The officer placed a glowing orb on the desk, gesturing for me to step forward. "Place your hand here," he ordered, flipping through a stack of papers while side-eyeing me.
I complied, resting my palm on the orb, which emitted a faint hum.
He glanced at the sphere and muttered, "Hmm...you are...Haze...kaya...Hajoki?"
I groaned. "It's Hazuki. Not Hajoki."
"Yes, yes, whatever." He jotted down notes on a parchment. "Now...criminal record...hmm...none. Good for you."
I sighed in relief. "See? Told you I'm not a criminal!"
"Sure, sure. Now stand over there." He pointed to a small platform by the wall.
I tilted my head. "Huh? What for?"
The officer didn't look up. "It's in Madam Shania's letter. You're getting a temporary ID."
"Oh...okay," I replied, stepping onto the platform.
The orb's light dimmed as the officer handed it to a clerk nearby, who fiddled with a strange device that resembled a cross between a typewriter and a printing press.
The officer raised an eyebrow at me. "You're lucky Madam Shania requested this. Normally, people like you would be booted out of town before we even considered processing them."
"People like me?!" I snapped. "Hey, I'm an upstanding citizen! ...Kind of."
The clerk smirked, handing a freshly printed card to the officer. He inspected it and held it up. "Alright, here's your temporary ID. Don't lose it, or you're back to square one. Got it?"
I snatched the card, examining it. It had my name, "Hazuki," a basic description, and a note saying "Temporary Resident."
"So…does this mean I can stay in the capital?" I asked cautiously.
The officer leaned back in his chair, smirking. "You can stay. But don't cause trouble, crazy guy."
I sighed. "I'm not a crazy guy…"
"Hey, officer."
"What?" He looked up from his papers, clearly annoyed.
"What should I do after this?"
He shrugged. "Hmm? I don't know. You're free to go."
I frowned. "But I don't have money or spare clothes."
He raised an eyebrow, smirking. "Ah...no wonder you smell bad. Hahaha!"
"Damn!" I grumbled, crossing my arms.
He leaned back, saying, "You could go to the adventurer's guild and register as an adventurer. At least you'll earn something if you're not too useless."
"Fine. Thank you." I turned to leave but spotted a jar of biscuits on his desk. "Oh! Can I have those?" I pointed.
The officer glared at me. "Only one!"
"Okay, okay, chill, man! Jeez." I grabbed a biscuit and took a bite as I walked out. "Not bad…could've let me have two, though."
I stepped out of the office, holding my shiny new temporary ID. "I wonder where the adventurer's guild is..." was the first thing on my mind, but I decided to wander around first. "Whatever…better look around for a bit."
The streets bustled with life, and I admired the medieval charm. Cobblestone roads stretched ahead, lined with cozy but sturdy buildings, none taller than two stories. The scent of baked bread, roasted meats, and something else wafted through the air. "Wow, this really does feel like one of those medieval isekai settings. Kinda cool."
As I walked, soaking it all in, merchants shouted about their wares, kids ran by laughing, and some knights strolled past in full armor. It felt surreal.
Finally, I figured I should stop being aimless. Spotting a friendly-looking young lady selling apples, I approached her.
"Excuse me," I said with my best smile. "Can you point me to the adventurer's guild?"
The apple seller looked at me and awkwardly pointed down the road. "Arr...umm...there," she waved vaguely toward the end of the street.
I nodded, smiling. "Okay, thanks."
She blinked, then giggled. "Okay, uncle."
"Uncle?! I'm not that old!" I muttered to myself as I walked off, slightly offended but mostly amused. Kids these days, huh?
When I arrived at the adventurer guild, I pushed the door open and stepped inside. "Wow..." was all I could say.
The place was massive, bustling with all sorts of people. Mean-looking, bulky men dominated the room, their laughter and rough voices filling the air. Even some women looked like they could bench press a cow. "Damn..." I muttered under my breath, feeling a little out of place.
Scattered tables held adventurers eating, drinking, and, in some cases, already drunk despite it not being that late.
My eyes drifted to a large board on one wall, where a crowd gathered, studying the papers pinned to it. "Probably the quest board," I guessed.
But I had more pressing matters—like figuring out how to register. "Now, where's the receptionist?"
I spotted a desk at the far side of the hall. A woman stood there, adjusting her glasses while flipping through papers. Her sleek uniform and composed demeanor set her apart from the rowdy crowd. "Ahh...perhaps that beautiful lady over there," I said to myself, grinning at the thought of our conversation.
"Hello," I said, approaching the receptionist.
She adjusted her glasses and smiled politely. "Welcome to the Adventurer Guild. How may I assist you?"
"Uh, I was just wondering..."
Her tone shifted to efficiency mode. "Do you need to post a quest? Lost something? Or perhaps you'd like to order food? You can do that over there." She pointed toward the tables.
"Ah, no," I said, scratching my head. "I was thinking about registering as an adventurer."
She scanned me from my unkempt hair to my lack of gear, raising an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, but you don't have any weapons... or armor. Are you sure you want to register?"
"Of course!" I said confidently, though her words stung.
She sighed and reached for a form. "Fine. The registration fee is one silver coin."
"Huh? I thought it was free," I protested.
She adjusted her glasses, a slight smirk on her lips. "I'm sorry, but no."
"Damn it," I muttered, fumbling with my empty pockets. "Whatever, I'll come back later."
"Take care," she said, her tone almost teasing, as if holding back a chuckle. Ugh. Guess I'd better figure out how to earn a silver coin first.
I headed outside, wondering where to find a coin when my stomach growled loudly. "Ahh... I'm hungry, but I don't have money. Damn those guards; at least they could've lent me some!"
Sighing, I decided to ask around.
"Excuse me?" I approached a passerby.
"Yes?"
"Where do I go to find a job?"
The man eyed me for a moment. "Do you have an ID?"
"Yes, it's here," I said, holding up my temporary ID.
"Temporary ID, huh? Just go to the central office and ask them."
"Ehh?" I groaned.
"Hmm?" he tilted his head, confused.
"I just came from there!"
He chuckled. "Well, that's the place to go if you're looking for work. They usually have odd jobs for people like you."
"Odd jobs, huh?" I sighed as my stomach growled again. "Fine, thanks."
As I started to walk away, he called out, "Good luck, and try not to make a fool of yourself!"
"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, waving dismissively. I hurried back to the central office before my stomach staged a full-on revolt.
Once I arrived, I pushed the door open and walked straight to the receptionist area, where the same officer was sitting.
"Hello," I began, leaning on the counter. "You told me I could register as an adventurer, but the fee is one silver coin. I don't even know how the currency works here!"
The officer sighed deeply, rubbing his temples. "No wonder they call you crazy guy."
"Hey, just explain it to me!"
"Fine. I'm only explaining this once." He sat up straight. "In this kingdom, we use gold, silver, and copper coins as currency. The smallest unit is copper."
He paused for dramatic effect, glaring at me. "One hundred copper coins equal one silver coin. Got it so far?"
I nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense."
"Good. 100-silver coins are worth one gold coin. Simple math."
"Okay, got it," I said, feeling my head spin slightly. "So, basically, I'm broke and still need one silver coin to register as an adventurer."
"Exactly," he said, folding his arms. "If you want to earn that silver coin, you'll need to find some work, which is why you're here."
I groaned. "This world is going to give me gray hair… Fine, what kind of work do you have for me?"
( End of Chapter )