Chương 23: Chapter 15 : The Bank

Morning light filtered through the curtains of the small hotel room as Aldric slowly opened his eyes. For several seconds, he remained perfectly still, gradually regaining his bearings. The white ceiling, the bare walls devoid of tapestries, the muffled sound of traffic beyond the window, and the complete absence of birdsong immediately reminded him that he was no longer in the chambers reserved for the heroes of the royal castle, but in this strange modern inn where he had established his temporary refuge.

His armor rested against the wall, meticulously cleaned despite the many marks left by his final battle. His sword leaned beside it, exactly where he had placed it before falling asleep. Since arriving in this new world, every morning had begun the same way. For one brief moment, he still believed he could hear the bells of Asteria announcing the sunrise. Then reality returned. As he sat on the edge of the bed, a bluish light appeared before him with the familiarity of an old traveling companion.

Glowing letters gradually formed in the air until they became a new System window. △ SIDE QUEST △ Open a Bank Account Difficulty: B Rewards +300 XP Administration Resistance Lv. 1 Aldric read through the lines several times. He did not recognize the reward, but its title alone was enough to tell him that it belonged to a new category of challenges unique to this world. Since arriving here, he had already gained essential knowledge about housing, transportation, and the customs of its people.

Now the System was making it clear that opening a bank account was an indispensable step in his progression. He remembered Emma's explanation from the previous day perfectly. Among the Five Sacred Relics required to obtain a fortress was this mysterious bank account. The System had simply confirmed that their strategy had been correct. He immediately pulled out the small leather notebook he now kept beneath his breastplate. Its many pages were already filled with carefully organized observations.

Hotel prices, subway rules, pedestrian crossing etiquette, the list of the Five Sacred Relics, and the diagram Emma had drawn the previous day already occupied much of the notebook. Aldric slowly turned the pages until he reached the one devoted to those famous artifacts. His gaze settled on the line labeled Second Relic. He crossed it out with a single, deliberate horizontal stroke before writing neatly beneath it: Current Objective. Open a Bank Account He then closed the notebook with satisfaction.

A clearly defined quest was always an advantage. Heroes rarely failed when they knew exactly what their objective was. After putting on his armor and fastening his sword across his back, Aldric left the hotel with determined strides. The streets of Paris were already bustling despite the early hour. Shops were raising their metal shutters, bakeries filled the air with the warm scent of fresh bread, and countless people hurried toward work. The constant activity continued to fascinate him.

Every citizen seemed to be pursuing a different quest, yet all contributed to the life of this immense city. He quickly reached the real estate agency where Emma worked. The shutters had only just been opened, and several employees were still arranging files on their desks. Aldric chose to wait quietly near the entrance without disturbing anyone. A few minutes later, Emma appeared at the end of the street, carrying a takeaway coffee in one hand and her bag in the other.

When she spotted the imposing knight already waiting outside the agency, she couldn't help but smile.

"You're here already?" Aldric inclined his head respectfully.

"A quest should never wait." Emma looked up at the sky with a smile she no longer bothered to hide.

"I should have known." She quickly unlocked the agency door and set her belongings on her desk. A moment later, she came back outside wearing her jacket.

"Ready?"

"Always."

"Good. Today... we're going to the bank." The word immediately captured Aldric's full attention.

"The guild responsible for safeguarding the kingdom's wealth?" Emma glanced at him as they walked.

"That's a very... unique way of putting it."

"Is it accurate?" She thought for a few seconds.

"Actually... yes." They made their way through the cool morning streets. The closer they came to the district where the bank was located, the more Aldric noticed buildings with plain façades marked by logos he didn't recognize. The display windows contained nothing for sale. Through the large glass windows, he could see desks, computer screens, and employees dressed in dark business suits. Several ATMs were built directly into the exterior walls.

People would stop in front of them for a few moments, press a few buttons, then walk away holding paper bills. Aldric slowed his pace. He studied one of the machines for a long moment.

"This vault dispenses money without a guardian." Emma followed his gaze.

"It's an ATM."

"Does it recognize every citizen?"

"More or less."

"It seems remarkably useful." They continued until they reached the main bank building. Unlike the neighboring businesses, it projected an almost solemn sense of solidity. The glass doors opened automatically for every customer. Several cameras mounted above the entrance continuously scanned the lobby. Inside, about a dozen people waited patiently on neatly arranged chairs while others spoke with advisors seated behind large desks.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Aldric paused on the sidewalk for a few seconds to observe the customers coming and going. Every one of them entered empty-handed. None carried a sword. None appeared to have any weapon at all. Even the security guards inside the lobby were remarkably discreet. The observation immediately sparked his curiosity.

"Are weapons forbidden inside this fortress?"

"I think we'd better not ask that."

"That seems like a wise recommendation." At last, they stepped through the automatic doors, which opened silently before closing again behind them. The lobby was spacious, bright, and surprisingly quiet despite the number of people inside. No one spoke loudly. Conversations remained hushed, almost confidential, while at the back of the room a large display regularly showed a sequence of numbers accompanied by a brief chime. Emma walked over to a ticket machine near the entrance and pressed several buttons.

A small strip of paper emerged almost immediately. She picked it up and handed it to Aldric.

"Keep this." The knight studied the small ticket for a few moments. Only a single number was printed on it. B-143.

"Is it a pass?"

"Not exactly."

"Permission to enter?"

"Not that either."

"Everyone waits until their number is called here. It simply tells you the order in which people will be seen." Aldric looked at the slip of paper once more before studying the other customers seated in the waiting area. No one tried to cut in line. No one complained about the wait. Everyone remained patient until their number appeared on the screen. At last, a faint smile crossed his face.

"This is much like the audiences held by our king."

"How so?"

