Chapter 5: CH 5

“Ah! It’s not a violet1!”

Of the 12 6-year-olds that had just rolled into the world as adventurer eggs, three of them had been grouped and handed over to me after having listened to an explanation of the guild. All three of them were familiar faces, though some looked relieved and others disappointed.

“What’s this?! You’re the leader?!”

The one who energetically brandished his finger at me was a boy named Marth, who I saw frequently because he was the son of the milkman. He was a typical mischievous boy, and was often the main culprit of things like a weathercock suddenly turning into a dragon, or the old woman’s potted cactus being swapped with a laughing cactus, or when all the little children in town had a dye on their foreheads and cheeks that wouldn’t come off for a month. According to him, he was just adventurous. 

He always wore short sleeves, rolled up the hems of his pants, and the right clasp on his suspenders was broken. His trademarks were the freckles on his nose and his fiery-red hair.

“I’m glad it’s Sumire-chan~ You know, there was a very scary guy over there.”

Wearing a blouse with plenty of lace and pants with floral patterns, a girl named Liliana was holding a teddy bear. Her light blue eyes and wavy light brown hair made her look like a doll — something helped by the fact that her parents ran the #1 clothes store in town. The youngest child, having two older brothers and three older sisters, she was spoiled and pampered, and although she was a bit shy, she’d show her sweet, chatty side when she gets to know you. She’s been surrounded by lean men her whole life, so she was probably scared of the adventurers with big muscles.

By the way, the man who she called “a very scary guy” was one of the other leaders, and although he had a tough-looking face, he was actually gentle and kind.

“…”

“Oi~ Leonardo! You’re being quiet again!”

The small boy being elbowed by Marth was Leonardo, who wore large, round, black-rimmed glasses, a white shirt, and freshly-pulled, wrinkle-less leather pants.2 Despite their thin builds, his parents were well-known adventurers. In particular, his father was a much-admired adventurer, even in the guild, and he was often pestered by Marth, who worshipped him. Leonardo, on the other hand, was an indoor person who preferred books and friends over adventures, and he often came to the guild branch to borrow books. He had a calm personality, just like the dark green color of his hair.

“Can you really teach us? A stronger adventurer would have been so much better!”

“I can do it~. I’ve actually done a lot of work!”

“Ehhhh, but aren’t you a ‘Kokageryuu’?”

Looking up at me, Marth pouted in dissatisfaction.

The guild had a “star-rank” system, where adventurers and requests could be given between 0 and 9 stars. The more stars it had, the more difficult a request was, and adventurers could only take requests that had as many or fewer stars than they did.

Adventurers were sometimes referred to by the name of the constellation associated with their star-rank — all references to the dragon3 constellations that shone brightly in the night sky. The highest rank, “9-star,” corresponded with Kouteiryuu, which was composed of 9 stars. A single red star that shone near the Kouteiryuu, called Hinaryuu, corresponded with the “1-star” rank. Because Kokageryuu was a constellation of only two stars, I was a “2-star” adventurer.

By the way, Kokageryuu wasn’t exactly a dragon, but just a large lizard. It used to be considered a dragon because a fable once said that a lizard that can climb the star-catcher tree would become a dragon.

And also, beginners without a star were called “eggs” since they look similar to a 0.

“I want to be a star-bearer soon!”

If you wanted to complete small requests as a part-time job, for example, most requests are 0-star to 2-star ranked, which almost everyone could do. For that, just registering with the guild would be enough and there would be no need to come to Tortea. In general, you could become a 3-star adventurer without any training.

However, if you wanted to raise your star-rank, you’d have to take increasingly difficult “promotion requests” set by the guild. Most promotion requests were subjugation missions, so there were certain areas where they must be completed. As for 1-star and 2-star promotion requests, they could only be completed in the southeastern region of the continent, where Tortea was. As you head northwest from here, the general rule was that the creatures got stronger, so many who wanted to become full-fledged adventurers chose to start here.

It’s not like a 6-year-old adventurer egg was going to suddenly travel northwest, but it was believed that starting in Tortea would give you a better shot at success. That’s why little ones like the ones that left today will be streaming in for a while. Other people working in the guild office were a bit depressed by the coming of the busy season, but I was excited.

“It’s important for adventurers to listen to their leaders properly~”

“I am listening properly!”

“Mm, mm, good boy~ Well then, I’ll explain the job now. Liliana, Leonardo, are you also ready?”

In a simple, partitioned conference room, when I made a serious face and held up the request form, the three of them quietly lined up in a row.

“This is also a test to enter the Adventurer’s Guild. Listen carefully and ask questions if there’s something you don’t understand. Don’t act on your own.”

As the three of them nodded, I saw an adult adventurer looking at them with a smile through a gap in the partition. It was subtly distracting. I shooed him away with my hand, but decided to leave the teary-eyed parents alone.

Everyone’s first quest was the same.

It was a “collection request” and was the basis of all work undertaken by the guild.

