Adventurer of Many Professions

Chapter 36 Investigation Team!

"Raymond, what were you 'thinking' when you said that back there?" Sylph huffed as they stepped out of the temple. Her voice was sharp, and her arms were crossed tightly over her chest.

Raymond glanced at her, already anticipating the brewing storm. "What do you mean?" he asked, feigning ignorance, though he knew exactly where this was heading.

"You 'know' what I mean!" Sylph stomped her foot, her fiery temper on full display. "Lorene's the type who wouldn't refuse anyone! If you hadn't said that nonsense about 'no pressure,' she would've agreed to join our team the moment she decided to leave the temple. Now she might end up with someone else!" Her glare was accusatory, her words practically dripping with frustration.

Raymond sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Sylph, she just healed my arm. I couldn't let her join us because she felt obligated or cornered. That wouldn't be right."

Sylph opened her mouth to argue, but Raymond cut her off, raising an eyebrow. "And let's not forget where we were. Aren't you even a little worried the Sun Goddess might not approve of us trying to recruit her priestess in her sacred temple?"

At that, Sylph froze. Her head snapped toward the temple, her expression shifting from anger to unease. "W-What do you mean?" she stammered, sneaking another glance at the towering structure behind them. "The Sun Goddess… wouldn't care about something like that, right?"

But her voice lacked conviction, and the way she clutched her cloak tighter around herself betrayed her nerves. Still, she quickly tried to mask it with her usual bravado. "She… she probably has better things to do than worry about that!"

Raymond smirked at her sudden shift in tone, pleased that his words had effectively silenced her protests. He enjoyed the rare moment of quiet as they walked, but something started to nag at the back of his mind.

Breaking the silence, he asked, "Hey, Sylph, did you notice something… strange about the temple? All the priests we saw were women. Do you think the male priests were sent to other temples?"

Sylph stopped dead in her tracks, turning to him with an expression of utter shock. "What? Are you serious?"

"What's wrong?" Raymond frowned, confused by her reaction. "It's just a question."

Sylph looked at him as if he'd asked if the sun rose in the west. "Of 'course' there's a problem! Don't you know? The Sun Goddess only grants her blessings to women! There 'are no male priests!'"

Raymond blinked, her words hitting him like a ton of bricks. "Wait… are you 'sure' about that?"

"Absolutely!" Sylph said with certainty, jabbing a finger toward the temple. "The Sun Goddess made that choice ages ago. Only women can awaken as priests. And come on, didn't you notice? Everyone serving in the temple, the nuns, the priestesses, were all women. There wasn't a single man!"

Raymond's mind raced. He replayed his earlier visit to the temple, realizing she was right. The only men inside had been ordinary worshippers, not clergy. 'Only women can become priests?' That revelation sent a chill through him.

'But… why is "priest" listed as an option on my awakening panel?' he thought, his stomach twisting. He was absolutely certain he was a man, he'd been reminded of it countless times over the past few days, and there was no question about it. Yet now, an unsettling thought crept into his mind.

'If I choose to awaken as a priest… will I…?'

Raymond felt a cold shiver run down his spine. His hands instinctively clutched at his sides, and he suddenly felt like retreating as far as possible from this terrifying possibility.

"Nope. Not happening. Never," he muttered under his breath.

"Raymond, are you okay?" Sylph's voice jolted him back to reality. She was staring at him, her expression a mix of concern and suspicion.

He forced a weak smile, trying to mask his unease. "I'm fine. Just… feeling a little off. I think I'll head back now."

"Wait, what? Already? We were going to grab a meal together!" Sylph protested, but Raymond didn't stop. With a quick wave over his shoulder, he disappeared down the street, leaving her to fume behind him.

---

Raymond didn't go straight home. Instead, he made his way to the 'Greytor Weapon Shop', owned by the temperamental dwarf craftsman Greytor. The shop was small but packed with expertly crafted weapons and armor, each gleaming under the dim lantern light.

The moment Raymond stepped inside, Greytor looked up from his workbench, his bushy eyebrows furrowing in irritation. "You again? What're you doing here so soon? Don't tell me you've already busted that protective gear I sold you yesterday!"

Raymond scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Uh… well, about that…"

Greytor slammed a hammer onto the table, making Raymond flinch. "Do you know how bad it'll look for my reputation if word gets out that my gear doesn't hold up? Explain yourself, boy!"

"It wasn't the armor's fault!" Raymond said quickly, holding up his hands in defense. "I ran into a giant mutant rat while on a mission. Things got… complicated."

Greytor grumbled under his breath, his expression softening only slightly. "A mutant rat, eh? Nasty creatures, those. Fine, I'll take your word for it. But next time, be more careful, you hear me? I don't make my armor for reckless fools."

"Understood," Raymond said with a nod, relieved that Greytor wasn't too angry.

As the dwarf returned to his work, Raymond leaned against the counter, still haunted by the thought of awakening as a priest. 'Nope, definitely not choosing that path,' he thought grimly. 'Time to start focusing on a different skill… anything but priesthood.'

