Alcia, a town teeming with adventurers, was one of the kingdom of Belandor's renowned dungeon cities. Its economy thrived on products obtained from monsters and the agricultural goods it produced.

Alan, an A-rank adventurer, had made Alcia his home. Strolling down the bustling streets, he glanced around, searching for a good place to eat after an uneventful day in the dungeon.

Why the heck did Ais and the others mess up the stairs during their expedition? He berated them in his thoughts.

As Alan walked through the market, he had to continuously move aside his long hairs that kept falling on his face. They weren’t naturally wavy, though not styling them certainly caused them to be.

'Bird nest'—a word quite a few people used to describe his hair when he had just woken up—crossed his mind, causing him to chuckle. He tried to suppress it since he didn’t want to look like someone who had gone mad.

"Sir, would you like some bread?" a young boy questioned politely as he approached Alan.

Alan looked at the boy’s appearance. His tattered clothes made it clear he wasn’t lucky enough to be born into a nice household.

Bread, huh? I don't exactly want to eat anything too dry, Alan considered, as he removed a pouch filled with money from his pocket. "What’s the price for a small loaf of bread?" Alan questioned.

"It’s four copper coins sir! It’s freshly bak—" the boy said, interrupted midway when Alan handed him a silver coin.

"I can’t accept this money sir," the boy said, raising both hands in refusal.

"I am just paying in advance. Give me a loaf of bread whenever you see me, okay?" Alan added with a small smile.

"Thanks sir, It means a lot. Here you go," the boy said, handing a small loaf of bread to Alan.

I don’t actually want to eat it… Do I say no? Alan questioned himself. He looked at the boy, noticing the bright eyes. "Thanks, I guess," Alan mumbled, taking the loaf of bread from him. "Guess I acquired some food for myself," he mumbled under his breath as he watched the boy move away and approach someone else with his pitch.

Alan turned his gaze back to the road as he began walking again. Taking a bite of the bread he had just bought. It's rather soft, he thought to himself. As he passed through a rarely used alleyway that connected the adventurers' guild to the main street, a peculiar scene caught his attention.

"Look what you've done!" a buff male adventurer with an unnecessarily long red mohawk shouted at a younger adventurer, gripping the boy’s collar.

"I am sorry," the boy whimpered.

"You shouldn’t have done that. Look, you’ve completely ruined his outfit," said a skinny male adventurer with glasses, pointing at a small dust mark on the white shirt the mohawked adventurer wore.

"I am... sorry, but you weren’t looking."

"Wait, now you’re blaming me for your mistake?" the man snapped, picking the boy up from the ground and throwing him against the stone wall.

Even if he did bump into him, that doesn’t make it right, Alan thought, frustration clear on his face. As he stepped into the alleyway and walked past the boy lying on the ground.

"What do you want?" the mohawked adventurer barked, glaring at Alan.

Without replying to the adventurer's question, Alan kept walking in his direction, colliding with him and causing him to fall to the ground. In unison with the adventurer's fall, Alan released the leftover bread from his hand.

"Look what you did!" Alan shouted, glaring down at the adventurer. "You messed up my food."

"You little shit!" the adventurer growled as he stood back up, throwing a punch at Alan’s face.

Before the punch could land, Alan grabbed the adventurer’s wrist. "Which guild do you belong to?" Alan pressed, tightening his grip.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The mohawked adventurer tried to break his fist free from Alan’s grip, but it was to no avail. Fear was now written on his face.

"We're from the Black Wolf Guild, in case you didn’t know mister," the spectacled adventurer spoke, shooting a sharp glare at Alan. Turning to the mohawked adventurer, he snapped, "Braun, stop playing around! What the hell are you doing? Quit standing there and smash his face into the ground!" he said, frustration clear on his face.

A drop of sweat ran down Braun’s face. "You wouldn’t want an all-out guild fight, would you? Not over some kid. He said, steeling himself.

"Ah, about that... I'm not in any guild, and even if I was in one, I don't think Black Wolf guild would take action for their incompetent adventurers," Alan said with a small smile.

In the next moment, a cracking sound came from Braun's arm. A loud scream erupted from the mohawked man. The skinny adventurer, who had been standing next to him, backed away from the scene in shock before turning tail and fleeing.

Alan released Braun’s hand and delivered a hard punch to his solar plexus, sending him to the ground, gasping for air.

