Winter's Crown: Act 4, Chapter 15

Ilyshn'ish followed Lord Mare through the curtained door frame and across the back hall, into a large room arrayed with modest oak furniture. He brought her to a couch, where he released her hand and bid her be seated. She sat down beside him, lightly pinching his sleeve between the fingers of her left hand as she took in her surroundings.

Around the room were what she assumed to be trophies and mementoes of past kills: the head of a Gryphon, a Manticore hide, bits and pieces of once-living things arrayed in glass cabinets. There was a large portrait on the wall behind their seat, depicting a group of humanoids with wicked-looking weapons standing around a dead Dragon: it was a juvenile, based on its appearance. Ilyshn'ish shuddered, glancing at the closed door not far from the portrait. It didn't lead into the hall, and she couldn't sense anything behind it, but it seemed a likely place to harbour hidden assailants.

Lady Aura frowned at them before seating herself on the other side of Lord Mare, while Merry glared daggers at Ilyshn'ish from where she stood behind the couch. What was she, some sort of bodyguard? An attendant? She didn't even look like the same sort of Elf as the other two, yet she hovered protectively over them like a Harpy over her infants.

Ilyshn'ish turned away from the angry Elf and faced forward. Mister Ainzach took the couch across the table from them, while Wina retrieved a tea set from a nearby cabinet before vanishing into the hall.

"So, what's the deal with this woman?" Lady Aura asked, "She doesn't look very useful to me."

"She's going to help design a new wing of the Training Area," Lord Mare explained. "With the expedition coming up, Shalltear lent her to us so we could create environments that have similar conditions to what you can find in the Azerlisia Mountains."

She was? All Lady Shalltear told her was that she was to cooperate with Lord Mare.

"How would she know what it's like there?" Mister Ainzach asked.

"H-how…?" Mare frowned, "Because she lived there before coming here? Shalltear said she knows all about the Azerlisia Mountains, so she's basically a local expert."

"I see," Mister Ainzach said, holding his hand out across the table. "I'm Pluton Ainzach, Master of the Adventurer Guild. Pleased to meet you, Miss…?"

She gave the extended hand a hesitant glance. This was the guildmaster? The leader of the Adventurers? Ilyshn'ish sensed some power in him, but he wasn't as strong as the Elf called Merry. She was certain she could fight both of them at once and win in a direct confrontation.

"Shiver," she replied, reaching out to lightly touch his hand.

The guildmaster moved suddenly, taking her hand in both of his and shaking vigorously. It was all Ilyshn'ish could do to snatch herself away with a panicked shout.

"Shiver, eh?" He grinned, "Well, I suppose it's a name that suits that frozen place. I guess you're from the Dwarf Kingdom? To be honest, I didn't know anyone aside from Dwarves lived there."

Ah, he was one of those. Like so many other Humans in the city, they had a very narrow view of who they considered 'people'. Ilyshn'ish withdrew her hand slowly, holding it against her stomach.

"Feoh Berkana," she replied. "That's where I came from."

"Oh…the Dwarves I've talked to were all pretty excited to move back in," jovial energy filled Mister Ainzach's voice. "You must have been busy moving in as well, so I gotta thank you for taking the time to come out here to help us out."

"N-no, it's not like that at all…I had to move out since the Dwarves were moving in…"

"Huh? What does that mean?"

The cordial warmth faded from Mister Ainzach's face, replaced by a look of befuddlement over her reply.

"Shiver is a Frost Dragon, Mister Ainzach," Lord Mare informed him.

And, just like that, she was exposed.

A frown crossed the guildmaster's features. Ilyshn'ish's breathing picked up as she started to panic. She clutched at Lord Mare's sleeve several times before finally throwing her arms around him and squeezing her eyes shut. What were the Adventurers going to do to her, now that they knew and had her in the bowels of their nest?

"W-woah! Calm down," Lord Mare placed a hand on the arm wrapped over his chest. "Why are you so scared?"

"A-adventurers…" Ilyshn'ish replied in a trembling voice.

"Adventurers?" Lord Mare said, "What about them?"

