Chapter 22: A New Rival

The identification cards in this world were enchanted with magic.

The information written on them was simple: name, age, race, and occupation.

However, if someone committed a crime, a mark would appear on the card.

If someone grew older, their age would automatically update.

Naturally, if their occupation changed, that would also be reflected.

Until now, Qiu Nuoya’s occupation had been listed as [Missing Child].

But after successfully becoming an adventurer, he had expected it to change to simply [Adventurer].

However, when he checked his current occupation.

[Missing Child Adventurer].

"What kind of occupation is [Missing Child Adventurer] supposed to be?! Why didn’t the missing child part disappear?!"

"Hahaha. Maybe it’s because you haven’t actually done any adventurer work yet, Nuoya. I’m sure it’ll change to just [Adventurer] eventually." Igor said that while laughing loudly, though his words were hardly reassuring.

After finishing the Adventurer’s Guild registration exam, Qiu Nuoya had excitedly checked his status, only to be greeted by this disappointment.

Damn it.

Fine.

In that case, he would just accept a request as soon as possible and become a true [Adventurer].

After completing the remaining procedures and receiving his Adventurer’s Guild card, Qiu Nuoya immediately wanted to take on a quest.

However, Igor and Viktor both stopped him. "Not today."

"Why not? I want to go on an adventure as soon as possible!"

"Because I am worried about your mana capacity."

Viktor firmly shook his head.

But what did he mean by worrying about his mana capacity?

Viktor already knew that Qiu Nuoya had an enormous amount of mana.

"That magic you suddenly used during today’s exam was an intermediate level spell. It should have consumed a considerable amount of mana." Viktor continued calmly. "You may feel fine right now, but if you repeatedly use magic, your mana will quickly run out. You still do not understand your own limits, so you should not take any requests today."

Qiu Nuoya fell silent.

He had not considered that possibility.

To him, having twenty thousand mana felt almost limitless.

But apparently, simply having a large amount of mana did not mean he understood how to use it properly.

"Seriously, he’s right. Watching you is nerve wracking."

"Ehhh..."

"Are the spells you used today Aero and Earth Wall? Do those really consume that much mana? They seemed pretty easy when I tried them."

"The problem is that those two spells are not supposed to be that easy to use."

Viktor looked at Qiu Nuoya with a serious expression.

"You said you had never used magic before, didn’t you? Then how were you able to do them? And aside from Aero, why Earth Wall? How did you learn it? I never taught you that, did I? Did you already know the spell formula?"

The smile on Viktor’s face as he questioned him was frightening.

"I don’t really understand magic, but your fighting style was also a problem."

Igor crossed his arms and continued.

"Why did you close the distance between yourself and the enemy while using magic? A mage is not supposed to fight on the front line. You need to start by learning the basics of combat from the beginning."

Even Igor was lecturing him now.

Despite finally passing the exam, Qiu Nuoya found himself feeling discouraged.

It was not like he intentionally did anything wrong.

The spells had simply worked when he tried them and when he moved closer to attack, he had only thought that it might be more effective that way.

They did not have to criticize him this much.

"Ha. You’re really being spoiled."

A voice suddenly reached Qiu Nuoya’s ears.

He had fallen silent, but when he looked up, he saw the young swordsman who had taken the exam with him.

Warren.

The boy was staring at him with what looked almost like a glare.

However, the moment their eyes met, Warren quickly turned away and walked off somewhere.

Qiu Nuoya had thought they might become friends as fellow adventurers who had registered at the same time.

But somehow, it seemed he was already disliked.

Had he done something to offend Warren?

Qiu Nuoya could not think of anything at all.

"He already sees you as a rival."

"A rival?"

"Well, you and him will be competing for the same level of mission from now on. In a way, you’re like business rivals. I think it would be better if you got along, but many adventurers are naturally very competitive."

"Also, I overheard one of the guild employees mention it earlier. Among the three of you, your written exam score was by far the highest. They also said you showed the most promise in the practical exam. And he’s older than you too, so it’s understandable that he wouldn’t be very happy about it."

Qiu Nuoya was shocked.

Seriously?!

He was being treated as a rival for something like that?

No wonder Warren had been glaring at him.

Qiu Nuoya had thought that since they were both newly registered adventurers, they might become friends.

Warren was a swordsman, while Qiu Nuoya was a mage.

Their team balance would have been perfect.

At least, that was what he had casually imagined.

"Um... excuse me..."

Hm?

Did he just hear someone calling out?

"Excuse me, Qiu Nuoya!"

"Huh? Yes!"

When he turned around, he saw Rita standing there.

She suddenly bowed deeply in front of him, catching him completely off guard.

"My name is Rita. We took the exam together earlier. Um, since we are both mages, I hope we can get along from now on!"

"Ah, yes. Likewise."

Qiu Nuoya struggled to find the right words.

This was exactly why he was bad at communicating with people.

He mentally sighed at himself while trying to think of something else to say.

However, before he could come up with anything, Rita fidgeted slightly and glanced behind him.

"Actually, um... the people who are with you, are they Senior Adventurers Viktor, an Rank A Adventurer, and Igor, a Rank B Adventurer?!" Her eyes sparkled with excitement.