Maeryn grabbed them by their wrists and dragged them to the counters.
There she was. The receptionist of the guild and the one who was responsible for giving out the jobs and the payment. She was a beautiful woman, her brown hair tied in a bun.
"Alis." Maeryn said softly, looking down at the woman.
Alis looked up and smiled kindly. "Oh?" She eyed Orion and Layla up and down. "New acquisitions of our guild? Aren't you two too young? You know, being an adventurer is a disgustingly dangerous thing to do!" The way she spoke gave off a protective sibling vibe.
Before they could say anything Maeryn handed the forms Layla and Orion filled out earlier. "Go get the ball, Alis." She said.
Alis's gaze fell to the forms and after reading everything she looked up at us curiously.
She then shook her head and stood up from her chair, walking into the backroom.
"Uhh Ma'am... are we in trouble? What kind of ball were you talking about?" Layla asked with worry.
"Layla, you're really slow sometimes, you know that~?" Orion rolled his eyes with a smug look on his face.
Layla looked at him and bit her cheek. "That... that was mean! Hmph!"
Maeryn looked at Layla and sighed softly. "A crystal ball which will determine the level and amount of your mana." She then patted her head. "Aren't you a clueless one, kid~?" She giggled softly.
Layla just kept pouting like a little child.
"They're treating me like I am stupid! It's not my fault that I didn't know!"
Orion just stood there, waiting for Alis to return with the ball, not saying a word.
Maeryn looked at him with confusion. "You're awfully quiet, unlike your friend."
Orion looked at her. "I'm not used to crowded places."
"Yeah... I can tell that the two of you are from the slums, just by looking." She then patted his shoulder in a reassuring way. "But don't worry, kid. Take a look around... most adventurers are from the slums, but managed to somehow leave that horrible excuse for a part of Fitonwich."
"Are you also from the slums, Maeryn?" Layla asked curiously.
"One of the unwritten rules of adventuring is to never ask your fellow adventurer about their past." Maeryn said kindly. It sounded like an advice but also like a warning at the same time.
"Im back!" Alis said, playing something covered with a blue cover on the counter.
Layla and Orion both stared at the item with anticipation, their hearts beating like crazy.
Alis slowly removed the cover from the magical crystal ball. It glistened with a green glow despite the ball being purple. It was a really amazing view.
"Woah... it's just like..." Orion muttered under his nose.
The ball caught the attention of many adventurers and soon enough there was a whole crowd gathered around the newbies.
Layla looked around, hugging herself softly as she blushed. "Too much... too much people..."
Orion pulled her ear softly. "Don't worry, let's just do it and they'll go away."
She hesitated for a moment but gave him an uncertain nod in the end.
Alis cleaned the ball with a handkerchief and looked at us. "Come on, you two. Place your hands on the device."
Maeryn softly pushed Orion's back. "You'll go first."
"Why me?!" He groaned, looking at her over his shoulder.
"Because I said so." She rolled her eyes.
He sighed and looked at the ball.
"Come on, Orion! I believe in you!" Layla smiled widely with excitement.
He kept looking at the ball for some time as silence fell upon the once loud guild full of chattering and laughter.
After a moment of thinking he finally reached his hand, placing it on the ball.
The ball gave off a soft white... no... almost transparent glow.
Orion pulled his hand away from the ball, anticipating for anyone to say anything.
Many adventurers sighed and some of them just walked away while whispering to each other.
"Ehh... another one...", "Why did I even bother?", "Heh! It always ends up that way!"
Alis looked down at the forms and wrote something down. "Okay... no special magic."
Orion stared at the ball for a moment, completely dumbfounded.
He looked at Alis. "Does... does that mean that I can't be an adventurer?!" He asked, horrified.
Alis waved her hands in a reassuring manner to calm him down. "No, no! Of course not! It's nothing bad! You two are already in! We just needed to check if you two have any special magic, that's it!"
"Then why the hell is everyone so dissapointed?!"
Before Alis could answer the question, Maeryn cut in. "Because those bastards are searching for promising members to join their teams... it's the easiest to recruit a newbie than an experienced adventurer." She said softly and then patted his head. "But don't worry. It's okay if you don't have any special magic, after all it's very ra-..."
Suddenly a huge black flame emerged from the crystal ball, tho it was so intense that the ball itself shattered.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Maeryn screamed in disbelief.
Everyone in the guild started to scream in surprise.
"Was that him?! How did he do that?!" An old adventurer said.
Alis just stood behind the counter, her face pale.
The one who was touching the crystal a moment ago was no one else than Layla herself.
"IT WAS THE GIRL?!" The adventurers screamed in surprise.
Layla rubbed the back of her head while Orion was staring at her with amazement. "Uhh... I'm sorry... but I think I broke the ball..." She said, her ears reddening out of embarassement.
Chaos erupted in the guild. Everyone was trying to make their way to Layla, offering her to join their teams.
"Layla..." Orion whispered, stepping beside her. His voice barely audible admist the chaos. "That was amazing!"
"I… Uhh... I don't know..." Layla muttered under her nose. Her eyes turning nervously between the adventurers. "It just felt… cold... when I touched the ball. Like something inside me woke up... and it was weird..."
"Broke the fucking crystal ball!" Someone in the crowd screamed with a mix of awe and frustration. "Those things aren't cheap!"
Maeryn was as pale, if not more than Alis. "Alis..."
Alis was frozen in place. She blinked a few times. "It's not just special magic..." She murmured. "The amount of mana the girl has... it's... disgusting to say at least. We could even say that it rivals some of the experienced nobles... even despite awekening it just now…"
Those words caused a reaction which intensified the chaos. Layla wasn't just a good recruit- she was a prodigy.
"Alright! Back the hell off!" Maeryn's voice echoed though the whole guild. She stepped between Layla and the adventurers, her hand on the hilt of her blade. "This girl is under my supervision. Anyone who tries to fish her will deal with me. Understood!?"
The crowd grumbled, but no one dared challenge Maeryn. The adventurers slowly began to back off hopelessly.
Layla looked at Orion, fidgeting with her fingers in shame. "Orion… I didn't mean to steal the spotlight…"
Orion smirked and flicked her nose with his fingers. "Steal it? Hahahaha! There was nothing to steal! In fact I'm glad!" He patted her shoulder softly. "You're gonna be an amazing adventurer! But... I do hope I get to come along for the ride, you know?" He giggled.
She looked at him, her eyes wide in surprise. "Of course you do... its always been the two of us and will be... but... aren't you… jealous?" She asked with hesitation.
He laughed. "No way! You think I'd be jealous of you being a total badass? Hah~! Now way in hell! I'm happy for you!"
Layla stared at him for a moment and then she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. "...Thank you..." She whispered softly.
Alis finally spoke up again, more composed than earlier. "Well, I need to order a new crystal ball… again. But at least we know the ground we're standing on." She wrote something down on the forms.
Maeryn crossed her arms, looking between Orion and Layla "Looks like I'll be keeping a closer eye on you two than I expected."
"Especially her, no?" Orion smirked.
"Especially both of you," Maeryn flicked his nose, smirking. "Where there's a lot of power, there's usually a whole mess of trouble not far away."
Layla and Orion looked at each other, both sighing in defeat.