The next day I woke up with a strange sensation. Maybe it was my imagination, but for the first time in these two months of travel, I slept in a way I didn't recognize, as if my body missed a warmth that was no longer there.
...What misery.
[She didn't leave by choice... Actually, she never abandoned you.]
Ayam had been "torturing" me daily these past few months, just to keep me from falling apart.
...I know.
[You know?]
...Yes, I know.
[I know that too]
...Ayam, knowing she left for another reason doesn't mean this is any easier. On the contrary, I feel it's my fault for handling things that way. Maybe if I had stopped myself, if I hadn't done it with her, surely she would have stayed or—
[She would have left anyway. Believe me, she had already made the decision the moment she saw you almost die. Making her stay was statistically impossible, brother]
...I shouldn't have been so weak against Orsted.
[You are incorrigible... Yesterday you promised me you wouldn't torture yourself, but there you go again]
...I was just saying that if I had proven to be better in that fight...
[No matter how much you showed off with a new technique, you wouldn't have been able to beat him. He is a God, Daiki. Did you think you'd have a chance being barely 13 years old?]
...
[Look, I'm tired of your mental torture, that's why I have no tact and I'm telling you straight to your face. Literally.]
That forced a faint smile out of me, barely a breath of a laugh, as I slapped my forehead with my palms.
...You're right. Sometimes Hikari tackles me and ends up overwhelming me.
[Do you also forget Paul and Ghislaine's teachings about the sword? How do you plan to improve if you stay lost in your thoughts instead of focusing on the blade and your training?]
While Ayam spoke, I took out my Adventurer card. Even though the party dissolved, if Cliff ever decided to reform the group with me, his card would still say "Crimson Crest", while mine no longer did.
...You're right. I'm going to continue with my training.
[By the way, what do you plan to do with your pistol? Do you plan to make a real one in this world?]
...Not a bad idea. If bows are viable, a pistol would be even better. They're easier to carry, handle, and reload, plus, they have superior speed. The only catch is the zero stealth factor. Say you go up against a swordsman faster than you... let's face it, in this world, they can dodge things like that. At the Advanced Level, at least, they could evade or deflect bullets with their blades. And even then, the gunshot would be deafening
[Sure, they wouldn't expect a sound of a hundred and sixty decibels coming out of an object the size of a finger.]
...No one unfamiliar with the weapon will be able to dodge it by surprise, that is a fact. But if the combat drags on... I have my doubts.
I lit the stove again, using a bit more wood and a fire spell to help it start quickly.
...A 9mm bullet. Its speed is barely supersonic. An Advanced Rank swordsman, trained to react to the speed of a Sword God thrust, could see it coming or intuit the trajectory by looking at the barrel. If I wanted something truly lethal and undodgeable for that level, I would need higher muzzle velocity and stopping power.
[Exactly, what do you propose?]
...Like a Desert Eagle .50 AE. Or a sniper rifle. With the Springfield I only have the element of surprise. Against an expert, that would only work once. Even so, it's too soon to think about that. First I must see if it's feasible to manufacture it. Besides, considering Touki, a simple bullet would probably bounce off.
...
After thirty minutes thinking about the idea of creating a weapon, which was absurd considering I didn't have any of the necessary materials...
[Current time...]
...It's 7:30, right?
[Correct. You're doing well.]
...It's not hard. You just have to look at the position of the moon and...
[Don't get smart. I know it without even doing that much calculation...]
...You literally have a calendar in your "system", that's why you knew it was Christmas when we were in Roa. I mean, you have the clock of this world and the other one.
[And why do you think I have it?]
....
"Brother?" A familiar voice pulled me out of my thoughts, something Ayam took advantage of to retreat. "Are you okay?"
"Eh? Yes, good morning."
"It's just that you stood staring at a fixed point until I snapped you out of your trance."
"Ah, that... Let's just say I was thinking about what to do with the 'Blacktail'."
"Oh..." Rudeus made a strange face while stretching. "I thought I was going to wake up in an icebox, but you lit the stove." He smiled. "I am privileged."
I got up from the chair and tucked the pistol into my waistband, inside a leather holster I had made myself.
"That was the geekiest thing I've ever seen you do, brother," Rudeus said as he got up and put on his robe.
"Geeky?"
"You know, carrying something fake, like a cosplay..."
"It's a way to keep anyone from stealing my idea. If I leave it in a bag or a drawer, it's more likely someone will take it."
