"Phew~" Jhin wiped the sweat from his forehead. Wrangling Megumi was genuinely exhausting work — though thankfully, he had his own methods.
Through the glass, he spotted Kyaru, Pecorine, and Kokkoro clinging to one another in a trembling huddle. He gave them a casual wave. "When did you three get so close? Anyway, I'm going to shower. Megumi's your problem now."
Kyaru instantly dropped her arms from around Pecorine, flushing. "L-let's get one thing straight — I was not scared. I just noticed you were shaking and thought I'd be considerate."
"We should probably go check on Megumi," Pecorine said.
"You're right."
The three of them rushed outside — and found Megumi passed out flat on the ground, eyes rolled back, mouth stuffed with deep-forest boar meat, a wooden sign hanging around her neck that read: 'I AM THE IDIOT MAGE WHO ATTACKED MY OWN TEAMMATE.' They carried her inside without delay.
"Let me tell you, Jhin is absolutely inhuman!" Megumi, once she'd come around, continued eating the grilled meat still crammed in her mouth while loudly venting her grievances to the other three. "Doing something like that — I'm a girl! How can he be so shameless and rough toward a girl? Didn't his parents ever teach him to be gentle?"
"I only have an older sister, so I'm sorry about that." Jhin had just stepped out of the shower and caught the tail end of her tirade, tossing back a reply without breaking his stride.
Megumi froze mid-sentence. All the colour drained from her face, replaced by guilt and mortified panic. "Ah — I — I didn't know, I was just running my mouth, please don't take it to heart."
"I don't care about something that trivial." The complete nonchalance on Jhin's face only made Megumi feel worse. As far as she was concerned, someone who could shrug off a comment like that must have weathered plenty of real hardship growing up. That night she lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep — until she sat bolt upright, remembered the whole thing, and slapped herself across the face with tears in her eyes. "I'm the absolute worst."
Back in the living room, the atmosphere had grown slightly heavy. Jhin set the application forms down on the table. "Today is the day the guild officially comes into existence — stop overthinking things and get these filled out. And while you're at it, let's all put our heads together and come up with a decent name."
"M-me first!" Megumi blazed through signing her name at record speed, then proposed the name she clearly considered incredibly cool: "How about we call the guild 'Explosion Magic is Number One Under Heaven'?"
"Rejected. That is transparently self-serving. Go take your shower."
"B-but Explosion Magic really is incredibly cool." Shot down, Megumi could only mutter under her breath as she reluctantly shuffled off toward the bathroom, casting longing glances back at the blank guild-name field on the form.
Kyaru had no particular desire to get any more entangled with the others than necessary, and no intention of becoming close friends with Jhin's group. She raised her hand. "I'm not very good at naming things, so I'll pass."
"Right, so the burden of naming falls on the three of us." Jhin tilted his head toward Kokkoro and Pecorine. "Do either of you have any ideas?"
"Master, what was the founding vision behind this guild in the first place?" Kokkoro said, folding her hands neatly. "Starting from the original intent might help us find the right name."
"That's a good point. I have a feeling Pecorine can already guess part of the answer."
Pecorine was surprised Jhin hadn't simply told them outright, and tilted her head in mild confusion. "I couldn't say for certain — but if it were me, I'd want to wander the world in search of delicious food."
"Exactly right." Jhin nodded in agreement. "The founding vision of our guild is simple: travel the world with good companions, seek out rare and extraordinary foods, live at a leisurely pace — and take on the occasional quest on the side!"
"Quests are just a side thing? That feels a little unlike an adventurer's guild."
"Kyaru, you should know that dragon meat is one of the legendary ingredients out there — slaying a dragon fits the adventurer's guild's ultimate purpose perfectly, wouldn't you say?" The moment food came up, Pecorine launched into an unstoppable torrent of culinary knowledge and references, nearly drowning Kyaru in an ocean of gourmet lore.
"Master, since both you and Pecorine love food so much," Kokkoro said with a thoughtful tilt of her head, "why not call the guild 'Gourmet Hall'?"
The suggestion earned immediate approval from both of them. Pecorine stepped forward and clasped Kokkoro's hands tightly, eyes sparkling. "Kokkoro — you truly have a deep understanding of the culinary arts. To come up with such a wonderful name!"
"Three votes in favour. Kyaru abstained. Megumi would obviously vote against anything that didn't have 'Explosion Magic' in the title, so she counts as opposed. Motion carried — the guild shall henceforth be known as 'Gourmet Hall'." Jhin swiftly wrote the name on the application form and tucked it away before Megumi could sneak back and tamper with it.
By the time Megumi emerged in her freshly dried clothes, the group made their way back to Landosol at a brisk pace, arriving just before night fell over the land, and presented themselves at the Adventurers' Guild.
Jhin handed the application form to the receptionist, who verified the contents, produced a stamp, and pressed it down with a firm thud. "And with that, your guild is officially registered."
"We currently have only one property left available for guild rental. Members of Gourmet Hall — would you like to take a look?"
Although Jhin had the Capsule House — a home he could carry anywhere — it was mostly suited for use out in the wilderness, far from civilisation. Renting a place from the Adventurers' Guild for daily use wasn't a bad idea at all.
He turned to the others. "What do you all think — shall we rent it?"
"A guild still needs a proper home base, doesn't it?"
"I'd rather not sleep outdoors every night."
"As long as I'm with Master, anywhere is fine by me."
"I just hope the living room is big enough for everyone to eat together."
"Unanimous, then. Could you please show us the property?"
"Of course. My name is Hanarin — if there's ever anything you're unsure about on your adventures, feel free to come find me." Hanarin introduced herself, exchanged a few words with her colleagues, stepped around the counter, and led Jhin's group toward the last remaining guild cottage.
The continent of Astraea was vast beyond measure, and Landosol, as the royal capital, was no small city. Hanarin walked at the front, leading the group for a good ten-odd minutes — out of the Western-style streets and into the quiet countryside, until they came to a stop before a secluded little cottage.
From the outside, at least, it was hard to find fault with it. The triangular roof was covered in neat rows of fish-scale red tiles, and the building featured something resembling a castle tower — the whole effect was charming and whimsical, with enough space inside for all five of them to live comfortably without any trouble.
"Oh~ not bad at all." Kyaru had half-expected the last remaining property to be some crumbling, nobody-wants-it wreck — so the surprisingly appealing exterior caught her off guard. She stepped up to the doorway and ran a finger along the doorframe; the pad of her finger came away coated in a thick layer of dust. "It's just been empty for a while — there's quite a bit of dust."
"Kyaru, open the door and let's see what the inside looks like."
"Got it!" Kyaru answered and pulled the door open — then immediately clapped her hand over her nose as a heavy cascade of dust rained down from the frame.
And then she saw hell.
____
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🔥 New history: Oshi No Ko: Co-starring with Kana Arima
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