"Adventurers," Ilyshn'ish swallowed. "They're those crazy murderers, aren't they? Bounty Hunters that kill people for money and harvest bodies to turn into equipment so they can kill more people for even better equipment…"

"I-if you put it that way," the Dark Elf swallowed as well, "that does sound pretty scary…"

Lord Mare looked across at Mister Ainzach. The guildmaster sighed, scratching his head.

"Damn it all," he said. "His Majesty had me dead to rights, huh…"

"Did Lord Ainz say something to you about her?" Lady Aura asked.

"No, not her in particular," the guildmaster answered. "Back when His Majesty first came to talk about the future of the Adventurer Guild, he asked me a question. He asked me who exactly Adventurers saw as 'people'. He said that the Sorcerous Kingdom would be a place where all races could live, but I assumed that he meant Dwarves and Elves and others like that. Then he corrected me and said that he would include all races, whether they were monsters or Humans or anything else. I argued against it, but no matter which way I twisted or turned, he blew it all away and revealed me for the bigot I was."

Mister Ainzach looked over at Ilyshn'ish's quivering form.

"Even though all this has happened," he waved his right hand loosely in the air. "The founding of the Sorcerous Kingdom. That time with His Majesty. The opening of the Demihuman Quarter and the folks helping us in the Training Area – it just keeps coming back. I just assumed she was from the Dwarf Kingdom, though, in hindsight, it doesn't make any real sense. It just never crossed my mind that she might be anything else, or maybe I just willfully blinded myself to the facts and made up something that I thought could be plausible on the spot. Somewhere in the back of my mind, only the fair races still count as people. His Majesty spoke truly, all the way back then."

He rose from his seat. The guildmaster snorted, and a self-deprecating look formed on his face.

"Fair races…yet one of the most beautiful women I've ever laid eyes on turns out to be a Dragon." He lowered his head, voice solemn, "I'm sorry, Miss Shiver. I probably said some horrible things, from your point of view; I hope you'll find it in your heart to forgive me for that."

Ilyshn'ish peeked up at the lowered head of the guildmaster, then down at Lord Mare, whose head was still squished into her chest. He nodded up at her slowly. She slowly relaxed and, with a sigh, released her hold on him. Lord Mare let out a startled yelp as Lady Aura yanked him away.

"I-its okay," she said quietly, settling back into her seat.

"Good," Mister Ainzach let out a tense breath. "Good. I can't guarantee that you won't run into more of the same with our members, but I hope you'll show us some patience while you help us out."

"Lady Shalltear dispatched me to the Adventurer Guild with instructions to cooperate with Lord Mare," Ilyshn'ish said, "but I'm afraid I don't have any specific details about what I'm supposed to be helping with."

"Ah, that?" The guildmaster said, "I guess word of our training doesn't really filter out of the guild too much. Basically, we need to create a training environment for cold, alpine areas. We have some expedition work around the Azerlisia Range coming up, so we're making the appropriate preparations for it."

Wina reappeared, placing the pewter tea set on the table and pouring out their drinks. A steaming cup was placed in front of her. Ilyshn'ish could see places where it had been dented and straightened out in several places – another reminder of the violent nature of Adventurers.

"If it's just making sure that everything feels right," Ilyshn'ish said, "I think I can help with that. If it's fighting, though…I'm just a beginner, so I don't have much confidence in what I'm doing…"

"Anything that'll help us prepare properly for what lies ahead," the guildmaster picked up his teacup, "I'll be more than happy with. Once you see what we're up to, maybe you'll be up to having a few rounds with our members."

"B-but I'm just a Frost Dragon," Ilyshn'ish said, eyes growing wide. "I can't win against Adventurers!"

The guildmaster's cup stopped as he paused mid-sip. Lowering it slightly, he looked over Ilyshn'ish's shoulder.

"Merry," he said, "didn't you say that she's in the Realm of Heroes?"

"Yep," the Elf replied in a flat voice, "in various ways…"

Ilyshn'ish felt Merry's glare against the back of her neck, and she shifted forward in her seat uncomfortably.

