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I woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside my window. Sunlight peeked through the wooden blinds, casting golden streaks across the room. I let out a deep yawn and stretched, my muscles still a little sore from yesterday.
"Oh man, I wonder if I woke up too early," I mumbled to myself, rubbing my eyes.
Just then, a voice called out to me.
"Hey, Zerro!" Lina's voice rang from the other side of the door.
I turned my head and saw her leaning against the doorway, arms crossed with a smirk on her face.
"Hey, Lina," I greeted her, still groggy.
"You're late," she teased. "The Adventurers Guild has been open for a couple of hours now!"
"What!?" I shot up from my bed, instantly awake. "I overslept!?"
I scrambled to grab my clothes, panic setting in.
Lina chuckled, shaking her head. "No need to be in a hurry. We still have plenty of time."
"Yeah, no. Sorry, but I have something important to do, so I need to go now!" I said while hurriedly pulling on my boots.
She simply shrugged and walked down the stairs. I barely managed to throw on my clothes before sprinting after her.
As I reached the bottom of the stairs, I was greeted by familiar faces from last night.
"Oh, look! It's that kid from yesterday!" one of the adventurers laughed.
I had almost forgotten about last night's events—about how I managed to take down that drunk adventurer, Aaron. The memory made me chuckle, but I couldn't dwell on it. I had more important matters to attend to.
"Yep, it's me! See you guys later!" I shouted, pushing the door open and dashing toward the Adventurers Guild.
After several minutes of running, I finally arrived.
"Finally! I'm here… for the second time," I muttered, reaching for the door handle. But just as my fingers touched the wood, my heart sank.
I had forgotten my sword in my room at the bar.
"Damn it!" I groaned.
I had no choice—I had to go back.
I burst through the bar doors, slightly out of breath.
"Oh, hey, Zerro!" Sara greeted me from behind the counter. "Lina told me you already left."
"I did… but I forgot something."
She chuckled. "That happens more often than you think."
Without wasting another second, I ran upstairs, grabbed my sword, and bolted back down.
Just as I reached the last step, my foot caught on something, and before I knew it—
THUD!
I fell flat on my face.
Laughter erupted around me.
"What do we have here?" a deep voice chuckled.
I groaned and lifted my head, my face red from both the impact and embarrassment. Standing before me was a man with striking red hair and a confident smirk.
"Well, aren't you Zerro? The kid who took down one of my strongest adventurers?" he said.
I blinked. One of his strongest adventurers? Oh. He must be talking about Aaron. Well, I wouldn't exactly call that a fight… the guy was drunk. But of course, I wasn't about to say that out loud.
"Oh, well, yeah, that's me," I replied. "But… who are you?"
The man let out a chuckle. "We should get to know each other properly. I'm Renji, the owner of Matines Adventurers Guild."
I froze. The owner? This guy must be incredibly strong.
"Nice to meet you, Renji. My name is Zerro. Zerro Ju."
"Zerro Ju, huh?" Renji looked at me curiously before nodding. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but you were headed to the Adventurers Guild, right?"
"Ah, yes, I was." I adjusted the sword on my back.
"Then perhaps we should go together." He grinned. "Maybe we can discuss how you managed to take down Aaron."
I wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing, but I didn't really have a choice, did I?
"Sure, I guess," I said, and with that, we walked together toward the guild.
When we arrived, the atmosphere inside shifted almost instantly. Every adventurer in the building stopped what they were doing and turned to look at us. Some whispered among themselves, their eyes darting between Renji and me. Even Aaron—now covered in bandages—stared at me in shock.
"Who's that kid with Renji?"
"Oh, it's the kid from the bar! I heard he knocked Aaron out last night."
"No way. That's impossible. He probably can't even lift his own sword."
I ignored their comments and stood tall beside Renji.
He turned to me. "So, Zerro. Do you want to become an adventurer?"
I nodded without hesitation. "Yes. I do."
Renji's smirk widened. "Then let's test your strength, kid."
The entire guild fell silent.
"Test… my strength?" I repeated.
"That's right," Renji said. "If you want to be an adventurer, you need to prove that you have what it takes."
He snapped his fingers, and almost immediately, a woman with silver hair stepped forward. She was clad in sleek black armor, two daggers strapped to her waist. She looked at me with sharp, analytical eyes.
"This is Reina," Renji introduced. "She's one of our best scouts. You'll be sparring with her."
Reina crossed her arms. "A kid, huh?" she muttered. "Well, let's see if you're worth my time."
My stomach twisted slightly. This was really happening.
Renji pointed to an open space in the guild's training area. "Step into the ring."
I nodded and made my way to the center. Reina followed, rolling her shoulders as she walked.
Renji raised a hand. "The rules are simple. The fight lasts until one of you lands a decisive hit, or until I say stop."
I gripped the handle of my sword tightly. This was my moment to prove myself. I couldn't back down now.
Reina smirked and drew her daggers.
"Try to keep up, kid."
Renji dropped his hand.
"Begin!"
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