On the second floor of the Adventurers Guild in the Gentile Kingdom Capital City, a pair of monster hunters sat in vaguely comfortable chairs while a panel of high-ranking officials were seated opposite them judging their fate. This was a long time coming and had been put off several times with the branch’s restoration, but finally the time had come. Every three months guild organizers would submit requests with their governing board to examine adventurers or adventuring teams and determine if they were suitable for a highly sought after rank-up. Once the request was received an in-depth investigation would be conducted on the respective adventurers, double checking their background information and monitoring their guild activity. After the investigation was completed, the panel would convene bi-annually to interview the up for promotion individuals not only to weed out potential problem characters putting on a charismatic act but also to confirm the guild member who recommended them hadn’t been bribed or otherwise coerced. Margaretta had on many occasions been threatened, begged, cursed at, promised favours, and surprisingly enough proposed to all just to receive her blessing. She, ofcourse, turned them all down as she was known to have quite a reputation for being a stickler when it came to recommending adventurers for rank up, so much so her superiors forced upon her a yearly quota of candidates to put forth.

When it came to Valerie and Samantha, she recommended them within the first few months of their adventuring career shocking many higher ups and causing a more thorough investigation to be undertaken. Unlike the vast majority of her forced submissions, she saw a real talent within the pair that if properly fostered could lead to the rise of two new household names. Margaretta did not inform the duo of her recommendation until receiving confirmation they were up for the interview stage. There was no point getting their hopes up on a whim. The giddy screams and bear like hug Margaretta received upon letting the pair know almost made the old receptionist regret her decision. Thus, Valerie and Samantha’s current predicament, seated in well used and barely plush seats while facing a group of Guild officials who seemed to scrutinize every breath the duo made.

The panel was made up of five people all sat along one side of an extra-long table which allowed them to look over documents and observe the girls in equal measure. The head panellist, one Roland No-last-name, as he did not give it out, was a dwarf with chiselled tattooed muscles hidden beneath an expertly tailored if too tight suit. His full head of ginger hair was tied into a braid that fell down his back while his long well-maintained beard was similarly styled and gave the impression of a tie funnily enough. Although neither girl laughed due to the hardened brown eyes that bore into the pair of adventurers.

“So, Miss Hunt and Miss Trapper, we have looked over your documents as well as your guild record and we have some questions we would like to ask.”

He said in a professional voice that was as commanding as it was inviting. Although neither could put it into words, he gave off the impression of distilled whiskey which coincidentally was a favoured drink of the dwarf. His eyes focused on Valerie, internally noting that despite the pressure most in her position felt she was calm and collected like, well, a hunter.

“Miss Hunt, I can see from the relatively vast number of requests you two have completed that it is always you who is formally accepting contracts, submitting once complete and then receiving payment. Conversely, Miss Trapper is writing the reports herself in… colourful detail. Can I take this to mean you are the leader of your two-woman group? And that your fellow guild mate is relegated to a scribe? How did such a dynamic come about?”

Valerie looked into the lead panellist’s eyes and answered confidently.

“In a manner of speaking I suppose that correct but we share responsibilities, I pick the work and Samantha writes.”

The dwarven official smiled beneath his thick beard and pounced on the answer baiting a trap.

“Is that so? Then you have coerced your companion here and her only roll is to do as you say?”

“Hey that’s not-“

Samantha tried to butt in but was halted by a raised hand from Roland.

“Miss Trapper this question is for Miss Hunt, I would kindly ask you refrain from any interruptions during our line of questioning.”

Samantha sat back in her chair feeling told off. Unfazed Valerie met the dwarf’s gaze again and explained their dynamic.

“I haven’t forced Samantha to do anything. Everything we do, we do together because that’s what we want. We both joined of our own accord and everything we do within the guild we do as a team. I accept the contracts, but we decide on them together and more than once we have argued over the best one to fulfil as Margaretta can attest to.”

Valerie was very happy she practiced her ‘interviewee persona’ with Albert prior to the actual meeting. Roland turned his sights on Margaretta who was preoccupied filing her nails in a corner. With a subtle nod, she confirmed Valerie’s statements although it wasn’t required as the panel’s investigations had already revealed as much. Still words on paper were nowhere near as insightful as calling out the adventurer in question, many in the huntress’s position might have shown more anger at being called manipulative. Roland respected the tactful way Valerie avoided his pitfall, but the afternoon had just begun, and he was an expert at sniffing out liars and cheats. Roland The Adjudicator was more than a fancy title; it was the man’s class and gave him more insight than most when it came to finding out the truth. Subtle shifts in a person’s body language, the way their eyes moved, even the scent of their sweat could become the dwarf’s weapon in slaying metaphorical monsters. As well as literal ones having been an adventurer himself in his youth using his class well throughout his life and, while a small part, assisting the dwarf in securing his current position.

