The adventurer registration process begins by analyzing various abilities of the person wishing to register: magical aptitude, strength, overall combat ability, special notes, accomplishments achieved before becoming an adventurer, and so on.
However, these criteria were designed for ordinary races, not for half-dragons. From the start, dragons are considered irregular beings whose offspring cannot be measured by normal standards. How could one possibly measure a half-dragon who killed such an irregular entity?
The human-shaped model for testing strength was utterly shattered, and the crystal sphere for measuring magical aptitude exploded from within as sand and dirt burst out, leaving it in fragments.
The comprehensive evaluation, often regarded as the highlight of the adventurer registration exam, was boldly skipped due to concerns for human life. That is, the evaluators, not Altegra, were worried. After seeing the numerous corpses in the mountains yesterday and the destructive power emitted by her monstrous form, even gold-ranked instructors honestly doubted they could withstand her.
In fact, it seemed unnecessary anyway. The receptionist had already convinced the overly enthusiastic instructor with numerous failed extermination examples, arguing that her practical skills had already been proven.
“…You come across a child injured on the road. You don’t have much food, so if you share your food with the child, you will have to go hungry for several days. What would you do in this situation?”
Currently, I was sitting at a table near the entrance with Altegra and the examiner. When the examiner asked a question, I relayed it to her, and her character test was conducted through me.
…It was somewhat distracting because an enormous crowd had gathered on the second floor and around us to watch, but Altegra didn’t seem bothered like I was.
“Does the child have parents?”
“Are you asking if the child has parents?”
“Huh? Oh… No. It’s an orphan who appears starved and ragged, having lost their parents.”
It would’ve been easier if they just handed the test over to me, but since that would be considered an internal document leak, we had no choice but to use this cumbersome method.
“No parents. The child is starving.”
“In that case, sharing food would be wasteful. Unless it’s a truly exceptional situation, a parentless child won’t survive. Helping them would only end up feeding wild beasts in a short while.”
“She says helping a parentless child is pointless since they’ll likely die soon anyway.”
“Ah, I see. Not helping… Understood. There’s not much time left. Next, imagine this: you hunted a monster alone. Then a party shows up late and asks to share the spoils of the monster you killed. What would you do?”
I passed the examiner’s question to Altegra. No matter how I thought about it, there seemed to be only one possible answer, and indeed, that’s what she said.
“Why should I share? They didn’t help me catch it, but now they want a piece after it’s dead?”
“She asks why she should share when they didn’t help capture it…”
It was clear from the way she lived alone in the wild, but there was no trace of morality, sociality, or common sense in her.
To put it nicely, she was an extreme survivalist; to put it harshly, an egotist. Still, I wasn’t disappointed. Since she doubted humans but didn’t treat all of them as enemies, it showed she was relatively kind.
Could she really just doubt and not outright attack the race that constantly hunts her? I doubt I could manage that.
“…Alright. The examination is now complete. Then… hmm. Miss Altegra? Please wait a moment. We’ll soon provide you with a grade matching your abilities.”
“They say the results will come out soon.”
Since the beginning, she’s been shifting positions, trying to find a comfortable one. It made me feel awkward looking at her, so I shifted my gaze to her tail instead.
Her tail gleamed so brightly it almost reflected my face. As I watched it sway slightly, Altegra must have found it irritating because she moved her tail out of my sight.
“…Don’t look.”
She didn’t react when I openly stared out of sheer curiosity, but apparently, the tail was off-limits.
Horns were the same. The difference was that glancing at her horns got me grabbed by the collar. Looking at her face was fine, but the horns were not. Strange.
Because of this, there was a brief commotion, but it turned out to be a good thing. So I kept sneaking glances at her until I realized it was inappropriate and finally looked away.
“…Is this necklace something you made yourself?”
Although I hadn’t intended to, my eyes caught sight of a large crystal hanging halfway down her cleavage, so I asked.
“It was a gift from my mother. I’ve changed the string as I grew, but the crystal itself has never been replaced.”
Ah. With talk of her parents, I hesitated to ask more. She… didn’t kill them, did she? Either way, the human side probably wouldn’t be alive judging by how she lives.
“…Hmm. Was your mother human?”
“Yeah. She was a kind person. Now she rests beneath the earth.”
Altegra answered while closing her eyes as if reminiscing about the past, making me regret asking.
…When it was my turn, it went quickly, so why is it taking so long now? I felt awkward with all the people around, like sitting on pins and needles.
“Uh… Altegra? This might be none of my business, but shouldn’t you wear something…?”
