A month has passed since Quinn left Amber City. He is now at the adventurer’s guild located in Orbis, a much smaller city than Amber, located thousands of kilometers away. Quinn has never left Amber’s territory before, but now he has traveled through many small villages and towns as he continues heading south.

  Quinn has no specific destination in mind, but he thinks he can at least spend some time in Orbis to figure out a plan. First and foremost, he needs more money.

  “Here’s your payment, now beat it.” A middle-aged man with a mean-looking mug pushed a tray with fifty copper coins on it to the counter as he shooed Quinn away. Quinn stares at the money, then up at the man on the other side of the counter.

  “What’s this? It’s fifteen copper per plant, and I gave you forty Achillie plants.” Quinn corrects the man.

  “Listen here, brat. Over half of them weren’t even the right plant, and all of the right ones are completely ruined. You’re lucky I’m giving you this much.” A woman came up behind the man and gave him a whack on the head with an open hand.

  “Would it kill you to act like a gentleman for once?” Quinn is left dumbfounded by the woman's boldness, his anger completely fading. “I’m sorry about him, sweetie, but please understand that he isn’t entirely wrong. Gathering the right herbs and doing so without damaging them takes skill, and clearly it’s not something you’re used to doing. So, this is all we can give you,” the kind lady explains calmly.

  Quinn opens his pouch and clicks his tongue. “It’s not enough.” With the money he just got, he has three silver coins and forty-three copper coins. The average inn charges at least five silver coins, and he still hasn’t eaten, which would be another fifty copper coins for the cheapest meal.

  “Hey, kid, move along, will you?” A bulky man with a longsword on his back approaches Quinn. He looms over Quinn. The tall man is accompanied by four knights in light metal armor, each with a straight sword at their hips. One of them, who seems to hold a higher rank, isn't wearing a helmet. Unlike the others, he has a snake emblem on his chestplate and stands nearby, silently observing the scene. He appears to be used to this behavior.

  “We humbly ask that you patiently wait your turn.” The kind older lady says.

  Since Orbis is a smaller town, the guild there is smaller and has fewer adventurers than in Amber. Currently, the only receptionists here are the couple who are helping Quinn.

  “Huh? Are you telling me this little shit is just as valuable as me, Grant, a B-rank adventurer personally hired to participate in the upcoming expedition?” At these words, the couple behind the counter doesn’t say another word; their faces contort with fear. Witnessing this familiar scene, Grant smirks. “Now, where were we? How about you leave before you learn what it means to mess with real adventurers.”

  He places his rough hands on Quinn, trying to push him out of the way, but Quinn doesn’t budge. A vein pops out on his forehead in frustration. Grant puts in a little more effort, but Quinn still remains in the same spot.

  “Are you done?” Quinn asks, taking hold of Grant’s hand that is placed on his shoulder. He easily twists the massive arm, bringing Grant to his knees.

  “Agh! Let go, you bastard.”

  “What was that?” Quinn applies more force. Grant lets out a scream as his arm twisted in ways he hadn’t thought were possible.

  “Damn it. Are you just going to stand there? Do something, Albert!” Grant yells at the knight who came in with him. Albert lets out a sigh as he approaches.

  The receptionists calm down as the knight steps forward. They thought they were about to witness a young boy’s death. Quinn, refusing to let go, still holds onto Grant’s arm and looks at Albert. “Young man, would you like a job?”

  “What?”

  “What?”

  Both Quinn and Grant ask in unison.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  “I asked if you'd like a job. You see, my employer is currently seeking strong individuals to help with an expedition to the border of the Primal Forest. Since you can easily take down a B-rank adventurer, you must be pretty tough. So, what do you say? Will you join us?” Albert asks with a kind smile.

  Quinn ponders for a moment and looks over to Grant. “Will he be in there?”

  “Would there be a problem if he were?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then no. May I ask for your name?”

  “...” Quinn hesitated for a moment. “Quinn.”

