“No!”
“Why not?”
“I barely make enough to maintain my own weapons and gear, so I am not giving you any money!”
“It is not mine anyway.”
Kaguya stammered out her excuses in a fluster, sounding like someone whose secret had just been exposed.
Seeing right through her, Mizuki simply smiled.
“Hahaha!”
“I get it, do not worry. Once your husband here starts making real money, I will pay you back double.”
*I cannot stay here any longer, or something terrible is going to happen.*
That was the only thought racing through Kaguya’s mind.
Forcing a stern tone, she insisted, “And one more thing, both of you better listen carefully!”
“Under no circumstances are you allowed past the first three floors of the dungeon! If you dare step onto the fourth, and I find out…”
“If I catch you, I will make sure you regret it.”
“Just make sure you stay safe, alright?”
Having delivered her warning, Kaguya turned on her heel and hurried into the crowd without looking back, almost as if she were fleeing for her life.
Mizuki watched her retreating figure and smiled helplessly.
Haruhime looked up with an anxious expression and asked softly, “Lord Mizuki, is it really all right for us to accept this much money?”
“Of course it is. She is practically family, after all.”
Tucking the coin pouch safely away, Mizuki took Haruhime’s hand.
“Come on, let us get down to business.”
Side by side, the two walked toward the colossal structure piercing the heavens, Babel.
The ground floor of the tower housed the main branch of the Guild.
Inside, the sprawling hall was packed to the brim with all sorts of adventurers.
Around the massive quest board mounted on the wall, adventurers were crammed shoulder to shoulder, standing several rows deep.
“Urgent escort request! One million valis per person! Escort the merchant caravan safely to Mobi village outside the city!”
“Hiring security guards! The industrial district has suffered frequent attacks lately. Seeking level 2 adventurers or higher for long-term assignment! Generous compensation guaranteed!”
“Monster sighting within city limits! Seeking a party to eliminate it immediately!”
Nearly every posting was related to protection, guard duty, or monster extermination.
Guiding Haruhime through the sea of people, Mizuki finally managed to squeeze toward a service counter that looked relatively clear.
Behind the desk sat a young half-elf woman with brown hair and glasses, quietly working through a stack of documents.
She carried an air of calm professionalism, maintaining a polite smile despite the noisy surroundings.
Eina Tulle.
Mizuki recognized her at once.
Though she was still quite young, the steady, earnest demeanor she was known for was already apparent.
Noticing their presence, Eina looked up, her gaze resting on Mizuki and Haruhime.
Taking in their clean yet simple clothes, she immediately gathered that they were new adventurers.
“Good day. How may I help you?” she asked, her voice gentle and polite.
“Hello. We are new members of the Astraea Familia, here to submit our information and complete registration,” Mizuki replied evenly.
“The Astraea Familia?” A hint of delight touched Eina’s eyes.
“That honorable familia has taken in new members? That is wonderful news.”
Smiling, she pulled two forms and pens from beneath the counter and handed them over.
Mizuki and Haruhime took the papers and wrote down their details with care.
Before long, they handed the completed forms back to her.
Eina picked up Haruhime’s sheet first, carefully reviewing the information before nodding with a warm smile.
“Haruhime of the renard race, welcome to life as an adventurer in Orario.”
Then, she picked up Mizuki’s form.
The moment her gaze reached the familia entry, the smile on her face slowly froze.
Astraea, the goddess of justice.
Eina looked up at Mizuki, confusion written across her face.
She tapped her finger lightly against the form.
“Your name is Mizuki, correct? Did you… make a mistake here?”
Mizuki shook his head.
“No mistake.”
“How can that be?” Eina’s voice raised slightly without her realizing it.
“The Astraea Familia is entirely comprised of women, is it not?”
“Are you truly a member of Lady Astraea’s familia?”
Adventurers were naturally drawn to commotion, and the surrounding crowd immediately began to chatter.
“Hey, did I hear that right? That kid just said he belongs to the Astraea Familia?”
“Are you kidding me? That is the goddess of justice’s faction, it is all women!”
“Is this brat desperate for attention or something? How dare he try to impersonate an Astraea Familia member!”
Hearing the accusations hurled from all directions, Haruhime gathered her courage and spoke up, “No… that is not true! Lord Mizuki… he is not lying!”
