Chương 28: Chapter 20 : The Resume

The next morning, Aldric arrived at the small café nearly half an hour early. After spending several weeks in this world, he had noticed that its people placed great importance on punctuality. Appointments were set for an exact time, and everyone seemed to regard arriving late as a genuine sign of disrespect. He found that rule perfectly reasonable. In his former world, a captain who failed to arrive at the appointed hour could jeopardize an entire military campaign.

To be safe, he had decided to arrive well in advance. Standing perfectly still with his hands clasped behind his back, he waited outside the café's entrance. His eyes followed the steady flow of pedestrians passing along the street. Some hurried toward work with steaming cups in their hands. Others stared at their phones without even looking where they were going. The nearby terraces were beginning to fill, and the rich aroma of freshly ground coffee already drifted through the air.

Aldric discreetly glanced at the clock mounted across the street. Twenty-seven minutes left. Waiting had never bothered him. During long military campaigns, he had often remained motionless in a forest for hours, watching an enemy fortress or waiting for the signal to attack. Compared to that, spending a few dozen minutes outside a café was almost relaxing. At last, a familiar figure appeared at the end of the street. Emma was walking briskly while adjusting the strap of her bag.

A laptop protruded slightly from the zipper. Tucked under one arm, she carried a black notebook and a cardboard folder with several sheets of paper already sticking out. When she spotted Aldric waiting outside the entrance, she slowed her pace and let out an amused sigh.

"Don't tell me you've been waiting here for a while..." The hero took a few seconds to think before answering.

"Twenty-seven minutes."

"Twenty-seven?"

"Why didn't you go inside?"

"We agreed to meet here."

"Yes... and?"

"It would have seemed discourteous to begin our meeting before you arrived." Emma stared at him for a few seconds before letting out a quiet laugh.

"You know, you could have gone in without me."

"I know that now."

"Well then, come on." She pushed open the café door. A pleasant warmth enveloped them immediately. Despite the early hour, the place was already bustling. Conversations blended with the steady clink of coffee cups, the soft tapping of spoons against porcelain, and the almost constant hiss of the espresso machine. Several customers were already typing away on their laptops, while others quietly read the newspaper over breakfast. Emma scanned the room before pointing toward a table by the window.

"This one will be perfect." They sat across from each other. Emma immediately set her laptop, notebook, and folder on the table. With a few practiced movements, she turned the small table into a proper workspace. Aldric watched with curiosity. In his world, important meetings always began with the unfolding of military maps. Here, Emma arranged a laptop, a notebook, and several pens with exactly the same level of seriousness. A few moments later, a waiter approached with a notepad in hand.

"Good morning. What can I get for you?"

"A coffee." The waiter immediately turned to Aldric.

"I'll have the same."

"Very well." The waiter quickly jotted down the order before walking away. △ NEW OBJECTIVE △ Create a Resume Difficulty: C Reward:???

"Today, we're going to create your résumé."

"My application dossier for the guilds?"

"Yes. If that helps you think of it that way."

"I understand." Emma opened a blank résumé template on her screen. The different sections were neatly arranged one beneath another with almost intimidating simplicity. Name. Surname. Address. Phone Number. Email Address. Work Experience. Education. Skills. Aldric studied the document for a few moments before slowly nodding. It reminded him of the application files aspiring knights had to submit to the Royal Council before they were allowed to join one of the military orders.

"So it is an application dossier."

"Exactly." She rested her hands on the keyboard.

"We'll start with the easiest information. Your name is simply Aldric?"

"Yes." She typed it in immediately.

"You don't have a family name?" The hero thought for a few seconds.

"Knights were usually identified by their given name and the kingdom they came from. I was often introduced as Aldric of Valdor."

"We'll just use Aldric. It'll be simpler." She moved to the next line.

"Your address?"

"Saint-Martin Hotel." Her fingers immediately stopped typing.

"No, I mean your permanent address."

"I do not have one."

"You mean you're still living at the hotel?"

"Yes."

"How long have you been staying there?"

"Since I arrived in this world." She let out a quiet sigh.

