Rick said, "So it’s a request from a Dragon Queen."
"That’s pretty much a command, right?"
"Yes." Roderick leaned back in his chair, which creaked as he did so. "Usually, adventurers move up one rank at a ti by finishing quests, showing off their skills, and getting feedback from their peers."
"You have held the F-rank for three weeks." You know, most adventurers stay at each rank for months or years."
Rick’s stomach dropped. "Are you really not going to give a promotion?"
"Oh, I’m promoting you, alright, and I’d be stupid not to. You made it through trials that killed famous warriors, ford a bond with one of the Seven Major Powers, and built a spiritual connection network that has never been seen before."
"Not promoting you would be an insult to the Dragon Kingdom and a bad idea politically." Roderick took out an official guild badge. "This one was bronze and had a D-rank symbol on it."
"Rick Rolland, as Guildmaster of the Valdris Adventurer’s Guild, I am promoting you from F-rank to D-rank right now."
Rick blinked. "Hold on, just D-rank? Not A or S?!"
"Don’t take any chances, kid. Three ranks in a row is already unheard of."
"If I took you straight to A or S, every veteran adventurer in this guild would go fucking crazy. Yes, you’re strong, but you still need to learn the basics."
"D-rank lets you do better quests, get more resources, and earn respect without making you a target." Roderick pushed the badge across the table. "I think that ship has already sailed."
"The fuck does that an?"
"You’re the Queen of the Dragons’ Consort."
"You’re politically untouchable and strategically valuable. Not all major world powers will view you favorably. Roderick’s face got serious. "Be careful, Rick. The trials may be over, but the real threats are just starting."
Rick took the badge and felt how heavy it was in his hand. Not iron, but bronze. D-rank. Three weeks ago, he had not held any rank. Now he was moving up the ranks faster than he should have been able to.
"Thank you, sir."
"Don’t thank ."
"Just don’t make wish I hadn’t done this." Roderick waved at the door. "Now leave my office. I have to file so papers, and you have to deal with a bunch of curious adventurers."
Rick went down the stairs and saw that people already knew about his promotion. The guild hall was even more crowded than before, with adventurers coming from all over to see the new D-rank who had just been promoted from F-rank three weeks ago.
"Three rank jump!" soone yelled. "That’s fucking crazy!"
"I’ve been working hard for five years, and I’m still C-rank!"
"Must be nice to have powerful baddies that are glued on you..."
A veteran warrior yelled, "It’s supposed to be , not him...! It’s not fair!"
"He gets special treatnt because he made a bond with a Dragon Queen!"
Rick’s face burned with sha, but before he could say anything, Carmilla’s hand hit the complainer’s shoulder hard enough to make him wince.
"He made it through tests that would have killed you in the first hour," Carmilla said in a cold voice. "Be polite or take your complaints sowhere else."
The warrior wisely kept quiet and left, but that wasn’t the end of the attention. Rick suddenly found himself surrounded by female adventurers of all ages, so of whom were clearly flirting with him and others who were just interested in what he was doing.
The first person to make a move was Helena Ironsides, a 36-year-old warrior known for being very forward. She walked up to Rick with a smile that showed too many teeth.
Helena put her hand on Rick’s arm and said, "So you’re the famous Hero of Mature Hearts!"
"I have to say, the rumors don’t do you justice. In person, you’re much more interesting!"
"Um, thanks? (Holy shit! Her boobs are showing...!)" Rick tried to back away, but Helena followed him.
"I’ve been thinking that we should go on a quest together! Just you and ! I could teach you so advanced fighting moves." Her smile beca dangerous. "And trust ! It’s a very advanced thod."
"Now this is one of my wet dreams co true again...! I’m popular!!!" Rick said in his mind.
Margaret the Enchanter, a 41-year-old mage with dark hair with silver streaks, ca up on Rick’s other side before he could say anything.
"Combat techniques are useful, of course," Margaret said in a smooth voice that had a hint of magic in it that made Rick’s skin tingle. "But a man like you needs more than just physical skills."
"I’ll gladly teach magical theory and how to use it in private lessons, and what I an by private is, yeah, you probably know what I’m trying to say..."
"Shit...! More are coming, and I can’t stop getting tempted...!!! THIS SITUATION IS INSANE, CHAT!" Rick scread in his mind.
Rick said, "Thanks for the offers," trying to get out of it without being rude. "But I’m actually—"
"Busy with things you already have to do?" Beatrice Goldhand, a 38-year-old rchant adventurer known for her sharp business sense, finished his sentence.
She was more subtle than the other two. She stayed at a respectful distance but showed interest in a planned way.
"Managing soone with your connections and potential is crucial. Well, I could help with that. Among other things."
"Fuck...! I need to stop this before Sylvia finds out!"
Rick looked to Carmilla, Natasha, and Liora for help with all his might. Carmilla was watching the interaction with a carefully neutral face, but Rick could tell that she was uncomfortable because of their bond. Natasha seed to find it amusing, and Liora seed worried but not jealous.
"Ladies," Rick said firmly as he stepped away from all three of them, "I’m flattered that you’re interested, but I’m already in relationships with more than one person."
"I don’t want to add more right now."
"Right now, yes..." Helena repeated her statent, clinging to those words. "But what about later?"
"I’m not making any promises about later either."
The won eventually left, but Rick could still feel their eyes on him. He walked back to his partners, worn out even though it was only the afternoon.
Natasha said, "That looked uncomfortable," with a hint of amusent in her voice.
Rick said under his breath, "You could have helped."
"Why would I miss out on watching you squirm? Not ever."
But Carmilla wasn’t smiling. "We should go ho. You need to rest, and I need to tell you what has been going on in Valdris since you left."
Rick saw a woman watching from the shadows near the entrance as they left the guild hall. She was wearing a cloak and a hood that hid her face, but the way she looked at Rick made his new Dragon’s Presence ability tingle with warning.
This wasn’t curiosity or attraction. This was sothing else. Sothing calculating.
Rick whispered, "Sebastian," knowing the spirit could hear him. "That lady at the door. Who is she?"
Sebastian appeared on Rick’s shoulder, but no one else could see him. "That’s not normal attraction energy."
"That energy is for hunting... I don’t like that soone is very professionally interested in you."
Rick tried to get a better look at the woman, but she blended in with the crowd and disappeared before he could see her clearly.
"What’s the matter?" Carmilla asked because she could see that Rick was tense.
"I have a feeling that soone was watching . A dangerous person."
Natasha said, "Well, you are now the Consort of a Dragon Queen."
"Attention that is dangerous cos with the job."
"Maybe, but that was different."
Rick felt the bond network thumping with emotion as they walked ho through the streets of Valdris. He felt relief at being back with his partners, anxiety about the mysterious watcher, pressure from knowing he had less than five months to save the world, and a strange sense of rightness underneath it all. Even with all the problems, he was in the right place at the right ti.
[REUNION COMPLETE]
[ 50 EXP: EMOTIONAL BONDS REINFORCED]
[STATUS UPDATE: D-RANK ADVENTURER]
[NEW TITLE: HERO OF VALDRIS]
[WARNING: UNKNOWN OBSERVER DETECTED]
The trials were over, but as Roderick had said, the real dangers were just starting. Rick just hoped he was ready for whatever ca next.
The world needed saving, whether he was ready or not. He only had four and a half months to do it, though.
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