The guild door opened with a heavy sound. The moment I entered, the smell of alcohol, sweat, and burnt metal immediately hit my face.
The room was wide, filled with the sound of clinking glasses, loud laughter, and heated arguments between adventurers.
And just as I expected…
The atmosphere instantly quieted when they saw me.
"Another mist stray…"
"Again?"
"White hair… that's Lyona, right?"
Those whispers stabbed into my ears.
But Lyona kept walking tall. There was no sign that she paid attention to them, let alone feared them. Her steps were steady, cold, and focused.
She was a solo adventurer. No mentor, no team, and needed no one's help.
Didn't need the guild master to welcome her.
Didn't need a big figure.
Her reputation was built by herself.
I followed behind her, trying not to look too nervous.
---
Registration Desk
The short-haired blonde woman at the registration desk—maybe in her mid-twenties—glanced at us with a professional look. Her name was Rinea, seen from the small nameplate on her clothes.
"Is there someone you want to register?"
Lyona pointed at me. "Him. A mist stray from the northern rift."
Rinea's expression immediately changed.
Sharper. More cautious.
She picked up an energy-measuring crystal and directed it toward me. The stone on the tip of the crystal emitted a faint glow.
The light throbbed… then shifted into small fluctuations.
"…unstable," Rinea murmured. "But not dangerous. At least not yet."
I swallowed hard.
"Name?" Rinea asked.
"Makoto."
"Age?"
"Eighteen… I think."
Rinea nodded and began writing.
But when she tapped the tip of the crystal on the registration board…
The crystal suddenly glowed brighter than it should.
Rinea froze. "Temporal reaction…? Impossible."
"Why?" Lyona asked sharply.
Rinea looked at me for a long moment before answering.
"A reaction like this only appears if there's an old record similar to it. Usually… someone who has been registered before."
A chill ran down my spine. "You mean… there's another Makoto in this world?"
Rinea didn't answer.
She just bowed her head and continued the registration process with a tense expression.
---
Adventurer Card
"Put out your hand," Rinea said.
I placed my palm on top of the round crystal. A subtle vibration flowed from the device into the bones of my hand—cold, then warm, then like touching something invisible.
Blue light reflected in the air.
Words appeared:
Name : Makoto
Status : Mist Stray
Energy Condition : Unstable
Reflex : Anomaly
Risk : Medium
Notes : Requires monitoring
Some adventurers lining up behind us whispered instantly.
"Reflex anomaly? That's dangerous."
"A stray can explode if their flux mental-collapses."
"That white-haired girl brought another newbie?"
Lyona sighed and glanced at them. One look was enough to silence them.
Rinea handed me my card—a thin metal card in dark gray.
"Makoto. You may take missions from rank F to rank E for now," she said. "And remember: Verlyn is not friendly to mist strays. Don't use Flux without permission."
I nodded. "I understand."
---
Mission Board & First Threat
We walked to the large mission board full of scrolls. Adventurers crowded around it, fighting over jobs.
Lyona took a scroll posted slightly higher.
"Eastern forest mission?" I asked.
"Yes," she replied. "Wild animals approaching settlements. Rank C… but we're taking the light version, rank E."
I nodded.
But before Lyona could pull the scroll—
A big-bodied adventurer smacked the board, blocking her hand.
"Hey, Lyona," he said with a mocking smile. "You brought a mist stray? Seriously?"
Lyona looked at him coldly. "His reflexes are faster than someone like you."
The adventurer snorted. "If that kid explodes in the middle of a mission, who takes responsibility?"
"I do," Lyona replied without hesitation.
That sentence made the crowd fall silent for a moment.
The big adventurer raised both hands. "Alright. Don't blame us if the city rejects you later."
He walked away with a small laugh.
Lyona took the mission scroll and handed it to me.
"We'll start from here," she said.
I stared at the scroll, my hand trembling a little.
But somehow, for the first time… I felt like I could face something.
"Alright," I said. "Let's do it."
Lyona gave a faint smile—a smile she rarely showed.
And our adventure truly began.