Chapter 2

Heading south, Talos followed the road that many other travelers had walked. The road to the capital was not an isolated path. When Talos was hungry, he would hunt wild boars, cook the meat for food, and trade the pelts with peddlers. He learned from traveling parties that he teamed up with to fight monsters that he could head to the Adventurer Guild to register as an adventurer.

After a month of traveling, Talos finally arrived in the kingdom’s capital city. He was amazed by the sight of the capital city. The gates and walls stood tall, almost as tall as Talos could jump. The streets and roads were crowded with residents, adventurers, peddlers, and nobles riding in their carriages.

While on the road, Talos learned from other adventurers about how money works. The smallest denomination for money was a small copper coin. Ten small copper coins was one medium copper coin or was a nickel. Ten medium copper coins equaled one large copper coin or one dollar. Five large copper coins equaled one small silver coin which was five dollars. Four small silver coins equaled one medium coin or twenty dollars. Five medium silver coins equaled one large silver coin or one hundred dollars. Ten large silver coins equaled one gold coin or one thousand dollars. Ten gold coins equaled one large gold coin or ten thousand dollars. The largest denomination was a royal coin, a platinum coin embellished with sapphires, emeralds, and rubies, worth one hundred large gold coins, or one million dollars.

Entry into the capital required Talos to wait in line behind other travelers who were not residents of the capital and paid an entry fee of one small silver coin. Talos found the adventurer guild. It looked just as he imagined an adventurer guild would look like. Inside the guild, he found that it had a tavern to the side while the main area was the reception area. The reception area was divided between the reception desk, commission desk, and the butcher window.

The reception desk was where Talos could register to become an adventurer and meet with other guild representatives. The commission desk was where the quest board was located. Quests could be accepted and turned in for completion. The butcher window was closer to the tavern because that was where they processed materials turned in or sold by adventurers. Peddlers and merchants could purchase materials processed by the merchant guild. Most of the meat was used by the tavern and excess meat was sold at the market.

When it was Talos' turn to meet the receptionist, he asked to register as an adventurer. The beautiful receptionist gave him a form to fill out but Talos looked at it with a troubled expression. Talos realized that after all these years he had only studied fighting and never learned to read or write so he was illiterate. Seeing the situation, the receptionist skillfully aided Talos in filling out the form.

The way one registers as an adventurer was different from how he believed it to be. They register an adventurer’s role instead of class. The roles are separated into Vanguard, Combatant, Healer, Enchanter, Caster, Scouter, and Ranger. The roles are then divided into classes to ensure that a party is diverse and well-rounded to handle any situations. Vanguards are tanks with classes like Knight and Warrior. Combatants are physical melee damage dealers like Talos himself, Swordman, and Spearman. Healers included Priests, White Mage and Apothecaries. Enchanters are specialized magic users that buff allies like Green Mage and traps to debuff enemies like Beastmaster. Casters use magic to deal damage like a Black Mage or Blue Mage. Scouts are fast-moving adventurers that specialize in detecting traps and disarming targets, often used to collect intelligence like Rogue or Thief. Rangers are physical ranged damage dealers that use bows and other tools to attack.

The ranks worked in a more familiar way starting as at Porcelain Rank. Ranks progressed from Porcelain to Obsidian, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Sapphire, Emerald, Ruby, and finally the Mythical Rank of Platinum. Throughout history there have been no more than a handful of Platinum Rank adventurers. All of whom left their mark on history and became legends. After registering as a combatant he picked up a quest. It was just a normal quest to gather some healing herbs. It was a simple quest and always in demand since it was used in many professions.

Gathering information from the commission desk, he was directed towards the east gate. With his guild badge, he could freely enter and leave the city without paying the entry fee. It didn’t take Talos long to find Healing Herbs as it was a common herb that was foraged when he lived in the village. Talos was taught on how to identify the herb and to differentiate it from weeds, Paralyze Weed, and Poison Plants.

The commission desk receptionist was surprised that Talos finished the job quickly and gathered so much Healing Herbs. After the herbs were totaled, it came out to five medium silver coins. It was more than enough for the average adventurer and far more than what a novice adventurer would normally earn during their first quest. The receptionist told him that it was enough to cover a stay at any guild-affiliated inn which would also offer dinner and breakfast.

The adventurer guild offered more benefits than just guild services. It allows them to travel to any city without paying an entry fee. Guild-affiliated inns offered cheaper rates for the overnight stay and can get discounts at more prestigious hotels for higher-rank adventurers. It also acts as an endorsement to the nobility and merchant class. The guild also acts as a messenger service allowing for transportation of letters across country borders.

With the sun still high, Talos decided to explore the capital city before retiring to an inn for dinner. It had been a while since Talos had eaten a hot meal, not since before he left for his pilgrimage. The hot meal reminded him of his wife, who had cooked him meals when he returned home. He sat there lost in his recollection before buying some alcohol to drown his sorrow in his room.