The dwarf craftsman Greytor picked up the damaged arm guard, his thick fingers tracing the jagged cut left by the giant mutant rat's claws. He grunted thoughtfully, squinting at the armor under the lantern light. "Looks like those claws were sharper than I expected. Hmph. This kind of damage isn't too complicated to fix, it'll take me two days. Not too expensive either."

Raymond leaned forward, his face tightening with urgency. "Two days? Can't it be done any sooner?"

Greytor's eyes narrowed, his bushy brows knitting together as he slammed the arm guard onto the workbench. "What do you think this is, boy? A shoe repair shop? You think I can just slap some leather on it and call it a day?" He snorted, picking up his hammer and gesturing toward the door. "If that's what you're after, go to the tannery instead. I'll make an exception for you."

"No! No, that won't be necessary!" Raymond stammered, waving his hands in surrender. The last thing he needed was shoddy armor and more importantly, Arya finding out about the damage.

Greytor grunted in satisfaction, muttering about impatient adventurers under his breath as Raymond slinked out of the shop, his face flushed with embarrassment. Outside, Raymond looked down at his now unprotected arm and sighed. He could already imagine Arya's sharp gaze piercing into him when she inevitably noticed something was missing.

"Guess I'll have to deal with that when it happens," he muttered, resigning himself to his fate. With that, he turned and made his way toward Red Rose Street, bracing himself for whatever awaited him next.

---

Meanwhile, deep within the town's sewers, the stale air was filled with the faint echo of rushing water and the squelch of boots against damp stone. A sharp voice broke the silence, laced with annoyance. "Ugh! This place reeks! Why do we always get stuck with missions like this?"

The complaint came from a girl hidden in the shadows, her voice cutting through the gloom like a blade. "Honestly, sewers? Who even thought this was a good idea?"

"Freya," a gruff voice replied, heavy with exasperation. "We're not adventurers. We don't get to choose our missions. We go where we're ordered, so stop complaining and focus."

Under the faint glow of a magical white stone, a group of five figures pressed forward. Three of them wore knight uniforms, their armor glinting faintly in the dim light. Leading them was Captain Andel, his massive sword resting against his shoulder, his expression stoic as always. The other two figures were less familiar, a stern-looking auditor and an elderly man in a white coat who looked to be in his sixties.

If Raymond had been there, he would've recognized them immediately. This was the same group that had been sent after him and Sylph not long ago. And now, it seemed, they had been reassigned to the town's sewer problem. But Freya, the stealthy girl complaining moments earlier, was nowhere in sight; her voice carried from far ahead, thanks to her adept use of 'stealth.'

The group moved cautiously, their footsteps echoing in the tunnels. Freya's voice called out again from the darkness ahead, still tinged with frustration. "If I knew this would happen, I would've just become an adventurer! At least then I could pick my missions."

Her tone was sharp, but her skills were undeniable. As an awakened 'assassin,' Freya's night vision and stealth abilities made her the ideal scout in the oppressive darkness of the sewer.

"I appreciate you all assisting with this investigation," the auditor said, breaking the silence. His tone was formal but carried a note of sincerity. "It's for the safety of the town's residents, after all."

Captain Andel grunted, lifting his sword slightly as he scanned the dim corridor. "Safety is always our priority. If there really are giant mutant rats down here, we'll deal with them. We can't let them reach the surface."

"Don't worry, Captain," the elderly man in the white coat chimed in, his voice calm and measured. "There shouldn't be too many of them. Once I see one, I'll collect a sample of its internal organs. With that, I'll know for sure if it's one of the rats that accidentally ingested our potion."

The group's attention turned to the old man, who carried a sturdy metal box under one arm. His words were casual, but the implications hung heavily in the air.

The auditor's sharp gaze settled on him. "President Beno," he said, his tone icy, "your Alchemist Association created these mutant rats in the first place. Any trouble they cause is your full responsibility."

Beno, the president of the Alchemist Association's West Town branch, rubbed the back of his bald head awkwardly. "Yes, yes, I know. That's why we've been hiring adventurers to clean them up for the past five years," he admitted with a sigh. "It's not like we've been ignoring the problem."

He muttered something under his breath about the exorbitant cost of hiring adventurers but quickly fell silent when he noticed the auditor's glare.

"Captain!" Freya's voice suddenly echoed from ahead, sharp and urgent. "I see it! A giant mutant rat! Ugh, it's disgusting!"

The group immediately tensed, gripping their weapons as they prepared for combat. Captain Andel stepped forward, his sword gleaming faintly in the dim light. "Stay sharp, everyone," he ordered, his voice calm but firm. "If it's as bad as they say, we'll need to end this quickly."

"Just get me close enough to collect my sample," Beno muttered, his grip tightening on the metal box.

The sound of skittering claws echoed through the tunnel, growing louder with each passing second. The group readied themselves, the oppressive darkness closing in as they braced for the mutant threat ahead.