C2— The Strongest Old Man in the Parallel World ~ I Only Got Physical Skills So I Had to Form a Party but It Turned into a Harem~

Chapter 2: Transferred, Then Becoming an Adventurer: 02

The first floor of the Adventurers’ Guild was a spacious lobby.

To the left was a bulletin board, in front of which stood two adventurer parties. On the right was a counter where several staff members were stationed... It was just like the atmosphere of a game I’d played once.

For the time being, I walked across the wooden floor toward the counter.

As I approached, one of the staff members—clearly a young woman, probably in her late teens—came to assist me.

“Nice to meet you. How can I help you today?”

“Nice to meet you. My name is Okuno Soshi. Umm... I was told by someone in town to come here, so I did…”

“Oh, could it be that you’ve just ‘Awakened’?”

“Sorry, I don’t really understand what this ‘Awakening’ is either.”

“I see. In that case, I’ll explain the adventurer system from the beginning. Please come this way.”

With fluid professionalism, she guided me to a counter seat further in, equipped with chairs.

“Let’s see, your name was Okuno Soshi, correct? Is ‘Soshi’ your surname?”

“Oh, no—Okuno is my surname.”

In this world—or maybe just this country?—it seemed surnames came last.

“Then, Mr. Okuno, please hold this plate.”

As instructed, I took hold of a long, narrow metal plate that the receptionist had brought out.

Part of the plate glowed faintly red.

“Alright, confirmation complete. Mr. Okuno, you are without a doubt an ‘Awakened One’. Awakened individuals are obligated to act as ‘Adventurers’ in every country on this continent.”

“I see…”

“Ah, sorry. Since you seem unfamiliar with ‘Awakening’, let me start from the beginning.”

She then began her explanation.

To summarize:

• ‘Awakening’ is when an ordinary person becomes capable of using powerful abilities called ‘Skills’.

• The conditions for Awakening are completely unknown. It occurs at a low rate regardless of gender, and usually manifests between the ages of 15 and 25.

• Those who have Awakened must become Adventurers.

• Adventurers make their living by fighting monsters, mostly working in ‘Dungeons’.

Put bluntly, I’d apparently been tossed into this world as a player character in a role-playing game.

While trying to process my situation, I asked the receptionist a question.

“I was dumped into this world with nothing but the clothes on my back—what should I do for now?”

“Yes, that happens quite often. The guild offers loans for such individuals. Repayment will be automatically deducted from your future rewards. If that’s acceptable, we can proceed.”

“I see. That’s a relief.”

It seemed I was getting better treatment than the descendants of heroes from games I played long ago.

I asked the receptionist a few more questions, received something called an ‘Adventurer Card,’ and finally took out a loan before leaving the guild.

That day, I followed the beginner’s guide provided at the Adventurers’ Guild, bought equipment, and decided to stay at the cheaper of the two inns in this town—apparently named Torson.

Honestly, if the guild hadn’t given me a loan, I would’ve ended up in a stable at best, so I was grateful.

The inn’s room was a simple one with just a single bed, but it was far better than sleeping outdoors. There were apparently wild dogs and bandits roaming outside the town.

I sat down on the hard bed and checked the equipment I had bought.

A backpack, a short dagger, a canteen, preserved food, cloth to use as a towel, a club short enough to wield one-handed, a small shield also usable with one hand, and a helmet-like hat that looked half-finished.

All of them looked old-fashioned enough to be antiques from my perspective, but I guessed this was the norm in this world.

“A weapon… huh.”

Needless to say, I had never held a real weapon before as someone from modern Japan.

Take the club, for example—when I consulted the weapon shop’s owner, he handed it to me, saying it was the best for beginners. Sure enough, it looked like something that could do serious damage if swung with full force.

In other words, I would now have to use this weapon to kill unknown monsters. Thinking about it calmly, an overwhelming sense of anxiety began to creep in.

Not that it mattered—just being thrown into this world was already a huge source of unease.

“Well, I’ll just eat and sleep for today.”

I packed up my gear, slung the bag over my shoulder, and went down to the inn’s first-floor dining room.

It was about 60% full.

Apparently, the guests staying in this town’s inns were mostly merchants or adventurers. Judging by appearance, it looked like half and half.

Among the adventurers, many seemed to be newcomers like me—just starting out. The difference was that they were all with their party members.

I sat at an open table, placed an order with the innkeeper lady, and waited for my food.

“Hey old man, are you an adventurer by any chance?”

The one who spoke to me, perhaps out of boredom, was a young man around twenty. His cheeks were flushed—probably from alcohol.

“Yeah, I am.”

“Huh, it’s rare to see someone your age starting out as an adventurer. Right, guys?”

When he spoke, his companions—other young men and women also around twenty—nodded, though with little interest.

From their attitudes, it seemed this guy was the type to get chatty when drunk.

“So, old man, are you strong?—Nah, no way. If you were, you wouldn’t be staying at this inn.”

“Is that so?”

“Of course. If you’re strong, you make money. If you make money, you stay at a better inn. Simple as that.”

“I see. And what about you? You look strong to me.”

Flattering a drunk was often the best tactic… but honestly, he did look stronger than me.

We were similar in height, but his arms were noticeably more muscular, and his gear looked well-used.

“Hah? I’m still nothing special. I’m just E-rank. Not a beginner, but nothing big either.”

“If you’re E-rank, then the adventurer ranking system must be harder to climb than I expected.”

When I said that, he seemed to take it as a roundabout compliment and smiled proudly.

“Haha, yeah, pretty much. It took me two months just to get to E-rank. But that’s actually considered fast. You hang in there too, old man.”

With that, he seemed satisfied and returned to his group. One of the girls, who looked younger, gave me an apologetic bow—perhaps they were more reasonable adventurers than I had initially thought.

So there were adventurer ranks, huh. According to the receptionist, adventurers were ranked from A to F, with rank-ups based on achievements. I was an F-rank newbie, but she said it was possible to reach E-rank in about three months if I worked hard. That guy was probably among the more capable ones then.

“Here you go.”

Just then, the innkeeper lady brought me my food.

It appeared to be a stew of vegetables and meat. When I tasted it, it was both familiar and unfamiliar—an odd mix of flavors and aromas.

In any case, the flavor was mild but not bad. As a Japanese person, food directly influenced my motivation, so it was a relief that I might be able to get by in this world when it came to eating.