Seneca and Maiol had reached Level 2.

  With this achievement, they decided to simultaneously apply for promotion to Copper-ranked adventurers and submit their applications to the Royal Adventurers’ Academy.

  To achieve a rank promotion due to levelling up, proof was required. As Copper-ranked adventurers were recognised by the guild for their competence, a mere self-decration would not suffice for promotion. Therefore, applicants had to visit the church to receive an official certificate proving their level.

  Furthermore, a review process was required to be accepted as a schorship student at the Royal Adventurers' Academy. While there were various ways to handle the paperwork, Maiol believed the quickest route was to submit the level certificate through the guild.

  Thus, the two of them found themselves at the church.

  In order to receive a level certificate, a donation fee—disguised as a contribution—had to be paid. This required one gold coin.

  A gold coin was a significant sum.

  Although the two of them, as Iron-ranked adventurers, had been earning a stable income, and the materials from the variant monkeys that Menon had collected had sold for a decent amount, it still wasn’t enough. Maiol had been steadily saving for this moment, and Seneca had managed with some extra income from noble embroidery work.

  After setting aside just enough for their living expenses and adventuring needs, they ended up putting the majority of their savings toward the certificate. Seneca, who had never spent such a rge sum of money before, felt as though her head was spinning.

  Upon arriving at the church, they were greeted by a sister at the reception desk. They expined that they wished to receive a level certificate.

  It was a rare occurrence for a young girl to request such a document, so the sister raised an eyebrow in confusion. However, when Maiol produced a gold coin, the sister’s demeanour changed instantly, and she began to act with utmost politeness.

  The two were then escorted to a private room.

  The sister said she would fetch someone, and after a brief wait, a man entered. He was referred to as "Priest Marcus."

  “Good day, young dies. I am Marcus, responsible for assessments at this church. I understand you wish to obtain a level certificate; is that correct?”

  Marcus greeted them with an overly formal manner.

  Seneca, not wanting to reveal anything about herself, kept quiet—she’d learned that it was best to remain silent in situations like this.

  Maiol responded, “Yes, that’s correct. I’ve been informed that a donation is required, and I have a gold coin prepared.”

  Maiol handed over the gold coin.

  “May I inquire as to the source of this coin?” asked the priest.

  Maiol could sense from the priest’s expression that he was suspicious.

  “We earned it by completing quests from the Adventurers’ Guild,” she replied.

  “I see. Do you have any documentation to prove this?”

  “No, unfortunately, we do not.”

  “I’m afraid we cannot accept donations from an unverified source,” said the priest.

  Maiol knew that the guild didn’t issue any documentation for completed quests, so this might have been a tactic to dismiss them. The two had dressed in worn clothes, intending to visit the guild directly after this, so it was obvious they didn’t look like they had the means to carry gold coins. Maiol regretted not dressing a bit more neatly for the occasion.

  “Under these circumstances…” the priest began.

  “Wait a moment!” Maiol interjected as she stood up.

  “Could you give us a little more time? If you wait here, I’ll fetch someone from the guild who can confirm the source of the money,” she said urgently.

  The priest looked thoughtful for a moment before responding, his tone now more haughty.

  “Just one hour, is it? Very well, I’ll wait for one hour, but if they don’t arrive by then, this matter is finished.”

  Maiol turned to Seneca.

  “Seneca, I’m sorry. Go to the guild and bring someone back as quickly as you can. If possible, try to get Turia, but anyone familiar with us will do!”

  “Got it,” Seneca replied, and she hurried out of the room.

  Normally, it would have been impossible to return in time, but Seneca was quick enough to make it work.

  ...

  Maiol was left alone with the priest in the room. He seemed irritable.

  Maiol felt uneasy about the situation. Even if they had stolen the money, the priest would still be able to detect their levels through the assessment, so his suspicion made little sense.

  If their level-up was legitimate, it wouldn’t be strange for them to possess a gold coin.

