After walking a short distance from the plaza, we arrived at the Adventurers' Guild on the main street.
I led Fatima inside the guild building.
Our purpose was to register her as an adventurer and have her abilities appraised.
"So this is the Adventurers' Guild. It's my first time here."
Fatima looked around curiously.
She had visited the town before since her village was near Boltana, but she had never been inside the guild.
"Registering here gets you a free appraisal of your level cap and skills."
"Really? Then I'd like to register right away!"
I headed to the counter as usual and spoke to the receptionist.
"I'd like to register this woman as an adventurer."
"Ah—you're…!"
The receptionist recognized me immediately and seemed about to say something.
She probably remembered the Killing Bear purchase.
But after a moment, she composed herself.
"Ahem… Very well. Please tell me your name. Then place your hand on this crystal orb."
"Fatima. Nice to meet you… Is this okay?"
Fatima placed her right hand on the orb as instructed. It glowed, and text appeared on the paper beside it.
The receptionist picked up the sheet and began reading aloud.
"Let's see… Your level cap is… 10? Wait—what!? Level cap 100!?"
Her voice carried through the guild, and every adventurer turned to look at us.
Even I was stunned.
I had never heard of anyone with a level cap of 100.
"Um… Is something wrong with that?"
Fatima asked the receptionist with a puzzled expression.
She had no knowledge yet of typical adventurer level caps.
"No—no, wrong isn't even the word! No one with a level cap of 100 has ever registered at this guild! And the skills… four of them!"
『Whaaat!?』
『What the hell is that!? Never heard of anything like it!』
『Hold on—two skills is already rare, but four!?』
『That's insane!! Who is she!?』
"Your skills are: [Sword Saint], [Anti-Magic], [Growth Bonus], and [Healing Magic]!"
"Um… Which one is impressive?"
"[Sword Saint] is an extremely rare top-tier swordsman skill that grants extraordinary talent in swordsmanship! It's said that anyone who possesses it can grow into a truly magnificent sword master!"
"That's great! Ark-sama, with this we can defeat that monster, right?"
Fatima beamed with joy at the news.
Indeed, with [Sword Saint], she should be more than capable of standing against that monster.
Moreover, despite being a swordsman, Fatima also possessed [Healing Magic].
The ability to heal herself while fighting gave her exceptional sustainability.
[Anti-Magic] granted strong resistance to magical attacks.
Since some of the monster's attacks might be magical in nature, this would help her withstand them.
And [Growth Bonus] provided additional stat increases on level-up, meaning her growth per level would far exceed the average.
With a level cap of 100, the skill was an excellent match.
Her abilities were perfect for a swordsman.
"Hey, join our party!"
"No—ours!"
"Ours is obviously the best!"
Hearing her appraisal results, adventurers swarmed toward Fatima.
"Um! I-I'm sorry! I've already decided who to party with!"
If this continued, it would turn into chaos.
I quickly took her hand and pulled her out of the guild, moving a short distance down the main street.
"Phew… Thank you."
(But with Fatima's abilities, she might benefit more from joining a stronger party and training there.)
The goal was to defeat the monster that attacked her village, but even so, I should prioritize what was best for her.
"By the way, Ark-sama, may I ask what your appraisal results were?"
"Mine? Level cap 1. The only skill I can use is [Instant Death Magic]."
"I see. But if I'm going to party with someone, I want it to be you, Ark-sama. Is my set of abilities not good enough?"
"Huh?"
I had not yet explained the details of my Instant Death Magic, so her words caught me completely off guard.
I never expected her to say something like that.
"This morning, I heard. You searched for an inn at night just to give me a place to rest. I trust you more than anyone else, Ark-sama. That's why I want to fight together with you."
"…"
Words failed me. I could only stare at Fatima's face.
"Is that reason not enough?"
"No—I understand."
I turned to face her properly.
"Fatima, I'd like you to form a party with me."
"Yes! The pleasure is mine!"
Fatima nodded enthusiastically with a bright smile.
"So, where should we go next?"
"First, we need to get proper equipment for fighting monsters."
To defeat the monster that attacked her village, Fatima needed to level up.
For that, she required weapons and armor.
"Ah—in that case, let's go to Gale-san's place."
"Gale?"
The unfamiliar name made me ask again.
"Huh? The shopkeeper from the back alley."
I still did not know the shopkeeper's name until now.
And so we returned to the back-alley shop.
"Yo, how'd it go?"
As we opened the door and stepped inside, the shopkeeper called out from behind the counter as usual.
"Yes! My level cap is 100, and I have the [Sword Saint] skill—so I should be able to fight!"
"L-Level cap 100!? What the hell!?"
The shopkeeper shouted in shock, eyes wide.
"But damn, what a girl… And with [Sword Saint] too. Looks like teaming up with you is the only way to take down that monster, huh?"
He grinned while looking at me.
"…Yeah. We formed a party earlier."
"Good, good. Glad to hear it. By the way, I never asked—what are your abilities, kid? You're a magician, right?"
"Level cap 1. My only skill is [Instant Death Magic]."
When I answered, the shopkeeper stared in disbelief.
"You're that rumored weakest adventurer!? But you're plenty strong. Level cap 1 and 100 teaming up—what a crazy party. Haha!"
Laughing, the shopkeeper began lining up various items on the counter.
Black leather gloves with open fingers, silver gauntlets and breastplate, a sword, and more.
"You're going to level up now, right? Get your gear here. Hers is swordsman gear; yours is for a magician."
"Um… but I don't have any money…"
"No worries. This guy already paid me plenty. No charge."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Well… various reasons."
He was probably referring to the Skeleton Ogre materials I sold him—likely stolen goods.
"Anyway, for upper layers, decent armor is fine, but the sword needs to be high quality or it'll chip fast. Especially one that can handle [Sword Saint]—a silver sword would be best."
The shopkeeper drew one of the swords from its sheath.
The silver blade gleamed dully.
"This one's effective against undead too. Best thing I've got right now."
"Thank you so much! I'll take good care of it!"
"No need to thank me. Both of you—go give it your all!"
Fatima hugged the sword the shopkeeper handed her with care.
With equipment provided thanks to the shopkeeper's generosity, we set out immediately to begin leveling up.