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***Silvester***

I woke up in the dark room, relishing the feeling of a good bed after so long.

I still felt uneasy from time to time when I opened my eyes in the absence of light, but the worst of it had passed, fortunately.

Now, what should I do? I thought as I searched for my things where I remembered leaving them.

The other two were still asleep and would probably wake up later today.

They went to bed later than usual since we had a leisurely dinner and relaxing time the previous evening. I kept drinking alone after they went to sleep, basking in the atmosphere of the place.

A Bard was singing and, while there were still many empty tables, contrarily to the inns I stayed on the road from the Capital this one was a lot more lively.

I had a good night.

After I dressed and armed myself, I went down the stairs and out on the road.

I took a breath of the early morning air and decided to take a walk.

I could only see the first rays of the sun lighting up the sky, but it would still take some time before businesses opened. In the meantime, I wanted to tour for a bit.

I looked around before going to the plaza hosting the market. Our inn was fairly close to it, so it didn’t take much to reach.

There was still nobody there so early, but I had to pass through it if I wanted to take the main road going up the hill.

After asking a few helpful locals, the previous day, we found out that there were three major roads in this city, two of them were the ones that connected the northeast and southwest entrances to the central plaza, called the Left and Right Roads, based on how they were seen from the river, or Low Roads when grouped together. The other was the one that snaked up the hill reaching the castle, called the High Road.

All other roads branched from those three and connected to form a maze divided into various levels.

After entering the city, we walked for a while on the Right Road until the buildings on our left space to the sight of the river and the docks full of ships. The Low Roads and the Central Plaza were around twenty meters higher than the level of the water.

Nice sight, I thought as I reached another smaller square up the hill. You get a whole other perspective from up high.

I could see the river coming from the southwest, curving and heading east.

It couldn’t be seen from there, since the water stretched to the horizon, but I was told by Zeph that the curve continued until it headed southeast, almost making a U-turn before heading for the Capital.

From the southwest instead, I could see the river coming from between two hills.

I stayed there and watched as the sun rose from where the river met the sky.

Then, when I saw people trickling in the market below, I went back down, heading for the Mercenary Guild.

By the time I reached my destination, after asking around for directions, they were already open.

While in front of the multifloored building, I looked at the two doors with plaques saying ‘Administration’ and ‘Bar’.

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

The choice was obvious. I went to the bar.

I still didn’t have breakfast after all.

There were a few big guys in a corner chatting and the bartender who was busy ordering some bottles.

The guys glanced at me as I walked in but kept going on with their conversations after that.

“Morning,” I said with a smile as I neared the counter.

The bartender turned towards me, squaring me up and down.

“Morning, are you here to eat?” he asked after his eyes stopped on my face.

“Yes, I need to fill my stomach before I get busy,” I said, pointing to the door I suspected led to the ‘administration’ side of the building.

“Mm, first time seein’ you. You took a quest from another city?” he asked.

“Nope, I want to register,” I responded as I sat in front of the counter.

He paused, scanning me again.

“I see. What do you want to eat?” he asked in the end.

I then ordered and ate my meal in silence while a few mercenaries came in and took a table.

Luckily, Zeph exchanged a few gold coins for copper and silvers because I didn’t give it a thought, and it was surely strange to pay in gold.

After my meal, I headed for the door and went to a hall full of seats and three counters.

The hall was empty, but three ladies behind the desks on the opposite side of the hall were already working.

There was a glass in front of each counter with a small opening below.

“Morning ladies,” I said with a bright smile as I approached.

They lifted their gaze and greeted me back. Two of them went back to their work, while the third one in the center smiled at me as I drew closer.

Not bad, I thought, appreciating their looks.

“We are all married,” she said.

Oh, yes? I thought, amused.

“And so?” I asked, perplexed, as I reached her counter.

“Just saying. In case you didn’t notice, you weren’t subtle with your look,” she answered jokingly.

“Why would I be subtle?” I asked amused. “I was appreciating… And I don’t want to marry.”

She tilted her head.

“I was saying that to say we weren’t available,” she said after thinking about it for a few moments.

I raised my brows. “And why would being married mean that you weren’t available?”

She paused again.

“It’s common sense?” she said doubtfully.

I laughed.

“It’s less common sense than you think, lady, but I get your point,” I said amused.

I had more than enough proof of the contrary after all, I thought, remembering my time back at the school.

“And besides,” I continued. “It’s all your loss. You don’t get many opportunities to see someone as handsomely manly as me. I mean, look at this face, look at this body, they’re perfection made man.”

She looked at me dumbfounded, soundlessly repeating ‘handsomely manly’.

I knew where the problem was.

“Yes, I get that with the clothes, you can’t tell. They detract too much. But I can’t strip here, right?” I said knowingly. “I wouldn’t mind, but I know some people get annoyed with that.”

I thought for another few moments.

“It must be too much for their sight. I’m just that incredible.” I nodded, convinced of my conclusion.

All three were staring at me now.

“Now, now, I know that it’s hard to take your eyes off me, but while I am not married you’re still on work hours. We can talk after your shift is over if you want,” I said, sighing.

I always have that effect on people. The woes of being so awesome.

“I must say… I’m at a loss for words,” she said after a few moments.

I nodded. “Yes, you’d need a whole lot of books to put me in words. I’m just that good.”

She shook her head.

While I understood that looking at me without getting lost in my greatness was hard, this girl looked a bit slow.

Maybe they just chose them for the face? I thought, absentmindedly, as I waited for her to gather her wits.

If so, I was sure I could do better than them. An eye candy for girls and a role model for men, plus my incredibly sharp mind. I would be the perfect employee.

“Ok sir, what do you need?” she said hesitantly as the other two got back to their work soundlessly. They were moving slower now, though.

I’m a walking sin, I thought, pitying them.

“Well, I’m here to register as a mercenary,” I answered her. “What are the procedures?”

“Oh, yes,” she said absentmindedly, taking out a few papers.

“You need to fill these forms and sign them. After that, you only have to come to the next room with me so we can proceed to check your Class and add the Guild Quest option to your System. Then, after the basic training or the tests, you will be enabled to work for the Guild. You should thoroughly read the papers and all the clauses before signing,” she said, pushing out the paper through the glass opening.

I looked at the paper she was giving me, then at her.

“I don’t have a Class, though,” I said.

“Sorry?” she asked uncomprehendingly, “What does that mean?”

I sighed. Always the same damn reaction.

“I’m Unblessed. No Class, no Skills, no gods. You got it?”

All three were staring at me again now.

I snapped my fingers and they flinched.

“I’m sorry, sir,” she said cautiously after another few seconds, “But you can’t work here then.”

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