I Became A Married Man in Another World
Chapter 48
#048 We’re Rich. Oh My God.
“It’s 3rd Grade, 3rd Grade! Don’t just stand there, register them!”
As the Guild Master shouted while still lying on the floor, the guild employee scrambled back to the reception desk.
The employee rummaged under the counter and pulled out a sheet of paper. After taking a deep breath, a smile returned to their flustered face.
“Since our guild is a branch in a small village, the highest rank we can register here is 3rd Grade. Anything above that must be handled in a large city or the royal capital.”
The employee began to explain that normally, one registers at 6th Grade and gradually raises their rank.
“However, with such powerful healing abilities, a 2nd Grade rank would be possible immediately. A Magician with two attributes is incredibly rare. Of course, a Magical Beast that listens to a child is also rare—no, a child who can give orders to a Magical Beast is precious. The fundamental nature of Magical Beasts is that they don’t listen to anyone.”
It seemed they thought the Magical Beast was simply intelligent rather than Dorothy having tamed it.
Juhwan thought so as well.
“If you register as 3rd Grade here for now, we will send the documents to the main office immediately. That way, whenever you go to a large city, you can be promoted to 2nd Grade at any time.”
Just as the employee opened their mouth to explain further, a large face suddenly loomed over the reception desk.
“Register them first.”
It was the Master. He still seemed to be in pain.
The Master rested his chin on the desk and grabbed the employee’s wrist.
“Talk later. Register.”
Come to think of it, the area where Oz had bitten him hadn’t been treated yet.
The fire on his head had been a bigger issue, so Juhwan hadn’t spared a thought for the bite.
The back of the Master’s neck was bleeding, staining his clothes red.
It seemed he had been bitten quite fiercely.
As Juhwan lightly placed his hand on the Master’s neck and sent mana into it, Dorothy glanced at him warily and whispered.
“Daddy, did Oz do something bad?”
“….”
Well, that was hard to answer. The Master hadn’t intended any harm, but the probability was high that other people would.
The Master narrowed his eyes and smiled, answering in Juhwan’s stead.
“No, little one. The Magical Beast did well. He protected his master. You shouldn’t scold him. Besides, he stopped the moment you told him to. That beast is an excellent fellow. And you are a growing sprout-tree!”
Dorothy’s face brightened.
“Yes! Dorothy is a sprout-tree.”
No, there was no such thing as a sprout-tree in this world. Probably… though he couldn’t be certain since this world was different from Earth, a sprout was a sprout and a tree was a tree.
But thanks to that, Dorothy’s mood shifted. Her face, which had been anxious until a moment ago, lit up.
No matter how strong Juhwan was or how much people avoided picking a fight, the atmosphere of the surroundings seemed to have made the child uneasy.
Juhwan didn’t think Dorothy had done anything wrong, but the child must have felt a sense of guilt from the people’s stares.
The Master had blown that away in a single breath.
When the victim themselves laughs it off, everyone else nearby feels as though they’ve been forgiven as well.
Juhwan looked at the Master and gave a slight nod. When he silently mouthed thank you, the Master grinned.
In the meantime, the employee seemed to have finished filling out the form. They pushed the paper toward Juhwan.
“Please write the names of your party members here, and everyone must drop a single drop of blood. 6th Grade uses ordinary paper, but 3rd Grade uses paper imbued with magic. Ah, you can use this to prick yourselves. I have it ready because some people occasionally slash themselves with knives and make a bloody mess. Adventurers tend to be a rough lot, after all.”
What the employee handed him was a short needle attached to a piece of wood.
‘I’m sure this hasn’t been disinfected.’
Juhwan conjured a small flame and lightly scorched the needle. He couldn’t help but wonder if everyone here risked their lives just to get tetanus.
The top of the paper was marked as 3rd Grade, with blanks below for the party name and members.
Below that, the rules that guild members had to follow were listed. There weren’t many; they were quite simple.
All of this had been handwritten by the employee. It would have been more convenient to have them pre-written—no, perhaps they kept 6th Grade forms ready, but 3rd Grade was rare enough that they didn’t have any pre-filled. That was likely the case.
All Juhwan had to do was write the party name and the members. And for some reason, the number “3” was written small in the corner.
“If you don’t know your letters, please let me know. There’s no need to be ashamed. Most adventurers who come here are illiterate. Naturally, we can write for you, or there are people who specialize in reading and writing for others. Though those people charge a fee.”
“I can read and write, though I’m a bit unpracticed.”
“Eek!”
The employee jumped at Juhwan’s words.
“Truly, you are different from what I expected in many ways.”
“….”
“Our Master still struggles with reading and writing. He’s studying, of course. Sigh, so I do all of the Master’s paperwork. It’s driving me crazy.”
