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Chapter 355: Adventurer Rank, and an Examiner.

The smartphone that I placed on the sideboard besides the bed began playing Rossini’s “William Tell Overture” loudly.

…Noisy. Should’ve put more thoughts into my song selection.

“Fua… Hello?”

Due to my mind still being groggy, I who had been woken up by the ringtone picked up the call without confirming the caller first.

“Born! It’s born!”

Suu’s voice, which didn’t lose in intensity even if you compare it to the march of the Swiss army in the William Tell Overture, flew over. She sure is energetic this early in the morning…

(Note: it’s written in a reference-kinda way, but well. Go search march of the swiss soldiers on YouTube and I bet all of you would instantly recognize that tune. Also, now that I think about it, who in the actual hell uses that for a ringtone?)

“Born… What is?”

As I rubbed my eyes while still feeling sleepy, I asked Suu what she meant.

“The baby, obviously! I have a little brother now-no ja!”

Suu’s voice, which contained an almost explosive joy, shocked my consciousness completely awake.

A baby? The Ortlinde ducal house’s… Suu’s mother!?

“Really!? A boy huh, congratulations!”

“Umu!”

Apparently Eren-san, Suu’s mother, went into labor just a little over midnight and the child was born safely just a while ago. Both mother and child are perfectly healthy with no problems.

With this, the Ortlinde ducal house has its successor decided too. Seems like if it was a girl, then the successor would be the child born between me and Suu, or something like that.

Although, the duke doesn’t know this, but since my children have a 8/9 chance to be a girl (at least for the first nine), it might be hard for them to get a successor from me.

I managed to cut the call after soothing Suu whose tension is reaching unknown heights. I know that she’s been saying she wanted a little brother since a while ago, so it can’t be helped that she’s happy, but being forced to go along with that high tension first thing in the morning is a bit tough as expected.

After a while, while I was dressing myself, Suu sent a mail with a photo attachment of her holding the baby in her arms. So his name is “Edward”, eh. Edward Ernes Ortlinde. Ed-kun, I guess?

“Edward” was apparently also the name of the deceased Suu’s mother’s father, that is, Suu’s grandfather. He was someone who could use the non-attribute magic [Recovery].

“Gotta prepare something for congratulations…”

I wonder what would be good. A baby carriage that can defend against all sorts of things by enchanting it with things like [Prison]? No no, that’s overdoing it. Maybe something like the baby bottle I gave to Prince Yamato, hmm, I could combine that into a congratulatory set with a baby carrier or something…

Ah, what about that portable printer I gave to Refreese’s novelist princess? Since there’ll be opportunities to take pictures in the future, if I gift them that together with an album, it should make for a good record of memories. Un, let’s do that.

I finished changing my clothes and went out of the room in order to invite Yumina along on the way to the Ortlinde house.

“Suu seemed quite happy, wasn’t she?”

“Normally, when she’s with us, the only one who’s actually younger than her in the surroundings is Rene after all. She must be happy about the fact that she became an elder sister when her brother was born.”

After returning home from visiting the Ortlinde ducal house, we were currently relaxing on the balcony while enjoying some afternoon tea.

Suu, who had become an elder sister with the birth of her younger brother, had reined in her usual energy; somehow, I can feel a kind of calm atmosphere from her.

While the obedient Suu is nice as well, I wonder if it’s my selfishness to think of the usual innocent Suu as more Suu-like and feel a tinge of loneliness at her change.

The family was very happy to receive the photo album and the portable printer I gave them as gifts. In fact, they immediately requested me to take a family photo with the butler, Reim-san included.

With that picture as the first, his life will likely be recorded well with that album. I’m glad I gave them that.

“Un un, it’s trouble to have a younger brother who’s a handful in various ways-no yo.”

“It’s trouble for the younger brother to have an older sister who’s munching on my cookies without even asking me as well, you know!”

I glared at Karen nee-san who, with her usual elusiveness, is sitting besides me and reaching out to my cookies before I noticed.

“Don’t mind the little things-no yo. Or else you’ll go bald in the future-no yo?”

“Not happening! Definitely not happening!”

Like hell I’d go bald that easily! And there’s hair-growth medicine in the [Alchemy Building] anyway so even if I do I’m fine!

While we’re fighting about trivial stuff like that, the smartphone in my breast pocket started ringing. Oh, it’s from Rerishia-san of the Adventurer’s Guild.

“Yes, hello. It’s Touya.”

“This is Rerishia. I’m calling today for some matters regarding the Adventurer’s Academy we talked about.”

The Adventurer’s Academy is a training facility where newbie adventurers could receive training to a certain degree and learn about things like the mentality, fundamental techniques and other such important points of adventuring.

