as Levi, guided me to the platform. On it were a blank card and a needle resting on a piece of white cloth.
"You'll need to prick your thumb and wipe it on the card… We'll handle the rest~."
Alright, that didn't seem too difficult. I smiled at Levi before excusing myself. I did as he instructed, picking up the card, which felt coarse yet luxurious, and wiped my blood on it before handing it to him.
"Alright~! Now give it to me!"
Haha, he actually had to jump to grab the card since he was so short. Watching this was oddly entertaining. I held the card high, laughing softly.
"Haha, come and get it."
Levi quickly caught on to my teasing and started laughing as well, haha. He's still a kid, after all.
I gave him the card after he looked at me with his innocent eyes. He began murmuring some strange words while holding the card with both hands…
I couldn't hear what he was saying, but his expression suddenly turned serious, and his eyes glowed white along with the card. Then, after a moment of silence, he returned to normal, and the card began to transform, displaying my information.
[Congratulations!]
[Welcome to the Adventurer's Guild! Your registration is now complete.]
[Generating Aetheric Profile…]
The first message from the system! I excitedly tapped it, my face lighting up with anticipation, eager to see my stats:
Name: Arin Draven
Age: 21
Height: 182 cm
Aetheric Attributes:
Light Aether: 0
Dark Aether: 0
Balance Aether: 0
Void Aether: 0
Skills:
Skill locked
Skill locked
Skill locked
Skill locked
I had four Aetheric attributes. This was promising. I stared at the system window in awe, while Levi admired my stats.
"You've got some impressive Aetheric attributes~!"