Adam spent the better part of the afternoon and night pouring over the books he had purchased. They were indeed very basic. One of the books was a sort of history of magic that the author, who was a mage, had spent too long and too many words explaining things. They definitely seemed to have a high opinion of their insights. And while it was somewhat interesting, Adam spent most of his time with the book skipping over paragraphs to find any spell names that popped out.
The other books were more fruitful. The one styled as a small pocket guide was much more concise. It seemed to be tailored more as an adventurer’s primer. It gave a brief overview of the different magical schools, and what sorts of magic they usually excelled at. What the spells were, what they did, that type of thing. Sort of like the one tome Adam had read in the library at the tower. It also had insight on how to work in a party with a spellcaster, along with different ways to fight with, and support them.
Adam tore a chunk off of a roll of bread and dipped it into his soup and devoured it. He had found a cheaper inn that wasn’t as nice, but at least he didn’t feel like he was going to get shanked outside of it. Iggy sat on the floor underneath the table gnawing on a cut of steak, much to the worried glances of some of the other patrons. The innkeeper named Ms. Margery, a squat and portly woman, who wielded a large red hot cast iron skillet with ease, had fallen in love with Iggy the moment the pair had stepped into the inn. And she waved away any complaint about the juvenile Golden Lion being inside her establishment.
It was getting late and Adam’s brain was starting to feel like jelly. He was going to register as an adventurer tomorrow. The thought filled him with equal parts dread and excitement. There was no way to know how it was going to go, and worrying about it would do him no good. Adam took his empty bowl and plate over to the counter.
“You didn’t have to do that honey,” Ms. Margery said. “The serving girl clears the tables, Gigi where are you!”
A young woman in her early twenties wearing a simple dress and an apron hurried out of the kitchen area.
“Yes Ms. Margery?”
“Gigi, you have to pay more attention girl. This customer cleared his own table while you were off napping!” Ms. Margery was stern but she didn't seem to be overly upset with the young woman.
“Yes Ms. Margery,” Gigi said with a slight nod of her head. She turned and nodded in Adam’s direction. “I'm sorry for the inconvenience sir.”
“Oh no, it's nothing.” Adam said, holding his hands up and trying to keep from turning red. This was incredibly awkward for him. “I'm used to clearing my place from back home, my mother would swat my backside if I didn't.”
Adam's memories stirred for a moment. His mother? Not from the village, he was an orphan in this world. Found near the forest as an eight year old child. But his real mother. He couldn't picture her clearly. Some of his memories were foggy from before he woke up in this world. And that was almost a decade ago now… had it been so long already.
Only the feeling of sunlight and the sound of wind chimes came to his mind when he tried to picture his mother. And long amber hair flowing in the wind.
“Sir are you alright,” it was Gigi's voice, she seemed hesitant. “You're crying sir.”
Adam's eyes refocused on Gigi's face. He could feel wet streaks on his cheeks. A swipe from his sleeve rubbed them away.
“I'm sorry, I'm fine,” he said with a smile, one that he did not feel on the inside.
He thanked them and left a few coppers as a tip. Ms. Margery tried to protest. Adam insisted and told her that it was customary from back home, and that he'd feel bad if he didn't. She grudgingly accepted and told him that she would add an extra sausage to his breakfast.
Adam retreated to his room with Iggy in tow. It was simple. An empty wardrobe, and an empty chest of drawers sat against one wall. And against the other was a simple bed. With a window set between them on the outside facing wall. It was an infinite step up from his accommodations in the tower. The acrid smell of the alchemical rivers began to seep into his nostrils.
Adam shook his head dispelling the ghostly scent.
Iggy curled up at the foot of the bed. Adam sat down next to her and gently stroked her head. She purred what Adam assumed was a happy pur. Coming from the golden lion it sounded vaguely threatening. But her tail swished from side to side.
“Do you even remember your mother?” Adam asked softly.
Iggy stared at him. Her deep brown eyes glinted with flecks of gold and umber. After a moment she laid her head across his lap to allow him to continue petting her.
Adam sighed and then curled up next to her. He continued to stroke her soft fur. They laid like that until Adam drifted off to sleep.
Morning came like it always does, quicker then one would like. Adam rolled out of bed and stretched. Iggy was laying up on the pillow at the head of the bed. She must have moved at some point during the night.
“So this is going to be the dynamic of our relationship eh?” Adam said with a chuckle.
