Chapter 544: Choosing a Job

When Tauro and his party returned to the city of Swen, they had suddenly become celebrities.

More precisely, the name Black-Gold Wings and Honorary Viscount Tauro were already well known because of the impostor group, but this time the attention was different.

The story going around was that the real one had defeated the fake.

The impostor group had enjoyed a good reputation overall thanks in part to fake Tauro’s [Charm], so many people were first shocked to learn that they had been frauds at all.

“I once teamed up with the fake Lord Tauro’s group on a quest. They paid well and seemed like good people, too…”

“They just showed up out of nowhere and suddenly became popular with everyone, men and women alike, didn’t they?”

“So what’s the real one like? Someone who became an honorary viscount at fourteen, right?”

“He disappeared for a year, then the moment a fake shows up, he suddenly appears in the north—doesn’t that sound suspicious?”

“Yeah, it does,” the three agreed.

Because the impostors had been so popular, many people were suspicious of the real group’s sudden appearance, and the rumors had made Tauro and his companions famous over the past few days.

“…This is kind of awkward to deal with.”

When Tauro and his friends entered the Swen Branch of the Adventurers’ Guild, they overheard such talk among the adventurers and could only smile wryly.

“We’re the real ones, so let’s hold our heads high. And we’ve grown stronger over the past year—strong enough to live up to our guild rank.”

Aeris puffed out her chest and encouraged Tauro.

“That’s right, Leader. Things got weird because our timing coming to the north was bad, but there’s no reason for the real Leader to be talked down like this. There’s no need to worry about it.”

Ankh lightly patted Tauro on the back in support.

“Exactly! Let’s show everyone just how amazing Lord Tauro is from here on out!”

Zion clenched her fist and cheered him on.

“We’re adventurers. We prove ourselves with results from quests. Let’s go, Tauro!”

Ragune, like Ankh, gave Tauro a firm pat on the back and headed for the reception desk.

“Ah… members of Black-Gold Wings. Please come this way.”

The receptionist, still not quite used to dealing with the real group, greeted them with a complicated expression and led them to the quest-board room for adventurers in the B-rank band and above.

Tauro and the others didn’t say anything in response and decided to just silently look over the bulletin board.

“…There’s quite a lot here.”

Tauro was impressed by the number of unusual quests available—likely because this was an adventurer’s guild in a large city in the north that was close to the border with the Empire.

“You’re right. This quest involves gathering rare medicinal herbs, but the deadline is six months.”

As expected of Aeris, she first checked the herb-gathering quests, which had long been a staple for Black-Gold Wings.

“This quest sends us into the Antas Mountain Range along the border to subjugate B-rank-band monsters, and its deadline is six months too.”

Ragune reported this to Tauro, surprised by the high difficulty of the quests available at this branch.

“There’s also a request from the lord of this territory mixed in. Looks pretty recent. Let’s see… collecting personal information on the general in charge of the royal military facility… preferably something that could be used as leverage. Man, those two really hate each other.”

Having already heard directly from the general about the bad blood between him and Count Swen, Ankh sighed in exasperation and put the notice back on the board.

“There’s one here about capturing monsters that are attacking villages near the border. It’s a capture request rather than a subjugation request—that’s rare, isn’t it?”

Zion reported while fluttering a quest notice in her hand.

“For now, let’s take the long-term herb-gathering quest Aeris found and the Antas Mountain Range subjugation quest Ragune mentioned, and work on both at the same time. We’ll pass on Ankh’s request, and Zion’s capture request would be difficult without coordinating with other adventurers, so let’s pass on that too. —How about this one? ‘Subjugation of the Guardian of an Ancient Underground Ruin.’ Oh, it’s a request from the A-minus team Blue Thunder Beast. They’re recruiting a support team. What do you think?”

The notice Tauro was holding read: “Seeking a team particularly skilled in support roles.”

“In that case, Leader can use a bow as well as light and dark magic. Aeris can handle offensive magic and healing. Ragune specializes in defensive support, and Zion can provide support with light magic. As for me… well, I’m pure offense, so I’m not what they’re looking for—but with four of you, they should be more than satisfied.”

Ankh added that, since he mainly relied on physical attacks, he would essentially serve as a guard.

“Subjugating the guardian of an ancient ruin? Could it be a dungeon?”

Aeris, who knew more about dungeons than anyone, leaned in to look at the quest Tauro was holding.

“When they say ‘guardian of an ancient ruin,’ it might be something like a golem, a four-legged human-faced beast, or even a dragon-type monster.”

Tauro voiced his guess.

“I wonder if the ancient ruin itself is even real.”

Aeris pointed out how unlikely it sounded.

“Let’s ask at the counter for more details. But first—everyone okay with this?”

Tauro checked with the group.

“Yeah. Sounds good.”

All four unanimously agreed with Tauro’s choice.

After confirming, Tauro took the quests to the reception desk and asked for explanations.

“Other teams have also accepted the medicinal-herb gathering quest, but there have been no sightings so far. Old records mention the herbs growing in the Antas Mountains near the border, so please use that as a reference. As for the monster-subjugation quest in the Antas Mountains, the targets are humanoid monsters believed to be a new species called Olog-Hai. They move in groups, are intelligent, and each individual is extremely powerful, so the northern guild branches are coordinating their response.”

“Oh, in that case, we’ve already fought and defeated them through another adventurers’ guild, so we should be fine. What’s the minimum required number?”

“You have!? The minimum required subjugation count is five. Ordinarily, several high-ranking adventurer teams would be expected to cooperate, but in your case…?”

The receptionist asked, wondering whether the guild should arrange for another team to accompany them.

“The last time we fought them, Black-Gold Wings defeated fifteen on our own, so we’ll be fine. —Now, about the ancient-ruin quest—”

“Fifteen!? By yourselves!?”

The receptionist couldn’t just let that slide and stopped him in shock.

“F-fifteen!? Olog-Hai are powerful enough that a group of them can fight several high-ranking adventurer teams at once. You really shouldn’t exaggerate something like—”

The receptionist seemed to think Tauro was exaggerating and gently tried to caution him as though he were a child telling a tall tale.

“We have verified records from the town of Mandek, so please check.”

Tauro submitted his tag to confirm that his team had been the ones who discovered and defeated the new species.

“!—M-my sincerest apologies! The information about Olog-Hai has been circulated thanks to you, but the identity of the team that first defeated them wasn’t properly shared! And also… there’s something we need to discuss regarding compensation from the guild…”

“You mean the impostor group incident?”

She meant the impostor incident, during which a considerable sum had been withdrawn from Tauro’s account.

“Yes… We’re currently in the middle of disputes with various parties over the procedures, so please give us a little more time! We’re truly sorry!”

The receptionist bowed repeatedly, apologizing both for the incomplete circulation of the Olog-Hai information and for the ongoing impostor-account problem.