Ackster walked up to the guards at the side of the road with a smile that may or may not have been distorted by how filthy he was.

The guards’ displeasure was apparent, but one of them just wrinkled his nose a little while looking at Ackster while he tapped the notepad in his hands.

“...Alright. Name, affiliation, if any, and your business in Ilto, please.”

Despite Ackster’s disheveled state, the guard still carried out his duties properly. Although it didn’t happen very often, it wasn’t the first time adventurers came back looking like they had experienced everything Mother Nature had to give them.

Ackster held out his Nomi, the greatest proof of identity he had.

[Name: –]

[Profession: (Adventurer)]

Well, it would have been a great piece of identification if it didn’t display such a dubious status. But since it couldn’t be faked, there was no doubt that Ackster was telling the truth.

Though, he would have some trouble in the future once people started figuring out how to manipulate and forge Nominus Cards.

“Um, My name is Dean, I’m an adventurer, and I got lost a while back, and Ilto is apparently the closest city.”

“Huh?”

The guard looked closer at the card, trying to confirm what he was seeing. Not only was there not any name, but the profession was also bracketed.

“Okay. I guess you understand that we have to….”

“Yeah. Take me away!”

Ackster smiled cheekily as if he were used to being suspected due to the nature of his Nomi.

“Heh, alright. Jim, you heard him. Take this guy to the waiting room and take his statement. You know the drill.”

“Yes, sir.”

One of the other guards saluted to the guard Ackster had first spoken to before leading Ackster through the meter-thick city walls and into a small, almost shed-like house right next to the wall.

Jim brought Ackster into what looked like an interrogation room and directed him toward a seat on one side of the table while he took the other. Somewhere along the way, he had also picked up a notepad.

“Alright then. From the top, please.”

Jim didn’t even look at Ackster as he was ready to take notes of what Ackster was about to say.

“Uh, when you say the ‘From the top’...?”

Jim pinched his nose bridge and sighed.

“Explain why you look like that and why you’re here. And your name.”

“Right.”

Ackster nodded decisively while trying to maintain an innocent-looking expression.

“Have you heard of a small town called Tillo? It’s a bit… east of here, I think?”

“It’s almost straight north, but alright.”

“Oh, are you from there?”

“No. I have a friend from there.”

“Really, what’s his name? I might know him.”

“He moved when he was a child. Is this important to the story?”

“Right, no. I got sidetracked a bit, sorry.”

Ackster hadn’t really gotten sidetracked. He was fishing for information so that he didn’t accidentally expose himself as a big fat liar. Since he only knew the names of a few places in Lill, there weren’t really many places he could say he came from. And as far as he could tell, Tillo was the closest and most likely place.

Fortunately, it seemed like he wouldn’t stumble into any pitfalls that could reveal his lies.

“Well, uh, I was on a monster extermination quest. A neighbor had seen a bunch of goblins when he was out for a walk, so I went out to kill them. But there were a few more than I expected.”

Ackster waited for a little bit to let Jim write down what he was saying. Jim motioned for him to continue.

“And, uh, I kind of ran away without looking where I was going. And just like that, I was lost, and I had also lost most of my stuff.”

“Happens to the best of us.”

Jim seemed a little sympathetic.

“Good work on staying alive. It must have been rough getting this far. Do you know how long you were out?”

Ackster shook his head.

“No, not really. A couple of weeks, I think.”

“I see. What’s your rank, by the way?”

Ackster showed his Nomi again.

“Well, since my card looks like this, I can’t tell, but I was F-ranked before I left the village.”

“Oh, wow. That’s impressive, Dean, was it?”

“Yeah.”

“And then, why does your profession look like that?”

Ackster hesitated a little, enough for Jim to urge him to talk.

“Um, you’ve got to promise not to react too much.”

“...Alright?”

He removed the bag from his shoulders.

“While I have gone through a lot, it wasn’t for nothing. When I was about to die in the middle of nowhere….”

Ackster opened the bag and showed Mio to Jim.

“...This little guy found me and nudged me back to life. So, I think my profession looks like that because I’ve gotten the first qualifications to become a tamer.”

Ackster smiled with pride as he let Jim take a closer look at Mio, who was trying their best to look cute. Well, as cute as a featureless slime could look.

“A Slime Tamer, huh? That’s pretty rare. I guess you’ve got luck on your side, Dean.”

“Thanks.”

“...”

“Um, is that it?”

Jim hesitated a little before taking a sharp look and directing it at Ackster.

“One last thing.”

“Yeah?”

Jim leaned forward and rested one arm on the table as he scrutinized Ackster under the well-lit room’s light.

“You’re looking awfully healthy for an F-rank who got lost in the woods.”

Ackster shrugged.

“I… got lucky?”

Jim continued staring at Ackster. The fact that Ackster was dressed in blood-stained rags, which showed clear signs of being torn and attacked by monsters, wasn’t weird.

What was weird was the fact that Ackster didn’t seem very, or at all, injured below those rags. It was suspicious.

Ackster looked from side to side as if afraid that someone was listening in before he also leaned close and whispered to Jim.