Iggy looked at him and yawned.
Adam could smell the delicious aromas of cooking meats and baking bread. It must be time for breakfast. He headed downstairs with Iggy following close behind.
The bar and dining area was a bustle of activity. Patrons were enjoying their food and getting ready to start their day. A merchant and her guards were sitting at one of the corner tables with several sacks of wares organizing and counting them. Gigi was weaving through the people depositing mugs of drink on tables and scooping up the empty vessels.
“Adam, have a seat you're just in time,” said Ms. Margery. She motioned to a small empty table.
Adam sat down and Iggy curled up underneath. Gigi brought him a plate of food and some fresh rolls with butter, and sure enough there was an extra sausage stuffed onto the plate. Gigi knelt down and placed a plate in front of Iggy full of raw meat.
“Thank you,” Adam said to Gigi with a nod and a smile.
The serving girl nodded and curtsied before disappearing back into the crowd. The food was delicious. Eggs, two large sausages, some sort of baked beans, and fresh warm rolls with butter. Adam devoured it unaware of how hungry he was. The area started to clear out by the time Adam had finished his meal.
“What are your plans for the day,” Ms. Margery asked as Gigi came over to grab his and Iggy’s empty plates.
“I'm going to register to become an adventurer,” Adam replied.
Ms. Margery frowned for a moment but the expression quickly subsided.
“That can be dangerous work,” she said earnestly. “A young boy like yourself shouldn't have to do such things.”
“What can I say,” Adam said with a slight smile. “It's what I want to do.”
And that was true, mostly. To be honest Adam wasn't completely sure what he wanted to do. Live peacefully perhaps? To live as one wanted required strength. Strength to not be a victim or pushed around, the strength to defend oneself, to protect what was important to themselves. But what did Adam have to protect other than himself, and of course Iggy now. All he knew with any degree of certainty was that his current path seemed like the best option currently.
“You want to put yourself in harm's way every day,” Ms. Margery asked. “What kind of life is that?”
“It sounds like the life that I get to choose,” Adam said. He smiled again at Ms. Margery. “It sounds like freedom.”
Ms. Margery shook her head and turned to go back into the kitchen. Adam was unsure of what to say. Had he offended her in some way perhaps. Surely she serviced adventurers regularly in her establishment.
“We’ll be here for you, with a hot meal and a bed,” she called out from the kitchen. “Stay safe out there young man.”
Adam nodded to Gigi who simply nodded back. Then he placed two coppers on the counter and left.
Based upon the position of the sun Adam guessed that it must be well past nine, not that he had any appointments to keep or anything. The large central clock tower by cityhall confirmed that it was just past a quarter to ten.
He checked his equipment as he walked. He had given himself some new gear yesterday based on what he had seen in the shops. Nothing fancy or outrageous mind you. Just a few things above basic starting gear quality. A hardened leather vest, a set of forest wolf leather vambraces and greaves, an iron dagger to wear in place of his adamantium dagger to avoid suspicion, and a simple traveler's cloak. Wearing gloves or a helmet would reduce his magic efficiency, and wearing them together would create a stacking reduction reducing it further. Adam had debated some boots but he wasn't sure if he'd draw more attention having a full set of armor, or too many accessories like a circlet with rings and bracelets. Levin after all had a full set or near enough for what Adam could recall, and he was twice Adam's level.
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It wasn't much longer before Adam found himself in front of the adventurer’s guild. It was a nice building. Nothing like the cut stone of city hall. It was a wooden structure three stories tall, but it was clean and well maintained. Maybe he'd have to pay guild dues with his earnings. Adam balked for a moment at the thought but then remembered that money was largely meaningless to him at the moment. He opened one side of the large double doors and entered.
The adventurer’s guild was unsurprising inside. It had nice wood floors, some sort of white plaster style walls, with large smooth beams of wood running across the ceiling. The first floor was set up largely like an inn. Tables and chairs littered a spacious open area, several were occupied by people who appeared to be adventurers. A large counter ran across the back of the room with several attendants standing behind it. And a large board with pieces of paper pinned to it sat against the wall to Adam's left. Probably job requests.
One of the attendants greeted Adam as he approached the counter.
“Hello, welcome to the Belfort branch of the Adventurer’s Guild, my name is Marie, how can I be of assistance today?”
“Thank you,” Adam replied. “Hey I was wondering what I needed to do to get registered as an adventurer?”
