Legend

Rather than a duel with Alogan...... 5 days from a farce. After noon that day Ray's appearance was inside a conference room on the second floor of the guild.

Yes, the conference room where I got an explanation from Bobbs about the Oak Crusaders.

And there are about five other adventurers in the conference room besides Ray. A total of six, including Ray. Those are the people who take the Rank Up exam to Rank D.

Note that some of them are Alogan, who did a farce with Ray and spread his name in the opposite sense of the original prospectus. At that moment when I gazed at Ray for coming into the conference room, if I saw him off my gaze with momentum, I'd know what kind of emotion Allogan has for Ray.

(Rank Up Exam)

The day before yesterday, it was Lenora who, as usual, came to the guild, calling out to Ray, who was already in charge. Reminds me of my conversation with Lenora at that time.

"Ah, Mr. Ray. It's a rank-up exam, but it starts tomorrow, so please come to the conference room after noon. '

'... that's rather steep. Wouldn't you normally let them know at more leisure?

'Well, it sure is. However, in this case it is only an adventurer's rank-up exam. Can't tell you to wait a little longer because you don't have time for urgent requests or anything?

'I see, you sure do. It's after noon tomorrow, right?

'Yes, taking a rank-up exam within less than a month of signing up for the guild is the fastest record in the city of the guild. Good luck with that.'

Remember that conversation and look to the people around you who will take the rank-up exam together.

First of all, I don't have to tell you, Allogan. Even though I said I scratched my shame on one of the other cases, I'm a Rank E demon swordsman, even if it rots. Regardless of his skill, he probably prefers the way he fights power pushes to having a fairly high-performance demon sword.

Second person. She cut her hair short to make it easier to move. He wears a leather armor made of some kind of monster skin to avoid inhibiting movement, just like that hair, and two daggers on his hips. I guess he's a bandit who does trap checks, reconnaissance, etc. Did you say late teens at your age?

Third person. He wears a robe similar to Ray's, and his hand holds a cane. A typical wizard type of man, with a wooden face somewhere. Seeing him sitting next to the second woman and talking with a grin, I guess he knows the second woman. At my age, I said late teens.

Fourth person. A warrior of a man with a sharp eye. The equipment itself is overwhelmingly inferior to a demonic sword like Allogan's, an ordinary longsword like the one he sells in the city, but from what Ray saw, it was felt above Allogan in his stature as a warrior. At my age, I felt like I was in my early 20s, one or two times higher than Alogan.

Fifth person. A woman sitting in a chair and meditating on her eyes. You can say your face is either straight or straight. Notably, its ears. Its ears, with their tips pointy larger than normal humans, had proven that the woman was an elf. And I guess I'm a bowman when I see a larger bow placed on the table in front of me. I said my appearance age was in my late teens.

(And me, huh? Okay, so what kind of tests are going to be done?)

When I think of it that way, I look at you and the bandit woman.

……

seconds for each other to stare at each other silently. Eventually the bandit woman opens her mouth as if she had lost her roots.

"What can I do for you?

"No, nothing in particular."

"But you were just staring at me. What could I do for you? Or what, maybe even a numb at a time like this?

"Hey, Cullot. Why are you suddenly involved? Uh, sorry. Cullott's nervous because he's taking his first rank-up exam. I'm glad you don't mind too much."

A bandit woman, a wizard man sitting next to a culot, comes down with a peck of his head, even as a replacement for a woman.

"Scola, why are you keeping your head down? This is the bad part, isn't it? Look at people as giddy with disgusting eyes."

"Uh, already. I'm sorry. I'm sorry about the book. No offense... I'm not saying, but I'm not usually so solid..."

"Never mind. At least I don't care."

"Oh, my God, I deserve something..."

"That's noisy."

A voice that sounded unintentionally, indoors that was noisy with Cullot's golden cuts. Regardless of Ray, who felt the person entering the conference room, the others turned their gaze reflexively toward those who spoke.

There was a middle-aged man in his 40s. However, it may be said that the forged body belongs to an active adventurer.

"Look, we're going to start explaining the rank-up exam. You ready to hear this?

(... that's the face I saw somewhere. Sure...... oh, when I rubbed it with the goblin's saliva)

Yes, what was there was Gran, the person who made me rank G by deciding that Ray's fighting power was enough when he rubbed it with the eagle's claws.

Reminds me of that face, Ray turns back to Gran to ignore Cullot.

Cullot also must have figured out who Gran was. Finally, when you stare at Ray only for a moment with a tight eye, you turn back towards Gran.

Next to it, Scola lowered her head toward Ray and then turned toward Gran.

"Well, looks like you're all ready to hear it. Now let's start explaining the rank-up exam to Rank D. First, I want you to fight each other once after this."

