WTAW 06

Chapter 6

 The Beginning

(6) A Guy Who Seems to Have Some Complicated Circumstances I Don’t Even Understand Myself

Arisa led me by the hand as we followed behind Urisa.

“This way,” he said, heading up a staircase at the back of the guild.

“Brother? We’re not going to the counter?”
“Yeah. Just look at Shunsuke — doesn’t he seem like he’s got some kind of complicated backstory? I asked for a private room.”
“Ah, that makes sense.”

The siblings whispered over my head as we climbed.

On the third floor, a long hallway stretched ahead, with several doors on both sides. Each door had a plaque above it — probably labels — but I couldn’t read any of them.
Even though I could understand their speech, I couldn’t read the writing. That had been bothering me ever since entering town — all the signs, shop names, guild boards. I couldn’t make sense of any of them, and the feeling of unease kept growing.

At the end of the hall, one door stood open. We entered, and Arisa closed it behind us.

The room looked like a principal’s office.
There was a sofa set near the door, and farther back, a large desk. Beside it stood a young woman — maybe a clerk? Though her wide, flowing dress didn’t look very businesslike.

Someone sat at the desk, writing. They had the dignified air of someone important — definitely giving off “principal” vibes. When they stood, I noticed a slight limp.

“So that’s the boy?”
“Sorry to trouble you personally, Guildmaster,” said Urisa, bowing his head for the first time since I’d met him.

Guess this person really was important.

“No trouble. If you’re the one asking, I’ll make time. Arisa, you look well too.”
“Yes! Good evening. Thank you for meeting us.”
Oh, right — I should probably bow too.
“Thank you for seeing me.”

The Guildmaster motioned for us to sit at the sofa. I ended up between the two siblings.

“Shunsuke, can you remove that magic tool from your eyes?”
“Ah— it’s not a magic tool, but… sure.”

“I don’t suppose you have a mirror?” I couldn’t exactly pull out my smartphone here.
Arisa pulled a hand mirror from her bag.
“Here.”
“Thanks, Arisa.”

When I smiled gratefully, she blushed a little.
“Y-you’re welcome…”

I hurriedly removed my colored contacts — carefully, since even through them it still freaked me out to touch my eyeball.
Then they asked me to remove my hood. The moment I did, the woman near the desk gasped softly.

The Guildmaster sat across from us on the other sofa.

“I am Dominic von Margan, Guildmaster of this Adventurer’s Guild — and also the magistrate overseeing this town of Polygon and three others.”

Four towns? That sounded like an insane workload. This Dominic guy must be incredible.

“I’m Shunsuke. Pleased to meet you.”
“Likewise, Shunsuke. Where did you come from?”

Was it okay to tell the truth…?
“From Tokyo,” I said — though technically from the shabby outskirts.
“Tokyo-to? Never heard of it,” muttered Urisa.

The others all looked equally puzzled.
Well, of course. Different world, right.

“In any case, we’ll have to investigate a few things,” Dominic said.
Investigate what, exactly?

Maybe my nervousness showed, because Arisa hugged me gently and stroked my head.
“It’s okay. The Guildmaster’s a good person. He always takes time to listen, even to adventurers like us.”

True enough — given his titles, he must be busy, yet he’d cleared time for me, a stranger, in the evening. Definitely the sign of a decent official.

Someone brought us tea — familiar-smelling, too.
They waited for me to calm down and take a sip before continuing. Thankfully, it wasn’t scalding hot.

Arisa added honey and milk to hers.
“Want some, Shunsuke? You’d better — sweets are rare around here!”

Did she forget she’d just stolen my chamomile candy earlier?
When she tried to add honey to mine too, I waved my hand.
“Thanks, but I’m fine.”

Dominic gave quiet instructions to the woman who’d served the tea. She fetched something from a cabinet — it looked like a portable induction heater, with glowing colored stones embedded around it.

“All right, I’ll need everyone else to step out for a moment.”

“Oh, right. Come on, Arisa— wait, Shunsuke?”

As Urisa started to rise, I instinctively grabbed the hem of his vest.
“U-um…”

He turned to me, patting my head gently.
“Don’t worry. They’re just going to scan your personal data with this measuring magic tool. It doesn’t hurt at all.
We all used it when registering as adventurers.

