The receptionist had led me through one of the doors on the back wall of the guild which led through a hallway to an open wrestling ring outside. As I looked around, I realized why the guild looked much emptier a few seconds ago. It was because everyone had gathered here to watch the test.

I contemplated the situation as I exhaled. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t like being watched like this either. But... Whatever, I guess. I might as well finish this and then go get some sleep. I hadn’t had some shuteye since the start of Op Flaming Sparrow. Even in my barracks, when I tried to sleep, I got transferred to this world instead.

“Hah…” I sighed as I saw Faus standing there with his large shield in one hand and a sharp broadsword in the other. I guess he really did want to kill me, most likely to make an example out of me. And if he was prepared to do that to me, it would only be justified if I did the same, right?

“I will be the proctor for this test. You may have three minutes to ready yourself,” the receptionist said to us. “When you are, please step into the ring and I will give the signal to begin.”

“Alright,” I said and started getting ready. Since I only had my normal uniform on right now, I tried to summon all of my gear but quickly stopped myself. This was only a test in close range. There was no real point in wearing my tac vest and all that. Just an automatic submachine gun should be enough. And maybe a helmet? Nah... I wanted to try to look cool for my first real fight in this world.

I turned around and walked a bit into the hallway until I was mostly hidden from everyone and thought to summon an HK MP5. Although everyone would most likely find out about my ability later, I didn't want to showcase it at the moment to avoid spooking my opponent.

The warm feeling that I was getting used to, flowed through me again, and immediately, in my hands was a fully decked out MP5 with a drum mag, laser, and a foregrip. The laser was unnecessary, but a childish part of me wanted to keep it since it looked more badass.

Perfect! This is exactly what I imagined. I fucking loved this power. Thank you, Admin.

I walked back out with the weapon in my hands and instantly the shouting and cheering of the audience died down to merely confused murmurings.

“What the hell is that?” the bulky dumbass standing in the ring said with a loud laugh. “You think you can defeat me with that tiny thing!?” At his provocation, the uncertainty of the audience also lessened somewhat, and the shouts, cheers, and it seemed betting also started up once again.

I, as usual, paid it no heed and simply stepped into the ring. It was time to end this. It was time to start making my mark on this world.

The receptionist cleared her throat and raised her hand. “This will be Peter Bell’s adventurer test. The opponent will be Faus the Wall. Do you both acknowledge the risk of losing your life and accept that the Adventurer’s Guild will not be responsible in any way?” she asked.

“Yes,” I said.

“Yeah,” Faus also replied.

“Very well,” she said. “Faus, are you ready?”

“HAH! Hell yeah, darling! And remind me to treat you to some ice candy after I murder this guy!” he exclaimed with a laugh and brought his shield in front of him. It amazed me how, even though he was so huge, his shield blocked him almost entirely.

The receptionist giggled at Faus’ remark before turning to me. “Peter Bell, are you ready?” she asked me.

I sighed. Where there are humans, there will always be corruption. However, I decided to put those thoughts away. “Yes,” I replied simply, flicking the safety off, and lifting the gun to my shoulder as I aimed at Faus’s center mass.

“Then, start!” she said, bringing her hand down.

“Come at m—” whatever Faus was about to say was interrupted as I squeezed the trigger and let the beauty in my hands sing.

In only a few seconds, my entire magazine was emptied and the middle of Faus’ shield looked like it had been blown through with a cannon.

“Urgh,” came a sound that almost sounded like a gurgling noise from behind the shield.

He was still alive, huh?

I instantly removed the magazine and thought about it disappearing. It vanished from my hand and my suspicions were confirmed. I was also able to de-summon the weapons if I wanted to. Good.

Another fully loaded magazine appeared in my hand and I stuck it back in and cocked the gun.

I squeezed the trigger and held it once more while aiming at the head this time and once again, within a few seconds, the magazine was emptied while the top part of Faus’ shield was reduced to splinters.

As I pulled out this magazine as well and de-summoned it, the big man slowly tipped over and fell face first with a thud… Wait, no. He didn’t really have much of a face left anymore.

“Phew,” I exhaled in relief as I confirmed that bullets were just as effective against strong people of this world as they were against normal humans on Earth.

“What…” someone said. I looked around and the audience that was cheerful and happy just a while ago was now dumbfounded.

“Um… proctor?” I said as I looked at the receptionist who also stood there with wide eyes. “Did I pass the test?”

“Huh?” she said as she finally regained her bearings. “Y-Yes, of course! P-Peter Bell w-wins,” she stuttered.

“Perfect,” I said, making the MP5 in my hands disappear. “So when do I get my Adventurer Card?” I asked her.

“Um, please follow me,” she replied meekly as she turned around to go back into the guild.

---

Back in the guild, I looked around again and as the people who were present to watch the test slowly filtered in, I noticed that they were much more subdued. I guess this was a good thing as at least now they knew not to mess with me... However, I also didn’t want them to be anxious about partying up with me or anything either, so I guess I was in a bit of a pickle now.

As I mulled over my dilemma, the receptionist finally finished making the card with a special device.