The moment Gran tells him that, Allogan turns to Ray with a ghoulish look, ignoring all the previous exchanges between Ray and Cullot without me.

It's only been five days since I was reminded of that difference in combat power. If I hit it with Ray, I'd subtly draw blood off my face if I didn't have a winning eye first.

But Gran keeps talking as if to reassure an alogan like that.

"That said, just because you lose that battle doesn't disqualify you from the instant rank-up exam.... Well, I don't deny that it serves as a reference for the assessment. The main purpose of the battle is for you to know each other's strengths. So, it turns out that there is a bandit Negijo about two days from here, although it's a key rank-up test. This bandit crusade is part of the rank-up test."

The bandit crusade, said, quiets in the conference room with Sin.

Basically, the people here take the Rank Up exam to Rank D, so most of them only take requests below Rank E. Once the guild regularly gets one request above its own rank, very few people actually get a request for Rank D because the senior adventurers have heard of the existence of a wall between E and D.

And requests below Rank E and requests above Rank D. The clear difference there is that crusaders have people like bandits and bounty necks in them.

Even in this world where fighting monsters is a daily tea meal, many people still learn to resist the practice of killing people. Therefore, requests to deal with people like bandits and prize neck crusades are positioned above Rank D.

"As far as that goes, we all seem to know, but rarely do requests above Rank D come in for jobs like bandit crusades, or merchant or traveler escorts. That's how I got the request, and because I hesitated to kill my enemies at times of need, they attacked me backwards and killed my buddies and escorts, because it would suck if it happened. The former still pertains to the trust of the entire Adventurer Guild in the latter case as well. That's why the Rank Up exam to get up to D-Rank is basically asking you to kill people."

Only Grand's words echo inside the conference room, and those who challenge the rank-up exam listen to it.

However, among them, Ray was not as nervous as the others. Either way, you're on an oak crusade with four of the Dark Stars in your hand. Sure, killing people wasn't the kind of thing I wanted to do, but that's not why I have the weakness to hesitate when I have to say it.

And one more.

(Is that him, too?)

At the end of Ray's gaze are the warriors of those who are not alogans. It looks like you're focusing and listening to Gran, but it's not an atmosphere where you're visibly nervous like the others. Ray somehow understood that he probably had the same experience of killing people.

"Well, you got the story. Then get each of you to fight fast. Naturally, you're here for an exam, so you're bringing the weapon you use, right? Follow me."

Tell him so, Gran leaving the conference room. Then Ray and the others follow him again.

"Look, when it comes to combat, the training ground is in the back of the Alliance, so we'll do it there."

"Training grounds?

Cullot, walking nearby, turns a frightened gaze at Ray's words, who shrugged inadvertently.

"I was frightened. You don't even know the training ground behind the guild? That's how well you got up to Rank E."

"Uh, already. Why are you so stuck with this guy? Sorry, it would help if you didn't mind about Cullot"

"Never mind."

Think about the training ground while smiling bitterly at the combination of those two.

(It's called Goblin's Amber, it's called Allogan, why don't you go out of your way to get in front of the Alliance when you fight me... oh well. You wanted to show the wild horse where you'd win and expose me)

Somehow understand, follow the gran to the first floor of the guild. So I saw Ray, Kenny coming small and waved, and he goes outside through the back door of the guild with a small bitterness at Lenora, who's putting such a penetration into Kenny.

Moving on for a few minutes as it was, I could see the training ground Gran was talking about.

That said, it is not particularly well equipped. It just fenced and enclosed a large space, and the roof didn't even exist.

The size of the training station itself is considerable, and that is the extent to which there is still going to be room for mock warfare between the Knights. And now there are about 10 potatoes and 10 people in that training center to train each of them.

"Hmm? Hey, what's that group?

"Uh, look. Gran's leading the rookie, which probably means a rank-up exam."

"Oh, I see."

Ray can also hear the adventurers who were shooting at each other with their swords and spears. The other trainers were interested, and their gaze was focused on all the Grans.

Gran travels to the middle of the training center just wondering if he knows such a gaze or something.

But I can't do that either. Because this is what happens every time I take a rank-up exam. Anyway, if we can pull promising rookies through here to our own parties, we just want a few rookies who can be considered capable primary stones as adventurers partying, even if they are more likely to survive a dangerous request.

"Look, you guys. Don't let the gaze around you distract you. Even though the results of the simulated battles that we're going to perform are not directly linked to the results of the exam, it doesn't change the reference. Let's start by introducing ourselves, one by one: name, profession, skills that can be known in order. First, it's from you."

The person Grand nominated, that was Ray who should be called scheduled harmony.

Niyali, opens his mouth even as he smiles bitterly at Gran with a grin.

