Chapter 50 50: Alias

The atmosphere inside the Adventurers Guild was somewhat tense.

Although it had not reached the point where everyone was on full alert, it was still enough to make people nervous.

"Did monsters invade Orario?"

"I don't think so…"

Hearing her coworker's quiet question, Eina gently shook her head.

This was not their usual workplace, but the second office, where several desks were arranged.

Inside the spacious room, there was a low and quiet atmosphere.

"Eina, are you listening?"

"Ah…"

Hearing the person in front of her call her name, Eina suddenly came back to her senses and hurriedly straightened herself.

"I-I'm sorry, chief!"

In front of her, a male beastman sat in a chair.

He held the documents Eina had submitted in one hand and looked at her with a stern gaze.

"I'll say it again. This experience has absolutely no reference value for other Lv.1 adventurers."

"Yes…"

"Forget it."

The chief sighed and put the documents down.

"Although I was the one who told you to interview that rookie who became the fastest person in history to reach Lv.2, even if this information were published, no one would believe it."

That was true.

Eina secretly agreed.

By relying on a unique Skill called [Terra Craftsman], he only needed to continuously craft equipment to improve his Basic Abilities and accumulate excellia…

That kind of leveling method was practically tailor-made for the Hephaestus Familia!

To other Familias that were not centered around craftsmen, it was basically cheating.

If it were made public, it would probably cause a huge uproar.

"I'll find a reason to brush off the people above us. Let's leave the matter at that."

"I'm truly sorry…"

Eina bowed gratefully to her superior, then left the office.

As soon as she stepped outside, a human coworker with pink hair approached her with a smile.

"See? I told you. The chief may not look like much, but he still takes good care of us."

"Misha, would you dare say that to his face?"

"Absolutely not."

Because Drake's Level Up had increased their workload significantly, the two Guild employees did not immediately return to the main hall.

Instead, they went to the break room to slack off for a while.

Their coworkers covering for them would not leave anytime soon anyway, so this was the perfect chance to rest.

"Magic-stone devices really are convenient."

Misha walked over with two steaming cups of black tea and sighed in admiration.

"You just press a button, and freshly brewed hot tea comes pouring out."

"I heard it was a device created by some god. At first, it was apparently called an electric water heater or something…"

"How strange. It brews tea, so why call it a water heater? And what does the word 'electric' even mean?"

"…Eina? Are you listening to me?"

Only after seeing the half-elf girl's eyes go slightly unfocused did Misha realize that she had been talking to herself the entire time.

Judging by how often she had spaced out, Eina, who was usually known for being strict and serious, was clearly not in her usual state today.

"Huh? Sorry, I spaced out."

Eina came back to her senses, took a sip of the black tea in her cup, and looked toward the office outside.

Many Guild employees looked just like her. Some were absent-minded, while others were restless or unable to sit still.

Those sitting in chairs would glance at the clock every now and then. The usual atmosphere of diligent paperwork was nowhere to be seen.

"It's already this late. Denatus should be over by now, right?"

Eina could not help asking.

"Probably…"

Misha thought for a moment, sounding somewhat uncertain.

"Usually, by this time, the meeting results should already have been delivered."

According to tradition, this kind of scene would always appear whenever Denatus ended.

At this very moment, what the Guild employees cared about was nothing else.

It was the aliases of the newly promoted adventurers!

The aliases bestowed by the gods always shocked the mortals of the Lower World, sparked heated discussion, and sometimes even became a wildly popular trend.

And the Adventurers Guild was the key place where people could obtain first-hand information.

That was why so many people were waiting so eagerly.

"Is Eina curious too? You want to know what kind of aliases came out this time, right?"

"Well…"

A certain young boy's figure instinctively appeared in Eina's mind.

"Of course I am. After all, the adventurer I'm responsible for just Leveled Up."

The two of them were chatting happily when a sudden clack came from the entrance.

The Guild's front doors were pushed open hard from outside, causing everyone inside to turn their heads at once.

A breathless staff member rushed in, clutching a stack of documents.

"I-it's here! The results of Denatus!"

"Ooooooh!"

"It's finally here! Hurry, let us see it!"

Like lightning, the staff members dropped their work one after another and rushed over.

Several sheets of parchment listing the aliases quickly passed into different people's hands.

Soon, comments rang out one after another from the Guild staff area.

"Hey, look at this alias!"

"Ohhh, that's amazing. As expected of the gods!"

"Yeah, we'd never be able to come up with such creative aliases."

"This Holy Dragon Knight of Dawn… it has the same kind of charm as last time's Jet-Black Flame Wielder."

"What a moving alias! For some reason, I'm getting goosebumps."

Centered around the male staff members, the atmosphere in Guild Headquarters quickly became lively.

Eina and Misha, who were one step slower, could only squeeze into the crowd bit by bit from the outside.

"I wonder what kind of alias the gods gave Drake."

As Eina imagined the next time she would meet Drake, she began guessing in her heart.

"Hmm… I hope it isn't something too strange."

If he was given an alias like "Pretty Boy," he probably would not be able to hold his head up in front of other adventurers ever again!

Although it would technically be an accurate description, compared to impressive aliases like Sword Princess and Nine Hell, it lacked a certain seriousness.

On the other hand, if the alias was too grand, it would also bring trouble to a rookie who had only just reached Lv.2.

Ideally, it would be something simple and low-profile, a name that would not attract too much attention.

"Eina, I got it—! Come look!"

At that moment, Misha suddenly jumped happily not far away, holding a document high in her raised hand.

Eina's heart lit up with joy.

She hurriedly pushed through the crowd and ran over, quickly flipping through it.

