Stacking My Abilities

During Jeff's slow climb up the stairs, some adventurers hopped by. They raised a brow at Jeff. But then they chuckled and put on a nostalgic smile. Some even gave Jeff encouraging nods. 

'More friendly than expected huh...' Jeff smiled and nodded back at those guys. 

In Jeff's mind, he could already see a bright future ahead of himself. 

'Join a small guild. Make some friends. Enjoy adventuring together. Maybe even revealing my true capabilities and saving their asses, surprising everyone.'

'Earn some good money. Enjoy celebrations at bars and taverns. Find a beautiful girlfriend.' 

'Buy good equipment. Buy high level spells. Buy high class potions at auctions and use them as my hidden trump cards.'

'This will be great.' Feeling the warm sunshine on his back, Jeff squinted in comfort. 

As Jeff approached the top, he could already see some adventurers waiting by the front entrance. 

Humans. Dwarves. Elves. Beast folks. There were about a dozen of them.

Jeff could tell their classes by their outfits. Warriors. Marksman. Mages. Healers. 

All of them were wearing high-class looking equipment. 

Jeff noticed these guys. Those guys noticed Jeff as well. One guy left the circle. He came to greet Jeff.

It's a good looking fella in his mid-20s. Putting on a warm and inviting smile, this guy gave off an easy-going and friendly aura.  Long curly blond hair. An expensive-looking green cloak emitting a subtle glow. A well tuned body. This guy seemed like the 'laid back, fun to be around' guy in a friends circle. 

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"Morning brother. You are new here?" The dude greeted Jeff with open arms. It's as if this guy had been anticipating Jeff's arrival.

"Yeah man." Jeff put on a smile as well. 

'Is this a party invite?' Jeff felt a tingle in his heart. 'I just got invited by showing up?'

Things felt smoother than expected. It almost felt like it's too easy. 

'I got invited... even wearing this?'

"Clearly. You are not here to post a quest." The dude gestured at Jeff's outfit. "You must be here to become an adventurer!"

Jeff nodded. "Yeah. Well. Today seems like a good day." 

"That's the spirit! Welcome to the adventurer's family." The dude extended a hand. "I'm One-Bolt, a squad leader of the Steelfury guild."

"The Mission Machine." Jeff shook the dude's hand. 

"Based on that title, I can already tell that you are a hard worker." One-Bolt nodded in recognition. "You are wearing those cheap equipment right now. But with that attitude, I'm sure you'll become a big shot one day."

"Oh. Thank you." Jeff raised his brows. 

"And you know what. I think you are exactly what my squad needs." One-Bolt smiled. 

"At Steelfury, we are a tight-knit group, like a big family. Here, we go out for adventurers together. Slay some monsters. Campfire meals. Earn some nice blings."

"But of course, you'll have plenty of time for yourself. We have flexible work hours. You have the freedom in creative class choices and skill choices. Your future is in your own hands. There will be plenty room for growth for hard working adventurers like you."

"Oh." Jeff squinted and nodded. 

Flexible work hours... Room for growth... Family like organization... 

For some reason, these terms sounded a little familiar... A little too familiar. 

Something was off about this adventurer guild. 

"How bout it." One-Bolt popped a clipboard into existence. On that clipboard was a contract and a pen. 

Jeff: ...

Nodding a little, Jeff hesitantly took over the clipboard. 

"Internship?" Jeff quickly scanned through the contract. 

"Naturally." One-Bolt nodded. 

"I started out as an intern myself." One-Bolt stood a little taller. "Beginners like you shouldn't worry too much about income. It's the personal growth that matters."

"By joining Steelfury." One-Bolt pointed at the crossing swords logo on his cloak. "You'll gain a lot of resources you wouldn't have access to as a lone wolf. Also, by working as a team, adventures out there become much safer."

"In three years, if you work hard, I'm sure you'll become a squad leader like me."

"And if you really perform well, we have thick bonuses for interns in Blings." 

"Blings, power, status. They will all naturally come to you in time. The question is, are you willing to work hard for them." One-Bolt looked at Jeff with a trusting gaze. 

Jeff looked at One-Bolt with squinting eyes back. 

Well... This was not the starting point Jeff had been anticipating. Internship for three years? That meant three years of free work right? This... didn't feel very fantasy. Not fantasy at all! 

Looking at the contract, Jeff felt like his enthusiasm was cooling down.

"There is no hurry. You can have a thorough read over the contract. For people like us who have no background, no spell scrolls inherited, no Blings for equipment, this is a necessary process."

"Once you become stronger, things will get much better for you." One-Bolt gave Jeff an understanding nod. "Once all of your attributes reach supernatural-tier, you'll have many more opportunities open up."

'Wait.' Jeff blinked a few times. 'This guy thinks I'm still common tier? Is it because of my outfit...'

"Excuse me for a second." One-Bolt looked past Jeff. 

"Woah. Hold on. What's the hurry." The dude opened his arms as if he'd met an old friend. 

Jeff took a look in direction as well. 

It's a girl covered in an oversized black cloak. The girl wore a black cloth mask as well. Only her eyes could seen. 

"Not interested." The girl spoke with a clear and melodious voice. Like a lark's song, her voice had a youthful and lively feeling to it. 

Stepping to the side, she tried to walk past One-Bolt. 

One-Bolt side-stepped to block the girl's path. "Woah. I'm not trying to sell you anything."

"Give me one minute. I'm sure you'll be interested in joining Steelfury. We are one of the biggest guilds at Bourland after all." One-Bolt popped a clipboard into existence. 

"Get out of my way." The girl demanded. 

"Hey. Give senior adventurers some respect alright?" One-Bolt's smile gradually faded away. 

"As a starting adventurer, you sure you want to go out there by yourself?" One-Bolt's tone became menacing. "There are plenty of newbie adventurers disappearing each year after all."

Hearing these threatening remarks, Jeff's brows knitted. 

There's a shuttering sound in his mind. That's the sound of Jeff's broken anticipation and dreams. 

Taking a look at One-Bolt... Taking a look at the contract... Jeff's gaze became complicated. 

'Fantasy adventures... Friendship... Fun and exciting... Those only exist in fictional stories after all...' Jeff sighed in his mind. 

By the looks of it, this was a contract for free labour after all. 

This situation... did not feel very fantasy at all.

Feeling a gaze, Jeff looked up and met the eyes of the cloaked girl. 

Most of her face was covered. But Jeff could sense that... this girl was smiling?