Chapter 20: CH. 20 | The City Authority of Justice

They stopped at the reception desk, and it wasn’t Sara who greeted them this time, but a different staff member. Theo didn’t mind.

He handed over the mission sheet along with all ten types of herbs they’d gathered.

The receptionist checked the mission sheet against the herbs, everything matched up.

"Everything checks out. Give me a moment."

The woman sat back down behind her desk, and Theo kept his focus forward, though out of the corner of his eye he noticed strange movement among the adventurers in the tavern.

Not long after, a system notification panel popped up, catching both Theo and Thalia off guard.

[Congratulations! Guild mission successfully registered for the party]

[Party Name: Theo’s Party]

[Leader: Theo (None || Lv. 3)]

[Guild Mission: Collect 10 types of herbs in Sarka Forest] [Status: Completed!]

[Mission Duration: 00:01:09:03]

[Reward: +150 exp || +10 Contribution Points || +25 Copper]

Theo and Thalia received the reward from their first guild mission, in the form of exp and contribution points. Beyond that, both of them also received a pouch of copper coins.

Contribution Points? What are those?

Right as he was puzzling over what contribution points even meant, his attention was drawn to a system panel that appeared in response to his confusion.

[Guild System]

[Name: Theo]

[Level: 3]

[EXP: 230/400] [+150exp]

[Adventurer Status: Rookie]

[Contribution Points: 10/250] [+10]

The woman came back and saw Theo and Thalia reading through their system panels, "Contribution Points come with a lot of perks, you can trade them in for items at the guild, and they also count toward raising your adventurer rank."

"Since you two are both still rookie ranked adventurers, you’ll need at least 250 contribution points to move up," the woman explained.

Theo turned around and asked about Thalia’s contribution points. She told him her total was the same as his.

"So the only way to build up contribution points is by completing guild missions?" Theo asked. The woman behind the desk nodded with a smile.

He’d gotten a clear answer out of her. He’d already suspected he’d pick up plenty of new information along the way if he kept completing guild missions.

For now, their task was simple enough, keep running guild missions until they earned the chance to move up in rank.

With nothing else left to discuss, the two of them said their goodbyes and headed off in another direction, straight toward the guild tavern.

Just like before, the eyes of every adventurer stayed locked on Theo and Thalia. Even the ones already seated in the tavern area kept their attention fixed on Theo.

Thalia felt uneasy, their stares carried something strange and unsettling, intimidating even. Theo tried to calm her down, telling her that as long as no one actually tried anything, they had nothing to fear.

While waiting for their food to arrive, Theo’s attention shifted to the side. A female adventurer in gray armor approached.

Two other women flanked her, and all three of them fixed sharp, piercing looks on Theo.

"Are you really Theo?" the woman asked.

Theo turned toward her, cool and unbothered. "I’m Theo."

"Mind telling me your rank?"

"Rookie," Theo answered.

The woman glanced at her two companions, then locked her focus back on Theo, "We’re from the Aluric City Authority of Justice. We’re here because we suspect you’re connected to the disappearance of the adventurer Denis."

Theo let out a short breath, then leaned back against his chair, "On what grounds?"

"Her," the woman said, pointing at Thalia, "The last mission Denis ran was with her. She came back safely, while Denis’s whereabouts remain unknown."

"We’ve also just received a fresh report that you killed an adventurer named Lucas, from Arvin’s party!"

"We need you to come with us to the City Authority of Justice office to explain everything," the woman said.

Thalia looked panicked and worried, glancing over at Theo’s face. Theo let out a long breath, he’d already known these events would eventually catch up with him somehow.

What he hadn’t expected was getting arrested today, right after finishing his very first guild mission.

Maybe I can talk my way around Denis’s disappearance, but there’s no dodging what happened with Lucas.

"Before I go, can I ask something?" Theo asked.

"Speak," the woman said.

"How exactly is justice and law enforced around here?"

"Justice and law apply to everyone, regardless of status or intentions. Anyone who commits wrongdoing must be charged and punished."

Theo stood up and stepped toward the armored woman, close enough that her two companions immediately moved to shield their squad captain.

"Then what would you do if you found out Denis was a man who sexually assaulted rookie adventurers?"

"Would you still punish him even though he’s the son of a city noble?!"

"What about people like them, senior adventurers who plot to kill rookie adventurers just to steal their missions?"

"Do they deserve to be punished too?"

Hearing Theo’s questions left the three of them speechless, unable to respond.

One of the women decided to cuff Theo’s hands and shove a metal gag into his mouth, stopping him from saying anything else they didn’t want to hear.

"You have the right to remain silent until we arrive at the City Authority of Justice Office!"

Thalia stood up and tried to reason with them, but the female knights wouldn’t listen. The three of them hauled Theo into a carriage and left the city guild behind.

PUNCH!

Right as they got inside the carriage, one of the woman clenched her fist and drove a hard punch into Theo’s stomach. He winced in agony, collapsing to the floor of the carriage in a curled up heap.

"And here you are, just a rookie adventurer, but with such a rotten attitude. Who taught you to act that arrogant?!" the woman snapped.

Theo looked up at her face. She didn’t stop, and for the rest of the ride, she seemed to be venting all her frustration over the questions Theo had asked.

The young man tried curling forward, keeping the front of his body away from her fists and kicks.

When the carriage finally stopped in front of the City Authority of Justice office, the woman grabbed Theo’s clothes and dragged him out.

He saw a building that looked absolutely grand, filled with knights all dressed in matching armor. Theo kept walking, following the squad leader.

Several officers noticed Theo, bruised and beaten, and asked about the details of his case. Once it was explained to them, their faces immediately shifted to shock.

"I wonder if he’s really that brave, or just that stupid?"

"He’s nobody. I’m worried they’ll have his neck hanging by tomorrow morning."

Theo overheard their comments as he was brought into an interrogation room. He sat down at a table, and one of the female knights removed his gag.

"This is Theo, suspected in the Denis and Lucas cases," the woman said.

"Thanks, lads. I’ll take it from here," the man sitting across from Theo replied.

The three women nodded, said their goodbyes, and left the interrogation room. Theo looked around, noticing several other people being questioned by officers nearby.

"So, you’re the guy brave enough to pick a fight with Denis. Am I right?" the man asked.

"A pervert like him deserved to die."

"You killed him?! That’s genuinely shocking. Lord Aldric certainly won’t be pleased," the man answered.

"And what about Lucas, from Arvin’s party?"

"I killed him because he and the rest of Arvin’s party tried to steal my guild mission from me," Theo replied.

"Self defense. That could work as an exception in your case."

The man kept jotting something down on his paper, then looked back up, "Do you have a guardian, or anyone who’d represent you at trial?"

"I don’t know," Theo answered, "Yasa and Michelle left after hosting the Third Prince’s visit. I don’t have anyone."

"Y-Yasa? Archmage Yasa?" the man asked, eyes going wide in shock.

"Yeah."

"I’ve been staying at her apartment while they’re away."

The man behind the desk shot up out of his seat, startling everyone else in the room. He pointed at Theo repeatedly, clearly baffled as to how Theo could possibly know Yasa and Michelle.

"H-How do you know Archmage Yasa? You’re even living freely in her apartment."

"Why? Because Yasa is a friend of Michelle’s."

He heard the name Michelle, and something clicked in his mind. His expression shifted again as a realization dawned on him.

"Only certain people get to be close friends with Archmage Yasa, and since you’ve mentioned Michelle, there’s no mistaking it," the man said.

"What? Do you know something?" Theo asked.

"Michelle. She’s the legendary Commander of the White Rose Army!"

"WHAT?!"