Adventurers guild

After a few more minutes of walking, we finally arrived at the small town. And if I were to summarize my experience in that moment in a single word, it would be ecstatic.

Horse-drawn carriages rolled by as we passed. Elves, half-humans, people with certain animal traits like ears and tails—they were everywhere. I looked on in pure joy and excitement, taking in every detail of my new surroundings. Everybody was dressed in medieval fantasy attire, from robes, tunics, cloaks, and some of them were even wearing chain mail. The buildings also looked to be made from wood and stone, and in that moment, to my eyes, nothing was more beautiful.

I had died and woken up in my fantasy dream world, and I was absolutely loving every moment. I could almost forgive my ex-wife for getting us killed in the first place. Almost.

Speaking of, Misaki hadn't really spoken a word since we left the forest. After she had blasted the pink spider into oblivion with what I can only describe as advanced-level magic, which should have been impossible, she had simply remained quiet our entire trek to town. I guess she might still be a little shaken up from having the creature attached to her head. For someone like her who absolutely couldn't stand the mere sight of bugs, I could understand how directly touching one—or in her case, having one directly touch her—might potentially be quite traumatizing.

Also, her display of high-level magic had me thinking the entire way here. As fresh arrivals to this new world, by default, our powers, abilities, and skills all had to be at the starting point of level one. She shouldn't have been able to pull off such an incredible burst of power, but somehow, she had managed to do so without breaking a sweat. Maybe it was some kind of unique cheat skill. Maybe I had one too. But I wouldn't know for sure—not until we were able to check our stats at the adventurer's guild.

Finding the guild was a matter easily achieved with a little asking around for directions. A man who resembled a knight, dressed in full armor but without the helmet, pointed with his sword for us to keep going straight before taking the first left. I was so in awe of his costume, I momentarily lost my cool and asked him if I could take a selfie. Misaki slapped her forehead in embarrassment, and as the man blinked at me in confusion, I flashed a nervous smile as I suddenly remembered this wasn't some cosplay convention from Earth. This was real. All of it was real.

Also, a selfie? Really? I didn't even have my phone with me, and I was asking around for a selfie. I needed to get my excitement in check.

After a few more directions from the locals, we finally arrived at the adventurer's guild. It was a fairly large wooden building, and the smell of food mixed with the chatter of customers wafted out from inside. As I proceeded to enter the establishment, I suddenly remembered something important, then stopped in my tracks to turn around. Misaki, who was already paddling after me into the building, accidentally bumped into me, not expecting my change in plans.

She looked up at me in confusion.

"Remember our little deal from the forest?" I asked her, but my ex-wife just stared at me as if she had no idea what I was talking about. No bother, I was more than happy to remind her.

"We agreed to both go our separate ways as soon as we got to town," I said to Misaki. "Remember that? Remember when you said those exact words?"

For a brief moment, it almost appeared as if the expression on her face shifted into that of melancholy. Her eyes behind her glasses clouded over with concern and hurt, and her lips quivered ever so slightly.

Why was she looking at me like that? This was our agreement, and she was meant to respect it. Or was she indirectly trying to communicate she wanted to stick with me a little longer?

No, absolutely not.

The idea of starting my new life in this world with her—the person responsible for tearing my heart out in the last one and betraying my trust? Nah. It wasn't happening. We weren't spending any more time together, and that was final.

"Daichi, I..."

I lifted a hand up to stop her from talking. Somehow, I just knew if I gave her the opportunity to explain herself, I might end up saying yes to whatever she wanted, as, again, despite my better judgment, despite everything she had done to me and how much I've come to hate her, I could never stand to see her suffer.

So instead of listening to any pitiful excuse or sob story she had rehearsed—a strategy or ploy meant to coerce me to agree to some kind of temporary partnership in this new world—I instead suggested a different course of action.

"When we get in there, the guild employee will help you out with whatever you need," I told her. "It's like their job. So whenever you need anything, you always come to them, alright? Food, shelter, work, whatever. Always come here when you need something."

Misaki was busy listening attentively as I gave her instructions. She still had that sad look in her eyes as she tried to process all of the information I was unloading on her, but I was already doing the best I could to help her given the circumstances.

When I finished talking, my ex-wife hesitantly nodded in confirmation. "What about you?" she asked. "What are you gonna do?"

"Well, it's going to be dark soon, so I need to go find some work that will afford me a place to sleep for the night. You probably need to go do the same."

"B-but, can't we just do that together?" Misaki asked, stepping forward and taking my hands, her eyes now sparkling with hope. "You could teach me what I need to know so all of this feels less confusing and weird."