She spoke to me with her practiced kind smile as she handed the card to me.

“As you were able to easily defeat a C-rank fighter, so I’ve made you a B-rank adventurer,” she said as I took it from her. “You may accept requests that are A-rank or lower from there,” she pointed to a massive board on the right wall beside the bar that had multiple papers stuck on it. “And if you successfully complete five consecutive A-rank requests or fifty B-rank ones, you will be promoted to A-rank,” she explained.

“Great. Thank you,” I said, taking the card and inspecting it.

“And the last thing that is left to do is for you to choose a receptionist,” she said and gestured to another board behind her that had various names on it in the first column with varying numbers of check-marks beside them.

This was interesting. “Adventurers get a personal receptionist?” I asked.

“Only C-rank and above,” she answered as she pointed to the first name: Clara. “That is me. I handle most of the high-level adventurers in this guild,” she said with a hint of pride in her voice.

“Hmm,” I hummed as I looked at the board. I didn’t want Clara as my receptionist. She seemed like a selfish cunt who only cared about herself. “Who’s the most efficient at their work?” I asked her.

“Eh?” she looked surprised at my question. “Um… I guess myself. Since I handle a lot of work, I am efficient at finishing everything quickly.”

I nodded my head. That made sense. “Who manages the least amount of adventurers?” I asked next.

“That would be Miki,” she said, pointing to the last name on the list with only two check-marks beside it. “She isn’t here right now, though. Since we make money by the commissions from the profits that the adventurers that we handle make, Miki sometimes has to go do the requests that no one else wants to do so that she can earn her living,” Clara explained.

“I see,” I said, rubbing my chin. “When will she be back?” I asked.

“Um…” Clara said, putting a finger on her lips. “Maybe around evening or nighttime.”

“I’ll be back then. I want to meet her first and then decide,” I replied. “By the way, are there any good inns around the area?” I asked, wanting to finally rest a little.

“Ah, yes!” Clara said excitedly and pulled out a small business card from under her desk. It looked like Faus’ death hadn’t really affected her all that much... Or maybe she was just acting and covering up her true feelings. “There’s an inn called Heaven's Dreams. The daughter of the owner is a very good friend of mine. Just tell her that I sent you and she’ll give you a good price!” As she talked, I noticed her nervousness lessened as well. “Just turn right when you exit the guild and keep walking until you notice a board that shows a blue bed with a sword on top.”

“I see. Thank you very much for the help,” I said as I nodded. “I’ll probably be back either tonight or tomorrow morning.”

Clara smiled and nodded. “My pleasure! And you’re welcome back anytime!” she said enthusiastically.

---

I noticed the board and the inn that Clara was talking about. As I approached it, I pushed the saloon doors and entered. There was a receptionist desk at the back with a cute girl standing behind it. On the floor, there were a few chairs and sofas... No... I don’t think these could even be called sofas. More like big chairs with cushions.

On one side of the back wall, there were stairs leading up to the next floor, and on the right wall, there was a doorway that led to what looked like a restaurant or a cafeteria.

At a first glance, it looked like just another hotel. Although looking around more, I realized that this hotel was anything but ordinary.

There were convex mirrors – or rather, shiny shields – in all of the top corners of the room. A sword was hung on the wall behind the receptionist’s desk that looked like it was there just for show, but there were traces of it being used recently – shallow, shiny scratch marks. The cute receptionist herself kept a hand under her desk, as if ready to defend herself from anything or anyone.

From this, I could deduce one thing. The owner of this place must be either a mob boss, a retired high-rank adventurer, or a government operative.

“Hello! How may I help you?” the girl said as I strode closer to the receptionist's desk.

A slight smile graced my face as I began. “I was recommended to come here by one of the Adventurer Guild's receptionists, Clara,” I said with a calm demeanor and the girl’s shoulders sagged with visible relief. It looked like she was on guard for someone else. “How much will it cost for me to rent a room for a few days?” I asked.

As the receptionist – Ritu, was her name – started explaining further, I also began to grasp the currency and economy of this world.

The lowest tier of currency was the iron coin, followed by the copper coin, the red copper coin, the silver coin, the white silver coin, the gold coin, the platinum coin, and the purple jewel, and each tier was worth ten of the tier below it. All pieces of Feld Kingdom currency had the royal logo on them so it was incredibly difficult, but not impossible, to forge. And of course, as expected, a lot of times there were also instances where the transactions were only done in goods, though those were only common in sub-urban and rural areas. Not in cities like the one I was currently in.

As for the value of the currency, I guess each iron coin was worth as much as an American dollar… Or maybe a British pound? I wasn’t really sure, but I guess it didn’t matter all that much either.

“I see,” I said as she finished her explanation. I pulled out the coin pouch that the princess had so graciously given me and took out one of the roughly thirty coins in there. “How long can I stay here with this much?” I asked, holding up one bright shiny platinum coin.

Ritu’s eyes widened in surprise as she stared at the coin in my hand. “Wh-What!?” she yelled out. “That… That! You can stay here for almost five years with that much!” she exclaimed excitedly, and frankly, I understood her excitement.

