Witch, don't be so lazy

The Adventurer's Guild is a powerful force with deep roots. Because of its long-term fight against the abyss and clearing of monsters, its reputation in all countries is surprisingly good. In addition, it has always maintained a neutral attitude and is willing to share profits with major forces, so its strongholds can be spread all over the world.

……

After finally making their way through the crowd, Encore finally made it to the front of the stage.

There are more waiters in the pub at night than during the day. They are very busy serving drinks and cleaning. There is also a lot of work at the central bar. On the one hand, they have to compile the menu and communicate with the kitchen, and on the other hand, they are responsible for the cashier and change.

But the older sister I had met before was very leisurely. She sat upright behind the round table, scanning the audience with her chin in her hand, and occasionally chatting with acquaintances.

When she met An Ke's eyes, she showed a look of surprise, then smiled and waved at the girl, saying:

"Ah~ Could it be that my little cutie has finally made up his mind~ and plans to work in the store? Sure, we're always short of staff. Nod and I can take you to the back to change clothes now..."

As she spoke, she fumbled around under the stage and pulled out the familiar white silk cat-ear maid outfit.

An Ke shook his head like a rattle, first stating that he had borrowed the money, thanked the other party for their kindness, and casually proposed the idea of ​​staying in the guild.

The older sister tilted her head, showing no surprise or curiosity about the first half of the sentence, but instead cared more about the second half.

"Are you in trouble?"

"Ah."

Anke was not surprised by the other party's question, because ordinary people would not be willing to live in the Adventurer's Guild. Most of them were attracted by the brand and safety and were willing to pay the high accommodation fees.

But the elder sister's next words shocked Anke.

"It seems that old man Hans hasn't let you join the club yet. But this is not a bad thing. It will prevent the pure white cutie from being led astray."

What the hell?

Anke blinked her eyes. Why did they suddenly mention Old Hans? And what about joining the club? It was a bit off topic.

"The center of Xueshan Town is so small, and Hans didn't deliberately hide it. Anyone who came in could tell what was going on in his shop. Even the aunties were gossiping about how mean old Hans was exploiting the poor child workers."

That makes sense.

Since it was something that ordinary residents could discover, how could the Adventurer's Guild not know about it? The number of official mages in the town could be counted on two hands, so it was natural that they would keep an eye on each other's movements.

"From what you said, Hans isn't a wild mage?"

An Ke asked carefully.

As the name suggests, a wild mage is a mage who does not belong to any force.

"of course not."

The older sister muttered in response, "Although Hans is a good person, it's best not to get too involved with the organization he belongs to, otherwise the little white flower will be stained black in no time."

She reached out and pinched An Ke's little face, as if she didn't want to dwell on this topic, and simply picked up the list at hand and handed it over.

"Look, this is our guild's accommodation price list."

The words are written in black on white paper, and the surrounding light is bright, so it is very clear.

But Anke twitched the corners of his mouth, preferring not to see it so clearly.

Naturally, he quickly passed by the luxurious room at the top. Otherwise, the longer he stayed there, the more the eye-catching large number would hurt the poor little guy's heart.

Even the cheapest standard room clearly stated four silver coins per night, and it was also specifically noted that meals were not included.

Did something go wrong?

It's a bit too expensive... Well, for those rich men, this little money is just a drop in the bucket for safety.

But the problem is that Miss Anke cannot be said to be closely associated with the word "rich" at the moment, at least it is not even remotely related.

She calculated expressionlessly and found that even if she spent all her money she could only stay for seven days.

And what can you do in seven days? At best, you can improve the Mage's Hand to the proficient level.

In the eyes of others, this is already a sign of talent, but it's useless.

According to Hans, not to mention the leader of the Huangtu Gang, even the small leaders have been apprentices for six or seven years and must have mastered two or three skilled magic tricks.

There's no need for even a small leader. Just send five or six big men with knives, guns, sticks and clubs, and An Ke will have no choice but to run away.

After all, not to mention how powerful the magic trick is, just considering the mental and magical energy consumed by releasing it continuously, An Ke has no idea.

But if you can reach the mastery level, with the magical powers granted by the proficiency panel, perhaps you can bring about a turning point.

Furthermore, if he could make the magic scroll to the mastery level, no matter what changes he would get, he could at least strongly prove that he was a genius in this area. Then he could go and try to persuade Hans, or even go to Hahn to negotiate, and he would surely be able to gain some bargaining chips.

