Chapter 58 - Swanhild Kingdom

[Considering the sage's advice, we should head south. The Giza Alliance of Lenart, Gwilherm, Yahudah and Swanhild kingdoms is probably the good choice. It was also the casket's initial destination. So I suggest heading there and collect information.]

'So be it, then.'

***

Thus began Adam's journey in search of the Rising Valor.

Circumventing the village wasn't trouble, but the frequently roaming scouts were. As members of the Zoomorph race, these guards had exceptional olfactory and auditory senses. Adam was almost caught twice, but fortune favoured him.

The lack of navigation or map left him running in circles for a while. It was only after endlessly running through the forest did he realise his foolishness. At once, Endevil advised rising to higher ground and Adam followed.

Conveniently, he crossed paths with a bunch of herbalists escorted by adventurers. Under their guidance, Adam was disclosed to the location of Swanhild kingdom.

###

Shall we return to where we depart from?

###

"..., 45, 46, 47 and 48 beast cores. I hope this will suffice to create potions."

Storing the crystals back into the ring, Adam raised his head and saw the giant gate of the kingdom.

[What's there to feel nostalgic about?]

Endevil asked after sensing he's in some sort of trance.

'Nothing. I just remembered about Earth?'

[Oh, you're home planet? Tell me about it.]

Adam slowly lowered his torso and day under a nearby tree, escaping from the scorching heat. But on the inside, he was collecting his days and memories.

"Earth is a beautiful place. There are only humans. No elves or dwarves or bestial races. No supernatural entities exist apart from a few mythologies. Also, there is no mana. This forced humanity to take steps towards the development..."

Reclining on the green patch under the tree, Adam closed his eyes and began to narrate his days.

As someone who toured across the seven seas, he had witnessed the magnificence of civilisations. He had dined and danced with the natives and felt the pulse of ingenuity coursing through them.

...

Sigh~

The thorax rose and shrunk back exhaling air through his nostrils. Without the veil of the armour, the grin on Adam's face was evident.

[From your passionate account, it looks like interstellar travel from and to the Earth is only an engineering problem. In fact, to reach such heights without the presence and nurturing of a magical source, it's already praiseworthy.]

The earthling nodded in return.

"There is a saying that you'll not know the value of eye until you become blind. I can tell that it is the creation of someone insightful."

Noticing that the heat was fading away with time, Adam sat up. His eyes swung horizontally and inspected the giant defensive walls of Swanhild.

It was then he saw a pair of carriages advancing towards the gates. The transport halted and a couple of soldiers inspected the wagons before letting them inside.

[Let's depart.]

Returning a nod, the earthling sprang up and walked to the guarded iron gate of Swanhild.

...

Four guards were standing side by side after scouting the perimeter allotted to them.

"You heard what happened in Aquila Empire?" A soldier asked after remembering something.

"Hmph! Just because they can summon otherworldly enforcements doesn't mean that they are great. There were cases before where the summoned turned hostile and decimated a country." Another soldier replied in an unpleasant tone.

"True...true..."

The other three nodded their heads as they recalled a particular event. An apprehensive feeling clutched their mind.

Will the history repeat?

It was when worrying about the potential threat of summoning reinforcement that one of them nudged the others. "Someone's coming."

The heads turned to look at the incoming figure.

"Hmm... never seen a face like that before."

The guards assumed their solemn faces and returned to their positions as the stranger arrived.

"Halt."

One of the soldiers brandished his spear and took steps forward while telling the stranger to stop on the track.

"Identify yourselves."

The unfamiliar face with hazel eyes and long black hair reaching the shoulder line was unique in a way. The beard lines and moustache conveyed that the person is an adult. But the large built veiled by a simple set of clothes and a jacket seemed out of place for the youthful demeanour.

Raising his hands over the head, the earthling conveyed.

"My name is Adam. I'm a wanderer."

As soon as he spoke, another soldier yelled. "Display your interface."