—
I thought I was doing something grand and紧张ed, but it turned out to be nothing special, leaving me feeling deflated.
The strength tester broke instantly, and the magic tester shattered when I breathed into it. Is this really the level of humans?
Thinking about it, the ones trying to capture me are pretty strong for humans, aren’t they? That’s what I thought.
With the meaningless questions over, all that’s left is waiting, yet it’s taking forever.
“Uh… Altegra? This might be none of my business, but shouldn’t you wear something…?”
Ah, damn it. Why is he talking so much ever since earlier?
Myho kept nagging beside me, whispering annoyingly. Staring at me, glaring at my horns and tail…
“It’s none of your business.”
No matter what I look like now, I’m a man. Every few months, I lay eggs, and monsters or men try to violate me, but I’m a man.
A man, not some frail girl trembling at the darkness, animal cries, or human malice.
I’m used to greedy and lustful gazes. And compared to the lust during heat cycles of monsters, human desire is laughable.
Wearing clothes would only give more places to grab, and not wearing them doesn’t lead to freezing, so there’s no need. Plus, it hinders sensing vibrations.
I wear the cloak because it looks cool, and it’s connected with weak magnets so I can easily take it off. Fur leather is an exception since it covers vital areas.
“Okay… If that’s how you feel… But I still think it’d be better to wear something. You know… Exposing too much might attract strange things…”
Strange things, huh?
Even if my head rolled on the ground, would anyone really look at me that way?
“So, it’s none of your business.”
I have no intention of dressing like a girl, especially not to impress others. I’m fine just as I am.
Creating a family would only invite tragedy.
It seems Myho decided not to meddle further since his nonstop mouth finally quieted down. Though the surroundings buzzed with chatter, I closed my eyes and waited for my adventurer’s insignia.
Just as I started to doze off enjoying the soft cushion, my adventurer insignia arrived. The receptionist gave a lengthy explanation, but according to Myho, it was simple.
“It’s the highest rank someone without any achievements or accomplishments can receive. Gold Rank 1. So, where do you want to place the insignia? On your arm? Or leg? They’re offering to make belts if you’d like.”
I expected penalties or worse, but surprisingly, it was a fair evaluation. More importantly, where to place it? I’ve never thought about it.
“…On my right arm. But since you’ll attach belts to all four limbs anyway, tell them to make all of them.”
I don’t particularly harbor ill feelings toward the guild. However, if I can get things for free, I’d like to take full advantage of it. Who knows? The belts might come in handy for attaching something.
“Right arm, but since you’ll attach belts to all limbs, please make all of them. Understand? Measurements? Ah, right. Since they can’t make them roughly, Altegra, they need to measure your arms and thighs. Can you lend them your arm for a moment?”
Measurements. It’s been a very long time since I last heard that word.
Now that I think about it, how does this guy understand my language despite it being completely foreign to him? It’s not like it translates into Korean, yet I understand it perfectly, which is quite bizarre.
“…No. I don’t trust them. If you must measure, do it.”
Among humans, Myho is the most trustworthy, so I asked him to take the measurements.
“Me? Uh… You don’t trust them, so you want me to… measure directly? Seriously?”
Myho received the tape measure and alternated between staring at me and the tool, dumbfounded. Since I was tired of waiting, I urged him on.
“Here, my arm. Hurry up.”
“But… Can I really touch you?”
This man can’t even properly handle a woman’s body, shaking pitifully as he slowly began to measure my arm. Watching him move like a sluggish slug made me think he’s a terrible man.
“Here, let me help you.”
Out of pity, I grabbed his hand and placed it on my arm myself. Seeing him finally move like a slow snail made me think he’s a terrible man.
“Now, the leg. Stop hesitating.”
Taking a stance on the cushion to make it easier to measure, his trembling hands moving slowly made me feel both impatient and ticklish.
“…It’s ticklish, hurry up!”
“I got it.”
While I was fine touching myself, another’s touch was unexpectedly more ticklish than I anticipated, causing me to act more irritable than planned.
As soon as he declared it finished, I roughly sat back on the chair to shake off the sensation of his touch.
Still dazed, Myho somehow managed to relay the measurements, and soon I received my belts and golden insignia.
“…Oh, congratulations. You’re an adventurer now.”
I fastened the leather belts around my arms and legs and looked at the golden insignia embedded in the belt on my right arm. Is this… my name written in their language?
I intended to ask Myho what it said, but he still wore a vacant expression.
Mother. Did I make a rash decision?
I couldn’t help but have doubts.
