The man silently withdrew his gaze, finished the last few strokes in the register, then took out a small insignia from the drawer and pushed it in front of Alpha.
It was a bronze medal. The front was engraved with the Adventurers’ Guild emblem—a crossed sword and staff. On the back of the medal, there was a diagonal slash texture.
“Take it. This is your Adventurer’s Certificate.”
“From today onward, you are a Level 1 Bronze Adventurer.”
The man paused, then quickly added, “Even though your strength is Second Order, all newcomers start from Level 1. You need to complete commissions and accumulate points to rank up. That’s the rule of the Adventurers’ Guild.”
Alpha nodded, took the medal, and clasped it in her hand.
The bronze felt cool to the touch, yet it stirred a strange warmth in her heart.
Her former self would never have dreamed that one day she would become an adventurer…
After this reflection, Alpha gathered her thoughts, put away the Adventurer’s Certificate, and walked toward the board on the far wall that was plastered with commission sheets.
The few adventurers who had been standing in front of the board heard her footsteps, instinctively turned to look, and then, with remarkable tacit understanding, moved aside to make room for her.
No one spoke.
No one showed any displeasure either.
Having hung around this place long enough, perception was a basic survival skill. This figure before them, clad in a black robe and mask, with an unidentifiable age—the “Magic Swordsman”—exuded an aura of trouble just by standing there.
No reason to ask for trouble.
Alpha didn’t stand on ceremony. She stepped forward and swept her gaze over the dense array of commission sheets.
【Courier Delivery—Reward: Five copper coins.】
She glanced at it and skipped it directly.
Not familiar with this city; courier work would be easy to get lost, and the reward really was a bit too little.
【Find the Missing House Cat—Reward: Three copper coins.】
This one she also skipped.
【Escort for a Merchant Caravan—Destination: White Stone City, Estimated Travel Time: Seven Days, Reward: Twenty silver coins.】
Twenty silver coins was equivalent to two thousand copper coins, which was indeed quite a lot.
But seven days was too long, and she would have to go to an unfamiliar city.
Alpha frowned slightly and continued reading.
【Escort an Apothecary Herb Gatherer—Go to the outskirts of Grey Rock Forest to collect herbs, return the same day, Reward: Three silver coins.】
This commission made her pause.
Same-day return, not too long, and three silver coins was not a small amount.
Alpha mentally checked this commission.
Keep looking down.
【Cull the Low-rank Monsters that have escaped from the dungeon—Location: Near the Abandoned Mine in East City, Reward: One gold coin, plus additional settlement for any monster materials obtained.】
Alpha’s gaze stopped.
One gold coin.
That reward was quite substantial.
And “additional settlement”…
That meant after killing the monsters, if there were any usable materials, like magic cores, fur, claws, etc., she could keep them to sell as extra income.
Nowadays, the monsters were scared out of their wits by the legendary Lord Hero. Most of them hid in the Dark Domain and wouldn’t come out. Those still outside were mostly mindless, singular-minded monsters.
The main sources of rare and high-level monster materials were places called “dungeons.”
Speaking of “dungeons,” they weren’t really “underground cities” in the true sense. Instead, they were fallen territories that had been conquered and occupied by monsters.
Many years ago, a cruel and tyrannical Demon Queen led an army of monsters to sweep through human territory. Those conquered cities completely turned into monster dens, with humans being raised like cattle.
Later on, that Lord Hero appeared, defeated the Demon Queen, and caused the monster army to completely rout and retreat back to the Dark Domain.
Unfortunately, although humanity won, those polluted cities could not be restored. The survivors had already been converted into Blood Slaves, the dead awakened as Undead, and the entire city turned into a hell on earth.
Those cities were abandoned and sealed off. Although they were still built above ground, no one dared to return to live there, and they became “dungeons.”
To this day, those dungeons still housed all sorts of berserk monsters that had lost their reason, as well as Undead and Blood Slaves bound by curses.
Occasionally, monsters would escape from the dungeons and wander into nearby human settlements.
When that happened, adventurers were needed to cull them.
That Lord Hero was once an adventurer. His glorious deeds were household stories. Many people grew up hearing about the Hero and the Demon Queen, and Alpha was no different.
Alpha looked at the slightly yellowed commission sheet, her eyes flickering slightly.
To be honest, she was a bit tempted. Besides the generous reward, she also needed actual combat to accumulate fighting experience and improve her strength.
Alpha recalled that night, the feeling when she swung the sword at the bandit rushing toward her.
In that moment, she felt the power surging within her—the power granted to her by the Demon Lord, her own power.
If she wanted to truly master that power, she needed more battles.
Not training—real, life-or-death combat.
After all, the Demon Lord bestowed power upon her, probably also hoping that she would grow stronger.
If she only accepted safe, small commissions, when would she ever truly become strong?
So if she only took easy commissions to make a living, she would forever stay in her comfort zone and never progress.
Alpha intended to take this commission, but she soon noticed a line of newer handwriting in the lower right corner of the sheet:
【This commission requires at least four people to form a team or be undertaken by an adventure party.】
Alpha frowned.
A team, huh…
It wasn’t that she was afraid of interacting with people, but rather… she didn’t trust people here.
After all, the scene of the little beggar being robbed in broad daylight in front of the bakery was still vivid in her mind.
Taking a commission to cull monsters inevitably came with danger; it wasn’t about making friends or playing house.
Temporary teams among strangers—who knew what their backgrounds were? What if they ran into danger in battle and they abandoned her? What if, after killing the monsters, they turned on her?
Moreover, her power came from the Demon Lord’s gift. Although it was now her own power, she didn’t want to expose too much in front of others.
But this culling commission required a team.
Alpha was silent for a few seconds, sighed lightly in her heart, and then her gaze fell back on the herb gatherer escort commission.
Although it paid much less than the culling commission, the advantage was that she didn’t have to deal with people, and on the way to the forest, she might encounter some weak monsters or wild beasts to practice on.
She reached out to take down the escort commission sheet, but her mind still lingered on the previous culling commission. A thought flashed through her mind:
If she had to team up, at least it should be with people she could trust.
And what kind of people were trustworthy?
Naturally, those who shared the same aspirations as her.
For example… those who also believed in the Demon Lord and were willing to dedicate everything to the Demon Lord.
In Alpha’s mind, a vague image surfaced:
A group of people dressed like her, in black robes and masks, gathering together, saying, “As long as you believe in the Demon Lord, then we are brothers and sisters, a family, regardless of blood!”
Then everyone would act together for the Demon Lord’s vision or some lofty goal…
Just thinking about it made her blood boil!
If…
If I could build a force for the Demon Lord?
The moment this thought emerged, Alpha herself was stunned.
Build a force?
With her?
A girl who had just been freed from slavery and didn’t even know this city?
She shook her head and temporarily suppressed this unrealistic idea.
It’s too early to think about this now.
Take it step by step, one step at a time.
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