The next day, in front of the D-rank city park fissure, a girl with short, curly brown hair was seen waiting for someone.
She checked her gadget with a look of astonishment.
"Did he decide not to register, perhaps?"
Hirogaru yami no naka kawashiatta kakumei no chigiriDarenimo jama saseru wake ni wa ikanai kara~ (Lyrics of the Death Note opening song)
Balance's gadget alarm blared loudly.
"Hold on~... It's Sunday today~ huuuaam."
Balance mumbled, but then he slowly became aware.
"Wait, I'm supposed to be on the run."
Balance frantically searched for his new gadget and realized he was 20 minutes late, with numerous chats from the recruiter 🗿.
Balance immediately called in a panic.
"I'm sorry, Miss Nicolle, I overslept 0∆0."
Nicolle replied.
"It's alright, really. After all, you're the only one who registered for our small party."
Balance quickly rushed to the meeting place in a great hurry.
Nicolle hung up the phone and then laughed.
"Thank goodness he only overslept, haha :)."
Feeling relieved, Nicolle sat down on the nearest bench and ate the sandwich she had brought while waiting for Balance.
A little later, Balance arrived, gasping for breath.
"I'm sorry, Sis, I was just..."
Before Balance could continue, Nicolle quickly covered his mouth.
"SSSHHH. You're accepted."
"Really?!" Balance was shocked.
Nicolle pointed behind Balance.
"You see? There are no other applicants besides you."
Balance turned to look.
"That's right."
Nicolle then introduced herself.
"Let me introduce myself again. My name is Nicolle, my class is Healer, the god I contracted with is Apollo (Apollo is the god of music, light, medicine, and prophecy in Greek and Roman mythology), and I am the one who founded this party. Our Party name is Sunflower, and we even have our own headquarters, even if it's just a small party."
Nicolle then led the way to their party headquarters.
"At the headquarters, we will train for a few weeks before we actually go to a fissure. Think of it as an internship."
Nicolle looked towards Balance with a smile.
"How about that?"
The shy Balance nodded his head, signaling yes.
"By the way, your class is a Munderer (Bringer of Death), right?" Nicolle asked.
Balance nodded again in response.
"And can you take out your opponents with your scythe in a whoosh-whoosh manner?"
Nicolle enthusiastically demonstrated, although Balance only responded with a puzzled look.
"It seems you're not like that 😔." Nicolle was slightly disappointed.
I didn't think my inner-weeb self was this bad.
After some time, they arrived at their party headquarters. The headquarters was located on the outskirts of the city, in a rather old wooden building with a forest behind it.
It's cool and refreshing here, but... isn't it too far from the city?
Nicolle started calling out to her friend, who was large, tall, and very muscular.
He was very tall; the height difference between me and him was 155 cm compared to 210 cm. I felt like a mouse facing a utility pole ☠️.
"Um, hello, are you a trespasser?" The man greeted him with what I assume was a very frightening look.
"Rock! Don't scare the new kid!" Nicolle scolded her friend, then looked at Balance.
"Let me introduce you to my friend. His name is Rock, he is the Shielder in our party, and this is Nox, the new DPS who just registered." Nicolle introduced them.
"Pleased to meet you, Nox. I apologize; I thought you were a trespasser trying to force us to sell this land. My name is Rock, and my system is the Aigis shield (the shield carried by the god Zeus)." Rock tried to explain.
"It's alright, that's a natural thing to think. My name is Nox, and my god is Anubis (the god of death in ancient Egyptian legend)." Balance reassured him.
Nicolle then invited him inside the headquarters.
Inside, there was one girl with blonde hair with a sky-blue gradient.
And a tomboyish girl with brown hair wearing a spider-patterned outfit.
"Wow, look, is that a new member?" They seemed very happy with his presence.
Nicolle then calmed down their overexcitement.
"Ahem, ahem, those who want to introduce themselves can line up first, okay? The new member is a bit shy, so don't scare him."
The two girls quickly obeyed Nicolle like soldiers saluting their general.
"My name is Riel, my class is Buffer, my god is Zelos (Zelos in Greek mythology is the god who symbolizes zeal, rivalry, and envy)," said the blonde-haired girl with the blue gradient at the tips.
"My name is Areta, my class is Debuffer, my goddess is Arachne (Arachne was a woman who was very skilled in weaving)," said the tomboyish girl with the spider motif.
I smiled and then introduced myself.
"Hello, I'm Nox, my class is Munderer, and my god is Anubis."
They started to become a bit aggressive again; I felt like I was being pushed.
