Syl

Chapter 51: The Adventurer's Guild

I received plenty of attention as we walked the streets to our destination. People pointed and stared, and I felt quite uncomfortable with the attention. I regretted that my only human forms were of the four dead adventurers, but that would have likely led to much worse attention. An elf was a mystery, but a dead person suddenly coming back to life was a miracle. I was fortunate that this town was so small and unconnected they didn't seem to have much information on elves, which could only help me.

I still had the goal given to me by Sylthaeryn to deliver her pouch to another elf, but judging by their isolated community, that might prove to be troublesome. However, that isolation seemed to be a stroke of fortune for me since I could hopefully play up my lack of worldly knowledge as a culture clash.

The building we reached was massive and looked out of place with the rest of the rather rustic and rural town. Noticing my curiosity, Roderick explained that the Adventurers Guild was a global entity and received funding from outside. All nations participated at least somewhat with the guild, except for the elves. This was one of the reasons why elven adventurers were so few and far between, and successfully recruiting one could be seen as a mark of pride.

Entering the building, I was shocked at the amount of people inside. There was a small section for food and drink, where people seemed to be getting quite rowdy and celebrating the victory and embellishing the tale of the battle. One adventurer claimed I had bound a demon to my soul and achieved an evolution beyond hobgoblin. Hilarious. There were many counters with staff and a massive noticeboard filled with pieces of parchment.

Rather than going to one of the open counters, we seemed to be waiting for a particular staff member. I shifted a little uncomfortably at the stares I was getting and could easily overhear the lewd remarks from the drunks.

'I guess these pointy ears aren't just for show...' I thought bitterly, and I'd almost bet one of the traits I was missing from the profile was a hearing enhancement.

One of the groups came over and handed drinks to our entire group, a celebratory drink, they claimed. It looked like Roderick and Evan wanted to decline, but Whitney, Dewi, and Kurt had already partaken in the revelry, and somehow, even I found myself with a drink in hand. Roderick told me numerous times that I didn't need to drink, but I wanted to try fitting in, and I didn't see any risks - even if they were stupid enough to try to poison me in public, I was immune.

'Wait... They actually tried to poison me?' I thought curiously and read the descriptions.

I felt relief when I realized that the first was just alcohol, which had an inebriating effect and was indeed the point of the drink. The second, however, was insidious, and it seems the drunk humans had a rather lustful nature, or perhaps this was intended as a prank, and they hoped to make a fool of the elf. There were some laughs and chuckles from their compatriots back at their tables as they saw me drinking.

"Yes. Although it seems someone slipped an aphrodisiac into my drink." I nonchalantly responded.

Roderick was aghast and struggled to hide his anger, "What? Are you sure?"

"I received a notification," I explained, "But you're welcome to take the drink and sample it yourself. Although unless you have a trait to resist poisons, I'd suggest against it."

"No. But thank you for not causing a scene. I'll personally make sure their actions are reported." Roderick said. He took my drink from me and secretly siphoned some of it into a flask.

"I was wondering what you spent all your trait points on. I can definitely approve of getting poison resistance." Roderick added with a light chuckle.

Eventually, we headed to an empty counter staffed by a friendly-looking girl. She seemed very pleased to see the party returning and even gave Kurt a friendly shoulder slap.

"Tabby, we've gotta celebrate tonight!" Kurt shouted.

"Yeah, sure, if you're buying." She responded with an impish grin.

When she noticed me, her eyes went wide, "The early returners had mentioned an elf, I thought they were bullshitting..."

"Nope, Syl here is real." Kurt replied, "And best of all, she wants to join the guild."

"Really!?" She exclaimed loudly, causing quite a few people to stare at her outburst.

"Yes, really. I'll be giving the guild master a full report, but you can proceed with her assessment and registration." Roderick replied.

"Fuck. I guess I'm buying drinks tonight. Assuming I'm registering her."

"Damn right!" Kurt cheered.

"Kurt's got money troubles again, so he needs the charity," Dewi said smugly.

"I'm not surprised. Kurt's wallet is like a leaky bucket. I'll go get the crystals!" Tabitha said and headed into a backroom.

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"I'm going to go report to the guild master." Roderick said and handed Whitney a small pouch, "Here is the registration fee. I'll see you all later." Roderick gave me a knowing nod as he tapped the flask at his side, then left with a friendly wave.

"I'm heading home for a bath and then to the temple. See you all later for dinner. Good luck, Syl." Evan said with a wave.

When Tabitha returned, she had a rather ornate box in her grip. She placed it on the counter and opened it, revealing three intricate crystals with glyphs and sigils carved into them.

"Right. Do you want to rush this or get the full new recruit experience?"

"Rush, I'm sure," Kurt said, looking a bit bored.

"No, I'd like the full experience," I responded, hoping to get more information.

"Kurt here didn't even get his attributes or affinities checked. Just grabbed the class crystal and picked." Whitney explained.

"That seems reckless..." I muttered, trying to be polite.

"Yes and no. You can always change your class later, but blindly picking leaves hidden potential unexplored." Dewi explained, "Although I'm not going to hold my breath on Kurt suddenly awakening to magic."

