Meanwhile…
Gray eyes, vibrant white hair, and fair skin reflected in the window's surface.
Asahi looked at the building, enjoying its design as people walked by. It was made of dark oak, stone, and some metal, with a bold arch in front and square sides. He could almost feel the building's friendly energy.
"So, this is the adventurer's guild, huh? It looks fairly bigger than what I have imagined."
Asahi admired the building, while Aletha admired herself in the reflection, absorbed in her features.
She struck a prideful pose, recalling the first time Belial gave her a mirror.
"I LOOK. FABULOUS!~"
Aletha's joy spread, energizing those nearby with her cheerful aura.
"Look at that girl, go!"
"She knows the moves! Rock on!"
"I never knew people could do that."
Even though Asahi was usually earnest and high-minded, when he noticed his sister dancing and posing in front of the window, his demeanor shifted.
"Ha ha ha!"
From his view, it looked like she was a goose without arms, her face as the beak, and the air as the neck.
The sight was so silly that Asahi couldn't hold back an uncontrollable smile.
It was a genuine and gleeful smile.
Radiant and lovely, showing Asahi's gleaming teeth.
Aletha froze—her brother was really laughing, something she hadn't seen in years.
A laugh—more than joy, a surrender to his long, somber "act." Aletha had waited years to see this from her brother, since the calamity.
Hypnotized by Asahi's smile, Kali giggled, unused to seeing him anything but serious in Dreamtoe Forest.
But now, seeing the one she loved, she made such a sparkling and brilliant smile, which made Kali Leila even more attracted to Asahi.
To Kali, Asahi's smile was a rare treasure she wanted to see more often. The group headed out, with Kali blushing as she approached Asahi.
"You have a pretty smile.~"
Asahi tried to stop laughing and responded in a high-pitched voice.
"Huh?"
Kali looked down, blushing. As Asahi's laugh faded to a smile,
"You look so much cuter when you're happy.~ I want to see you more like that."
Asahi blushed, surprised by Kali's words, but treasured them, hoping to stay positive.
* * *
Emine quickly hollered out to them while others around them resumed their duties.
"Come on! We don't have all day!"
The wanderers hurried to the recruit bench, surprising Emine with their speed and disregard for their surroundings.
(At least take a moment to breathe.)
. . .
A man who looked like he was in his fifties, with a square-shaped chin, thick bushy eyebrows, and a vast body, sat behind a wooden booth with the words [Reecruit Booth] engraved on top of the roof.
All Emine, Kali, Pridia, Fint, Canyon, Chloe, Asahi, and Aletha gathered around the booth, going through the process while only a few were waiting in line.
The eyebrow man leaned toward the wanderers, appearing both attentive and uninterested. He arched his back lazily to one side as he spoke.
"You're first training session will be atop Linuxinia mountain. There should be a chest there. Grab and loot the rewards while simultaneously scaling up the mountain and avoiding enemies. If you can prove that, then your rank will increase."
Aletha trembled at the thought of the quest.
"T... That sounds hard. With this group of people? It's going to be impossible to gather together!"
Canyon crossed his arms and sneered at the man.
"Don't you think it's a LITTLE harsh for this to be the FIRST challenge for recruits?"
Frustrated, the recruiter slammed his fists on the ground and raised his voice, unaware that he was being watched.
"Settle down. Lucky for you, this training session will be done in partners!"
Asahi commented while he unsheathed his blade and looked over at Kali Leila.
"This is gonna be easy."
But as his blade was only half-sheathed, the trainer quickly snagged Asahi's sword and yelled.
"Swords not from the guild are restricted and will be taken away until the session has either been completed or expired."
Asahi and Aletha jumped up in shock.
"What?!"
"Also, previous Dares who have completed the training session will not be eligible to help or provide any sort of assistance. It has to be fair."
Kali, Canyon, Fint, and Pridia all erupted.
"WHAT?!"
Fint bounced back up and sneered at the man, trying to keep his positive attitude at bay.
