Lumi stretched, hands clasped over her head as she looked down the road ahead.
"So," she said, squinting toward the distant treeline, "we should probably head to Haven next."
"The First City?" Corrin glanced over. "Sure, that makes sense."
She shifted her bag on her shoulder.
"If we get started early, we might beat the crowd. I think some people already went ahead."
He hummed in acknowledgment. "You think so?"
Outwardly, he didn't disagree. There wasn't really a reason to.
Internally, though, he dismissed the idea just as easily.
No one had gone ahead. The goblin den had been the last lock in the tutorial zone. The final bottleneck before the road to Haven even existed. Until it was clear, the path might as well have been scenery—visible but unreachable.
The robe that he was wearing proved it all.
Which meant, for now—
Haven was empty.
…At least of players.
Corrin exhaled slowly, his gaze drifting back to the road.
"Hmm. Before that," he said at last, "we should head to the Adventurer's Guild."
Lumi tilted her head.
"The Adventurer's Guild?" she asked. "Why?"
Corrin shrugged, already turning slightly toward the side road.
"We're heading that way anyway."
"That's it?"
"Well," he said, thinking it over, "the road to Haven's long. Might as well pick up a few bounties on the way."
"Easy stuff. Slaying some goblins or slimes." He glanced back at her. "Pays in coin."
"I'm in!" Lumi exclaimed quickly.
Corrin couldn't help but feel the ulterior motive leaking out of her skin, but he didn't comment on it.
"And we get some EXP too," she continued. "Why didn't I think of that?"
"Teaming up with you was the best decision ever!"
Corrin sighed, but a smile started to form on his face.
Him not gaining EXP meant she'd be getting all of it, even if they took down monsters together.
Honestly, it worked out better than he expected.
If he could help her level up quickly, a Paladin like Lumi would be an invaluable asset.
The only issue would be her wandering off to another team afterward—but judging by her reaction…
Well.
A little incentive went a long way.
They were still talking when the Adventurer's Guild came into view.
It sat at the edge of the main road, a squat stone building with a wide entrance and a sign that had clearly seen better days. Corrin had the distinct impression it was a reused asset, something the devs had dropped into the zone early and never bothered to replace.
Corrin slowed to a stop as they reached the doors.
Inside, the place was… busy.
Not lively. Busy.
A line of Players stretched from the front counter all the way to the entrance, voices overlapping in frustration.
Corrin's gaze drifted past the counter, taking it all in.
Lumi glanced around, unimpressed.
"Looks the same as always," she said. "Hope there are still some bounties left for us."
Corrin didn't respond.
Because once he stopped looking at what was there, he started to realize he could see how it moved.
One attendant was fielding three different questions without finishing a single answer. Another kept glancing toward a stack of parchment that only seemed to grow taller. Requests were being set aside faster than they were cleared.
No one was idle.
"Should we come back?" he asked. "Probably gonna take a while to process a bounty."
"What do you mean, busy?" Lumi replied. "They're just standing there."
Corrin glanced toward the quest board, then back at Lumi.
Lumi blinked. "Huh? Why?"
"I'll go ask," Corrin replied, already shifting toward the counter. "Might save us some time."
She hesitated, then shrugged. "Alright. Don't take too long."
He nodded and slipped away as Lumi turned toward the board, already scanning the listings with renewed interest.
Up close, it looked even worse.
Stacks of parchment crowded everywhere. Some were stamped and tied neatly, while others were half-filled forms with notes scribbled in the margins.
One attendant was in the middle of explaining something, only to be interrupted by another adventurer stepping forward before she could finish.
Corrin waited. Briefly.
Then, when there was a pause, just long enough, he leaned forward slightly.
"Excuse me," he said, keeping his voice even. "Quick question."
The attendant looked up, already bracing herself. "If you're here for a bounty, you'll need to wait—"
"It's not that," Corrin said. "I was just wondering… do you need any help?"
The words landed strangely.
For half a second, she just stared at him.
