Riven took the form and glanced through it. It simply asked for his basic information—things that they would need to process him as an adventurer.
He placed the form down on her counter. Since there was no one behind him, he could do it there without any rush. He filled in the form carefully, making sure he wrote everything down correctly.
As he focused on his form, a man walked up to the counter as well, standing at the next line. He was a slim man in fine leather armor. His teeth were crooked, and for some reason, he still smiled, letting everyone see.
He glanced over at Riven briefly but didn't pay much attention to him. He had come in with a sack; he picked it up and placed it on the table.
"Three hundred devil rose sprouts," he said, stretching his hands into his waist as he pulled out the quest request he had completed.
While the man was busy processing his quest, Riven finished filling his form and handed it over to the lady. She took the form from his hands, glancing over it like she did for everyone.
Her eyes widened as she read the first name. She ran over it again and again and was certain that she wasn't seeing things. She placed the form down and looked at Riven.
"Your name is Riven Von Grave?" she asked.
"Yes, that's my name," he replied, keeping a casual tone.
"You're... you're the son of the Baron?" she asked, stuttering a little. Her attitude had been less than perfect, and she was talking to a noble.
"Yes, I'm his fourth son," Riven replied casually again.
"You didn't say anything," she said.
"Why would I? I didn't think it was important in becoming an adventurer. I wouldn't want anyone looking at me differently like you are doing now," he said.
"I'm sorry. I'll get your ID processed immediately. You don't have to make the down payment anymore," she said, about to scurry off.
"I said I didn't want to be treated differently," Riven said, slightly pissed at her behavior change. He pulled out two pieces of copper and placed them on the counter.
She stared at the coins, reluctant to take them, but in the end, she grabbed them and left. She used the door that led to the back, which only employees could access.
Riven stood there waiting for her, but what he didn't know was the man standing beside him had been paying attention to his discussion for a while now.
The lady walked back out with a card in hand. She placed it on the counter for Riven. He picked up the wooden card with his name on it, as well as one bronze star on it.
"Be careful with your ID. We have had cases of people being impersonated for different reasons," she said.
"I will, thank you," he said, his tone informal with a hint of formality within. He gripped the card in his palm and walked away, headed for the quest board.
The lady let out a deep sigh of relief. She felt like a weight had been removed from her body. She didn't know why, but she felt more worried with the calm way Riven spoke to her.
His voice carried no pride. It was like a normal person speaking to her—but he wasn't a normal person. He was a noble.
Riven, on the other hand, was happy, because not everyone knew about his bad reputation—or if she did, she didn't want him to know she did.
He got to the quest board, his eyes immediately darting across the board for something suitable for a beginner like him, but all the quests for one-star bronze were simply gathering resource quests.
"I should have expected this. After all, I'm still at the bottom," he said to himself while still looking, until he finally found one that would allow him to head to a forest.
He stretched out his hands and unpinned it from the wall, bringing it closer to read its content.
(Gather the Flowers of the Carnivorous Maw: Gather fifty flowers from the Carnivorous Maw, found in the Blackwood Forest.
It seemed simple enough, and the image of the plant was drawn in great detail on the paper. It looked like a flytrap plant on steroids.
Seeing no better option, Riven decided to go for this one. He headed back to the counter. He noticed that the man with crooked teeth was gone, but that didn't matter to him now, did it?
He got back to the counter, and this time the lady tried treating him with better service, but he didn't have the tone for that. He placed the quest on the counter.
"I'll be taking this as my first quest," he said. She glanced at the quest and then looked up at him.
"You should be careful. The Carnivorous Maws are quite tricky to deal with, and their bites deal damage," she informed him.
"Thank you, then. I'll make sure to keep that in mind," he said, taking the quest and walking out of the guild, slipping out unnoticed the same way he came in.
The lady watched him go. As soon as he opened the doors and walked out, she heaved a sigh of relief. "I thought he was going to make my life difficult. I guess the rumors aren't all true."
When Riven walked out of the building, the harsh rays of the sun hit him. It was getting closer to noon, and now the sun felt like hot fiery pricks stinging into his skin.
He squinted his eyes, trying to see properly. He walked off into the crowd.
After Riven left, the man with crooked teeth came out of an alley in the town square. Behind him was a tall, burly man with jet-black hair and a beard that reached his neck. He donned full armor, making him look like a powerful warrior.
"That's the son of the Baron," Crooked Teeth said, pointing at Riven departing in the crowd. "All we have to do is take him, and we are rich."