The Kicked Out S-Rank Appraiser Creates The Strongest Guild - Chapter 69

Chapter 69   Song of the lost Hero

“Hey, Edgar, what the hell do you think you’re doing? Huh?”

Medes was reprimanding Edgar in the guild master’s office.

“…Sorry.”

“You said you’d meet this month’s quota, didn’t you? Huh? So what the hell is this? Contract terminated? Does that mean another alchemy guild snatched the client away? Huh?”

“Well, it’s just…”

“You don’t even understand that? Huh? What the hell are you doing?”

“…..”

“Have you been slacking off lately? Listen, if you can’t meet the quota next month, you know what that means, right? You’ll be demoted from the Quartet. Got it?”

“Damn it,” Edgar muttered as he kicked a trash can in the hallway.

The lower-ranked employees flinched at his aggressive behavior.

Ignoring the stares from those around him, Edgar continued to curse under his breath.

“That bastard. Acting all high and mighty for a C-class adventurer!”

Lizetta frowned at Edgar’s outburst.

“Hey, Charles, what’s going on? That’s pretty disgraceful.”

“Yeah. Apparently, he lost a client.”

“A client?”

“Yeah, a ‘Dawn’s Shield’ adventurer refused to renew the contract. So the guild master chewed him out for it, saying he’s been slacking off.”

“Hmm?”

(Though rough around the edges, Edgar’s skills as an alchemist are genuine. Especially his ‘Metal Shaping’—it’s A-class. When it comes to making sturdy armor, there’s no one on this island who can match him. I wonder who it could be that managed to steal a client from us.)

A sudden thought of Laurent crossed Lizetta’s mind.

(Could it be… him?)

The members of the guild ‘Dawn’s Shield’ were celebrating in the dining hall.

“Cheers!”

“This dungeon exploration was a huge success.”

“Yeah, we’ve never brought back this much rare metal before.”

“And it’s all thanks to Elio.”

“It’s not just me. It was the equipment. We owe it all to the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’.”

“Haha, I’m glad to hear that,” Laurent said modestly as he clinked glasses with the ‘Dawn’s Shield’ members.

Next to him were Aina and Rody.

“These two made the equipment,” Laurent introduced them.

“She handled the molding, and he took care of the design. Especially Aina, who used her unique skill to apply the ‘Exterior Enhancement Coating,’ which is crucial to the ‘Blue Armor’.”

“I see. So it was you two…”

Elio looked at them with admiration.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, I managed to keep my head above water.”

“We’re glad we could help,” Aina replied.

“Please, we’ll rely on you from now on,” Elio said, standing up and extending his hand to Aina for a handshake.

“Of course,” Aina responded, shaking his hand.

Laurent and Rody watched the scene with warm smiles.

“It’s really nice, isn’t it? The bond between adventurers and alchemists,” said Rody.

“Rody, aren’t you going to talk to him?” Laurent asked.

“No, most of the credit for that armor goes to her. I’m just happy to see her getting the recognition she deserves,” Rody replied.

“I see.”

(He’s just like me), Laurent thought, feeling a sense of kinship with Rody.

“By the way, Elio,” Aina interjected, pulling out a pamphlet, “would you be interested in taking part in a Skill and Status Enhancement Program led by Laurent, our S-rank appraiser?”

“Skill and Status Enhancement Program? What’s that? Does Laurent do more than just equipment matching?” Elio asked, intrigued.

“Yes, Laurent’s true strength lies in enhancing and developing skills and statuses,” Aina explained.

“Enhancing…?” Elio echoed.

“With Laurent’s training, you can refine your skills and status, allowing you to equip even more powerful gear. It will help both you and me reach greater heights. What do you think? Isn’t it a fantastic opportunity?”

“More powerful gear… That sounds great. I’ll talk to the guild about it right away,” Elio said enthusiastically.

Thief Cecil watched Elio and Aina’s conversation with envy.

“That’s awesome, Elio. Maybe I should switch to the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’ too,” she said.

“Yeah, once our contract with ‘Dragon’s Ember’ ends, we should propose it to the guild,” added Jeff, the archer.

“You guys won’t need to do that,” their leader, Leon, announced.

“Huh?”

“Everyone, listen up, including Laurent and the folks from the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’,” Leon said, drawing everyone’s attention.

“We just got approval from the top. All members of ‘Dawn’s Shield’ are to terminate their contracts with ‘Dragon’s Ember’ and form a partnership with the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’. From now on, everyone will get their equipment appraised by our S-rank appraiser and get new gear,” Leon declared.

The entire group erupted in cheers.

“I pitched our services to ‘Dawn’s Shield’,” Dylan whispered to Laurent.

“Dylan,” Laurent responded, appreciating Dylan’s initiative.

(He’s really a thoughtful guy.)

“You’ll accept, right?” Leon extended his hand to Laurent.

“Yes, absolutely,” Laurent replied, shaking Leon’s hand firmly.

“This evening marks the joyous occasion of the partnership between ‘Dawn’s Shield’ and the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’. To celebrate, everyone here tonight gets a free drink on the house. Additionally, every time ‘Dawn’s Shield’ brings rare metals to the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’, they’ll get another free drink from us,” announced Saki.

The dining hall erupted in cheers.

“Saki, is that okay?” Laurent asked.

“Yes, it’s our small gift to everyone,” Saki replied.

(Of course, it’s also a strategy to make these adventurers regulars at our dining hall), Saki whispered to Laurent with a playful wink.

Laurent chuckled.

“What a stroke of luck!”

“Let’s give thanks to the gods!”

“Blessings to the adventurers!”

“Blessings to ‘Dawn’s Shield’!”

“Blessings to the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’!”

“Everyone, let’s celebrate! What a wonderful day!”

