They soon reached Valor City.

At the city gates, the guards checked their IDs. Seeing Katarina's badge, they immediately stepped aside.

"Welcome back," one of them said.

Mike nodded and rode inside.

This time, people stared more openly. Word traveled fast in Valor City, and a knight riding a massive wolf was hard to ignore.

They went straight to the Adventurers' Guild.

Inside, it was busy as always, but when Katarina walked to the counter and placed the proof items down, the nearby adventurers went quiet.

"Evaluation quest report," Katarina said. "Goblin extermination. B-rank."

The receptionist froze for a second, as she was not the one who gave this quest to Mike.

"B-rank… evaluation?" she repeated.

"Yes," Katarina replied calmly. "Completed successfully."

The receptionist quickly called another staff member. A short discussion followed. Papers were checked. Seals were confirmed.

Then the receptionist looked at Mike again, this time with a very different expression.

"Please wait a moment," she said.

A few minutes later, she returned holding a black-edged adventurer card.

"This is your new adventurer license," she said, handing it to him. "B-rank."

Mike took the card and looked at it.

Name: Mike

Rank: B

Class: Knight

Around them, whispers spread instantly.

"B-rank… from the start?"

"That's impossible."

"Do you know how rare that is?"

The receptionist cleared her throat.

"You should know," she added, "only two people have been granted B-rank directly through evaluation in the past ten years."

Mike blinked.

"…Only two?"

She nodded.

"And both of them became famous adventurers later."

Katarina smiled slightly.

"Told you," she said.

The receptionist continued, "Your reward has also been processed. Two hundred gold coins has been deposited to your guild account."

Mike nodded calmly, though inwardly he was satisfied.

"That's good."

"From now on," the receptionist said, "you can freely accept quests from E-rank up to A-rank. You're also eligible to form or join a party, lead subjugation teams, and receive priority dungeon access."

Mike nodded again.

"Understood."

Katarina stepped back.

"My job's done," she said. "From here on, you're officially on your own."

"Thanks," Mike replied. "For everything."

She smirked.

"Try not to die. I don't want my evaluation record ruined."

With that, she turned and walked away.

Mike stood there for a moment, holding his new card.

B-rank.

He looked down at it and exhaled slowly.

"Okay… with this, I can freely enter dungeons," Mike murmured. That had been his goal all along—aside from getting a proper identity card.

Dungeons were like precious resources in any place, whether in his old world or this one. Because of that, only authorized people were allowed to enter them—mainly adventurers and guild-approved individuals. Criminals and unauthorized persons were strictly forbidden.

Mike slipped the card into his pocket and looked around the guild hall.

People were still staring at him, whispering among themselves. Some looked curious, others wary, and a few looked outright jealous. Mike ignored them.

He walked to the quest board.

Rows of requests were posted there—goblin hunts, escort missions, herb gathering, dungeon clears. Most low-rank quests no longer mattered to him, but he still read them carefully.

"I should start slow," he muttered. "No need to rush."

A staff member approached him.

"Sir Mike, as a B-rank adventurer, you're allowed to enter the outer dungeon zones immediately. Inner zones require registration, but approval is fast for your rank."

"Got it," Mike replied.

He turned and left the guild building.

Outside, Valor City was lively. Merchants shouted, adventurers argued over quests, and guards patrolled the streets.

Mike headed to an inn and rented a room. Once inside, he logged out.

Back in his world, Mike stood up, stretched, and went downstairs.

"Mike," his mom called, "Lily said she has something urgent to talk to you."

He nodded and looked at her.

"By the way, Mom, when are you going back to being the Knight?" he asked.

She looked at him, then pointed to Mitty sleeping peacefully in her lap.

"When my little angel grows up enough to take care of herself," she said, gently stroking Mitty's head.

Mike nodded.

"Yeah… I guess that's never," he said.

His mom chuckled and nodded, then gently flicked his forehead.

"Blame your father for spoiling her that much" She said.

Mike headed to his room and called Lily.

"Yo, what is it this time?" he asked.

"I found Land of Decay in a shop, but I don't have enough credits. Can you lend me some?" Lily asked.

Mike replied without hesitation.

"Sure. Where are you? Let me come and see it."

She sent him the address.

Mike recognized it immediately—it was the Glorious Merchants Auction House.

Mike grabbed his jacket and headed out.

The Glorious Merchants Auction House wasn't far from his place. It was one of the biggest trading hubs in the city, dealing in rare materials, dungeon drops, and high-grade items. Prices there were never cheap.

When Mike arrived, the building was already crowded. Security was tight, and several guards stood at the entrance, checking IDs.

Mike showed his card and was allowed inside without trouble.

The hall was wide and brightly lit. Glass cases lined the walls, each displaying rare items. Screens showed ongoing bids, while buyers and sellers talked quietly.

Lily was standing near one of the counters, looking nervous.

"You came fast," she said when she saw him.

"You said it was urgent," Mike replied. "Where's the item?"

She pointed toward a sealed display case.

Inside was a black skill book.

"This one is Epic grade," Mike said after reading its information, then nodded.

There was no guarantee about the grade of a skill book dropped by a boss. Even if a skill did drop, its rank could range anywhere from the lowest Common grade to the highest grade that the boss itself possessed. The fact that this one was Epic rank meant it was a top-tier drop.

Without hesitation, Mike placed a bid.

The current price was 120,000 credits.

Mike raised it straight to 200,000 credits, completely shocking Lily.

"Mike, I don't think that much is necessary," she said nervously.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.