We left the Twilight Manor, making our way toward the Guild.
"Although we will accompany you to the dungeon, we won't fight alongside you and will only intervene when we think it is necessary, which I highly doubt would happen given your strength. And with Ais-san tagging along, I don't think we need to worry about anything. But still, be cautious—the dungeon is dangerous and unpredictable," Raul explained as we walked.
Anakitty also chimed in on the conversation. "But still, to get Ais-san, not to mention Riveria-sama, so interested in you on your first day itself is kind of amazing. Though given your abnormal strength at Level 1, it is not that strange if you get Ais-san's attention, I guess. But I can't say if it is a good thing or a bad thing."
"Huh. What do you mean by that?" I asked, even though I could guess the answer.
"Well, Ais-san and Riveria-sama are really popular not just in our Familia but even in the whole city. And Riveria-sama being a High Elf certainly makes it far more troubling. Even though she cast her status aside a long time ago, most of the High Elves still see her as their royal princess, and a lot of them won't be too happy seeing her get along with a member of another race."
She explained her reasons, which were similar to the ones I had thought. But—
"But I don't think we are that close, after all. It's only been a single day since I joined the Familia. And I think she was just guiding me, as I am a new member. Besides, it might be weird to say it myself, but I am a High Human. I think if it comes down to sacredness, my race would be higher since it is regarded as a race touched by divinity itself," I asked about the doubts I had.
"I mean, it's the first time Raul or I have ever seen her care for a single Familia member that much, except special cases like Ais-san. I am not saying she is cruel or cold toward other members; it's quite the opposite. She trains them and guides them so they can be a better version of themselves. But with you, from what I observed, she is going out of her way to guide you," she explained further after a slight pause.
"Since you also mentioned that she will mentor you in the matter of learning magic, it further proves my point. I am not trying to imply anything. Maybe she is just curious to meet a person of your race. Maybe she is interested in teaching you magic and nothing else. After all, only she knows the answer to that. And as for your last point—yeah, even if she is taking care of you just as a Familia member, some elves might still get jealous and try something funny. As they say, jealousy makes you blind. They won't care about your race; all they will care about is that you are from a race different from them. A lot of elves are like that." She finished talking.
"If those elves try anything strange, let us know immediately," this time Raul spoke up.
"Yeah, be sure to let us know. We might not look like it, but we are still top-level Level 2 adventurers bordering on Level 3."
"Thanks," I said, and went into my thoughts.
Riveria's situation seems far worse than I initially thought. I feel bad that even after leaving her home and the royal family behind, and even after being a Level 6 adventurer, she is still tied to them in a troublesome way.
But knowing her situation only made my determination burn brighter and my resolve to get stronger even fiercer.
I wish to break those chains that bind her.
"We are here." Raul's voice jolted me out of my thoughts.
I looked in front and saw the Guild building. It was a two-story building made out of wood like the others, but this one looked more premium, should I say? The material used in making this building seemed of higher quality.
As we entered the building, I saw a few counters with several people in similar uniforms who were wearing the same outfit that the Guild employees wore in the anime, attending to adventurers.
"Eina!" Anakitty called out a familiar name and quickly walked to the counter where this 'Eina' person was sitting.
Yeah, the same Eina from the anime.
But I don't remember any relation she might have had with Anakitty. Maybe I missed it or just don't remember. Whichever the case, I will know soon.
"It's been a while, Eina. How have you been?" Anakitty continued to talk.
Was she always this talkative? I thought. From what I remember from the anime, Anakitty was shown as someone who doesn't talk much.
"Is Anakitty friends with the Guild employee lady?" I asked Raul.
"Oh, right, you don't know that. She was, or rather is, a member of our Familia. But after an incident, she retired from adventuring and started her career here."
That information was certainly new to me.
"Does the Guild allow something like that?"
"Not usually, but Loki-sama pulled some strings."
"Aki! Yeah, I have been well. But what brought you here? Do you want some information? Or maybe to exchange magic stones?" Eina asked as Raul and I came near.
"No, today we are here to get our new member registered with the Guild—Arin Kael. And Arin, this is Eina Tulle, a member of our Familia."
"Hello, it is nice to meet you, Eina." She seemed a bit surprised when I called her by her first name.
"Ah, don't mind it, Eina. He came from a different culture where they don't use honorifics when calling people by their names," Anakitty added.
"Sorry, it's just kind of a habit now. I will use honorifics if you find it uncomfortable, Eina-san."
Ugh… do I really have to add honorifics from now on? Again, I respect different cultures and am ready to do it the Roman way. But calling people by their name is kind of ingrained in my head, so I will just use honorifics if I find that the other person is feeling uncomfortable.
"No, it's fine, Arin-san. I am not uncomfortable, just a little surprised."
"Thank you, Eina. I hope we get along."
"Likewise. Then should we start the registration process?" she asked.
"Yes, please do."
"Then please fill out this form," said Eina, handing me a piece of paper.
The form was pretty straightforward, asking for my name, race, my level, and my Familia name, etc.
I filled it out pretty quickly and gave it back to Eina.
As she read the information, her eyes widened, most likely noticing my race, and she looked toward me, then at Anakitty and Raul. They just nodded, and she nodded back.
"Misha, can you pass this form to Rose?" she called her colleague, a pink-haired human girl, who took the form, read a little, and—
"A High Human!!!"
Yeah, she practically screamed, which caused a little commotion in the Guild.
"Well, I don't think Loki wants to hide your race from the start, so I guess it's just to speed up that process of revelation," Raul said in a gentle tone.
"Yeah, I guess so. Even though I don't want to hide it forever, I wanted to reveal it just after I got a level-up, at least. My race might attract trouble."
"I don't think you need to worry about that. Loki Familia is pretty strong, so I don't think anyone would want to pick a fight with our Familia. Anyway, now your registration is completed. Should we go to the dungeon?" Anakitty assured me.
"Yeah, let's go," I replied as we made our way to the dungeon. And waiting for us at the front of the dungeon was Ais.