For a player, the most important thing is leveling up by defeating monsters.
But that's only true inside a game!
In this real otherworld, especially when your level is extremely low, "safety" is the most important thing for Saelran!
The "Royal Tournament" had ended, and civilians as well as adventurers who had gathered to watch the battles were beginning to leave one after another.
Saelran had no status in the capital. He hadn't been investigated yet for the battle between Gareth and Serik.
Once the capital returned to normal, an outsider like him would easily draw attention, especially since there was no suitable place to level up here.
For his next plan Saelran intended to head toward the border city "Antara" in the Kingdom of Avendele, but he knew far too little about the situation of this world.
There was a high possibility of danger along the way.
Therefore, Saelran went to the Adventurers' Guild to look for an adventurer team that was also heading toward Antara.
In the capital...
Besides the luxurious buildings near the nobles quarter in the city center, the other major structures were the Adventurers Guild and the Magician Guild, both located in the commoners district.
Thus, finding the Adventurers Guild was not difficult.
Their placement alone showed that neither guild was highly regarded by the kingdom's authorities.
The Kingdom of Avendele and the Jarahat Empire had very different national identities.
The Jarahat Empire placed tremendous value on magic, while the Kingdom of Avendele, on the contrary, revered courageous warriors.
The primary reason for this stark difference was the presence of Orvelio Thamizar, known as the "Court Archmage," the "Immortal Sage," and one of the only four extremely humans who had surpassed the Heroic Realm.
He had lived for more than 350 years, teaching and assisting from the first emperor of the Jarahat Empire all the way to the current "Tyrant" Emperor.
His influence naturally shaped the empire's obsession with magic.
Saelran remembered that Orvelio possessed the Advanced-tier Job "Eternal," and had achieved "immortality" through a magical ritual associated with that profession.
"There's another Advanced-tier Job I need to plan for, once I head into the Jarahat Empire," Saelran thought to himself.
The Adventurers' Guild was located in the outer civilian district—a striking, four-story square tower.
When Saelran arrived, he could clearly see people coming and going through the main entrance.
He paused briefly, then stepped inside.
In an instant, a bustling atmosphere washed over him.
The interior of the guild was spacious.
Even with the large crowd, the hall didn't feel cramped, because it was hardly decorated at all.
The entire guild floor was made of wood, and a large chandelier hung from the ceiling.
Directly across the entrance sat a large reception counter where staff members were speaking with several adventurer teams.
As Saelran entered the guild, he noticed several pairs of eyes land on him, but after a moment of observation, everyone looked away.
Saelran could guess why.
His shabby clothing made him look neither like a skilled adventurer nor a wealthy client.
Naturally, no one paid him any attention.
This was precisely why Saelran dressed like this, to avoid attracting attention.
"What about this mission?"
"The reward's too low, and the Guild takes 20%. After splitting it, we barely get anything."
"Why not take this one instead?"
"Hiss! this one requires a Rank D team, right? We're probably not qualified."
"No, it's not actually dangerous; it's just a long-distance escort mission."
"Hehe, the reward may be low compared to other missions of the same level, but with all the missions we've collected so far and if we complete this one!"
"We should be able to reach Rank D!"
Lively voices echoed from beneath a Quest board where Announcement board hung on the guild wall.
Saelran walked toward the front counter. Since other teams were already waiting, he had to join the queue.
While observing his surroundings, Saelran recalled what he knew about adventurers from the game.
If the system was the same as in Oblivion Gate, the Adventurers Guild divided teams into eight ranks—G, F, E, D, C, B, A, and S!
Such an uncreative naming system… Either the developers were lazy or there was some other reason Saelran didn't know.
These eight ranks weren't even strictly organized; no matter how strong a team was, everyone who registered with the Adventurers' Guild started from Rank G.
Of course, unless someone was deliberately hiding their strength or had no intention of ranking up, a team's rank still reflected its basic capabilities.
He didn't wait long.
Soon it was Saelran's turn. The receptionist in front of him wasn't very old—a girl with slightly curly brown hair and brown eyes.
She looked about the same age as Saelran, perhaps sixteen or seventeen.
"Hello, what is the name of your adventurer team?" the brown-haired girl asked politely, showing no odd reaction to his shabby appearance or foreign look.
"I don't have an adventurer team. I just want to ask something," Saelran replied gently.
"Oh, you want to register an adventurer team?" The girl seemed to misunderstand and quickly bowed, pulling out a slightly yellowed sheet of coarse paper.
"I'm not planning to register a team."
"I just want to ask if there are any caravans or adventurer teams heading toward 'Antara,'"
Saelran waved his hand and clarified.
"Ah?"
The brown-haired girl froze for a moment, still holding the form, then turned back toward him. Her gaze lingered on the short sword and waterskin at Saelran's waist, and a faint look of understanding appeared.
"You're here to watch the 'Royal Tournament,' right? Did you come all the way from a border town?"
"Impressive, traveling so far on your own."
"Five copper coins."
Still lost in her assumption, the girl extended her rough hand toward Saelran.
"Five copper coins?"
Saelran was stunned, a bit confused.
If he weren't completely unfamiliar with this world's writing system, he wouldn't have bothered asking a receptionist.
He had gone through more than ten years of schooling in his past life, yet here, he was effectively illiterate.
"Of course, this is the Adventurers' Guild."
"For non-adventurers, any consultation costs money. Nothing is 'free' here."
A serious expression appeared on the girl's face.
As a large transnational organization untethered to any nation, the Adventurers' Guild's power didn't come solely from its strong adventurers.
It was a covert intelligence network built from its vast membership.
Naturally, outsiders had to pay for such information and much of that information was priceless.
This was why nobles and governments disliked the guild, yet still cooperated with it in secret.
Saelran remembered that there was some nation behind the Adventurers' Guild.