Adventurer of Many Professions

"It's so fun!"

In the cozy private room of a bustling tavern filled with adventurers, Sylph's laughter rang out like music. She leaned back in her chair, barely able to speak between giggles.

"Raymond... Lorene... did you see that auditor?!" Sylph managed to get the words out, her face glowing with amusement. "When Raymond said, 'I awakened the warrior profession as well as the fighter profession,' the guy looked like he'd been struck by lightning!" Enjoy exclusive chapters from My Virtual Library Empire

She burst into laughter again, mimicking the auditor's dazed expression, eyes wide and mouth slightly open, as if frozen in disbelief. Then, she exaggeratedly mimed stamping a document with stiff, robotic movements, saying in a mock-deep voice, "Promotion commission complete… stamp… next team…"

Her antics were so absurd that even Lorene, normally reserved, couldn't stop herself from laughing. Her face turned bright red, and she nodded enthusiastically, looking a bit like an excited groundhog.

"That's exactly how he looked!" Lorene said, her voice soft but her agreement clear. Though she wasn't as outspoken as Sylph, everything Sylph expressed mirrored her own feelings.

For both of them, seeing the auditor, who had clearly judged Raymond the moment they walked in, completely dumbfounded was deeply satisfying.

They hadn't forgotten the subtle prejudice. While the auditor hadn't outright mocked Raymond like some of the other adventurers, his expression had carried the same underlying message: 'This kid doesn't belong in a team with two talented adventurers.'

When Raymond revealed his dual-profession identity, it felt like poetic justice. For Sylph and Lorene, it wasn't just about the shocked auditor, it was about proving wrong all the people who had doubted their team.

After all, many adventurers whispered that Raymond wasn't worthy of them, calling him lucky or even questioning their judgment for teaming up with him. But now, Raymond's rare dual-profession status had shut them all up in the most satisfying way possible.

"Honestly, it's like Raymond slapped them all in the face without even trying," Sylph said with a satisfied smirk.

Raymond, sitting across from them, chuckled quietly and shook his head. He wasn't nearly as worked up about it as the girls were, but he couldn't deny that their excitement was contagious.

"Alright, enough gloating," Raymond said with a smile, pulling a small leather pouch from his belt and placing it on the table. The clink of coins inside caught their attention immediately.

"Here's the reward for the mission: one gold coin and fifty silver coins, thanks to that queen bee," Raymond said, leaning back slightly. "Now, let's figure out how we're dividing this."

Sylph immediately sat up straighter, her tone sharp with surprise. "What do you mean? We're splitting it equally, of course!"

Lorene, however, immediately shook her head, her face flushing red. "No, no way!" she said quickly. "You two did everything. I didn't contribute much at all. We should divide the reward based on who worked the hardest."

Her sincerity was unmistakable. Lorene genuinely felt guilty about taking an equal share when her role in the mission had been minimal. Sharing the reward equally just didn't sit right with her.

Sylph frowned at Lorene's response. "What are you saying? Priests are 'vital' to any team, even if they don't have to do much in a mission. You can't take less; you're part of this team, period."

Raymond raised his hands to stop the argument before it could spiral further. "Alright, alright," he said, looking at the two of them with an amused but exasperated expression. "Listen to me for a second. We're a fixed team now, aren't we? So, from here on out, we split the reward equally, end of story."

Both women blinked at him in surprise.

"Wait," Sylph said, narrowing her eyes. "Then what was all that talk about how we'd divide the reward just now?"

Raymond let out a long sigh, shaking his head and rubbing his temples. "What I 'meant'," he began, "is that before we divide the reward, we need to account for team expenses; food, water, the potions we bought, that sort of thing. Once we deduct those, we split the rest equally."

Sylph's face turned bright red as realization dawned on her. "Oh…" she muttered, suddenly sheepish. "So… that's what you meant. I thought…" She trailed off, clearly embarrassed.

Raymond raised an eyebrow. "You thought what?"

Sylph waved her hands frantically. "Nothing! Forget it!" she said quickly, avoiding his gaze.

But the memory of the expensive "Primary Mana Recovery Potion" she had bought flashed through her mind, and her embarrassment only deepened. Twenty silver coins for a single bottle, it hadn't even crossed her mind how much that added to the team's costs.

Lorene, noticing Sylph's reaction, smiled shyly and chimed in. "That makes sense. We all benefit from those expenses, so it's only fair to deduct them before dividing the reward."

Raymond gave them both a reassuring smile. "Exactly. Now, let's get it sorted so we can all enjoy the spoils of this mission."

Raymond couldn't help but smile as he watched Sylph stumble over her embarrassment, her face glowing redder by the second.

