Adventurer of Many Professions

When Raymond caught sight of the female elf, his eyes widened in disbelief.

Elves existed in this world, but they were so reclusive, rarely leaving the Elf Forest, that most people lived their entire lives hearing only legends of their beauty and grace, never actually seeing one in person. For Raymond, standing face-to-face with a real elf felt like something out of a story.

The elf was everything the tales described and more. She had the long, pointed ears unique to her kind, and her golden hair cascaded down her back like sunlight caught in motion. Her features were flawless, delicate yet striking. It was said that all elves were beautiful, but seeing it with his own eyes left him momentarily speechless.

At that moment, the elf herself broke the illusion of perfection. She patted her chest with an annoyed expression, muttering, "Ugh, so many eyes watching… Thank goodness they're all distracted by that ogre head."

Raymond blinked, taken aback by her casual demeanor.

He sighed quietly to himself, his gaze shifting to the bow and quiver on her back. The arrows in the quiver, with their green-leaf fletching, confirmed his suspicion; it was her shot that had lodged in the ogre's eye.

"Don't stare too long, kid," came a voice, snapping Raymond out of his thoughts. Tresed leaned in, his grin mischievous.

"Shatinara," he said, gesturing to the elf, "pretty incredible, huh? But don't get any ideas; she's already my teammate. If you want an elf on your team, you'll have to go find one yourself."

Tresed then leaned closer and whispered conspiratorially, "But let me give you a warning; don't be fooled by how they look. Elves… aren't always what you imagine."

Raymond hesitated, unsure how to respond. 'Find an elf teammate? Like it's that simple!'

Just then, the elf, Shatinara, strolled past and, with absolutely no hesitation, kicked Tresed squarely in the backside.

"Tresed, quit fooling around and hand in the commission already!" she snapped, her long ears twitching slightly. "And don't think I didn't hear you badmouthing me. These ears? They're not just for show!"

Raymond's jaw nearly dropped. This… was not the noble, elegant elf he had imagined.

Tresed yelped in surprise but quickly recovered, pouting as he turned to face her. "Shatinara, can't you act a little more… I don't know, like a proper elf? You're ruining the image!"

Shatinara ignored him, walking past as though this kind of exchange was completely normal. Her other teammates didn't even blink, their expressions suggesting they were long accustomed to her antics.

Turning back to Raymond, Tresed gave him a serious look, patting his shoulder. "See? I told you, be careful what you wish for when it comes to elves. And if you do want one on your team..." He made a suggestive gesture with his hands in front of his chest, which Raymond immediately understood and nodded, trying not to laugh.

Satisfied, Tresed smirked and followed his team toward the guild. As they walked away, he threw one last comment over his shoulder. "By the way, I heard the guild registered a new magician who can use explosion magic. Apparently, she's a woman. I'm dying to see what she looks like."

"Eh, what's so exciting about that?" one of his teammates replied. "New explosion magicians barely have enough mana to use their magic once, and the power's nothing impressive at first anyway."

Their conversation trailed off as they disappeared into the guild, leaving Raymond alone at the entrance.

But Raymond wasn't focused on them anymore. His attention was on the glowing blue panel that had appeared before him.

His eyes widened in disbelief as he read the list:

"Learnable skill detected: Hunting and Piercing [Warrior], learning cost: 1 skill point."

"Learnable skill detected: Sweeping the Enemy [Warrior], learning cost: 3 skill points."

"Learnable skill detected: Mountain Collapse [Warrior], learning cost: 1 skill point."

"Learnable skill detected: Eagle Fall [Warrior] [Upgradable], learning cost: 3 skill points."

"Learnable skill detected: Thunderstorm Spear [Warrior], learning cost: 5 skill points."

"Learnable skill detected: Flowing Like Water [Warrior] [Swordsman] [Upgradable], learning cost: 3 skill points."