Even customers not affiliated with the ‘Arsenal of the Spirits’ or ‘Dawn’s Shield’ joined in the celebration, wanting to share in the good fortune. As the revelry continued, the alcohol flowed, and someone in the corner of the dining hall started playing cheerful music, adding to the festive atmosphere.

“Someone, sing!”

“Who’s good at singing?”

“Saki is!”

“Saki, sing us a song!”

A path was cleared for Saki. Everyone clapped and cheered her on. Unable to refuse and not entirely displeased, Saki stepped onto the stage, which was slightly raised for events like this.

“Alright then, with pleasure,” she said.

Saki began to sing a cheerful song. Her voice, light yet powerful, uplifted the spirits of the crowd, encouraging more drinking and conversation. People started to dance, holding hands and stepping to the rhythm of the song and the clapping.

Laurent and Dylan, meanwhile, took a spot along the wall, slightly away from the center of the festivities, watching the scene.

“Not a bad outcome for our first client, wouldn’t you say? Those weapons with the ‘Enhanced Coating’ will sell well too. There’s nothing else like them out there,” Dylan remarked.

“It’s just the beginning. Aina is still far from being an A-Class alchemist. She needs more training,” Laurent replied.

“You really don’t know the meaning of compromise when it comes to training, do you?” Dylan said, shaking his head.

“It’s great that she’s started creating unique products with her skill, but to make her an A-Class alchemist, she needs the experience of crafting weapons for A-Class adventurers. We need to hire more people, strengthen the workforce in the atelier… Hmm? The song is over.”

The crowd, in high spirits, applauded Saki’s splendid singing. But still eager for more, they urged her to sing another song.

“Alright, I’ll sing another one. This is a song I’m particularly fond of. I’m not sure if it’s entirely suitable for this occasion, but it’s a song known to everyone who grew up on this island.”

With that, she began to sing again. This time, the song was bold yet filled with sorrow, carrying a somber rhythm.

The patrons stopped their cheering and clapping, falling into a hush.

“Once upon a time, there was a hero on this island.

He sealed away the ‘Fire Dragon Fafnir’ in the island’s volcano, a dragon that spewed the flames of hell, had scales of steel, and claws like swords.”

(What is this song? For a song praising a hero, it feels rather melancholic.)

Laurent noticed that everyone in the tavern was listening intently, their faces reflecting a range of emotions.

Some looked somber, others had expressions of irony or even wore cynical smiles.

“Dylan, what’s this song?”

“It’s a song that praises the hero who sealed the ‘Giant Fire Dragon Grand Fafnir’ in the volcano. Ever since the hero sealed the dragon, it’s been a source of pride for the island’s inhabitants to keep it subdued. But as the island’s adventurers weakened and became reliant on external guilds, the song came to be seen as a lament or self-deprecation about the state of our adventurers.”

“I see.”

“Nowadays, the island’s only way to attract external guilds is by offering the rare metals from the volcano as bait. That’s why we were hoping for the arrival of the ‘Golden Hawk’…”

“…”

The song continued.

“Eventually, the hero departed. Ah, where have you gone? You took courage away from this island with you. Now, no one here dares to take up a sword against the dragon. You took both the calamity and our courage away. The hero will never return.”

The song ended on its melancholic note. No matter how much they drank, the mood couldn’t be lifted. A sense of disillusionment spread, and the party ended rather quietly.

While Saki sang the ‘Song of the Lost Hero’ in the tavern, a ship carrying a team of adventurers was approaching ‘Fire Dragon Island’ under the cover of darkness. This ship belonged to the powerful guild ‘Guardians of the Magic Institute’ from the western continent.

On the deck, a laid-back young man named Arl was enjoying the night breeze and gazing at the volcano. Suddenly, flames erupted from the crater—’Giant Fire Dragon Grand Fafnir’s’ fiery breath. The flames lit up the night sky and illuminated the sea.

Moreover, the multicolored rare metals exposed on the mountain’s surface shimmered in the fire’s light.

“Wow, what a beautiful island,” Arl exclaimed in awe.

“So many rare metals illuminated and glittering in the flames of the ‘Giant Fire Dragon Grand Fafnir’. It’s unbelievable. The nature on ‘Fire Dragon Island’ is so beautiful, yet there’s a city of thieves sprawling at its base.”

“Is your vision that bad, Vice Captain?”

“Sein…”

Arl tore his gaze away from the jewel-like mountainside to address his captain, Sein.

“You should be able to see a far better prize than those mere stones. The S-class monster, the ‘Giant Fire Dragon Grand Fafnir’!”

Despite not having landed on the island yet, Sein Orbestar, captain of the ‘Guardians of the Magic Institute’ squad, stood there in full armor.

Arl sighed.

“Our mission from the guild is to collect rare metals…”

“Hmph. So what? Who would be foolish enough to ignore such a great prey right in front of them?”

“Captain. The local thief guild is not to be underestimated. There are also many small guilds on ‘Fire Dragon Island’…”

“Who cares about that? No matter how many of those small fry there are, whether it’s tens or hundreds, I’ll crush them all with this ‘Dragonhead Gauntlet’!”

Sein proudly displayed the dragon-shaped gauntlet on his arm.

“Now, Vice Captain, appraise me. I need to ensure my skills haven’t dulled during the voyage.”

“Yes, there’s absolutely no problem.”

【Sein Orbestar’s Skills】

• • • • Explosive Magic: A

• • • • Swordsmanship: A

• • • • Shield Defense: A

(His combat power is still incredible. There aren’t many magic knights in the world who can balance firepower, offensive capability, and defense as well as he does.)

“Alright. Everything’s ready. Hurry up and dock the ship. I’m going to be the one to hunt the ‘Giant Fire Dragon Grand Fafnir’!”