Several sheets of parchment listed rows of adventurers' names and their aliases.

Finally, on the last page, she found the name she had been thinking about at the very bottom.

"…Eh?"

Both Misha and Eina widened their eyes in surprise.

"This alias… isn't it a little too exaggerated?"

The human girl beside her hesitantly gave her opinion.

This time, Eina did not refute her.

Even she felt that this alias was more suited to a high-class adventurer of Lv.5, or even Lv.6 and above.

After all… not everyone could bear the name of a hero.

[Drake: Lv.1 → Lv.2, affiliated with the Hephaestus Familia]

[Alias: "Heroic Smith"]

…

"I'm sorry. I already did my best."

The goddess of the forge, having returned from Denatus, had already changed back into her usual clothes.

There was a trace of embarrassment on her face as she kept complaining about the unreliable gods.

"That bastard Loki did it on purpose! She was definitely trying to make trouble because your achievement surpassed her own child's!"

"Really? I think this alias is pretty good."

Drake did not feel much about it.

In fact, from his point of view, this alias was far better than those ridiculous names that barely sounded human.

"It would be nice if things were really as simple as you think."

Seeing his calm expression, Hephaestus sighed and reminded him,

"Don't underestimate adventurers' longing for heroes."

"This is a great title reserved for legendary powerhouses, people who have accomplished great feats that even the gods acknowledge."

"Now that this alias has been forced onto you, a lot of trouble will probably come knocking very soon."

"Uh… for example?"

Drake truly had not thought of that. Compared with the worst-case scenario he had imagined, this seemed to be an entirely different extreme.

"For example, every adventurer in Orario might rush to your shop, wanting to see the craftsmanship of a hero."

"If you produce even half a flawed item, you'll be mercilessly criticized and mocked."

"When that happens, this alias will only become a burden to you."

"…That's it?"

Drake froze when he heard that.

Did that not sound like a good thing?

[Personally selected by the gods themselves.]

[Please choose the Adventurer's Home]—that was far more effective than any television commercial!

"Don't worry, Lady Goddess. I'll be fine."

Drake gave a confident guarantee.

"I'll prove with my own ability that I'm worthy of the alias Lady Goddess worked so hard to get for me!"

"Drake…"

Seeing that Drake had not been crushed by the pressure and was instead comforting her, Hephaestus could not help pulling him into a hug and gently stroking his head.

"If you can't handle it, tell me. I'll have the Familia members help you through this period."

"Mmph…"

Drake said nothing and simply accepted the comfort.

He could not help wondering what kind of effect the goddess's Soma would have.

Of course, that thought only stayed in his mind.

Even if he had ten thousand times the courage, he would never dare say it out loud.

...

After bidding farewell to Hephaestus, Drake went to his small shop.

Because the matter of his alias had only just been decided and had not yet been spread by the Guild, things were still temporarily quiet here.

However… Drake could already imagine it.

Once his name as the Heroic Smith spread throughout Orario, adventurers would probably come visiting every day without end.

"The gods' little prank, huh?"

Thinking of that, Drake could not help letting out a disdainful snort.

"If they want to watch me become a joke… then I'll thank them first for the free publicity."

This sudden wave of overwhelming popularity was something he not only intended to use to the fullest, but also something he would use to make his alias a reality.

Originally, Drake had still been holding back somewhat, because there were simply too many good things from Terraria.

If he casually took out even one of them, it could cause a major uproar in Orario.

Even if he belonged to the Hephaestus Familia, there would be no way to explain it.

But now, things were different.

He was the Heroic Smith, personally recognized by the gods!

Since he was a hero, casually pulling out a Superheated Plasma Cannon would be perfectly normal, right?

Having the entire world of Terraria as his backing was Drake's greatest confidence and trump card.

After greeting Hestia and Lili, Drake did not waste much time and went straight back to the workshop on the second floor.

"Phew… a lot really happened today."

First, he Leveled Up and obtained the [Stigmata Alchemy] Skill.

Then he went to test his strength after the Level Up, as well as the effects of Soma.

After that came the alias he had just heard about, along with the plan for how to respond to it…

There were so many things happening in the main world that Drake had barely had time to explore other worlds.

Fortunately, he finally had a little free time now.

"Twelve hours. It should be about done."

Drake remembered that there was still an unfamiliar world currently being searched.

He immediately called up the system panel and checked the progress.

By pure coincidence, when he opened the panel, there was exactly one minute left.

"In that case, I'll wait for the reveal."

With anticipation in his heart, Drake quietly waited.

"I hope it's a world suitable for obtaining Soma."

"At the very least, I hope there are many characters suitable for contracts…"

"I'd also be fine with gaining some special ability."

"Wait. What the hell is Black Bullet doing here?"

The instant the countdown reached zero, the window before Drake's eyes refreshed.

[A traversable world has been found.]

[Transfer location: Tokyo Area, Tendo Civil Security Corporation.]

[This world has been affected by the power of Calamity. Its Jungle region has been overwritten by a Terraria environment.]

There were countless versions of Tokyo in parallel worlds.

But since the transfer location was Tendo Civil Security Corporation, Drake quickly determined the prototype of this world.

It was the world of Black Bullet!

In an instant, countless related memories surfaced in his mind.

"This world, huh… That works too."

"With my current strength, dealing with a Stage V might be a little difficult."

"But Gastrea below Stage IV shouldn't pose much of a threat."

Just like last time, after the world information appeared, an additional system notification emerged.

However, this time, it was information about a "reward."

[World Quest: Summon and defeat one "Queen Bee" in this world's Jungle. Upon completion, unlock the special variant of the Rogue class — Shadow Monarch.]

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