I headed from the gate straight to the guildhall. Everyone’s gazes fell on me all at once. They all turned away when I looked back. Since none of them would say anything to me, I headed to the front desk.
“Ms. Yuna, what business do you have with us today?” Helen asked me, so I headed towards her desk.
“I defeated some wolves in the woods, so I’m wondering what I should do in this situation. If there’s a quest form on the board and I accept it, would I fulfill it right away?”
“If the quest contents just ask for the slaying of the monsters, then you would receive a quest success for bringing in mana gems as proof of slaying. However, it is a strict requirement that the mana gems be provided within a specific timeframe.”
“A timeframe?”
“Because it would be an issue if someone brought in mana gems from monsters slain a month ago for a quest that came in today.”
“Can you tell?”
“Yes, we can.”
I shouldn’t have expected less from a fantasy world.
“Wolf slaying is a standing quest, so we can accept them at any time. However, you must also have their meat and pelts. You can feed a family for a day off the meat and such—it’s a staple here—and the pelts are used for clothing and such. That’s why it’s a standing quest.”
“In that case, can I ask for that wolf quest?”
“Yes, one wolf is F-rank. Three would be considered E-rank.”
“Really. Well, I’ve got forty for the time being, so could you take them?”
“…Ms. Yuna, what did you just say?”
I could hear voices whispering behind me. “She says she’s got forty wolves.” “That’s got to be a joke.” “How would a single person defeat them?” “But it’s that bear.” “Then it’s believable.” “I haven’t seen that bear in a fight.” “I saw it. Don’t get on the wrong side of that bear.”
They went on and on like that.
“Sorry,” said Helen, “but where might they be? We can’t accept just the mana gems.”
“I haven’t harvested them, but I’ve got them right here in my bottomless bag.”
“You have a bottomless bag? And one that’s big enough for forty wolves? In that case, I’m sorry, but could you come to the building next door?”
Helen led me to the neighboring building. Some guys followed behind me, probably looking forward to seeing the show. We were heading to the place where Fina and I had sold the wolf materials earlier, but I didn’t see Mr. Gentz. A different man greeted us. From where I was, I couldn’t tell if he had the day off or was in the back.
“Ms. Helen, what is it?” The male employee noticed Helen and came over to us.
“I’ve brought wolves, so could you handle them?”
“No problem. We’re not butchering anything in the warehouse at the moment.”
“In that case, Ms. Yuna, please take them out here.”
I started pulling the wolf carcasses out of my bear storage. I’d learned something important while I was stowing all those bodies: I could pull them out without putting my hand in the white bear’s mouth by visualizing what I wanted to retrieve. I held my hand over the counter and thought of wolves.
I was glad I didn’t need to touch them.
Behind me, my entourage was whispering again. “There really are forty wolves.” “Can’t expect less of the bear.” “Mess with the bear and you’ll end up like those wolves.” “I want her to punch me.” “I want her to step on me.”
It took all the resolve I still had to ignore that last part.
“I think this is it.”
“M-Ms. Yuna, did you really defeat these all by yourself?”
“I was practicing magic.”
Helen counted the wolves. “Forty-two. Looks like the meat and pelts are in good condition. We’ll also need to buy the mana gems off you; is that okay?”
“I don’t mind, but can you actually use wolf mana gems?”
“Yes. Wolf mana gems aren’t that powerful, but they’re versatile. You can make a passable lamp with one of them and a light enchantment; do the same with water and you can draw a few drams from one at a time.”
In WFO you only really saw people use these sorts of items as weapon mats, and they were only worth caring about if they were strong, but here it seemed like even the trash tier mats had practical, day-to-day value.
“We’ll go through the formalities next, so if you could come back into the guild?”
When I turned around, the peanut gallery of adventurers was all agog. For the sake of not hearing any more twisted remarks, I ignored them and followed Helen.
“We’ll count this as an E-rank quest—could you show me your guild card?”
I handed her my card. Once she had it in her hands, she looked up at me again.
“Can I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
“Did you defeat those wolves one at a time?”
“I fought the whole pack.”
“So, it was a group of forty…that would make it a D-rank quest. Please wait a moment. I’ll go consult the guild master.”
Helen came back from the back room almost immediately.
“Since you achieved the quest of slaying wolves for E-rank fourteen times, we will promote you to E-rank.”
“Are you sure?”
“I received permission from the guild master. You can fight at D-rank level all by yourself, so you’re more than qualified.”
“Well, it’s not like I’m gonna turn you down.”
“We’ll process it right now, then.” She reached inside the counter. “First, this will be your retainer. That will be for the meat, pelts, and mana gems of forty-two wolves. Since the wolves hadn’t been butchered, we will take twenty percent.”
This must be what Fina was talking about. The twenty percent was probably the handling fee, since normal adventurers brought their stuff in already butchered. I nodded at Helen, took the leather purse with my pay, then put it in the bear storage. Lastly, I put my guild card in, too.
“You’re E-rank, now. Please keep up the good work.”
“Thanks.”
Once I was done selling stuff, I went back to my room at the inn. I
