Free Web NovelChapter 3: 3. C - rank tasks
AT THE SAME TIME
ALEXANDER frёewebnoѵēl.com
As we walked back into the main guild hall, I finally looked at the rank card they handed me. C Rank. The black metal plate almost looked like it was mocking me. Scarlet stared at it too.
"I still disagree with this." She said quietly.
"I know." I sighed.
We stopped near the front desk again, and the same receptionist looked up from her paperwork.
"Something else?" She asked.
"Yeah." I said. "What exactly are the rank differences here?"
She nodded like she’d answered this a thousand times before.
"Adventurer ranks go from E to S."She said.
"E Rank. Beginners. Basic monster extermination and delivery work."She raised a finger. "D Rank. Trained adventurers can handle lower dungeon zones. C Rank. Official combat adventurers. Usually where real careers start."
"So C isn’t terrible?"I blinked slightly.
"No." She said. "Most people never pass it."
Scarlet looked mildly offended by that statement. The receptionist continued
"B Rank adventurers are elite level. A Rank is a national class assets."The receptionist continued, and then she paused slightly. "And S Rank..." The entire guild hall got quieter. "Monsters avoid regions where S Ranks live."
"Oh." I said.
"Guild information updated. Current user status: Level: 2. Guild rank: C. Class: gacha card summoner. Threat evaluation: unknown." The system flickered immediately.
"Level 2?"I stared at the level number.
"Most awakeners start at level 1. Looks like your summon contract boosted your mana growth slightly."The receptionist glanced at me.
Scarlet looked pleased immediately.
"See?" She said softly. "Master is strong."
"I am literally C rank." I said.
"For now." She replied instantly.
"Actually... your summon is the bigger issue."The receptionist coughed awkwardly.
"Issue?"I frowned.
She lowered her voice slightly.
"Saintess class summons are considered divine entities. Most kingdoms would classify her as strategic military power."She lowered her voice slightly.
I slowly turned toward Scarlet, and she smiled sweetly.
"What?"I asked.
"Is that bad?"She blinked innocently.
"Correction: very bad."The system answered for me.
"Fantastic."I rubbed my face.
"My honest advice? Don’t show her full abilities publicly."The receptionist leaned forward slightly.
Too late for that, apparently, because across the guild hall, a group of adventurers were still staring at Scarlet like she might suddenly erase the building. Honestly? Fair concern. Scarlet noticed them looking, yhen smiled. Half the room immediately looked away.
"Yeah." I muttered. "This is going to become a disaster really fast."
I stared at the C rank guild card in my hand for a long moment. Yesterday, I was an academy student. Today, I was a registered adventurer with a gambling Skill, a terrifying saintess summon, and absolutely no idea what I was doing.
"This is going to be a hard life," I sighed.
"You are unhappy?"Scarlet stood beside me quietly.
"I got expelled less than a day ago." I said. "My future collapsed before breakfast."
"That does sound inconvenient."She thought about that seriously.
"Inconvenient. Right."I laughed weakly.
"Life update. "User status changed from ’academy student’ to ’financially endangered adventurer.’"The system flickered in front of me again.
"Why are you like this?" I stared at the screen.
"Because someone has to keep morale low." I rubbed my forehead.
"If you’re done arguing with your invisible trauma window, here’s your first available request."The receptionist suddenly placed a paper on the counter.
"My what?"I blinked.
"Quest." She corrected immediately.
I picked up the request sheet.
"QUEST REQUEST. Herbal collection - Greenroot leaves. Difficulty: C Rank, Location: Eastern forest. Reward: 12 Silver.
"Twelve silver?"I stared at the reward.
"Welcome to early adventurer life."The receptionist shrugged.
"We are gathering plants?"Scarlet leaned closer to read it. "Apparently."
"Why?"She looked genuinely confused.
"Because I need money to survive."I said.
"I could destroy monsters instead."That seemed to offend her slightly.
"I know." I sighed. "That’s exactly why we’re NOT starting with that."
"First guild quest accepted. Congratulations. You are officially employed. Your academy professors are crying somewhere."The system immediately chimed in.
"You enjoy this too much."I stared blankly at the screen.
"Correct." I folded the quest paper and started walking toward the exit.
Scarlet followed closely behind me again and as we stepped outside, she looked at the paper once more.
"So our first mission is collecting herbs."She said
"Yep."I said.
