Strongest Swordman's Re:START

Merc set out for the forest that led to human territory after deciding to leave the elf village and pursue a career as an adventurer. She ran into members of Blazing Impact as she approached the forest. They were wearing the same armor that Merc had seen them in when she first met them.

“Hey, Merc.”

“Hello. Did you wait long?”

Merc asked Jonahim who had raised his hand to greet her.　

Their meeting was planned for noon, and because the bell marking noon had yet to sound, Merc had assumed she had plenty of time, but seeing Blazing Impact already there made her feel like she had arrived late.

“Don’t worry about it. We just happened to be a bit early.”

“Hmph, so you’re really leaving the village. At the very least, I applaud your dedication.”

“…Hey.”

Merc felt something wasn’t quite right as the three of them exchanged greetings with her. As usual, Jonahim smiled brightly, and Luka’s response was brief. Elea, on the other hand, who’d often say rude things to Merc, had an unusually terrible complexion. She appeared rather pale… Even someone who wasn’t as skilled in Healing and Alchemy as Merc could tell Elea wasn’t feeling well.

“What are you looking at?”

“Nothing. You just looked like you weren’t doing quite well.”

“Huh?”

Elea took a step back when she heard Merc say it, most likely to dodge the question. When Jonahim saw Elea do that, he was taken aback.

“Didn’t I tell you, Merc? Elea’s hungover. Because she only drank a little yesterday, I let my guard down, but I never anticipated it to last until noon.”

“I’m not to blame! It would have been impolite of me to refuse. Although I only drank a little, the booze was just too strong!”

“Just admit that you’re a lightweight, Elea.”

“Urgh…”

Elea, who appeared to be somewhat sorry about her actions, gave in after being pressured by both Jonahim and Luka.

“Will you be able to walk through the forest in that state?” Merc asked her.

“Of course. There are no Magic Beasts inside the forest, and we won’t get lost because we have an elf with us.”

“That may be true, but…”

Even so, merely to get out of the forest, one had to travel a long distance.

Merc was well aware of the distance because she had accompanied her mother to work on several occasions. A hungover person could traverse it, but it wouldn’t be a pleasant trip.

“Heal.”

“Ah!”

After a few moments of thought, Merc cast Healing on Elea. After all, if Elea was having difficulty walking, it would slow them all down.

As the white warm light engulfed Elea, her complexion began to brighten. The light dispersed after Elea’s complexion returned to normal. Elea hurriedly approached Merc once the light faded.

“W-What do you think you’re doing?! I don’t remember asking you to use Heal on me!”

“That’s true. However, I wanted to perform a little experiment.”

“An experiment?”

“That’s right. I wanted to see if Heal worked on hangovers… So, how do you feel, Elea?”

“Oh… I-I think I’m fine…”

Elea said as she jumped up and down and shook her head to see whether it was still ringing. On a side note, Merc thought that her pink hair, which was tied up and shook rhythmically as she jumped, looked cute.

There was no way that wasn’t going to work.

Merc, who had known that Healing spells worked on hangovers beforehand, merely remarked, “I see. Thank you very much.” After all, Merc was going to stay with them for a while, so it wouldn’t be wise of her to get into any conflicts right away.

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“At the very least, Elea, you should thank Merc. It might have been an experiment but that doesn’t change the fact that she cured your hangover.”

“O-Of course I will! T-Thank you, Merc. You’re welcome to use Heal to cure my hangovers from now on.”

“Don’t get carried away!”

“Ouch!”

Jonahim landed a chop on Elea’s head, who had her chest stuck up as she spoke to Merc in a condescending tone after being admonished by him.

Even though Elea was holding her head in pain, Merc saw that she had a smile on her face. Merc guessed that she was most likely happy to have received Jonahim’s attention.

Drop dead. After flashing a murderous stare at each of them, Merc turned to Luka with an expression of feigning ignorance on her face.

“Should we go?”

“…Maybe.”

Luka said after Merc urged her to leave the other two behind.

What does maybe mean?! Is that a yes or a no?!

Merc decided to go anyway, despite her doubts, and she noticed Luka following her.

“Luka, for how long have you been an adventurer?”

“Four years. I became one after becoming an adult.”

“I see. Then you’re really 18. But still, it’s amazing that you became a Grade 2 Adventurer in just four years. Have you always been with Jonahim and Elea?”

“I joined them two years ago, because I thought I would make money.”

Each person had their own motivation for becoming an adventurer, but those like Luka who openly acknowledged doing it for money were few.

Despite the fact that she knew her companions would be upset, being able to say it out loud demonstrated Luka’s confidence in her abilities. After all, confidence was crucial for adventurers. Even though Merc was taken aback by Luka’s motivation, she had no intention of reprimanding her over it.

“Merc, do you want to become an adventurer?”

“Hm? That’s right. I intend to accompany you to the Guild where you will be reporting your mission results, and there I will submit my application.”

“Huh? You don’t know?”

Luka came to a halt and inquired after Merc stated her intentions. Merc also came to a halt after being astonished by Luka’s strange behavior.

“What don’t I know?”

“There’s an exam for aspiring adventurers.”

“An exam? Huh? There wasn’t such a thing 15 years ago…”

“15 years ago?”

“I-It’s nothing.”

An exam? According to what I recall, you could become one by simply paying one silver coin…

Luka’s information left Merc speechless.

According to Merc’s memory Joining the Adventurers’ Guild hadn’t required an exam 15 years ago, when Merc battled the Falgaro. All that had been required was to apply for registration, fill out the forms, and pay a single silver coin. The adventurers would thereafter only be required to pay one blue silver coin annual charge.

Of course, Estert had been a member of the Adventurers’ Guild for far longer than 15 years, but he had never heard of any changes until his death.

I see… So that’s what Elea meant when she stated that I needed to pass when we were in the mountains… She was referring to the exam…

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Merc wasn’t sure when the requirements had changed, but she realized it was troublesome. Merc let out an unintentional sigh before speaking.

“So? What does this exam consist of?”

“Don’t know.”

“Huh? But you’ve taken it, haven’t you, Luka?”

“The contents change every year. You won’t know until you take it.”

“That means I can’t prepare for it as well. Well I guess that’s fine.”

“It’s okay.”

Luka whispered when she heard Merc pondering about it. It was only normal to be curious about the contents of an exam one was taking.

However, because she had been imprisoned inside the elf village for such a long time, Merc was severely lacking in modern knowledge. Because such was the case, Merc decided not to worry about it and instead left it to chance, expecting that everyone who took the exam would be treated fairly.

“It’s certainly annoying, but there’s nothing I can do about it. I’ll just have to pass it and become an adventurer.”

“To take…”

“What was that?”

“To take the exam, you must have a recommendation from a Grade 4 or higher adventurer who’s had their Mana recorded at the Guild1. Do you have one?”

“……”

Like hell I do!