“And what about the fee?”
“Enrolling in the academy will have a fair price attached to it. They’ll be split into various classes that cover different things, but the price should be fair. We’re working on it.”
It’d be tough for them if they were grouped up with a teacher that went hard on them, but I had a feeling that such hardships would come in handy down the line.
“The ranking test will be judged by several instructors. Since the test is to judge the skill of our new recruits, the only ones who can take it are white-ranks.”
Typically, an adventurer who wanted to rank up would be judged on how many quests he’s cleared, the difficulty of said quests, how many he’s failed, whether he’s started trouble before, etc. Those factors would then be converted into a point-based system, and those points would be referenced to see if the adventurer could rank up or not. You could even have your rank decreased if you weren’t careful.
Failing quests a lot, arguing with clients, committing crimes, or ignoring guild guidelines were all grounds for demotion. But most cases simply had the person expelled from the guild instead. Letting adventurers like that stay with the guild just made everyone look bad. If a person ended up getting their rank decreased, it would only be because the Guildmaster believed they were capable of redemption.
“So we’re building the academy in the southern plain, right?”
“That’s right. It’s already about seventy percent done. Although, there was something I wanted to talk to you about...”
Relisha frowned slightly. I wondered what the issue was.
“That other world merge you mentioned... When that happens, what do we do? People like Norn will surely want to join up with us, and they’ll bring those Gollem things with them. When that happens, do we judge them based on the strength of the individual, or their Gollem partner?”
That was definitely a reasonable concern. Even if an adventurer was a total newbie, they’d be able to clear high-ranking quests with a sufficiently powerful Gollem.
“I think you should judge them on their own strength. Treat the Gollems as equipment. They could be taken away from their owners, or break down. If that happens, they might get a new Gollem, and we wouldn’t want to fluctuate their rank based on what Gollem they happened to be wielding.”
“Very well. Norn herself is actually quite skilled, I saw it with my own two eyes. Her Gollem was powerful as well.”
I pitied those dumbasses who’d gotten their asses beat by Norn, since she looked like a little girl. But still... I worried about Norn. She was a capable adventurer, but she still only had the physical capabilities of a six-year-old. She couldn’t afford to overdo it.
“Which other countries are you going to be building the academies in?”
“Ah, well. Right now, we’re in talks with Belfast, Regulus, Roadmare, and Lestia. Brunhild’s academy will be the first, however. We’ll be able to use it to iron out the kinks and refine the process.”
As my conversation with Relisha continued, I asked her something I’d been wondering.
“This isn’t exactly related, but where’s the Guild HQ located? And who actually runs the guild?”
“You’ll have to forgive me, but the location of our headquarters is a secret that can’t be divulged to anyone. There’s also no leader as far as the guild goes. Only several Guildmasters such as myself that serve as trusted administrators.”
Hmm... I wonder if the Guildmasters are all species with long lifespans like elves or fairies. Maybe some of them are even older than Leen... I think I recall Doctor Babylon saying that the guild even existed during her time.
Hell, it was even possible that some of the original Guildmasters could still be in place, but I didn’t think that was especially likely.
“Actually, um... Your Highness, or rather... I’d like to speak to you as the gold adventurer, Mochizuki Touya. I have a request.”
“Hm? What’s up?”
I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, but I asked her to continue.
“Actually I was wondering if you could act as an examiner for the first ranking test. I won’t ask any more of you afterward, but I’d like you to do it the first time.”
“Hmm...”
Guh... This is kind of a pain in the ass, honestly. I guess I can gauge people’s strength pretty decently... But the people who apply for the ranking test are gonna be people who are already self-confident. I want them to accept whatever I say, ideally... But I have a feeling I’ll just get people pissed off at me.
Still, the final call is the guild’s in the end. They’d need to put up and shut up. Taking those things into account, I was ready to accept on a condition.
“Can I hide my identity? You just want me to judge their strength, right? There’s no need for them to know who I am, is there?”
“That’s understandable, but... I was hoping that we could use your identity as a gold adventurer to have the people taking the test accept their results more easily. I also wanted to use you as an example of not judging a book by its cover.”
Relisha stared at me quietly. Aw, c’mon... You wanted to use me as an example? I mean, I guess it’s fair... I don’t exactly look strong or anything.
“Would you even be able to hide your identity, Grand Duke? There are plenty of people who know how you look, and I see you walking around town often. Would you be donning a mask, perhaps?”
“Ah, nope. I did that kind of thing once but it didn’t prove popular. I can use [Mirage] to change my appearance on command, see?”
I quickly looked up a random person online and synchronized my appearance to match theirs. Height, weight, and general body shape were a bit awkward to change with [Mirage], though. Since a person would be able to put their hands through any part that extended past my actual body.
If I magicked myself up a disguise and introduced myself as a red or even silver adventurer, then that would be more than enough.
“Very well, then. I think this’ll be okay. But if I am honest, I really was hoping to add a little more importance to the whole affair by including a gold adventurer.”
