I get back to the guild and try to enter it, however…

‘I guess this is the midday rush people were talking about?’

The entire plaza is covered by people with weapons strapped to theirs sides or their back, and although it’s scarce enough to get to the guild, the entrance is so swamped that I highly doubt I’ll be able to get inside.

‘If the first floor is inaccessible, what about the second?’

Thinking so I run through the plaza and climb the back wall of the guild house,

I try looking in through the windows of the second floor to see if I can find a place to enter, while making sure that the parts of me which are phasing through the walls can’t be seen from the inside.

“Plush?!?”

As I look into one of the windows I can see Cathy sitting at a table and looking back out at me.

Err… Hi? The entrance is kinda swamped so I’m looking for another way in…

“Just… Just go down to the ground and I’ll come out and get you...”

Okay.

I then start climbing down the wall, and when I reach the ground I start waiting for Cathy to arrive.

Having nothing better to do I just look at the guild house.

The bottom meter or so of the walls are made of stone while the rest is made of wood, and where the floor of the second, well, floor is there are thick wooden logs going across the walls and stocking out a decimeter or so from the corners of the house.

As I’m looking at the building I see that some of the rocks (which were suspiciously square shaped by the way) start moving outwards like a door, and inside Cathy is standing while looking somewhat annoyed.

“Come on, come on.”

Alright.

When I get inside Cathy closes the stone door and I see that we are inside the small room that contained the stairs leading downwards.

“Now mind explaining a bit? Sure the place is cramped but why did you try to enter through the second floor?”

I dunno, I’m good at climbing?

*sigh* “Okay, you’re good at climbing, but what if someone you didn’t know had seen you?”

Erm… Would that have been bad?

“Well… That depends on who sees you, so  try not to climb around the windows of buildings that you don’t know the occupants of…”

...Alright…

*sigh* “Well, what were you here for then?”

I wanted to give in quests.

“Really? Well there should only be monster subjugation and gathering quests left, so follow me to a place where it doesn’t matter if you make a mess.”

We then walk back down the stairs to where we were when I was telling them about my abilities.

*tap* *tap*

“Hm?”

When we were here last time you said that all this equipment was for checking if applicants really have the abilities they say they do, right? Well how come the only thing we use when I was here was a small hammer to see how much I could harden my claws?

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

I ask as I look around and see giant blocks of stone laying around.

“Well, let me explain a bit, when I said to find out if they had the abilities or not I meant more so on combat skills, like how certain people can cause small explosions when they hit stuff with hammers and other such things, while your skills were a lot more subtle so we didn’t need to use a whole lot of this.”

I guess that makes sense…

We then arrive at a metallic table with what looked like a plastic cloth covering it.

“Alright we’re here, now please take out both the quest notes and the resources and proofs of subjugation.”

I do as she says, I begin with taking all six of the receipt sized notes out of my pouch and put them in a stack on one of the corners of the table.

“And which of these is it that you’ve completed then?

All of them.

I then take out the herbs, mushrooms, goblin ears, slime rocks, the flower and the blue leaf from the treant and put them in separate piles.

“...”

I look at Cathy and see her massaging her temples with her paws and seems to be thinking.

“...Hang on for a bit, I know this may seem rude but, I need to go get some people who can tell if these are legit.”

Didn’t you do that last time though?

“I only take care of delivery quests, I don’t know a thing about monsters or plants.”

She then runs back up the stairs.

‘Lizz, is this normal?’

However she doesn’t respond. Maybe she’s fallen asleep? That would explain why she’s so quiet at least.

After a while Cathy comes back down, followed by Rico and someone I haven’t seen before. (AN: Goat man’s name is Rico Orn for those who forgot.)

When they get to her Rico immediately takes out a stool from underneath the table and sits down, he then take out a small cylindrical object with glass on both sides from one of his pockets and starts inspecting the resources.

The other man then walks up and greets me.

“Names Hugh Manning, how are you?” He says as he crouches down and reaches his hand forwards.

The man looks like a normal human without any animal traits on him.

I accept the handshake and reply:

I’m Plush and I’m doing well.

Seemingly satisfied by my response he then lets go of my hand and looks towards Rico.

“Oi! You done soon?” He shouts, making Rico drop the mushrooms he was holding.

“Not yet, but it would go a lot quicker if you hadn’t done that!”

“Pish posh, now hurry up!”

I can hear a *groan* coming from Rico as he picks up the mushrooms again.

After a few seconds he puts down the mushrooms and says:

“These are fresh, no traces of being shipped in a carriage or carried by a merchant, they were all gotten from the forest not too long ago.”

“So that means they’re legit?” Cathy asks.

“Although there’s a chance he paid someone else to go get them for him he doesn’t strike me as that sort of person, so they’re most likely not illegitimate.”

What’s all this talk about them being legit or illegitimate?

“Illegitimate is when a resource for a resource gathering quest or a proof of subjugation for a subjugation quest was gotten through means other than going out and getting them yourself, like if you buy them from merchants or hire other adventurers to go get them for you.” Answers Rico.

Do you guys do this for all the quests that are completed?

“HELL NO!” Hugh then shouts loudly.

“Like hell we would have enough time for that! Did you not see how many people were upstairs!? We only have four people working here! We only do this for the entry quests.”

“Speaking of which, Grizz is currently alone upstairs taking care of the adventurers, so if you no longer need my services I will go and help him now.” Says Rico as he hurries up the stairs.

Wait, only four people? So if you three are down here, and the last one is upstairs, that means all people are here? So then the guild master is back?

“Yup, but that can wait until later. Hugh, could you check if the monster materials are legit to?”

“I already have, I don’t need some fancy thing like a… a “loupe” or whatever Rico calls it to check them, they’re all legit so hurry up and give him his card. In the meantime I’m going back up, if this keeps up Rico will overwork himself like normal and be knocked out until tomorrow evening.”

Hugh then rushes up the stairs as well.

Wait, is that why he’s always asleep!?

“Yup, Rico is really good at his job, but he’s not quite as good at keeping healthy habits like getting eight hours of sleep every night.”

Also you guys are only four people you said? Weren’t there five booths upstairs though?

“Well we like to be prepared in case we get another staff member sometime. Now then, although Hugh said to give you your card immediately, we don’t actually have any ready right now so come back tomorrow. Now if you’ll excuse me I need to go back to my room and finish of the guild’s paperwork. And just exit through the door I showed you, alright? Feel free to use it when entering as well if there are too many people.”

Cathy then runs up the stairs again, leaving me alone to my thoughts.

‘Wasn’t supposed to talk about something important with the guild master…?”

Realizing that they all forgot about it I decide to simply walk back home to the inn while the sun sets and dusk spreads.