The plan had been in motion since quite a while ago, and it seems a prototype has finally been completed.

Since she said she wanted to hear my opinion as an adventurer, I headed towards the guild. While I feel a bit bad letting Yumina and the others deal with Karen nee-san in my place, well, I’m sure it’ll be fine.

I walked out of the gates and into the castle town; it’s been a while since I’ve last done this. The town has become a lot livelier compared to the time when the country was just founded.

When I see the smiles on the townspeople’s faces, I become happy as well spontaneously.

Brunhild is situated on the trade route between Belfast Kingdom and Regulus Empire. With the large amounts of travellers and merchants who stop by, our country can be called the travellers’ dukedom, so to speak.

Since passing through Brunhild would only take a couple hours, those who are rushing on their journeys would normally pass through without taking a rest here. However, the number of people who booked into inns here are still large even with that.

A large part of that is because of the huge amount of things you’d be hard-pressed to find at other countries here, from the Ether Vehicles to the capsule toys sold by the Strand Company.

For food as well, you can taste cuisines from various different countries here. There’s even Eashen’s rice dishes.

If you pay the entrance fee for the dungeon islands, you can even go to the sea. If you don’t have any urgent matters to attend to, passing through a place like this would be unthinkable. Thanks to those people, we’re making a killing from various things.

As I reached the guild which was built next to the tavern, I took a look inside the latter first before entering the former. If Suika was here, I was thinking I’ll pick her up when I’m going back.

The drunkard loli Alcohol God wasn’t there. That being the case, I start to get worried thinking about where she might be drinking at now…

I entered the guild, where the receptionist onee-san immediately led me to the back of the guild where Rerishia-san’s room is.

“Sorry to expressly call you out like this.”

“No, I was coincidentally free as well, so.”

I sat down across Rerishia-san and listened to her explanation of the academy.

“First, for the current guild rankings of gold>silver>red>blue>green>purple>black, we decided to add a new white rank at the bottommost. When someone first registers at the guild, he or she will now be white-ranked at the beginning.”

Fumu fumu. So a new white rank below the black rank, huh.

“The academy will be a facility where white-rankers receive basic training. However, among the new adventurers who registered with the guild, there are bound to be ones with a decent level of strength already. For those, they can receive a rank-up test at the academy, and have their ranks adjusted to suit their levels. The test will have a fee, of course.”

I see. So if someone has the requisite strength, he/she would be able to rank up and receive higher-ranked requests immediately, huh.

Since I’ve also had the experience where higher-ranked idiots came picking a fight with me just because I’m lower than them in rank, that’s a welcome idea. Eliminating the need to beat

them up each and every time it happens would help a lot.

“Who would be the instructors at the academy?”

“Several retired adventurers, and we also plan to appoint some active ones in temporary posts too. After finishing the roughly 2 week-long training under those instructors, the students would be automatically raised from white rank to black rank.”

“It’s not like white-ranked adventurers must all go through the academy, right?”

“Of course not. It’s also possible for white-rankers to complete requests steadily and rank up that way. However, for the white-ranked requests, most of them will probably be things like chores or gathering materials, and subjugation requests at that level will probably be for a single weak monster only. For example, one horned rabbit or forest spider, I guess.”

New adventurers generally tend to aim for the subjugation requests excessively. While repeating harsh subjugation requests, the fatigue level within their bodies would increase without them noticing, until finally they make a costly mistake somewhere due to that.

The number of rookies who wouldn’t listen to advices concerning things like that aren’t small.

If they have essentials like that beaten into them by the veteran adventurers at the academy, they might be able to change their mindsets.

Well, even if they don’t and end up hurting themselves, it’s their own responsibility.

“And what about the entrance fee for the academy?”

“Of course, it’ll be set to a reasonable number. They’ll probably be split into several classes with different instructors in charge of each, but they’ll all pay the same amount.”

It might be tough on them if they got grouped into a class with a spartan instructor. Well, they’ll lower the risks of themselves dying out in the field, so that much hardship should be cheap in exchange.

“Regarding the rank-up test, it will be overseen by several instructors. Since the test is something to gauge the abilities of new adventurers who just registered with the guild, the only ones who are eligible to take it are white-rankers.”

Normally, when an adventurer applies for an increase in rank, the number and difficulty of the requests completed, number of failed requests, whether the adventurer in question had started any trouble with others, etc.; many different factors are considered. Those are converted into points, and calculations are made based on that to see whether the adventurer can rank up.

On the flip side, going down in rank is of course also possible.

Things like failing requests often, fighting with clients, ignoring guild directives and committing crimes are all grounds for a downgrade; however, well, in most cases they would be banished from the guild rather than receiving a decrease in rank.

