The receptionist Alina Clover loves her peace and quiet. She doesn’t want to live in a large mansion or anything like that. She has no interest in becoming rich or marrying into wealth. Nor does she need a life full of ups and downs. She just wants to live a reasonable life, enjoy her time reasonably and live peacefully every day.
That is why she chose to work as a receptionist. It is their job to see off the adventurers on their way to the perilous dungeons. The work is safe and stable, and what’s more, they’re civil servants, so they don’t have to worry about losing their job or salary.
Indeed, the moment she became a receptionist, Alina’s life of peace and quiet was all but guaranteed. While adventurers risk their lives in the dungeons day and night, Alina, dressed in her cute receptionist uniform, sits comfortably at the quest counter with a smile on her face, carrying out her duties at a leisurely pace and going home when her shift is up.
Or that’s what she thought, until the very moment she became one.
‘Next client please!!!’
In a voice that was about a hundred times more threatening than she would’ve liked, Alina yelled for the next person to come forward.
Her long black hair was dishevelled as she glared at the adventurers with a furious expression, not even having the time to fix the forelocks that had fallen over her face. There was no sign of the graceful receptionist, no sign of the receptionist who went about her duties at a leisurely pace.
‘Next client!! Please!!’
Alina’s roar thundered over the heads of the tumultuous adventurers. No, she wasn’t angry. There was no way that a receptionist, who always accepted an adventurer’s quest with a smile and gently bid them farewell, could be angry. But this wasn’t the time for such carefree talk. If she didn’t raise her voice, she couldn’t get on with her work.
The reason for this is that Iführ Counter, one of the guild’s many branch offices in the metropolis of Iführ and the one that takes the most quests of all, is currently engulfed in the din reminiscent of a battlefield and so packed with adventurers you could barely take a step forward.
‘Is it finally my turn?’
However, within this reception office, which was the picture of pandemonium, the adventurer responding to Alina’s call strolled calmly up to the counter, seemingly unaware of the chaos around him. A vanguard with a large build approached Alina with a metallic clang, clang as if to show off his iron heavy armour. The well-worn black battleaxe on his back glowed faintly, and he gave the impression of an adventurer who had seen many battles.
‘Oi, isn’t he–’
‘Isn’t that Ganz of the Atrocious Edge!?’
‘Crikey! ‘E’s the elite of the guild. First time oi’ve seen ‘im!’
A wave of excitement spread among the adventurers in the back who had realised the identity of this man. The face of the person they called Ganz was hidden beneath an iron helmet, but when Alina saw his black-painted battleaxe, she too figured out who they were. A distinctive magic circle modeled after the sun was carved in his battleaxe and blinked with a faint glow. This wasn’t a weapon that could be made with today’s smithing technology—it gave off an aura that was distinctly different from the mass-produced weapons that were widely available on the market. This was a relic arms, a weapon among weapons. Of course, this wasn’t the sort of thing your run of the mill adventurer could simply carry around. This was the kind of unique treasure that only those who had dared to brave dangerous dungeons and defeat horrible monsters could own. But even without such a eye-catching feature, as a receptionist who has to deal with many adventurers every day Alina has—whether she likes to or not—memorised the appearance of all famous adventurers. However…
Get your arse over here already, you slug!
That was the only thing Alina thought when she saw him, while cursing her bad luck. There were four other counters besides the one Alina was in charge of. Why, out of all the counters, did this braggart have to come to mine? Those dark words briefly flashed through her mind, but they didn’t pass her lips, which were tightly set in a business smile. Instead, she shook her dishevelled hair a little and addressed the man in a higher voice.
‘Welcome. Please choose the quest you would like to receive.’
‘I want to defeat the hellflame dragon, the second floor boss in the Belfra underground ruins. Take care of it.’
There was a loud “ooh!” from the adventurers, who had been listening to Ganz’s every word and action.
‘Finally the guild’s finest party sets out to defeat the boss in the underground ruins!’
‘It’s checkmate for that dragon!’
‘There ain’t a damn thing Ganz of the atrocious edge can’t cut!’
After listening listening to their words with satisfaction for a while, Ganz puffed out his chest as if he were bending backwards. The crest on his armour, showing two crossed swords, glittered brilliantly. It was the mark of the elite party where strongest among adventurers gathered: the Silver Blades.
‘It seems that they are placing all their expectations on us. Well, this dungeon is taking a long time to conquer. It’s no wonder they come to rely on our Silver Blades.’
‘Yes, I suppose so.’
While his words went into her one ear and out of the other Alice quickly got the quest commission forms ready. At the same time, she muttered in a low voice that Ganz could not hear:
‘What’s taking you so long, capturing those ruins?’
‘Eh?’
‘No, it’s nothing. Now then, if you’re going to participate as a four person party, you’ll need a second rank license card. In case you’re going solo that’ll have to be a first rank license. Please present your card and sign the commission form.’
While quickly rattling off the business boilerplate as if it were a tongue twister Arina handed him the form. She wanted him to quickly fill in the form already but Ganz, from beneath his iron helmet, sniffed conceitedly and made no attempts to grab the feather pen.
‘I’m a member of the Silver Blades. If you’re a receptionist you should know my rank without having to explicitly check my license, right?’
Would you shut your trap!
‘I am of course aware of your rank, sir. However, whatever your rank, it doesn’t change the fact that being an adventurer means being exposed to danger.’
With great difficulty she kept herself from giving him an earful and just barely managed to keep smiling
‘It is my duty as a receptionist to make sure that you are able to take on the dungeon you wish to challenge, so that you don’t expose your life to unnecessary danger. We only ask adventurers to present their licenses in order to protect their lives.’
Of course Alisa knew Ganz’s rank. His battleaxe, a relic arm, made that more than evident. The Ancesters, who once flourishing on this continent before perishing overnight, left behind their relics, among which the relic arms. Made with the Ancestors’ advanced technology, they excel in both offensive capabilities, durability, and strength compared to any weapon made today.
The excellent vanguard of the Silver Blades has so far used his relic weapon to slaughter numerous bosses with such ferocity that earned him the title of Atrocious Edge.
Regardless, adventurers who don’t show their licence cards will not be allowed to take on quests, according to guild regulation.
‘That right? Well in that case–’
Even after Alina’s kind and thorough explanation, Ganz appeared somewhat discontent. With a metallic clang, he took off his helmet and placed it on the desk. The face that emerged had a thick full beard and finely chiselled features.
‘Is this good enough?’
‘Please present your license.’
‘… My name is Gan–’
‘Please present your license.’
‘…’
‘Please present your license.’
After being told three times, Ganz seemed to finally give in and took out his license. Elite or Violent Blade, to Alina, who had to deal with the many adventurers who were waiting to receive their quests, it didn’t matter.
‘Hmpf. A rookie, huh? Well I suppose it can’t be helped.’
Alina took a quick glance at the silver license card placed on the counter.
‘Thank you for presenting your card. One party to the second floor. If you consent to the content here, please sign the commission form.’
Leaving no room for protest, Alina forced the pen and form on Ganz, who reluctantly filled it in.
‘With that, have a good day!’
As soon as she took the now filled-in form and showed Ganz her stuck-on business smile Alina tossed it in a box to the side. She really needed to process the document further, but with the long queue behind Ganz snaking into the distance, she didn’t think she had the time.
‘Sorry to keep you waiting, next client please!’