Raymond stared at the dense list of skills on the glowing panel, his eyes momentarily overwhelmed.

"That's... a 'lot' of skills," he muttered, almost in disbelief.

And it wasn't just limited to warrior skills. Scrolling further, he saw a whole section of magician abilities! The skills available to him clearly stemmed from the adventurers he had encountered; Tresed, Rondo, and even the female magician on their team.

Taking a deep breath, he closed the panel with a quick gesture. With so many people around, this wasn't the time to explore his options. He'd save it for later, when he could sort through everything carefully.

---

Later that evening, at the dinner table, Arya listened intently as Raymond recounted the events of his day, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

"Wait, what? The 'Ogre' was killed?" she asked, her fork frozen mid-air.

"Yep," Raymond confirmed, casually taking another bite of food. "And the team that killed it? They had a female elf."

"An 'elf'?!" Arya's eyes widened with excitement. Elves were a legendary race, rarely seen outside of stories and myths. "What did she look like? Was she as beautiful as the legends say?"

Raymond paused, thinking back to Shatinara. "Well... she had long, pointed ears, golden hair, and fair skin. Honestly, yeah, she was pretty."

As he spoke, he glanced at Arya and noticed her narrowing her eyes, a flicker of jealousy in her expression. Sensing trouble, Raymond quickly added, "But..."

Arya leaned forward eagerly, her curiosity piqued. "But what?"

Raymond hesitated, realizing he was trapped. There was no escape from Arya's expectant stare. Finally, he relented, lowering his voice. "...Her chest. It was... um, pretty small."

Arya froze for a second, then tried to play it cool, her lips curling ever so slightly. "Oh, really?" she said, pretending not to care.

But Raymond could tell she was subtly relieved, likely thinking about her own development. As she cast a quick glance downward, clearly reassuring herself, Raymond couldn't help but glance too, an innocent reflex.

Arya caught him immediately. Her head snapped up, her glare sharp. "I 'knew' it! All men are the same!"

Raymond's stomach dropped. 'Why did I look?!' he berated himself internally. Without missing a beat, he stood abruptly. "I'm done eating. I need to clean my gear."

---

In the bathroom, Raymond scrubbed his protective gear. The simple rinse he had done earlier in the river wasn't enough to remove the lingering grease and stench of mutant rats. Luckily, the cleaning agent he'd bought from the pharmacy worked like magic. A single silver coin's worth of the solution was enough for fifty washes. He poured it into a tub, dunked his gear in, and after a few minutes, the grime practically slid off without effort.

Once done, he wrung out the protective gear and carried it to the balcony to dry. As he stepped outside, he noticed the balcony was already filled with drying clothes, some his, some Arya's.

That's when he saw it.

A flash of pink caught his eye. His gaze darted to the unique shape hanging casually among the other clothes. His brain froze for a moment before confirming what it was: Arya's panties.

Raymond stiffened, his face heating up.

'Arya… seriously?' he thought. 'You're sharing a space with a boy, and you just leave these out in the open?!'

He tried to look away, but his gaze kept drifting back. As much as he tried to tell himself it wasn't a big deal, his heart pounded harder.

And then, an idea crept into his mind, unbidden but persistent.

This was an opportunity. A ridiculous, absurd opportunity to awaken the Thief class.

He knew it was possible; there had been rumors that an adventurer could awaken a Thief-like profession by performing certain questionable acts. This… this might be one of those acts.

But the cost? He'd cross a line that could never be uncrossed. He'd be branded, if not outwardly, then at least in his own mind, as a pervert.

Raymond stood frozen, torn between temptation and his better judgment, staring at the pink fabric as if it held the key to his future.

'What am I doing?' he thought, exhaling sharply. 'Is this really the kind of adventurer I want to be?'

The balcony was silent except for the faint rustling of the evening breeze. Raymond remained in his dilemma, his internal struggle raging as the innocent piece of cloth swayed mockingly in the wind.