By the Grace of the Gods: Volume 1

by Roy

  “It’s not your fault. Ryoma will be fine at the Adventurers’ Guild anyway.”

  The Adventurers’ Guild didn’t offer services to people who didn’t have the ability to accomplish them either, but that judgment was made entirely based on one’s survival ability and combat power, which meant that shouldn’t be a problem.

  “I cannot be of assistance regarding ranks, but you can come to me whenever you’re in a pinch. I will hear you out any time.”

  Taylor said in conclusion, before we headed straight for the Adventurers’ Guild.

  Thus, we arrived at the Adventurers’ Guild, where we were immediately harassed by thugs... psyche. That played-out trope didn’t happen, and we received a basic explanation from the receptionist like normal. First of all, the Adventurers’ Guild had eight letter-based ranks, which went from G to A and S at the top. In general, you could only take on jobs of the same rank you had. However, you could form parties or participate in large groups gathered by the guild to lower the difficulty and take on jobs one or two ranks higher.

  I also cleared the age restriction of ten years old. But the guild would check your abilities up until you were thirteen, and even if you selected a job at your own rank, the guild would have to approve it first. This was a safety measure to prevent overeager children from being reckless. This limitation was removed at fourteen, after which failing a job became your own responsibility. You would be penalized for breach of the job contract, and potentially even put your own life in danger. Furthermore, if the town was ever in danger, the guild would send a summons to everyone present in town. Refusing the summons was possible, but doing so required a justifiable reason or large exemption fee. If either option was chosen in favor of inactivity, or an attempt to escape occurred, penalties up to and including guild expulsion could be applied. After receiving the explanation, I had to sit a combat ability test, but...

  “I’m meant to go all-out?”

  “Let’s see... it would be better to use all your strength here, to show your true abilities.”

  “Indeed. That would be for the best.”

  “If anything happens, we’ll back you up.”

  “Please do your best!”

  “Don’t worry, just run free.”

  Everyone encouraged me with their opinions at a corner of the training arena the guild prepared. The receptionist and one other person — a muscled man with tough-looking face — entered the training arena.

  “You the applicant for today?”

  “Yes, I’m Ryoma Takebayashi. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Right. Those your chaperons?”

  “That’s right. Pleased to meet you.”

  “You’re free to watch, but I ask that you don’t interfere with the exam.”

  “Of course.”

  With that, the man turned back to me.

  “So a bow’s your pick. All right, let’s begin. First, you have five shots to hit those five targets over there. One arrow per target.”

  He pointed out five targets that were lined in a simple row. I followed his directions to stand before a line and aimed at the targets. Placing my feet as wide as my shoulders, I nocked my arrow, drew the string, and aimed. There were no hesitations to my movements, and I smoothly fired one arrow after another while changing targets. Without panicking, without fuss.

  After making my shots quietly, five arrows were sticking into the center of the targets. My skills with the bow had increased significantly after coming to this world. I used to do it in the past, but I was nowhere near this swift in my past life. Incidentally, the style I followed wasn’t of modern archery, but the ancient Japanese way of the bow, which didn’t require pausing in movements unlike the eight stages of shooting in modern archery. I could stop midway if needed, but the archery taught in my family was about how swiftly and accurately you could shoot a target. In the past, if I paused even for a moment, my father’s fists and yells would come flying at me. Such recollections came to my mind after firing the arrows, but I remembered I was mid-exam and immediately looked back at the supervisor. He was already walking towards the targets to inspect them all, before he returned.

  “Bullseye on all of them. Though they weren’t moving targets, you did good. Next are the moving targets, look at the wall over there.”

  The man pointed to the wall opposite the entrance with his thick finger. Part of the wall was a pillar, and along the pillar was a trench-like hole.

  “That’s a magic training tool for projectiles that an adventurer named Kengo designed long ago. He was famous for using a magic weapon called a shotgun.”

  Um, hello? That was absolutely an otherworlder. He brought a shotgun to a world with swords and magic?

  “He stopped at rank C because he became unable to use his magic weapon, but he lived pretty comfortably for the rest of his life, thanks to this invention of his. That’s how valuable this tool is for training, you know?”

  Unable to use his weapon? Did his gun break, or did he run out of bullets? He must have pissed Gain and the others off, didn’t he?! Otherwise, he would have received the ability to restore his weapon and shells... If he’d shown basic decency, they would have granted him that kind of support easily... But while those thoughts crossed my mind, the explanation continued.

  “Targets will fly out of the hole in the pillar, you just have to shoot at them. Fifty targets will fly out, and the number of arrows you have is fifty. Your grade depends on how many you can drop.”

  So basically, it was clay pigeon shooting with a bow and arrow...

  “I understand.”

  “Right. My whistle will be the signal. Do your best.”

  Having said that, the man handed me a quiver and backed away while I held my bow at the ready and awaited the signal.

  Chapter 1 Episode 13: After the Exam

  Immediately after Ryoma had finished firing at five targets...

  Out of the observers, only Eliaria was excited, while the remaining four had been rendered speechless by Ryoma’s skills.

  “That’s amazing! Isn’t it, Father?!”