But since you’re an unregistered child, it might show information that strangers shouldn’t see — so we’re supposed to leave. You understand what ‘personal information’ means, right?

See? Even the secretary left the room.”

“I know, but… I’d rather you stayed.”
Huh. When did I get this clingy?

Arisa cupped my cheek.
“It’s fine. We’ll be right outside the door.”

Dominic watched our exchange and chuckled.
“Well, all right. I can vouch for their discretion. Let them stay.”
“Okay?”
“Sorry for the trouble. Please stay with me.”

The siblings smiled and sat back down.

“Then let’s begin. Place your palm here.”
“Yes.”

The moment I did, a glowing screen floated up above the device — like Mom’s old waist pouch checklist, but visible to everyone.

“Status open,” said a voice from the device.

〈Tanaka Shunsuke〉 appeared at the top — my real name! But the rest was written in strange symbols I couldn’t read.

Dominic frowned.
“…Hmm.”
“The first four characters are his name?” Urisa asked.
“Yes — it reads Tanaka Shunsuke. ‘Tanaka’ is my family name, and ‘Shunsuke’ my given name.
But I can’t read the rest at all.”

“Kids not knowing how to read isn’t weird, you know? We can’t even read the first four characters,” Arisa said, patting my head.

Hey, I can read — I’m seventeen inside! Japanese, at least. English is iffy.

“You only learned to read when you were almost grown,” Urisa teased.
“Hey! Reading’s plenty for an adventurer! Gorda can barely write his own name — and it’s illegible!”
“Yeah, he could only recognize food names. Priorities, I guess.”

So Gorda’s that kind of guy. Still, no need to mock someone who struggles to learn.

As I kept my hand on the device, new characters appeared — Japanese this time, overlapping the foreign text.
“Huh? I can read this now…?”

Dominic whispered so only I could hear:
“The measurement must have stimulated a latent skill. It happens sometimes when someone first touches a high-magic artifact.”

He cleared his throat to quiet the siblings.
“Shunsuke appears to have another name — Schweitz. There’s also a family name, but… best we leave that undisclosed for now.”

Wait, what? Schweitz? Do I have some noble lineage or something?

“He also has magical attributes, decent stats, and several useful skills. Considerable potential for growth.”
“Whoa, Shunsuke, you can use magic?”
“No, never tried.”

“Then you should learn at a proper place — a guild or academy. Magic can be dangerous. Still, few can use it, so it’ll be a big help once you master it,” Urisa said.

“But we can’t issue an ID as things are,” Dominic murmured, stroking his chin beard — a style like an American’s sideburn-beard combo.

Arisa kept fussing with my hair and cheeks; it tickled.
“Keep your hand there,” Dominic said, tapping the screen with a pen-like tool before writing a line of text.
“There. That should do.”

A mechanical sound came from his desk.
Ka-sha sha, beep!

“You have a magic tool for ID printing too?” Arisa asked.
“Yes. This is the master unit; the ones downstairs are subterminals. Some functions only this one can perform.”

So they trusted these siblings enough to talk about internal guild systems — impressive.

“Now, lift your hand.
Shunsuke — continue using that name.
Your true name and family name will remain sealed under my authority, especially within this kingdom.

If, after learning more and growing up, or if you travel abroad, send a letter addressed to ‘Dominic von Margan of Polygon.’
Include nothing else but the phrase: ‘Requesting release.’”

“I understand.”

“Also…” Dominic went to his desk, rummaged through drawers, and returned with something — a dog tag like Arisa’s, and a small round stone with a cord attached. It resembled my mom’s magatama charm, though its color was like black onyx.

“Hold this stone in your hand.”

When I did—
“Ah! Shunsuke, your face!” Arisa gasped, holding up the mirror.

In the reflection was me — Japanese me!
Not the 17-year-old from Christmas Eve, but my much younger self — the kid from my kindergarten yearbook, just with longer hair.

“Whoa…” I couldn’t help but exclaim. I looked childish, but oddly at peace.
“Kyaa! Shunsuke, you’re adorable with black hair and eyes!” Arisa squealed, hugging me again.

“Here’s the cord — needs to be adjustable for a child,” Dominic said, handing the tag and string to Urisa.

I noticed he’d only been using his left hand this whole time — his right hung limp.

“Now let go of the stone.”

