Ahhhh~ This truly is the crown of Mahun civilization. Everything was great!

There were so many sweet shops that I couldn't even visit them all but that just means I have to come back later!

For now, we're heading out towards The Guild where I would complete my registration as a Dungeoneer.

According to Mary… Who is still in the form of Lina, there were multiple Guild branches in this city because of how big the place was.

For us, we would be heading towards the one in the lower levels of the noble district, which I found out was apparently a thing.

Aside from the castle itself, each of the districts was subdivided into different levels with the noble district having three levels and the common district having more than twenty.

The higher the level, the lower class the people were apparently.

Needless to say, Mother and I lived in the first level of the noble district, her estate already being one of the largest in size around there.

With Lina leading the way again, we made our way through the city, passing by groups of nobles going about their daily business.

A few of them did greet me but it was more of a noble greeting a fellow noble, not because they recognised me. I got used to dealing with such greetings when we were going sweets shopping already so I knew to just give them a polite nod and a quick greeting of my own before moving on.

I have Mary to thank for in teaching me how I should be greeting them.

We soon came to a building with the Guild's symbol hanging at the front and I entered it with Lina and Katsuki in tow.

Surprisingly, this one actually had a food establishment attached to it but instead of a bar, it was a cafe.

"Why would they even have a cafe here?" I wondered aloud.

Katsuki got closer to me and whispered, "Mistress… This place is meant to serve the noble children who wish to join The Guild."

"Oh yeah, there was also the question about why these nobles would make use of slaves to raise their rank right? Do we know why yet?"

Katsuki turned to her senior and Mary answered for her, "There are a few reasons for that, Mistress. One of which is when the children are not the primary heir of the house and have the idea of joining The Guild to make their own fortunes. Normally one would have to pass a test to join The Guild but where there is money, corruption also exists."

Mary then gestured to the counters where a young boy was being accompanied by an older man.

"My son would like to join The Guild as a Dungeoneer, I'm sure an additional small gold coin to the sign up fee could expedite the process?"

The receptionist who was handling them didn't even blink and simply nodded, "Of course sir, please have the young master fill in this form and we will prepare his card right away."

Wow… Ok…

Mary then continued, "If the child has competent slaves, they would still be able to complete quests even if their own ability is non-existent, thus The Guild overlooks this. They would then make use of their artificially inflated rank to get higher difficulty quests while making use of slaves to complete them, probably also using their Merchant membership to auction or sell off their loot."

Ugh, how lame.

"And what about other cases?" I asked.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

"In other cases, the child might actually be competent and would gain recognition through their own merit before using their Guild exploits to join the kingdom's knights."

I tilted my head, "Why the knights? Wouldn't that just be the same as staying as a Mercenary?"

The shapeshifter maid shook her head, "If you excel in the knights, there is a possibility that you might be granted your own title and you can start your own noble house independently."

Oh, interesting system they have. I guess that's also one mystery solved?

I turned to Mary, "What if I said that I do not wish to depend on my family name to get what I want as much as possible?"

"I would say nothing, Mistress. It is entirely within your right to do as you wish."

I shifted my gaze to Katsuki and she bowed as well, maintaining her air of calm, "I will follow Mistress's wish as well. Please allow me to serve by your side."

Awww… Look at her acting so serious when her tail is wagging so much behind her! She's so cute!!

I giggled at the sight before holding out my hand, "Alright, then I'll be registering to be a Dungeoneer! You're coming with me too, Katsuki!"

My Inugami maid looked up, "Are… Are you sure, Mistress?"

"Of course I'm sure! You're my personal maid aren't you? You should be accompanying me to see the ends of the World! Now pass me your Guild card!"

Katsuki hesitated but Mary was quick to admonish her, "What did I teach you about fulfilling your Mistress's wishes, Katsuki?"

Katsuki quickly straightened up to face me, "Understood, Mistress."

She then dug out her Guild card from her waist and handed it to me.

Seriously, her tail is wagging really furiously right now, she's soooo cute!

Moving up to the counter, I was greeted by a beautiful lady, which is obviously the staple in all Guilds.

"Good day, my lady, how can The Guild help you today?"

I passed over my Guild card, "I would like to register two people as Dungeoneers please!"

"Certainly, the registration fee will be two hundred Creas each."

I slid the four small silver coins across the counter and the receptionist stared at the coins for at least two seconds before moving to take both my card and the coins.

It was only then did I realise she was waiting to see if I was going to offer more money to try and skip past the test.

She took a look at the Guild cards and I was quite thankful I didn't choose to put my family name on it so it should just be my given name printed there.

"Miss Aster and Miss Katsuki. Applying for the Dungeoneer position, correct?" The receptionist asked.

I nodded.

She then told us to wait for a moment before disappearing behind a door, returning a few moments later with a well dressed, bearded, elderly male who was also wearing an immaculate suit.

He bowed, "I am Sebastian, please allow me to be your examiner for your test."

Of course he's named Sebastian, how could he have any other name with that look that practically screamed that he was a butler? Heck, he's even wearing a monocle!

The only thing that really turns that stereotype on its head is the fact that he was not a Mahun but a Wrunch. Yep, you're looking at an orc butler wearing a suit and a monocle.

I did a curtsy, "I shall be in your care then, sir Sebastian."

"Please, My Lady, just Sebastian is fine."

"Very well then, Sebastian."

"We shall be heading to a dungeon on the outskirts of the city. I will be overseeing how My Lady deals with the dungeon and your overall capabilities to determine if you pass or fail. Are you ready?"

I nodded.

He then gestured towards the door, "Very well then, please follow me."

Our group followed him out the door and he led us through the streets of the city. I quickly realised he wasn't bringing us towards the city gates and we were moving to a more secluded part of the nobles district.

Katsuki also realised this and she was glaring at the man warily, although I couldn't tell if Mary was surprised since her face remained neutral.

When we turned to an alleyway, he turned back to face us and Katsuki immediately positioned herself in front of me protectively.

Sebastian tilted his head slightly at my Inugami maid, "You should keep your killing intent hidden better, Miss Katsuki. Even someone less experienced than myself could have felt that."

Katsuki growled at him, "Why have you led us here?"

"Very protective of your Mistress and it seems like you have at least received some form of combat training too. I thought I was in charge of the combat training, Mary?"

I looked behind to see Mary shifting away from her Lina form and back into her normal body.

"It is, Sebastian. I have only taught her the basics of being a maid so far. Mistress, this is Sebastian, he is the head combat butler in our Academy."

I turned to him and checked him with [Screen].

[Name: Sebastian

Title: Nilm Family Head Combat Butler

Race: Wrunch

Stats:

2850 Strength

2260 Dexterity

2800 Endurance

100 Magic

Skills:

Hunting (Tier 4), Tutor (Tier 3), Leadership (Tier 2), Martial Skill-(Dagger Proficiency (Tier 3), Unarmed Proficiency (Tier 4), Sword Proficiency (Tier 3), Axe Proficiency (Tier 3), Spear Proficiency (Tier 3), Greatsword Proficiency (Tier 3))

Magic Skills:

Electromancy (Tier 1)]

Holy crap… Those stats are insane…

And Mary is still the stronger one?!