Relisha sighed softly after speaking. Hmm... Geez... Now I feel kinda bad, don’t look at me like that... Wait, I have an idea!
“Why don’t I bring along the other gold adventurer to help out instead?”
“Hwuh...?” Relisha blinked a few times in confusion.
◇ ◇ ◇
“Sorry to bug you out of the blue like this.”
“Ohoho. Think nothing of it, nothing at all. Life as a former king is rather dull, let me tell ya. I’d also like to see how my little Hilde is doing.”
The former king of Lestia, Galen Yunas Lestia, chuckled softly as he spoke. He was the only other gold adventurer in the world, and also happened to be Hilde’s grandpa. He looked like an innocent old man with a walking stick, but that gentle appearance concealed his true power. Putting aside people like me and Hilde, who were imbued with divinity, he was definitely among the strongest people in the world.
“Eek!”
“Ohohoh. Mm... Not bad at all.”
The receptionist at the guild cringed and clutched at her rear. This was the only downside to the old man. He was a relentless lech.
“You’re the same as ever, Master Galen.”
“How could I stop, Ms. Relisha? It’s the secret to my old age, I’ll have you know. If I ever stopped doing what I do, I’m sure I’d fall down dead in seconds.”
...Maybe defeating him wouldn’t be so hard after all. Relisha shrugged and rolled her eyes as she continued to talk with Galen.
I thought for sure that he’d immediately try to touch her or something, but that didn’t seem to be happening. Given that they already seemed to have been acquainted, I wondered if he’d ever tried to have a go at her in the past.
The old man apparently had a method to his madness. He claimed that he would never touch a woman that he had touched before. He also only went for girls ov
er twenty, so Yumina and the others were safe from his leery gaze.
I’d gone to Lestia through a [Gate], explained the situation, and then brought him back to Brunhild’s guild. I’d gotten permission from King Reinhard first, of course. There were a few Lestian knights here as escorts, but they were probably actually here to keep him in check. He was far stronger than any of them, anyway.
“So you want me to fight the newcomers or something?”
“No, I’ll be doing that. You should just give your personal evaluations of them.”
The ranking test had three examiners. The old man and I made two. The third examiner was a silver adventurer. I’d also be changing my appearance and disguising myself as a red or silver-rank.
Then Galen, as the gold-rank, would pass final judgment. Nobody would be able to object, given his status.
“Why should you hide your identity, sonny? Is it really that much of an issue?”
“We’re a much smaller country than Lestia is. There’s a chance I could run into the examinees in town, and I wouldn’t want them to hold it against me.”
“Seems like you’re making a big deal outta nothing. Not like anyone holding anything against you means anything, does it?”
He sort of had a point... But I also felt like people might have an issue with the country’s leader wasting time on guild affairs.
Even I was aware of the fact that I played it pretty fast and loose for a monarch. I kind of knew that I was making Galen go out of his way, too. I did promise that I’d show up to judge Lestia’s eventual ranking test, but that didn’t really feel like appropriate compensation either.
“Mm... So what are you testing them on? Just strength alone? Or are you going to examine their other assets?”
I wondered that as well. There was more to it than mere fighting, after all. Most adventurers who prided themselves on physical force and just beat their way through everything typically found themselves staying in blue-rank. Without any more complex form of thought, they just couldn’t get up to red.
There was quite a wide gap between blue and red rank. Red-rank missions were often given out by foreign nations, as well. If some random guy who had a bad attitude was granted red-rank status, it could cause diplomatic issues.
That was why each and every red-rank had the personal approval of their relevant Guildmaster. It definitely wasn’t a simple feat. Apparently, my own red-rank promotion went so smoothly because of how I contributed to peaceful relations between Belfast and Mismede.
In terms of strength, I was fine, too. I’d killed the Black Dragon by that point, and had no issues with stuff like mithril golems. I was approved in an instant.
A lot of adventurers who had trouble in their careers were blue-rank, too. Those that failed to rise up to red ended up taking out their frustration on their guildmates, and they often had their licenses revoked as a result. Personally, I thought people like that never had what it takes to become red-rank in the first place.
“In general, I think the qualities would be determined by whoever’s examining, but Master Galen has a point. Judging on fighting power alone isn’t right. The guild rank doesn’t just reflect combat ability, after all. It’s up to the examiner to pick out these finer aspects, as well.”
“Mmh... So we need to think of the test criteria ourselves, then?”
“Yes. But we’ll obviously oversee it and make sure it all fits.”
We definitely did need to take their combat power into account, at any rate. If we just handed out ranks to anyone willy-nilly, then we’d cause a lot of problems down the line.
After all, the people we increased the ranks of would be tied to us from that point on.
As I was about to open my mouth, there was a knock at the door.
“Guildmaster, the third examiner is here.”
The receptionist bowed her head before smiling and letting another person in. The third one was a silver adventurer, right...?
I looked at the doorway and blinked in confusion. I was completely taken aback.
“Karina?! Sis? What’re you doing here?!”