  “Wait, what? But what about me?” Grant interrupts. “We have a deal.” Grant glares up at Albert.

  “I can handle many things, but pretending to be strong while actually feeling weak isn’t one of them. Your lies could’ve harmed my lord or even cost him his life if we’d faced the monsters deep in the Primal Forest. Consider yourself lucky not to know what happens to those who fail my lord. In short, you’re fired.”

  Grant is humiliated; he had been defeated by a kid not even half his age and then immediately fired in front of many people watching from the sidelines. He lost the will to fight back.

  “Now that that’s settled, I take it that you will be joining us?”

  “Hmm, how much are you offering?”

  “Oh dear, my apologies. I completely forgot to mention this, didn’t I? We will pay you a hundred gold upfront and another thousand at least after the expedition is over, with the possibility to earn more depending on your abilities.”

  “A thousand gold!” Quinn accidentally lets go of Grant’s arm when he hears the amount of money he would receive simply by saying yes. He is practically drooling, thinking about the food he would be able to buy with a hundred gold coins.

  Quinn has been living with less than the bare necessities. He would occasionally go to sleep without food or a warm place to stay. So the thought that he would no longer have to live like that makes him ecstatic. “Yes! Ahem. I mean, it would be my pleasure.”

  Albert smiles at Quinn’s response, then quickly remembers something. He turns his attention back to Grant.

  “Oh, speaking of which. We will need you to return the money since your services are no longer required.”

  Quinn has never seen a ghost before, but looking at Grant, someone might say they saw a soul leave the body.

  “I-I spent it,” Grant whispered, unable to look Albert in the eyes.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t think I quite caught that.”

  Grant turned and slammed his head on the ground, bowing down to Albert.

  “I don’t have it! I spent it all,” Albert's face looks terrifying as he glares down at Grant, begging for forgiveness.

  It turns out that after just a few days, Grant had spent all his money on his new sword and on women. Living a life of luxury, Grant was confident he would have a steady income upon returning from the expedition. He was prepared to cash in on all the fame he could gather and even sell his services for a higher price because he had been part of this grand battle. ‘I was one of the adventurers the Duke hired to help with the outbreak in the Primal Forest,’ was what he already planned to tell everyone.

  Unfortunately, his plans were thwarted when someone stronger appeared out of nowhere. Grant is quite the professional at making an ass of himself, but he usually gets away with it since he is one of the strongest adventurers in Orbis. But that didn’t matter anymore; he had been fired before the job even started. To make matters even worse, he has to pay back the money he has already spent, and after causing a scene at the guild, there is no chance that requests will be coming for him anytime soon.

  “Hmm, about thirty. No, at least fifty. You are a B-rank, after all. Then there’s also the sword and other belongings,” Albert is doing some kind of calculation in his head.

  “What are you talking about, Sir Albert?” Grant meekly looks up at Albert.

  “Simply wondering how much I could get once I sell you and your possessions.”

  “No. Please, Sir Albert, give me a chance. I can pay you back. I just need time. I beg of you, don’t do this.”

  The entire guild is disgusted. Grant showed no shame when he tried to push his authority onto others, but now that he has none, he is quick to grovel and beg. But just like how Grant didn’t show anyone mercy, Albert has the intention of returning the favor.

  “Quickly take him away and get him and his belongings valued,” Albert commands the three accompanying knights, to which they happily oblige.

  “What? No! Stop! Damn it, you’ll regret this! You hear me? You’ll regret messing with me!” The knights drag Grant out the door, as he kicks and screams the entire way. The building is now dead silent.

  “Are you sure you should tell your fellow knights to sell someone off?”

  “Hmm? Oh, them? They’re not knights, but city guards. It’s a long story, but to simplify, I hired them to keep Grant out of trouble. Which they didn’t do a very good job of, it seems. Anyways, shall we head out and discuss the expedition further?”

  “Meh, I guess.” Quinn left the adventurers’ guild with Albert.