"The adventure gild is preparing an expedition, it will probably start half a year from now. They discovered some old ruins, you will be interested." Elizabeth handed documents to Jax. He read them for a few minutes.

"They found runes of the Old Empire. It doesn't look good." Jax handed back the files. Elizabeth was nervous after Jax's reply.

"What do you mean, 'it doesn't look good'?"

If that was something really dangerous, she must do something.

"Well, the runs they drew in the files mean things like: danger, containment, seal, etc. As you know, the Old Empire was way less advanced compared to today, but their experiments were extremely more advanced and dangerous compared to ours. They didn't care about who they threw into the experiment."

Jax wasn't against human experiments, without them, he would never achieve as much as he did, but the Old Empire was completely insane. They destroyed most of the world's mana veins, polluted entire lakes, and eliminated a lot of living creatures. If Jax were to compare it, his experiments were playing with fire in a house with a fire extinguisher in hand, Ainz experiments were similar, but without a fire extinguisher. The Old Empire set fire in a forest that hadn't seen rain in decades, and left it be.

"So, what do you propose?" She didn't want to send Jax there.

"Well, if Adventure Guild found it and made it public. The danger is at the level of a grandmaster knight or mage, which is in my safe range. If the Old Empire sealed there something at the supreme level, we would only know when it's too late." Jax's reply didn't make Elizabeth calm.

"You shouldn't go there. I will send some people there." She said. Jax walked to her and hugged her.

"I know you worry about me, but I know how to take care of myself. Just believe in your husband." He softly reassured her.

"Just be careful. I don't want to lose you." Elizabeth didn't want to let Jax go. She didn't want to lose another man she loved. Jax convinced her for a few more minutes, before she let him go. Elizabeth made him vow that he would come back safe. He did that without hesitation.

...

"Hey, Miss Liz, are there any new commissions?" A big, burly man asked a woman behind a desk. The woman shook her head.

"There aren't any at your level, only some basic ones like picking herbs or goblin bounty. But there are some, at a higher level, that you could team up with someone to complete." Said woman, called Liz. She was a young woman with curly blond hair, and green eyes. When the man went to look for some quests on the board, doors opened. People inside briefly looked in that direction, but went back to their business. The man walked inside.

"I want to register as an adventurer." The man's voice was rough and deep, but also quite young. The man looked like he was in his mid-twenties. He was 170cm tall and had brown hair and brown eyes. His face was average.

"Sure, but I need your name. You will start from the copper rank, or if you have money, you can call for a special exam." The man took a big sack of money and put it on the counter.

"My name is Max, and I want a special exam." Max's announcement caused him to be covered in gazes. Liz was shocked, but she quickly got a grip on herself and went upstairs with the money. In a few minutes, she appeared again, with a man. Man looked towards Max.

"Are you Max?" He asked, and Max nodded." Follow me," he ordered.

...

The man led Max into the round, closed arena, that was in the adventure guild building.

"So Max, I'm Jerome, and I am a silver-rank adventurer. The rules are simple, you need to fight me. Depending on how well you do. I can give you a rank. If you defeat me, you can try someone better, this will be free, but you will wait a few days. So start when you are ready." Jerome said. Max took a stand, and pulled out the sword from his waist belt. It was a normal long sword. Jerome observed how Max took a stand. 'He has experience, he is standing confidently and ready for attack or defense. It will be interesting'. Max disappeared, and Jerome raised his right arm. The sound of clashing metal spread through the arena.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Nice move, if I didn't have [Steel Skin] I would lose my life." Jerome smiled and punched Max with his other hand. However, Max crouched down and hit, Jerome in the stomach. Jerome was shocked, by the strength of the punch, and he was forced to take a few steps back. Max used this chance to stab his sword towards Jerome's heart. Jerome smiled.

"That should be enough, kid. You passed." Jerome was holding a sword in his hand, millimeters from his body. Max sheathed his sword back.

"So what rank did I get?" Max asked.

"You got the same as me. I can't give you more, because it's rank beyond me." Jerome said it apologetically. Max just shook his head.

"That's enough for me, I need some experience, and getting a higher rank would just make people doubt the adventure guild." Max replied. Jerome was satisfied. 'He understands rules and how they work. Why other people can't understand it, especially those noble brats' Young people very often try to be heroes, or get high rank, just to be killed by some goblin'.

"Well, come here tomorrow. Normally, it takes a few hours to get a copper plate, but after an exam. Additional procedures must be done." Jerome replied.

"I understand." Max replied.

...

"I need a room for a few days." Max put a few coins on the table in the inn. A middle-aged man looked at them, and checked to see if they were real. He then turned around, and took the key from the wall.

"Go upstairs and go right. Your room is at the end of the hallway. If you want food delivered to your room, you need to pay extra." Man explained. Max just shook his head.

"Thanks, but I don't need it." He took the key and went upstairs to his room. When he entered. Max saw that this room consisted of some straw bed, old chair and small table with the oil lamp.

"Well, it isn't some high-quality room, but it is enough for me." He lay down on the bed.

...

"What did you just say?!" The man kneeling on the ground was sweating. 'I need to be careful!'. He took a long breath.

"I didn't mean to offend you, your majesty. My Lord is just deeply concerned about your future." The man didn't dare to lift his head. His face paled when he heard laughter and the sound of steps.

"So you dare to come to my palace, shaming my fiancé. Who are you to say that? Who are you to decide who I should marry?" The man heard the steps clearer.

"I didn't mean to. My lord is concerned, because he is just a child, also he wa" he didn't finish because a hand grabbed his face, and forced him to look up. He saw the furious face of the queen.

"I am engaged to him, because I agreed to it. You say he is a mere child. But try to compare what your lord did in his life, compared to what he, a mere child, did. You for sure see it."

"I, I" Man stuttered. He tried to calm himself down, but he felt a burning feeling. He saw that his body was set ablaze.

"I'm tired of it. Guards throw this trash to the pigs." Elizabeth went to her room. When she arrived, she sat down, and sighed.

"It's funny, you have been gone for a few days, and they already want to slander you." She looked out the window. "Please come back soon, Jax." She said.