As soon as I did, my appearance returned to the elven one.
Urisa threaded the stone and tag onto the cord, slipped it over my neck, and adjusted the length.

“This is a transformation magic tool,” Dominic explained. “It changes an elf’s appearance to that of a human. If a human wears it, nothing happens.”

When the stone touched my chest again, I reverted to human form.
“This one’s your ID. Hold it and say ‘Status.’”

“Okay. Status— whoa.”

This time I could read everything. Even the stuff in brackets: Schweitz von Lordlanda? What kind of grand name was that? Maybe my mom’s grandfather’s?

〈Race: Human〉 — and next to it, in blue letters, 〈Elf?〉
“Huh?”

〈Age: 5〉 (actual age: 17)
Then stats for Level, Vitality, Stamina, Magic Power—
Nice, I do have magic.

Basic Magic Attributes: All
Special Magic Attributes: All
Skills: Spatial Magic, Alchemy, Appraisal
Other Skills: Arithmetic, Swordsmanship, Archery, Cooking, Sewing, Healing, Music

Didn’t Dominic say he was hiding stuff?

“When you view your own status, everything appears — see the two colors?”
“Yes. White and blue text.”
“We can only see the white parts, and fewer words,” Arisa said.

“The blue text is what I concealed. Only I can unseal it, but since my name is at the end, it still functions as an official ID,” Dominic explained.

Indeed, the last line read:
〈I, Dominic von Margan, take responsibility for this individual’s details.〉

He was really going above and beyond for a kid he’d just met. What if I turned out to be evil?

He smiled knowingly.
“My job requires me to see a person’s true nature. Don’t worry. Just stay healthy, and use your skills wisely. Study hard and grow strong.

Though… it’ll take you roughly three times longer to reach adulthood.”

He placed his large hand gently on my now-black hair.

As he did, a screen popped up beside his face — displaying his data. Age and all.
When I gasped, he pressed a finger to his lips with a secretive smile.

Right. So this was the “Appraisal” skill.

“Thank you,” I said quietly.
“Discuss the rest with Urisa and Arisa.
You two plan to stay in this area for a while?”
“Yeah. The country’s still a bit unstable after the war, but this town’s far from the old front lines, so it’s safe enough. Oh, sorry, Guildmaster—”

“No need. I may hold a noble title, but I’m the youngest son of a fourth son — practically a commoner. I’m farther from the royal court than a rich merchant.”
What a humble guy.

“But you’re still said to be the busiest in House Margan,” Arisa noted.
He smiled. “True. The truly high nobles don’t work at all — they just dump it on their subordinates.”

A noble who could joke like that — definitely a people’s man.

“Shunsuke,” he said, turning serious, “while you’re in this country, stay in your human form.

There are a few beastfolk here in Polygon, but that’s only because I use what little influence I have to protect them. This is the farthest frontier, after all.

But this kingdom still holds a strong human-supremacist mindset. It’s better than it used to be, yet nonhumans still face restrictions and discrimination.

As for elves… let’s just say it’s safer not to show that side of yourself.
Stay human, for your own protection.”

His eyes met mine.

Honestly, I barely understood. I’d just been a normal Japanese human until recently — not an elf. But I guess I’d have to learn about this world, little by little.

“Yes,” I answered softly, though confusion clouded my chest.

If this wasn’t a dream, what would become of me? My eyes stung.

Arisa hugged me again, pressing my face against her chest. The steady beat of her heart calmed me.

Dominic tapped his desk lightly with his left fist.
“All right, let’s wrap up for now. What are your plans for tonight?”
“Shunsuke, come stay with us. It’s a shabby apartment, but we have a spare bed.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course! Right, brother?”
“Yeah. Don’t be shy.”

They really were kind. It made me happy.

“Then, Shunsuke, come back here tomorrow afternoon,” Dominic said, patting my head.
“I will.”

“Let’s go,” Arisa said, pulling me up.

We left the guild, hand in hand.
Outside, night had fully fallen. Unlike Tokyo, there were no streetlights — only the warm glow from windows and a half-moon patterned with unfamiliar markings.

Yet strangely, I could still see the road clearly. Maybe my eyesight had improved.

As Arisa led me through the quiet streets of Polygon, I thought vaguely —
…I might actually see better now than I did as a kid.