Mizuki remained perfectly composed, paying no mind to the loud voices around them.
Keeping his focus entirely on the bewildered Eina, he spoke calmly.
“First of all, Lady Astraea has never stated that her familia exclusively admits women.”
“Second, what possible benefit would I gain from telling a lie that can be disproven in seconds?”
Right then, a mocking voice cut through the noise.
“What benefit? Plenty, I would say.”
A slender human adventurer, dressed in flashy gear with an arrogant sneer plastered across his face, shoved his way through the crowd.
“What if you are planning to use the name of the Astraea Familia to run scams around town?”
He looked Mizuki up and down, making no effort to hide his contempt.
Nearby adventurers recognized the newcomer at once.
“That is Chandra from the Soma Familia.”
“Wait, is he that level 2 adventurer, second only to Captain Zanis?”
“Since when did he reach level 2?”
“I heard he managed to get on the captain’s good side and used some shady method to hit level 2.”
“Quiet down, do not let him hear you.”
“Regardless of how he did it, level 2 is still level 2. Most of us will never reach that in our entire lives.”
Level 1 adventurers formed the bottom rung of the ladder, making up the majority of Orario’s population, and countless individuals spent their whole lives unable to advance.
Reaching level 2 and above marked the boundary into the ranks of senior adventurers.
Chandra clearly basked in the murmurs around him.
Striding up to Mizuki, he sneered, “Listen here, kid. Even if Lady Astraea never outright banned men, that is how it has always been in practice.”
“Even someone with my exceptional talent was turned away without ever getting an audience with the goddess herself. What makes a nobody like you think you have a chance?”
He pointed an accusing finger at Haruhime.
“I bet both you and this fox girl are nothing but frauds!”
“He probably just wants to mooch free meals off the Astraea Familia’s reputation!”
“Throw him out! Do not let him drag the name of justice through the mud!”
The uproar grew louder by the second.
Haruhime looked visibly shaken, her face turning pale.
Eina realized things were getting out of hand.
Looking at Mizuki and Haruhime, she felt they did not seem like malicious swindlers at all, and quickly stepped in to defuse the tension.
“Everyone, please quiet down!”
She raised her voice to cut through the din.
“Verifying an adventurer’s identity is quite straightforward.”
Turning back to Mizuki, Eina spoke in a calm, professional tone.
“If you do not mind, you can simply pull up your shirt and show us the falna on your back. The familia emblem carved there cannot be faked.”
To everyone present, it was a perfectly reasonable solution.
However, Mizuki gave a slow shake of his head.
“I decline.”
Neither his unusual status nor Haruhime’s Uchide no Kozuchi were things fit for public display in a crowded guild hall.
More importantly, he felt no obligation to prove himself to a hostile mob.
“Ha! See, he is too terrified to show it!”
“He is definitely guilty!”
“Told you he was a fake! He will not even show his back!”
“Hey kid, confess right now and maybe we will let you off with a light beating!”
Mizuki’s refusal set off another wave of shouting from the crowd.
Chandra stepped closer, a vicious grin on his face.
“Well now, brat, since you refuse to do it yourself, I will just have to help you!”
With that, he reached forward, his hand clawing straight for Mizuki’s collar.
Mizuki’s gaze hardened.
He was well aware that a direct clash against a level 2 adventurer put him at a disadvantage.
Even so, he was not about to stand still and let himself be manhandled.
If he could catch the man off guard and display enough skill to make him hesitate, Eina and the onlookers would realize something was amiss.
With all the commotion, guild staff would quickly intervene.
Just as Chandra’s fingers were about to brush his clothing, Mizuki made his move.
Leaning his torso backward at an impossible angle, he cleanly evaded the grab.
In the same breath, his hand moved with blinding speed, drawing the longsword hanging from the scabbard of an adventurer standing nearby.
A sharp metallic ring echoed through the hall.
Seeing the drawn blade, Chandra did not back off, instead bursting into loud laughter.
“What, you actually want to fight me? I do not even need a weapon to crush a tiny bug like you!”
Mizuki paid no mind to the taunt, tightening his grip on the hilt.
His goal was not necessarily to win, but to put on a display that would bring everything to an immediate halt.