A young man and woman sat together on the bus, their presence drawing the attention of the other passengers.
"They must be a couple." soone remarked.
Hearing the whispers and speculations about their relationship, both of their faces suddenly flushed red.
Feeling sowhat awkward, Nora stamred:
"N-No, that’s not it. She’s just my friend."
"That’s right, we’re just friends." Alice nodded in agreent.
Of course, what they said aloud and what they truly thought were two separate matters.
.....
Thirty minutes later, the bus finally arrived near the Hero Association. From there, they had to walk a short distance to reach their destination.
As they walked, Alice turned to him and asked:
"So? Are you feeling nervous?"
Nora looked up at the sky, scratching his chin before replying:
"I suppose I should be. After all, this is my first ti applying for a hero certification."
Alice chuckled:
"Haha, well, you only get to do it once in your lifeti. Any future visits will just be for rank evaluations. No one gets to apply for certification twice."
Nora wanted to retort, to tell her that he was an exception—one in his past life, and now once again in this one.
But after so thought, he decided it was best to keep that secret to himself.
After walking a little further, they finally arrived in front of a magnificent structure.
To call it "grand" was an understatent; its sheer presence was overwhelming. The Hero Association’s headquarters did not resemble a re building—it looked more like a colossal fortress built for war, standing imposingly in the heart of the city.
Such structures weren’t found just anywhere. Only the capitals of major nations housed such awe-inspiring edifices.
"Wow..."
Nora was left speechless, utterly overwheld by the sight before him. He had heard about this place countless tis, but since it wasn’t open to the public, he had only ever seen it from a distance.
Now that he stood before it, its grandeur was far beyond what he had imagined. It wasn’t just a building—it was like standing at the foot of a towering mountain.
Seeing the look of amazent on his face, Alice chuckled and said:
"Hehe, pretty impressive, right? I felt the sa way when I first ca here. But don’t worry, you’ll be visiting this place often, so you’ll get used to it."
She spoke while tugging at his arm, leading him toward the entrance. However, she suddenly stopped. Looking at him, she said:
"You go ahead. I have a phone call to take—I’ll catch up with you in a bit."
From the way she acted, Nora could guess it had sothing to do with her mission.
Not wanting to intrude, he simply nodded and said:
"Alright, see you soon."
With that, they parted ways. Alice stepped aside to find a quiet corner to answer her call, while Nora made his way to the entrance.
The mont he arrived, a security guard imdiately blocked his path and asked:
"What’s your business here? This isn’t a tourist attraction."
Although the Hero Association had officially inford the public of its operations, many stubborn individuals still treated its headquarters as an ideal sightseeing spot.
Despite the increased security asures, there wasn’t much deterrence against civilians. After all, the Hero Association existed to protect the people—there was no justification for them to suppress ordinary citizens with excessive force.
"I’m here to apply for a hero certification. Where should I go?"
Ignoring the slight hostility in the guard’s tone, Nora remained polite in his response.
Hearing that, the guard looked at him skeptically. It wouldn’t be the first ti soone had lied about this just to get inside.
"Do you have any identification with you?"
The guard’s tone softened slightly, as Nora at least appeared trustworthy.
Nora was caught off guard by the question. He rummaged through his pockets, only to realize—he had left his ID at ho.
Alice had dragged him out in such a rush that he had completely forgotten to bring it.
After all, while he possessed strength, he wasn’t so genius with an infallible mory. Forgetting trivial things in daily life was only natural.
His expression grew awkward as he looked at the guard, hesitation written all over his face.
Noticing his reaction, the guard imdiately dropped his previous leniency, his voice turning stern:
"No ID, no entry. Please leave imdiately, or you’ll be fined for disturbing public order."
"That... what if I have soone to vouch for ?" Nora asked.
The guard was montarily taken aback but soon responded sternly:
"Even a governnt official wouldn’t be able to vouch for you."
The ntion of a guarantor imdiately made the guard think of high-ranking individuals in society.
Unfortunately, the Hero Association operated independently of governnt agencies, aning politicians had no authority within its ranks. There was no such thing as soone being both a politician and a hero—each person had to dedicate themselves fully to a single role to achieve the best results, rather than trying to juggle multiple responsibilities at once.
Hearing this, Nora was montarily stunned before realizing that the guard had misunderstood him. He quickly clarified:
"You misunderstood . I ant that an E-rank hero would vouch for . She’s my friend, and she’ll be here soon."
The guard paused, studying Nora’s expression. Seeing that he wasn’t lying, the guard finally relented:
"In that case, you’ll have to wait a little longer. Once your friend arrives, I can let you in."
Nora had no complaints. It was just a short wait—not sothing he couldn’t handle.
With a slight bow, he said:
"Thank you."
"No problem, I’m just doing my job." the guard replied before returning to his post.
.....
Five minutes later, Alice ca running back. She looked at Nora in surprise and asked:
"You’re still not inside?"
Feeling a little embarrassed, Nora scratched his head and admitted:
"It’s my fault. I was in such a rush earlier that I forgot to bring my ID."
Hearing this, Alice playfully smacked his shoulder and laughed:
"Hehe, you’re about to be a hero, and you’re still this careless? Don’t worry—with here, you won’t need any ID."
She then confidently strode up to the guard, pulled out her identification, and pointed at Nora with an air of authority:
"I vouch for him. If there’s a problem, I’ll take full responsibility."
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