But the premise of all this is time, a safe development environment, and money.

Perhaps seeing the distressed look on the face of the person in front of her, the elder sister smiled slightly.

"If you don't have money, would you like to consider my proposal?"

She leaned forward and whispered devilishly, "Employees have benefits. Delicious food is provided. The dormitory environment may not be as good as the guest rooms, but it's free."

I have to admit that Encore had a moment of heart-beating.

However, after repeatedly confirming the working hours, she still shook her head and refused.

She attends classes during the day and works in the workshop after school. If she has to work hard until one or two o'clock in the morning, no matter whether she can survive this working hell, she will have no time to improve her proficiency.

Safe accommodation is for a better liver, and we should not put the cart before the horse.

However, the other party's words reminded her.

"If I can become an adventurer, even if I'm just a reserve member, I'm sure there will be corresponding benefits, right?"

Anko asked.

She had learned about the Adventurer's Guild. Official members wore bronze badges because of the strict regulations requiring the strength of a first-level mage, which was still a long way from Encore.

But below the bronze badge, there is a lower-level black iron badge, which means the guild's reserve member.

It is worth noting that the reserve members here are not the "adventurers" in the tavern whose main business is to feed pigs, raise horses, do farm work, and occasionally take on small commissions.

In fact, those who can obtain the Black Iron Badge, if strength is the key, are roughly equivalent to experienced soldiers, or old apprentices like Teacher Mott. Although they have not been able to achieve promotion in rank, they have already been in contact with the extraordinary for many years and are the absolute elite among mortals.

Of course, the guild's issuance of Black Iron Badges does not solely depend on strength. If there is a chance to win over newcomers with potential, they will naturally not refuse.

The elder sister was stunned for a moment, then nodded.

"Of course, according to the guild's rules, holders of the Black Iron Badge receive a 30% discount on all tavern purchases. Bronze Badges offer free purchases. Higher-tier badges can even allocate strategic resources to the stronghold... Oh, I'm getting off topic. If you want the Black Iron Badge, you'll need to have some impressive expertise."

Before the girl could answer, she seemed to understand Anke's thoughts and added:

"The guild doesn't need skilled craftsmen who can make magic scrolls. The talents we're willing to award badges to must at least pass the Iris Workshop's assessment... Well, let's put it this way. We have an agreement with the Iris Workshop that the assessment content for both sides is the same. Once you arrive in Arthda City, get the badge and certificate, and pass some verification, you'll also be listed with Iris."

The Adventurer's Guild has very deep cooperation with a number of organizations such as the Golden Dawn, the La Paz Gathering, the Iris Workshop, etc., and even has an agreement to screen people.

After all, other guilds are restricted by various conditions and are usually only opened in big cities. Only adventurer bases can be opened in small towns.

Anke was not surprised by the lingering connections between the big guilds. She was just wondering why it was Iris Workshop.

"Isn't that a place for painting and sculpture? Well, I know they're definitely not just studying art, but they're probably exchanging ideas about painting magic or something?"

The older sister showed a look of surprise, then a hint of amusement: "You don't even know this. Why did Hans hire you? Are you really just after the child labor?"

She poked An Ke's confused face, and after teasing her, she patiently explained:

"Have you never been confused? Why can you draw the relevant scroll when you clearly don't master the corresponding spell?"

An Ke was stunned.

"Because... the lines on the scroll, those lines that can flow magic."

"You're quite clever~"

The elder sister smiled. "Runes, ancient spells, abyssal magic patterns, elven runes, no matter what words are used to call them, no matter how different the forms are, in essence they are all the same thing."

If potions are a combination of the pursuit of the spiritual essence of all things, and alchemy is a desire to master the transformations of the material world, then runes are an attempt to freeze eternity, attempting to depict the ever-changing spirituality and magic with static patterns.

She looked at the adorable little Anke with a silly expression and smiled again, "I can't say such profound words. These are the famous words of His Majesty, the Seventh Seat of the Tower, the Almighty."

"Well, according to convention, if you want to take the Black Iron Badge test, you not only have to accept some tedious commissions beforehand, but you also need a letter of recommendation..."

The older sister said lightly, "Well, the former is to confirm your identity. You were born and raised in this town, so it's unnecessary. As for the letter of recommendation, just think of it as your sister giving it to you..."

She winked at Anke and turned up one side of her collar slightly. What was more dazzling than her snow-white skin was the bronze badge.

