“What did you see?”
At some point, a refined middle-aged man in a dark blue robe appeared beside Mo Tan, tilting his head and asking him with interest.
“I saw an Epic,” Mo Tan glanced at the statue of Gary. Anquan, the founder of the Adventurers' Guild, then turned his head back to gaze at the nameless adventurer statue that had no face or any professional or racial features: “And a mirror~”
The other party smiled gently at him: “Well said, I feel the same way every time I come here…”
“It’s not a feeling,” Mo Tan also returned a slight smile to the other party, then shook his head: “Epic and mirror, that’s what I saw, but if you’re talking about feeling…”
He looked up at the The Gate of Pioneers, which could easily allow an adult giant dragon to enter and exit freely, and sighed: “Freedom and unruliness, that’s all.”
The man paused slightly, looked at Mo Tan thoughtfully for a long time, but in the end said nothing, just patted his shoulder and turned to leave.
Mo Tan looked back with slight curiosity, but found that the middle-aged man who had just been in his sight had disappeared in the blink of an eye, as if he had never appeared.
He suddenly felt a little regretful, thinking that if he had answered more thoughtfully just now instead of subconsciously speaking his mind, he might have had the chance to receive some hidden quests from that handsome uncle, such as having himself go to the Ten Mile Slope Mountain God Temple outside the Anka Market tonight to act like a scoundrel…
Then the reward would be a copy of Sword Control Art, a set of Heavenly Master Talismans, and an additional immortal sister with Nuwa’s bloodline~
“Idiot.” Mo Tan rolled his eyes, cursed himself, and then quickly walked towards the Adventurers' Guild’s Pioneer Gate, deciding to register his identity first, as he was always at risk of disconnecting and couldn't waste time staring blankly.
As one of the largest Adventurers' Guild Anka Branches in the Northwest Continent, it was constantly filled with a large number of adventurers of different races, genders, ages, values, and sexual orientations, which even gave Mo Tan, who had just walked into the first-floor hall, the illusion of stumbling into a subway station during peak hours…
Although it wasn't so bad that he would be carried off his feet by the ebb and flow of people if he wasn't careful, it had to be said that the number of adventurers here was so immense, even more than all the living creatures Mo Tan had seen in the game over the past two days combined…
A slender Thief, with several daggers hanging from his waist and completely enveloped in black leather, even with no breathing holes left in his mask, leaned against the wall as if asleep, yet still exuded a sharp chill.
A White Elf female hunter, with a longbow on her back, pointed long ears, and a slender, graceful figure, was softly conversing with her companion. Mo Tan keenly noticed that a nearly imperceptible silver halo occasionally rippled around her. Perhaps beneath her agile and nimble appearance, she was also a priestess with firm faith.
An aged Human Mage walked calmly through the crowd, and all the seemingly powerful adventurers around him instinctively made way. The ancient staff in his hand, which looked unremarkable, constantly sparked, and its magic reserves could be described as unfathomable.
There was also a Half-Orc girl standing in front of a certain display window. Although she remained silent with a pair of gray beast ears and sharp tiger teeth, it was certainly because this seemingly unremarkable girl had just completed some dangerous and difficult task, which could only be disclosed when higher-level reception staff arrived…
And many more people, just one look and you knew they were tough characters!
【As expected of the Adventurers' Guild, truly…】
Mo Tan, who had just entered the hall, gathered a lot of information through observation in a very short time, and couldn't help but feel awe. However, before he could finish his silent sigh of admiration, he heard a loud wail from across the hall.
“Aww!!! Who stepped on my foot?!” The slender Thief, who had previously ‘exuded a sharp chill,’ jumped three feet high, looking left and right vigilantly, then asked in confusion: “Huh? Why is it dark?”
