BOOM, the building rattled again.

“You’re telling me you got Grog to go into a [Berserkers] rage! You were supposed to take a couple of punches and give up. They’re going to dock my pay for this.” The lady fumed.

“Look, that thing almost killed me. I don’t give a shit about your -”

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.

The building rattled, then the entire wall collapsed. Rubble pelted the adventurers and administrators.

Vesper watched as Grog swatted Alry successfully. She flew through the air, smacking into a desk.

Grog roared and swung his fists at Vesper, who rolled into the crowd.

“Adventurers, take him down!” screamed the woman from behind the desk. A swashbuckling pirate, with a sword for arm, launched himself at Grog. His sword arm stabbed Grog’s forearm. The pirate tried to pull free, but Grog was faster, ripping the sword out of him and flinging the pirate into the crowd.

A woman’s eyes glowed blue. Ice formed around her as she launched ice shards at Grog. Grog covered his face as ice shards pelted him. Grog pushed forward.

Arrows, bombs, and daggers pelted Grog, but they didn’t slow him down. He did not feel pain. His sole focus was on Vesper. Vesper crawled away as fast as he possibly could, but Grog was faster. Grog grabbed Vesper.

Vesper closed his eyes, waiting for his skull to cave in. It didn’t. He stumbled onto the floor.

When Vesper opened his eyes, he saw Grog lying on the floor unconscious, a spear piercing his stomach.

Standing behind him stood a [Paladin], in shining gold holy armor. His hair was cut short, and bright gold tattoos covered his neck.

“Thank goodness, you made it, Jordan. I’d be in deep shit if it weren’t for you.” commented the lady behind the desk.

“No problem, Ma’am. I am here to serve the people of Aia, all of whom are worthy of salvation.”

“Sure. Sure. Now can you help vacate the area? “I have to talk to the culprit and-” she paused and looked over at the Fae. “Well, just the culprit .”

“No worries. I’ll take Grog to the infirmary.”

“Again, thank you, Jordan.”

“Everyone out!” shouted the Paladin.

“Hey, I was up next.” someone shouted.

“That’s not fair.” protested someone else in the crowd.

The [Paladin] ignored the crowd’s complaints and ushered everyone out of the building, carrying Grog on his back. Whoever he was, by the looks of it, he wasn’t someone you messed with.

The lady from behind the desk turned to face Vesper. “Isn’t he dreamy?” she asked.

Vesper scowled. “You’re asking me that, now? Who, Grog?”

“Ew, no, Jordan. But it doesn’t matter. This wasn’t the first incident I’ve had. That’s how I ended up in this cesspool of a country. Trust me when I say that I’ll be cleared within the week.”

“Calfor isn’t that bad.” Vesper protested.

“Oh, it is. It’s a primitive and low magic country. I wouldn’t expect a primitive like you to understand.”

“I nearly died. How does any of me being primitive have to do with that?”

“It doesn’t. But it’s not often I get to vent: for people to hear my problems. I’m too busy stamping papers and talking to muscleheads all day or acting proper. I’m afraid the guild will certify you as a member. I’m afraid they won’t do much beyond that. Adventuring is a complicated profession.”

“Vesper pulled himself up and limped towards Alry, who was unconscious. He picked her up and slotted her in his pocket.”

“I know what that is.” said the lady from behind the desk.

Vesper froze.

“No, you don’t. It’s just a bug.”

“No, that’s a Fae. My father has a chamber [wizard] who has one.”

“There are no Fae in Calfor. You’re lying. Just me and my bug.” Vesper lied.

“I’m a lot of things, but I’m not a liar.”

“Then who’s your father?” Vesper happened to notice how pointy her ears were. She was also relatively thin.

“King Altmer of Sarrin. I’m his 153rd daughter. They stop giving royalty benefits after the first 150. Can you believe that? Royalty is royalty. Just because I’m not likely to ever sit on the throne doesn’t mean I don’t deserve my rightful inheritance. Instead of stuck here, serving the likes of you.”

“King Altmer certainly gets around,” Vesper commented.

“When you live for 1,000s of years, you’d become a baby factory as well.”

“You’re an elf; I take it?”

“You just figured that out now? What gave it away, my pointy ears or my thin frame? Of course, I’m an elf.”

“Actually, it was living for thousands of years that did it for me.”

