Arthur didn't want the other players to see him and Val together, and associate him with the idea of being a player.
'Though they'll soon learn that they can also party up with NPCs in some cases.' Arthur thought to himself.
Thankfully it was getting darker and most players were going to log out soon enough. Their numbers were already low since this was the first batch and it would take time for more of them to arrive here.
"This way," Upon entering the guild, Arthur dragged Val to another area.
"Where are we going? The desk is on the right." Val was confused. "Are we not submitting the job?" she asked.
"We are, just not to the desk." Arthur said. "Follow me." He ordered.
Val decided to go along and soon they were standing at the back of the guild. Two large doors blocked their way and looked a bit imposing.
"Isn't this…" Val recognized them and knew who stayed behind them.
~KNOCK~KNOCK~
But before she could say much, Arthur knocked on the door.
"I'm here," He called out.
~Clack~
"Come in, its open now." The voice said before Arthur pushed the doors.
~CREAK~
With the door open, Val could now see the person that was standing behind it.
"Sorry, had to lock it. These otherworldly adventurers keep on trying to enter." Caleb said, before spotting the new person accompanying Arthur. "Mm? A new adventurer."
"This is Val," Arthur introduced before turning to her. "And this is Guild Master Caleb."
As soon as Val heard that, she was stunned.
"Whoa! You got that job request from the guild master?!" She couldn't believe her eyes.
So far, players had been getting quests from the job desks, but even then they didn't get any good treatment. They were getting either ignored or were just looked at perfunctorily.
They either hadn't learned that they needed to build a reputation or were doing things that were causing the NPCs to dislike them.
The latter was actually the majority as players tended to go a bit wild. Especially the first batch that had arrived. They had come this far due to being adventurous and risky, as such they didn't mind being a bit crazy and experimental in the town.
"Don't worry, she's better than most." Arthur assured the guild master who was looking at Val with an inquisitive look.
"Hmm, if you say so." Caleb said before nodding.
"H-Hello guild master!" Val changed her tone and waved at the man.
"If Arzhur has brought you here, I guess you are trustworthy." Caleb said before turning around which was the cue for them to enter.
Seeing Arthur walk in, Val followed as well and saw the interior of the office. She could see the difference between the normal areas of the guild and the guild master's office.
There were large shelves that were filled with books, documents as well as a few weapons. There were a couple of armor sets kept on display as well, with one of them having weathered quite a bit of damage.
It was clear that none of them were exactly for a use but were a mark of one's accomplishments throughout the years.
Caleb was a guild master and had worked his way up. It was not a simple task and many adventurers never reached that point.
It didn't just need one to have a high rank, but also some reputation that could sway the opinion in their favor. Of course, even among guild masters there were difference as a guild in the town would be considered at a lower standing than the one in the city.
The trouble one could encounter in different locations also affected just how strong the guild master from that region would be.
For most players, the guild masters of the adventurer guilds were way above them and there was no way for them to match against them for a long time. And even if they became stronger than a town's guild master, they would have to move on to a bigger settlement as the quests and mobs around there would no longer net them much in terms of experience.
It would be the same as staying stuck in stagnant water and not having any improvement.
"So you two finished the subjugation quest together?" it didn't take much for Caleb to guess what they were there for.
"Of course." Arthur said before looking at Val. "Show him the small plant core."
"Uh, sure." Val said taking out the green marble wondering if the core would be taken as proof.
Caleb picked it up and looked at it closely before nodding.
"Yeah, that's from a Man Faced Walking Tree for sure." Caleb said before handing the Small Plant core back to Val.
"You don't need to keep it as proof?" Val asked.
"That is just for bounty quests. For a subjugation, you only need to show it and you can take it back." Caleb explained.
"I see… I thought this would be the same." Val replied finding her confusion resolved.
"Was there anything different about the Man Faced Walking Tree?" Caleb finally asked.
"Just like we thought, it had been afflicted with Insanity too." Arthur replied making Val perplexed.
'He knew about something more?" Val couldn't even tell that the Man Faced walking Tree had been inflicted with Insanity.
She didn't know what that was exactly, but from its basic meaning she could at least make a good assumption that it was a debuff of some kind.
>Quest: Man Faced Walking Tree subjugation has been completed!Player Val's reputation has increased in Roran Town!Player Val's reputation is now at Friendly level in Roran town!Player Arzhur has obtained one Roran Crafting token!~chuckles~
Arthur and Val couldn't help but chuckle as they left the office. Soon they had left the building and were talking.
"So what are you going to do now?" Val questioned. "We have about three hours left till logout." She stated.