Marie looked at him, her eyebrows knit together apprehensively. She eyed Iggy for a moment and then returned her attention to Adam.
“Well normally we don't induct new members until they reach level 10.”
She looked apologetic. Adam’s features were downcast, that was not something that he wanted to hear. Marie could see his disappointment written across his entire body.
“It is impressive that you have acquired a class at your level,” she said, nodding toward Iggy. She was trying to raise Adam's spirits. “Are you a Beast Tamer?”
“Oh, no, I don't have a class yet,” Adam sighed.
Marie's eyes widened and she looked back at Iggy. The feline yawned, showing off her razor sharp teeth. Adam felt his stomach tighten, he may have misstepped.
“But that is your pet isn't it?” Marie said.
Adam nodded.
“How can you have a pet under your control and not have a prerequisite class?”
“She was a reward for a quest I stumbled upon. When I completed it she became my pet without needing a class.” Adam said simply.
Marie turned to one of the other attendants and they whispered in hushed tones. They looked at Adam and kept whispering. The knot in Adam's stomach grew. Suddenly the other attendant turned and left the counter and headed upstairs.
“Forgive our rudeness,” apologized Marie. “I've never heard of such a thing. If you don't mind, could you tell me what quest that was?”
Adam thought for a moment. This was obviously a nonstandard event in this world. Was it even possible to have a pet without a class, or was it the artifact that Adam possessed. He didn't fully understand it. Not even remotely.
“Well,” he began. “I'm very new at this so I'll try my best to explain it.
“Please go ahead, just do your best,” Marie encouraged.
“I was walking through the woods, about three miles or so outside of town. And I fell into a giant ant colony.”
“Oh my word,” Marie interrupted. “You're lucky to be alive, and so close to town?”
“Yes. I got lost in the tunnels and I happened upon an egg. It was about to be attacked by the giant ants and a quest popped up to save it. So I fought the ants and Iggy here hatched out of it at the end.”
Adam purposefully left out many details, about Iggy’s mother, and how many ants he had to fight. Also that he had spent at least a day down in the tunnels fighting ants almost nonstop. The less information that he had to share to get by the better.
“That was incredibly foolish,” Marie gently scolded him.
Adam was taken aback for a moment. It was not the response that he had expected. But he couldn't blame her. For a normal person at his level it probably would have been suicide. Plus she seemed genuinely concerned.
“Be that as it may you are incredibly lucky to have survived and escaped. An ant colony subjugation is usually a Class C Raid, with at least half the members being levels 15 to 20. You're very lucky that you didn't stumble upon the queen's chambers.”
Adam gulped reflexively. That didn't sound good at all. It was incredibly stupid. He'd let his new found power and ability get to his head. There was always something or someone stronger.
“That being said—”
“That's the bastard right there!” Said an unfortunately familiar voice.
Adam turned and saw Levin stalking toward him. There were several other men and a woman in tow behind him. Two of the men were levels 14 and 15, and the woman was level 18. A taller man in half-plate armor and carrying a large sword was level 21.
“This is the person, you're sure,” said the tall man.
Adam looked him over with his artifact. The man's name was Klaus and he had the Swordsman class. Some quick arithmetic showed that his stats were above average for his level, and several pieces of his gear seemed to be boosting his strength and endurance on top of that. Even so Adam was still slightly stronger. Gaining almost ten times the average person's attributes each level was definitely amazing. But did Adam have the edge skill wise, or even in experience? Probably not.
“Yeah this is the bastard who attacked me,” Levin spat.
He bumped his chest against Adam's with a smirk. No doubt emboldened by the people at his back. Iggy lowered herself into an attack stance and growled menacingly at Levin.
“You better keep your animal in line,” Levin snorted. “It'd be a shame if you got yourself flagged in the city. Then anyone could attack you without repercussions.”
Klaus put a hand on Levin's shoulder and lightly pulled the man back. He scrutinized Adam and Iggy for several moments.
“You're absolutely sure,” he said to Levin. “This boy is two levels higher and has a pet. His gear is also above average for his level. Although his weapon is fairly basic, not what you had described.”
“Of course I'm sure,” Levin said, taken aback. “I don't know about all of that, but this is the guy.”
Adam stared back at Klaus, his gaze unwavering.
“Is there some sort of problem,” Adam asked.