“I’m only 56.” She scowled. “Why are you here, anyway? Are you actually a [bookworm]?”

“Yes.” Vesper lied. “I need access to the King’s Academy and the royal library.”

“Seems like a roundabout way of accessing the King’s library. Ever thought about working for the King’s library as a [bookworm]?”

“They don’t just accept anyone, especially a [bookworm] with no connections.”

“They don’t exactly let just anyone in the academy through adventuring either. Maybe you upset Grog, but you need to slay a mythic beast even to be considered. Jordan barely made the cut a few years back. They called him a sniveling wimp, from what I remember. Bunch of bullies is what they are.”

“Well, it’s more of a chance than leveling as a [bookworm]. I mean, I’m only level 5. I reckon if I utilize my Fae well enough, killing something might be possible.”

“Or you could not kill yourself. What’s so important that you’ll risk your life over? Heck, that ‘bug’ you have over there is illegal in this kingdom.”

“You’re not gonna snitch on me, are you?”

“And give that asshole King something he’d want, no thank you. I’m stuck in this dump, not working for it.”

A frantic-looking middle-aged man hurried through the door.

“Siora, what happened! I was gone for only two hours, and everything went to shit!” the middle-aged man shouted.

“Oh, Jeffrey, calm down. Grog just got a little angry, is all.” Said the elf.

“How!? He’s taken every anger management class under the sun, and we’ve been giving him the special mini cupcakes he likes.”

“Well, I might’ve had him test an initiate.” Siora looked away.

Jeffrey gave Siora a disapproving look.

“You know we don’t use Grog for testing anymore. Not after he snapped that noble boy in two pieces, and they sued the guild.”

“I know, but I was trying to make a statement.”

“By murdering someone!”

“Well, it sounds a bit harsh when you put it like that. I mean, a [bookworm] has no place fighting monsters.”

“Anyone who can tease Grog into a [berserker] rage is fit to be an adventurer.”

“I mean, I didn’t know he’d be able to do that.”

“That's exactly why Grog shouldn’t have been used in the first place. I’m going to have to demote you to paperwork duties.”

“No! That’s so boring.”

“That’s it? That’s all the punishment she gets?” Vesper asked incredulously. Vesper didn’t really care about her punishment, but the fact his life was worth so little did rub Vesper the wrong way. Just slightly the wrong way.

“This is the adventuring guild, and adventuring is a complicated profession. You’re not a noble anyway.”

“What does that have to do with anything!”

Jeffrey shrugged.

“Well, do I get a badge?”

“Yes.”

Like handing over a pacifier to a crying baby, Jeffrey handed Vesper a small bronze badge, signifying he was the lowest of the low of adventurers. No one was lower than a bronze badge adventurer, except the [bookworms], [caretakers], and village idiots they kicked out. Not all village idiots were kicked out; some village idiots had gotten the bronze badge. It wasn’t supposed to be too hard to get.

Vesper clipped it onto his clothes, feeling prouder than he should. He wasn’t the one who angered Grog, after all.

“So, where do I sign up for jobs?” Vesper asked.

“The job board is outside. Once you figure out what job you want to take, you’ll have to talk to a guild representative. Just remember you can only take out bronze-level jobs for now unless someone higher up in the guild vets for you to join them on a job.”

“Any paperwork I need to sign? If I lose my badge, how will people know that I’m a member of the guild?”

“You do sound like a [bookworm]. Most adventurers can barely read, so there’s no point in filling out paperwork for joining when dying on the first job is common. Just don’t lose the badge until you complete a job, I guess.”

Vesper adjusted the badge, making sure that it held on tightly.

Jeffrey ushered Vesper out of the building. Vesper headed to the job board.

There were plenty of tasks to take, most written in the simplest of writing. “Kill 5 rat for 6 copper, Two wolves need death for 2 silver, Need outhouse scrubbed 1 copper.” It was like reading a cave dweller. Even Vesper realized that.

No. No. No. None of these are suitable, Vesper thought to himself.

Vesper looked towards the bottom of the board. “Forest troll wreaking havoc on village, two gold reward.” He looked even lower.

“Grande ice wyvern in mountain needs a big death, 100 gold.” Vesper scowled as he noticed the annoying gold star imprinted on the paper. It wasn’t a task he could take. Now that was a task that would catch the eye of the academy.