The next morning, I headed to the Adventurers' Guild again in my usual chinos and jumper—casual clothes.
Yesterday I dived into the dungeon like a day laborer, but if I was going to act seriously, I needed official registration. And I wanted to get at least some decent gear.
The guild's huge hall was crowded with adventurers even in the morning.
A knightly man in shining armor, a girl in robes who looked like a sorcerer, a young man in light gear with a bow. I felt like I had wandered into the extras of a fantasy movie.
In the middle of all that, a shabby middle-aged guy like me stood out completely.
Curious eyes, mixed with a hint of contempt, stabbed at my skin. It was similar to the looks I got when I was marked for layoffs at the company.
But I didn't shrink back anymore. I had [Skill: Rearrangement (Change)], a weapon no one else could imitate.
I walked up to the reception counter and waited for my turn.
Soon, it came.
"Excuse me, I'd like to register as a new adventurer."
"Yes, this way please."
The voice came from a woman with features as perfectly sculpted as an ice doll. Her nametag read "Hikawa."
Even seeing my out-of-place appearance, she didn't so much as blink. She simply handed me a tablet for the procedure.
"Please fill in the required information. Skills can be self-reported."
"Uh, thanks."
I took the tablet and typed in my name and age.
The problem was the skill field. Should I write [Skill: Rearrangement (Change)] honestly?
...No, better not.
I was the only one who knew how useful this skill really was. Revealing my hand wasn't wise. And if they thought it was a useless support skill with zero combat power, I'd only get looked down on more.
After thinking for a moment, I just wrote "exploration type" vaguely in the skill field.
I returned the tablet to Hikawa-san.
She took it and began checking the content with practiced motions. But then her finger stopped at one point.
Her sharp gaze went back and forth between my face and the screen two, three times.
"...Sir. Yesterday, while unregistered, you exchanged 37 goblin magic stones, 11 goblin fangs, 23 silver coins, and 3 potions from the Forest of Goblins."
"Yeah, well. I just got lucky."
When I answered casually, she narrowed her brows ever so slightly. The ice-like expression wavered for just a moment.
"Luck, is it. Even an F-rank beginner party rarely produces that much on their first day. For an unregistered solo... there is no precedent."
"Ha ha, beginner's luck."
My ex-salesman's instincts rang alarms at the suspicion in her eyes.
This was bad. Maybe I'd earned too much too fast.
This receptionist, Hikawa—she wasn't ordinary. She was probably an elite in charge of the guild's data management or something. My record must have been flagged as an "anomaly" in her database.
"...I see."
She didn't press further. Returning to her blank expression, she handed me a new adventurer's card across the counter.
"Registration is complete, Sato Koichi-sama. Your rank is F. We look forward to your success in the dungeon."
"Thanks."
I took the F-rank plate and quickly left the counter.
I could feel Hikawa's piercing gaze on my back.
And I didn't miss the small murmur she let slip.
"Sato Koichi... looks like I'll need to mark him as a person of interest."
It seemed I had drawn the eye of a troublesome opponent.
Well, whatever. As long as it didn't cause me real harm, I'd just ignore it.
I switched my thoughts and headed to the guild's shop.
First priority was to get the minimum gear to protect myself.