Guild Registration
"Then let's proceed with your guild registration. Please come this way~"
A dog-eared staff member with droopy ears guided us.
I had imagined typical guild registration scenes like:
"She can write at such a young age!?"
"This much mana!?"
"She possesses this attribute!?"
If I were slightly older, maybe events like:
"Hmph! She looks so weak, is this for real?"
or even harem events like:
"Please join our party~♡"
Or since I'm a girl, maybe reverse harem with handsome warriors saying:
"It's dangerous for a cute girl to be alone, we'll protect you!"
While lost in these thoughts, we were led upstairs to a small meeting room. Since I couldn't see over the table while seated normally, I ended up sitting on Dad's lap.
"I thought registration was done at the counter. They do it in private rooms here?"
Apparently noticing my question while I was distracted during the walk, the dog-eared staff member - Mr. Taki - explained:
"Ah, when already registered adventurers come to our guild to accept their first request, we just verify their guild card at the counter.
But for first-time registration, there's paperwork to fill out and various explanations needed, so we do it in private rooms like this.
About ten years ago, there was a rare holy-attribute healing magic user who registered at the counter, causing a huge commotion.
The staff member who measured them was so surprised they blurted out the attribute, you see.
Apparently the city lord demanded an audience, causing a big fuss.
In the end, that adventurer left the city in anger without accepting any requests.
Because of this, the guild received strict penalties from the lord. It would have been better if they'd at least stayed in the country, but by the time the king took notice, they had already left.
After this incident, the Guild Association headquarters mandated that [Initial registrations must basically be conducted privately in individual rooms].
Of course, casually disclosing someone's attributes or rank is now strictly prohibited.
Well, as adventurers rise in rank, many voluntarily announce their rank to avoid being looked down on, and those Copper-rank and above wear tags, so they're easy to identify."
Wow. That's impressive.
Mother had been an adventurer using healing magic, but with these rules, she could have registered safely.
But I see - none of those light novel cliché developments here.
"Now, let's proceed with the registration... Mr. Alke, since she hasn't started at the schoolhouse yet, could you fill this out as her guardian?"
"Ah, of course."
As they spoke, pen and paper were prepared on the table.
While I understand spoken language fine, I'm not sure about writing.
The business card-sized form had just two fields.
I could see faint Japanese characters over what looked like hieroglyphic script - how does that work?
I remember Mother reading to me, but not teaching me to write. Maybe I'll try writing later at home. For now, I'll just quietly watch Dad fill it out.
The characters he wrote also looked like hieroglyphs, but I could read them.
Is this some kind of reincarnation bonus? Though I never met any gods.
They'll measure my attributes next - I wonder how?
Crystal ball going pew pew! maybe?
Mr. Taki set the form in a machine and presented it to me.
The thin box resembling a business card case had a slight indentation on one edge where something could be inserted.
"Vio, for the mana measurement - that is, guild card registration - we need a blood sample. Could you place your finger here and press? It'll pinch a little, can you handle that?"
He looked extremely apologetic, but examining it closely, the indentation had a tiny hole-like opening. Will a needle come out? At least it's not a knife cut.
Placing my index finger in the indentation and pressing slightly, I felt a brief pinch, but it was over in an instant.
Is it drawing blood? Should I squeeze it out?
As I reached to squeeze my finger with my other hand, both Dad and Mr. Taki hurriedly stopped me.
"N-no need! It already drew a little blood when it pinched you!"
"Here, let me see. Ah, looks fine. Does it hurt?"
Mr. Taki pulled the machine toward himself while Dad checked my fingertip and wrapped it with a handkerchief. Seriously, it was just a pinprick!
Their frantic reactions left me both touched and embarrassed. As I hesitated between these feelings, Mr. Taki began explaining about the guild while operating the machine.
"Everyone starts at 'Tin' rank when registering. You can raise your rank by accumulating points through herb gathering and village requests. Many children check the request board after schoolhouse and take on afternoon jobs."
I see. Village requests are probably like chores, right?
That would be perfect for learning villagers' names. Maybe those kids running around earlier were doing requests?
I'm confident about herb gathering since I often did it with Mother.
Though I'll need to check if the herbs here are the same.
"You can also deposit money using this guild card. If you ask the reception to deposit your request rewards, you can save up your earnings. And not just in this village - in any country with an Adventurers Guild affiliation, you can withdraw money at any guild branch… Though that might be too advanced for you, Vio."
Wait wait wait, they have a banking system!?
This culture is more advanced than I imagined.
The mention of "affiliated countries" implies there are non-affiliated ones too. Ah, I forgot I wanted to see a map.
I'll make sure to look at one properly later.
"Well, moving from 'Tin' to 'Bronze' rank should be quick even for you. Kids who regularly take guild jobs usually reach Bronze in about a month, and Copper in one to two years.
From 'Copper' rank onward, there are requests outside the village and even monster subjugation requests, so the danger increases.
Copper rank and above are required to wear guild tags.
Though for you to take outside requests, you’d need Mr. Alke's permission first."
"Dad, do you have a guild tag too?"
"Hm? Ah, this one."
What he pulled from his chest was a small silver dog tag.
I hadn't noticed it before because of Dad's thick chest hair.
It had three round holes, maybe decorative?
"Ah, this mark signifies Advanced Silver rank."
"That's right. From Silver rank onward, there are additional tiers within the rank.
New Silvers are 'White' - their guild tags just show their name and party name.
As you advance from Beginner to Intermediate to Advanced, the tag gains holes one by one.
After accumulating enough points at Advanced Silver, you can promote to Gold rank.
Promoting from Copper to Silver, or from Advanced Silver to Gold requires not just points but also an exam.
"Is that to evaluate whether the person's character and abilities are truly suitable for the higher rank?"
““!?””
"Exactly right. That's surprising. Mr. Alke, is Vio really five? She's much more mature than my little ones."
That's because the inside is presumably an adult woman.
The current body is five years old.
What do you think about this chapter?
