The Chair Has a Sit Down with the Guildmaster

The halls behind the reception area were a labyrinth. Without a receptionist who knew the path, you would almost always get lost. It would’ve been easier to sneak in from the outside, but Kumari’s office had a ridiculous number of security measures in place. There was no way to sneak in or out without her knowing. Trust me, I’ve tried.

After a few turns and a confusing staircase, we arrived in front of an ornate door. A sign hung off a small nub, indicating that the guildmaster was in. The receptionist knocked twice.

“Guildmaster. Stu Isu, E-rank adventurer, is here about a completed quest.”

“...let him in.”

The first and only thing I saw was Kumari. As always, she was beautiful. Today, she had on a red top over a white skirt. Her braided silver-white hair rolled off the front of her shoulder. Her nails were polished with a Summer theme. Her skills were on point too – using barbed webs to trap and ensnare me, even though the receptionist would also be caught up in the attack. Absolutely astounding, although I knew she would pull something like this.

Pulling a leg out, I quickly stepped in front of the receptionist. The webs were caught on the leg as I twirled it around, preventing them from getting past. The quantity of webs was baffling, as expected from those of the spider race, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. After a few seconds, Kumari stopped her barrage. The receptionist, meanwhile, was frozen in place.

“Please have a bit more tact before you attack. You’re scaring your own receptionist.”

“Iora will be fine; you’re the one that’s surprising. You seem to have learned a few new tricks. Where are you storing the rest of the chair? I only see the leg you used to stop my webs.”

“In [Pocket].”

“You succeeded in modifying it? I know how long you’ve been working on doing so.”

“What else was I supposed to do while waiting for the beasts to spawn? That was just cruel.”

“It’s your fault for blowing the roof off a building trying to cook mushrooms!”

“Okay, sure, but how was I supposed to know that using mana as an ingredient caused an explosion? They should really have a warning label.”

“Ugh…you really give me a headache sometimes. Sometimes I wonder if you ever actually learn from your mistakes.” She rubbed her temples, sitting down on one of the sofas in the office. I sat down on the opposite sofa, leaning onto the table in-between us. “So, I take it you gathered all the materials? Have you dropped them off yet?”

“I was immediately directed back here. What did you even put on my record?”

“Just that you were an important guest.” Kumari dropped a bag on the table. “Put everything in here.”

I exaggerated a sigh. “Next time, give me a normal quest. This is too much of a hassle.” Kumari simply shrugged in response. The bag was an item pouch: one on the larger side. All I needed to do was connect [Pocket] to the pouch and transfer over the materials. Space magic was really handy for things like this.

I told Kumari, “It’s done,” when I finished. She picked up the item pouch, placing it on the record keeper. With its ability to view the contents of any bag placed on it, she had an easier time verifying I had collected everything she wanted.

“Looks like everything’s here. Actually, it seems you have a bit more than I asked for.”

“That’s what happens when you’re waiting around for a season.”

“Fine. I’ll make sure you’re compensated for anything additional you brought in.”

“You’re supposed to do that anyway!” Kumari, of course, ignored me. She handed off the bag to Iora before handing me two gold coins and one small gold. I still thought she was underpaying me, but I took the coins anyway. If I tried to haggle for more, I would somehow end up losing it all.

Iora took the item pouch to the collection area, leaving us alone. Kumari immediately walked around the table before collapsing down right next to me, lying her head on my shoulder.

“Is the dungeon back to normal?” She had a serious air around her, so I responded with a serious answer.

“Yep, I used up the excess mana to get the materials faster. It should be fine for another ten to twenty thousand years. Maybe this time, someone else will actually take care of it.”

“Good,” she softly chuckled. We sat in complete silence for a while. It looked like Kumari was sleeping, but she was definitely wide awake. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes. “Mind if I complain a little?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“Of course not.”

“Then why did you even ask…” I muttered under my breath. “Is it about the Rank Up exams?”

“Yeah. We have over three hundred applicants this time around, most of which are D to F-ranks. It’s going to take at least a few days to finish every mock battle. That doesn’t even include the amount of paperwork I have to do! I thought I could avoid a death march if we had enough staff, but there still isn’t enough! And with it being summer, I have to work at least 15 hours! Why couldn’t it be winter? I would love to sleep for twenty and only work for ten.” Stress marks appeared on her forehead as she scrunched her brow.

“Well, if you need a hand, I’ll do whatever I can to help.” Huh. Why did I get the feeling I said something I shouldn’t have?

“Oh really? Would you mind proctoring one of the B-rank exams then?”

“...you do realize I’m an E-rank adventurer.”

“Only because you don’t take any quests unless I force them on you. Not to mention the quests you take without telling anyone.”

“...”

“Also, how many IDs do you have again ‘Stu’?”

“...”

“See? You can’t even think of a rebuttal.”

“It wasn’t like I couldn’t refute it, I just chose not to.”

“You’re cute when you’re pouting,” she giggled. “But seriously, it would be a huge help. The guild is swamped with too much work, and there’s no way I can leave for a week to proctor the test.”

“Don’t you have enough A-ranks for this?”

“This party is a bit of a special case. I don’t think our proctors will be able to get an accurate sense of their abilities if it was a normal quest. And I just happen to know someone who specializes in special quests.”

“Ugh.” This was starting to sound like a major hassle. “Isn’t this illegal?”

“It’s fine. I’m a guildmaster after all!” she exclaimed with a bewitching smile. She tried to puff out her chest as well, but there wasn’t much there in the first place. More importantly, there was no way she wouldn’t get in trouble if she was found out. However, if she was trying to break the law, she must have exhausted every other option...or she found it easier and cheaper to push the task onto me. Who could say?

“...fine. I guess I can go along with it.”

“Sweet! Thanks a bunch!” Kumari gave me a small peck on the cheek and then slapped my shoulder hard. “I’ll introduce you to the party tomorrow. Make sure to have a plan for the quest before then!”

“Wait, you’re dumping the quest creation on me?!? I thought it was supposed to be a normal special quest!”

“Where’s the fun in that? You agreed to be the exam proctor, and I know you’ll be fine!”

“Ugh.” It wasn’t like I had a chance of getting out of this in the first place. “What happens if someone recognizes me?”

“Hmm, you aren’t that recognizable without the chair, but if you’re really worried…well, just change your presence and clothes like you do normally! Now, for your alias…” Kumari brought a hand to her chin, stroking it as if she had a beard. “I know! Puffy Sand Shoes!”

“That’s not a name!” I knew she was teasing me, but it was still annoying. “I’ll just use Jack Brown. I have an A-rank ID in that name…somewhere. No. 1 probably knows about it.” I stood up, walking over to a nearby window. Kumari caught herself before falling onto the sofa.

“Aww…that’s so boring.” She still had a smug grin on her face even as she fake sulked.

“Oh shush! I’ll be back before the B-rank exams start at…”

“22:00, just before Calidis begins to set.”

“Sounds good,” I waved behind me as I jumped out of the window.

From behind me, I could hear her yell, “See you tomorrow!”