“Thank you for your answer. Moving on, my colleagues and I have noted a steep decline in the number of contracts you have taken over the past few months. Would there be any reason for that?”

Past experience told the panellist that when an adventurer began slowing down the number of fulfilled contracts like this it was indicative of several ongoing issues. The least worrisome was simply the adventurer settling into their new career and didn’t feel the need to show off anymore. There were also some who felt a responsibility but no longer had the drive and would eventually quit altogether. The worst possible outcome was the few who found other less reputable forms of employment and only used the guild as a cover. Valerie and Samantha looked at one another, an awkward tension growing until the former spoke up.

“Well… my, one of our… guardians forbid too much work due to… problems on my part, sir.”

Roland nodded easily accepting the answer. It was not hard to forget a lot of adventurers were children being sent out to fight battles they may never return from. A worried parent or guardian was bound to put their foot down eventually and had every right to do so. Roland himself knew the exact kind of problems the work could instil as did every panellist in attendance, they all lost something fighting monsters eventually.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

“I see, Miss Hunt, we appreciate you sharing this with us and please trust we will not pry or take this matter further, unless we are forced to. I have to ask however, these issues you have experienced will they come to be a detriment in your time with the guild?”

“No!”

Valerie hurriedly answered before schooling her outburst.

“No, it won’t. I’m getting better and have a lot of support.”

Roland raised an eyebrow and stroked his beard as he stared at the pair. He was fully aware of their living situation and of the company they kept. Joanne in particular was a familiar name and one he was sad to see leave the guild despite completely understanding her reasons. These two likely didn’t know it but they were very lucky to have her as a friend. Ultimately, he believed Valerie’s answer, not just because of his years of experience but because his class would alert him to any falsehoods with mixed results. It was not a completely foolproof lie detector as it could be fooled by both parties’ perception. If Roland wanted to believe and Valerie truly did think she was speaking the truth, then any lies would fall through the cracks. It also couldn’t work on those the man couldn’t focus his full attention upon such as the cloak wearing girl who hadn’t blinked once the whole meeting.

“Very well, then let us move on. Miss Trapper, might I enquire how you and Miss Hunt first met? If the matter is too sensitive you need not disclose the full details, we are simply looking to learn more about yourselves.”

In actuality, they were trying to learn anything about the pair. From various accounts, eye-witness testimonies, and a statement from a rather pudgy border guard the guild was able to craft a rough timeline of events. The duo arrived several months ago under false pretences accompanied by a mysterious foreigner and his pet monster. From there they acquired immediate lodging with old Albert the librarian whom many in the local branch respected. Next came meeting Joanne who unabashedly confirmed she convinced the pair to join for some quick and easy cash. Ever since they have been avid and trustworthy recruits fulfilling more than their fair share of monster contracts. The guild is not in any way a law enforcement agency thus they can look past some of their members less than law abiding actions such as the two’s magically appearing yet no less official citizenship papers. Anything else that wasn’t performed in the guilds name or while wearing their recognizable insignia was neither seen nor heard in the upper echelons. So long as an adventurer killed monsters and respected their fellows then there was no need to dig deeper into the matter. That being said, a pair of highly trained, outlandishly lethal and shockingly young warriors arriving out of nowhere would raise a few eyebrows no matter what. Whether Samantha told the truth of their meeting or provided any insight was neither here nor there, the guild simply wanted to ensure they were employing trustworthy individuals and not anyone the divine or fate had its eye on.

“…and that was when Valerie punched me in the face and I’m pretty sure I nearly died.”

Both Roland and Valerie rubbed at their foreheads for entirely different reasons following Samantha’s long-winded explanation. Rather than use the pre-prepared story where the two grew up in the same village and left after a monster attack, the shadow user opted to describe her entire origins from start to finish including the mine and her acquisition of the aspect of shadow. Before she could continue spilling all of the pair’s secrets, Roland held up his hand interrupting her.

“THAT’S- that’s quite enough Miss Trapper, I believe we have the gist of the matter. Thank you for your contribution.”

Valerie, stared daggers at her friend from behind her palm while the fountain of knowledge that was Samantha sat with a smug grin like she had just gotten the wool over the panellists. After confirming a few more details regarding the duo’s journey to Capital City as well as throwing out a couple traps that were finely avoided, the five officials agreed they had enough information to begin deliberations.

“Miss Hunt, Miss Trapper, thank you very much for your time. My fellows and I will need a few moments to go over all the details provided, could I ask you please wait outside while we discuss matters?”

Without another word both girls left the room closing the door behind them which barely muffled the loud smack and crash as something cloak shaped slammed back into the door.

“I told you they were nuts.”