"MUNDERER?! CAN YOU STRIKE A POSE ON TOP OF THE CLOCK TOWER IN FRONT OF THE SHINING MOON LIKE IN THE MOVIES?! DO YOU CARRY THE LOST SOULS OF THE DEAD IN THE RIVER NYX?! HOW BIG IS YOUR SCYTHE?! CAN YOU DISAPPEAR LIKE AN ASSASSIN?!"
They asked many unnecessary things until Nicolle calmed them down and explained my situation.
"RIEL! ARETA! Oh my goodness, he just registered with the council yesterday, so he doesn't have things like that yet."
Nicolle pulled me to follow her after she scolded Riel and Areta.
"Let me show you where your bed is if you want to stay here. This used to be the room of our old DPS, but he ended up abandoning us, and that's how this house became an old shack. So... since you're starting stamina training tomorrow, I see your muscles are quite weak for a DPS."
"Then who will teach me?"
"Rock will teach you. He is the fittest member among us. So, do you want to go home or sleep in this room today?"
My answer was only one.
"I'll stay here so I won't be late, right?"
"Good choice, Nox. You can rest now; meeting new people can be tiring for an introvert, can't it?"
Nicolle then went downstairs to the first floor of the headquarters to cook and prepare the target report for the next mission.
Meanwhile, in the room of their former friend, I looked for clues about him. I saw a photo where Nicolle and THE MYSTIC HUNTER A.K.A. Hero were still dating at an amusement park. Based on how faded the photo was, their picture must be 7–9 years old. I would never have thought they were connected in the past.
"Could the DPS they referred to back then be the Hero?"
Ah, I'm being very impolite. For now, it's better not to think about it.
Balance then lay down on the room's bed to rest.
In the living room on the first floor, the Sunflower party members debated Balance's position.
Rock looked at Nicolle.
"Nicolle, can he really be trusted?"
"He does look trustworthy, but aren't kids these days very good at lying, Nicolle?" Areta pressed.
"Nicolle, I just don't want you to be taken advantage of again like before. Our party isn't as strong and famous as it was in its heyday. At worst, we'll be destroyed by 'him'," Riel said with deep concern.
"I apologize to you all for making you worry, but I am quite sure and trust him. Even though I know he's hiding many things, I also believe he's not a bad person." Nicolle convinced her friends to trust him.
Rock sighed.
"Alright, if that's your decision, Leader."
Nicolle then clapped her hands twice to lighten the mood.
"Now, how about we think about the dinner menu this afternoon?"
Riel then raised her hand to offer an idea.
"How about meat, as a way to celebrate our sweet new member?"
"That's a great idea, Riel!!" Areta exclaimed excitedly.
Nicolle then looked at Rock as if to say, "What's your opinion?"
"Well, it's up to you guys," Rock replied with a slightly annoyed tone.
They then pooled their money to buy meat and divided up the tasks.
Rock prepared the training equipment that had been gathering dust in the backyard of the headquarters.
Riel prepared ingredients in the kitchen and the buff potions.
Areta prepared some poisons and accompanied Nicolle to buy delicious meat.
At 3 p.m., Balance woke up, then walked down the stairs. Right below the stairs, Rock was waiting for him.
"You're awake, it seems. Nicolle and Areta are buying groceries. Wash your face, and we'll do some initial training in the backyard while waiting for them to prepare the food." Rock said, pointing to the back door.
Balance nodded his head and immediately went to the sink.
In front of the sink, Balance saw his own reflection with a serious face.
Should I be honest about my body? Even though I'm supposed to be a strong Damage Dealer, I have low stats in HP, ATK, and DEF. Conversely, my mana is very high. This has been the case since I was born. According to the Imperial doctor, my living until now is a miracle in itself. The doctor doesn't really know what's going on, but Father was too afraid to tell Mother, so when Mother took me to the base, she immediately gave me heavy training because she thought I should have power like hers.
I'm truly sorry, Mother, I disappointed you.
"Alright, no matter what happens, I have to become stronger!"
Balance opened the door and announced that he was ready to participate in the training.
Rock told him to follow him to the backyard.
There were many wooden weapons, shields, and old straw dummies visible.
"These weapons and dummies are old, but they are more than enough for beginners to train with." Rock said, sticking one of the wooden swords into the dry ground.
Rock then started to get into position to provoke Balance.
He stomped his foot and extended one hand towards Balance.
"Come on, attack me, young one!"
Balance was slightly startled by this. He stood silently in the doorway with a spear he had taken from the weapon basket.
The scene was dramatized by a strong gust of wind passing through.
To be continued