"All right. We'll deal with that later." She moved on to the next section.

"Your phone number?"

"I don't have one." Emma kept typing without saying a word. Ever since she'd met Aldric, very little surprised her anymore. Even so, seeing so many fields stubbornly remain blank gave the document a rather unusual appearance. She moved down to the next line.

"Your email address?"

"What is that?" This time, Emma took her hands off the keyboard. She gently closed the laptop and spent a few moments thinking about the best way to explain the concept to someone who didn't even know the Internet existed.

"All right, let's start from the beginning. A phone lets people reach you quickly, wherever you are. If an employer wants to contact you, they simply call you. As for an email address... imagine a mailbox that doesn't physically exist. Messages travel through the Internet and arrive almost instantly." Aldric immediately took out his small leather notebook.

"You're taking notes again?"

"Of course." He wrote down a few lines before looking back up.

"So employers use this invisible mailbox to communicate with their applicants."

"Exactly."

"That is remarkably efficient." △ SKILLS INCREASED △ Administration Lv. 1 Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Modern Society Lv. 1 Just then, the waiter returned with their order. He set two steaming cups on the table, wished them an enjoyable morning, and walked away. The rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee immediately rose between them. Aldric studied the dark liquid in his cup for a few moments before taking a cautious sip. He grimaced almost instantly.

Emma couldn't help smiling.

"So?"

"It's still just as bitter."

"You get used to it eventually."

"The people of this kingdom truly enjoy this drink?"

"Every morning."

"That explains their endurance." Emma let out a quiet laugh.

"You really think coffee makes people tougher?"

"If an entire population willingly begins every day by drinking something this bitter, they must possess remarkable discipline." Emma shook her head with a smile before reopening her laptop.

"I'm not sure that's how doctors would explain it..." She scrolled down to the next section of the résumé. Her smile gradually faded as her eyes came to rest on a single heading. Work Experience. She remained silent for a few seconds before taking a deep breath.

"Well..."

"So far, this has been the easy part."

"You're saying it gets harder?"

"I have a feeling it does..." She rested her fingers on the keyboard.

"All right. Tell me what you've been doing for the last ten years."

"I led a coalition of seven kingdoms against the Demon King." Emma closed her eyes. This day was going to be much longer than she'd expected.

"Imagine you're talking to someone who knows absolutely nothing about your world."

"That would be rather unusual."

"I know. But pretend."

"I was the commander of the Alliance's armies."

"Did you have a profession?"

"Hero."

"It isn't a profession."

"I was paid for it." Emma sat in silence for a few seconds before letting out a deep sigh.

"That isn't really how it works here..." She thought for a moment, then decided to take a completely different approach.

"Let's forget the titles. Tell me what you actually did. How many people were you in charge of?"

"That depended on the campaign."

"Give me an average."

"Around fifty thousand soldiers." Emma's hands immediately left the keyboard.

"I'm sorry?"

"At the Battle of the Red Plains."

"Fifty thousand?"

"Yes. Before that, only twenty thousand." In the end, she typed a single line: Managed large teams.

"We're going to keep it very vague..." Aldric looked at the screen.

"Why not include the number?"

"Because no recruiter is going to believe you were responsible for fifty thousand people."

"But it's true."

"I know..." She continued.

"Did you work well under pressure?"

"Constantly."

"Can you give me an example?"

"The Siege of Valenor."

"Tell me about it."

"We were surrounded." Her fingers began moving across the keyboard again.

"And then?"

"Our food supplies were nearly exhausted. The demons attacked every night." She kept typing.

"How long did that last?"

"Three months."

"How many hours did you sleep?"

"About two."

"Per night?"

"Yes." Emma eventually typed another line: Excellent Stress Management. She studied the wording for a few seconds.

"That's probably the most understated way to summarize a three-month siege..."

"It feels very incomplete."

"That's the whole point of a résumé." She moved on to the next section.

"Have you ever had to resolve conflicts?"

"Yes."

"Between coworkers?"

"No."

"Between teams?"

"Not that either."

"Then between whom?"

"The elves and the dwarves."

