Chapter 534: Comrades of Goddess Benjamin
The main guild faded behind us, the whispers and stares growing distant as we ascended into the upper levels of the building.
The wood was darker here, the air cooler, the sounds of the crowd muffled by thick walls and closed doors.
Eric pulled me down a narrow corridor, past several doors, until we reached a massive oak door at the end of the hall. He knocked twice, a sharp, precise rhythm, and waited.
“Enter.” The Guild Master’s voice came from within, calm and measured.
Eric pushed open the door, and we stepped inside.
The office of the guild master was nice, themed red and some gold: the carpet underneath our feet was plush and expensive, a deep crimson that seemed to absorb sound and muffle footsteps.
The walls were paneled in dark wood, interrupted by ornate golden sconces that held flickering magical flames, casting warm shadows across the room.
A massive desk dominated the center of the space, its surface polished to a mirror shine, covered in neatly arranged papers and scrolls and a single inkwell that looked like it was made of solid obsidian.
The chairs were high-backed and luxurious, upholstered in rich burgundy velvet that invited you to sink into them and never leave.
It was the kind of office that announced power and wealth without needing to say a single word.
I noticed a beautiful woman inside the office as well, silver hair and green eyes, also wearing a type of dark green militaristic wear with boots and gloves.
Her uniform was crisp and tailored, hugging her form in a way that suggested both practicality and style.
The boots were polished to a high shine, and the gloves looked like they’d seen their fair share of work.
Her face was elegant, with high cheekbones and a sharp jawline, her expression cool and professional as she observed us from her position near the desk.
Her ears particularly caught my attention, since they were long.
Not as dramatic as Eric’s, but those weren’t human ears.
Serpentine Gaze informed me she was a “Half Elf.”
Possibly, she was the secretary of this battle-hardened guild master.
Her presence in this office suggested she was trusted, valued, and probably more dangerous than she appeared.
As for the Guild Master…
He was good.
I mean, he wasn’t displayed as {Nil}, like Elara or Sakura, but he was managing to block my perception of him entirely.
I couldn’t get any information at all.
He gestured for me to seat opposite him at the ornate large table, while Eric stood somewhere close to the door like my bodyguard.
The guild master’s movement was casual, almost dismissive, but his eyes never left mine. He was studying me, assessing me, trying to figure out what I was and what I truly wanted.
I took the seat he’d indicated, the velvet cushion sinking beneath me, and tried to project an air of calm confidence that I didn’t entirely feel.
“So you are the new god-touched who have been causing a ruckus in our city—” His deep voice started, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.
“The Guild Master is busy, come at a later time,” the secretary’s voice was beautiful and youthful, though she appeared more like a mature figure than a young lady.
She spoke with authority, her tone brooking no argument, her green eyes fixed on the door as if she could will the intruder away.
Knock, Knock.
The sound prevailed, as if the person on the other side didn’t hear her.
It was persistent, rhythmic, and definitely demanding. It wasn’t the hesitant tap of someone who wasn’t sure they should be here—it was the confident rapping of someone who knew exactly what they wanted.
The half elf nodded at Eric, and he opened the door, probably to send the person away, but it didn’t end as planned: Seven people were outside, and one forcefully made their way in as Eric opened the door.
They soon all flooded into the office like water through a broken dam, their presence filling the space and overwhelming the carefully maintained order of the room.
“Benjamin, it’s boring down there, and the people refuse to stop encroaching on my personal space,” a whining Heka walked in and dropped on a luxurious looking couch at one corner of the quite spacious office, her body sprawling across the cushions with complete disregard for decorum. “It was either I responded with violence or I came here. And I figured you wouldn’t want me to start a massacre on my first day as an adventurer.”
“Eric, we’re her friends too!” Sophia voiced as her twin brother nodded beside her in agreement, her eyes wide and earnest, her hands clasped together in a gesture of pleading. “You can’t have all the fun— I mean, we want to support her as well! It’s not fair that you get to be the only one helping her through this difficult time.”
“I came here to see how things will end, since it was getting interesting,” Aria, try to be more convincing than that!
Her face was a mask of feigned innocence, but I could see the glint of curiosity in her eyes, the way she was scanning the room for anything interesting.
“If you throw us out, we would have to answer to the rest of the Adventurers,” Maria frowned and folded her toned arms, her biceps flexing slightly as she crossed them over her chest. “If Eric and Benjamin are not there to answer questions, we become the next targets. The crowd downstairs is restless, and they’re not going to just let this go without some kind of explanation.”
“Please, Guild Master, allow us to be here,” Katana bowed her head, her voice soft and respectful, her posture humble. “Benjamin is foreign to all these things, and she just wants to enjoy her absurdly long life without any drama. Allow us, her extremely few friends, to be with her in this difficult time. We won’t cause any trouble—we just want to be there for our own.”
First, thank you Katana, but there is no difficult time here.
Second, I don’t have any absurdly long life—that’s you guys just harboring a misconception!
I wanted to scream the words and correct the record, to let them know that I was just as mortal as any of them. But the moment had passed, and the damage was done.
And can you guys stop treating me like I’m a runaway goddess who just wants to enjoy mortality for a change?!
I’d never claimed to be anything other than what I was—a reincarnated soul with some unusual abilities. But they’d built up this image of me in their heads, this fantasy of a divine being slumming it in the mortal world, and nothing I said seemed to shake it.
“I tried to stop them, but they were becoming a pain in the rear,” Yuki facepalmed with an exhausted look.
Her hand covered her eyes, and she let out a long, suffering sigh that spoke of years of dealing with these people’s shenanigans. “They were making a scene, drawing attention, and I figured it would be easier to just let them come up here than to try to reason with them.”
But I suspected she also just wanted to see what will become of my adventurer class.
She’d been softer and a bit more open to me lately, but I can still sense a mild distrust towards me. She was watching, waiting, calculating. She wanted to see what I was capable of, still wanted to know if I was a threat.
“…Ehehe, so cute, Yuki,” I unintentionally let it slip, the words tumbling out of my mouth.
I’d been thinking it, admiring the way the light caught her white hair, the way her eyes crinkled when she was annoyed, the way her lips pursed in that adorable pout.
She blushed and complained about time and place.
Her voice was flustered, her composure cracking just slightly, and I couldn’t help but grin at the reaction.