A kind soul nearby patted his arm and reminded him: “Your mask fell down…”
“Oh, thanks!” The Thief quickly pulled up his mask and muttered: “Actually, it was supposed to be down, but I forgot to cut a hole when I made it. No wonder it felt so stuffy when I accidentally fell asleep just now…”
Mo Tan: “……”
Then, not far away, the Elf female hunter, who had a gentle smile and was suspected of being a ‘priestess with firm faith,’ whispered to her companion with a wronged expression: “But it’s very pretty…”
“Pretty my foot!” The Lizardmen Summoner next to her, whose scaly red face turned green with anger, stomped his foot and shouted at her: “Why are you, a Ranger apprentice, buying glitter powder for halos when you have nothing to do?! It would be one thing if you could climb trees! As an Elf, you can’t even climb a tree, and you can intermittently glow. Are you trying to die faster?!”
The Ranger apprentice shrank his neck, his face flushed, and whispered: “Girls like things that sparkle, and the one I bought was a nearly expired clearance item from the Goblin second-hand market, so it shouldn’t glow too obviously, right…”
“Goblin market?! Those bastards sell nothing without mixing gunpowder into it!” The Lizardmen was so angry he looked like a chameleon, pointing at Mo Tan and shouting at the young Elf whose expression suddenly began to panic: “How is it not obvious?! Haven’t you seen that passerby with an expression of profound understanding looking at you for a long time?!”
Mo Tan: “……”
Then he saw a commotion in the crowd around him, and vaguely heard people shouting ‘run’ and ‘holy crap.’ Mo Tan stiffly turned his head and saw the ‘unfathomable’ aged Old Mage walking towards him, gesticulating wildly, while shouting: “Why are you hiding from me?! This staff of mine is an heirloom. Even if it’s old, it won’t just explode for no reason!”
“Get lost!” A Dwarf Priest, unable to push past others, screamed in terror, waving his hand: “You scoundrel who’s almost in the grave and still just a junior Mage! Stay away from me!”
Immediately, many people around him loudly echoed…
“Right! Stay away from us!”
“Last month, that old man’s antique staff, which exploded everything but himself, blew up four times already!”
“Four times? I remember three…”
“The last time it blew up, your injury hadn’t healed yet~”
“Uh, wait a minute, I’m a little dizzy. How did I get injured then?”
“He blew it up!”
“Damn it!”
In short, everyone nearby, except Mo Tan who was too stunned to react, ran away very vigilantly, and then…
The extraordinarily talented old man, who was over eighty and still only a junior Mage, immediately brightened up, scurrying towards Mo Tan, laughing joyfully as he ran: “Young man, want to team up with me? My Great Fireball is simply unparalleled!”
“Wait!” Mo Tan looked at the antique staff in the Old Mage’s hand, which was constantly emitting ominous sparks in mid-air, and felt a chill rise from the bottom of his heart. He quickly waved his hand: “Don’t come any closer…”
Boom!!!
A minute later, Mo Tan, looking disheveled, climbed up from the ground, pulling up the old man he had instinctively tackled earlier, and sighed, looking at his remaining 5% health.
Everything happened too suddenly. Just as a wisp of black smoke suddenly emerged from the staff in the Old Mage’s hand, Mo Tan, without a word, immediately snatched it, then threw it into the air with the speed of a special forces soldier discovering a grenade rolling to his feet. While prostrating himself on the ground, he also pulled the Old Mage down with him, and then…
Then he was directly blasted for ninety percent of his health, and an additional 5% of his health was burned away by the attached burning effect.
So, generally speaking, the proverb that good people don’t live long is not without reason…
【That really hurts, damn it…】
Mo Tan stood up numbly, staggered to the wall, and slumped down, ignoring the still-dazed Old Mage and the countless ‘This young man is amazing, not afraid of death!’ gazes and applause around him, feeling utterly lifeless.
Then he heard a ‘Woof~’ from beside him.
Woof!?
Mo Tan turned his head and immediately felt himself turn pale. The seemingly aloof Half-Orc girl he had noticed earlier finally spoke, but only one syllable, and it was a ‘Woof’…
“Um~” The Human girl behind the counter raised a hand to her forehead, then spread her hands towards the Half-Orc girl, who seemed to have canine ancestry: “How bad is your Common Tongue, really?”
“Woof o(╥﹏╥)o…”
“Alright, how about this: for task inquiries, you bark once. For complaints and such, you bark one thousand four hundred seventy-three times.”
“Woof?!”
