Chapter 279

Julius’s creation of the Adventurers’ Guild… At first, it didn’t receive much welcome.

For the common Commoners, the perception was: Adventurers? Those violent people? Hence, they did not look kindly upon an institution meant to support such adventurers.

Rather, they even worried that supporting them would increase the number of adventurers around themselves.

Still, since it was directly pushed by the Emperor himself, they didn’t outwardly show their opposition.

The lords who were made to establish branches of the Adventurers’ Guild also didn’t feel any better about it. They had to provide buildings and use their own assets for initial capital for these branches.

It was truly regrettable to spend money on such useless matters.

Had the Emperor not requested it with almost pleading words, had it not been a direct order from him… they would have dismissed it outright.

However, what made it hard for the lords to ignore was not just that it was a direct command from the Emperor, but also because the person in charge of the organization was none other than Arthur, the Sword Emperor.

The strongest Swordsman. Who could belittle that name? The fame of the Former Emperor was well-known even among other races.

Even if one wanted to hang oneself rather than live, one couldn’t disrespect the Former Emperor.

Anyway, like this… through various elements, the lords in different regions ended up establishing branches of the Adventurers’ Guild.

Lastly, the adventurers’ stance was…

“Huh? This?” was the reaction of most.

Adventurers are those who hold their weapons and hunt Monsters, living day-to-day lives where death could come at any moment, hunting monsters to earn money.

Now, they were told they’d belong to an organization? It was incomprehensible.

And the fact that the Emperor himself was behind creating this institution?

To top it off, the head of the institution was the Former Emperor?

It must’ve felt like the sky and the ground had flipped.

Some adventurers thought negatively about being affiliated with such an institution.

“Adventurers’ Guild? If I have time to join something useless like that, I’d rather hunt one more monster!”

“I already did! A plump wild boar monster! This will fetch quite some money!”

Thus, the adventurer carrying a large wild boar monster looked slightly bewildered at the sight of the newly established Adventurers’ Guild, but soon noticed a guide waving at him and headed over.

“You want to sell materials, right? We’ll handle it here.”

“Ah, hmm. Until now, I handed them over to the innkeeper and that was it… Seems like things have changed a lot.”

“Yes. Since today is when the Adventurers’ Guild officially begins operations.”

At the guide’s words, the adventurer nodded his head. Though there were many people and the building was cleaner, he wasn’t fully accustomed yet.

“Would you like a proof-of-adventurer token?”

“Token? What’s that?”

“Ahh, so you’re an adventurer not affiliated with the Adventurers’ Guild. There’s an additional tax when selling materials, but are you okay with that?”

“Additional tax…?”

Julius, while creating the Adventurers’ Guild, didn’t only bring benefits to all adventurers.

In fact, he set a trap where those not affiliated with the Adventurers’ Guild would suffer losses.

“Additional tax?! That’s never existed before!”

“From now on, there will be an additional tax when selling monster materials. However, if you’re part of the Adventurers’ Guild, the tax is reduced.”

“No, what is this…”

“Because it’s an imperial decree, we can’t do anything about it. By the way, joining the Adventurers’ Guild comes with several benefits aside from the tax reduction, so we recommend joining if possible.”

The word “benefits” caught the ear of the grumbling adventurer.

“Benefits? What kind of benefits?”

“First, tax reduction. Discounts when using the Church of Life. If you’re severely injured and unable to work, you’ll receive support for a certain period. There’s also compensation for your family in case of death.”

“Ho, hooh…”

“There are also equipment discounts at contracted blacksmiths, access to the library inside the guild, discounts at the guild’s restaurant and taverns. Additionally, if you’re above a certain rank and apply to become a soldier, you get bonus points.”

The adventurer simply listened as the guide talked.

“If you achieve a high rank and decide to retire, the guild offers employment suggestions, like becoming an examiner or instructor. Although no one has reached that point yet.”

“That, really…”

In various ways, it seemed there was a lot of support.

“In return, there are contracts prohibiting selling materials elsewhere, and you have to pay a monthly fee corresponding to your rank to maintain the guild’s facilities and benefits.”

After saying this, the guide showed a table listing the monthly fees according to each rank.

“What’s this ‘rank’ thing…?”

“We decided to assign ranks based on adventurers’ skills. Your rank will increase with outstanding performance, though you’ll need to take exams.”

The adventurer nodded slightly as he looked at the table. The ranks started from F and went up to A, eventually reaching S.

The cost for C rank, somewhere in the middle, was within his budget.

If he cut down on alcohol a bit, he could easily afford it.

If he paid that amount and received such benefits… although he wasn’t entirely sure, it seemed like a pretty good deal.

“So, how do I join the Adventurers’ Guild?”

“Please go to the new member registration officer over there.”

The adventurer looked in the direction the guide pointed and scanned the long line of people.

As time passed, one person left the line every so often. How long would it take for the entire line to disappear?

Though unsure, the adventurer instinctively knew he wouldn’t be able to hunt anymore today.

“At least let me sell this creature’s materials. Waiting in that line seems like it’ll take forever. They need to be processed while fresh…”

“Understood. Are you planning to join the Adventurers’ Guild?”

“Of course. With all these benefits, wouldn’t joining make me a fool if I didn’t?”

“Yes, understood. Please take this.”

The guide handed the adventurer a small wooden plate with a number on it.

“What’s this?”

“After handing the materials to the processing agent, we’ll calculate the selling price based on market rates. This plate is proof that you, as an adventurer, entrusted us with the materials. Once the processing is done, return this plate to me, and I’ll give you the payment. If you don’t join the guild by then, we’ll deduct the additional tax…”

“I’ll join, so don’t worry. But what’s this ‘processing agent’? Things have changed a lot from before.”

“Previously, everything was handled haphazardly. With the processing agent handling it and calculating based on market rates, you’ll earn about 20% more money.”

“Twenty percent?!”

“Yes. Because the middlemen merchants are gone.”

Previously, materials were handed over to the innkeeper, who then sold them to merchants… But with fewer intermediaries thanks to the guild, the payments increased.

“Hooh… If the selling price increases this much, even selling normally would yield a similar amount to before.”

“But if you join the Adventurers’ Guild, you’ll gain even more benefits.”

The guide’s words made the adventurer nod.

Although joining costs a little money, compared to future gains, the expense wasn’t too significant.

That’s how adventurers gradually joined the Adventurers’ Guild.

—

“Is this… alright?”

“What is?”

At Julius’s question, the knight captain worriedly replied.

“The Adventurers’ Guild. No matter how I think about it, aren’t the expenses greater than the income?”

“It is for now.”

“For now?”

Even though membership fees were coming in little by little, it wasn’t enough to cover the operating costs of the Adventurers’ Guild branches or maintain the various benefits.

All that money came out of taxes.

“This expenditure is necessary. We can’t attract people without spending this much. As more adventurers join, the expenses will balance out.”

The trend of adventurers joining the guild was steadily increasing.

“But the number of adventurers isn’t infinite, is it? What do you plan to do when there are no new adventurers?”

“When that happens, we’ll find another way.”

Although currently few people were selling monster materials since the guild was still new… Over time, more people would sell their monster materials.

Then, after paying the adventurers, the remaining funds could all be used for guild operations.

Previously, innkeepers took a 50% profit margin when selling monster materials, but the guild only takes 40%.

The more people selling materials, the better the guild’s financial situation would become.

“Will that be enough?”

“On paper, yes. Of course, unexpected situations may arise… but somehow, I feel it’ll be fine.”

The knight captain sighed softly at Julius’s seemingly impractical statement.