"Sure."
"You know I could cut down a tree with this wooden pistol, right?"
He didn't say anything. He understood my point and went toward the door after adjusting his robe.
"Okay... Shall we buy clothes for this cold?"
I put on my cloak, hiding the pistol, as I approached him.
"Sure, we'll buy you one. Winter is unforgiving."
"We'll buy? Not you?"
"The cold is good training, Rudy."
He sighed, resigned to having a brother with so much discipline when he just wanted to rest a bit. Anyway, after buying clothes more suitable for this weather, we'll go looking for missions.
...
Our plan to find our mother basically boiled down to making a name for ourselves. If we became famous enough, there was a chance Zenith would come looking for us. It was a slim possibility that made me anxious, but it was the only thing we could do.
According to Rudeus, forging a reputation in this city, which he considered miserable just because of the snow, was not going to be fun. Besides, there was the risk that even if we became local celebrities, we wouldn't manage to find her. If the Fittoa Search and Rescue Squad was a large organization and had searched for her without results, we would need a lot of luck to pull it off.
We were just teenagers facing an immense world, one that changes destinies almost with the sole purpose of ruining lives. Looking at it that way, the fact that I belong to this place is an anomaly in itself. Darian was a ten-year-old boy who never got to live, and with whom, somehow, I shared a connection. I decided to ignore that during these months. If I tried to analyze who I really was, I would only get lost in something that no longer exists and I wouldn't be able to look for what I still had.
"Brother, I know I never asked you... Do you still think about Darian?"
"No, not anymore. That ceased to exist, Rudy. Now, focus."
We entered the Adventurers' Guild. As we did, several people looked directly at us.
"Hey, look. Some kids just walked in."
"What? Are they some kind of rookies...?"
"The older brother wants to pretend to be strong in front of his little brother..."
Ignoring the murmurs, we walked toward the reception area. Rudeus slid his Adventurer Card to the other side of the counter.
"Uh... could you, please... disband my party?" Rudeus asked, referring to Dead End.
I knew how he felt, or at least I understood it. The same thing happened to me when I had to leave my group "Crimson Crest".
"Uhm..." I snorted while looking at my own Adventurer Card.
"Of course. I'll take care of that right now." The secretary took his card and got to work with an expression of empathy on her face. "Here you go."
"...Thanks." Rudeus wiped his tears with the sleeve of his robe and took his card.
Then he approached me.
" 'Team Greyrat'? It sounds pretentious, but if it becomes famous, maybe Sylphy will also know that we are still alive."
"That... Rudy, is very feasible. I like it. Besides, Mom knew about the 'Team Greyrat that climbed trees and was punished with cookies'." Unintentionally, I started crying too.
After having chosen the name, although Rudeus felt somewhat embarrassed, he approached the counter and informed the secretary.
"New group, right?" She seemed surprised, but relieved to see new hope on our faces. "Perfect. What would be the name?"
Rudeus looked at me. After receiving my nod, he looked back at the woman and said, "Team Greyrat, please."
She looked at us for a few seconds, then simply smiled.
"Give me your cards and that will be all." We handed them to her. "Wow... Two Rank A's? Incredible. Okay, that would be all."
We took our cards and put them away, going immediately toward the main bulletin board.
"Okay, one to start..." Rudeus began to murmur.
While he looked, I couldn't help but make the comparison. The vast majority of jobs available in Asura are low difficulty, and as you go up in category, the options become scarce. The result is predictable. Adventurers who manage to advance a bit in the ranks end up leaving the country behind. Out of pure professional necessity, they migrate south, to the King Dragon Realm, or head north, toward the nations of the Magic Alliance. That is where the work really is.
"Mmmm..."
At the moment there wasn't any Rank S work, so we had to take something from ranks A or B. Fortunately, there was a good amount available for that level. Considering how unusual this is in the Central Continent, the abundance of these missions only confirmed how hard life is here.
A: Eliminate the pack of Luster Grizzly Bears at Lake Cucuru.
B: Protect a large logging operation in the Hadra Forest.
B: Escort a caravan transporting goods toward the Duchy of Neris.
We took the Rank A mission. Not because it was the easiest or fastest, but because it would be the best way to start making ourselves known. Two "kids" taking down a pack of Luster Grizzly Bears isn't something you see every day. Besides, I was curious, since I was still unfamiliar with the monstrous fauna of this place.