This was probably the first time that she had seen a platinum coin. I thought back to the first time I had seen hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars in cash at a cartel headquarters that we were clearing. It had been a real disappointment when we had gotten the order to burn all of those in order to keep the U.S. dollar value as it was. Well, maybe the reason was something like that. I didn’t like economics too much so I didn’t really care.

“Hmm,” I hummed as I nodded. I might just have a useful plan here. “Do you own this inn?” I asked.

“Eh? Um… Well, my father owns it,” she replied, tilting her head with a questioning expression.

“Can I meet him? I need to discuss something,” I requested with a smile plastered on my face.

“Um, of course. Let me just go ask him,” Ritu said and went up the stairs through the door behind her.

---

Ten minutes later, I was seated face to face with the owner in his office on the second floor. 

“So, how may I help you?” the owner asked. He was a man of light brown skin and black hair, just like me. This immediately caught my attention as most of the men and women I saw around the town looked more caucasian with rarely any of them having dark hair.

“I have a request to make,” I said straightforwardly, pulling out two platinum coins and setting them on the coffee table that was between us. I tried to gauge the owner’s reaction but there was nothing except for a raised eyebrow.

“That’s quite a lot of money you have there," he remarked, unimpressed at my show of wealth. "What is your request?" he asked.

It seemed like he was quite experienced in dealing with unexpected situations. I'll have to tread carefully here. I had a feeling that if he saw any hint of a lie, he'd throw me out instantly.

“First of all,” I said. “I need your word that whatever happens, you will not talk about me at all. Not even to this kingdom’s soldiers or royalty,” I asked.

The man sitting across from me – whose name was Charles – chuckled a little before rubbing a hand on his chin. He looked at me for a second as if he was deciding on something before finally reaching across the table and picking up one of the platinum coins.

“This,” he said, pinching it between his index finger and his thumb, “will be the price of my silence until my death.”

Interesting… It seems like this man knew what the real price of silence was.

I nodded. “Very well. Next,” I continued. “I want to rent out a room here for the next ten years,” I said.

That was when I finally saw a reaction.

The man raised both his eyebrows as he just stared at me in silence. I stared back, waiting for an answer.

After a few long seconds, he nodded back. “Two platinum coins for ten years of residence in the penthouse suite, no questions asked,” he offered.

He didn’t ask for any reason or anything else... Good. I liked him already.

“Deal,” I said and put another coin on the table.

He smiled as he took both of the coins and stood up. “Nice doing business with you, Mr…” he said, extending his hand to me.

I stood up as well and shook his hand. “Tony,” I said with a smile. “And the pleasure’s all mine.”

---

I stretched and yawned widely as the door to the hallway shut behind me. After finalizing the deal, the owner's daughter had escorted me to my room. Looking around now, I could see that this place was definitely worth being called a penthouse suite… Well, at least according to this world’s standards.

I took off my boots and strode into the living room. It looked like a typical hotel room, except everything was old-fashioned. The living room was dimly lit by the sunlight that snuck in and the candles that were placed strategically around that room. Beautiful paintings hung on the walls like portals to another world. Thick velvet curtains hid the tall windows on the wall. Two large couches stood opposite each other with a hand-woven rug between them.

As my eyes scanned the surroundings, I immediately identified all the exit points and hiding places around the room.

I strolled in further and opened one of the wooden doors to what looked like a bedroom. There was an armoire on the wall adjacent to the door and a large bed beside it. On the other side of the bed, there was a bedside table with a few tall candles on it. Similar to the living room, many beautiful paintings adorned the walls. Overall, the entire suite gave a very high-class feeling… That was something I wasn’t used to.

As a Black Zone Operative, I was used to living in small crowded stuffy barracks, dingy, dirty motel rooms, cold caves in icy mountains, dusty trenches in the middle of deserts, freezing igloos in the arctic tundra, damp swampy waters in rainforests, and in the worst of times, in shit-filled sewers behind enemy lines…

But penthouse suites… That was something I wasn’t used to. Of course, that’s not to say I’ve never stayed in a high-class hotel suite before. There were times when I had to infiltrate large-scale arms and human trafficking rackets and I had to go undercover as a businessman, but during those times, I had a mission – I had a purpose and an objective to achieve. Now though… I had no immediate goals.

I sighed loudly as I lied on the bed and rested my head on the incredibly fluffy pillow.

Maybe now was a good time to start making a list of my tasks. I knew my end goal – for now – is to try to meet with this so-called ‘Evil Lord’, but there were a ton of things to do before that.

First of all, though, I need to get a change of clothes. This dark green digital camo was drawing way too much attention. Maybe if I had my casual military clothes… WAIT A SEC! I can just summon them!

I got off the bed and held my hands out. Once again, a warm feeling ran through my arms and a dark blue t-shirt, black pants, grey socks, and a pair of black running shoes appeared in my hands.

“YASS!” I shouted in joy. This means that I will never have to do laundry or buy new clothes. I could just de-summon dirty ones and summon clean ones every day. Perfect!