Competition? - 47
"Teacher Juro, since we're already adventurers, what do adventurers normally do? Do they just go on dungeon hunting?"
Juro casually drank some soup before replying.
"Hmm... Adventurers basically take on all kinds of work, but instead, it's most commonly called a Quest."
Marc drank some water before looking back at Juro.
"Ooo.. Quest?"
..
Juro nodded and turned around, pointing toward a large wallboard.
"You see that huge wallboard over there? That's where the common quests are usually posted. You take one of those quest papers, go to the counter, and tell them you'll take on that quest. Most of the quests over there are usually simple. They might ask you to defeat nearby creatures or collect the hides and skins of creatures."
Brea chimed in after taking a drink of water.
"You mentioned most, so there are others?"
Juro took a bite from a chicken leg and gulped it down before continuing.
"Yeah. You can just go straight to the counter and ask for specific quests. Or someone might personally request a specific quest, and you'll be called over for it. There's also something called a 'Rank Up Quest.' It's basically a quest you complete when you want to increase your adventurer rank."
Marc was fascinated by everything Juro was saying.
"What rank are we in, Teacher Juro?"
Juro smiled casually.
"Well, we're currently in the rookie adventurer rank."
Marc immediately asked another question.
"How can someone tell what rank a person is? Is there like a new set of words on the card that will appear?"
Juro drank some soup before answering.
"Based on the appearance of our cards, the blue marble stone and the wooden root casing on the back basically indicate that we're rookie adventurers. As you rank up, your card changes."
"Oooo, that's really interesting," Marc replied.
Marc looked down at his spoon for a moment before suddenly remembering something.
"Ah! I almost forgot. Teacher Juro, what about that Neriphion Glass?"
"Oh, that?" Juro thought for a moment. "Hmm... From what I know and what I remember hearing people talk about, Neriphion Glass comes from a dungeon. Inside that dungeon, there's a specific creature whose entire body is made from Neriphion Glass."
Marc's eyes widened.
"Woaaa, a creature made entirely out of glass????"
Bell quietly listened.
"He's talking about the creature 'Neril'."
Juro took another bite of meat before continuing.
"Although, it's not the same kind of Neriphion Glass you saw on the orb earlier. The glass on that orb was much cleaner and more transparent, while the creatures in that dungeon are said to have blurry, translucent-like bodies."
He swallowed before continuing.
"The Adventurer Guild occupies dungeons where those creatures live. They hunt the creatures and use their parts to produce the Neriphion Glass we see today."
"Woaa... that sounds like a really interesting creature!" Marc replied.
But then another thought came to him.
"Wait, how does that explain the whole orb being holeless? Like, how did the tubes connect to the orb without there being any holes on it?"
Juro simply smiled.
"Those creatures have a special attribute. Any physical attack that tries to hit them just goes straight through them."
"Whaaaaaat???? How??" Marc exclaimed, his shock quickly turning into even more curiosity.
Juro chuckled before saying, "Well, it doesn't really go through them. It's just that whenever someone punches them or tries to attack them with a sword or any other physical means, their attacks simply won't hit. The bodies of those creatures warp and transform to avoid the attacks."
"Eh?"
Juro took another sip from his soup before continuing.
"Let's say you throw a rock or dagger at that creature's chest. Its chest would then warp and transform, creating a hole that allows your thrown dagger to pass completely through it, avoiding the attack."
He placed the bowl down before continuing.
"And that's where the unique property of Neriphion Glass comes in. The Adventurer Guild spent some time researching those creatures and eventually made a discovery that completely changed the conveniency process of obtaining an adventurer's identity."
Marc listened closely.
"That tube they use isn't just some normal tube. It's a specific kind of tube that they made and modified based on how the Neriphion Glass reacts. Because of that, when the tube physically touches the glass, the glass warps and transforms, creating a small hole for the tube to connect to the orb and deliver things inside it."
Juro then pointed toward the area where the orb had been during their registration.
"And around the end of the tube, there's a suction mechanism that makes it stick to the glass."
"Woaa... there's a lot of process involved in that, huh?" Marc exclaimed. "Thanks for explaining it to us, Teacher Juro!"
"Indeed. My sister and I really learned a lot from this," Noria added.
Bell had already finished eating and drank from his cup of water. As he lowered it, he thought to himself.
"Well, it's not wrong. He just really simplified the whole thing, which isn't bad since they're still children. He seems really good at simplifying complicated things."
Juro felt a little smug after hearing the compliments.
"PHEW... I made it sound like I purposely simplified it, but... I actually don't know that much about it either."
"Well, as long as the kids sound satisfied with my explanation..."