The two men with Klaus, their names were Volker and Nico, looked incredulous. Neither of the men would dare to talk back to Klaus, or at least Adam assumed so. Level was everything in this world as well. Those with a high level were almost guaranteed success in life. And it wasn't uncommon for those with a higher level to lord over those who were weaker. For someone with a level so far beneath Klaus, it was unthinkable for Adam to be disrespectful towards him.
The air was tense as the silence carried on for several seconds. Marie looked like she was about to have a heart attack while trying to mediate. And Levin stepped forward to open his big mouth, thankfully he was interrupted.
“Yes, what seems to be the problem indeed,” came a calm voice from behind the group.
Everyone turned to see who had spoken. Klaus and his group parted, revealing a slim middle aged man with long black hair. His name was Gerard and he was a level 43 Shard Mage. There was a title displayed next to his name. Adam didn't need his artifact to see it. It was displayed for all to see. And that title was Guildmaster.
“Guildmaster,” Klaus said as he inclined his head in greeting. “We were discussing an incident where this individual attacked Levin out on the road.”
Gerard fixed his eyes on Adam. His expression was impossible to read. Adam wasn't sure of his chances against Klaus, but he knew that he wasn't even close to Gerard’s league. Adam saw the attendant who had left earlier next to Gerard and decided to chance it.
“I'm the level 5 who wants to register as an adventurer, the one with a pet but without a class,” Adam remarked, trying to sell himself.
“I see,” said the Guildmaster. His expression softened slightly and he extended his hand in greeting. Adam shook it.
“Yes I heard, quite interesting. Have you been tested yet?”
Adam shook his head.
“No I haven't.”
Gerard motioned to Marie. She jumped slightly at having the focus shifted to her. It took her a few moments of fumbling behind the counter to produce a small palm sized stone and card like Adam had seen back in the village. She held it out above the counter.
“I trust you know what this is,” Gerard remarked.
Adam nodded.
“If we're going to decide on whether or not to accept you as an adventurer. We ought to measure your attributes. After all, we can't have the local farmhand trying to fight a nest of kobolds and setting off a war-party.”
Marie held the stone aloft and motioned it toward Adam.
This was it. Adam sighed internally and steeled himself. He had tried out his artifact’s cosmetic attribute editing, and now it was time to see if it worked. Or if there was a type of magic or item that could reveal the truth.
Adam placed his hand on the stone like he had seen Alastair do back in the village. It began to glow in a shimmering light which soon subsided. Marie retrieved the stone card from beneath and inspected it. Her eyes opened wide but only for a moment.
“He has a respectable Rank C in both daggers and wind magic, sir. However his skill growth appears to be pushing Rank B, with priority to agility and intelligence, which compliments his skills. He's an excellent candidate, even at this level.”
Adam breathed a sigh of relief. It looked like his ruse had worked. The artifact had fooled the measuring stone. And to the rest of the world he seemed like an average yet promising new adventurer.
“Wait a moment,” Marie said. Her voice trailed off for a moment before she found the words to speak. “He has three Extra Skills.”
There was a commotion amongst the gathered adventurers. Even others from nearby tables or within earshot came over. This might be troublesome.
“Did you say three?” Gerard spoke with a smile.
Marie just nodded, her eyes looking over every detail of Adam's card.
“Well, don't keep us waiting.”
“He has Refinement Boost, Smithing Boost, and Crafting Boost.”
The commotion around them had grown to a din. People were amazed by the news, and on someone of such a low level. Adam knew that the bookshop owner had said that extra skills were rare. However he figured that since these were non-combat related skills that they wouldn't be as impressive, so he had left them visible.
“Does he have any profession related skills,” inquired Gerard.
Marie's hands started to shake. She began to stammer as she spoke. “He, I think, he has all of them?” It was a question just as much as it was a statement.
Adam had to admit that he knew the least amount about the profession skills. Things like smithing, enchanting, alchemy. He had defaulted to video game logic, and a lot of games allowed you to learn all of them. So it would just make sense for a person to learn them all. However that seemed to not be the case.
“And what ranks are they, do any of them stand out from the others?” Gerard was very intrigued, his eyes flashed like polished silver.
“They're all, Rank B,” Marie sputtered.
Gerard regarded Adam in a new light. The man's eyes were both ravenous like a predator, yet in the next moment they were filled with childlike wonder.
“Marvelous,” Gerard breathed.