Chapter 6: The Weight of a Mage’s Dream

Leaf Su stood before the counter on the first floor of the Adventurers’ Guild, relaying his information.

In truth, he was essentially fabricating a story for the female clerks at the counter, as he currently had no official registration (TL Note: A ‘black household registration’ refers to someone without legal identity or residency), forcing him to improvise on the spot.

It was only after the branch president persistently pestered him to register there, promising to gift him suitable beginner’s equipment upon registration, that Leaf Su entertained the idea of signing up.

Apparently, the branch president would receive a performance bonus for new registrations; the emergence of a new adventurer class guaranteed at least one promising adventurer, which was why Leaf Su could snag a beginner’s gift package.

It felt just like the exhilarating experience of receiving free starter gear immediately after completing a game’s tutorial!

“Hold onto this, little brother, and be sure to become a powerful adventurer!” the young clerk said, handing him an antique bronze-colored card after finishing the data entry.

The card, likely made of copper, bore his name, registration location, and, most importantly, his rank! Commonly known as his tier level!

Having just become an adventurer, Leaf Su was an F-rank, the weakest tier, which was why an ‘F’ was etched into the rank field; adventurers of this level constituted the majority in this world, as not everyone was destined to become a formidable force.

He nodded politely to the young clerk, his childlike, innocent face, brimming with an unusual spark of youthful handsomeness amidst its naiveté, inexplicably caused her cheeks to flush.

‘This child might just become a heartbreaker when he grows up,’ she mused.

Leaf Su carefully put away his card, a sense of accomplishment washing over him now that he was finally an adventurer; he found it quite fascinating.

He then walked towards Fiona and the branch president, who were seated nearby; the burly, muscular branch president, having acquired a new beginner class, was so overtly excited it was as if he had won five million, waving a long, thick object in his hand.

“Come here, little one,” the middle-aged man boomed, placing a set of leather armor and a staff like a piece of rotting wood onto the table with a dull thud. “This is equipment I used in my youth, quite formidable for a beginner, I assure you!”

The withered wooden staff, only about half a meter long, was clearly a one-handed weapon.

It certainly sounded as if it possessed considerable heft.

‘Wait… is this a magic staff?’

Leaf Su gazed at the rotting wooden staff; it was indeed a magic staff… Then he glanced at the middle-aged man, who possessed the physique of a muscular brute…

Leaf Su remained silent, a bewildered expression on his face.

‘Wasn’t your profession an axe warrior, you old geezer? Why did you use a magic staff before? And your attribute list doesn’t show any powerful spiritual energy at all…’

“Well… everyone has dreams they once pursued,” the branch president explained, sensing the meaning behind Leaf Su’s gaze, as he drifted into recollections of his past. “I was simply too fixated on becoming a mage and failed to recognize my talent as an axe warrior sooner; at my current age, it’s already quite challenging to grow stronger.”

“It’s true, you know,” Fiona chimed in, clearly impressed. “After finally realizing his true calling, this man transformed into his current self in just five years; he was quite a sensation, a true prodigy back then.” The middle-aged man had squandered much of his earlier life, his actual training period spanning only five years.

‘That’s not bad at all,’ Leaf Su thought. ‘I had assumed he was just a slightly stronger, burly old man, but it turns out he’s quite capable.’

‘I should try out the staff,’ he decided. ‘I’m a beginner; perhaps I could even specialize as a mage.’

In any game, there’s a common saying: ‘Classes may rise and fall with each patch, but the Mage remains eternal.’ This illustrates that mages are rarely too weak in any game, often considered a powerful and consistently valuable profession.

Leaf Su reached out, his small hand grasping the withered wooden staff, and attempted to lift it.

‘What?’

He grunted, he strained, he gasped!

He even tried with both hands!

Yet, he couldn’t even budge the staff… What in the world was going on?!

‘Could it be that in this game, you can only wield weapons that match your profession? Like Thor’s Hammer, which only Thor can lift? Or a magic staff, usable only by mages?’

“Ah… little brother, your body is simply too frail,” the middle-aged man sighed with a look of regret, almost disappointment. “This staff only weighs a little over a hundred *jin* (TL Note: A traditional Chinese unit of weight, roughly 500 grams or 1.1 pounds per *jin*), yet you can’t even lift it.”

Leaf Su was speechless.

‘No… that’s not right, is it? Is your mage’s staff on par with the Green Dragon Crescent Blade (TL Note: Guan Yu’s legendary heavy weapon)? And… this is a one-handed staff! The weight is utterly bizarre!’

A sudden realization flashed through Leaf Su’s mind; he believed he finally understood why the middle-aged branch president possessed such high talent as an axe warrior. It might have been from wielding this very staff, which likely boosted the man’s arm strength to such incredible levels.

“It is indeed a bit heavy,” Fiona remarked, effortlessly juggling the staff with one hand to gauge its weight. “At your age, I probably could only have used it as a club with both hands.”

Leaf Su was utterly dumbfounded. ‘Are you all devils?’

“Isn’t there any normal equipment?” Leaf Su pleaded, utterly unable to manage such a staff. “Like, perhaps, the best sword in the village?” He imagined only a GM (TL Note: Game Master) class would be able to wield it with ease.

“Not at all,” the middle-aged man replied with a hearty chuckle, then stood up to depart. “I’ve already given you the best beginner equipment. If you want anything else in the future, you’ll have to work hard and earn it yourself.” He had other matters to attend to, as it seemed the guild’s quest board needed an update.

Fiona, seated to Leaf Su’s left, found his exasperated attempts to lift the unyielding staff utterly adorable.

“Little Leaf Su, why don’t you stick with your big sister from now on?” Fiona suggested, effortlessly picking up the staff that Leaf Su couldn’t budge. “Perhaps you’ll become a powerful adventurer just like me! Come on, let’s head back to the inn first.”

After the Sage’s Stone (TL Note: A magical artifact often used for appraisal or analysis) appraisal, Leaf Su’s attempt to apologize to Fiona had backfired, failing to clarify anything and only deepening her misunderstanding.

‘Well… perhaps this current arrangement is for the best,’ Leaf Su mused, tacitly accepting Fiona’s imaginative conclusions. After all, arriving in an unfamiliar world, alone and without support, would be truly pitiable.

Moreover, his ‘big sister’ possessed incredibly reliable combat prowess—a Level 65 Blood Knight, no less—and, most importantly, she was a beautiful young woman! That was paramount!

‘A twenty-year-old could still be considered a beautiful young woman!’ he thought. ‘At least from her face, it’s hard to tell she’s actually twenty, isn’t it? At most, she looks just a few years older than my current youthful visage.’

Before long, Fiona led Leaf Su to an inn.

Unlike the game’s models, the inn was far from cartoonish; instead, it felt dilapidated, with dim, yellowish lights that barely surpassed the pale moonlight filtering in from outside.

“The best room, please,” Fiona stated to the old woman behind the counter in an unadorned tone.

“Very well,” the old woman replied. “Ten copper coins a night. If you’d like breakfast for two, that will be an additional four copper coins.”

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