The Master laughed hoarsely at the employee’s remark.
“That’s why you get paid more, you brat. Along with that big mouth of yours.”
“Well, that’s true. I was kicked out of my last job for talking too much.”
Leaving the bickering pair alone, Juhwan looked at Lij and Dorothy.
“We need to decide on a party name. Any ideas?”
Lij tilted her head and then gave a bright smile.
“How about Dorothy and Oz?”
Ah, that was good.
Dorothy’s face lit up, and she pressed her face against Oz, who she was holding in her arms.
“It’s Dorothy and Oz! Do you hear that? It’s because we’re sprout-trees.”
Juhwan often couldn’t follow Dorothy’s logic. He had no idea how she reached those conclusions.
Juhwan wrote down the party name and the three names, then pricked his finger to drop blood onto the paper.
Since it was magic paper, it should have glowed, but nothing happened yet.
Lij came closer, her face grimacing slightly as she held out her finger.
She seemed a bit afraid of being pricked by the pin.
After hesitating several times, she squeezed her eyes shut and finally pressed down hard.
She could cut up bloody Rabbit Fur and carcasses without a second thought, yet she was afraid of this tiny needle. It was somehow both funny and cute.
And finally, it was Dorothy’s turn…
“…Ugh… No… Dorothy doesn’t have blood… Dorothy doesn’t have blood in her fingers… Really… Dorothy has no blood….”
She seemed terrified of being pricked. The child’s face had turned pale.
“Dorothy, it’s only for a second. it doesn’t hurt at all.”
Lij, who had been hesitating and failing to prick her own finger just moments ago, was now the one persuading Dorothy.
The employee gestured to Juhwan. They held up the needle and mimed bringing the child’s hand over.
Sigh, it couldn’t be helped.
Juhwan let out a soft sigh and took Dorothy’s hand.
“…Waaaah… Dorothy has no blood… Not even one drop… Waaaaaaaah….”
The child began to cry in earnest. She shook her head violently, trying to pull her hand away.
Juhwan held her hand and extended it toward the employee while he and Lij tried to soothe her. They kept telling her it was okay and wouldn’t hurt.
Still, Dorothy’s crying didn’t stop. She was clearly very scared.
While she continued to cry, the employee pricked her and drew a single drop of blood.
Dorothy didn’t even seem to realize she’d been pricked.
She kept wailing while looking at her finger as if something was strange.
The moment Dorothy’s blood dripped and spread on the paper, the sheet—which had shown no reaction until now—suddenly began to glow with a soft light.
“Waaa… eh… oh….”
The child’s crying gradually slowed and then stopped.
“…The paper is glowing!”
“I’ve seen it before, but it’s amazing every time.”
Dorothy and Lij stared intently at the paper. The light dwelling in the magic paper soon faded.
“Fufu. This is a bit more expensive than other magic papers. Usually, they only allow for one person’s contract. This one allows for three. Once the magic is activated, it cannot be changed, so it’s impossible to forge.”
It seemed the number 3 written in the corner indicated the number of people allowed in the contract. They likely made magic papers for two people, three people, and so on.
“There, the contract is perfect. From this moment on, you are all adventurers.”
Dorothy, with tear streaks still on her face, rummaged through her front pocket and pulled out her rabbit doll, Toto.
She held it out to the employee and spoke between sniffs.
“Please make Toto part of the party too.”
“…That… doll, you mean?”
“It’s Toto. Dorothy and Oz and Toto are one body. We’re always together. If we aren’t, we’ll become acorns.”
“….”
The employee chuckled, mimed writing something on the paper, and told Dorothy.
“Alright, I’ve registered him. Toto is part of the party now too.”
Dorothy’s head dropped sadly. She hugged Toto tightly and whispered.
“…Liar. That mister lied. He didn’t write it. Lying is very bad, Toto.”
Dorothy’s face was incredibly sorrowful. She looked like the most miserable child in the world.
The employee looked at Juhwan and Lij with an awkward expression.
“I’m sorry.”
“We’re sorry.”
Juhwan and Lij bowed to the employee almost simultaneously.
After all the chaos they’d already caused, they felt truly apologetic for the child’s nonsensical request. Being a working professional was truly stressful. Earning money was really not easy.
Juhwan patted the sorrowful child’s back and bowed once more.
“Thank you for the party registration.”
“Don’t mention it.”
The employee placed three necklaces on the reception desk.
They had wooden tags with a Santa face on the front and the number 3 on the back.
This was evidently the proof of being an adventurer.
“Keep these on at all times. They serve as your identification.”
“Um, what is this grandfather’s face?”
“Ah, you mean Santa? Don’t tell me you don’t know Santa?”
“….”
The employee looked slightly troubled.