Slightly sideways, he opened the door behind the bar—

"Let's go, cutie~"

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Maybe it's because I wrote it mediocrely, so I haven't signed a contract yet. I want to control the update, otherwise I won't get any recommendations, and the word count is increasing too fast, which makes me feel bad. I haven't cut the book~

Chapter 11 Assessment

Anke stepped through the door and a long, narrow corridor stretching downward came into view.

Gray-white stone walls, spiral stairs, and ancient lampstands with faint green flames on them. They were obviously burning fiercely, but there was no feeling of warmth.

"Lord Luya, where are we going?"

Anke couldn't help but ask.

Yes.

When Anke saw the bronze badge, he already knew the identity and name of his elder sister: the head of the Adventurer's Guild in Cedar Town, a first-level mage, Luya Karrost.

As early as in the class, Mott had briefly mentioned several mages with official backgrounds in the town, including the tax collector of the lord and the lord's mansion, the director of the Winter Chamber of Commerce, the director of the Public Security Bureau and the guard station, the director in charge of the school and education, and the head of the Adventurer's Guild.

But Encore never expected that the other person was not an elderly grandmother, but a beautiful and enthusiastic older sister.

"Where else can we go? The inner room of the guild, of course."

Lu Ya smiled and said, "How could that tavern outside possibly be the entire base? Magic training, extraordinary material storage, intelligence transmission and trading, magic item control and deployment..."

At the end of the corridor was a large door forged from dense steel, carved with images of bonfires, goblets, and swords.

Luya reached out and pushed it away, then turned back and winked at An Ke, "Of course we have to do it in here."

A huge and spacious foyer.

The ceiling was very high, with azure lamps hanging from it. Ancient stone pillars stood silently around it, like loyal guards, indifferently watching every passerby.

And all around, one could see countless tall rooms neatly arranged, some open. Looking inside, one could see circles of incense and candles on the floor, and in front of them stood a scarred stone wall and an alchemy doll...

It is obviously a meditation room and practice room combined into one.

Looking towards the center, around the crackling fire pit, sweet honey wine and shiny plates are placed on the obsidian-gleaming stone seats, and the vine-woven chairs next to them are of unique shape.

Of course, there is the most eye-catching one.

The notice board took up three walls. There were no stickers on it, but instead all kinds of dark golden text were displayed directly on the board. Some were buzzwords, some looked like Elvish and Dwarven languages, and some were just scribbles. One look at it showed that they were encrypted.

Wow, these are definitely more magical than the quests in the tavern.

The magic was so severe that Encore tried to open his eyes wide, but he still couldn't make out what was written on them. It was like looking at flowers in the fog, and he could only see vague outlines.

"Only after you get the badge can you see the corresponding level of commissions and information."

Luya gently patted Anke's little head.

There were some staff members around, busy sorting various documents and moving things. Only when they saw the older sister would they pause and say hello.

"Oh~ Looks like Aisi is presiding over the alchemy exam and can't get away, so I'll have to let you go into the small room~"

Actually the room is not small.

The layout looked similar to those meditation rooms, with calming incense and soothing candles, but without the experimental spells, alchemical dolls and earth walls. Instead, there was a set of knight armor.

Shining silver pieces, a three-section structure, the upper breastplate and the lower plastron are fixed with rivets, and the gaps between the components are filled with a small amount of mail. Just looking at it makes you feel full of martial virtue.

Just as An Ke was still looking at it over and over, wondering what the purpose of this thing was, Lu Ya had already walked to the cabinet at the back and turned around to ask:

"What kind of runes were you exposed to before? Abyssal runes? Elven runes? Well, I guess they were ancient spells. Let's see if they are true~"

She took several pieces of parchment and showed them to Anke one by one.

The first one had strange patterns, and one could smell the scent of sulfur and corruption just by looking at it; the second one was elegant and complex, and its shape was like a lush vine; the third one looked much more familiar, and was almost the same as the scroll An Ke had drawn before, except that it looked more solemn and profound, with a heavy historical atmosphere.

"So I'm learning ancient spells?"

Anko blinked.

"To be more precise, it should be a modern spell simplified by the sages of the North, but it is indeed a descendant of the ancient spell, and can even be traced back to the ancient runes."

Luya briefly explained and handed over the parchment. "According to the rules of the Iris Workshop, you must replicate the spell within one hour. It just needs to be complete and flow smoothly. Quality is not a requirement. If you pass, I will give you the Black Iron Badge."