A-rank and S-rank

“H-here it is...”

After that, I smoothly received my A-rank Mercenary Card.

Fortunately, no one objected.

To begin with, there were few stronger than Befri among the people gathered here. And since that Befri character was knocked out with a single punch, no one had any intention of rushing in.

Thanks to that, unfortunately, I couldn't reach S-rank in one go. It seemed there were no S-rank Adventurers here to begin with.

And I heard that the highest rank one could achieve as a first-rank individual was A-rank.

Subsequent ranks required evaluation not only of Skill but also of mission completion ability. So, it seemed at least a few achievements were necessary.

As I received my identification card and chuckled for a moment, Hanbyeol asked.

“But when you fought me last time, you weren't this strong, were you...?”

A faint fear was visible on her face. She was intimidated.

Thinking back, Hanbyeol was also A-rank when we first met, and I remember her holding out for quite a while.

But for an Adventurer of her own rank to be knocked out in one hit was a bit absurd.

I answered simply.

“Well, I held back a bit then.”

At the time, I hadn't really used my full abilities, and I was also curious about the Skill of the Rank 1, so I was just observing. And these days, I've been eating a lot of good herbs, so my mana has increased quite a bit.

“...I see.”

At my words, Hanbyeol quietly sighed.

As I looked at her, she seemed... somewhat relieved.

“Befriiii!”“Oh my god, her face is a bloody mess...”“Priest, let's go to the Priest!”

From behind, I heard the Adventurers chattering. It seemed they were making a fuss near Befri.

*'...Hmm.'*

Watching that, I felt a little sorry. Although there was some whispering around, honestly, I was the one who initiated the Taunt.

And considering how the Adventurers were initially reluctant to attack... they might have heard the news that the Knight Order had retreated. No, they definitely heard it.

Perhaps she was a righteous Adventurer who couldn't stand injustice. Considering what she said, she seemed far from a chivalrous hero... but anyway. Because of that, I placed a small amount of gold in her hand with a slight feeling of apology.

I had just come to get a new spear made and obtain an Adventurer Card. I hadn't come to antagonize the Adventurers. Anyway, I had plenty of materials to sell, and I'd recently acquired some cash, so I could easily afford this much.

“...Huh!”

As I tried to give money to the fallen opponent, she suddenly regained consciousness.

I distinctly remembered hitting her incredibly hard.

Indeed, as a Frontline Tanker, she was quite sturdy.

Now that I looked, her face only had a slight bruise and seemed surprisingly fine.

As I tried to give her the gold, she asked in a wary voice.

“...What is this?”

“Take it. This should cover your Healing costs and... probably even fix the floor I broke.”

“Ha, are you trying to give me charity now? Do you think I don't have money?”

“Just take it. We fought for the assessment, that's all. No hard feelings. We'll probably see each other around, so it's better to get along, right?”

“...”

I said that and forced the gold into her hand. She stared at me for a long time with a blank expression. Not just her, but the Adventurers nearby stared too. Contrary to her grumpy face, her expression was quite docile.

Relieved of that burden, I returned to the Reception Desk.

I was able to connect directly with a Blacksmith.

There was no reason for the Guild to not accommodate an Adventurer with both money and Skill. Of course, the fact that the opponent was a Manifestor seemed to be a slight concern... but rules were rules. Seeing this, I truly liked the Adventurer Guild's Skill Supremacy.

The blacksmith I met was a middle-aged woman with very thick forearms. Her face was full of wrinkles, making her seem stubborn at first glance, but to me, she looked like a master artisan. Perhaps the reason for her many wrinkles was that she spent a long time in front of the fire, often frowning.

So, I immediately handed the materials to her.

I'd acquired all the metal from Andras this time, and even the materials I'd gotten from Noho.

“It was about time to replace my other tools anyway...”

This was a good opportunity to just make a few new ones. Noho's claws would first be turned into several daggers.

Naturally, the Blacksmith who received the materials expressed her admiration first.

“My goodness, this is... it looks like a tiger's, but the size is enormous. Where on earth did you get something like this?”

“I was lucky. More importantly, can you make weapons with this?”

“Of course! It's incredibly hard. With just this one claw, I could make three or four daggers!”

Perhaps excited to see such rare materials after a long time, the Blacksmith exclaimed with a voice full of emotion.

So I entrusted the materials to her.

It was a bit of a waste, but I decided to just sell Noho's teeth. Originally, I had planned to make a spear shaft out of them, but they were difficult to refine and too brittle, so they might break.

