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It had been three days since Merc had registered. To avoid being late, Merc was on her way to the Adventurers’ Guild. There was nothing new that she noticed as she had already walked here for three days.

Besides the first three men, no one else had tried to take her recommendation, so the last three days had been rather quiet. She had, however, dealt with a number of men who had attempted to pick her up.

Those b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲s̲. What’s wrong with them! Who even tries to pick up a 14-year-old?!

Even though humans considered a person to be an adult once they reached the age of 14, it was still considered inappropriate for older men to approach women of that age. In addition, Merc was an elf. If one considered her age through the eyes of the elves, she was still a child.

Merc was concerned about the direction in which the men were heading, no matter how mature and beautiful she appeared.

“Huh?”

Merc noticed a carriage parked in front of the Adventurers’ Guild as she was worrying herself about the future generation of men. It was also a quite huge carriage.

“It looks like it can fit 10… No, close to 20 people.”

The carriage didn’t cause any problems because the road where it was parked was rather broad, but that didn’t stop those passing by from looking at it suspiciously. However, given that the carriage took up over half of the wide road, this seemed understandable.

“There’s even three Belballs. I guess it really can carry up to 20 people.”

As soon as Merc saw the horned horses connected to the carriage, she was confident it could carry up to 20 passengers.

Belballs, also known as Horned Horses, were a sort of Magic Beast. Belballs were distinct from regular horses in that they had better intelligence and were also stronger and faster. They could be domesticated as well.

The elf village was also raising a few of them, and there was no more useful Magic Beast than the Belballs if they were properly raised.

“But why is there a carriage here?”

Merc thought to herself as she was going to pass by the carriage. She noticed something odd about the Belballs at that point. All three of them were not normal. Merc wasn’t sure as to what this could mean.

“It’s difficult to believe these three were picked at random to pull this carriage…”

Merc was enthralled by the horses when she felt a person approaching her from behind.

“Is there something wrong, Young Miss?”
“N-No… It’s nothing.”

When Merc turned around, she was greeted by a woman with blue hair who smiled at her.

The woman looked young, and Merc assumed she was in her early twenties. The dimples that emerged when she smiled made her look adorable, and the imposing bulges around her chest put her high on Merc’s list as well.

“Are you here for the exam, Young Miss? If you are, you should hurry. It’s almost time.”
“Really? Thank you… By the way, how did you know I was taking the exam?”

After expressing her gratitude to the woman, Merc asked the question that had been on her mind. Even though the woman in front of Merc didn’t appear to be hostile, Merc had her guard up and was ready to act if necessary.

“Who wouldn’t I? You don’t see young girls with wooden sticks around here every day. You don’t appear to be somebody normal based on your atmosphere, but you also don’t appear to be a full-fledged adventurer based on your outfit. Meaning that you’re likely taking the exam.”
“Hmph. You’re able to figure all of that out from just this much?”
“Well, honestly, it was mostly a gut feeling. Though I’m a little embarrassed to admit it, I get the sense that if you fail, I’ll have one less competitor.”
“I see.”

Merc said, agreeing with the woman’s reasoning. As a result, Merc walked away from the horses after a little nod.

“Since you view me as a competitor, does that mean you’re also taking the exam?”
“That’s right. I’m Totoara. What’s your name, Young Miss?”
“It’s Merc. A pleasure to meet you.”

Following their introductions, both women proceeded to the Guild. As they arrived, they were astonished to find that, despite the fact that it was early in the morning, the Guild was packed with people, the majority of whom were adventurers waiting in various lines.

“I-It must be over there.”

Totoara said, pointing to a place.

“What?”

Totoara suddenly pointed to one of the Guild’s corners as they were both unsure where to go. When Merc turned around, she saw a sign that said, Gathering Place for Examinees. She could already notice a lot of people who appeared to be examinees there.

“This makes 17… 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… It seems like this is everyone.”

As soon as Merc and Totoara arrived, a man in glasses murmured something, after which he closed his eyes and began counting down. He proclaimed the end of the meeting when the countdown was completed.

“There’s two less than the number that registered, but I guess that is fine. Well then, everyone, follow me.”

Merc assumed they were really strict when it came to being on time based on what the man stated just now. Even though there were still people who hadn’t arrived, the Guild’s staff merely moved forward, ignoring them.

Following the man, the group of 17 was quickly brought to a room within the Guild.

“You’ll enter the room one by one, and hand in your admission ticket as well as your recommendation to the staff inside. After they’ve been checked, you are free to sit on any of the chairs inside.”

The man said, after which the examinees began entering one by one. Merc took a seat in the front row chairs, and Totoara arrived shortly after and sat next to her. She smirked at Merc, most likely as a greeting.

After all of the examinees had taken their seats the man once again appeared and stood in front of them.

“I might as well introduce myself before we begin. My name is Brega. I’m a Grade 3 Adventurer and work as a member of the staff at the Adventurers’ Guild branch here in Ende. I was going to be your examiner.”
“Was going to?”

All of the examinees were left puzzled when they heard Brega’s statement. This of course included Merc as well.

“Correct. I’m sorry to inform you that the exam this time won’t be held in the Ende branch. As a result, I’d like to request that you proceed to the branch where it will be held.”
“Huh? What’s this b̲u̲l̲l̲s̲h̲i̲t̲ about?!”
“Don’t f̲u̲c̲k̲ with us! Where is it being held then?!”

Various angry shouts could be heard from all corners of the room as soon as Brega delivered his declaration. However, as a Grade 3 Adventurer, Brega did not flinch and just clapped his hands.

“Now, now, please calm down. You do not need to be concerned. We’ve given you plenty of time to get to where you’re needed. You’ll have one week from now to arrive at the specified branch.”
“And where in the world is that?!”
“It is located inside the Lezau Duchy. More particularly, in the City of Logholt. You will have one week to arrive at the branch in Logholt.”
“Logholt? Don’t f̲u̲c̲k̲ with us! Even if we hurry, walking to Logholt takes ten days!”

The examinees became enraged once more after hearing Brega’s statement. No one could blame them, though. One could probably make it if they took the risky shortcut; but, reaching Logholt through the safe roads would be impossible. And the Guild was most likely aware of that.

Brega, on the other hand, without really explaining, simply looked everyone in the eyes and stated,

“If you don’t want to do it, great. If you want, you can leave right now. This has already been settled, so I have no desire to engage with your petty squabbles.”
“W-What did you just say?!”
“Those who wish to take the exam, please remain in your seats. I’ll now describe how to get to the exam location.”
“Urgh…”

Brega said, completely unfazed by the angry expressions on the examinees’ faces. Even those who had previously cried out in protest returned to their seats when confronted with the current situation’s pressure.

Hmph. So they can even get away with such an unreasonable request? The Adventurers’ Guild must really have a lot of authority.

Merc thought. Just then the bald-headed giant seated directly behind her slowly rose up and spoke, as if he had just read Merc’s mind.

“I cannot agree with this.”