“Hm? I was called here, wasn’t I? Didn’t you know I was coming?” The one in front of me was the god of the hunt, Karina. She looked the same as ever, her light armor strapped to her body in various places, and her emerald-green hair tied up.
“What?! The third one’s you? When did you hit silver-rank?”
I knew that Karina had registered as an adventurer, but I didn’t know that she’d climbed so high. I thought she was just trying to hunt stuff at her own pace, so I didn’t expect her to have reached such a high level...
“I hunted most of the prey I could get my hands on, so I ended up going to the dungeon islands. There just happened to be a Dragon in the area at the time, so I killed it after accepting the quest from the guild. The whole ranking-up thing was basically just a bonus.”
“You killed it... with just a bow and arrow?!”
I knew that she was first-class even without her divinity, but the fact that she could shoot down a Dragon was seriously impressive...
“It’s no big deal. All you have to do is aim for the right tendons to ground it. Then, when it’s on the ground, you just have to slit the right vein open with a machete. Easy peasy.”
Hitting a tendon with an arrow and then piercing it is still kind of insane... Damn, I didn’t know I had a silver-rank so close at hand... Wonder if she’ll be the third gold before long.
“Wait... is this girl your sister?”
“Oh, no... I said sis, but she’s actually my cousin. Karina, this is the former king of Lestia, Galen.”
“Eheh, nice to meet you.”
“Hohohoh... You certainly must be a member of the grand duke’s family... There’s not a single blindspot or opening on you at all.”
Galen sighed quietly as his fingers wriggled. He must’ve tried groping her. I remembered that he’d tried to do it to Karen and almost got pulverized. Given that Karina’s physical abilities were far higher than Karen, the old man didn’t have a chance.
We quickly briefed Karina on the ranking test and carried on from there. We were quite the line-up, I almost felt bad for the examinees.
“So, how do we judge them?”
“Judging them on fighting alone isn’t right, but they still need to be strong. I think all ranks green and under can be based on brute force alone.” That was reasonable. If a person applied for the test, it meant they were self-confident. We’d need to be sure who was actually confident, and who was just arrogant. If the participants weren’t strong enough to reach green rank, then the test would basically be done.
“So what if we see someone who makes the criteria for green rank?”
“Then we’ll have them take a quest and judge them based on how they handle it. We need to see their priorities.”
“Seems reasonable...”
We all slowly cobbled together the details of the first ranking test.
A month later the adventure academy opened its doors.
The academy would stand as a cornerstone to the skills and knowledge any adventurer should know. Weapon handling, monster identification, survival skills, and other basics were all to be taught. Basically, anything that a more experienced adventurer would consider second nature. In other words, we raised a school that would raise inexperienced people into equipped and ready rookie adventurers.
This place basically didn’t have much to offer to people who were already experienced due to different fields. Former knights, or game hunters, were the people who’d be jumping straight into the ranking test. Ultimately, the academy was created to prevent inexperienced people from dying needlessly. It wasn’t made to help people who already knew the basics.
In the end, the student roster wasn’t very big. There were only a few young boys and girls. After two weeks of education, they’d be automatically put into black rank and sent out into the world.
The first ranking test would also be allowing black-rank mem
bers to participate, as a way of appeasing the newcomer adventurers who had just applied before the opening of the academy and the introduction of the white rank.
There were people from other ranks who wanted to join as well, but ultimately the whole point of the test was to gauge the potential of people with no real adventuring experience.
The guild’s official statement said there was no need to re-evaluate anyone who had enough guild experience already.
There were twenty-seven applicants for the ranking test. A little more than I expected. The examinees had all been assembled within the academy’s training field, and after a small introduction from Guildmaster Relisha, the test began.
“Welcome to the ranking test. First up, we have a few introductions in order. I am Galen. I’m no longer in service, but I’m a gold adventurer. This young lady here is Mochizuki Karina. Karina is her given name. She’s a silver adventurer, and quite impressive. And this young man here is, er... Regin Leif. He’s a red adventurer!”
Before I ascended to gold, Galen was the only one who had reached that rank. He was a legendary hero who had married into the Lestian royal family. His name ended up turning quite a few heads, so most eyes were on him. But Karina, with her strong body and dashing good looks, attracted a fair share of attention as well.
I’d used [Mirage] to turn myself into a generic-looking guy with brown hair and a normal face. I didn’t want to leave too much of a deep impression. There were a few people in the crowd that looked up at Karina and I with unhappy or even irritated faces. Seemed like they had issues with a woman or a young man having such high ranks.
“First things first, a basic strength test. You’ll be fighting against Regin for one minute. You can use whatever kind of weapons you’re used to.”
Once Galen stopped speaking, one of the examinees raised his hand.
“Shouldn’t we be using training weapons for this? A lot of us use weapons that could cause serious harm.”
The speaker was a young man with long brown hair, he vaguely gestured toward a bald-headed older man that stood nearby. The older man grinned slightly and folded his arms.
In Another World With My Smartphone: Volume 16 (Premium) Page 15