Reincarnated Devil's Strongest Hero Training Plan ~The baby he picked up has grown up so well that his father is confused~ - Volume 2 Chapter 8

Reincarnated Devil’s Strongest Hero Training Plan ~The baby he picked up has grown up so well that his father is confused~

Volume 2 Chapter 8   At the Adventurers Guild

“Why not?! Abel and I can easily take down those monsters!”

“No matter what you say, the answer is no. Unlike Fradaria, who graduated at the top of the Royal Magic Academy, you, Ekina, are still too young to even enroll in school.”

At the adventurer’s guild reception in Rador, the little devil who couldn’t contain her excitement for new adventures seemed to be trying to embark on a new challenge.

As her first step, she dragged her childhood friends Abel and Fradaria to the adventurer’s guild, but the results were not favorable. The main issue was the age restriction for official guild registration. The young woman in her early twenties at the reception was adamant about not allowing them to register.

Although five-year-old Ekina could be provisionally registered, she was furious that she wasn’t even permitted to be an E-rank apprentice, which is considered the lowest level of formal guild membership.

The guild’s rules clearly stated that, for the sake of ensuring a minimum level of safety to maintain the survival of the human race, official registration was only allowed from the age of eight, which is the age at which commoners could enroll in school.

Provisional registration allowed for tasks like herb collection, city cleaning, and deliveries, so the idea was to gain experience from there. Contributions made during provisional registration were counted towards official registration, and many would take the D-rank promotion test as soon as they turned eight.

However, despite their contributions, very few eight-year-olds could pass the D-rank test, which required them to fight against well-trained soldiers and professional monster hunters. Nevertheless, it was a well-designed system.

Though these logical explanations made sense, they did not persuade the stubborn half-demon, Ekina. Instead, they only fueled her anger.

“But you gave Abel special permission without even testing him, making him a D-rank right away! How is that fair?!”

“That’s because Abel is a special case. Despite his young age, he’s the promising new star, the son of the hero Ars who saved our world. We can’t afford to let the next generation’s hero be held back.”

Ekina was left with her mouth agape at the receptionist’s seemingly outrageous logic. She looked back and forth between Abel, who was blushing with pride, and the receptionist, who gazed at him with admiration. Unable to believe what she was hearing, Ekina let out a scream.

“What?! This useless… this guy?!”

“Hey, you just called me useless, didn’t you? You did, right?!”

“…I did not!”

“Don’t lie! What was that pause then?! I’ll cry, you know! Are you okay with that?! I’ll cry!”

As the two five-year-olds’ bickering seemed to escalate, the normally tense and bloodthirsty atmosphere of the adventurers’ guild softened into a heartwarming scene. Fradaria, who had accompanied them, gave a wry smile and bowed her head to the surrounding adventurers and the receptionist in apology for the noise, inwardly amused that they were being forgiven with laughter.

By the way, Fradaria, who graduated top of her class from the prestigious Royal Magic Academy, already held a B-rank adventurer qualification. This was because the academy included courses and assignments that involved adventuring, granting all graduates a C-rank adventurer certificate.

As the top graduate, she held a B-rank, but her actual ability to handle B-rank adventurer work was still unknown due to her lack of real combat experience. While her knowledge and magical skills from the academy might be at a B-rank level, she often worked with skilled classmates and had teachers supervising to prevent any emergencies during fieldwork.

Thus, her true capability in actual adventuring was uncertain, especially in unexpected crisis situations.

Nevertheless, the training from the capital wasn’t entirely useless, making it difficult to judge her abilities. This time, Ekina’s plan to drag Abel and the senior adventurer Fradaria from the magical castle to join her seemed to be faltering.

“Geez, you’re so stingy, old lady!!”

“Old L-lady…?!”

In this world, where human women in their thirties were considered past their prime, calling a beautiful woman in her early twenties an old lady was unheard of. Yet, to a child, twenty or thirty made no difference.

What was worse was that Ekina knew this and used her position as a child to hurl insults. The adults around her couldn’t grasp her cunning nature, leading the receptionist to freeze like she had been turned to stone, unable to move after being mentally struck by what she thought was an innocent child.

Thus, Ekina left the reception clutching a provisional adventurer’s certificate with her name and rank, a mere wooden scrap compared to the bronze D-rank plate around Abel’s neck and the gold B-rank plate around Fradaria’s. Although she was not entirely satisfied, seeing that someone could accept requests, she reasoned it was the same in the end.

