Amy and Bolton, I wonder if it’s because the report from the receptionist lady reached the upper management.
The next day, the dungeon we had temporarily left behind got a name: ‘Crude Catacomb.’
It meant a shabby and gloomy ossuary.
“Well, it’s just a temporary name. Since the goddess’s church decided to send an extermination squad, it’ll be conquered in no time.”
“Hmm… Is that so?”
Well, it was none of my concern. My role was done once I brought Amy back safe.
That ‘Lower Class Slaughterer’ Abyss Priest or whatever will surely be taken care of by the church. That’s what they’re there for.
According to the receptionist lady, the goddess’s church formed an extermination squad of Paladins and priests as soon as they heard Bolton’s report.
Of course, I heard that their numbers weren’t that large.
Even if there’s an Abyss Priest, if he’s only capable of summoning Wights, it wouldn’t be considered a serious threat that would require the church’s main forces to intervene.
The main forces of the church had way too many tasks to handle.
Taking down an Abyss Priest hiding in a low-tier dungeon was incomparable to the intense work they needed to do.
That’s why they only dispatched the forces stationed in Vespians?
Though they were just reserve troops… still, they said they could handle Wights like snacks. The fate that awaited the Abyss Priest would be getting beaten like a dog and burned at the stake.
◆◆
For the next week, I spent my time on short quests again.
Exterminating a single-floor Kobold den that doesn’t even deserve to be called a dungeon.
Gathering magic herbs from the snowy mountains used for making mint-scented cigarettes.
Cleansing a pack of wolves attacking houses for food.
Even rescuing villagers kidnapped by goblins and taken to their hideout.
I tackled the Kobold extermination and villager rescue quests with Kikel, while the wolf hunt and gathering quests were done with a temporary party since Kikel couldn’t join.
As is often the case with temporary parties, they weren’t exactly trustworthy. Not in terms of character but in skill.
Really, I found myself missing Kikel.
What happened, you ask?
Well, while we were rummaging through the snowy mountains looking for magic herbs,
GRRROOOAARR! GRRROOOAARR!
a snowy bear suddenly jumped out at us….
HIIIIIKE! W-Wait, it’s a snowy bear! A bear appeared!
Run for your liiives!
Act dead, just act dead!
Are you crazy? Just run!
Those guys, I swear, shrieked and scattered like a bunch of drowned kittens!
Their escape was so agile it gave me a real chuckle.
Thanks to that, I had to duel with a gigantic bear that looked like it was over three meters tall, armed with only a sword.
Fortunately, thanks to my experience slaying tons of Wights, my body moved much better than before, and somehow I managed to win.
Although the snow bear hide I managed to get was in shambles, thus not worth much.
And on the morning of the eighth day.
“Congratulations, Hilde.”
The receptionist lady suddenly offered her congratulations.
“Congratulations?”
“With the previous naming quest, you’ve accumulated quite a reputation. If you successfully finish just one decent quest, we can discuss your promotion.”
“R-Really?”
With news I had been eagerly waiting for.
◆◆
Discussion of Promotion to the Rank of Adventurer.
Though it was termed “discussion,” it really meant a confirmation of my promotion.
Unless there was a serious disqualification, they wouldn’t drop an adventurer who had the strength and achievements worthy of that discussion.
Of course, I was one of those adventurers with a ‘serious disqualification’…
But thanks to Amy and Bolton’s guarantees, that issue had been handled, so I didn’t need to worry.
If I can just finish one more quest safely, it meant I could also be recognized as a rank 2 adventurer.
It was an unusually speedy promotion.
I heard that finding the Abyss Priest made a significant contribution to this?
Though it was more like we stumbled across him by accident… in this industry, luck is recognized as skill too.
On top of that, the reports of having slain over ten Wights and taking down a snow bear alone added up to the discussion about my promotion to rank 2, despite my short career.
“Rank 2…”
I felt a bit dazed, but it was still a good thing.
