Leading a party, Gin learned, was actually a pretty simple yet demanding job.
His primary responsibility as a captain was obviously during dungeon exploration, but he also had to split up rewards, place orders for supplies, and handle a slew of other bureaucratic tasks that he never had to deal with when he went solo.
It was a good thing that Riveria had taught him about this stuff to prepare him for his eventual real captaincy.
He really owed her a lot.
If not for her guidance, he wouldn't be surprised if one of his members started to embezzle his funds or something.
Fortunately, his duty as the leader in the dungeon had gone pretty smoothly, all things considered.
He had previously worked with and led a party while dungeon diving with Raul and Aki.
That experience was clearly helping him right now.
It also wasn't hard to set up a working formation with his small party of six, considering their clear roles.
Elily and Rem at the front, the twins in the middle, while he and Elise stood at the very back.
It was quite similar to the three-man party formation that he used when adventuring with Raul and Aki.
Speaking of the two of them, it was quite hard not to compare his two friends with his brand-new members.
Elily had a better physique, while Rem's skill with weapons was slightly superior to Raul's, but the Loki Familia rookie was strangely more stable than his new frontliners.
He supposed that Raul was more attentive compared to the two of them combined.
He knew when to defend and when to attack, and he understood which enemy should be his priority.
Not only that, his skill as a supporter made the exploration smoother, thus allowing them to farm more magic stones and defeat more enemies.
The same went for Pock and Pott compared to Aki.
The twins' combination was amazing.
They blitzed through the enemies, attacked from their blind spots, and retreated before the enemy could counter, but they were, well… kind of weak? They rarely dealt a significant blow to the enemy.
Not only that, Pock was a glory hog. He would chase the enemy too far, even when he didn't need to.
Pott, being the supportive sister that she was, followed his lead even while scolding him.
Luckily, there hadn't been any problems with their antics, but unfortunately, without any problems, Pock didn't see the issue with being a moron.
Compared to the two, Aki's performance was always reliable.
He knew that he could leave her to her own devices, and she would be able to defeat any enemies just fine.
Her calm temperament also meant that she would always wait for his instruction before chasing after another monster.
And Elise… Well, Elise was Elise.
Her presence in the party helped reduce the use of health and mind potions, but most of the time, she was stuck doing nothing.
He didn't see any reason to let her join the melee, and her supporter skills were not that great, to be honest.
The bright side was that she didn't complain when he asked her to help with the luggage.
It was why the fact that this party managed to reach the 12th floor in a single month without taking any casualties was so surprising to him.
Gin swallowed back his sigh as he finished up another cake.
It would be rude to the patissier if he let his worry prevent him from enjoying their hard work.
The fact that he knew some of them from his frequent visits reinforced that as well.
Placing the utensils on the empty plate carefully, he rang the bell on the table and watched as a staff member quickly came and cleaned up the empty plate.
"The velvet cake was wonderful. Can I place another order? I want to try the cheesecake next." He offered her a polite smile as he placed his order.
"Of course, Mr. Hvergel. The kitchen staff is pleased that you will visit our shop again. I will make sure they hear your take on the cake." The waitress nodded readily.
It was weird how this same waitress used to look at him in disbelief whenever he asked for seconds.
Time really changes people.
Even though it must have been a couple of months ago, it still felt like yesterday that he first visited this little café in the 7th District.
"Thank you." He returned her nod before pouring a cup of tea for himself. "Anyone want a refill?"
"Umu, I would be pleased to down another cup of this minor ambrosia."
"Oh, me! Add two sugars to them, Gin."
Gin poured another cup for Hel and Elise before turning to the rest of his familia.
They were looking at him with complicated expressions.
"He just downed a whole cake alone, and he still wants more? What kind of stomach does he have?" Elily stared at him, half-confused, half-envious. "I can never get used to this sight."
"I don't think he ever gained weight either. His stomach isn't normal," Pott muttered. "Hmm… maybe for the captain, calories are converted directly into Mind?"
"Forget the amount. The creepy thing is how poshly he ate. Does he really need to act this classy just for eating a cake?"
Does this pallum expect him to eat like a farm animal? Preposterous!
As the representative of Hel, he would uphold etiquette at all times.
"Isn't it good to follow his manners? Should I eat like that too?" Good job, Rem. He decided to procure a cake for her later.
Gin sipped his tea, ignoring their comments. Instead, his mind returned to his worry. If he wanted to explore the 13th floor downwards, his party needed to get better.
Failing that, he might finally taste one or two casualties.
But, was it the right time to talk about it, when his party's morale was high?
He decided to voice his worry directly.
Hadn't he resolved to put his trust in them? He put down his cup and cleared his throat, catching their attention.
He put on his most serious expression and addressed them.