"Hmm…that's what I figured too," Mister Ainzach said. "I'm not sure what you've heard about our Adventurer Guild, but if we exclude Momon and Nabe, you'd probably defeat the entire guild – even if they all fought you at the same time."

"R-really?" Ilyshn'ish replied, "But I thought Adventurers don't die, even when they're killed…I can't win against that – they'll get me eventually!"

"Er…we may be able to raise the dead, but our members don't just pop up on their own again like some Undead thing from a drunken Bard's tale. I've never even seen Undead get up after destroying them once…well, we don't have any Undead Adventurers anyways."

"But Lady Shalltear said she had another vassal here."

The vast majority of Lady Shalltear's servants Ilyshn'ish had encountered were the Vampire Brides stationed at the post offices. Now that she understood that Adventurers weren't their own terrifying species, she figured that the vassal Lady Shalltear had mentioned that was also an Adventurer was another Vampire Bride. They had the same loose sense of danger as Merry, so they would fit in well…

"A vassal…?" Mister Ainzach said, "Oh, you mean Zahradnik. She might stand out in a few ways, but she's still just a Human like most of us. The girl grew up around these parts, so there's no mistake about that."

…or so she thought. How did a Human even survive being a vassal of Lady Shalltear?

"Anyways, uh…was there anything else worrying you?" Lord Mare asked.

"Even if they're only so strong," Ilyshn'ish said, "won't they still try to attack me? Adventurers are crazy about magic equipment and crafting materials, after all."

"I, uh, can't say that's wrong, but…" Mister Ainzach frowned in thought, "At any rate, since you're a subject of the Sorcerous Kingdom, they won't attack you unless it's a part of training or something. You shouldn't have to worry about that at all."

Ilyshn'ish mulled over what she had heard, then remembered Lady Shalltear's advice. Pulling out her notepad, she started recording hard-to-remember details. An awkward silence filled the room, occasionally broken by the scratching of her pen.

"Mmh…any more talking is pointless," Lady Aura said after a few minutes.

"Why is that?" Mister Ainzach asked.

"I just spoke with her brother," Lady Aura answered. "He said that it's better to just throw her into the fire."

Ilyshn'ish's pen stopped. The fire? Maybe Hejinmal wasn't such a good brother, after all.

"I-I might have a fire resistance item," Ilyshn'ish clutched at Lord Mare again, "but fire is still bad!"

"Big sis means that it's better to just have you learn from experience," Lord Mare explained, taking her hand again and rising from the couch. "I can show you the place where we're preparing everything, and you can see things as they happen while making suggestions."

It sounded reasonable enough. All she needed to do was stay quiet, keep her head down, cooperate with Lord Mare, and she would be safe. Probably. The Dark Elf led her back out of the room and out in front of the counter with the two Human females. The pair looked up from their conversation, and Ishpen came forward with a sheet of paper in her hands.

"Guildmaster."

"Hm?"

"I was filling out a registration form for the young lady here," Ishpen told Mister Ainzach, "but we weren't quite able to finish it…"

"I didn't think she was interested in joining," the guildmaster stroked his moustache idly. "Wait, don't tell me you tried to sneak in an application…"

Ishpen cringed slightly, a guilty look briefly passing over her features. She seemed to collect herself, however, pointing directly at Ilyshn'ish.

"Just look at her, guildmaster!" She said, "She's perfect – no, beyond perfect! She's exactly what we need to market the Adventurer Guild! Did you know she's a Bard? A Dancer, even! Our recruitment will skyrocket if she becomes affiliated with us!"

"I won't deny that," the guildmaster said, "but I'm not even sure how to place her, off the top of my head. That aside, we have rules, Ishpen – you can't just press her into Adventurer work like that."

"Fine."

Ishpen sighed, then the ingratiating smile from before appeared on her face again.

"Miss Shiver," she said in a too-nice voice, "would you like to join the Adventurer Guild? I'm sure you'll have a bright future with us."

Ilyshn'ish backed away slightly from the pressure Ishpen was emanating. This…was this fighting spirit? Killing intent? Master Tian sometimes referred to them when instructing his students.