Margaretta chimed in as she continued to file at her nails in the corner. Roland had to agree, not just because of the cloaked ones disturbing aura and depressing past. Valerie, while presentable and approachable, was a veritable psychopath when it came to her love for killing monsters. Looking down at a selection of reports, the Adjudicator noted several descriptions in terrible, if slowly improving, handwriting describing the vicious ways in which she slew monsters. Gutting, skewering, skinning, hanging, impaling, decapitating, bisecting, exsanguinating, and good old fashion mutilating were just some of the colourful and in no way exaggerated methods utilized by the duo. There were also the numerous accounts of the huntress arriving back to town completely covered in blood and viscera from who knows where. After a while, adventurers learned to avoid messy situations yet to get the job done Valerie would wade through the foulest mirk.

“Crazy indeed.”

Remarked Roland.

“It is not first time we have crazy members.”

Said a broad-shouldered human panellist to Roland’s left while his compatriots reservedly agreed. Crazy sometimes came with the job when all they did everyday was kill living creatures for coin.

“True, but there’s crazy and then there’s… those two.”

A mine out in the middle of nowhere digging up Dragon’s Teeth, Roland heard all about that story in the Capital Chronicle following the arrival of the escaped workers. It was a large scandal that saw several wealthy merchants and nobles taken into custody, though whether they faced any real punishment was another matter. Samantha was just another of those poor people, yet she didn’t seem to have any of the trauma or rather she turned whatever trauma she may have suffered into power. Valerie as well, the complete disdain and contempt she held for monsters was borderline sadistic. Neither was anything particularly new within the guild’s long history and yet whenever Roland looked at those two he saw something troubling. It truly made him wonder what Margaretta saw that he couldn’t.

“Tell me Maggie, what is it about those girls that caught your eye? Why recommend them over the myriad of other candidates?”

The dwarf official expected a long-drawn-out moment of silence while Margaretta thought on her answer, yet that wasn’t the case at all.

“Because they’re good at what they do and don’t care about your flimsy morals.”

The room fell silent following the rude comment that was entirely on brand for the receptionist. She was too old to care if they kept her or fired her, she just did the work because she too was good at it.

“Could you elaborate?”

A cat faced beast woman panellist asked.

“Monsters are monsters, do you think they have any moral quandaries about killing us? No, they show up, do what they want and don’t care who or what they destroy in the meantime. For years I’ve seen promising adventurers quit all because they got into their own heads that the multi-headed monstrosity they were supposed to kill reminded them too much of Fido. Then in come a pair of consistently annoying and consistently successful adventurers with not a single monster forgiving bone between them who can get the job done no matter what. If you think them being crazy is reason enough to stop them from taking on more ferocious, more sinister and more terrifying monsters then maybe you’re the insane ones around here.”

Although she never raised her voice, Margaretta’s speech still carried across the room stunning all the panellists including Roland who was many years the woman’s senior in position and age.

“Point taken…”

Was all the dwarf could say in response to the rousing sermon although a small part of him wanted to point out it was Margaretta who first brought up the duo’s mental state. After a further half hour of deliberation, the gathered officials reached a decision and called the waiting pair back into the room. They took their seats, Valerie trying to remain stoic and confident while Samantha clutched a wet towel to her head covering a mark no one would call out. Despite appearances, Valerie did not in fact punch her friend in the face yet again and was the one who got the shadow user her cool cloth. What really happened was Samantha walked out of the room, tripped on a frayed piece of her cloak and slammed face first into the opposite wall kicking the door in the process. The truth didn’t matter however as the implication simply fed into the panellists already formed opinion of the two.

“Miss Hunt, Miss Trapper, thank you kindly for waiting. We have discussed the matter in depth and come to a decision regarding your position within the guild. Before we give it however we do have one last question for you both.”

Valerie felt her heart skip a beat and a tightness clamp down upon her, if they lost their job now then they were done for. Well not done for, they could always become mercenaries for hire, work with Joanne or go back to Darrian but those were outcomes the pair would prefer to avoid.

“Put simply, we want to know just what you expect out of the guild. What do you both hope to achieve in your time with us?”

The pair slowly turned from the branch officials and began an impromptu huddle discussing their answer. The panellists wilfully ignored the mention of ‘starting an apocalypse’ and ‘ending the world’ as they patiently waited. Coming to a decision, Valerie counted them down as they faced the five officials announcing their answer in tandem.

“We want to see the world.”

A stock and well repeated response, but a welcome one all the same in Roland’s opinion especially as he felt not a hint of a lie in their words. Smiling beneath his well-groomed beard, the Adjudicator stood alongside his fellows.

“A fine answer indeed. Now, I am not one for ceremony so thank you for your time ladies and congratulations Team Apex on your promotion.”