Dead End Guild Master

Hans had a realization that changed the direction of his adventuring career: "above average" is different from "great." At 39, with a litany of lingering injuries, he accepted that he would never progress from Gold-ranked to Diamond-ranked — lacking whatever secret sauce produced the legendary adventurers he grew up admiring. With his prime behind him and disillusioned by guild politics, Hans accepts a guild master posting in a remote village no one else wanted. Arriving in the small town of Gomi at the foot of the Dead End Mountains, his unconventional teaching methods earn him allies and enemies, while his career failures find ways to resurface. A slice-of-life fantasy exploring life post-adventuring and the challenge of reconciling dreams with reality.

The discovery of Gomi's fledgling dungeon upended Hans's plans for quiet days of reading between teaching classes. Running the local Adventurers' Guild chapter has become a clandestine operation — training adventurers to cull the dungeon while using the dungeon core's unique abilities to inject unprecedented wealth into the town. As Gomi contends with a growing dungeon, fallout from an orc war across the kingdom creates new challenges. Blossoming apprentices dream of life on the road but can't leave due to the town's secrets. Long-dead comrades reenter Hans's life in unexpected ways, and he must confront the shortcomings that ended his career. Gomi is counting on Hans's expert knowledge to keep everyone safe — and if he comes up short, someone he cares for will pay the price.