"I-I'm just here to cooperate with Lord Mare…"

"This isn't just any Adventurer Guild," Ishpen told her, "this is the Adventurer Guild of the Sorcerous Kingdom! You'll be a True Adventurer – exploring the world and uncovering its mysteries. You'll become famous around the world; the envy of Adventurers everywhere!"

While the idea of exploring the world was genuinely tempting, it didn't match up with what she knew of the Adventurer Guild. What did taking contracts on the lives of others have to do with exploration? The part about becoming the envy of Adventurers everywhere also sounded very much like she would be painting a target on herself.

"I'm sorry," she said, "but I don't–"

"As an exclusive affiliate of the Adventurer Guild," Ishpen's words rolled right over her refusal, "you will also receive a monthly stipend!"

"A stipend?" Ilyshn'ish forced out the unfamiliar word, "What's that?"

"Simply put, as long as you remain affiliated with the Adventurer Guild, and participate in our activities, you'll be paid every month. Everyone starts at Copper rank, which covers the expenses for living in the city while you train. That would come out to roughly one gold per month."

That was far less than she could earn, even if it was just performing deliveries in the city. Then again, her current situation didn't allow time for her to work at all.

"I'm sure you won't remain at Copper for long, though," Ishpen continued. "Merry mentioned you were already in the realm of heroes – that means you'll be rapidly advancing through the ranks! Even if you just catch up to our Gold-ranked members, your stipend will increase to six gold per month."

Six gold…it was far better, but the amount was still far overshadowed by her previous earnings.

"How high does it go?" Ilyshn'ish asked.

"Much higher," Ishpen's expression brightened, "an Orichalcum here like Merry collects six platinum a month–"

"Collects?" Merry frowned, "You make it sound like I'm sitting around doing nothing all day."

"–and an entry-level Adamantite Adventurer earns twelve!"

"Entry-level?"

"That's right," Ishpen nodded, "Those who reach the realm of heroes are paid three times that amount – thirty-six platinum a month! Since Merry estimated that you're up there already, it's only a matter of time before you establish it as a fact!"

Thirty-six platinum coins…that could buy far more books than she would be able to keep up with. If she joined the Adventurer Guild for a few thousand years, she could have the platinum coin bed of her dreams…she could mix in plenty of diamonds to make it even better. But what was the catch? Surely they didn't just pay her for existing. Ishpen said something about 'marketing'.

"And~" Ishpen a finger up over their heads, breaking Ilyshn'ish's line of thought, "aaaand, that's not all! The monthly stipend is the least of our member benefits! You'll gain access to our classes and state-of-the-art training facilities found nowhere else in the world! We have resurrection services, just in case you meet with an unfortunate accident! Then there's the ultra-exclusive Adventurer Guild store, where points earned with the guild go towards purchasing the finest in magic items and equipment from the Sorcerous Kingdom!"

Ishpen's heavy breathing filled the silence that followed, and Ilyshn'ish absently fished around for the opening of her Infinite Haversack. Her mind was swimming – she didn't know what most of it meant; she needed to write it all down. She did have some magical items from the Sorcerous Kingdom already…if she could get her claws on more, who knows how powerful she would become? She might at least be able to purchase a greater measure of protection than she currently had.

"All you have to do is sign here, Miss Shiver," Ishpen dangled the sheet of paper in her hands between them, "and the fantastic life of an Adventurer is yours!"

"I…I, uh…but I already work for Lady Shalltear," Ilyshn'ish told her.

"Well, so does Ludmila," Ishpen said. "You could have a special arrangement just like her."

Ilyshn'ish's pen slowly rose.

"No, wait," the pen lowered again. "I need to speak with her first…she keeps me busy, after all, so I don't know if I have any time."

Ishpen's cheek twitched, and Mister Ainzach cleared his throat.

"Let's leave it at that," He said. "Honestly, it looks like you're interested, but, if you need to consult with Lady Shalltear, then it's probably best to do that first. I don't want the Adventurer Guild stepping on the toes of the Royal Court if I can help it. I have no idea what your schedule's like, but if she was willing to send a busy noble like Ludmila over to us, chances are that you'll be able to join as well."