Published at 12th of July 2026 6:57 am

Chapter 1841: Adventurers’ Guild

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The Adventurers’ Guild occupied a broad stone hall in Lords’ Borough, a short walk away from the Rabbit Hole.

Its doors stood open from dawn until midnight, admitting a constant stream of mercenaries, treasure hunters, monster slayers, and hopeful fools.

Inside, a forest of notices covered the walls, each offering coin in exchange for danger. Some promised a handful of silver for clearing mutated rats from a cellar, while others offered fortunes for expeditions into the depths below the city.

The hopeful read them with excitement. The veterans read them with caution.

The guild existed to connect the two and to ensure that, when possible, the adventurers returned alive.

Adam paused at the front of the guildhall’s broad stone steps, his eyes blazing with excitement.

His attire consisted of simple trousers and a tunic, a leather pauldron on his left shoulder, a pair of vambraces, and high-knee leather boots. All of it had been borrowed from Hannibal.

The storeroom at the Rabbit Hole was filled with all manner of adventuring gear left behind by patrons, either as gifts or as payments for debts and tabs.

Adam looked like a dashing young hero about to embark on his first great adventure.

Valerian peeked out from his tunic and glanced at the symbol of the Adventurers’ Guild with round eyes. "Myu..."

It was a shield crossed by a sword and a wand. Time and weather had worn its edges smooth, but the emblem remained unmistakable.

Taking a steady breath, Adam climbed the stairs and entered through the giant, heavy doors. He stepped into the main hall. The sheer bustle nearly made him stop.

Adventurers crowded around quest boards, merchants bargained with guild clerks, and parties of armed men and women discussed routes, monsters, and rewards over scattered maps.

Messengers hurried between desks while scribes struggled to keep pace with the constant flow of contracts and reports. The main hall was alive with the sound of ambition and opportunity.

"Brother, will you form a party in the future?" Valerian reached out with his paws and gently scratched Adam’s chin.

"Hmm, maybe. I don’t know," he said absentmindedly.

After a moment of searching, he spotted a sign marked Records Office above a quieter doorway near the back of the hall. Weaving through the crowd, he made his way toward it, mission letter in hand, ready to claim his first assignment as an adventurer.

"Hey Val," he called out.

"Myu?"

"Why don’t you head back in? I’ll call you out once we’ve departed from the city."

Valerian made a face, but did as told. A faint gray light flashed, and he retreated to the youth’s spirit sea.

Adam recalled Lady Ira’s warning:

Hide Valerian among strangers. The wrong eyes spotting him could bring trouble.

His brows slowly creased into a frown. The underlying meaning in the woman’s words was obvious.

She definitely knows Valerian is a dragon.

And if she knows... then Boss does too.

It came as a big surprise when Ira had seen him off just a few minutes earlier and casually brought up Valerian. Adam knew the couple didn’t mean him any harm. Quite the contrary, in fact.

Even so, her warning left him deeply uneasy.

Would Valerian’s existence bring trouble? The question lingered in Adam’s mind like a dark cloud.

If Ira and Hannibal could see through Valerian’s disguise, what was stopping others from doing the same? They were powerful certainly, but Davos was filled with powerful people. If the couple had recognized Valerian for what he truly was, it stood to reason that others could as well.

And dragons were not exactly creatures one could hide forever.

Adam felt his chest tighten. All these months spent in the Rabbit Hole gave him a solid sense of security. But now, he was finally out in the real world. Once he left the walls of Davos, he would be surrounded by danger.

Sooner or later, someone would notice. Someone greedy. Someone curious. Someone powerful enough to take what they wanted. And when that day came, would he be strong enough to protect his dear Valerian?

The answer came immediately. And the realization left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"Hey, kid! Over here!"

A voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

He had already arrived at the Records Office. Unlike the rest of the guildhall, this section was noticeably quieter, occupied by rows of desks, shelves overflowing with ledgers, and clerks buried beneath mountains of paperwork.

An unoccupied gnome sitting behind the counter had just called out to him impatiently after watching him blank out at the doorway.

Adam crossed to him and offered an awkward greeting.

"I’m here regarding my initiation mission," he said, throwing the matter of Valerian to the back of his mind momentarily.

"Acceptance letter," the gnome said flatly.

Adam retrieved the letter that had arrived yesterday and handed it to the clerk. The gnome put on his glasses and read through its contents.

"Hmm, Magus Constantine," he murmured.

Then he cast a judgmental look at Adam and added, "You don’t look like a Magus."

Before Adam could respond, the gnome turned around and pulled a rolled parchment from a shelf behind him. He turned and handed it over.

"E-Rank escort mission," he said.

Adam took the parchment and unrolled it.

"You are to travel to Marbleford and pick up the client. He will be arriving at the Marbleford Port in a week. That should give you just enough time to reach the location. Once you’ve completed the assignment, report back to the Records Office. You’ll get the reward then."

He leaned back in his chair and clasped his hands behind his head.

"That’s it. Don’t lose the client. Don’t get yourself killed. And definitely don’t start any international incidents. We hate paperwork."

The gnome paused.

"Ah, I almost forgot!"

He reached beneath the desk and produced a thick contract.

"Sign this."

Adam took the document and quickly skimmed through it.

"Your success or failure will be recorded in the Guild archives," the gnome explained. "That record will affect your future as an adventurer. Clients look at those things."

The gnome leaned forward and tapped a section near the bottom of the contract.

"Also, this was an emergency contract set up by the client. The Guild will be taking a fifteen percent cut from the reward. Normally it’s ten."

Adam grimaced. So I’ll be left with forty-two gold and five silver.

Tap!

The gnome tapped again.

"If you want Guild-provided equipment, mounts, supplies, or insurance, that’ll cost extra. To be deducted from your reward, if that suits you."

"No, thanks," Adam blurted out almost immediately.

Tap!

"Should a dispute arise between you and the client, a Guild mediator will investigate the matter. During that time, any payment related to the contract will be withheld."

"Understood." Adam nodded.

"Standard procedure, kid." The gnome shrugged. Then he adjusted his glasses and asked, "Any questions?"

Adam cleared his throat and asked:

"Just to be clear... how much paperwork is involved if the client dies?"

The gnome was dumbfounded. The corner of his lips twitched.

"Less than if you start an international incident."

He paused for a moment, then said seriously, "Try not to get the client killed, though. He’s one of us. And by us, I mean he’s a retired adventurer."

"Okay, okay, I get it." Adam raised his hands in mock surrender. "By the way, what sort of dangers should I expect along the route?"

"Yours is an initiation mission," the gnome replied casually.

"So it’s a simple one. You’ll be traveling along the Trade Road, which is routinely patrolled and cleared by the Free City Alliance. You shouldn’t encounter much trouble. Maybe a few bandits. Perhaps some orc raiders that managed to avoid the last sweep."

Adam inhaled deeply, then nodded. "I understand. Thank you."

He deliberated for a moment, then asked, "Any advice for me?"

"Actually, yes." The gnome adjusted in his seat as he put up his most serious expression.

"If the client says, ’it should be simple,’ charge extra."

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