Regardless of the amazing manners Ethan had shown thus far, at the end of the day he was still a 13 year old boy experiencing some very new and rather unique situations. Even taking his exam out of the equation his travels alone over the last several days would have left anyone rather hungry. Like the rushing water from a collapsing dam Ethan's thirst and hunger gushed forth as soon as he swallowed the first mouthful of the cool water. He, of course, didn't become a ravenous beast with only the urge to consume, but he still looked like an excited puppy that would sometimes forget to chew. Thankfully, it only took a second coughing fit before Ethan finally felt sheepish enough about his behavior to slow down and eat normally. It was at this point, after looking to Lorelle with slightly blushing cheeks while slowly slipping another piece of meat past his lips, that she smiled and began going over the paperwork in her lap.

"I'm glad that you are enjoying the snacks."

He was still chewing the latest piece of meat and was reaching out for another piece of cheese when he silently nodded in response with a happy smile.

"As the Guild Master stated earlier, we will go over the results of your exam tomorrow."

Reaching down into the stack of parchment in her lap she pulled out three slips about three inches tall and six inches wide each and then held them out to him. He quickly picked up the cloth napkin next to the plate and wiped off his hands before whispering an apology about the wait and then taking the offered pieces. Turning them around he looked over the contents with curiosity and carefully reviewed the words and numbers listed. Lorelle had no way of knowing Ethan was able to read and write for the most part and could handle simple math and he didn't feel it was polite to interrupt her explanation so he simply remained silent.

"Those are vouchers for The Lazy Badger Inn down the street. We have a working relationship with them and several other inns in town to offer our adventurers room and board at a discount. Those vouchers will provide a room for three nights, and they do include dinner with the nightly rate."

"But... Ms. Lorelle, why are you giving me these?"

"The Guild Master's orders of course." She said promptly with a smile. Something told her that trying to convince Ethan to accept them wouldn't go well so she simply stated it was an order she had to followed.

"Oh..." He wanted to ask more but her strategy worked and he simply placed another piece of cheese into his mouth while glancing back down at the vouchers. Seeing he wasn't going argue she continued on quickly by holding out another voucher.

"Similar to the area inns, that voucher is for a public bathhouse in the area. It is the least we can do after you went through a wall and got so dirty during one of our exams. The name is a bit haughty, and the owner and operator is a very serious man, but the water is warm and service is top notch."

She stopped talking and began to look through the remaining documents as if that concluded the explanation. After a second or two, when it appeared she had no intent of naming the bathhouse, Ethan tentatively nudged the subject.

"Um... Ms. Lorelle... the name?"

Ethan wasn't positive, but he thought he saw a light shade of pink appear on the cheeks of the young woman when he asked for the name and it took her clearing her throat and taking a sip from her own mug before she could answer, though it was, at first, in a low voice.

"It's called the Spring of Sighs."

"Did she just say the Pings too High?" He thought to himself. No, it couldn't have been that as it didn't make any sense. Wasn't ping a sound?

"I'm... I'm sorry Ms. Lorelle but couldn't hear you...."

After taking a deep breath she finally mustered the willpower to say it loud and clear for him.

"The Spring of Sighs is its name."

"Oh.... Why is it called that?"

Even though the nature of the bathhouse was in fact modest and reputable, the name made several people of gentler demeanor a bit embarrassed when they were forced to say it. The innuendo was very clear once you got to that stage in life, or replaced sigh with a similar word, such as moan. Shaking her head at his question she quickly moved on.

"You'll have to ask the owner, I'm sure he'll have an answer."

Smiling she handed him the second to last piece of parchment in her lap, one that was pretty much the regular size of the sheets they used and was covered in a square grid with nine columns and nine rows. At the top of the parchment in thick flowing letters were the words "Adventurer Ranks." Across the top of the grid, in smaller and more blocky letters was the word "Experience" and down the left hand side of the grid, in the same letters, was the word "Abilities." The first block of the first row was blank with F, E, D, C, B, A, S, and S+ listed in the subsequent blocks from left to right. Of course by virtue of the first row block being blank so to was the first column block. Following the blank block at the top of the column were Copper, Bronze, Iron, Sky Iron, Steel, Neleel, Mythril, and Nelthryl from top to bottom.

After giving Ethan some time to look over the grid and to drink more of her water, she finally shifted in her seat slightly and motioned toward the parchment.

"As you can see, that grid represents the current ranks used and recognized by the guild. They are what determine what jobs you can take, what areas of the continent you can travel to as an adventurer, what guild perks you receive, and much more. To say that your guild rank becomes part of your identity, and the main signifier of your worth as an adventurer is still rather an understatement."

She let her words settle in for a few seconds before continuing.

"The further your position from the top left you moves the higher your rank becomes. As such, if you were to happen to start out at the bare minimum your rank would be considered F-Copper, however, let's say in twenty years from now your experience and abilities have continued to grow, you may find your rank a B-Steel, or perhaps Neleel."

She held up a finger as soon as she finished her explanation because she saw that the boy was about to ask a question, a question that she knew he was going to ask.

"Ah! I don't have any idea what the Guild Master is going to rank you as, nor do I have any opinion." She smiled despite his crushed look of defeat and then continued.

"Experience is your knowledge and, well, experience of being an adventurer. Brute strength or power aren't the only things that decide the success of a job. Strategy and understanding the situation can be just as important. We covet and recognize those with helpful knowledge and experience in the field." After pausing to make sure he didn't have any more questions she moved to the metals.

"Abilities represent your power and, again, abilities as an adventurer. Just as experience can win battles, there is a limit to how far you can get go if your powers don't match. Speed, strength, power, and the like are considered.

After another pause she and no follow-up questions from Ethan, she went to hand him the final piece of parchment in her lap. The final piece was actually in the shape of a scroll and had to be unraveled to expose the contents, which looked to be a short questionnaire followed by a lot of writing about rules, punishment, and other things.

"Ummm....." He looked up from behind the scroll with a pleading and helpless look.