“A magician without a wall is just a punching bag! Getting beaten up and staying down, do you even have any guts?!”
Who cares, idiot!! You’re the one beating us up!!!
He thought this sincerely but didn’t say it aloud. He pretended to be unconscious and collapsed. He couldn’t think of becoming a shield in front of that demon. The others felt the same. Those who tried to get up──
“…So tough…”
There was one. It was Ur, who partnered with Shizuku in the labyrinth. Blood was dripping from a cut on his forehead, likely caused by Glen’s blows, as he stood up with a weary expression.
“Hey, idiot, stop it…”
“Huh?”
Craft couldn’t help but speak up. The boy looked too exhausted. If he rushed at Glen in that state, it would surely lead to a disaster.
“Just stay down…! You’ll die…!”
“Maybe… so…”
Ignoring Craft’s concern, Ur grabbed his dragon-tooth spear and charged at Glen. He was likely too tired and in pain to think clearly; it was a reckless assault.
“Ugh…”
The result was predictably miserable. Ur was instantly blown away by Glen and rolled to where Craft was lying.
“See, I told you…”
“Ah, my mouth is bleeding…it hurts…”
“Just stay down…!!”
Despite vomiting a mix of blood and dirt, Ur stood up again. Craft screamed.
“Stubbornness won’t get you anywhere! Just let it go…!”
Craft knew a bit about Ur’s situation. Because of his association with Shizuku, Ur also stood out among the trainees, and Craft had listened to his story out of curiosity.
“If you die here trying to save your sister───”
“Akane…? Oh…yeah, that’s right.”
However, the words from the grey-haired boy’s mouth were different from what Craft had imagined.
“What!? Then why…”
“That…”
Ur glared at the sight of Shizuku being tormented before him and spat blood.
“Just pisses me off───to pretend not to see!”
He roared and charged again. Knowing full well he’d be beaten down again, he showed no hesitation. Seeing this, Glen smiled.
──”Heh, you’ve got a good look on your face. But die.”
“Shut up, you die.”
The boy and girl were beaten again. But this time, it lasted longer than before. Listening to the sounds, Craft, still lying down, quietly made a decision.
He would give up on becoming an adventurer.
Participants: 12
Dropouts: 4
Remaining: 8
Sixth day of training
“Well, well. The number of people has decreased, hasn’t it?”
“Why don’t you be more honest, you bastard.”
“It’s a hassle. Just quit already.”
“Are all training programs at the Adventurers Guild this awful…?”
“I heard other training places are more decent. Rodz even warned me about it.”
“Seriously? I want to go to another city…”
“Oh, want to go? You can get the forms at the reception. Normally, city-to-city travel is at your own risk, but under the guise of Adventurers Guild training, you’re allowed to use the 【Mobile Fortress】 with a discount. There are loopholes in the procedure, too.”
“Your explanation is a hundred times more enthusiastic and thorough than your usual training.”
Participants: 8
Dropouts: 2
Remaining: 6
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
Seventh day of training
“So tired…”
“Exhausted, aren’t we…”
As the sun god finished his work for the day and it was time to rest in the evening, Ur and Shizuku completed their fifth labyrinth exploration. Moving along the marching path with weary steps, they checked the weight of the sack filled with magic stones they were to exchange for money.
“One silver coin and twenty copper coins…”
“We’re increasing our earnings, aren’t we?”
As Shizuku said, their earnings had steadily increased compared to their first disastrous exploration and even previous ones.
“I hate to say it’s thanks to the training…”
“Then, should we say it’s because of the training?”
“Correct.”
Glen’s guidance was crude, barbaric, and undoubtedly questionable, but Ur had undeniably become stronger. Gradually, their income from each exploration increased. There was no doubt about it. However,
“Just…considering this money as life-threatening earnings…”
Diving into labyrinth, fighting monsters, and emerging victorious. Naturally, they couldn’t escape without injuries. Injuries required healing potions. One potion cost about three copper coins. Ideally, they would use fewer, but generally, they consumed two to three potions per exploration. Though Shizuku could use healing spells, it was better for her to focus on attacking.
“In other words, we spend at least ten copper coins on healing potions per exploration.”
That’s only if their injuries could be healed with potions. Serious injuries would require a visit to the healing clinic, leading to a loss. And if they died, it was over.
It was a tightrope walk. He realized this anew.
Even with support for armor, lodging, and other expenses from the Adventurers Guild, it was a tightrope walk. And that support wouldn’t last forever. The branch chief, Jiro, had said that most people ended up “barely getting by,” and Ur now deeply understood what he meant.