His gaze slowly shifted toward Marc.
"This kid... he's really open about being curious and wanting to learn things. I had to rack my brain just to give him good explanations."
Juro's expression softened.
"But... it's not bad."
"The feeling of teaching isn't bad at all."
He smiled softly.
As the group finished their food, Juro raised his hand to get the attention of a nearby server.
"Excuse me, could we get another jug of water?"
While they waited, they noticed that more and more people were beginning to gather around another large wallboard beside the Adventurer Quest Board.
Marc looked toward the growing crowd.
"Teacher Juro, are they also looking for quests?"
Juro shook his head.
"Nah. They're actually checking the News Board. I guess something happened that caught the attention of a lot of adventurers here."
As he said that, the server returned with the jug of water.
Juro took it and placed it on the table before looking toward the lady.
"Is there something going on over there?"
The server then replied, "Ah, are you talking about the News Board? If so, it's because the Adventurer Guild here is holding a small competition."
Marc immediately became curious.
"Competition? What kind of competition?"
The lady chuckled at Marc's curiosity before answering.
"Well, it's like a battle competition."
As she said that, she suddenly heard someone calling her name from across the food area.
"Hey, Nala! Come here! You have a lot of customers waiting!"
"Ah! I'm getting called. Well, that's all I can say. Just check the News Board for more details!" she said before hurrying away.
"Whoa, a battle competition?" Marc exclaimed.
Bell spoke up.
"It's probably like fighting other adventurers."
"Woaaa, fighting other adventurers? Is it like when me and Bell fought in the Mental Mana Room?" Marc asked.
Noria and Brea both heard Marc's words and became curious.
"Mental Mana Room?" Noria asked.
"You and Bell fought?" Brea added.
Marc chuckled while embarrassingly scratching his cheeks.
"Ahaha... well, it's like an imaginary spar? And I lost miserably in the fight."
Both Noria and Brea became even more intrigued.
"Can you explain it to us in more detail later?" Noria asked.
Marc smiled, clearly excited at the chance to tell them about it.
"Sure!"
Juro smiled as he looked at the three of them before answering Marc's earlier question.
"Yeah, it's like that, but a bit more intense."
Bell added, "And since you're basically hitting and getting hit physically, the pressure would feel heavier than the spar we had in the Mental Mana Room."
Juro nodded.
"That's right. Although, you would also gain real combat experience by fighting another adventurer."
Hearing that only made Marc even more intrigued.
"Teacher Juro! Can we check the News Board??"
Juro drank some water before smiling.
"Yeah, sure."
They all got up from their seats and walked toward the remaining crowd around the News Board. By the time they arrived, the crowd had already begun to thin out, since most of the adventurers had already signed up for the competition.
As they reached the board, they found a large poster containing the announcement and details of the competition.
"Team Showcase Battle... so that's what they call it, huh?" Juro said as he looked over the poster.
"Ooo, look, Teacher Juro! It says that it's a team fight!" Marc exclaimed as he read through the details.
Noria looked at the poster as well.
"I guess that's why they called it the Team Showcase Battle."
While they continued reading through the details, Bell looked toward the bottom of the poster and noticed the list of rewards for the winning team.
"Hmm... three potions for each member of the winning team. Two Medium Mana Potions and one Medium Health Potion, and then 150 gold... Yeah, the prizes are pretty decent for a small competition."
Bell looked over the information again.
"The gold would help as we continue traveling, and having Marc fight people with real combat experience would be useful."
His eyes moved back toward the requirements.
"Hmm... just as I thought. The requirements to join this competition..."
"The maximum party members that can join is four, and the maximum rank is Adept. So it's basically just Rookie, Novice, and Adept."
Bell smiled slightly.
"This is a perfect opportunity to get Marc some combat experience."
He turned toward Juro, about to recommend that they join the competition.
But Marc beat him to it.
"Teacher Juro! Let's join the Team Showcase Battle! Look, look! Rookies can join, and we're a party, right, Bell??" Marc exclaimed excitedly as he looked toward him.
Bell was a little surprised, though he had expected Marc to be excited about the idea. He smiled.
"Yeah. And this is also a good experience for me and Marc to learn from real combat."
Brea smiled excitedly.
"Ooo, that's a wonderful idea! Sister Noria and I would cheer you all on!"
Noria nodded.
"Mhm. We'll be rooting for you if you three enter the competition."
"Yeah! See, Teacher Juro?? (˵ •̀ ᴗ •́ ˵ ) ✧" Marc exclaimed excitedly.
Juro laughed.
"Fine, fine. We'll join."