"Understood."She nodded seriously.
Then holy power flickered around her hand. I froze immediately.
"Why are you charging mana for gardening?"I asked.
"I will eliminate all plant related obstacles."Scarlet said.
"No."I said.
The glowing stopped instantly and she looked disappointed.
"You adventuring style is very restrictive, Master."Scarlet sighed.
I sighed again.
"Yeah." I muttered. "This really is going to be a hard life."
The walk toward the eastern forest was quieter than I expected. Mostly because I was busy questioning every decision that led me here. Yesterday, I had an academy uniform. Today, I had a C rank guild card, twelve silver worth of self respect, and a saintess capable of deleting forests because she cared too much. Honestly? The academy might have had a point. Scarlet walked beside me calmly, hands folded behind her back. Every few seconds, people on the street would notice her holy aura and immediately move out of the way.
One merchant almost dropped his apples.
"She looks expensive."A child pointed at her and whispered.
That was probably the most accurate description so far. I checked the quest paper again.
"Greenroot leaves..." I muttered. "How hard can gathering plants even be?"
"Quest difficulty updated: Famous last words detected."The system appeared instantly.
"I hate you."I frowned.
"Mutual understanding improves user growth."The system said.
"Master argues with the system often."Scarlet glanced at the floating screen.
"Because it deserves it."I sighed.
"Fair."She said.
"Wait. You can see it too?"I stopped walking.
"Yes."Scarlet nodded.
"Why didn’t you mention that earlier?!"I stared at her in horror.
"You did not ask."She blinked innocently.
"System note: User intelligence remains stable at disappointing levels."The system immediately added.
"This partnership is abusive."I rubbed my face.
Eventually, we reached the eastern forest. Compared to the academy forest, this place felt wilder. Less maintained. Monster territory signs were nailed onto several trees. Scarlet looked around calmly.
"I detect hostile presence."She said.
"Already?"I froze.
"Three goblins. One hiding badly."She nodded.
A bush shook nearby. Then a small green goblin jumped out screaming with a rusty knife.
"GRAAAAH!"I instinctively stepped back.
Scarlet moved first, a single glance. That was it. The goblin stopped existing. Not dead, not unconscious, gone.
"Where did it go?"I slowly turned toward her.
"I removed the threat."Scarlet tilted her head.
"Combat notification. Goblin eliminated. User experience gained. Level increased: 2 to 3"The system appeared immediately.
"Oh." I blinked. "I can level from HER kills?!"
"Shared summon experience enabled."The system said.
"Master became stronger."Scarlet looked happy.
"I literally stood there."I sighed.
"Emotional support counts."She nodded.
I opened my mouth and closed it. Honestly, I didn’t even know how to argue with that anymore. We continued deeper into the forest until I finally spotted the herbs near a fallen tree.
"Okay." I said. "Greenroot leaves. Finally something normal."
I crouched down and started collecting them carefully. Scarlet watched silently beside me then her expression changed slightly.
"Master?"She asked.
"What?"I said.
"I detect more hostiles."She said.
"How many this time?"I sighed.
"Twenty."She said.
"What do you mean twenty?"I froze completely.
The bushes exploded around us. Goblins, way too many goblins. Small ones. Big ones. One carrying what looked suspiciously like a chair. Why did they have a chair? The goblins screeched loudly and charged toward us.
"WHY ARE THERE SO MANY?!"I panicked immediately.
Scarlet calmly stepped in front of me, her holy aura expanded instantly. The air itself became heavy, the goblins stopped mid charge. Every single one froze and then slowly turned pale. One dropped its weapon and another started crying.
"Are they scared of you?"I blinked.
"They should be."Scarlet looked genuinely confused.
The goblin with the chair turned around and ran first. The others followed immediately. Complete panic, one crashed into a tree. Another tripped over absolutely nothing, within seconds, the entire horde disappeared into the forest screaming. Silence returned.
"Did we just traumatize goblins?"I stared blankly into the distance.
"I protected you."Scarlet turned toward me.
The system appeared again.
New title unlocked: Goblin psychological disaster."The system said.
"That’s a real title?"I looked at the screen.
"Yes."The system said.
"Why?"I asked.
"No one has ever scared twenty goblins into retirement before."The system said.
I looked at Scarlet, and she smiled softly. Honestly? I was starting to understand why the academy panicked. I was starting too.