"Let's pretend I asked a different question. What kind of conflict?"

"They had been at war for nearly two centuries."

"And you managed to resolve that?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"We talked."

"You just... talked?"

"For three weeks." She finally typed: Conflict Mediation and Resolution. Aldric read the line.

"That summarizes two centuries of war."

"It's already saying quite a lot."

"Do you speak multiple languages?"

"Eight." For the first time that morning, Emma regained a bit of enthusiasm.

"Oh!" At last, a skill she could actually use.

"Which ones?"

"Old Elvish. Modern Elvish. Draconic. Demonic. The Sacred Tongue. The language of the giants. The Eastern Dwarven dialect. And the language of the forest spirits." Emma's smile gradually disappeared. She stared at the screen for a few moments before deleting the line she had just written.

"None of those languages exist here."

"That's unfortunate."

"You don't speak English?"

"What is English?"

"We'll deal with that later..." She scrolled down to the final section of the résumé.

"All right. Tell me about your greatest achievements." Aldric thought for a few seconds.

"I slew an Ancient Dragon." Emma typed. Then deleted it.

"What else?"

"I sealed a demonic rift." The same sequence repeated. Type. Delete.

"I saved the capital during the Third Invasion." Deleted.

"I liberated three occupied kingdoms." Deleted.

"I forged an alliance with the Silver Dragons." Deleted.

"I defeated the Demon King." Emma took her hands off the keyboard. She pressed them against her face and remained like that for several long seconds. At last, she looked up.

"No recruiter is ever going to believe any of this."

"Why not?"

"Because it's impossible."

"And yet it's all true."

"But they don't know that."

"So applicants lie about their qualifications?"

"Some do."

"And recruiters?"

"That happens too."

"I don't understand. If a document is meant to present someone, why would it contain inaccurate information?"

"To improve their chances of being selected. All right, let's try a different approach. What makes you different from other applicants?"

"I'm still alive."

"That's a good start, but what else?"

"Almost no one in my party died during the campaign against the Demon King." She typed another line. Strong Team Leadership with a High Sense of Responsibility.

"That summarizes years of war."

"I know. It's frustrating." Still, she continued.

"One last question. What do you consider your greatest strength?"

"I always keep my promises."

"Always?"

"Always."

"Even when it becomes dangerous?"

"That is precisely when a promise has value." She typed one final line. Reliable and Trustworthy.

"That is also very incomplete." Emma burst out laughing.

"Welcome to the world of résumés." She read through the entire document one last time. After nearly two hours of discussion, deleting, and rewording, they had finally produced something that looked like a real résumé. The sections were concise. The sentences were short. Nothing hinted that its owner had fought dragons, negotiated with elves, or commanded tens of thousands of soldiers. She turned the laptop toward Aldric.

"There." The hero slowly read through the document. Skills: Leadership. Management. Stress Management. Conflict Resolution. Organization. Multilingual. Reliable. Experience: Team Leader.

"If someone were to read this document... they would know almost nothing about my life." Emma closed the laptop.

"Unfortunately, that's the whole idea. A recruiter sometimes spends less than a minute looking at a résumé. So you have to focus on what matters most."

"One minute to judge an entire life... That is a rather curious method."

"I have to admit, I agree with you." △ QUEST COMPLETE △ First Resume Created Reward: +250 XP △ NEW SKILL UNLOCKED △ Resume Writing Lv. 1 A faint smile appeared on his face before the window disappeared.

"What is it?"

"I believe this morning was not wasted after all."

"I told you it wouldn't be." She saved the document one last time before closing her laptop.

"There. I'll email you your résumé when I get home."

"By... email?"

"Right. I keep forgetting. I'll print it out for you."

"Ah. A paper copy."

"Now that's a much more reassuring method."

"I'll bring you several copies. You'll need them for your job applications."

"So your kingdom employs scribes who specialize in copying these documents?"

"Scribes?"

"Yes. Making several copies by hand must take a great deal of time." Emma burst out laughing.

"No. A printer does it."

"A printer?"

"A machine that reproduces the document perfectly in just a few seconds."