“Before you get any weird thoughts about what I’m about to say next, it’s already all gone, okay? I don’t have any more, and there wasn’t much to begin with. Got it?”

“Yeah…?”

“I found a Lover’s Petal.”

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

“!”

Jim leaned back in shock and stared at Ackster with his mouth agape and eyes opened wide.

“Really?!”

“Shh!”

“Right. Really?”

“Yes. But I had to use it all. Please believe me. I know what those are worth, and if word gets out I found one, I probably won’t return home in one piece.”

Ackster pleaded with Jim.

He would have preferred it if Jim didn’t notice he was fine beneath the rags, but since he had noticed, Ackster had to come up with an explanation that would fit with the rest of his story.

And the only reasonable reason for why a weak adventurer would arrive unscathed after crossing such a large part of Lill’s wilderness, even if it were on the side bordering Badhurst, was a miraculous plant like the Lover’s Petal.

An ingredient for high-level potions that, even on its own, possessed outstanding healing capabilities. That’s what the Lover’s Petal was. And while they were rare, they weren’t impossible to find. They were just very useful and higher-ranking alchemists would happily pay a great deal of money to get their hands on one. Not only alchemists would do it since everyone would benefit from a high-level potion in reserve.

Well, it was only medium-ranking fighters who would go to the extreme for a high-level potion like that.

It was also the only thing Ackster could think of that would explain a weakling’s survival. Hopefully, Jim would be nice and not tell anyone.

But even if he did, Ackster was almost looking forward to the challenge. It would let him train his abilities to escape pursuit and how to turn the tables during a manhunt while keeping his identity secret.

At his current strength and the likely strength of the people who would possibly chase after him, regardless of laws, it was basically impossible to cause a big enough ruckus that people outside the immediate area cared much about it.

Jim nodded gravely as he looked at Ackster, who, in turn, looked at him with an earnest, pleading, and serious face.

“You got it. My lips are sealed.”

Ackster sighed in relief.

“Thank you, Jim. Truly, thank you.”

Jim shrugged with one of his shoulders.

“Don’t mind it. There’s nothing for me to gain by spilling the beans, either way.”

Ackster smiled gratefully and stood up while slinging the bag over his back again.

“Still, let me buy you a meal once I get my affairs in order.”

“You’re not going back to Tillo?”

Ackster flashed a bright smile, filled with his adventurous spirit.

“I’m here now, why not take the opportunity to see the world?”

Jim chuckled a little.

“I would hardly call Ilto the world. But sure, as long as you don’t get lost, you’re welcome to stick around. Oh, and don’t cause any trouble.”

“Never.”

“Then you’re good to go.”

Jim guided Ackster out of the interrogation room and the house. He looked Acskter in the eyes when they were outside.

“Welcome to Ilto, Dean. And if you were serious about that meal, come look for me at Popper’s Belly.”

“Thank you, Jim. See you around, then.”

Ackster shook Jim’s hand with a smile before turning around and leaving to join the crowds in the city and find the Guild branch office. His smile faded as soon as he turned around.

Ackster wanted to take a shower and get cleaned up before taking a walk around town to get his bearings and a better estimation of where he was and if he would have to leave at once to increase his odds of finding Karandiel. Since he was straight south of Tillo, he was at least in the right column of the country. But he didn’t know whether he would have to move north or south.

However, as he was now, what with how he was covered in filth, dried blood, and dirty rags, he was too attention-grabbing. Even if most people instinctively avoided him due to the smell, they would still take note of him.

He wouldn’t be able to sneak around and fish for information like that.

Unfortunately, inns reputable enough to have hot-water showers wouldn’t let him inside their doors. He could settle for a trashier inn, which would be more like a place to sleep with protection from the weather than a proper inn, and use the buckets of cold water that he would likely find there.

The only problem was that even those inns charged money.

And money was something Ackster didn’t have.

So, he had to rely on the one thing that all adventurers relied on, no matter their strength or affluence, the Adventurer’s Guild.

Naturally, as a force established for the sake of adventurers and for the people, they offered privileges for adventures. It wasn’t for free, and it wasn’t without limits.

But, given Ackster’s circumstances, he should be able to get a room, a shower, and a simple change of clothes in exchange for a small debt that would be repaid after one successful hunt, depending on what he brought back.

Without the adventurers, the Guild would be nothing, and without the Guild, adventurers would be nothing. It was a symbiotic relationship that continued with each new generation and had started from the very beginning, from the founding of the Adventurer’s Guild, which had survived through countless Calamitous Cycles.

The organization even held enough power to influence the world and its fundamental powers and laws. After all, without the Adventurer’s Guild and the influence it had over the adventurers, the profession of Adventurer wouldn’t be as strong or as common and popular as it was.

Otherwise, how could a profession with no clear rules or definitions be so widespread and easily acquired? In practice, an adventurer grew through adventures. And anything could be an adventure for the right person. The reason why adventures’ growth was most closely related to killing monsters was because that was an adventurer’s distinct role in society.

Where else would they use their strength if not in the wild and killing the monsters, which they were specialized to do, unlike the knights and city-dwellers, who were better suited for protecting?

Also, killing and fighting monsters, especially ones stronger than oneself, was thrilling. It was an adventure.