It’s because continuing to hold onto those kinds of adventurers has no merits for the guild. If someone got his or her rank decreases, that actually means the guild has judged he or she can still change for the better, so to speak.

“The planned construction site is near the plains to the south, right?”

“Yes. It’s already over 70% completed. About that, there’s actually an uncertain factor unrelated to the academy for us…”

Rerishia-san opened her mouth with a slight frown. What is it, is there some problem?

“The merging with another world that Your Majesty talked about a while ago… When that becomes a reality, people like Norn-san who wishes to become an adventurer may increase in number. In those situations, should we judge them based on their own strength, or the strength of their golems…”

Ah, right. Even if the adventurer himself is a complete greenhorn, if the golem he has is a high- performance one then it’s possible to complete high-ranked requests.

“I believe you should judge them based on their own personal strength. Golems could be taken from their owners at times, and they might also become broken, in which case their owners might go and get a new one. It’ll be a huge pain if their ranks change every time they get a new golem, you know.”

“That’s true. In Norn-san’s case, since she herself was decently skilled, and she also had that golem with her so… I see.”

On another topic, I pity the adventurers who got beaten up by a girl whose outer appearance is that of a six-years old. Still, although that girl seems to be quite capable, it doesn’t mean her physical deficiencies will just go away, so I hope she doesn’t push herself too hard.

“You’re building academies not just in Brunhild, but in other countries as well, right?”

“Yes. For now, the proposals are going forward in Belfast, Regulus, Roadmare and Lestia. This place would be the first one. Which is why, when a problem occurs, we’ll review the situation and fix it on the spot.”

While I talked with Rerishia-san, I asked her something that I was curious about.

“… That reminds me, where is the headquarters for the Adventurer’s Guild? Is there a top executive for the guild there?”

“I’m terribly sorry. The location of the headquarters is confidential information. Also, there’s no such thing as a ‘top executive’ for us. If I have to say it, including myself, there are several guild masters in this world; we are the representatives for the guild, as well as its managers.”

Fumu. It could be that the management level is mostly made up of races with long lifespans like the elf Rerishia-san, or perhaps the fairy tribe like Leen. I think I heard from the professor before that something similar to the current Adventurer’s Guild had already existed back during the ancient era…

They might have not changed much even after 5000 years.

“Actually, there’s one thing. Your Majesty the Sovereign King… No, to the gold-ranked adventurer, Mochizuki Touya-sama, I have one request.”

“… What might it be?”

I have a slightly bad feeling, but for now I’ll listen to it first.

“I was wondering if you could be an examiner for the first rank-up test of the academy. It doesn’t have to continue past this, just this once would be good enough.”

“An examiner, huh.”

Umu. To tell the truth, it’s bothersome. I mean, I can do something like gauging the strength of my opponent, sure. The people who would apply for the rank-up test are most likely those with confidence in their own power, right? If they’re the type of people who would obediently accept the results that would be good, but I feel like there’s definitely gonna be people who would claim I didn’t give them a fair evaluation…

Well, since the final decision lies with the guild, they can’t overturn a made decision no matter what they say, and it’s not like I’m the only one making that decision in the first place.

I guess I’m fine with accepting that but…

“Would you be fine with me hiding my identity? I just need to be able to understand the other side’s strength, right? If so, there’s no need to tell them my identity or rank, is there?”

“That’s true… I was hoping that if we can borrow the name of a gold-ranked adventurer, the people taking the test would be more willing to accept the results. It would also be an easy-to- understand example that would teach them not to judge people by their appearances…”

Rerishia-san sank into thought while staring at me. No, well, I understand what you mean but. I know I don’t look that strong to others, okay.

“However, even if you say you would hide your identity, isn’t there quite a lot of people who know your features, Your Majesty? I’ve often seen you walking around the town normally as well. Would you be wearing a mask, perhaps?”

“No, I did that once before but it wasn’t really well-received, so I won’t do it this time. It’s not hard for me to change my appearance with the illusion magic [Mirage], you know. Like this.”

I covered myself with an illusion of a random person I found on the net before Rerishia-san. Since they would see through it easily if they touched it, things like body shape and height can’t be easily changed, but things other than that are relatively easy to deal with for me.

With this, they won’t be able to tell my identity apart, and if I introduce myself as a silver- or red-ranked adventurer, that should be enough for the examiner role.

“That’s true. I think this should be alright. To be honest, I was hoping to add some prestige to the rank-up test with the presence of a gold-ranked adventurer, though.”

Rerishia-san said that with a wry smile. Umu, now I feel a bit bad. Ah.

“Then, how about I drag the other gold-ranked adventurer here as an examiner?”

“Eh?”

Rerishia-san’s stupid-sounding voice leaked out and echoed in the reception room.

- Pixel