Finally, she huffed, crossing her arms and exclaiming, "Ouch! This is all your fault, Raymond! If you'd explained things properly earlier, I wouldn't have misunderstood!"

Raymond raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, his face the picture of innocence.

"Well... um..." Lorene's soft voice broke through the exchange. She hesitated, lifting her hand slightly as if seeking permission to speak.

Both Raymond and Sylph turned their attention to her, causing Lorene to blush furiously and lower her gaze. "I mean… are you sure this is okay? Splitting it equally, I mean…" she whispered, her voice almost inaudible.

"Of course, it's fine!" Sylph chimed in immediately, her tone leaving no room for debate. "Have you ever seen a team that gives less to their priest? Absolutely not! So, it's settled."

Raymond nodded as well, his expression steady. "In that case," he said, "all team expenses; like potions used during the mission or repairs for damaged equipment, will be deducted first. After that, we'll split the remaining reward equally. Does anyone object?"

Sylph shot her hand up enthusiastically. "No objections here!" she said quickly, clearly excited about getting reimbursed for her expensive mana recovery potion. "This is perfect!"

Lorene hesitated for a moment, glancing between Raymond and Sylph. Finally, she offered a soft smile and nodded. "Alright. I agree."

With that decided, Raymond got to work calculating the expenses. He subtracted 15 silver coins for three bottles of 'Primary Antidote', 20 silver coins for Sylph's 'Primary Magic Recovery Potion', and 3 silver coins for other small costs, leaving 1 gold coin and 12 silver coins remaining.

There was still a small hole in Raymond's leather armor caused by a stinger's poison needle, but since the repair cost wasn't clear yet, he decided to deduct it from their next mission's reward once it was fixed.

The remaining 1 gold coin and 12 silver coins were divided equally among the three.

---

After the reward was settled, Sylph turned her attention to Lorene, her expression shifting to one of concern. "Wait, Lorene, you don't have a place to stay, do you?"

Lorene shook her head, her cheeks tinged with embarrassment.

"Well, that's settled then! You're staying with me," Sylph declared with a grin, grabbing Lorene's hand. "I've got plenty of room in my place. Come on, I'll show you!"

Before Lorene could protest, Sylph was already pulling her along, leaving Raymond alone with the pouch of coins in hand.

Raymond chuckled softly as he watched them disappear down the street, then turned on his heel and made his way to 'Greytor's Weapon Shop' to handle his repairs.

---

The shop smelled of iron and smoke, its walls lined with weapons of all kinds, swords, axes, hammers, and even a few exotic blades. The sound of clanging metal echoed from the back room as Raymond entered.

The dwarf craftsman, Greytor, glanced up from his workbench, his sharp eyes narrowing when he spotted Raymond. "Oh, it's you again," he grunted, his voice gruff as ever.

But as his gaze fell on the long heavy sword strapped to Raymond's back, his expression twisted into one of disbelief. "Wait a second," Greytor said, pointing at the weapon. "Don't tell me… you're actually 'using' that sword?"

Raymond nodded casually.

The dwarf's jaw nearly dropped. "You've got to be joking! I thought you bought it as a gift for someone else. Are you telling me you're carrying around a sword like that… as a 'fighter'?"

Greytor shook his head in exasperation, muttering to himself. "Young adventurers these days… always doing the craziest things. You've got no idea how to use it properly, do you?"

Ignoring the dwarf's grumbling, Raymond handed over his damaged leather armor for repairs. Greytor inspected the armor, rolling his eyes when he saw the small puncture on the shoulder. "This? You came all the way here for 'this'?" he barked. "It's barely a scratch!"

"Better safe than sorry," Raymond replied calmly.

The dwarf grumbled under his breath again before finally relenting. "Fine. Come back tomorrow, and I'll have it fixed. Now get out of here before I lose my patience!"

As Raymond stepped out of the shop, he shook his head, amused. 'I really should learn forging myself. That way, I wouldn't have to deal with this grumpy dwarf every time.'

---

Walking down the street, Raymond opened his status panel to review his progress:

Name: Raymond Kelton

Age: 15

Magic Value: 568/568

Occupations: Fighter, Warrior, Craftsman, Magician, Swordsman

Skills: Bone Crushing, Taunt [Upgradable]

Skill Points: 2

Skill Accumulation: 35%

Looking at the two skill points he'd earned, a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. The queen bee had been worth the effort, killing it had increased his skill accumulation by 50%, and the kill itself had directly rewarded him with one skill point.

With these points in hand, Raymond's journey as a Multi-profession adventurer was only beginning.