“(Adventurer), huh. That’s pretty interesting. Are you having doubts or something, Mas?”

Melia raised an eyebrow as she looked between the Nomi and Ackster.

“What do you mean?”

Ackster tilted his head, slightly afraid that he had done something wrong. Or if something had gone wrong because of his identity, both as Ackster Phileam and as a transmigrator.

“Well, these brackets usually appear when the thing they appear around isn’t set in stone. Ah, professions usually aren’t set in stone since they can change depending on your growth and whatnot. But when it’s like this, it’s usually because the Nomi Card is uncertain what to make of you.”

“Alright…?”

Ackster was a little confused since The Hero hadn’t struggled with anything like that. Everything on his Nomi had always been clear and obvious. Maybe it was because The Hero’s identity was so powerful? But Ackster didn’t have time to hypothesize about The Hero’s Nomi at the moment.

Melia looked at the card again.

“The Nomi probably thinks your more well-suited for something else. But because you’ve only made contact with the Adventurer profession, it’s the only one it can assign you. That’s my guess, at least.”

Ackster realized that he would have to ask some questions here if he didn’t want to sound suspicious. He knew how to get a few other professions, and he knew the general principle behind how different professions worked. But most people without Nomis didn’t really grasp those details.

“So… How do I find that other profession the Nomi wants me to have? And what’s the difference between different professions?”

Melia shrugged and handed the card back to Ackster.

“I don’t know what that profession might be, so I don’t know how to get it. And the difference between professions is basically how well your different stats grow and how they grow. If we take adventurers as an example… The easiest way for adventurers to grow stronger is by killing monsters. And then, based on how they kill monsters, different stats grow accordingly. Like, a magic-specialized adventurer who has killed a monster with magic will see their mana stat increase. A warrior-type will see their strength increase and so on.”

“I see.”

Ackster sank into thought, not because of what Melia had told him. That, he already knew. But he thought about what profession would be best suited for him. With his Strong Body skill, he should be pretty good at close-quarters combat. But since he hadn’t even awakened his mana, he didn’t know how good he would be at magic.

But for now, Ackster decided he would have to be an adventurer. It was also one of the professions that were the quickest to grow. He just had to kill a bunch of monsters.

“Any other questions?”

Melia looked at Ackster, who seemed to be thinking about a bunch of stuff, and she couldn’t help but notice that he didn’t smell that much, despite being so dirty.

“...no. Not unless displaying my profession like this will work.”

“Yeah, that works. It will be the same as your lack of a name. But since there’s nothing illegal, gatekeepers and such will just verify your identity with a few questions before letting you pass through. Ah, you look like you’re smart enough to know this already, but there will probably be more than a few people out there that will ask for a fee to let you enter other cities or whatever you plan to do. Technically, you don’t have to. But it will save you a lot of trouble.”

“Mm, thanks for the help and the advice. I hope you aren’t stuck with the night shift too long, Melia.”

Ackster smiled and pocketed the Nomi card, honestly thankful for Melia’s quick and exemplary service.

“You too, Gerrick. I appreciate the help, and if I get the chance, I will repay you in the future.”

Ackster turned to Gerrick after waving goodbye to Melia as they left.

“You just staying alive is more than enough to repay something as small as this, Mas.”

“I’ll do just that, then.”

Mas grinned as he implied that he wouldn’t come back and return the favor.

“Hey, it’s still alright to come and visit, you know?”

Ackster and Gerrick left the Guild together.

“And you’re leaving right now?”

Gerrick looked at the bag slung over Ackster’s shoulder. It looked like he was packed and ready to go.

“Yep. You seeing me off?”

“Sure.”

Ackster and Gerrick didn’t say much during the short walk. To begin with, they barely knew anything other than each other’s names. There wasn’t much they could talk about now that Gerrick was done helping Ackster become an adventurer.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

And Ackster had his mind busy with thinking about what to do after leaving Degrest.

“Ah, wait! If I want to go somewhere other than north, don’t I need to leave through another gate?”

Ackster looked at Gerrick as he realized that he definitely didn’t want to go in the same direction The Hero would go after completing his business in Degrest. He could take a different route after arriving at Nereo, but it wouldn’t be pointless if The Hero and his comrades caught up to him before he arrived.

All he had done so far with the Doppelganger Slime and all that would be for nothing if he did that.

“You can just walk around the city. It will take a little longer, but there’s nothing stopping you from doing that. It’s also designed so that when there are large groups of people wanting to enter at once, they can split off and use the other gates. You’re not in a hurry somewhere, are you?”

Ackster did feel a sense of urgency to leave the city since he might encounter The Hero, who should be sleeping, anywhere if he just walked around randomly. But he wasn’t in a hurry since he hadn’t decided on his destination yet.

“No. I just want to leave the city.”

“Yeah, just head out through the north gate and start walking. And stick close to the roads, Mas. Most monsters stay away from them.”

“Thanks, Gerrick.”

