Party Members

"This is an emblem of referral. Every noble has at least one or two of it, and it can be used by any commoner holder of it to pass any tolls and enter places that only influential people are allowed like auction houses. You must use this well, Kaian."

He nodded as his eyes were dragged to the item he was holding. He may have been clueless before, but as he looked at it, various scenarios began to play in his head. It was as if he knew the use of this emblem and that it could give him a small privilege that any normal person could not get.

...

"Huh? You are only an F-rank? Boy... life will be hard for you if you don't have any partner to start with adventuring. No one will ever accept you in their party even if it is just temporary."

Kaian was slapped strongly with reality. After all, no one wants a dead weight in their party. Even though he could prove that he would be useful, there was no chance for him not to get any stereotypical treatments.

They ranked higher than an F and could understand the difficulty of being at the bottom since they experienced it already. But, there would be no chance that they'd let someone strange to them have an easy way of getting into parties.

'So, this is what I must face, huh?'

Kaian, learning that a needed requirement for a rank promotion was at least getting into an E-rank party, went to search for a party to join. He wanted to fill up this requirement immediately for him not to get bothered by it in the future, but it seemed that he had no other choice but to go along with it.

'At least a month of being an adventurer is needed for a promotion. However, 5 party experience and 10 solo F-class quests are needed as well.'

Due to frustration, he sighed and dropped his buttocks to sit on a chair near the bulletin board.

'I should probably take on the solo quests first.'

"Hey, kiddo. You wanna join our party? You seemed to have good equipment, and you don't seem weak. You can join us."

His eyebrows raised, his head instinctively facing where the voice was coming from. It was a swordsman in his 30s, standing on his right while holding his scabbard. He had an optimistic and enthusiastic expression on his face.

"Really? You will let me join?"

"Of course! We are not that strict since we are just going on an E-class quest. They are not that hard, you know."

And just as he listened to him, Kaian's eyes flickered, and he immediately stood up. He just saw an opportunity that he should not let go of. After experiencing a difficult time searching for a party, he immediately accepted the proposal.

'E-class quests are not that hard for F-rank adventurers either. So, going with them won't raise any suspicion, and in their eyes, I am still weak, so they might be just asking me to be their porter. I heard that most newbies like me are invited just to be porters to have fewer expenses for their quests.'

Porters are simply carriers for the baggage of adventurers, and they are just hired when they are needed. Hence, as Kaian was inspecting the intention of the man, he thought that he would be losing nothing.

"Okay! Let me introduce you to them."

They walked in a few meters away from the guild just as soon as they went out. The person who proposed the party to Kaian was excited, as his steps were jolly and sometimes hopping.

"You still didn't introduce yourself," Kaian muttered, making the man stop, and an awkward smile appeared on his face.

"Ah... Haha... Sorry, I got excited since we finally found the last member for the party. I am Mikael. How about you?"

"I am Kaian."

"Nice meeting you, Kaian. You seemed still young. Are you 18 years old?"

"You got it right. I am 18 years old. How about you? Are you already in your thirties?"

Just as Kaian blurted out, Mikael's face turned red, and he immediately pointed out what he said.

"I am still 25! Calling me in my thirties is disrespectful."

Kaian then snickered.

"Please forgive me, I don't know."

'Is it my fault that I have mistaken his age? He does really look old, and no one will debate with me on that part. However, as we have been walking a few meters away from the guild, I am starting to see some people that were waving at Mikael. Are they the other members of the party?'

Kaian's eyes peeked at Mikael, then he noticed that he answered back to them. With this, Kaian was sure that they were the other members of the party that Mikael mentioned. When they arrived, he started introducing the party to Kaian to fix things up immediately.

"We just need a temporary member. Are you okay with it, Kaian?" Mikael asked.

"No worries. I am just filling up my records so that I can have an easy promotion in the future. How many quests should we get until the end of my being a temporary member?"

"Just five, I think? But, are you sure that you are good with it. Now, I am starting to feel bad for you."

Kaian scoffed and laughed eventually. He didn't want to be rude to Mikael, but his face just didn't suit being worried. With the wrinkles on his face, the thinness of his eyebrow, and the small iris he had just made a funny face instead of showing a worried one.