The secretary took the paper along with my card, looked at it, and blinked in surprise.
"Eh? Um... Just the two of you?"
"Oh. Well, uh... Actually, we planned to do this job alone," Rudeus replied with a nervous smile.
"What? Uhh... I think this might be a little difficult for a single mage and a swordsman... Rank A jobs are designed to be performed by a complete party, you know?"
"And what are we?" I asked coldly.
"Um... You're a duo."
"Eh... okay," Rudeus murmured.
"I'm sorry, but honestly I don't think I can let you take this mission."
The secretary was right, technically. Under normal circumstances, facing an entire pack of monsters without a full party would be madness. Even so, I calculated it as an acceptable risk. We weren't going to make a name for ourselves by playing it safe. It was difficult to estimate the exact level of danger... but, honestly, I didn't care. It's not like I was enjoying my life right now.
[It's not that she's bad, just professional. However... she relies too much on stigma. I know that in her eyes you are children, but Rank A should be enough proof for them to trust]
...Well, I don't blame her.
"Hello. Is there a problem?"
A voice spoke to me from behind, just enough to bring me back to reality.
"It's nothing," we both replied in unison.
When we turned around, we found a familiar face. It was the same warrior with braids who spoke to us non-stop during the trip here. Beside her was the blonde girl.
The warrior was Suzanne, the girl, Sara.
"Well, I couldn't help but overhear. Your old party was killed, but you need money to look for your mother, right? Is that why you are trying to take a job like that by yourselves? Very touching."
We both decided to remain silent. Our party hadn't been killed and we weren't exactly broke. We had enough money to live for several years, so that wasn't the problem.
"So, I have a proposal. How about we do this job together?"
"Together?" I asked curiously.
"But we already formed a party..." my brother tried to say, but I interrupted him.
"We also just arrived. Normally we would try to take something like this on our own, but we are in unknown territory. It wouldn't hurt to cooperate while we get used to the environment, don't you think?"
"We planned to become famous on our own, you know? To make the search for our mother easier," said Rudeus.
"C'mon. Nobody gets famous riding solo. You wanna make a name for yourselves? You need connections to get the word out. That means joining parties or forming clans, and doing whatever it takes to survive. Am I right, boys?"
The men in the group nodded. Sara, on the other hand, was the only one who didn't seem excited about the idea, and I couldn't blame her. Considering this is a dangerous zone, the logical thing would be to join veterans accustomed to the terrain and the monsters of the region, not two kids who are as lost as you.
Logically speaking, two "kids" on their own wouldn't be relevant. No matter how much we achieved on our own, it was hard to imagine anything more than simple vague rumors circulating about us. Adventurers rarely take a deep interest in their peers, and they wouldn't make an exception for us.
If we continued alone, maybe the rumor of two twins, a mage and a swordsman, achieving incredible feats would spread. But the problem lay in the details. We needed people to know specifically that we were from Fittoa, that we were capable of using chantless magic and, above all, that we were looking for our mother, missing after the Displacement Incident.
The only way for our story to spread correctly was by connecting with others.
I totally agreed with her reasoning. It was the most logical thing. Isolated we wouldn't get very far. And although sometimes I felt it was better to do everything on my own or just with my brother, I recognized that this time I had to put pride aside and opt for the smartest strategy.
[Very good choice. Even if it's the smart move, history shows that parties usually dissolve or, worse yet, destroy each other. It's a double-edged sword, but rejecting the offer would have been stupidity.]
...Exactly.
"You look too young, but you are Rank A adventurers, so I suppose you can take care of yourselves. What are your specialties?"
"Well... in my old party, I stuck to the backline. I'm good at supporting the vanguard fighters with my magic."
"And I take the frontline. Although in my previous group, I covered both positions."
"Both positions...?"
"Nothing that Advanced level fire magic and the North God Style can't handle," I said simply.
Suzanne's eyes shone suddenly.
"Then it's perfect. We were just thinking that our party could use someone else in the rearguard, we didn't expect to have both positions covered."
"Very well. We accept the proposal. However, we expect good camaraderie."
And I meant it. I didn't want my brother to have a hard time in a group where they might reject him. Sara seemed to get the message, but she didn't stop making annoyed faces.
"Fantastic. Then let's take the rest of the day to prepare. How about we meet at the north gate early tomorrow?"
"Sure."