Even though a lot of things are now different, the way this world functions stays pretty much the same as it used to back in the game. Respawning isn’t really a choice anymore, though.

It seems like countries all work with Guilds to maintain peace.

And by peace, I don’t mean preventing wars between humans.

“Peace” means not getting torn apart and eaten by wild monsters.

Knights and soldiers are certainly strong and well disciplined.

However, their number is pretty much nothing compared to Adventurers.

Most people who are blessed with fighting prowess wish to roam free.

Being tied down by formalities and politics isn’t a common interest.

Thusly, Guilds put together by Adventurers were born.

They collaborate with countries to earn profits while remaining unshackled.

Every country have various contracts with serveral Rank A Guilds.

Some places even have Rank S Guilds.

And the third party that mediates between Guilds and countries...

That’s the Guild Association.

The top brass of this organization is the mighty yet neutral Dragon race.

They are trusted by governments and respected by Adventurers.

Indeed, the perfect group to stand between two major forces.

And that about sums up the things we’ve learned about this world so far.

The female adventurer led us to the Guild Association’s branch in this town and introduced us to a receptionist who’s a dazzling beauty with brown hair and cheerful eyes.

She’s pretty enough to charm even women.

However, even she was taken aback when Emily first showed up.

According to her explanation, this town is run by a “B-Guild.”

Other that them, there are some other C-Guilds around as well.

It seems like monster activities are always lively around here.

That’s why there are several Guilds making this place their base.

All of this is similar to the game, with some actual history in place.

Back then, every player was an Adventurer.

However, there are such things as Solo and Affiliated now.

One may register as a Solo Adventurer at the Association, or pay a small fee to have them send your application to a Guild of your choice.

If you’re accepted, you’re now an Affiliated Adventurer.

For the time being, I let Emily register as Solo.

I’m listed as a servant on her profile, so I don’t need to apply.

This is also convenient for my purpose.

In reality, I do have an Adventurer ID card from the game.

But it has my record as a Tier 1 Solo, which might cause problems.

Imagine, a random guy turns out to be an unregistered Tier 1...

All the hassles I might have to go through aren’t worth the glory.

“And, here’s your ID card. Please put a drop of blood on it for calibration.”

Says the pretty receptionist.

She sure is stealing a whole lot of glances at Emily’s body.

This woman’s probably comparing herself to my secretary...

“Okay.”

Emily flicks her index fingertip with her thumb nail.

Once it starts bleeding a little, she presses her index-finger on the card.

She does it so smoothly, even the receptionist forgets to ogle her body.

The people near us are also raising their eyebrows.

While everyone’s starting to pay attention to Emily, she seems bored...

And suddenly, the ID card begins to glow brightly.

The material that it was made from is sensitive to mana, according to my Greater Status Analysis. Therefore, when one drops their blood on it, it’ll react depending on the mana concentration in the person’s blood.

Emily’s card turns into a sparkly platinum color.

Even if you put it next to a silver card, the difference is still day and night.

There’s no way this is a mistake; the color is too distinct.

“T-T-Tier ONE!?!”

The receptionist stares intently at the shiny platinum card.

She looks pretty even when she’s making a funny face.

But, it’s true, huh...

I wanted to see how Emily’s strength would be evaluated.

If I applied my blood, I’m sure it’d give the same result as this.

However, Emily used to be an NPC.

She never had any actual blood until recently.

And through this experiment, I’ve further confirmed that there is no semblance of her previous existence as an NPC left in the current Emily. Kyoka is probably the exact same.

With this, I’ve hit two birds with one stone.

I managed to let her stand out and take the spotlight.

And I also got the answer to some of my questions.

It immediately becomes a huge ruckus, and Emily’s the reason.

That’s only natural; a Tier 1 has just casually showed up after all.

.

.

.

The Association’s Administration Office.

We’re sitting opposite a young man with red dragon horns.

Not just the horns, he is a real dragon.

He’s just in his humanoid form right now for his job.

“Windgate City welcomes you, Madam Emily and Shojin.”

He easily puts Emily above, despite his high standing.

Either he’s humble, or he simply doesn’t care.

In any case, it works for both parties, so he’s the smart guy here.

“Thanks for having us.”