"Without a single copying error?"

"None."

"So your scribes have been replaced by machines."

"More or less."

"What a sad way for a profession to disappear." Aldric looked one last time at the dark screen of the laptop Emma had just put away.

"So your kingdom stores documents... inside these glowing chests?"

"More or less."

"Remarkable." At last, they left the café and started walking down the street.

"I have drafted peace treaties that were simpler than this document." Emma laughed.

"Just wait until you discover the cover letter." The hero came to an abrupt stop.

"There's more?" Emma gave him her most innocent smile.

"Of course."

"The trials of your world are remarkably cruel." They had barely walked fifty yards when Emma stopped in front of a small photo booth on the sidewalk. Several examples of passport photos were displayed above the door. She glanced at them for a moment before smiling.

"Ah. Perfect."

"What is it?"

"Your résumé is still missing one thing."

"What is it?"

"A photo." The hero studied the booth. He slowly walked around it before stopping in front of the entrance. Through the glass, he could make out a small seat, a screen, and a strange black lens positioned at face level.

"So the portrait artists work inside?"

"There isn't a portrait artist."

"Then a painter?"

"No."

"A sketch artist?"

"Still no." She opened the booth door.

"It's a machine that takes your portrait."

"A machine capable of creating an accurate portrait... Your kingdom truly has replaced many professions." Emma gestured for him to step inside. The hero cautiously sat down on the small seat. His eyes wandered around the booth. He examined the screen, the buttons, the coin slot, and, above all, the black lens facing him. The longer he stared at it, the more it felt as though some strange mechanical creature were studying him. Emma inserted a few coins. The screen immediately lit up.

An electronic voice echoed through the booth.

"Please look at the camera. Your photo will be taken in three... two... one..." A blinding flash suddenly filled the booth. By pure instinct, Aldric's hand flew to the hilt of his sword. His eyes swept across the street, searching for an invisible enemy. He remained like that for a few seconds before realizing that no one around him seemed alarmed. Emma was already laughing behind the glass. A few moments later, the photograph appeared on the screen. Aldric's face was perfectly clear.

"You look like someone just declared war on you."

"This portrait is unsatisfactory."

"Why?"

"It captured the precise moment I believed I was under attack." Emma wiped a tear from the corner of her eye before starting another set of photos.

"This time, don't move at all." The countdown began again. Aldric remained perfectly still until the second flash. When they saw the result, Emma burst out laughing once more. The hero was sitting perfectly upright, his hands resting on his knees, his back rigid, and his eyes fixed straight ahead. He looked less like a job applicant than the statue of an ancient king.

"You can relax a little..."

"I am relaxed."

"No... you're sitting like you're waiting for a military inspection." The hero studied his portrait once again.

"Indeed..." Emma started a third attempt.

"Just try to smile."

"For an official portrait?"

"Yes."

"For no particular reason?"

"Yes." He thought about it for a few seconds before trying. The result was even worse. His stiff smile looked far more like a grimace than an expression of happiness. Emma bit her lip to keep from laughing, but she only managed to hold it in for a few seconds.

"Stop... you're scaring me!"

"I must admit that expression is not particularly reassuring." After several more attempts, they finally managed to produce a satisfactory portrait. Aldric still wore his usual serious expression, but his face looked natural enough for a résumé. The machine then printed a sheet containing several identical photographs. Emma picked up the photos before handing one of them to Aldric. The hero studied his own face for a long moment.

"This is the first truly accurate portrait I have ever owned." Emma smiled. Then an idea suddenly crossed her mind. Without saying a word, she inserted a few more coins into the machine.

"Do we need to do it again?"

"Not exactly." She sat down on the seat and patted the empty space beside her.

"Come here."

"Why are we taking a second portrait?"

"Because we don't have a single photo of us together." The countdown began again. Just as the flash was about to go off, Emma turned toward Aldric with a bright smile. He remained perfectly upright, caught off guard by her sudden idea. A few seconds later, the photograph appeared. Emma burst into laughter. She looked at the picture for a few moments before carefully slipping it into her wallet.

"This one's staying with me."