In my hands was the box containing the remains of the humanoid Sea Sovereign. Once the ship had docked, Fionna forced me to walk on my own before rushing after Klina who wanted to pray to the twin gods.
'I didn't even know Fionna was religious.'
Before us stood the executive that issued the quest, Sara. Her blonde hair was fashioned into a ponytail while her dark blue eyes stared in shock at the box containing the remains.
Her shock was due to Hektore regaling her with the entire story. I held back a sigh as Hektore slapped my back harshly.
"This guy managed to injure a Sea Sovereign with only two months of combat experience!" He praised me while slapping my back again.
Sara's eyes moved to meet mine instantly following that statement. I could feel her judging me, scrutinizing my entire form. I know I didn't look that impressive but it still hurt my ego to be dismissed that easily. She began to circle me while invading my personal space before grasping my chin tightly with her right hand.
"Interesting…" She muttered.
I felt very uncomfortable with how close she was. I attempted to back up only to trip on something and fall onto my butt. Sara was still staring me down, looking for something.
"Uh, I, thanks?" I babbled out.
She continued staring me down for what felt like an eternity before turning her back on me and walking towards her desk. She picked up a strange golden card and began swiping something on it. I noticed that the card looked similar to the cards I had seen my traveling companions pull out when we arrived at the gates of the town.
I turned to Hektore only to see he was shocked before a smirk made its way to his face.
"So, you wanted to be an adventurer, right?" He asked while placing his hand atop my head. "Get up off your ass and let her fill out your quality report."
I quickly rose to my feet before moving in front of Sara. She placed the card in front of my face and a weird feeling overtook my body. It was almost like everything about me that was personal had just been taken into that card.
"It may seem weird, but that's how these cards work." Hektore said after noticing my confusion. "It scans your mind, body, and soul. It learns everything about you."
"Even things you don't know or remember." Sara adds on.
I was confused at why she gave me such a look of pity. Then it hit me that she could, most likely, see that information. So she was probably showing empathy for the death of my grandparents.
'Maybe I judged her too harshly.' I realized. 'But why does she think I don't remember it?'
I thought that she was some sort of opportunistic and harsh woman but she might actually be a nice person.
"Here, take a look at your Adventurer Quality Report." She said while handing me the card.
Name: Esther Nectens
Age: ¿? | Rank: Unassigned
Quest Completion Rate: 1
I stared questioningly at the age section. I knew for certain that I was fifteen. I was born in the month of Freuden on the thirty-eighth day. It must have been a glitch. Moving on, I noticed that my rank was unassigned. I looked up to question Sara but I didn't get the chance.
"Alright!" Hektore shouted. "Let's go, we're eating at a fancy joint tonight!"
I tried arguing while being dragged but it was futile. When Hektore had his mind set on something, he always got what he wanted.
We hadn't even stopped at our newly rented hotel, no, Hektore had dragged me all the way to the restaurant we would be eating at.
'Kostlichkeit.'
This was the best restaurant in Orneo. They were known for their sauerkraut and beef cutlets which melts on your tongue. I only found out about this place due to Klina moaning in delight at the thought of such food.
"Trust me, you'll love it!" He assured me.
He dragged me inside past the hostess who seemed peeved that he didn't bother checking in with her and shoved me into a seat.
Across from me was Iris who seemed to be enjoying her plate of sweets. At least, I assumed those tears were from enjoyment. What was she eating anyway…?
"Is that Bidurian Chocolate Truffle?!" I screamed before turning to the menu Klina was holding. All of those zeroes! I turned back to Iris who was devouring the chocolate cake covered in edible gold sauce with pieces of the world's most expensive chocolate sitting on her plate.
"H-hey, Iris!" I called out. "Can I have a piece? That's like seven goldmines you're eating right there."
Bidurian chocolate was special for the properties imbued into it. White mages loved the stuff so much that they clamored to get it before stock was emptied out. Only two thousand batches of Bidurian chocolate were made a year and most restaurants could get five large batches before being denied. The shit was expensive, too. It cost one billion Nokt just for two batches of the stuff.
And Iris was eating what probably equated to billions of Nokt in one sitting.
'Are you telling me she paid ten billion Nokt for this shit?!'
I looked towards Iris with unrestrained envy while crushing the menu that Klina had handed me. Iris merely stuck out her tongue which had a piece of chocolate on it before she swallowed it.
'I guess it must be awesome having that much money as an Apex rank…' I thought in resignation. 'I'm not broke but these guys make me feel like I am.'
Adventurers were divided into six ranks: Novice, Initiate, Adept, Master, and Apex.
Ranks were mainly decided by the amount of missions completed following your registration. Some adventurers could jump ranks before even taking missions if they proved strong enough. That basically meant that ranks didn't mean shit when deciding strength. Some strong adventurers could be the laziest people alive.
"Esther, do you want me to feed you?" Klina asked while placing her plate of crab legs and soup in between us both.
'Wait…'
Looking closer at the crab legs, I swiped my menu off the table and searched before finding something I had already been certain of. It devastated my country boy soul.
"Why does this restaurant have crab legs blessed by Lady fucking Ruhi?!" I asked while tossing my menu aside and grasping Klina's hands. "Do you know how much I could kiss you right now?"
Lady Ruhi was the deified saint of the country Junas. She claimed to be the daughter of Furs, the king of the heavens, and Kaise, the queen of the heavens. No one could prove whether she was telling the truth since most gods hadn't been seen in years. Any that did exist were viewed with scrutiny since they rarely showed any divine aspects.
'Yet, you have the personification of connections and concepts living in your body.'
I hadn't dwelled much on that thought, though. I didn't like remembering the conversation Deno and I had following the attack on my village.
"Are you sure you want to kiss me when I have crab breath right now?" Klina asked, bringing my attention away from those thoughts.
I realized what it was I had said before removing my hands and calling for a server. I browsed the menu, trying to decide what I wanted to eat. My mouth water at some of the choices but I made sure to look at the prices. I noticed a meal package that was a pretty decent price. I loved budgeting!
Baked Chicken, Mashed Caelan Potatoes, and an Emperian Lemonade
Price: 50,000 N
Caelan Potatoes were a delicacy for any person with my tastes. Caeli was a country from the continent Iridescia, a far more advanced landmass that focused on agriculture and something called cultivation. All I knew was that they had good food.
"Wow, we have a humble eater here." Fionna teased as the waiter walked away to put my order in the queue.
"Who said I would be eating one plate?" I asked before showing her the receipt. "I got twenty plates. Metabolism won't feed itself."
Yeah, I had spent about a million Nokt on twenty family meals but I would be able to burn it off. I didn't really need to consider how my body had been staying in prime condition regardless of what I did.
"Whatever, fatty." Fionna said before digging into her own baked chicken and veggies.
"Now, now Fionna, don't bully Esther!" Hektore called from his spot.
He had been stuffing his face while watching everyone else at the table. I noticed that he had only ordered four plates of food.
"Hektore, order more food, I know you're hungry." Klina, also noticing his lack of plates, said.
"Fine!" He whined while accentuating the end of his statement.
Dinner continued on with idiotic antics from Hektore, teasing from Fionna, and even Victoria talking to me. I was glad to be in my bed with a stuffed belly considering my day.
'I hope things can stay like this…'
I prayed to no deity in particular. Maybe one was real, then they could make that prayer true.