And before they knew it, Ackster and Gerrick were at the gate. Since Gerrick was with him, none of the other guards stopped Ackster as he left the city. Gerrick saw Ackster off until he could no longer see the young man, which wasn’t very long since Ackster went right almost as soon as he left the gate.

Ackster walked next to the wall, a feeling of accomplishment and relief filling his body. He had done it.

He had survived The Hero. He had shed the identity of Ackster Phileam and become Mas, the adventurer.

Although he had discarded his identity as Ackster Phileam, he was still in Ackster’s body, so he couldn’t completely step away from it. And, even if he successfully faked his death using the Doppelganger Slime, Ackster could still be recognized if he wasn’t careful.

Ackster thought about the possible risks as he walked around the city to reach the south gate.

Andrea Phileam probably knew that he was still alive since she would have been able to sense what he was up to. But since she seemed to love her deplorable son, she probably wouldn’t say anything. Hopefully, she wouldn’t inadvertently tip off The Hero by reacting in a manner unfitting of a mother seeing her son die.

Mikhail Phileam might be a little suspicious after reading the letter and comparing it to Ackster’s behavior on the day of the battle and the night before it. So, if he saw Ackster somewhere, he would probably recognize his son without doubting it. Though, whether he would react or not wasn’t something Ackster could guess.

Melissa Phileam, Ackster’s sister, probably couldn’t even guess that her unruly brother could fake his death. She wasn’t a risk.

Then, there were the various people in Degrest that the original Ackster had terrorized during his life. During the right circumstances, they might be able to recognize Ackster if he got rid of his disguise. But most people were likely happy that he had died and put him in a locker far back in their minds.

Unless they were directly reminded of Ackster while he was in front of them, they probably wouldn’t think much of it unless they were greatly traumatized by his behavior. But as long as he disguised himself and changed his behavior, Ackster should be safe from people like that.

But it was neither of those people that Ackster feared.

It was, as expected, The Hero who he had to watch out for.

Ackster had to avoid catching The Hero’s eyes, no matter what. The only way Ackster would be safe if The Hero saw him would be if his disguise ability surpassed The Hero’s ability to see through disguises.

And when he thought about The Hero’s skills, natural talent, and memory, Ackster felt that it would be easier to simply avoid The Hero until he absolutely had to face him, which he would have to do one day.

Ackster put distance between himself and the city wall so that the guards at the east gate didn’t see him. Although he had left the city, he was by no means safe yet. And to prevent anyone from managing to track him down, he would have to hide his tracks.

Gerrick knew he wasn’t necessarily headed north, but the other guards had seen him leave through the northern gate. So, if anyone would try and come after him, they would head that way unless they had a testimony of him walking past the east gate and continuing around the city toward the south.

It was extra caution. But Ackster had to be at least this cautious if he didn’t want to die an early death.

He might have escaped the three days’ death sentence he had been given upon his transmigration, which wasn’t even confirmed yet since the night wasn’t over and the battle hadn’t happened yet. But he might still die for any number of reasons.

His stats had confirmed that he was as weak as the weakest monsters.

Even if he somehow managed to become strong enough to survive this harsh world on his own, Ackster still wouldn’t be able to live much longer than around ten years.

He could hardly believe it. It felt like such a long time that Ackster considered just finding a nice tiny harbor town and settling down. Just take it easy, fish, frolic in the water, and read to pass his time until it was time to say goodbye to the world and his second chance at life.

But he knew he only thought that ten years was long because he compared it to the three days he had just lived.

Once they were over, the ten years would have felt like they had passed in a flash.

No. If Ackster was going to die, he wanted it to be from old age or age-related issues.

But to do that, he would have to stop the world from being destroyed. It was something only he, who knew the plot of the original story and the ending, could do. It was also something that was possible thanks to his Strong Body skill.

But if a single skill were enough to bridge the gap between an ordinary person and The Hero, The Hero wouldn’t have been as terrifying as he was.

Fortunately, Strong Body wasn’t the only card Ackster had up his sleeve. The information about the future and all kinds of things regarding Millmeria gave him an advantage that might just help him prevent the world’s end.

It was just that it would take a lot of work.

Ackster also couldn’t forget one important fact.

The Hero wasn’t alone.

While The Hero was the spearhead of humanity and all civilized races of Millmeria, and he had the greatest talent in history, not even he could stop the Calamity on his own. And by his side, he had a group of formidable personages that, in any other time, would have been hailed as one of the greatest people alive.

But The Hero’s light was too bright. The Hero was bound to overshadow everyone else, especially those close to him.

However, that was only on the side of humanity and on the surface.

The world was bigger than what met the eye. And in the future, The Hero would encounter and hear mentions of characters, people, and creatures that would rival him in strength and potential.

Ackster realized that, just like The Hero, he wouldn’t be able to do it all alone. He would have to get help.

But before he could convince anyone of that caliber to help him, he would first have to grow strong, strong enough to do what he needed to do.

‘Training montage, activate!’