"Cool it, boys, if you want to fight, you can use the training grounds. Or go run the dungeon." Tabitha interjected before continuing, "Right, first we will check your attributes. These are some of the things hidden from our status menus that are still being researched. Currently, we can only get a vague good or bad with them."

Tabitha handed me a crystal, and when I grasped it, it projected a menu in front of me.

Vitality: Bad

Mana: Very Good

Strength: Bad

Dexterity: Good

Agility: Good

Intellect: Good

Willpower: Good

Charisma: Average

There were some surprised murmurs from the group, and it seemed they could see this projection. I wished I had been warned, as this seemed like the information I'd like to have kept private.

"Wow. I don't think I've seen a 'Very Good' before." Tabitha commented.

"Told you she has potential." Dewi chuckled.

'Even with three levels in [Enhanced Vitality], it still shows bad?' I thought negatively. I also couldn't help but feel like the bad strength was a personal stab.

"Right, you've got a lot of potential to be a Scout or Mage. I'd highly advise against picking Warrior." Tabitha said professionally.

"Yeah, no offense, but if you were our tank, you'd go down like a wet noodle," Kurt said, shaking his head.

"Next up is affinities. Personally, I'm hoping you'll join me on the path of pyromancy." Dewi said excitedly.

I was handed another crystal and told to inject my mana into it. I followed the instructions, and the crystal shone a near-blinding solid blue light. Tabitha took the crystal from me quickly, and when the light faded, everyone was rubbing their eyes.

"Water..." Dewi said sadly, "I mean... It's probably the highest purity I've ever seen, but I really wanted another fire mage to share spells with."

"Tell me about it." Tabitha said while rubbing her eyes, "For reference, this is a normal reaction." The crystal shone and cycled between a brown and grey color.

"Earth and Air." She explained.

"Don't look so sad Tabby. You could always level both up and get Dust."

"Yes, cause I totally want to become a Dust Mage... No thanks, I'll stick to being a receptionist with free time and hobbies."

"When you aren't stuck working the graveyard shift." Kurt laughed.

"Low blow... I'll remember that tonight when you're buying drinks."

"Ignoring spellcasting, those are two amazing affinities to have for skill requirements, especially for close combat," Whitney commented.

"[Wind Step]..." I muttered accidently.

Whitney overheard me and nodded, "Exactly. I'd never have picked Rogue if I didn't have Air."

"Don't worry, Syl. In three more levels, you can hopefully get Fire."

"I'd recommend Earth and have the potential to get Nature. Elves supposedly have a high affinity with that. I'm honestly surprised you don't already have Earth." Tabitha commented, resuming her professional attitude.

"I already have Whitney trying to convince her to become an archer instead of a mage. I don't need you tempting her away from the path of pyromancy." Dewi said with exaggerated outrage, "Do you girls have a grudge against me?"

Both girls laughed at Dewi's expense before Tabitha spoke again, "Also, bear in mind that this is only a basic affinity crystal. You'd need to go to a larger branch or perhaps the Mage's Guild in the capital for a more thorough examination and check for a rare affinity."

I nodded, and she returned the crystal to the box before producing the last crystal, "Lastly is your class selection. Remember, you can come to the guild and change it for a small fee if you are dissatisfied."

Was this it? This simple? I grab a crystal, and I get my class. No manipulation, no mind magic, no servitude? It honestly felt unreal at this point. I grabbed the crystal, and like with my attributes, a window appeared before me.

Warrior

Scout

Mage

Hunter

Rogue

Assassin

Crafter

Alchemist

"Woah! I only had three." Kurt exclaimed in surprise.

"Damn, Syl, what were you doing in that forest," Whitney commented.

"Mage!" Dewi said excitedly.

Tabitha cleared her throat loudly and glared at her friends. They apologized, and she began her explanation.

"Warrior, Scout, and Mage are basic classes. Everyone has the first two, but Mage requires you to have the trait [Mana Circulation]. Crafter is similarly the basic non-combat class."

"Hunter and Rogue are intermediary classes, and both usually come from advancing through Scout class. Likewise, Alchemist is one of the advancements of Crafter."

"Assassin is an advanced class, usually unlocked through advancing Rogue. Don't answer, as the guild respects Trait and Skill privacy, but I'm assuming you have a decently leveled [Stealth] and [Sneak Attack] at a minimum since you already qualify for the class."

"It's one of the classes I'm interested in... Hopefully soon." Whitney said, "I'm surprised you have Hunter but not Sniper."

"Classes are still being explored and experimented with every day. There's a reason some of the temples say it's purely up to the Gods. Who knows what truly gives some people access to certain classes earlier or later than others? While we have repeatable evidence, certain aspects still feel entirely random or up to fate." Dewi explained, like a seasoned scholar.

We were all staring at him dumbfounded when he chuckled, "Just because I like having fun and acting the fool doesn't mean I am one."

"So I can change class for a fee?" I asked and broke the silence.

"Yes."

"Can I lose an option? If I don't pick Assassin now, do I risk losing it?"

"No, once you qualify for a class, it is always available."

"While I am tempted by the thought of starting with an advanced class. Like I said earlier, I want to try magic."

I needed some outlet for all this mana, and [Elven Legacy] would boost me towards magic. Dewi was grinning while frantically nodding his head.