  “Y-Yeah...”

  “I thought bows were to be aimed slow and steady, but he could fire it quite fast.”

  Sebas and Reinbach hurriedly corrected Eliaria’s words.

  “No, My Lady. That is a result of Master Ryoma’s ability, and not something a normal bowman can do. Although I’m sure anyone with a bow could move that fast if they weren’t aiming.”

  “Elia, you mustn’t use Ryoma as a yardstick to measure basic skill. It’s impossible to achieve such accuracy and speed at the same time for the average person. Few people in the army would be capable of such a thing.”

  “Really? Ryoma’s amazing!”

  “He certainly is, but...”

  “It seems like we may have underestimated Ryoma’s abilities a little.”

  Ryoma himself wasn’t aware of it, but his training in his previous life, combined with his battle experience in this one, had increased his abilities beyond that of a regular human.

  After the exam on unmoving targets, there was the exam on mock clay pigeon shooting. Ryoma stood at the designated line with his bow raised, facing the wall opposite to Eliaria and the others, so neither they nor the examiner could see Ryoma’s expression. His concentration was focused to its limit and there was no sign of impatience, nerves, nor excitement or overenthusiasm in his demeanor. He was the picture of serenity, his emotions completely suppressed as he faced straight forward. While his appearance was youthful, he was a man toughened over nearly 40 years of his previous life. As a result of that, his concentration was wasted on daily activities a lot, but it was vital to when he was doing repetitive and simple tasks. Even Ryoma’s old colleagues and superiors who treated him badly acknowledged that part of him, encouraging him as a working machine when convenient for themselves.

  But that wasn’t where Ryoma originally excelled the most in concentration. Ryoma made the most use of his power when practicing the martia
l arts he had been learning from childhood. He repeated the same forms every day, letting the techniques seep into his body, until he was able to move so naturally and flowingly it was like breathing for him. His body could already move the way he wanted, and with his mind free, he could get the most out of his techniques. That was Ryoma’s true power, and the talent he had in his past life. Forced to blend in to his surroundings and suppress himself, he was unable to use the power and techniques he had developed, or others would fear him. The laws and common sense of Earth no longer applied to Ryoma here, in this other world. Now that he had been freed from the shackles of his past life, there was nothing to hold back Ryoma’s power.

  The examiner blew the whistle and a target flew out of the right pillar. Ryoma fired an arrow at the target’s trajectory and dropped it to the ground. When the next target came out of the left pillar, Ryoma fired another arrow that struck it to the ground. Though there was variation in which direction they were coming from, his task was all the same. Using his long years of training, he saw through the trajectory of the flying targets and simply kept firing arrows. Rinse and repeat.

  Gradually, the trajectory of the target changed speeds and intervals, increasing the difficulty. But Ryoma adapted to that. When multiple targets came flying out at once, he would first release one shot and grab another arrow and fire the next with rapid speed, just before it disappeared through the other side. The final shot was four simultaneous targets, at which Ryoma released all four arrows held between his fingers at once, striking all the targets accurately in a single breath, signaling the end of the exam.

  ■ ■ ■

  Ryoma’s Side

  Phew...!

  “...! Earth Needle!”

  Just as I finished the exam and lowered my bow, a knife came flying from behind me. Reflexively, I caught it between my fingers and threw it back at the examiner.

  “Tch!”

  In the time the man took to deflect it, I threw away my bow and used Earth Needle. I broke the thin piece of stone that grew in front of me at the base and braced it like a makeshift lance.

  “Stop! My bad, my bad. That’s the end of the exam. You passed the first, second, and third tests, so please put that dangerous thing away.”

  “...”

  I couldn’t feel any hostility from the man. It seemed like the knife thrown just now was part of the test. With my guard still up, I destroyed the makeshift lance with Break Rock.

  “Sorry. The knife just now was meant to be a warning I use against all bow examinees. Many of them let themselves forget their surroundings when focusing on the targets. It’s to tell them that if this was the forest and my knife was a monster, they’d be dead. Most of them argue back that this is an exam situation, while others accept it and thank me. Some barely manage to evade it, but this is the first time I’ve been counterattacked by someone your age. I have no complaints about your bow skills, and won’t place any limits on you. Feel free to take whatever jobs are available at your rank.”

  Looking closely at the fallen knife, I could see its point was rounded with no edge at all. It really was part of the test... or rather, just this man’s interference, so I lowered my guard and thanked him.

  “Thank you very much.”

  “No probs. I look forward to your growth. Don’t push yourself too hard, though. I’m Worgan, guildmaster of the Adventurers’ Guild in Gimul. Nice to meet you.”

  This man was the guildmaster?!

  “It’s nice to meet you. So, you were the guildmaster.”

  “Huh? Well, duh.”

  The man shot a sidelong glance at the five people accompanying me.

  “I don’t know what the reason is, but I can’t leave someone accompanied by the duke’s people to anyone else.”

  I see... that made sense.

  “I see your point.”

  “No really, why is the whole of the duke’s family with you?”

  “I ran into Lord Reinhart by coincidence while I was hunting in the forest, and two weeks later I ended up being invited to travel with them.”