“Santa is the ## god of our Adventurer’s Guild. You could say he’s the ## god of all adventurers. Actually, some people dislike him because he’s somewhere between a god and a Magical Beast, but surely you didn’t come from a region where people hate Santa? Ah, if you did, you probably wouldn’t have even come inside after seeing the sign.”
“….”
Judging by the context, it seemed Santa was a guardian deity.
Wait, was Santa not human?
Well, it was unlikely a human could send someone from one world to another.
But at the same time, he seemed to be treated like a Magical Beast; it was all very confusing.
While Juhwan was lost in thought, the employee from the purchasing counter approached.
The purchasing employee smiled broadly and held out a flat rectangular tray filled with money.
“There were 7 Rabbit Furs in total. The current market price for high-grade is 6 silver coins per pelt, but since the condition was excellent, I calculated it at 7 silver coins. So, that makes a total of 49 silver coins. How would you like to be paid? I can give you 2 gold coins and 9 silver coins, or all in silver, or mixed with Rinas.”
The employee who had handled the registration chimed in.
“Opening a ## at the guild is also a good option. If you have a certificate showing your ## balance, you can withdraw money at other branches. Many people carry cash directly, but it’s dangerous. Oh, and forging a certificate is a serious crime, so don’t even think about it.”
It seemed the guild also functioned as a bank. The word he couldn’t understand likely meant ‘account.’ Juhwan nodded and looked at the employee.
“Are account details shared with other branches? If so, how long does it take? Also, I’m curious how you verify someone’s identity.”
“You’re the first person to ask something like that. Most people are just happy to know they can swap a certificate for money… You really defy expectations in many ways.”
The employee’s eyes widened.
But surely one couldn’t open an account without knowing at least that much.
In any case, after listening to the explanation, it seemed to be a system similar to a bank, though it took a bit of time.
Since lists were exchanged regularly, information about adventurers and account balances were shared across all branches with a time delay.
Identity verification was handled through the necklace made with magic when the account was opened.
If lost, one usually had to return to the branch where the account was opened to have a new necklace made.
The employee explained that the branch where one signs up records almost every detail.
The appearance of the adventurer, their weapons, the look of the account owner—they record such things and cross-reference them with the documents if a problem arises later.
“Our Adventurer’s Guild has a long history. We can handle all sorts of situations. You can put your worries aside.”
Conversely, that meant there had been that many accidents. Juhwan thought as much but said nothing.
Juhwan opened an account under the party name and deposited 30 silver coins into the guild.
Because of that, one more account necklace was created. Only the leader needed to provide blood for it.
‘Thank goodness.’
If he had to think about Dorothy crying and wailing over blood again, sigh, a sigh escaped him automatically.
Seeing Juhwan’s exhausted face, the employee chuckled.
“Ah, and please come back tomorrow—no, the day after. Normally when you first register, a 5th Grade adventurer, who is one rank higher, works with you for about a month. During that period, you learn the basic things you need to know as an adventurer. Not things like weapons, but lifestyle aspects. You became 3rd Grade immediately, but you still need to learn the basics of being an adventurer.”
“I understand.”
Juhwan replied and looked at Lij.
Lij had been acting a bit strange for a while. Her face was pale, and her movements and expressions were stiff, almost like a robot.
Was it because she was tired? He was a bit worried. He felt they should hurry out, find an inn, and let her rest, or she might collapse.
As Juhwan turned to leave, the employee held out a small necklace for an animal.
“This is on the house. A tamed Magical Beast must wear a collar. Otherwise, you can’t complain if it gets subjugated. Please make sure he wears it.”
He put the collar on Oz right then and there. Dorothy, who had been mourning the fact that Toto couldn’t be registered in the party, became animated again.
“Oz, you look cool! I want a necklace too. Not this kind, but a cool one like that!”
Dorothy seemed to like the leather collar for Magical Beasts more than the Santa necklace.
After promising to return to the guild the day after tomorrow, Juhwan put his arm around Lij’s shoulder and turned around.
The adventurers who had been watching them from inside the guild all turned their heads at once.
He heard someone whisper to a companion.
“Hey, don’t make eye contact. Fire will fly at you if you do.”
No, it won’t. I’m not some crazy person.
Juhwan let out a small sigh and left the guild with his family.
Lij didn’t say a word as they walked back to where the carriage was. He was truly worried. Had something been weighing on her mind?
When Juhwan stopped and peered into Lij’s face, she blinked slowly and suddenly murmured.
“Oh my god, Juhwan! We’re rich.”
What, had she just been shocked because they got money? A laugh escaped him.
“Lij, we’re going to earn even more money from now on.”
“…Oh my god.”
Lij blinked and looked up at Juhwan. Expression slowly returned to her face.
And finally, with her cheeks flushing red, Lij murmured once more.
“We’re rich. Oh my god.”
