21 Chapter 21: Tanaka the Wizard (1/2)

”Are you sure here is fine?”

Knight Captain Dante Infernius looked at me, concerned. I nodded and hopped off my borrowed horse before handing its reins to the nearest knight.

”Yeah, thanks for the ride. Here is fine.”

I had hitched a ride with the depleted Knights of the Blood Company and reached the nearest city. I bowed gratefully to the company of knights as they reined their horses to a trot across the paved street of the city. Without the knights, I wouldn't have reached the city this quickly. Riding a horse was completely different from traveling on foot.

”I just need you to point me toward the nearest mercenary guild,” I explained as I glanced around. The streets were wide and huge, and the districts were packed full of large buildings reminiscent of shop houses in Kyoto's famous shoutengai.

Unlike most Japanese light novel stories, ”adventurer” guilds or adventurers didn't exist in reality. Adventurers weren't a profession. Instead, Restia was filled with something called mercenaries – people who execute specific jobs for money. Having arrived in this world not too long ago, I was still penniless. I had nothing but the shirt I had on my back, and even my uniform jacket was ruined. Fortunately, I had the Redwood Robe as a cool replacement for my jacket (though it really should be called jacket rather than robe, but that wouldn't sound magical enough).

In the face of such a predicament, I decided that the most practical route was to take up jobs from the mercenary guild to earn some money for living expenses. Thanks to the knowledge I had garnered from the Library of Eden, I roughly had some sense of how Restia operated. Fortunately, I didn't go around asking for an adventurers' guild or I would have made a fool out of myself. It was a pity, but such fictional fantasies didn't always exist in reality.

Well, mercenaries were close enough.

”The nearest mercenary guild is down that way,” Dante pointed out. ”Just follow the road down, and you'll see a gigantic building with a blue domed roof and golden entrance a few blocks south. You can't miss it – it's literally labeled as mercenary guild.”

”Thanks!”

I saluted Dante, but he shook his head.

”No, I should be the one thanking you. For saving me and my men.”

”I didn't manage to save all of them…”

I glanced down, but Dante waved my discouraged demeanor away.

”Are you joking? You aren't obligated to save even one of us, yet you saved more than half of my company. I swear, we – the knights of the Order of Blood – will definitely repay this favor one day. Call upon us and we'll come to your aid.”

”I look forward to that.”

”May our paths cross again!”

Pulling on the reins, Dante turned his horse around and galloped to the nearest barracks, his surviving knights following him. Most of them threw me a salute or a thumb's up before they spun away to follow their commander.

I waited until the last of them were gone before I continued on my quest to find an actual job to make money from. As per Dante's instructions, I walked along the road and passed a few blocks, keeping an eye out for the fancy building he told me to look out for. It didn't take me long before I located the blue domed building with the extravagant golden entrance that had a huge sign with the words ”Mercenary Guild” scribbled on its wooden surface.

How conspicuous.

Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I proceeded to climb the gilded steps and approached the giant door that was framed by what looked like an arcane archway. Before I could reach for the handle, however, the doors flew open and caused me to jump out in fright.

”Ah! Again!”

A beautiful girl with long, blond hair strode out of the guild building, sounding frustrated. A black cloak swept from her shoulders, and white, fleshy thighs peeked out from under her short skirt before being hidden in long, silky thigh-length socks. Placing a hand on her hip, she glanced back with her sapphire eyes at her companion, a handsome knight in silver armor who wouldn't look out of place in Dante's company.

”Why do I need to request for a new party member?” she whined, pouting as she brushed off the front of her blouse.

”We need someone who can heal, Alicia,” her male companion replied. Like her, he sported golden hair and blue eyes, but his body was a lot more covered in silver armor. A single large sword hung from his back, and some decorated heraldry that was different from the Order of Blood's hung from armor, most likely the crest of a noble family.

”That's true, Alan, but…”

Grumbling to herself, the girl named Alicia sulked and strolled past the door, only to stop when she noticed me.

”Hmm?”

I had backed away to avoid being struck by the door, and as such my line of sight was aligned with her and her companion. Feeling uneasy by my gaze – and acting exactly like my female classmates – Alicia scowled.

”What are you looking at? Pervert.”

”…”

What was it with me and girls? Was it a curse I had? Even though this was the first time we met, she already thought I was creepy and disgusting. And I didn't even do a single thing. Perhaps it was the way I was looking at her? What was wrong with the way I looked at her? Was it my glasses? My eyes? My expression?

”Ah, Alicia!”

As Alicia stomped off, the guy named Alan chased after her. He turned to me and bowed apologetically.

”Sorry. She's in a bad mood, so please forgive her lack of manners.”

”No worries.” I waved him away. At least there was one guy who had the decency to realize that I was being treated unfairly.

I watched the girl and guy leave the guild before sighing. The girl certainly was beautiful, almost like a princess from a dream or fairy tale, and the guy was no slouch in looks either. He was such an ikemen that most of the girls in my class would fall head over heels for him at first sight. It was just a pity that the girl's attitude sucked.

Typical…this is starting to sound like a clichéd manga or light novel.