  “Just what kind of situation is that...”

  “Excuse me for interrupting. If the examination is over, may we hear the results?” Sebas cut into our conversation and spoke up. Upon closer inspection, Eliaria was also waiting for the results nervously.

  “Pardon the delay. He passed with flying colors and will have no request limits placed on him. There seem to be no problems with his abilities.”

  “Then congratulations are in order, Master Ryoma.”

  “Congratulations, Ryoma!”

  Eliaria came running over and took my arm, making me dance in circles. She sure expressed her happiness with her entire being... I couldn’t help but feel happy too.

  “My Lady, please let go of Master Ryoma. There are still procedures he needs to complete.”

  “Oh! That’s right, he does...”

  “Thank you very much, Sebas.”

  After that, I was led to a separate room... or rather, the guildmaster’s own office to complete my registration into the Adventurers’ Guild.

  “Now, Ryoma. Like I said before, the fact you won’t be limited will be recorded on this guild card. With this, you’ll be able to accept jobs of the same rank as yourself, but I’d like you to take due care nonetheless.”

  “Yes, I’ll do my best.”

  “Ability-wise, you would have been fine to start from rank E... But going overboard from the start may mean the others will antagonize you. I’m sure you’ll be able to steadily work your way up from G rank.”

  “Thank you for your consideration.”

  When I tried to bow my head, Worgan stopped me with a shake of his hand.

  “Ah, stop that. You don’t have to use such polite words with me. It’s too bothersome. So anyway, who did you learn archery from? An elf?”

  “My grandfather. He was a dwarf, not an elf.”

  “A dwarf, huh... it’s rare to find a bow-wielding dwarf, but as a species they’re very dexterous. There are still masters at archery among them, though not as many as elves... Well, whatever. Your registration is complete. All that’s left is this.”

  The guildmaster held a letter out to me.

  “What’s this?”

  “An introduction letter to a blacksmith I know. Based on your actions after I deflected the knife, you can use spears too, right? The blacksmith also has stock from outside sources, so there’s quite a range of items. Go find a weapon that suits yourself there. They don’t specialize in armor, but there’ll still be some decent stuff. It’d be better than buying at an unknown store.”

  That was something I was honestly grateful for.

  “Thank you very much. I will go when I need new equipment.”

  I thanked the guildmaster and left the room.

  The day was getting dark, so after meeting up with the others who had been waiting in another room, we all headed back to the inn, where I remembered something.

  “Come to think of it, Sebas. You can buy stone material for crafting statues at this inn, right?”

  “Yes, you can. Are you going to craft something again?”

  “Actually, I received a protection from a god I had never prayed to before during the baptism today. I was thinking of making a statue for him.”

  “I see. May I inquire as to whose protection you received?”

  “Yes, the status board said it was the Protection of Tekun, God of Wine.”

  “Tekun, the God of Wine... it’s rare for a human to receive that protection. On top of being the God of Wine, Tekun is also the God of Craft. He’s generally the god that the dwarves worship. Does that ring any bells?”

  “My grandfather who took me in was a dwarf. And I did a little blacksmithing to help my grandfather as well.”

  It was an excuse I had agreed on with Gain and the other gods, which Sebas seemed to accept.

  “I see, that must be the reason. Something back then must have triggered Tekun’s interest in Master Ryoma.
Although I do wonder why it wasn’t the Protection of the God of Craft...”

  “The Protection of the God of Craft?”

  “Tekun has two types of protection he can bestow, one as the God of Craft and one as the God of Wine. The effect of each protection is different. The Protection of the God of Craft accelerates skills like blacksmithing, making it easier to create good items. The Protection of the God of Wine prevents you from getting drunk or hung-over. It also brings fated encounters with good alcohol, increasing your chance of obtaining them. While people will be envious of this protection, there’s no particular issue in revealing it.”

  “Is that so...”

  “We’ve gone off-topic, but you wanted stone materials for crafting a statue of Tekun, is that correct?”

  Sebas asked, reaching into his Item Box and taking out the stone block I created from the landslide dirt.

  “This is...”

  “The stone material that Master Ryoma made. You will need money when in town, and there were a large number of these of a consistent size. I brought them along thinking they could be sold and added to Master Ryoma’s funds. And Master Ryoma seems like the type to refuse assistance from anyone else.”

  “Thank you for going out of your way to do this.”

  “Not at all. As for the statue, it’s said that Tekun does not enjoy wastefully extravagant things. It would be best to make a statue with sincerity and delicacy. I also heard that it is good to offer alcohol before the statue. You can purchase an image of Tekun through the inn, along with alcohol.”

  “Then I shall do just that.”

  I went with Sebas to the inn worker and told them what we wanted, only to be informed that a rare high-quality alcohol called Keromi’s Tears had just been stocked. I was only going to buy three bottles to use as an offering, but seeing the change in Sebas’s eyes, I decided to purchase two barrels instead. Apparently, it was a favorite brand of Reinbach that only produced a certain amount of stock each year, so it was very difficult to obtain. Sebas thanked me with a wide smile, saying that it was all because of my protection. Could it be that Sebas loved this brand, too...?