Behind her, a paper slipped off one of the stacks and fluttered to the floor.
The attendant sighed and bent down to grab it, rubbing her temple as she stood back up.
"Look, if you're trying to be funny, I really don't have time—"
"I'm not," Corrin said again. "I just noticed you're backed up. If there's something that needs delivering, sorting, or checking off, I can do that while my partner looks at the board."
She hesitated.
Not because she didn't believe him.
Because she was clearly weighing whether it was worth even explaining.
"…Hold on," she muttered at last, glancing over her shoulder. "Guildmaster?"
A moment later, the door behind the counter opened.
An older man stepped out, sleeves rolled up, eyes already tired before they even landed on Corrin.
He took in the counter, the line, the stacks of parchment—then finally looked at him.
"What's this?" he asked.
"He asked if we needed help," the attendant said, sounding half-apologetic.
The Guildmaster raised an eyebrow. "Help."
Corrin nodded. "If you're short-handed."
The man studied him for a brief moment, then let out a short breath, more amused than annoyed.
"…It's fine," he said. "We'll manage."
Corrin started to step back.
"Alright. Just thought I'd ask."
The Guildmaster paused, then frowned slightly, as if reconsidering.
"…If you really want to help," he said, turning back, "there is something."
He reached into his coat and pulled out a sealed letter.
"Take this to Haven," he said, holding it out. "Adventurer's Guild there. It's a staffing request."
Corrin accepted it, glancing at the plain wax seal.
"We've been short receptionists since the last rotation," the Guildmaster continued. "Didn't expect this many Summoned to show up today."
He shrugged. "If you're heading there anyway, you might as well drop it off."
"No rush," he added. "It's just a message."
Corrin tucked the letter into his coat. "I can do that."
The Guildmaster nodded, already turning back toward the counter.
"Appreciated. No reward from us—but the Guildmaster in Haven might offer something for your trouble."
Lumi reappeared at his side, a parchment slip folded neatly in her hand.
"So?" she asked. "What were you talking about?"
Corrin didn't answer her right away.
Instead, he turned back toward the counter.
"Hey," he said, catching the Guildmaster just before he disappeared behind the desk again.
"Quick thing."
The older man paused, half-turned. "Mm?"
"We picked up a bounty," Corrin said, gesturing vaguely toward Lumi. "Any chance it could get processed with a bit of priority?"
Lumi blinked. "Huh?"
For a moment, the Guildmaster just stared at him.
Then he laughed.
A short, surprised sound, like the question had caught him off guard in a good way.
"…You've got a nerve," he said, shaking his head. "But fair enough."
He reached out, took the parchment from Lumi, and slid it into a separate stack—one noticeably thinner than the rest.
"I'll see it done," he said. "Shouldn't take long."
Corrin nodded. "Appreciate it."
Lumi waited until the Guildmaster turned away before leaning closer, lowering her voice.
"…What did you just do?"
Corrin finally looked at her.
"Saved us some time," he said simply.
She stared at him for a second, then glanced at the counter, the stacks of paper, the attendant already moving again.
"…You really are weird."
Corrin smiled.
They stepped back out onto the road a short while later, the noise of the Adventurer's Guild fading behind them.
Lumi was in a good mood, already talking about which bounty she wanted to tackle first and how much EXP it'd give her if things went smoothly.
Corrin listened with half an ear.
His hand brushed against the inside of his coat, fingers briefly touching the sealed letter tucked safely away.
He'd always known the NPCs were designed to act like people. That was the whole point.
But this…
No quest notification or log appeared.
Someone had simply looked at him, weighed the situation, and decided to trust him with a task.
Corrin slowed his steps.
He hadn't expected the NPCs to feel this real.
And he definitely hadn't expected to be given an errand no player had ever received before—something that existed entirely outside the system's rails.
Corrin glanced at the road toward Haven.
Maybe being an NPC didn't mean having less access to the system.
Maybe the system didn't control everything here.
And maybe that was exactly where his advantage lay.