It was thanks to the Guild and the adventures under its control that the profession was so versatile and strong. Naturally, the Guild and adventurers wanted this relationship to continue.

And, although the Guild’s strength and the power it controlled, even if adventurers were free individuals, was fearsome to the point of some countries rejecting the Guild, no one could deny the usefulness of the Guild and its adventurers. Without them, monsters would be flooding villages, towns, cities, capitals, countries, and continents all over the world.

‘And that’s the organization whose information network I have to get my hands on….’

Ackster knew that the Guild’s information network was among, if not the best, in the world. If he wanted to know everything he needed to know to stay updated about any repercussions of his transmigration, and if he wanted that information in real time, he would need the world’s best network.

Fortunately, he almost had a plan to get the Guildmaster under his control or at least make a deal with him. It was just that since he needed the object of that deal, the bait, for his grand plan of saving his life, things could get a little tricky.

But he would figure out the details while deciding on and picking up the rest of his anti-Hero crew. And hopefully, he would have some time before he had to deal with the Dragon Slayer Kargas. He needed some strength of his own to deal with a guy like that.

‘At least he’s not as crazy as the Sword God.’

Ackster made sure to control his face while thinking about the future until he finally found the Adventurer’s Guild Ilto Branch.

Although Ilto was about the same size as Degrest, maybe slightly bigger, the guild branch was significantly bigger, especially in terms of service capability at the same time.

The Degrest branch maintained a minimum level of acceptable display of the power of the Guild since the city, while close to a forest of monsters, wasn’t a hotspot for adventurers.

The Degrest forest was suitable for lower-ranked adventurers, and entering the depths could pose a threat to them. But that was the limit. It could be threatening and somewhat dangerous. Only stupid and very weak adventurers would get themselves killed in the Degrest Forest.

However, the area around Ilto was a little more dangerous. It was still relatively close to the center of the continent, but it was an area where monsters had no trouble growing stronger than goblins. It was a perfect place for adventurers to break through the infamous first wall.

And since it was the afternoon, a time when a lot of adventurers came back from their expeditions, Ackster had to wait in line for a while before arriving at a desk where he could ask for the amenities offered by the Guild.

At least adventurers weren’t as squeamish and blissfully unaware of the dirtiness of the world that they shied away from him at first smell. There were still a bunch of people who gave him stares, but most were out of curiosity at what had happened to him for him to end up in such a state.

Ackster looked around the place and pretended to be a country bumpkin. He didn't exaggerate, but it was still obvious to anyone with more worldly experience than a snail that he was new to the place and big cities in general.

While hoping his act as an adventurer who got lost and ended up in a big city was perfect, Ackster approached the desk with what he hoped was a pleasant innocent smile that wasn’t too marred by the filth and dried blood.

“Hey, there.”

He had his Nomi at the ready in case he needed it to verify his identity.

“Hello.”

The bespectacled woman behind the desk looked up from the papers on her desk and at Ackster with a gentle but tired smile. She had probably worked through the afternoon rush and was getting exhausted.

She held up her hand as soon as she saw Ackster’s appearance. She pointed to a swinging door next to the line of desks with receptionists and adventurers waiting in line.

“You’ll find a locker room there. Standard showers with three minutes of hot water. There are towels and one set of clean clothes in the green lockers. Use your Nomi to unlock them. You can only unlock one locker every ten days, or you will have to talk to a receptionist. Any questions?”

Ackster was a little surprised at the receptionist’s quick decision and the preparedness of the Guild, and he intentionally let it show on his face.

“Uh… Yeah, actually. Um, room? Just for a night or so.”

“Do you have any money?”

“No….”

“Alright.”

The receptionist scrawled on a piece of paper that she handed to Ackster before pointing at a door on the other side, which seemed to lead to a different building attached to the Guild’s branch office.

“You’ll find a bunch of single-bed rooms behind that door. Show this paper to Tilt. It’s valid for one night and one night only. No visitors. Any damages will cost extra. Make sure you’re as clean as possible before sleeping. Any questions?”

Ackster was beginning to admire this receptionist’s efficiency.

“Um, one last thing….”

“Go ahead.”

“I’ve got a slime with me….”

“I need to see it to appraise it.”

The receptionist, Wilma, as Ackster could see her name tag when she moved her arm to push on her glasses, looked at Ackster as if she wondered why he hadn’t brought it out first.

“Ah, no, it’s mine. I’ve tamed it. Do I need to put it in a separate room?”

“I see. Slimes are usually harmless if domesticated, but I need to see it. Do you know what type it is?”

“It’s grey.”

Ackster answered as he showed the contents of his bag.

“Any acid, heat, or otherwise property damaging capabilities?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Alright.”

Wilma held out her hand and gestured for Ackster to give back the note. She returned it after adding a few words to it.

“You will be held liable if there is any damage. You will be deducted half a silver on your next sale. Any questions?”

“No, no questions. Thank you very much, Wilma.”

Ackster nodded his head slightly as he thanked the efficient, expedient, and helpful receptionist.

“Good. Next!”

Ackster left the desk and headed toward the showers.