I doubt Black Wolf would dare take action against me. They’d probably want a chance to recruit me in the future. Guess staying guildless has its perks, Alan thought, a satisfied smile on his face. He looked down at Braun’s squirming and barely-crawling body. Did I hit him too hard? Alan wondered, hoping he hadn’t gone overboard..

He then turned his head to look back at the young adventurer who had previously been lying on the ground. Alan watched as the boy struggled to get back on his feet. Instead of helping him, Alan stayed where he was, watching as the boy struggled to his feet. He needs to figure out how to stand on his own. I won't always be there to help him, he thought.

"Thanks for helping me, sir," the boy muttered, bowing his head.

Alan took in the boy’s appearance, a skinny physique, short height, black eyes, and black hair that fell in uneven layers, longer at the front and shorter at the back. He wore a dark green shirt and yellow pants, with a small brown scabbard hanging on the left side of his pants, holding a knife.

"Are you in a guild yet?" Alan asked.

"I just took on adventuring as a job recently. I... uh, didn’t get the chance to join one, sir," the boy replied, his tone slightly hesitant.

Alan sighed. "I suggest you get into one soon," he advised. "The adventurers in this city tend to rob and bully those with no guild affiliation since they're easy targets," he added, feeling slightly concerned.

"I didn't know."

"Well, now you do."

"Can I join your guild, sir?" the boy asked, his eyes practically sparkling with excitement.

"I'm not in one—ahhh..." How do I explain this to him?Alan wondered, looking at the boy, who now appeared confused. Pointing at him, Alan said, "Let’s say you’re a bully."

"I’m not!"

"You are," Alan countered, narrowing his eyes and giving the boy a slightly pissed-off look.

"Yes, sir," the boy replied, sweating.

"So if you were a bully, who would you rather pick on—a weak adventurer or a strong one?"

"I would pick on the strong one. Breaking him down would be a really fun scene to see."

Alan gave the boy an astonished look, surprised by his response. Does he have some weird stuff going on in his mind? Alan wondered, eyeing the boy and his unsettling smile.

"Be a usual, run-of-the-mill bully like the ones you find everywhere."

"I think... I’d go bully the weak, sir," the boy finally replied.

"You got your answer. Adventurers tend to pick on weaker, unaffiliated adventurers instead of stronger ones for the same reasons."

"That makes sense," the boy said with a nod of understanding.

"It does, doesn’t it?" Alan added, nodding. With that, he turned back toward the street to go about his business.

"Sir!" the boy called out.

Alan looked back. "Yes?"

"Would you please accompany me to the guild hall? Let me buy you dinner to thank you for saving me," the boy asked politely, bowing.

"The association hall, huh? I could potentially collect my previous payments from there," Alan considered aloud. Not that I’m strapped for money, he added in his mind.

After putting on an appearance of ‘I’m thinking’ for a few moments, he smiled and faced the lad again. "I don’t see why not," he replied as he walked toward the boy.

“That would be amazing! What would you like to eat, sir...?" The boy paused midway before continuing, "Ah, if you don’t mind me asking, what should I call you, sir?" he asked with a hint of curiosity.

"Ah, you can address me as Alan. About what I’d like to eat..." Alan paused for a moment before continuing, "I’ve been told by an acquaintance of mine that the guild sells really good steaks. I guess we could eat that, if your budget allows that is."

Casting a sidelong glance at the boy, Alan added, "I could pitch in if you..."

The boy shook his head. "No way! You saved me. I’m pretty sure I can buy steak for you. It’s just my two days' wages—nothing special," he added with a determined look.

That’s admirable, I must say, but isn’t making him spend two days wage on me a bad decision? Alan thought with mild concern.

Alan Blackwell - [ Status report from prior month ]

- Race: Human

- Rank: A-Rank

- Age: 19

- Class: Mage / Swordmaster

- Affinity: Dark / Fire

Stats

- Mana Points: 29,456 (Overcharged)

- Strength: 970

- Speed: 2,120

- Dexterity: 1,700

- Health Points: 700

Equipment

- Weapon: Ferrust (Tier 7 Sword)

- Armor: None

Abilities

- Corrosion

- Lifesteal

- Formless Caster

Magic Resistance

- Level 3 Resistance – Reduces the effectiveness of magic-based attacks by 30%.

Defensive Abilities

- Self-Healing (Level 3) – Can heal minor wounds immediately when activated.

- Damage Reduction (Level 5) – Reduces 60% of all physical damage received.

Special Abilities

- None