I sighed. I could see what she was doing. I mean, yes, it made sense she wanted to stick with me in order to learn as much as she could before eventually becoming independent. That was actually a smart move. I was a pro who possessed the necessary knowledge to thrive in this kind of world, and she was in a position where that kind of knowledge would be greatly beneficial to her. She was a newbie. Novice. A fish out of water, if you may. And I was the guardian—handsome and wise, cool and stylish. However, the problem came from the fact that, unlike her, I wasn't really hyped on the idea of spending time with someone I was once married to. There were so many reasons why that was a bad idea, and I'd rather not have to deal with all of the drama that came with that kind of setup.

"Please, Daichi," she said, looking up at me and reaching out to give my palm a little squeeze. I could sense her own hand shaking. She was nervous, truly scared, and trembling as a result. "Just for a day or two. I don't know anybody here, I-I don't know how this world works. And I really don't want to be alone. Not again."

The "not again" in her sentence caught me off guard. What was she even talking about? The separation? The divorce?

Granted, back in our previous world, I was the one who filed for the split in the first place. But that was only because I was tired of the constant false signals that there was still hope for us as a couple. There wasn't.

She repeatedly blew me off to go hang out with her other male friends for hours on end, and despite reassuring me that nothing was going on, I was tired of feeling like I was being sidelined in our relationship.

She also never took any of my hobbies seriously, repeatedly called them childish and immature, and generally made me feel like some kind of giant man-baby freak.

Then, there was the final straw. But I didn't even want to think about it right at that moment. If I did, I might truly abandon her. And I didn't want to.

I took in a deep breath, exhaled, and made a decision.

"Alright," I said flatly to Misaki, the tone of my voice devoid of any traces of joy. I removed my hand from hers. "Just one quest together. After, we both go our separate ways."

At the sound of that, a wave of relief suddenly washed over her features. She nodded, then took a step back—an indication for me to lead the way. "Stay close." I turned and moved into the guild, and she followed behind, still holding her staff. And the moment we stepped into the building, all eyes were suddenly on us.

It was weird.

Men and women who were formerly drinking, waitresses who were previously serving customers—everybody had their attention focused on us, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little uncomfortable.

"I think it's your outfit," Misaki whispered from behind me, catching my attention. "It's completely out of place here, you know, given the time period?"

Damn, she was right. Come to think of it, people were also looking at us funny on the streets as we made our way over. I guess in a sea of leather boots and belts with pouches, I stuck out like a sore thumb in my modern gamer attire. Also, the sunglasses probably weren't helping me blend in either.

"Ahh, greetings." I waved to the entire hall as I tried to ease the situation. "We are travelers... from a different country, and we would like to seek for residential status... in this here nice little town of... y’all."

"Why are you talking like that?" Misaki poked her head out from behind me and whisper-shouted, and I glanced over my shoulder and gestured for her to zip it. I turned my attention back to the crowd. A large man had gotten up from his seat and was slowly approaching us. There was a dagger strapped to his waist.

"Crap," I muttered.

I instantly reached out an arm, instinctively trying to shield Misaki from the hulking man coming our way. "Stay behind me," I said over my shoulder to her, completely forgetting she already had a high-level spell that could reduce the man to ash in a second if she wanted.

I guess she must have forgotten too, because instead of stepping forward to defend herself, she simply clutched her staff tighter and gave a worried nod. By the time I returned my gaze front, I nearly panicked and pulled out one of my pistols when I realized the man was already standing in front of me.

Up close, he smelled of sweat, smoke, and booze. Arguably all defining stenches that proved of his adventurer status, albeit just in a very unhygienic way. He wasn't wearing any serious armor, and he wasn't making any telling moves that hinted at him reaching for the weapon on his waist. He was just intensely staring at the both of us, scrutinizing us in a manner that only encouraged me to slowly reach for the pistol hidden away in my jacket coat. I had never fired a gun before in my previous life, but the new me in this world knew exactly how to handle one.

The whole place was quiet. There was no chatter, no sounds. Everybody just kept on looking at us. My staring contest with the man felt like it went on forever, but in actuality, it only lasted for a few seconds before...

"Welcome! Hahaha! We love foreigners! Isn't that right, everyone?!"

The entire guild suddenly came alive with resumed noise, chatter, and drinking as everybody proceeded to give us a warm welcome.

I was so confused.

"Hey, buddy, cheer up, alright?" the large man said, slapping me on the back as he continued to laugh. "It's just a little thing we do for newcomers. Heh heh heh, it's like tradition around these parts."

"Yeah, we do it to all the outsiders who come to town for the first time," a woman yelled from the crowd. "It's our special little fun way of saying welcome to you guys."

"Why, they did it to me just last week, hahaha," another man responded, just as the hall went through another burst of laughter.

A smile crossed my face in that moment. It was so beautiful. The people, the prank, the world, all of it. I was so happy, I think I might've already been shedding a tear.