"Excuse me, sir, but making these three people climb a tall mountain is virtually impossible. They don't know anything, and the number of people is low! Speaking of which, there are only three. So how-"
The recruiter snarled and crossed his arms, pinching his nose and shrugging his shoulders.
(SLAM!)
Two partners ONLY! Not four, not three—TWO! Accept it or leave. I don't care. You are all incapable of handling this.
Canyon, Emine, and Fint shook their fists, irritated by the recruiter's rude actions. They wanted to yell at the man, but, seeing people around, forced themselves to stay calm.
Aletha dropped her arms, losing confidence in getting the license. The mountain was her main motivation, but the session's difficulty discouraged her.
She realized that only she and Chloe in the group were eligible, and felt cornered.
But luckily enough, a man with brown hair, wearing a black scarf, barged into the building, racing to the wanderers with his head soaked. Aletha couldn't believe who it was.
"Phthonus?"
"Finally, I've found you two."
The Wanderers were clueless about the events before, but relieved to see their friend arrive. The recruiter crinkled his nose and shouted.
"No more visitors! We close in an hour!"
That was the last straw for Canyon. In a rage, he lunged at the recruiter, choking him in frustration.
"Just let him in! Why are you so rude?! They're just newbies!"
The recruiter dared to respond with a strangulated voice.
"Only newbies are allowed! C... Come on... it's just the..."
"CANYON, what are you doing?!"
All the recruiter did was anger Canyon, even more, tightening his grip on his neck and closing the man's windpipes. His voice was filled with rage and hatred, screaming in fury.
"Only newbies? What if he were a newbie? Why are you being rude all of a sudden? No one in the adventurer's guild ever acts like that when I was recruited."
Everyone jumped in shock, gathering to stop Canyon as he shouted.
"Oh my goodness, you're so careless?! At least have some respect. Don't treat us like rodents.
Kali and Pridia tried to restrain Canyon, who kept choking the recruiter, while the crowd either cheered or yelled.
Asahi and Aletha, caught off guard and unfamiliar with the place, hesitated. The more they saw, the more the wanderers doubted if getting an adventurer's license was a good idea.
As chaos erupted inside and the recruiter neared death, a mysterious, magical voice echoed from the front doors.
"Oh, please. Two years ago, you acted the same way. Either you allow the others and go against the laws of the Adventurer's Guild, or risk your life."
Everyone turned to see three figures enter. Two were familiar to Asahi and Aletha—a brunette girl and a pink-haired boy. The third was unknown.
A petite girl with bright, pale skin, bird-like slate blue eyes, and tawny brown hair stood straight in front of everyone inside the building, holding what looked like a silver spoon covering her mouth.
The spoon would always follow her mouth, no matter what movement she made. Even a sparkle illuminated around it.
"Aww, look at that shy little girl covering her mouth with a spoon. What're you gonna do about it--
Suddenly, the mysterious girl grabbed the magical silver spoon and made a "scooping" gesture in the air.
"Ha! What's that gonna do?"
The girl made a slow smile, muttering.
"Heh, you'll see."
As the spoon "scooped" the air, golden particles began to appear on the spoon. Everyone gasped.
"Huh?"
The mysterious girl leaned over and pressed her finger on the tip of the spoon, bending it as if it were a catapult. And then, in such an exemplary manner, the girl threw the glittering golden particles on the man, effectively stinging him and forcing him to scream.
"Oww!"
The crowd backed up while the mysterious girl stepped forward and ordered the pink-haired boy and brunette-haired girl, introducing herself shortly after.
"Brunella, go and fix the mess in the Recruit Booth. Assistant Katib, try to escort that rude man to the hospital."
"On it!" Both replied.
Then, as the mysterious girl looked over to the white-haired siblings that stood out from the crowd, she bowed down and felt the spoon returning to float on her lips, introducing herself.
"Please excuse me. My name is Joshilyn. I am the founder of the Adventurer's Guild. Closing time will be extended by two hours. If any worker refuses, they will be fired on the spot, whether they like it or not."
