Adventurer of Many Professions-Chapter 126: Officially Welcoming Arya to the Team!

"It’s 4.2."

Arya’s voice was barely above a whisper, but to Raymond, Sylph, and Lorene, it might as well have been thunder crashing through their minds.

4.2.

It wasn’t just high; it was absurdly high.

To put it into perspective—

Sylph, after receiving the Magician’s magic bonus, had 2.6, meaning Arya’s raw affinity was a full 1.6 points higher than a talented magician’s enhanced affinity. Find exclusive stories on novelbuddy

And compared to Raymond’s?

After awakening as a magician, his affinity had increased from 0.2 to 0.3.

Which meant Arya’s magic affinity was fourteen times his.

Fourteen.

For the first time, Raymond truly understood why Arya had been so hesitant to reveal it.

And he also realized why the priestess in the side hall had tried so hard to maintain her composure, yet still failed to completely hide her shock.

Even Lorene, usually the calmest in the group, couldn’t hide her astonishment.

"4.2… That’s unbelievably high, Arya!" Her voice, barely above a whisper, carried pure disbelief.

She turned slightly, her thoughts racing.

"I remember hearing from the temple priests that ever since this temple was founded over ten years ago, the highest recorded magic affinity after awakening was… 3.1."

3.1.

And Arya’s was 4.2.

Sylph, who had been momentarily stunned, jerked upright, staring at Arya as if seeing her for the first time.

"Wait—wait, wait, wait!" she blurted out. "Among the human race, outside of magicians, the person with the highest known magic affinity is Todriel Caron—the ’Sword Saint’—and his is 4.8!"

She took a deep breath, her eyes nearly bulging. "Arya, do you realize what this means? The number of people who have a magic affinity of 4 or higher is so small you can count them on one hand!"

Arya blinked, then slowly raised a hand to her chest as if steadying her heartbeat.

"So… I’m not the only one?"

Raymond’s keen observation caught it immediately, the slight relief that flickered across her face.

She had been worried.

Afraid that she was too special. That her talent was too abnormal, something that would make her stand out too much, drawing unwanted attention.

Raymond almost chuckled at the thought.

It was the same cautious mindset he had always used himself.

She didn’t want to be treated like some rare anomaly. She just wanted to be herself.

He could relate.

Of course, he knew the truth, throughout human history, there had been individuals with even higher magic affinities, some even surpassing 10.

But most of those cases belonged to magicians, who naturally received affinity boosts.

For an Archer to have 4.2 without any class-based enhancements?

That was unheard of.

Raymond clapped his hands, breaking the tension.

"Alright."

The others turned to look at him.

"Since we’re all here, I’ll just say it now; Arya is officially part of our team."

Sylph snorted, rolling her eyes. "Do you really need to announce that? That was obvious from the start."

Raymond grinned, his goal wasn’t really to inform them, but to shift their focus away from Arya’s magic affinity.

They were still standing in the open, and the last thing he wanted was for passersby to overhear them discussing such an insane number.

His mind was already working through the implications.

With their team’s growing reputation, suddenly introducing an Archer out of nowhere was bound to attract attention.

If people found out Arya had 4.2 magic affinity, it wouldn’t just be curiosity, it would become a spectacle.

And that was dangerous.

For now, keeping it quiet was the best choice.

Sylph, seemingly unfazed by Raymond’s thoughts, perked up.

"Oh, right! Raymond, you still have that longbow from the Crazy Baboon fight, right?"

Raymond nodded knowingly, already anticipating where this was going.

"I told you before, I was waiting until Arya awakened before making a decision. So yeah, I still have it. It’s hers now."

Arya’s eyes widened. "Wait—really?"

Raymond smirked, crossing his arms. "Of course. What, did you think you’d have to buy your own first weapon?"

Arya grinned. "Well, I wasn’t sure if I’d get something this good right away!"

Sylph nodded in satisfaction, but then a thought hit her.

"Oh! That reminds me; Raymond, we still have that broken giant sword, right?"

Raymond’s expression turned thoughtful. "Yeah, I was just about to ask. Do you still have it?"

Sylph let out a dramatic sigh. "Of course we do. That thing is so ridiculously heavy that even if Lorene and I wanted to carry it to sell, we couldn’t."

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Raymond chuckled, nodding.

"Good. I was planning to use it to commission a set of light armor."

Sylph tilted her head. "Wait; you’re switching to light armor?"

Raymond nodded without hesitation.

"Yeah."

After his battle with the Mad Baboon, he had made up his mind.

Heavy armor had its advantages, but it was too restrictive, especially for someone like him, who juggled between Fighter and Swordsman skills.

Light armor would allow him greater mobility, ensuring that he could fight at full potential.

Sylph crossed her arms, nodding thoughtfully. "Makes sense. You’re a dual-class, so you need flexibility more than raw defense."

Lorene, ever the supportive one, added, "Light armor also means you’ll rely on dodging more, right? That way, I won’t have to heal you as often!"

