"What just happened? Is he dead?" I muttered to myself in bemusement.

"No, he’s just unconscious," Came the receptionist’s voice from behind me.

Damn it, I was so caught off-guard by the old guy collapsing so suddenly that I forgot to keep an eye out for her sneaking up to me again.

"Why, though?" I asked her in bewilderment.

"Fatigue to Adrenaline Conversion. It’s a powerful Skill that’s more effective the more exhausted you are...however, it only lasts for a short period of time, and once it wears off, all that exhaustion abruptly hits the user in an instant, and more often than not, renders them unconscious," She explained in response.

"Huh, so that’s how it works. So, hey, what’s the result of this duel? I’m guessing this counts as a loss for me?" I inquired, as I felt a hint of frustration.

"No, not quite. Technically speaking, you weren’t defeated, so you do pass. However, at my discretion, I believe that this concludes your ranking exam. Given a few more seconds, you would almost certainly have lost that duel, therefore, while you qualify for a Gold rank, you can’t continue any further with the exam," She decided, after mulling it over.

Hm, I see, so they don’t strictly adhere to the rules. In unusual cases like this one, they have the freedom to make judgement calls and tailor the result according to the situation.

"Yeah, I guess that’s fair. After all, if I struggled against a Gold rank, I doubt I’d stand a chance against Platinum or Diamond," I sighed wistfully.

"Actually, I believe that, in terms of ability, you’re just about at Platinum level. You see, this man was a Platinum rank before, he was only recently demoted to Gold as his age had led to a deterioration in performance.

That said, his abilties are barely below Platinum rank even now, and then there’s his experience, of course. So, against the average Gold rank, you would likely win quite comfortably," She surmised in response.

You couldn’t have pitted me against a so-called average Gold rank instead, then? Well, whatever, I suppose it worked out. I’m happy with landing at Gold rank. Starting out at Platinum or higher would only draw attention to me, heck, I doubt that this Gold rank won’t make people take notice of me as it is.

"And I’m guessing I don’t stand a chance against a Platinum or Diamond rank, huh?" I sighed wistfully.

"Well, not necessarily. If I may evaluate you based on what I’ve seen...you prefer to avoid direct confrontation and instead try to attack from a distance, so depending on your opponent’s fighting style, along with factors like underestimation of you and such, you could conceivably defeat someone of a higher rank.

I believe that your abilities in a direct confrontation are approximately at the level of an average Gold rank, while your overall abilities are not too far below Platinum. However, there is also your lack of experience to consider, therefore, I thought Gold would be the most appropriate rank for you," She surmised objectively.

Yeah, I guess that makes sense. Still, though...I’ve got a lot of questions about her, she’s definitely not just some receptionist.

"If you don’t mind me asking...what rank are you?" I inquired, deciding to get straight to the point.

"Oh? What makes you think I’m an Adventurer?" She responded with a raised eyebrow.

"You’re way too good at sneaking around, for one thing. And there’s also this," I replied, as I suddenly fired out a rock bullet at her.

In the blink of an eye, she used her clipboard to bat it away with an incredible reaction speed, before her eyes widened as the projectile turned to sand upon impact.

"What the...?" She muttered in bemusement.

"I made that rock super brittle so that it’d crumble with even the weakest of impacts. In other words, if it had hit you, you would barely have felt a thing," I explained, before adding with a smirk, "Gotta say, that was some reaction time, it was barely even half a second."

"Well, now, I didn’t think you’d do that. Hm, I think you’ll make a fine addition to our Guild," She smiled with a gleam in her eyes.

Huh, now that I take a closer look, she’s really hot. I did think she was attractive at first glance, but that’s putting it lightly now that I’ve gotten a better look at her. Dark hair, nice curves, older than me, and super strong. Totally my type.

"Oh, uh, thanks. But I don’t plan on staying in this town for very long, I’ll probably leave after a few days," I informed her.

"Ah, that’s a shame, but it’s not a big deal. The Guild in which you initially register at as an Adventurer is the Guild that you officially belong to, you see."

"What does that mean, exactly? Like, for instance, what’s the difference between taking on a quest from the Guild I first registered at and taking on a quest from a different Guild?" I inquired curiously.

"Well, there are several factors to keep in mind. For starters, if you take a quest here, you can select quests that are one level above your rank, and if an Adventurer registered to another Guild is also after that same quest, you’ll get priority over them.

Additionally, when taking on quests from a different Guild, you can only pick ones that are at the same level as your rank or lower. On top of that, when it comes to the reward, a different Guild will take ten percent of it, while rewards from completed quests taken from the Guild you’re registered with will be yours entirely.

Furthermore, if you violate any regulations, other Guilds can only ban you from their own establishments. But we can permanently blacklist you as an Adventurer, if that happens, you won’t ever be able to register again.

Of course, that’s extremely rare, it’s been decades since we’ve given out any punishments more extreme than a few days suspension for minor offences.

And finally, when it comes to promotions to higher ranks, only the Guild that you’re registered with can promote you. Other Guilds can provide recommendations for you to be promoted, but only we can actually promote you," She concluded her explanation.

"Ohh, so that’s how it works," I nodded, after taking a second to process all that.

"Basically, it’s best to register at a Guild close to where you’ll be residing. So, if you plan on settling down somewhere, it’ll be best to register at a Guild that’s close to that location. If that’s the case, and you decide to register at a different Guild, we can provide you with a recommendation for a Gold rank, but you’ll likely be tested again regardless," She informed me.

"Nah, there’s no need, I’ll just register here. I’m probably gonna be on the move for the foreseeable future with no plans for settling down anytime soon, so it doesn’t really matter," I shrugged, after mulling it over.

And besides, it’ll be a waste to turn her down after going through the exam, not to mention that it’ll be a pain to have to go through it all over again.

"Very well, then. Follow me, and we’ll get the registration process underway," She remarked, as she began heading for the exit. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"Sure, sounds good. And hey, you never answered my question. What rank are you?" I inquired as I followed after her.

"Hm, good question. What do you think my rank is?" She smiled secretively.

Damn, that was pretty hot.

"I mean, it has to be at least Platinum. Don’t suppose I could challenge you to a duel?" I responded wryly.

"Well, you certainly could, but for a duel to take place, both parties have to agree to it."

Ah, so in other words, she’ll turn me down if I challenge her. And it looks like she doesn’t want to reveal what her rank is. Which is kinda strange...I mean, if she’s at one of the two highest ranks an Adventurer can be, then surely she’s well known around here, right?

Weird. Unless...

"I don’t suppose you, like, thoroughly disguise yourself when you’re taking on quests, do you? Assuming today’s a day off for you, and you’re not in your usual ensemble as an Adventurer. Well, it is kinda weird that a high ranked Adventurer would work as a receptionist, but then again, it does make sense...who better to judge new talent than an experienced, high ranked Adventurer, right?" I surmised, kinda making it up as I went along.

But as I watched her expression carefully while I spoke, I noticed a brief, slight shift in her expression. No way...did I actually hit the nail on the head? Damn, I was just spit balling, maybe I’ve got a knack for this.

"That’s, uh...certainly a theory," She nodded nonchalantly.

Heh, I think I’ll milk this a bit more, it’s kinda fun.

"I wonder, if I ask around about a high ranked Adventurer who hides their face...," I trailed off with a smirk.

"You know, what? You just might be a bit too smart for your own good, kid," She responded with a wry smile.

Uh, was that a threat? Maybe, maybe not...either way, I think the smart thing to do right now would be to drop this topic for the time being...

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