Everyone in the building, including Canyon, fell silent. Never would anyone think that the one who owned the guild was no other than this tiny girl in front of them.
Now that they mention it, Asahi and Aletha realize that Ubel, along with Alai, was also here, wearing relatively mediocre wooden armor.
Ubel screamed from across the room.
"You guys are here, too? We were just getting done with our first task."
Aletha nodded her head.
"Yup! Same could be said for you!"
Asahi mumbled, noticing that two more had ended up here as well.
"Wait, why are Brunella and Katib here as well? Did the tornado just toss everyone here, too?"
Joshilyn politely coughed to regain everyone's attention. It seemed she wasn't finished yet.
"Ahem, does anyone know who Asahi... and um..." Joshilyn looked over her notes and continued with an unsure tone. "... Aletha is?"
Asahi raised his arm and hollered.
"Yeah, over here!"
Joshilyn quickly jumped up in shock and noticed the color of their hair. She mumbled while everyone in the room walked away and resumed what they were doing.
"White hair?! Yeah, I guess they DO look like what Brunella had described." She raised her arm and hollered at the two. "Hey, umm... Asahi and Aletha... come here."
Emine quickly intervened, pushing her dark hair back and mumbling.
"What do you think you're doing? You can't take them like that."
Joshilyn sneered.
"And who could have such a behavior toward the owner of the Adventurer's Guild?"
"ME! I already have these two for the upcoming race."
Fint stepped in, defending Josilyn and the Wanderers.
"Were you the one who brought Asahi and Aletha here in the first place? If so, you should respect this girl, especially if she's the owner."
"U... Ummm. Erm..."
Emine quickly fell silent, stammering to try and think of anything to counter it. But the crimson-haired man was right; she WAS the one who brought the wanderers here.
And so, without hesitation, the recruiter was fired, Canyon was excused, and Josilyn resumed the recruitment process, leading all of the group straight to the second, vacant booth.
* * *
"Since many newbies are eager to get their Adventurer's Licenses, I will extend the count to four. I feel generous today."
Joshilyn stood behind the counter, with the same spoon hovering in front of her mouth. During the process, everyone in the group was given a wooden name tag, despite some already having a license. It was only necessary to make keeping track of everyone easier. After everyone, including Canyon, had settled down, Josilyn moved forward and informed.s
"Right, okay. Asahi, Chloe, Canyon, and Brunella, I will make an exception for you. Even though some of you already have your adventurer's license, I'm allowing it since tomorrow will be a little risky."
Joshilyn looked over to all their brown nametags and stepped forward to the rest of the group.
"As for the rest of you, Aletha, Phthonus, Fint, and Kali, you will go on an entirely different expedition. I will share the details later. Don't worry; the difficulty does NOT change depending on location."
She pressed her fingers together, leaning over with a traditional posture.
"Alright, so any questions?"
Everyone in the group was silent. Joshilyn nodded, stepped out of the recruitment booth, and led all of them toward the quest board.
* * *
Understanding Joshilyn's commands was easy for most, but it was an absolute chore for Chloe since she was oblivious and uneducated regarding the Gincaidian language. All she ever knew was Asahi, and she has followed him ever since.
This made it clear that Asahi would be the one to guide Chloe, informing her of her native language while also translating it.
"Okay, what she is saying is to follow her."
Chloe raised her eyebrows, bending over and looking at Asahi's name card, clueless about who Joshilyn was. Without hesitation, she asked him.
"Who is she? Do you think you have it?"
Yet again, Asahi made another rare grin and nodded his head with a light chuckle.
"Yeah. Her name is Joshilyn. She said she was the owner of this place."
Chloe gave a doubtful expression as she peered over at the spoon girl.
"A...Are you sure? She looks very young."
Asahi scratched his head.
"Don't worry. Once we get started in this training session, I will teach you our language."
Chloe gulped.
"O... Okay."