Perfect characters didn't exist in reality. Well, I wasn't interested in creating a harem or whatever nonsense, so I decided not to dwell on it too much. Chances were, I would never run into that girl with a rotten attitude again. Rather, I would prefer not to run into any girls at all. I was cursed or something – every girl other than the goddesses hated my very existence.

Besides, for what I plan to do, it's much better if I move around solo.

Scratching my head, I glanced at the open double doors. The fact that the handsome knight and beautiful magician (I guess) walked out of there complaining about needing party members meant that I was in the right place. This had to be the mercenary guild that Dante was talking about. If the couple from earlier needed to form a party, then they must be considering taking a job from this place. And a job was the one thing I needed right now.

I stepped into the guild house and paused when I caught sight of the occupants. I wasn't expecting a harem of beautiful girls or youngsters running about and looking for quests…actually, I didn't even know what I was expecting. But bitter reality slapped me in the face when I caught sight of a bunch of muscular, middle-aged men with beards, mustaches or scars huddling over the tables. There were women too – but middle-aged women with rough skin, ponytails and hostile scowls that sent chills down my spine.

To all them pretty would be stretching it. The best word I could use to describe them was comely, but even that was flattering them.

”Huh? What do you want, brat?”

One of the older women – who resembled more like her male comrades than a lady – growled at me. The only reason I could tell that she was female was the two huge bulges from her chest, that was barely held in by a tattered leather tunic. She had completely no fashion sense, or she just didn't care about her appearance at all.

That suited me fine.

”I'm looking for a job.”

”Huh? A greenhorn brat like you?” she sneered. Ignoring her, I walked past and toward what looked like the reception desk.

”Um, excuse me, sir?”

I approached the bald, dark-skinned man behind the desk.

”I'm looking for a job…I don't mind doing mercenary work…”

”Huh?” the muscular receptionist boomed as he towered over me. ”Are you aspiring to become a mercenary at your age?”

”Yeah, sorry. Circumstances forced my hand and I really need some means of earning money.”

”Hmph.” The receptionist sighed and shook his head. Relenting, he sat back down and retrieved a scroll and a pen. As he put pen to paper, he glanced up at me. ”Well, okay. Let's start your registration. Name?”

”Tanaka Tomoyuki.”

”Age?”

”16.”

As I answered the receptionist's questions, there was a furor among the other mercenaries at the tables inside what seemed like the dining hall of the guild.

”Oi…he says he's 16.”

”He's young enough to be my son,” a thickset man with a beard chuckled. Ignoring them, the receptionist continued.

”Class?”

”…necromancer?”

He gave me a stare as if he thought I was joking. When I didn't smile or respond, he shook his head and just scribbled in the scroll.

”I'll just put wizard then.”

Seriously? Did you have something against necromancers or something? Are you discriminating against us? I was telling the truth, you know!

At least that was what I wanted to say, but I doubted he would take me seriously. So I essentially became Tomoyuki the Wizard. Or Tanaka the Wizard.

Meanwhile, the other mercenaries continued to chatter, sending glances in my direction. Bloody hell, they were still talking about my age. Evidently, mercenaries were for more experienced veterans who had been through countless battles. Ex-military, rogues, former criminals…hardened warriors who had seen much of the world and survived whatever dark forces conspired to throw against them. A kid like me who was still wet behind the ears strolling up and asking for a job would cause heads to turn and surprise them.

However…

”He doesn't look like a noble.”

”Yeah, he doesn't look rich or spoiled.”

”He's different from those other kids earlier. No guardian, no bodyguard to escort and protect him from the actual dangers?”

”Those spoilt kids didn't seem to bring along protection either…”

”But they have money. They have excellent weapons and equipment. This kid looks completely broke and unequipped.”

For your information, I had one of the best defensive equipment in all of Restia, the Redwood Robe. Not that I was going to show that off to a bunch of grizzled, cynical middle-aged men. I didn't want to get robbed.

”Do you have any special skills?”

The receptionist continued to interrogate me, paying no heed to his comrades.

”Um, yes. Magic. Necromancy…summoning the dead…Regeneration”

The receptionist raised an eyebrow, but merely noted summoning and healing. Well, in a way, he wasn't incorrect…

”All right then.”

Once the application was filled out, the receptionist casted some sort of spell to create a card. He passed the card, which featured my photograph (when did he take my picture?!) and personal information. I took it and stared at it dumbly.

”This is your guild identification card. Don't lose it, okay?”

”Yeah, I'll do my best to safeguard it.”

I immediately placed the card in my pocket. The receptionist nodded in approval.

”Right now, you're Porcelain rank.”

”Porcelain?” I almost snorted in laughter. That sounded so fragile, as if it could break any time. I wondered if it was an insult, but from the knowledge I gained from the Library of Eden, I knew it was the most basic and lowest rank.

”Yes, sir,” I said instead. The receptionist had looked like he was expecting me to protest, and was relieved when I accepted the rank without arguing.

”If you want to earn money, then go to the sewers and hunt rats, or go to the forest and collect herbs. Simple stuff. When you get a bit more experience and honed your combat skills enough, you can move on to hunt goblins. Bring the remains back and the guild will purchase them at the appropriate price.”

”Yes, sir. I understand.”

I almost saluted. The receptionist glanced at me strangely, and then nodded as realization dawned on him.

”Were you serving in the knight corps?”