Even though there was still some distance to go until becoming a rank 1 adventurer, being promoted to rank 2 alone brought quite a few benefits.
It’s like the difference between temporary and permanent employment, I guess?
From rank 2 onward, you can proudly consider yourself a true adventurer, so the guild pays more attention to their convenience.
They’d provide a small condolence payment to the families if you die on a quest, or offer a 5% discount when utilizing guild affiliated shops… that sort of stuff.
Moreover, unlike those below rank 2 who had to rent inns for lodging, from rank 2 onward, you were allowed to obtain a residence within the city.
Given the house prices here, it meant it was merely allowed, and unless you hit the jackpot while dungeon crawling, buying a house would be impossible.
CRACK! Rank 2, huh? Congratulations!
Kikel, who had been listening nearby, shook his neck left and right and offered his congratulations.
I wondered if Kikel could be promoted too, but he said it was too early for him regarding skill and experience.
He was right at the upper echelons of rank 1 adventurers. To upgrade to rank 2, he had to diligently go dungeon crawling.
Well, it wouldn’t take too long.
By killing more enemies and gaining experience – which they call ‘up’ here – he too would grow stronger and reach the level suitable for rank 2 adventurers.
◆◆
Anyway, feeling great about the unexpected good news, I promptly took on a new quest.
Cleaning out a cave infested with giant spiders.
It wasn’t a particularly tricky quest.
Giant spiders, while they do shoot sticky webs from their behinds and have venomous fangs, could be taken down quite easily if you were careful about those things.
The problem was….
“Oh, it’s you? Are you the adventurers coming with us to exterminate the giant spiders?”
One of the party members who picked the same quest said.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Wolfgang. As you can see, I’m a warrior walking the path of martial arts.”
Unlike Kikel, this one was different; he wasn’t a human.
A young martial artist boasting a completely bald head.
Baldness isn’t a human trait, and a martial artist can hardly be regarded as a human; hence you could say this bald martial artist was the very embodiment of a human failure.
One would be hard pressed to find an appropriate way to describe a life as full of shame as to consider suicide but shamelessly continuing to live as an adventurer. How could such a being possibly exist?
It was a truly shocking matter.
◆◆
Martial Artist.
That term described an individual resembling a half-chimpanzee, who purposefully reverses the evolutionary path of humanity, the apex of all living beings through tools.
The obvious truth that being poked or cut is far more painful than being hit, and the fundamental truth that longer reach is advantageous in fighting are completely denied by these lunatics.
With pitiful attack power, excessively dangerous fighting styles, and an utter stubbornness of refusing to listen.
Among warriors, they were treated even beneath dagger warriors; they were literally like untouchable pariahs.
These martial artists claimed that their well-trained fists possessed the power of a mace.
Well, if that’s true, why not just buy a mace? They cost about 2 silver at most.
So one could only regard martial artists as fools.
They were the failed products of evolution, with traits of prehistoric ancient apes manifesting during their growth.
That was the true nature of martial artists.
Of course, if they amassed enough experience to transcend the limits of muscle, truly strong martial artists could indeed take down monsters with just punches and kicks.
But what kind of place am I working at right now?
Between adventurers below rank 2, in all honesty, there was almost no difference between a warrior swinging a great sword and a martial artist throwing punches.
Great sword warriors were typically strong enough to wield their heavy blades with gusto.
The only difference between them was that martial artists tended to show off when they threw punches.
With an air of superiority, they claimed that they had learned the art of punching better than the ruffians.
… Anyway, now that such an existence joined the party, how could I not be shocked?
Especially on a quest that was practically a promotion test.
Even a man without hair.
…No, seriously. He has no hair!
How can a human be like this? No matter how many times I saw it, I couldn’t believe it.
He looked to be in his late twenties, how can a guy like that not have a single strand of hair?
If he’s a martial artist, he should have loads of hair as he regresses to chimpanzee status.
Is he suffering from some terminal illness?
Unless that’s the case, how could a man in his thirties shine like a light bulb?