"Petitioners were also given an order of audience. Each one waited to be called before presenting their request to the sovereign." A chime echoed through the lobby as the number on the display changed. Emma immediately checked the ticket Aldric was still holding and gave him a nod. It was finally their turn. The knight slipped the small ticket into his notebook as though it were an official pass he might need to present later, then followed Emma across the spacious lobby.

They passed several desks where advisors were speaking with their clients. No raised voices. No sudden movements. Everything operated with an almost ceremonial precision. The organization immediately reminded Aldric of the great audience halls of the royal palace, where each petitioner waited patiently until a chamberlain granted permission to approach the throne. The advisor assigned to them stood as soon as they arrived. He was a clean-shaven man in his forties, dressed in a dark gray suit with a navy tie.

He invited them to sit down. Yet the moment his eyes fell on Aldric's armor, his welcoming smile faltered ever so slightly. His gaze instinctively dropped to the enormous sword strapped across the knight's back before returning to his face. The hesitation lasted no more than a second. He quickly regained his professional composure and gestured toward the two chairs in front of his desk.

"Good morning. My name is Julien Moreau. What can I do for you today?" Emma spoke first.

"Good morning. We'd like to open a bank account for him."

"Of course. Let's take a look at that together." He opened a new file on his computer before asking the usual questions, his fingers already poised over the keyboard.

"To begin with, what's your profession?"

"Hero."

"Sorry... your occupation, sir."

"That is my occupation." Julien remained still for a few seconds, his hands resting on the keyboard. He offered a polite smile.

"I meant your current line of work."

"I protect kingdoms from threats beyond the capabilities of ordinary armies."

"Mr. Aldric only recently arrived in France," Emma explained.

"Some of his wording is a little..." She searched for the most appropriate word.

"Unusual."

"I understand." He absolutely did not. But he had worked at a bank long enough to know that some customers were more surprising than others. He simply decided to rephrase the question.

"Who is your employer?"

"Until recently, the Kingdom of Asteria." Julien stared at his screen for a few seconds before looking up at Aldric, then at Emma. At last, he returned to his keyboard and typed a few notes into the file without making any comment. Emma discreetly watched his hands. She had the strange feeling she was witnessing the desperate effort of a bank advisor trying to fit a fantasy story into an administrative form. Even so, Julien continued the interview with admirable professionalism.

"Very well. And what is your current source of income?"

"I no longer have one."

"So you're currently unemployed?"

"Correct."

"Do you receive unemployment benefits?"

"No."

"A pension?"

"No."

"Any other source of income?"

"None." The advisor nodded slowly as he completed the file. He opened a new page in his software.

"Very well. Now let's go over the documents required to open an account." Emma immediately felt her stomach tighten. She had known from the very beginning that this was the exact moment their attempt was most likely to fail.

"I'll need a form of identification."

"I don't have one."

"A passport, perhaps?"

"No."

"A residence permit?"

"No."

"Very well. Do you have proof of address dated within the last three months?"

"I am currently staying at an inn."

"A hotel," Emma corrected. The advisor simply nodded and continued with his questions.

"What is your current address?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know the name of your hotel?"

"I could find my way back to it."

"But you don't know its address?"

"No." The advisor folded his hands together. The file in front of him was now almost completely empty. No identification. No proof of address. No address. No income. As the answers accumulated, the boxes on the form remained stubbornly blank. He looked over the nearly empty file on his screen one last time before raising his eyes to Aldric.

"I'm truly sorry, sir. Without a valid form of identification, we cannot open a bank account. It's a legal requirement. Even if I wanted to, our computer system wouldn't allow me to complete your application. We also need an address so we can register your account and send you certain important documents. Without proof of address, that step is also impossible. Finally, we must verify your identity using official documents. Without those requirements, I'm afraid there's nothing I can do.

I'm sincerely sorry," he repeated, visibly embarrassed. Aldric simply nodded slowly. He rose from his chair. Then he placed his right fist against his breastplate and bowed.

"Thank you for receiving us." The advisor remained completely still. His hands rested on the desk as he blinked several times, clearly taken aback by the response. Throughout his career, he had delivered hundreds of refusals. Loan applications denied. Mortgages rejected. Bank accounts that couldn't be opened. Yet never had a customer thanked him after receiving bad news. It took him several seconds to find his voice again.

"I... you're very welcome..." Aldric gave one last respectful nod before turning away. Emma offered the advisor an apologetic smile, picked up her bag, and followed the knight to the exit. As soon as they stepped through the automatic doors, the sounds of the street surrounded them once again. Cars continued along the avenue, office workers were heading out for lunch, and new customers were already entering the bank to wait their turn. They walked side by side for several dozen yards without saying a word.

At last, Emma let out a long sigh.

"I'm sorry..."

"Why?"

"Because we failed again." The knight slipped a hand beneath his tunic and pulled out his small notebook. He quickly found the page devoted to the Five Sacred Relics, then methodically added a new heading beneath the second entry. Requirements Discovered He then wrote two new items beneath it. Identity. Address. When he had finished, he studied what he had written for a few moments before closing the notebook.

"We didn't fail."

"But we didn't get the bank account."

"Correct."

"Then why do you say we didn't fail?" Aldric simply pointed to the notebook he had just put away.

"Because we now know the requirements for obtaining the Second Relic. In my world, when a party of adventurers reached a dungeon without the key needed to open its gate, no one considered the expedition a failure. The heroes simply returned to prepare what they lacked before coming back. Today, we found the key."

"You always find an incredibly optimistic way to look at things."

"It isn't optimism."

"Then what is it?"

"Observation." △ SIDE QUEST UPDATED △ Open a Bank Account △ NEW OBJECTIVE △ Obtain Identification