The stranger bobbed and summoned the interface.

"A berserker? That's rare."

A guard commented after noticing the class type. There was a peculiar expression on his face to which the other three nodded.

"You're an orphan, right?" The soldier who notified him to halt raised his eyes and met with Adam's sight. The individual nodded in agreement.

"Where did you get the armour?" The next question was swift.

"I brought it from a travelling convoy."

"Must be costly."

"I don't know. It cost me 23 beast cores."

Witnessing the wanderer shrugging cluelessly, the soldier frowned. "beast cores, you say?"

Adam unwittingly nodded and flicked his hand. A pointy-edged purple crystal as big as his fist appeared in his palm. "This is called beast core, right?"

The guards turned their heads and stared at each other with a conflicted expression. They shuttled their eyes and concluded.

"You may enter."

The soldiers stepped aside and gave way for Adam to proceed. Without bothering to wonder why they didn't ask him for the entrance fee, he paced straight into the city and disappeared among the crowd.

Following Endevil's instructions, the earthling silently slipped into the nearest alley.

[According to the memories I have assimilated in the past, the Adventurer's Guild has a separate desk where one can sell the raw materials for money. After securing some gold, we could evaluate the local delicacies while collecting information.]

'Sounds like a plan.'

Promptly, Adam left the alley.

Taking a leisure walk through the streets, the earthling was rather surprised to see an organised and stable economy even of the pavements. Both small and large scale traders were displaying their commodities.

After noticing that the daylight has receded by a great extent, Adam queried a street vendor who swiftly disclosed the location of the guild to him.

[Are we late?]

The giant building that showcased the nameplate "Adventurer's Guild" were open and mostly empty. Beautiful lamps were decorating the insides of the structure, but there was hardly anyone in the sight.

The ten individual quest boards appeared in his field of view. The number of missions ranged from dense to sparse as the grade went up. The last board named Black was empty. The lantern fixed above the nameplate was also turned off.

[There's someone behind the desk. It's a female human.]

About 20 or 30 metres ahead of them was a long desk with the words 'Reception' engraved on it. Endevil confirmed that there was a presence behind that desk and Adam was about to tiptoe in the direction when a figure rose out of the shadows.

"Oh, hello." A teenage woman beamed at him. "Welcome to the Adventurer's Guild."

Her voice had an alluring effect that should be effective on men, but it was somehow useless on Adam.

With firm footsteps, Adam walked to the lady. As if she noticed something unpleasant in his eyes, her face displayed discontent.

"I am a wanderer. I heard that Guild accepts beast cores in exchange for money." Ignoring the upset demeanour, the earthling conveyed his intention of visit.

The lady's expression turned normal as she shook her head. "I'm sorry, sir. The exchange counter is closed for two days." Saying so, she pointed at the stall on the wall to her right and conveyed her helplessness.

Adam fell silent as he stared at the booth for a few seconds. He was wondering whether he should leave for now and come back later when Endevil suggested, [Then why don't we register as an adventurer?]

Aha!

There was that thing too!

A glint of delight sparkled in the earthling's eyes as he turned to the lady. "Can I register as an adventurer?"

Hearing this, the lady's eyes seemed to have acquired a new vigour. She immediately elucidated the advantages of being an adventurer and having an affiliation with the guild.

Realising that the man before her was an adult, she quickly introduced Adam to the guidelines. It was a swift process as there was nothing complicated to explain. Without any further ado, she pulled out an apparatus with a crystal sphere on top of it, from the lower draw and placed it on the desk.

"This is the Identification Sphere. Crafted by the saints of the Alliance, this object is nigh-indestructible. This artefact is used to create Guild Cards for adventurers."

After a short pause, she added. "Please place both of your hands on the crystal and summon your interface. Your card will be ready within no time." Her voice was brimming with assurance."

"Okay." Adam could only trust her spirited words and follow her commands.