The central atrium of the Adventurers Guild hummed like an agitated hornets' nest under the pale morning sun.
Word of the morning council bulletin spread through the capital's lower districts faster than grease fire, drawing hundreds of veterans into the high-vaulted stone hall.
The illuminated notice board near the eastern arches proudly displayed the new registry standings, where Hajin's name gleamed beside rank four hundred and twenty-five.
Veterans who spent fifteen grueling years clawing their way into the four-hundreds clustered beneath the display, debating the sudden promotion in hushed, caustic tones.
"A rank-and-file contractor does not leap eight hundred places overnight without buying an archduke's favor or bringing back a demon general's head!" an armored berserker muttered.
"The boy took down the rift vanguard while the metropolitan regiments were still fumbling with their shield formations, so shut your mouth!" a one-eyed archer replied.
