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After that, we returned to the shore and played around for about an hour, after which we returned to Stollar.

As expected the temperature of the lake that was created by a spring was too much even for Michelle, so playing any longer was impossible.

When we finally reached Stollar, the sun was already setting and the surroundings were growing dim. It would have probably turned completely dark within another hour.

We saw taverns on the streets lighting up torches and getting ready for the night.

While walking briskly through such a street, we went inside the Adventurer’s Guild that was about to close for the day.

The hall was full of Adventurers like us who rushed to make it in time and report their commission progress.

“Oh, yer back already?”

The receptionist lady with a peculiar accent quickly spotted and addressed us in a friendly manner. The same person who gave us this test.

“Yeah. Corne and Moria grass, we have them both.”
“Oho? Parties that are being tested often cooperate, but still, finishing it in one night was unexpected. Color me impressed.”
“Of course. We have Gadius’ seal of approval, after all.”

I presented an aloe-like plant with withered red flowers. Mark’s group also took out the Moria grass.

“But one night, eh? And ‘ere I expected ye would return one time… Could it be that ye knew beforehand?”
“O-Of course. Knowledge is power for Adventurers, after all.”
“Judging by yer conduct, ye didn’t, eh. But well, having luck as an ally is also part of strength.”

As she said that, her expression turned firm. What used to be a charming expression switched to that of a warrior.

“What de ye think is the most important thing if ye plan to be Adventurers?.”
“Huh, like knowledge or power?”

Michelle reflexively asked back, but that wasn’t it.

“No. It’s the ability to fulfill requests with certainty.”
“Correct. Fer the client, an Adventurer’s skill is not what’s most important. It’s whether they can fulfill the commission or not. Their skill is but a mere indicator. They have to fulfill the request using whatever they have at their disposal, be it luck or even connections.”
“Then, our luck to find Corne grass and Mark’s group getting us to cooperate…”
“Are both valid. Frankly speaking, if ye tried to, ye could finish this test in five minutes, ye know?”
“Huh?”

Her words made my eyes go wide. Five minutes? That has to be a… No, wait.

“I see. So we could’ve just bought it here?”
“Exactly. The test said nothing about how to get it. Both Corne and Moria grass is traded at the Guild. In other words, we have stocks of it.”
“So the test would’ve ended if we just bought, huh?”
“But wouldn’t that be pretty unfair?”
“Then let it be unfair. If you are so quick-witted to do that, there are no problems in ranking ye up. This should also have served as a good lesson to not accept what yer client tells you at face value, right?”

The receptionist waved her hand with a smile, inviting us to one of the counters. Then she started to promptly fill in the documents.

After that, she took a glance at me and gave a light sigh.

“The test would be considered finished once ye did a sham battle to test your skill… But I don’t think there’s a need fer that in yer case.”
“Huh, why?”
“Ye were recommended by Sir Gadius. He would not have sent unskilled people. You boys over there have enough achievements too.”
“I suppose that would be the case after doing odd jobs for a year.”
“Indeed. Well then, I shall update yer Adventurer certificates, so hand them over.”

We did as requested and handed over our certificates to her.

As she took them, she inserted them into some machine one by one and it gave back cards that had the bordering changed from red to orange.

“Here, your new Second Rank cards. Don’t lose it now, okay? And confirm the information just in case.”
“Ah, okay.”

As she instructed, I moved my eyes to the ID field of the certificate. Though I called it that, it only had the details like my features, birthplace, age, and race. The only change was that my rank had risen by one.

“No problems.”
“Good ta hear. With this, ye have become rank two Adventurers. Ye can now take on dangerous requests too. In other words, ye would be putting yerselves in more risk.”
“So we have to choose our jobs more carefully, right?”
“But at the same time, yer skill has been deemed to be enough to overcome such commissions. Having said that, they are still newbie level.”

She gave us a small lecture after handing over the certificates and easily set us free. Or more accurately, she practically drove us away because we were in the way.

“Now, go home. I have to too! I have to attend a mixer today to find a third husband.”
“Third… Why not just give up?”
“If I give up that would be the end of me as a human!”
“It’s that big of a deal for you…?”

I feel like I have been seeing the scary side of women since I reincarnated. This receptionist was a charming person, but how to say… She strangely gave off an unwelcome aura.

At any rate, if she wanted us gone, we would do just that. We walked quite a distance from the lake to the city, so I was quite tired.

When we returned to the inn, Gadius prepared a feast for us. It was a dwarven cuisine that fried ingredients over strong fire with just oil.

It sounded like something that’d be hard on the stomach, but strangely enough, it didn’t cause indigestion.

Michelle and Cloud who were in their growth period devoured it in great joy, while Finia had it a little tough.

As expected, forest dweller elves had different tastes compared to mountain dweller dwarves.

I also ended up stuffing myself unusually full and headed to my room once the night came. Once I did some maintenance on my equipment and tools, I changed my clothes, put the laundry in the basket, and laid down on my bed.

“Ugh, I think I ate too much.”

It was an amount I should’ve easily handled in my previous life, but this body couldn’t even finish one plate.

But I got carried away by Michelle’s energy and ended up eating two whole plates this time, so it was natural I was feeling this way.

Looking down, my belly looked quite swollen, making it clear that I had overeaten.

“But since my stomach is swelling it should mean my abdominal muscles aren’t firm enough. This body really can’t put on any muscle.”

Magic Buildup Disease had been fully healed and my body had returned to being as healthy as an average young girl.

However, it wasn’t growing any better, either. I was merely holding on to my strength using assisting spells, previous life techniques, and tools. It was a far cry from the strength of the body itself like in Lyell’s case.

“…Oh well. I’m still young, I guess?”

My body was still growing. And so were my physical abilities along with it. For now, I just had to bet on that possibility.

“Ugh, I need water…”

Rather than that, my current problem was that I had overeaten.

At this rate, I could imagine something sparkling bursting from my mouth the moment I lied face down. I reached out to the water jug at the side table, but it turned out to be empty.

Gadius probably got rid of it while we were out of the inn.

“Can’t be helped. I’ll go get something at the counter.”

I put on a cardigan to fend off the cold and left the room.

It was midnight already, so I couldn’t hear any voices from either of the two floors.

But Gadius should still have been on the first floor to clean things up. I’ll ask him to give me something to drink there.

As I headed down to the hall, as expected, Gadius was at the counter reading a letter. He had a bigger frown than normal on his face.

“Mgh… Is it you, Nicole?”
“Yeah, I wanted something to drink.”
“Ah, right, I got rid of the water in the jugs. My bad, it was an oversight.”
“It’s fine, you wouldn’t know when we’d return.”

Gadius nodded at my words and poured me milk in a wooden cup. He then put a spoon of honey in it and stirred it lightly.

The white milk took on a yellowish tinge and a characteristic smell of honey tickled my nose.

“What are you reading?”
“Ah, it’s a letter from Maxwell.”
“Oh?”

It wasn’t like we had a disagreement, so we exchanged letters normally. But still, his expression was too serious for that.

“What does it say?”
“It’s about you. Reid.”
“…What?”

Suddenly, he uttered my name.

I was frozen in shock, failing to make up an excuse, and merely stared back at him.