Aldrich didn't know that but since Cole was so certain about it he went along with it, it looks like he will have to get the information about the imminent exam from Ayemon as soon as possible.
Aldrich returned back to his apartment and washed up, cooked some simple breakfast consisting of eggs, mashed potatoes and some greens. He didn't actually drink that much and so he wasn't that drunk to begin with.
He made his way to the academy and attended the classes for the day. Next he found Frank at the cafeteria.
"Look who's here." He said by way of greeting.
"Listen, yesterday I found three more people that are like you and me, suppressing their crests. We should form a team together."
"Since when were you suppressing your crest too? You didn't tell me that before."
"I just forgot, I was too focused on our talk about the oath…"
"Well, I definitely would like to join a group like that but… I have to be in a team with my sweetheart. I wonder if you can let her join."
Aldrich didn't know to respond to that, clearly his sweetheart wasn't like the rest of the team. This put him in a difficult spot.
"Is she good at something in particular?" Aldrich asked hoping to get something that could substitute for talent.
Frank had a difficult face on, "she's good at archery, I guess. But she's getting the oath as I said so her talen is no problem she'll be guaranteed to ignite her crest soon."
"Archery? That sounds good, ranged combat is necessary after all." After all the more arrows covering their backs was a good thing, she could fill this role nicely.
"Ehem, well you should know, she doesn't really have any combat experience but she's willing to learn and is very enthusiastic. She's quick on her feet too."
Aldrich was truly trying to look for merits in this arrangement but the exam wasn't a game it was a test of life and death, it wasn't some walk in the park activity.
"Listen, I really like you, Frank and I would like for you to join us but I really can't speak for the rest of the team we will have ask them. But don't put much hope in it."
"I understand, it's a risk but we have a strong team with us I think it's really doable." Frank explained.
"That's true."
It was a team of five powerful and talented individuals it might not be that difficult to carry someone less… talented.
Aldrich was willing to do that for the exam and even persuade the others, however that was all. If the other members decided that they wouldn't want to take that risk then he could only apologize to Frank.
Aldrich had a plan he wasn't just randomly doing things. The plan was to form an official adventuring party with the members of the exam team, Aldrich had given this matter serious thought.
He first thought of the fact that the exam was a life and death test, this would make for a good foundation of trust between party members.
He wanted to build up on that foundation to make a real party once they were accepted into the guild.
That was why choosing competent and capable party members was essential, this couldn't be overlooked. Aldrich had no intention to baby a bunch of burdens and be dragged down by them.
They each should pull their weight and contribute something to the party otherwise there was no point. The exam wasn't the end but the start.
It was true that he liked Frank but it was not to the point of going that far for him. This was the reality of the current situation it wasn't that he was unkind but he had things to accomplish.
Aldrich then picked his things but he didn't return to the apartment but instead he took a carriage to 6th Harveston street, Ayemon's mansion.
It was time to hear all about the imminent exam form Ayemon.
He was sure that his letter reached Ayemon otherwise he would have definitely sent someone for him. He must remember to thank Brozas for that later.
The hastily written letter explained only that 'I will be extremely busy for some time so tell Gazeff and don't worry about me.'
He simply didn't have the capacity to write any more or better for that matter. This reminded his that he also needed to buy a messenger creature and urgently too.
Now that he got his hands on the coins it was no problem to buy a fully trained Amphiptere, which would save time and solve a problem for Aldrich who was having an ever expanding list of contacts.
"Look who decided to show his face," mocked Ayemon right as he entered the common room. He wasn't wearing his formal clothes today but a lose shirt and he was getting a lap pillow from a maid on a long couch.
She was the same pretty maid that Aldrich noticed before, she was feeding Ayemon nuts while he was eating and smoking tobacco from a luxurious looking pipe.
"Did you miss me?" Aldrich joked.
"Nah, while you were gone I had less headaches and my life was just fine. But now that you decided to show your face again my head is already-"
"Alright, I get it. Did you get my letter?"
"Your letter? Oooh you mean this?" Ayemon was handed an envelope by one of the manservant's standing in the room.
"This letter. I needed an ancient tongue interpreter just to understand your horrendously bad handwriting."
Aldrich was basically bombarded with insults left and right the moment he came in. Which wasn't so bad.
"So, want to tell me what happened?"
There it is.
"I got sick, heavy fever and everything that comes with it." This was also an excuse that Aldrich already came up with long before he decided to come here.
"I see, well I'm glad you're okay now. The exam is at hand, I assume you're here for the details?"
"Yeah," he really didn't need to answer because Ayemon asked a rhetorical question.
"Well, listen up. The exam of the guild consists of two parts and three quests. One quest in the first part and two quests in the second part."
"Quests? Like adventurer quests?" Aldrich asked just to confirm.
"Exactly. Haven't you wondered why the exam is a secret? Because nobody can tell you about it even if they wanted to, even if they themselves took it.
The quests are always randomly selected so there's no way to prepare or cheat beforehand. Of course the quests are all grade zero quests."
"Hmm, very creative." Aldrich had to admit the method was very good at vetting only the best recruits.
"But wait, you said you were going to pull some strings to help me, so how are you going to do that when it's random?"
"I obviously meant that I can get you the quests that I want you to get."
"But, it's random."
"It is, but not when you have some friends on the inside to arrange a 'coincidence'. What do you think? Aren't I great?"
Ayemon had a smug look on his face.
"Yeah, I'm very impressed by how corrupt you are. To the point that I lost hope in humanity."
The pretty maid burst out laughing and Ayemon chocked on his pipe.
"You insolent brat! Your tongue is getting longer and longer by the day, might be time for some trimming."
Aldrich smirked defiantly, how do you like a taste of your own medicine?!
"Lets get back on track here, the first part's quests is always easy the difficult ones are in the second part.
The first quest is always something like escort quests or herb gathering, perhaps some information gathering. Just make sure to do as the quests say no more and no less.
The party members are chosen randomly by the guild but I can't do anything about that, You can only move on to the next part after finishing the first quest successfully."
"Obviously."
"In the second part of the exam consisting of two quests the participants are allowed to form parties of no more than six."
Ayemon smiled warmly for some reason and that gave Aldrich a bad feeling.
"So, Aldrich, as I said I can manipulate the exam to give you easy quest but I can also manipulate it to give you the hardest quests. What do you choose?"
Aldrich finally understood, in the beginning when Ayemon offered to help him pass the exam he didn't know that Aldrich had super-strength.
But now that he knew it was redundant to give him help that he didn't need. And also there was probably another reason.
"You want me to impress the senior guild members to raise my prestige from the get go."
Ayemon's eye seemed to shin for a brief moment before he replied calmly, "you catch on fast."
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