“Oh, tasks, right? Are you taking a task or submitting one? Bark once to take, twice to submit.”
“Woof (*^▽^*)。”
“Hand over the manual, let me see… You can only take the lowest-tier E-rank tasks for now.” The clerk girl handed back the manual with a big bone drawn on it: “Go find them on the task board. Once you’ve chosen, copy down the number and bring it to me to register.”
“Woof…” The Half-Orc girl reached out.
“Alright, alright, here’s a pen, remember to return it later.”
“Woof~~(ω)”
The Half-Orc girl took the pen and ran off.
Suppressing the urge to vomit blood, Mo Tan, having recovered a little stamina, struggled to get up from the ground and walked to the counter of the very characterful clerk lady. He raised a hand to greet her through the display window: “Excuse me~”
“Hmm?” The other party asked distractedly, playing with her fingernails: “What is it?”
Mo Tan smiled politely: “I’d like to register as an adventurer. I’m not sure what I need…”
Slap!
A piece of paper was slapped directly in front of Mo Tan. The lady glanced at him: “Fill out the form, give it to me when you’re done, and I’ll give you the manual.”
“That simple?” Mo Tan was surprised. Although he could probably remain unfazed by any more ridiculous things happening now, Mag had mentioned that while registering as an adventurer wasn’t difficult, it still required a simple assessment.
Had the information become outdated?
“By rights, there should be a small test, since we do have some rules here,” the girl smiled at Mo Tan, then pointed to the scorched marks on his body: “But I saw you survive Jia Deka, that old man’s, self-detonating staff unharmed, neither dead nor crippled. Your strength should be sufficient, because judging by that magic fluctuation, if you were a weakling, you should have been directly incinerated on the spot by now…”
So, cremation was popular on the Innocent Continent too?
Mo Tan gave a dry laugh and nodded. After borrowing a pen from the other party, he looked at the not-so-complicated form in front of him, quickly filled in his name, gender, age, and other basic information, and finally wrote ‘Junior Warrior’ in the strength column, completing it.
“Mo?” The girl mumbled as she registered on the crystal panel beside her: “That’s quite a unique name. It’s not a fake name, is it? Were you originally called something like Stupid Cow… Well, whatever, the Adventurers' Guild will only recognize this name from now on. Here you go.”
With that, she handed Mo Tan a thin, black-skinned manual.
“Thank you~” Mo Tan politely thanked her and took the manual. Immediately afterward, he heard the system prompt sound in his ear.
【You have unlocked the Identity System】
【You have gained the identity: Junior adventurer】
【Junior adventurer】
Identity (not unique)
Purpose: To receive or register completion of E-rank tasks at the Adventurers' Guild
【Note: Noob】
…
【You have obtained a bound item: adventurer’s Manual】
【adventurer’s Manual】
Bound, Unique
Usage: Proves your identity
【Note: While reissuing does not require any procedures, it is very expensive… very expensive… very expensive…】
“You’re welcome.” The girl smiled at him: “You are now a Junior adventurer. You can only take the lowest-level tasks. Although they are troublesome and crappy, they are safe. After completing a certain number of tasks, you can advance your level and take higher-level tasks, but it’s best to do so after your strength has improved to a certain extent. Our Anka Branch’s annual mortality rate is already high enough. For the sake of our bonuses, please be sure to pay attention to your own safety…”
Mo Tan was originally a little touched, but after hearing the latter part, only complaints remained in his heart. After thanking her again, he quickly walked towards the task board not far from the center of the hall, wanting to see how crappy those E-rank tasks really were.
…
“This is not in accordance with regulations, Guild Master.” After seeing Mo Tan leave, the girl softly spoke to the air as if talking to herself: “If something happens, you’ll be responsible…”
Accompanied by a hazy fluctuation, the refined man Mo Tan had met at the branch entrance shrugged behind the girl: “When have you ever been responsible when something happened? Don’t worry, that young man is very interesting…”
Martin. Sloan, the Guild Master of the Anka Market Adventurers' Guild, known as the Star-Glow Archmage, chuckled softly: “I saw salvation in his eyes…”
Chapter Nineteen: End