  Realising that the priest was probably just being difficult, Maiol stayed on guard. Despite suspecting something could happen, there was no immediate threat, and Maiol carefully exhaled, staying alert.

  ...

  A short while ter, Seneca returned, leading Turia with her.

  It hadn’t even been an hour.

  Turia, panting, clearly had hurried over. Perhaps Seneca had even helped her along the way.

  The priest was about to say something but was immediately interrupted by Seneca.

  “I had the receptionist note the time between when I left and returned. It hasn’t even been an hour.”

  The priest looked annoyed, perhaps having hoped to find a fault with them. Maiol suspected that he had been intending to make trouble.

  Turia then began speaking to the priest.

  “Priest Marcus, I’ve formally raised this concern with you before, yet this issue persists. Are you still pnning to proceed with this?”

  The priest replied with a sigh, “I understand the compint. But you must understand that the church has a duty to question anyone who seems suspicious. Logically speaking, it’s strange for such young girls to come with a gold coin. I don’t believe that’s natural.”

  Turia calmly responded, “I see. Well, I’ll report this to the Archbishop, and the guild will follow up. If necessary, we’ll send someone else to deal with this. You’ll need to provide the same expnation when asked.”

  The priest stammered in a panic, “Wait! If you just check their levels, you’ll see everything is in order. You’ve come here, and their status has been verified. The issue is resolved.”

  “Understood,” said Turia. “Now, please issue the level certificates as requested. I will return to the guild now. Goodbye.”

  With that, Turia left.

  The priest muttered angrily, “Give me the gold coins, you deceivers!”

  Seneca replied calmly, “I’ll be reporting this to Turia, just so you know,” before the two went on to complete their assessment.

  ...

  Once they had received their certificates and left the church, Turia was waiting outside.

  “Did everything go smoothly? That man has it out for adventurers. He acts like this all the time. The guild protested to the church not long ago about him.”

  Maiol asked, “Why is someone like him in charge of such an important task? Most people who need level certificates are adventurers.”

  Turia sighed, “It’s partly to make life difficult. The church has its anti-guild faction. The upper-ups turn a blind eye to minor annoyances, but when it gets out of hand, the guild gets involved, and they can’t ignore it. I think that’s why he changed his attitude today.”

  As they chatted, Seneca clung to Turia’s arm.

  “By the way, how long does it take to be officially recognised as a Copper-ranked adventurer?”

  Turia smiled. “Once you’ve applied for promotion, the request will be sent to the Baetica branch. From there, it will go to the main guild headquarters in the capital. Since they have a quick communication system, you should hear back by next week, at the test.”

  “Right!”

  “Then, since you two have achieved a high success rate in your quests, all you’ll need is a brief interview, and you’ll be officially promoted to Copper! After that, if you wait another week or two, you’ll be accepted to the academy as schorship students.”

  Seneca’s eyes widened. “Wait, so don’t we automatically get the schorship once we’re promoted to Copper?”

  Turia shook her head. “You’ll still need to take a quick interview and mock battle. Even if you’re skilled, your character matters. They wouldn’t accept someone with a bad attitude. I’ve never heard of anyone failing, though. Just don’t get compcent.”

  Seneca raised her hand and nodded. “Got it!”

  Turia chuckled. “Seneca, you’d better start studying too. There are lessons at the academy, and it’s better to prepare now for everything reted to adventuring.”

  Maiol spoke up with a slight smirk. “See? You’ll be fine. You’re quick to learn!”

  Seneca sighed. “I guess I have to study now…”

  Turia ruffled Seneca’s hair. “Don’t worry. You’re smart, so you’ll catch up quickly.”

  Seneca cheerfully added, “Once I get the schorship, I’m going back home for a while!”

  And so, the three of them left for the guild.

  However, despite waiting for two weeks, then three, there was still no word on their promotion to Copper.

  Bongao1900