“Moreover, our current earnings are split.”
“Isn’t it considered shared assets?”
“…It’s already kind of becoming that.”
Indeed, the adventurer’s livelihood was harsh. Even if they had no other choice, he wouldn’t have chosen this path.
“We need to prepare to make a living in the next three weeks… starting with upgrading our equipment.”
“Shall we go see it together this time?”
“Hmm… huh?”
As they approached the training grounds, Ur frowned. Standing in front of the imposing gates was a familiar figure: a beautiful girl with short, dazzling hair that sparkled under the warm twilight sun. She was the one who had saved Ur and also pushed him to the depths—a benefactor turned adversary.
“Hey, you look well, Ur.”
Diz of the “Golden Phoenix” awaited them in front of the Adventurer Guild.
Adventurer Guild – Greed Branch, Training Hall, Lecture Room
“Well, good to see you’re in one piece, Ur.”
Separated from Shizuku and now facing an unexpected visitor in the deserted classroom, Ur sighed bitterly at her words.
“Do I look well? “
Even with the healing potion, Ur’s face and body are still covered in scars and bruises. About half of them belonged to his evil advisor, but he was far from healthy.
“Comparatively,, I guess. At least for someone notorious as the ‘Newbie Crusher’ even in the notorious Greed, Adventurer Guild’s training grounds after just a week.”
“Does this place have such a terrible reputation? “
Seems like Glenn’s reputation is just as bad as Ur had imagined.
“I admit you’ve got some perseverance. At least you didn’t rashly proclaim to become an adventurer just to get by.”
“She’s my sister, so of course.”
“Even family can be treated callously. You know that well, right?”
Ur sighed bitterly, knowing all too well.
“So, where’s Akane?”
“Right here.”
“Where?”
“Right here.”
With that, Diz unbuttoned a button on her clothes. From there, something that blended crimson and gold, “something,” emerged and leaped onto Ur’s face.
“Nii-taan!!”
“Whoa!”
It was Akane, taking the form of a shapeless blob like a sticky slime. Ur pulled her off his face with a resigned expression.
The colored, bubble-like form gradually changed shape into a fairy with palm-sized wings.
“Nii-tan, are you okay? Are you tired?”
The fairy-form Akane pinched Ur’s cheeks with her tiny hands, clearly worried. Ur smiled weakly, feeling a bit relieved.
“I’m okay… barely.”
“Barely isn’t good enough, you know?”
“We’ve always managed ‘barely.'”
“That’s true.”
Akane readily agreed, as their lives had always been a precarious balance.
But that doesn’t mean that he don’t worry.
“Has Diz been treating you badly?”
“She gave me juice and a soft bed.”
“Sounds like you living better than I am.”
The bed they were using was hard, cramped, musty, and cold.
“She’s under contract to me, but I take care of what’s mine. I do.”
“I’m grateful enough to cry.”
Ur grimaced and thanked her. Even if Diz mistreated things or handled Akane roughly, Ur had no right to criticize her. If she would care for Akane, that was all that mattered.
“So, did you come all this way to make a contract with me?”
“Is that the preliminary step?”
Diz tapped the desk with her fingertip.
“I’ve said it before. You have no value. And there’s no guarantee your value will increase. I can’t see any reason to continue guaranteeing Akane’s safety for your convenience.”
She stopped tapping the desk and pointed her finger at Ur.
“I want you to prove it.”
“Prove what?”
“Prove that you’re exceptionally valuable. Show me that you’re worth as much or more than your sister.”
More valuable than Akane. To embody such a rare and unique phenomenon as being possessed by a spirit, surpassing her value. Ur understood what she meant. Indeed, unless he could demonstrate that level of worth, Diz had no reason to wait for him.
“How do I prove that?”
“I’ve been thinking about it. It’s pointless if it’s an impossible condition. Even a mediocre condition is meaningless.”
With that, she aimed her finger at Ur’s hand—specifically at the chalk-white ring he wore. It was not just any ring; it was the “Copper Ring.”
“A Copper Ring.”
A ring that symbolized membership in the Adventurer Guild. Not just a permit to delve into labyrinths like a chalk-white ring, but proof of a true pioneer.
“A month since aspiring to be an adventurer. In other words, you have three weeks left to earn it, and I’ll acknowledge your worth.”
Quest Initiation
[Acquire the Copper Ring within a month]
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