Chapter 96: New Guild Card

「Are you okay?」 「Yeah, I’ll be fine after a quick rest.」

As I exhausted my magic power, Urania led me to an empty room. The room looks like it’s usually used as a waiting room, having a simple sofa and table furnished in it. Currently, I’m on the sofa, lazily lying down face first on top of Urania’s lap.

「Haaaaaa……」 「Mn, ticklish.」 「Ah, my bad…… Still, there really is someone always better.」 「Nn, it was outstanding.」

I couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh. When I breathed in, the scent of Urania’s sweat… Yeah, let’s not go there. This isn’t a suitable topic for a lady.

I think back on the mock battle I had earlier with Ces. I went full strength. Naturally, I haven’t used “Corona Burn” or other overpowered magic. After all, if both of us used magic with no restraint, it’s ‌obvious that not a single trace of the guild building would be left in the aftermath.

Though with that said, I didn’t hold back or anything. In the first place, I didn’t expect for a magic shell the size of a person to be that tough; it was just beyond what I expected. Even I can make things similar to that. “Barrier” which makes invisible walls, “Wall” which makes a physical barrier, and “Protect” which strengthens the bonds of an object to defend against attacks. However, these three are magic, meaning these consume magic power.

The magic shell Ces used wasn’t a result of magic, but just plain magic power control. Similarly to how I hijacked Adan’s magic, he used his magic power to interfere with my magic but only made it disperse instead of taking over my control. I was ‌confident with my ability to control magic power, but before that technique, it made me realise that what I’m doing was practically child’s play.

「Come to think of it, how did your fight go?」 「N, I got a clean hit.」

After asking Urania while I slightly turned my head to the side, Urania proudly gave me a V-sign.1 From this angle, I have a ‌close look at the puff of her chest. Mine is so-so, but I feel like she got a bit bigger compared to when we first met. Unfortunately, I can’t say that it’s thanks to my help, since I haven’t touched them much.2

「What are you staring at?」 「Ah, well…… Was he tough?」 「He was tough. He was big, hard, and amazing.3」

Miss Urania? Are you doing this on purpose? You’re making me jealous, you know?4 Well, not really, but it seems like Tien is an A-rank adventurer. Just as his looks imply, he’s a beastkin from the rhinoceros horn clan, and with his extremely solid thick skin and great physical strength, he’s a so-called armored warrior type.

And since Urania is a speed-type fighter5, or rather an assassin-type that ‌goes for a single lethal blow to the target’s weak point to be more exact, it’s not an exaggeration to say that she landed the worst matchup. While her attacks would barely make a nick, the other side could knock her out if he landed even just one solid blow. She said that even her slash carried by the force of her top speed couldn’t leave a scratch on the guy’s skin, so that was a surprise.

Even with that, Urania somehow made use of the magic she knew to land a hit powerful enough to cut through Tien’s tough skin. Unlike me, who couldn’t even do anything against Ces’ magic shell.

「Do you want tea?」 「Please.」

As Urania asked so to change the topic, I went with it. From my 【Dream Storage】, I took out some tea leaves, a kettle, and a magical tool that works like a portable stove. This magical tool is loaded with the magic “Burn” and is a staple for travelling. I really appreciate it since we can make some warm stuff anywhere, anytime.

Incidentally, we borrowed6, I mean procured, the leaves from Iglesio mansion. A maid gladly gave it to us when we asked for some. Urania seems to have learned how to make tea from the maid, as she poured me a cup confidently. A fragrant aroma fills the room, making me feel relaxed.

「Haaaaa……」 「You’re sighing again.」 「Well, yeah. I might’ve been ‌overconfident lately…」

With today’s defeat, I realized that I’ve gotten presumptuous. Ever since I was born in this world, I’ve defeated bandits, frozen goblins, and fought off the “Gale” party. And after that, I’ve also defeated the roper, and even though I had a close fight with the attacks targeting Adan, I still eventually won.

I lost against “Gale” once too7, but that was because I wasn’t in good shape. However, I had no excuses this time. I was in good condition and I had plenty of magic power. Rather, it’s not an exaggeration to say that I was in perfect form. And despite that, I lost. While I felt frustrated, I’m also glad that I realized this before I got completely stuck-up.

After taking a sip of the tea, I take a relaxed breath.

「It’s ‌good.」 「Nn, good leaves.」

While the leaves really are good, a part of it is probably because Urania’s gotten good at making tea. It’s good enough to go toe-to-toe with the ones made by the mansion maids‌.

After spending the time comfortably for a while, I heard a knock on the door followed by someone’s voice.

「Lily, Urania, everything’s ready now.」 「Nn, coming.」

As Urania opened the door, Ces and Tien entered the room. Ces is looking lively and I can’t even tell if Tien was really wounded by Urania, it doesn’t look like he’s feeling any pain at all. Ces definitely should have used magic a lot‌, it’s somewhat frustrating to see this gap between us.

「While there’s really a lot of things I should say, well, I’ll just announce your exam results right now. First, Urania. You have been given a high assessment for how you overcame your unfavourable battle with Tienet8 and landing a splendid blow as a result. While you still lack in skill, for your appropriate choice of magic and practical application of it, and your many contributions to the guild ‌until now, you have been promoted to B-rank.」 「Thank you very much.」

Urania was handed a white card. It had a large letter 『B』 on it, and Urania’s name and occupation engraved‌. She skipped ‌C and got promoted straight to B-rank. Knowing what Urania has gone through ‌until now, she looks thrilled about it. Well, she looks calm and expressionless at first glance, but her tail is wagging like crazy, so I know how she feels.9

「Next, Lily. To be frank, regarding magic, you already have a high level of competency. If you wanted, you could likely apply for any occupation you wish after graduating from the academy. The variety of magic you can use, your precise control, and magic power retention are all practically first class. However, despite having outstanding skills, you still overwhelmingly lack experience. This isn’t only about magic combat, as you’ve only been an adventurer for half a year, giving you a high rank would cause more harm than good. With that said, you are promoted to provisional A-rank.」 「Provisional?」

While it confused me, they handed me a white guild card with 『A』 on it. Both my name and occupation are engraved on it. My occupation has been changed from Mage to Sorceress.

「With it being provisional, it means that you will be able to accept all but a few A-rank requests. And by a few, this refers to requests that would reflect on the guild’s trust and reputation. I guess you could say that you’ll have just a bit more requests available that someone in B-rank?」

From here on, it seems like I’ll be a real A-rank as long as I rack up more contributions to the guild. Incidentally, the requests I can’t take are things like bodyguard requests for people of influence, and guarding of important facilities. These aren’t ‌fit for us in the first place, so we don’t intend to accept these requests. The provisional part of this means practically nothing to me.

With this, I’ve not only caught up to “Grim” and “Fyne” but overtaken them‌. Yup, I’ll brag about this to Arisa the next time I see her. Though I have absolutely no idea when we’ll be able to go back to Motsi.