"It's Ray. The profession is a magic warrior. The best weapon..."

Remove the Death Size from the Mystering and shake it. Just a swing. Only then will the gaze of those in the training field be nailed to Ray and Death Size.

"This sickle, it's Death Size. I specialize in that and flaming magic.... even with regard to Tame?

You're not even here to talk about Seto? and asks darkly, Gran nods back small.

"I'm also taming one other monster. I'm sure some of them know a lot, but they're griffons who often fall asleep in guild carriage spaces."

"Hey! So you're the Oak King killer!?

Griffon, did you understand Ray's identity with the word? Curlot screams unexpectedly.

"Hey, Oak King killer for sure..."

"Oh, yeah. Sure, there was talk of an adventurer like Ray setting up an oak king, but I heard about Rank G."

"Then you go from G to E all at once for the feat of defeating Oak King to D in the rank-up exam?

I hear voices like that coming from around here and there, but that was the same for the non-Allogan Rank Up exam participants.

"Look, I know you're making a scene, but I'm not done introducing myself yet. Next, you."

Pampan, and Gran, who clapped his hand and caught everyone's attention, was the next to nominate a female bandit Cullot.

Cullott, who was staring at Ray flashly, returns to me with his back poked by Scola, who is lying beside him.

"I'm Cullot. The occupation is banditry. As you can see, a good weapon is a dagger. As for my skills... I specialize in reconnaissance and setting traps."

"I see, a bandit. That sounds like a lot of work for this exam. Next"

The next thing I was instructed was Scola, next to Cullot.

"I'm Scola. My profession is a wizard, and I wonder if I have any particular weapons to specialize in. When it comes to magic, you can use water, wind, healing magic."

I will finish introducing myself even though I am subtly nervous because it was noticed not only by the Rank Up Exam participants but also by other adventurers in the training field.

I turn my gaze to Scola as Gran was impressed to hear that explanation.

"Well, besides attacking magic, can you also use healing magic? This could be promising in the future."

A wizard is basically that those who are good at attack magic are not good at restorative magic, and those who are equally good at restorative magic are generally not good at attack magic. So Scola, who is fit for both attack and recovery, is one of the few wizards among the adventurers. It was no exaggeration to say that there was even more scarcity among the wizards.

"Our party caught his eye."

"Come on, let's get out of here."

"These are the early winners," he said.

I guess I'm still glad to hear myself appreciated while I hear that voice. Scola blushes her cheeks, grins and leans into the sun.

"Next"

The next person nominated was Alogan. While I care about Ray's gaze, I deliberately try not to care and open my mouth.

"I'm Alogan. Swordsman. The weapon is this demon sword. It's not about skill, but it's about direct aggression."

"You're a Demon Swordsman in Rank E, and you look like a Demon Sword with a lot of power.... if you can use it, you'll have something to keep an eye on."

Did you know Ray and I were hanging out the other day, and now you smell like treasure rotting? Gran turns to the next person.

Arogan, hearing the words, silences without even slightly frowning back.

"Next"

The next person to be nominated was a sharp-eyed swordsman man who seemed to have experience killing the only other person besides Ray.

"Spelvia, he's a swordsman. Weapons are not particularly so-called like the allogans introduced earlier in this long sword. Skills are nothing but a swordsman."

"... I see. You don't seem to have any problems with your arm. Next"

Chirali, nodding small to see if you spotted Spelvia's arm just by glancing at him and turning your gaze towards the last one.

The elf woman carrying the big bow takes Gran's gaze and then opens her mouth with a small nod.

"Firma Patrono. The main weapon uses a bow. Maybe a Ranger, or a Spirit Wizard, professionally. Skills can use some spiritual magic, as I said today."

Adventurers at the training center who once again bother with the words. That would be natural, too. It's not just the beauty of an elf that rarely comes out of a man's city in a cage in the woods, it's because spiritual magic can also be used.

Elves are known to be masters of bows, from old men to children. He is also superior as a wizard from having greater magic than a human being, but few people can use both. Its rarity is no less than Scola's ability to use both earlier attack and healing magic.

And Firma Patrono. Having a last name indicated that it was out of quite a few houses in the Elf world as well.

Gran also has a niggling grin on his mouth when he hears Firma introduce himself.

"Hmm. Even though it's rare to just be an elf, do you use bows and spiritual magic? It's called Ray, it's called Scola, it's a lot of work this time."

So whine and take a glance at the test participants who have finished introducing themselves.

"Now, a brief introduction would be fine. Next, we'll have each other play a mock fight to get an idea of their strengths. Basically, you're the only ones doing the bandit crusade. He told me to get used to it rather than learn. The first game is...... Ray and Spelvia"

Gran said so and nominated two people, Ray and Spelvia.