Instead, I decided to use the money from selling them to acquire high-quality metal and make a spear shaft from that.

What I chose was Mithril Alloy. It was a metal lighter and harder than steel of the same volume, and it had significantly strong Magic Resistance. I was already ignorant about Magic, so it would definitely be helpful later.

“Let's see... to make a spear and daggers, it'll take about two weeks. Come back after that.”

“Two weeks? That's faster than I thought.”

“Of course! How many years have I been wielding a hammer!”

With my items entrusted, I parted ways with the Blacksmith.

*

Two weeks later, Yor immediately headed to the Forge. Naturally, he endured another Berserk State as time passed. Surprisingly, it was Berserk State A again.

Yor felt a little curious about this.

...Three consecutive A's.

This was quite rare. Normally, the more often the same type of Berserk State occurs consecutively, the higher the chance of a different type of Berserk State appearing.

Three times in a row were a very slim chance.

“Next time, it”ll definitely be B.'

Perhaps he would then need someone else's help, like a silver-haired Bandit, for example. As he was thinking such thoughts, Haneul, who had accompanied him today, asked with a worried expression.

It flared up last week. Are you okay...?

For Haneul, the scene she witnessed last time was still a shock. When she opened the Inn door in the middle of the night, she saw his appearance, covered in blood and laughing weakly. She heard he went through such an ordeal every month, so Haneul couldn't help but worry.

At her words, Yor smiled lightly and nodded.

“Of course, I'm quite prosperous these days.”

Normally, if A-rank Berserk State occurred three times in a row, he would have considered suicide... but fortunately, holy water had become abundant recently, so he was spending his time comfortably.

However, Haneul didn't seem to have completely shaken off her worry. The scene she witnessed last time had left a significant impression on her.

For a moment, her lips parted, as if she had something to say. The words ‘Next time, I'll be with you’ were swirling in her heart. But it wasn't easy to say them out loud.

Going to a strange *man*'s house in the middle of the night was something a conservative woman like her hesitated to do. To begin with, she didn't have the courage to say such a thing to someone of the opposite sex. Even if the other person was an NPC.

'Ugh...'

Still, after much hesitation, she somehow mustered the courage to add a single word.

“H-hey, if you ever need anything next time, just say so.”

“Hm? Haha, alright. Thanks for saying that.”

Yor, however, brushed it off naturally...

So, they went through the Guild and found the Blacksmith. And they received the completed spear.

“Here you go.”

The spear was clean, without any special decorations. However, its elegance wasn't hidden. It had a dull silver-colored shaft, with a dark, spear-shaped blade at the end. The subtle sheen emanating from the spear itself proved it was a high-quality item.

“...Oh.”

Yor observed it for a moment, then infused mana into the spear tip. Then, red flames erupted from the spear tip. *Whoosh!* Flames that didn't spread around but emitted considerable heat, like those Andras had used.

Yor, who had used it briefly, quickly extinguished the flames.

'It's consuming mana like crazy...'

Its power seemed considerable, but mana was disappearing as quickly as if it were truly burning. It seemed like an ability difficult to use unless it was a critical moment.

As he was evaluating it alone, the Blacksmith, who had been watching, spoke.

“I used it while crafting, but... it's a fascinating metal every time I see it. What will you name it?”

“Hmm... a name, specifically?”

“Of course! It's something I put a lot of effort into making, shouldn't it have a name?”

At her words, Yor pondered for a moment. Fortunately, he could come up with a name quickly.

“*Fire-tipped Spear*.”

It might sound a bit grand, but since it spewed fire and was a spear primarily for thrusting, it wasn't a wrong name.

“Thank you.”

With a light greeting, Yor left the Workshop. And he briefly stopped by the Adventurer Guild. As he was a Blacksmith exclusively for the Guild, he had to give a brief report.

*Creak-* He opened the door and stepped inside. The Guild was a bit chaotic. All the Adventurers who usually lounged at tables, gossiping, were gone. Most of the Adventurers were gathered around the Guild Bulletin Board.

It was a scene Yor had never seen before, but for Haneul, it was quite familiar. After all, Adventurers always gathered like that whenever some big news was posted.

“What is it?”

“...Let me just check.”

Haneul, slightly tense, checked what was on the Guild Bulletin Board.

“So, what's it about?” “Well...” The content was simple. “They found a Demon Altar. They're recruiting people to participate in its Destruction.”

A Demon Altar had appeared.

“And they say Lemegeton has already set up camp there...”

And countless Lemegeton guys too.