Chapter Thirty Eight - Everyone Needs a Friend

Chapter Thirty Eight - Everyone Needs a Friend

Why are Adventurer Guild Masters so bad at politics? Isnt the answer obvious? A Guild Master has to keep Adventurers in line, so the minimum requirements to become a Guild Master is to be able to put down a C-Rank adventuring team by themselves and to be able to win a fight against most individual B-Rank Adventurers.

Which means that the minimum requirement for a Guild Master is to be an upper B-Rank Adventurer; which means that your average Guild Master is stronger than ninety percent of the entire world.

Which means that when you have a really big hammer, all of your problems start to look like nails.

-S-Rank Aventurer Dre the Massacre, talking to the King of Lam.

ReiReihammara Solily POV:

Wait a second before you head off to meet your team. The Guild Master Ivano asked me to talk to him after the crowd dispersed, and anything that this man asks is basically a command from heaven. Worse even, because Ivano was far more likely to smite you than the Gods were.

Evergold was a gold mining town sitting on what might very well be the largest and richest gold vein in the entire world. That meant that a lot of people would want to steal that gold for themselves, but it also meant that Kolaro - the country Evergold was situated in - could easily afford to hire the best. Ivano was a man who had a Class beyond Very Rare: the Epic Class, Pyroclast Mage.

The smoke from his pipe hung above his head, occasionally throwing off sparks. Rumor had it that he could kill a person simply by breathing his pipe smoke out on their face. In all out combat he was described as disastrous, or calamitous.

The former S-Rank Adventurer, Ivano the Apocalypse.

And for some reason, Hewka was mildly annoyed at him. At least, I think it was annoyance; the wyvern clearly wanted him to go away and bother someone else, but she also more clearly had no clue that she was looking at a man who could have roasted that Thunderbird with a casual wave.

Please, please dont try and knock his pipe away again, I whisper to Hewka under my breath, trying to push calm through the bond. For a creature with an Inspect-style Skill, you would think youd know not to poke this sleeping Dragobear!

It's fine, Ivano waved his hand and the smoke formed a dome around us, turning the world outside opaque. As I said, the little gal cant actually hurt me. Itd be like getting mad at a kid for doing something dumb. They are kids, of course they are going to do something dumb.

Thank you for that sir, I felt some relief, but I was still a little bit wary. No, it was Hewka who was wary; she didnt know that the smoke was a privacy screen and was nervous about it. I should get her out of here as soon as possible. How can I help you then?

I had to do a pretty bit of magic to hide that gals Status, Ivano admitted and I felt my eyes widen; he could interfere with a Status Check!? My own fault for doing it in public like an idiot. I suppose it's true what they say: you learn something every day for your whole life and still die a fool. Or I will anyway, an Elf like you will be around a bit longer.

I swallowed, ignoring his tangents for the moment and asked the obvious next question: Why did you hide it? What was in Hewkas Status?

I needed to calm down. I could feel my anxiety flowing into Hewka, and that just made her more wary and then that wariness flowed back into me, making me more anxious! If I didnt get a grip soon Id probably start to panic and Hewka would try and attack a one man disaster. Even now, she was crouching down slightly, bending her legs in preparation to pounce forward.

She paused though when the smoke formed an image of her status again, but this time I noticed that it was longer

An [Acolyte] led me back through the temple to the infirmary where Tamlin laid in bed, still unconscious. Yet, he was looking a lot better - to my relief - with a [Priest] on one side of the bed and a [Healer] on the other. He no longer looked like a charred mess, although he hadnt gotten his hair back.

A separate [Healer] pulled me aside saying, please dont disturb them while they are working. I know it is hard to be in the dark about someone you care for, but healing is no easy matter.

You are right I nodded before saying, I just had to see if

If Tamlin was dead.

You should get used to it, little Elf. A stern voice from behind me spoke and the [Healer] stiffened, before hastily fumbling out an excuse and scurrying away. I turned to see an older woman with severe features and short cropped gray hair striding towards me. For all her apparent age, her back was straight, her steps steady and quick, and her eyes bright.

Too bright. The telltale mark of a [Priestess] of Alet, the Goddess of Truth, were their piercingly bright eyes. Even had the older woman not been wearing the robes, her eyes would have been an instant give away as to whom she had pledged her service and soul.

She stepped close to me and started inspecting me closely, her face completely neutral and yet still giving off a critical air of disapproval.

Ca- Can I help you, Maam? I stuttered, intensely uncomfortable under the scrutiny. It felt like she was peeling back my skin and spirit to study what lay underneath, and I knew that wasnt actually too far from what was actually happening.

The many Gods and Goddesses granted their followers many different powers and abilities. Every Class has an ability that you are guaranteed to obtain when you take the Class. [Hunters] gained [Prey Sense], [Warriors] gained [Fortitude], and a [Mage] gained [Mana Guard]. [Acolytes] would obtain an ability based on the deity they worshipped. For example, Chaurl, as a worshipper of Jakkus, gained the ability [Ambition is Life] which allowed him to shore up his other Stats with his Willpower. He could survive - for a time - with his Health at zero, refusing to die while he had yet to accomplish his goals, or sprint and fight at zero Stamina, or lift more than his Strength should allow.

An [Acolyte] of Alet would also gain an incredibly powerful ability: [Eyes of Truth]. They could see lies and secrets, even abstract ones like self delusions, half truths, and obfuscation. Given enough time, they could even read the details of a person's secrets without them having to say a word. Nothing could be hidden from them.

But while the Gods grant incredible power, that power also comes with its downsides and restrictions. Chaurl, should his ambition ever falter or his goal seem too petty to Jakkus, would find himself weaker than before as his Skill sapped the very life from his body. If he lost his ambition, Chaurl would almost certainly die.

Alet on the other hand, for all her incredible power, had been cursed by the God of Secrets. She could see the truth, but never speak of it - save to her younger brother, Scalus, the God of Justice. The restriction also applied to her [Acolytes] and [Priestess], but that didnt make that any less awkward to talk to them.

Who wanted to talk to someone who could ferret out every single thing you have wanted to hide? Of course, nothing made people more suspicious than someone running from a [Priestess] of Alet. After all, what did they need to hide that desperately?

Hmmmmm, she continued to look at me without saying anything.

It occurred to me that there was an obvious reason she was here. Ivano had asked me to keep a secret because Adventurers tended to be very wary of intelligent monsters, and I suppose a secret that is held by a Guild Master and former S-Rank Adventurer that might have a life hang in the balance would probably qualify as large enough to attract the [Priestess].

On the other hand, she might be able to help! It would go a long way to making people happy if Hewka could be declared safe by a [Priestess] of Alet! So I started to explain the situation and asked the [Priestess] to come with me and see Hewka.

Fortunately, Hewka had not wandered off while I was inside, she just seemed to be humming? I turned to introduce Hewka to the [Priestess] and immediately knew something was wrong. The [Priestess] had stopped dead, staring at Hewka. A few seconds later, she started shaking and blood started to leak out from her glowing eyes before collapsing!

I slammed the door to the Temple back open, calling for another [Priest] or [Healer] as utter confusion poured through the bond.