“It’s an honor, Sir.”

Emily doesn’t seem particularly pleased with how he addresses me.

But I have to play the role now, so I can’t soothe her.

Well, at least not openly. Telepathy is still an option.

On the outside, I’ll keep being the humble servant.

“Now then, it’s been quite a while since we last had a Tier One.”

“Really? I’ve been travelling so much, I’m not up to date.”

“Are you two not interested in joining a Guild?”

(Emily, can you ask him what the benefits are?)

(Okay~~)

“Rather than that, we don’t know what’s good in joining one.”

The cute and feminine voice echoing inside my head just now sounds nothing like the uptight and formal tone she’s using to speak with the Dragon man. They’re like two different people...

It’s nothing new, though.

I know better than anyone that Emily has a “gap” personality.

“You’ll receive a fixed payrate and potentially even bonuses. Moreover, you get access to various Guild-only facilities and commercial programs that greatly benefit an Adventurer.”

(That doesn’t sound bad, but our house’s probably better...)

“We’ll consider it, but we have other plans right now.”

“Great. Just mention my name; we’ll both receive some referral rewards.”

“Maendorg, was it?”

“Indeed, Maendorg the General Manager of this branch. That is me.”

“Right. And this isn’t the only reason we’re here, is it?”

“Correct. The ID card is never wrong, but I do need to double-check...”

He smiles as if it can’t be helped.

Probably one of those official procedure things the manager must do.

(He’s hardly an opponent for us, but I want you to judge his skills.)

(Yessir~~)

“Well, I don’t mind. Let’s get it over with.”

“Excellent. This way, please.”

Maendorg guides us to another room.

Inside, there’s a magic formation drawn on the floor.

The room itself is completely empty; there’s no furniture.

It seems like this magic circle is the its sole purpose.

Greater Status Analysis says that it’s a Tier 5 teleportation spell.

Tier 5 TP doesn’t go too far, but it should be more than enough.

At Maendorg’s level, operating this magic formula is child’s play.

He sends the three of us to a stadium-like building somewhere.

It seems to be an area of sorts.

“Alright, weapons aren’t needed. Please attack me.”

“‘Kay.”

Emily lightly dashes forward and throws a punch.

Maendorg’s eyes reflect his own surprise. He manages to defend against the attack, but he himself is pushed back over ten steps. His arms are also shaking.

“Haha...Ridiculous. I couldn’t even see it coming...”

So, he guarded against that out of sheer instinct?

He may look like a gentle librarian, but this guy’s battle tested.

“You took that surprisingly well, huh...”

“Madam, you’re kidding. I almost died.”

His smile is bitter, but he’s certainly still calm and collected.

That means, even though he lost, he didn’t fear for his life.

“No, that’s not what I meant.”

“Hm? Ah. That’s a myth, you know?”

“A myth?”

“‘Dragons’ pride is bigger than their heads,’ that sort of thing.”

“I see. We’ve been out of touch.”

“I don’t blame you. It’s a common stereotype.”

“So, are all Dragons as virtuous as you?”

“We certainly have some...strange individuals, but we’re a peaceful people. Our ageless history may say otherwise, but we’ve learned humility after countless failures.”

“So, you all just grew up?”

“Hahaha, that’s certainly a good way of putting it.”

This back and forth between Emily and Maendorg is interesting, so I quietly stand on the side and listen in through Emily’s telepathic broadcast. It’s interesting because it matches with the game’s lore regarding the Dragon race. Some parts of the game still remain in this world, huh...

“Anyway, here comes the next one.”

“E-Eh? But you’ve passed——ughkk!!”

The General Manager of Windgate’s Guild Association branch continues to be thrown about by my beautiful secretary for a little while before she finally decides to spare him.

That said, he still has the composure to put on the usual bitter smile.

Emily was definitely just playing, but this guy’s nothing but tough.

He also has enough patience to spare after playing along with Emily’s game of tag. In order words, he views this as an opportunity to forge a friendship with a rare Tier One like Emily.

As a mediator between the government’s demands for talented fighters and wild Adventurers who hate getting strung along by the nose, Maendorg fully deserves his position as General Manager.

He’s a resourceful fellow.

Is this how the Dragons have managed to be the third party for so long?