Raymond laughed, giving her a small salute. "Exactly. You just focus on casting Blessing of Courage, and I’ll make sure not to take unnecessary hits."

Arya, who had been quiet for a moment, finally spoke up, her voice holding a note of determination.

"Then that settles it. We’re all getting stronger together."

She clenched her fist, looking more resolute than ever.

Raymond watched her closely, seeing the fire burning in her eyes.

This was the moment Arya truly stepped forward, not just as a friend, but as a full-fledged adventurer.

And he had no doubt.

Their team was about to change the game.

Light armor, when properly designed, could provide excellent mobility without sacrificing much protection. As long as the joint areas were properly reinforced and flexible, movement wouldn’t be significantly hindered.

After securing the damaged giant sword, Raymond and Arya followed Sylph and Lorene down Blue and White Cloud Street, retrieving the weapon before parting ways.

They agreed to meet the next morning to accept a commission together, marking Arya’s official start as an adventurer.

With that settled, Raymond and Arya carried the giant sword back home, returning to Red Rose Street under the dim glow of street lanterns.

---

"Should I Hide It?"

Once inside, Arya set down her things, her brows furrowed in thought.

Then, she looked at Raymond. "Do I need to hide my magic affinity from others?"

Raymond had already thought about this.

He shook his head. "No need."

Arya blinked, surprised by his quick response.

Raymond leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "Our team is already filled with outliers. I’m a dual-class. Sylph is an explosive mage. Lorene just got one of the rarest divine spells. If we suddenly introduce an archer, people will naturally ask questions. But if we reveal your magic affinity at the right moment, it’ll eliminate any doubts."

A thoughtful look crossed Arya’s face before she nodded.

"Alright, I’ll leave it to you to decide when and how."

She smiled. "I trust you."

Raymond smirked. "Good."

After all, once adventurers learned of her insanely high magic affinity, they wouldn’t dare question her place in the team.

And then—

"Ahhh…"

Arya let out a long yawn, stretching her arms.

The exhaustion of staying up all night, combined with the rush of emotions from the awakening ceremony, was finally catching up to her.

Raymond pointed toward her room immediately.

"Go to bed. You promised me you’d sleep after this was over."

Arya laughed softly, rubbing her eyes. "I know, I know! I’m going now!"

With that, she disappeared into her room, leaving Raymond alone in the quiet house.

But Raymond’s night wasn’t over yet.

---

The streets were eerily quiet as Raymond made his way through Windy Willow Street, the cool night air brushing against his skin.

The moment he turned into a shadowy alley, a figure suddenly darted toward him.

"Mr. Rose, have you heard? The Knights finally took out the Black Wind Bandits last night!"

Even without his night vision, Raymond recognized the voice instantly.

Manik.

The street informant was visibly excited, speaking in a hushed yet hurried tone.

Unlike before, Raymond could now clearly see him even in the dark.

His newly acquired Thief abilities had granted him night vision, a useful skill that made navigating the shadows of the city much easier.

However, something unexpected happened as soon as Manik got close.

A blue system panel flashed before Raymond’s eyes:

---

[Learnable Skills Detected]

Sprint [Thief] – Learning Cost: 1 Skill Point

Random Steal [Thief] – Learning Cost: 2 Skill Points

---

Raymond’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Random Steal…?

This wasn’t just a normal pickpocketing skill.

This skill didn’t steal objects—it stole abilities.

---

[Skill: Random Steal]

Effect: Randomly steals one skill from a target for a limited time.

The stolen skill becomes unusable by the original owner while it is taken.

Cannot be used continuously; cooldown applies.

Skill selection is random, meaning the user has no control over what is stolen.

Can only steal one skill per target within a short period.

This was an extremely powerful ability, especially against high-level opponents and monsters.

Imagine stealing a critical defensive or offensive skill at just the right moment.

Even if he couldn’t use the stolen skill himself, the mere fact that he could deny an enemy access to their abilities could completely turn the tide of battle.

He had never expected Manik to possess something so valuable.

---

[Skill: Sprint]

Effect: Grants the user a burst of speed, allowing them to escape danger quickly.

Can be used to dodge, reposition, or flee from combat.

A small smirk tugged at Raymond’s lips.

No wonder Manik has survived for so long.

Even when he was still an adventurer, Manik was the only survivor from his team and now, it was clear how he had managed to escape.

With "Sprint" and "Random Steal," he was practically untouchable.

Raymond remembered something Freya had told him before, how a thief had escaped from her using Sprint.

Could it have been Manik?

Raymond let out a quiet chuckle.

"So, you’ve been doing this for years, and the Knights still haven’t caught you, huh?"

Manik grinned, clearly unaware of the system notifications flashing in Raymond’s vision.

"Well, you know how it is. Gotta be fast, gotta be smart!"

Raymond’s smile deepened.

He was definitely learning that skill.

But for now—

He casually nodded. "Yeah, I heard about the Black Wind Bandits."

As much as the system notifications intrigued him, he still had business to attend to.

For tonight, his focus was elsewhere.

But soon—

He would come back for those skills.