Remarkably rational for a five-year-old, Ekina never lost sight of her purpose. Her initial goal was to experience unknown aspects of the world, seek adventure, and discover something with her own eyes.

So, it didn’t matter if she couldn’t register officially; as long as Abel and Fradaria could move freely, it wasn’t a significant issue.

Incidentally, F-rank plates are made of wood, E-rank plates are made of iron, D-rank plates are made of copper, C-rank plates are made of silver, B-rank plates are made of gold, A-rank plates are made of mithril, and S-rank plates are made of orichalcum.

Gaius and Amanda, both retired adventurers, naturally possess orichalcum S-rank plates. Even after their retirement, Viscount Rador, the lord of this town, begged them not to return their adventurer plates, just in case of emergencies.

To Viscount Rador, who was deeply moved by the adventurers’ efforts during the Great Human-Demon War, having heroes like Gaius and Amanda, who chose to remain in this town and run a small inn, was invaluable. He genuinely respected Gaius and Amanda and believed that if another crisis befell the world, they and their children would be the key to salvation.

This admiration had become an unwavering conviction for Viscount Rador. Fradaria’s ability to take the entrance exam for the Royal Magic Academy as a special scholarship candidate was due to his vigorous push, using his full authority as a noble.

Otherwise, despite being the child of an S-rank adventurer and hero, no commoner’s child could slip through the noble’s exclusivity to enroll in the academy. High ability was necessary, but a significant title was also required to even reach the entrance exam that would prove such ability.

Thus, Gaius, the S-rank adventurer and super warrior who was the shield and mentor of the hero who saved the world, was Viscount Rador’s trump card.

Of course, adventurers ranged from heroes like Gaius to scum who were little better than thieves. The true correctness of Viscount Rador’s support for adventurers was something no one could definitively ascertain.

However, judging solely by current results, his decision was undeniably correct. Fradaria, whom he recommended, had graduated top of her class at the highest academy at the age of ten. This had greatly boosted Viscount Rador’s reputation and earned him significant trust from the current King of Rurans, possibly even elevating his noble rank.

Yet, such success also attracted jealousy and interference from other nobles, making it a complicated affair.

Back to the main story, Ekina, accompanied by the rumored Abel and Fradaria, was eyeing the requests posted on the guild’s bulletin board.

“An investigation request for rookie adventurers at the Onos Ruins, huh…”

“What’s that? Do you know about the Onos Ruins, Ekina?”

With a smug look, Ekina picked up a request about investigating an adventurer at the nearby Onos Ruins. The Onos Ruins, once a site of an ancient civilization long plundered of its treasures and no longer of significant research interest, were problematic due to the variety of monsters that frequently settled there.

Located within a vast forest representative of the southern continent, the ruins posed no threat to the town even when inhabited by monsters. However, as a convenient hunting ground for rare materials from the forest and monsters, the ruins were a popular spot for new adventurers.

The proximity to the town and the relatively weak monsters made it an ideal training ground for beginners. The current issue of the adventurer likely targeted this common trend.

“About the ruins? I don’t know anything about that.”

“What?”

“What ‘what’?”

“Never mind.”

Abel felt like he should ask why she had that smug look if she didn’t know, but he knew it would just make Ekina sulk. Boys tend to tease girls they’re interested in, but Abel was unusually kind in situations like this.

However, it seemed Ekina wasn’t completely unprepared.

“Well, Fradaria-neechan knows all about these kinds of things. It’s fine.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s how it is! Right, neechan?”

“Yes. I have knowledge about the location, terrain, adventurer tendencies, and surrounding environment.”

With a “see, I told you” attitude, Ekina placed absolute trust in Fradaria’s knowledge, showing no concern and brushing things off casually. Abel, with his more common sense, couldn’t help but be confused by this incredible amount of knowledge, just as he had been astounded by hearing that Ekina had graduated top of her class from the Royal Magic Academy just a few days ago. He was shocked by this academic prodigy, just as Ekina had been.

“Alright! We’ll take this request. While neechan accepts it, we’ll go get Wasabi.”

“O-okay!”

Thus, with their plan set, the trio prepared for their first adventure. They left the task of accepting the request to Fradaria, who held a B-rank adventurer’s certificate, and went to the backyard to bring along their additional member, the high-ranking spirit Wasabi.