After passing the time leisurely, I exited the guild. Most of the students were already inside their respective carriage.
Now which carriage should I ride… Oh?
“Yo, Ryouma.” [Rick]
“Huh? Oh, Berk. You guys participating too?” [Ryouma]
There was a group of 6 I was familiar with riding on the carriage at the center.
“Elder Brother Jeff taught us a lot, so we were somehow able to save enough money.” [Berk]
“Elder Brother Jeff has work, so…” [Wist]
“While he’s not around, we decided to go train.” [Finia]
“I see.” [Ryouma]
“I was wondering what you were doing at a place like this, but it looks like you’re an instructor.” [Berk]
“The guild master advised me to. Let’s all do our best.” [Ryouma]
After saying that, I parted with them.
There was an empty seat in their carriage, but I figured it would be better to avoid supporting someone I know, so I got into a carriage with Roche-san and a party I don’t know.
“…” [Ryouma]
…The silence is deafening!
When the carriages moved out and lined up, this carriage ended up being at the very center. Because of that you can hear all the happy voices coming from the carriages at the back and front. All the adventurer students riding this carriage are participating alone. Because of that not a single one of them is talking.
“…Ryouma.” [Roche]
“Yes. What is it?” [Ryouma]
“You don’t seem to be carrying a lot with you. Will you be alright?” [Roche]
Looks like Roche-san finally couldn’t bear the silence.
Just as he says, I only have one knapsack made of pelt with me. Compared to Roche-san and the other participating adventurers with several knapsacks filled with sleeping equipment and other camping equipment, I’m undoubtedly lightly equipped.
“It’s alright. I’ve stored enough items for 5 days with my Dimension Magic.” [Ryouma]
“You can use Dimension Magic?” [Roche]
“Yes. I want to make myself as mobile as possible, so I’ve made sure to put only the bare necessities in this knapsack. I’m confident in being able to camp for a few days with just this knapsack, but if I include the contents of my Item Box, I have more than enough for 5 days.” [Ryouma]
“Dimension Magic users sure have an easy time when it comes to luggage. I tried learning it myself in the past, but not just anyone can use it. I tried looking for a magic tool to do the job, but those things can really burn a hole in your wallet. On top of that, they can’t store much, so I just gave up.
Hey, you guys can talk too. There’s no penalty for talking, you know?” [Roche]
“If you’re that serious all the time, you’ll get tired quickly. So let’s relax until we get to the camp site, alright?” [Lucy]
As Roche-san and Lucy-san said that, the atmosphere inside the carriage softened.
But the six students were troubled because they didn’t know what to talk about.
Suddenly telling them to talk to each other would only make things worse. I understand that all too well. To the point of pain, in fact.
“Roche-san, don’t you have a topic everyone could talk about?” [Ryouma]
“A topic… Alright. What do you guys think an adventurer needs to aim for the top?” [Roche]
“…Strength?” [Student Adventurer]
When Roche-san asked that question to the students in the carriage, a boy timidly said that.
That was the impetus for everyone to start talking a little.
Strength. Practically speaking that would be referring to one’s skill in the sword or in the arcane arts. There was also someone who said endurance was the key.
Roche-san responded to their answers.
“Your answers are all more or less correct, but the more precise answer is ‘cooperation’. The ability for an adventurer to interact with other people.
As an adventurer’s rank increases, so does the difficulty of the tasks he faces. The jobs also become more dangerous. That’s why adventurers form parties. I won’t say it’s absolutely necessary, but the number of adventurers that go solo rapidly decrease from D Rank. From C Rank and above, only a handful continue without a party. At that point, what becomes necessary is the ability to ‘cooperate’ and ‘interact’ with others.” [Roche]
“Ideally, the party should be organized to cover each other’s weakness, but don’t assume you’ll immediately find the perfect party. As you work alongside each other, not only your individual abilities, but also your affinity with each other and your ability to work together will improve. It’s common to go through several parties before finding the right one.” [Lucy]
There’s a lot of situations where adventurers have to negotiate with others. A member could suddenly be replaced due to injury or retirement. Adventurers could find themselves arguing over the distribution of compensation. And sometimes clients ask too much.
“Normally, the guilds talk to the clients and decide an appropriate fee for their request. But there are many clients that try to talk directly to adventurers to bargain down the job fee. After all, the higher ranked the job becomes, the more expensive it gets.” [Roche]
And it’s not only adventurers who can do the job.
“It wouldn’t hurt to learn it.” [Ryouma]
“He’s right. Saying that one’s own skill is necessary isn’t wrong, but it’s impossible to raise your rank with just ability alone. At least, without making any mistakes. …But in that case, the road to promotion becomes all that more difficult. Any questions?” [Roche]
“Is there a trick to forming parties? Like where to go or what kind of bar to look for.” [Student Adventurer]
The students gradually became more and more active.
“For the meantime, the safest place is the guild.” [Roche]
“Right. If you consult the receptionist desk, they’ll introduce you to some other adventurers. It’s a lot safer than going to some strange place to meet adventurers of unknown origins. After all, the receptionist will tell you beforehand if the adventurer has a poor reputation.” [Lucy]
Come to think of it, there was a group of people who found a party at a bar, only to be turned into bait and abandoned.
“What you need to pay attention to when choosing a party is ‘frequency’. If a party is frequently recruiting members, then that would mean it has a high turnover rate. If so, then there must be a reason behind that. Similarly, you should also be wary of recruitments that have been left open for a long time. A party with no problems should be able to immediately fill a spot.” [Lucy]
As Lucy-san answered the question, Roche-san remembered something and added.
“You should also pay attention to the friends of the people you’re dealing with. It’s important for adventurers to make connections, but from time to time, there are those that try to gather people without the guild’s intervention. There’s nothing particularly wrong with that, but there are people who use such groups to commit criminal acts.
Just this spring we had a group of delinquent adventurers called the Fang of Orbtem…” [Roche]
…Oh, yeah. Those guys were a thing…
As I thought back to that somewhat distant memory, the two instructors talked about the incident to the students.
It’s likely none of the students here were present then. I listened as the two of them told the story.
“…And just like that, they were beaten at their own game and their plans foiled.” [Roche]
By the end of the story, they all wore a grim face.
I wonder if they’ll remember this when they search for party members? …It would be nice if it helps them find some good companions…
“Speaking of which, the young adventurer that beat them is this Ryouma over here, who’s acting like he’s completely unrelated.” [Roche]
“!?” [Students]
“Hey!” [Ryouma]
The six students looked at me in shock.
In the next moment, questions came at me one after another.
Now that the students have become active, they spared no effort to ask me one question after another. It was only after the carriage stopped that I was released from my interrogation.
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