Universal Request | Guild Permit Number | Type 00, No. 00001

Management Region:

Adventurer’s Guild, Tortea Branch

Requester:

Adventurer’s Guild Unified Headquarters (Registration No.: 1000-00000)

Requestee:

One or more Adventurer’s Guild members with a 2-star rank or higher

One or more persons, all over the age of 6 by Vernal Equinox Day, who wish to join

Compensation | Prescribed Reward | (Adventurer’s Guild Regulations Article 1.3)

Request:

Conditions:

This request should always be done as a group.

The collection range is limited to the first area of the forest.

Return to the guild within 3 hours of starting the request.

The leader must have received training from the guild and have obtained permission from the branch director. (Regulations Article 5)

Designated Equipment:

A seal of Basero ink on the forehead, comfortable clothing, and talisman candy.

Use one or more talisman candies, and the leader and other star-bearers are to be equipped with swords

Leaders and star-bearers are allowed to use swords, while those without stars are only allowed to used knives

Reward:

In accordance with the Adventurer’s Guild Regulations, those who complete this request will be allowed to officially join the Adventurer’s Guild.

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Request the above with the permission of the Adventurer’s Guild.

I read the whole request, then looked back at the eggs, but their faces were full of anxiety and imaginary floating question marks.

“In other words, the job is to go into the forest and pick up three dragon scales. And you should all stick together and listen to me properly. Got it?”

“Got it!!”

“Okay~”

“… Okay.”

Mm, mm. Good replies~

“Then, what’s next?”

“Into the woods!!”

“Hmm~ Check our gear?”

“Nope! Do you know, Leonardo?”

“… Pray.”

“Whaaat? I totally knew it was the prayer!”

Every Adventurer’s Guild branch had a small altar in the corner of its office. On this one was a piece of the Star Stone, a branch dedicated to St. Totu, and some other trinkets offered by adventurers. There was also the nearby Star Stone itself, whose loose fragments were all stored in and around the office.

Star Stones were said to be the protector of travelers, so many adventurers had strong faith in it. Especially in Tortea, where one sat at the entrance to the forest and watched over both the town and forest, the adventurers worshipped it fervently. In the guild, we prayed before we started work and we prayed after we finished work. 

When I stepped before the altar to give two bows and two claps, Marth became curious.

“Is that the guild’s prayer?”

“Prayers can take any form. This is how we did it where I was born.”

At first, I had thought that the concept of using an altar here was akin to the Shinto shrines in Japan.

There was no formality in praying at the guild; each person could use whatever position they liked and offer whatever they wished.

Back home, I had helped my grandmother take care of the shrine, so when this reminded me of how she used to do things, I offered some fruits and water for her. I also made and offered something that looked a little like a torii, making the altar feel more familiar.

Liliana, following my lead, clapped her hands in the same way to express her thanks. Marth put his sword to his chest and knelt on one knee — a style popular among adventurers. Leonardo stared at the altar for a moment, then bowed.

“So innocent and cute~ Here, Basero ink.”

“Thank you, Kontos-san.”

“Adventurers, may you be blessed.”

Kontos-san, the only magician in town, handed me a small jar of shiny blue liquid. He was a good-looking, middle-aged man who always wore a deep-purple robe. One of his apprentices had become an adventurer egg this year, so he seemed very excited. In the distance, I heard shouts of “Master!”

“What’s that?”

“It’s a liquid with magical blessings. I’ll apply it to your foreheads, so line up in order.”

“Whoa, magic! Sumire, draw a cool crest!”

“Eh?”

Basero ink was very simple magic for beginners, not requiring a magic circle or a spell, so even someone as inexperienced as me could handle it. All you had to do was apply a dab of it on your forehead, but this dreaming 6-year-old quickly threw me a challenge.

“Um… your bangs, keep them up…”

After some initial worrying, I brought out a new brush, crouched down, soaked up some ink, and drew a star on Marth’s forehead. Then, I wrote the kanji for “to protect” — 護 — in the center. The characters in this world are similar to an alphabet, so kanji should look mysterious. 

“It means ‘to protect’.”

“Mirror! Look! It’s amazing! It’s so cool!”

“Sumire-chan, me too! Make it cute!”

“Here goes~”

Stepping away from Marth and crouching in front of Liliana, I drew a heart symbol on her forehead, then wrote the kanji for “love” — 愛 — in the middle. Marth and Liliana looked into their hand mirrors, going kya~ kya~.

“Liliana’s means ‘love’.”

“Yay~”

“…”

“Now, Leonardo…”

Leonardo raised his bangs while squirming. I wrote the kanji for “wisdom” — 智 — in the middle of an open book. He looked at himself in Liliana’s mirror, then looked up at me.

“It means ‘knowledge’.4 And this marking is a book.”

“…! Thanks, Sumire-chan.”

These kids are so cute~

As a smile finally floated onto Leonardo’s face, the other two went off to brag to the other adults and kids hanging around the area. It was my first time as a leader, but I was relieved to see that things were off to a good start.

I was smiling as I watched the three of them compare their markings when I felt my shoulder being poked.

“Hm?”

Turning around, I saw a silvery color.

“… Hmmm?”

In front of me, Fikar was holding up his long bangs, quietly waiting his turn.

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