"Guys, we need to talk."
Pock only raised his eyebrow. "Dude, we know you are gay. You kinda made it clear with how you wished for more men back then. Skip the pleasantries and out with it. We're cool with that."
"Huh?" Gin looked at the members and they nodded at him slowly.
Their understanding was clearly bigger than their brains.
He frowned at them, internally dragging down their position in the ranking of people that he liked by ten spots.
Now they ranked directly above Tsubaki.
"I'm just surprised because you value my sexuality more than the risks of the dungeon and your lives." He leveled a disappointed stare of doom at them. "I know that I'm amazing but it is still weird, bro."
"He's not denying it," Elily whispered to Rem.
These guys were stupid. His familia's future was looking pretty bleak now.
"Captain, it's okay. I think love has no boundaries." He was canceling that cake. No cake for stupid Rem.
"So well, why are you gay?"
"If by 'gay' you mean 'lighthearted and carefree' then it's because I see Hel-sama every time I wake up, but I am not gay gay. I mean sure, I think Miach-sama is kind of easy on the eyes, but that's it!"
Their stares were judging him even more now.
"Am I not explaining myself well enough here!?"
Their eyes became more gentle.
"I am not gayyyy." He spelled the words slowly, hoping that their brains could finally catch up.
"Right." Pock nodded sarcastically. "Prove it then."
"Prove what?"
"That you are not gay."
Gin willed his brain to come to life.
Countless futures opened by each choice were quickly analyzed and dissected.
Pattern 1:
"How, by kissing your sister?"
"Uhm, sorry Captain. You are not my type." Pott smiled at him nervously.
Victim: Gin Hvergel. 16 Years old.
Cause of Death: Rejected by someone he didn't like in the first place!
Pattern 2:
Wax poetic about Hel-sama's splendor.
"So the main pulling point of Hel-sama is her petite portable size. Yet look at this majesty! Her shining eyes, her bombastic character design! See, see! Hel is the best! All Hail Hel-itannia!"
"My champion." Hel looked down at him. "O'kawaii koto."
He came in public!
Shit! There was no escape from this.
Think brain! Think! What shows straightness like no other?
His brain stumbled upon the true answer.
…Popularity with girls.
No gay man will be popular with girls. Which group did he know that had the most girls in it?
Ah.
The waitress came to the table again, carrying his ordered cheesecake.
"Mr. Hvergel, this is the cheesecake that you ordered."
"Sorry, can you wrap this up for me? Please prepare one more velvet cake along with a matcha cake as well. I want to present it to someone." Gin smiled as he handed her a tip. "Please keep the wrapping simple and elegant."
"Of course, please wait for a moment."
He was already in the 7th District anyway.
'Let's just visit the Stardust Garden.'
It had been a while since he met the Astraea Familia anyway.
The smell of food from everywhere assaulted his nose, seducing him to simply accept the stigma of being homosexual as he devoured the dishes along with his tears.
Yet he soldiered on, focusing on more important stuff, like protecting the future where he stood proudly beside Hel and Riveria and didn't have them think he batted for the other team.
He paused for a while, noticing a weird thing… Why was Riveria on that list?
…Nah, too complicated to think about for now.
He turned back toward his familia, making sure they weren't lost in the crowd of people.
"Now that I think about it, I haven't introduced you guys to our allies, huh?" Gin chatted with them as he led his familia through the streets of the 7th District.
"We've been so busy with dungeon diving, I forgot to do that. Even you have only met with the Loki Familia, right? Elise?"
"Yeah, it was a month ago, I think?" Elise tilted her head. "Do we have more allies, Gin? I know Demeter-sama, Miach-sama and Tsubaki-san. Mama Mia is also our ally… Are there more?"
"Wait, wait, wait." Pock interrupted her. "Loki Familia!? Like the Loki Familia? Braver's familia? We are allied with them? That's news to me!"
"…Surprise?"
"That's too much of a surprise you stupid captain!" Pock tried to land a kick at his butt, but Gin dodged it by spinning around and moonwalking away. "Damn you, showoff!"
"Elise, is it really true?" Gin listened as Rem talked with Elise behind him. "Are we really allied with them? And you've met them too?"
"Yup! I think Gin is better acquainted with them though. You used to study under Lady Riveria, right Gin?"
Used to study under, huh?
"The day when you stand side by side with me doesn't seem to be so far away." "That day will come sooner than you think. I promise."
That scene played in his head by reflex. He hadn't met her since that time. Maybe he should pay the Twilight Manor a visit soon, after all?
"Sure did." Gin shrugged, grinning at the exclamation of his new members. "Seeing me in a new light now, huh?"
"That explains how skilled he actually is." Pott hummed in thought. Gin raised his eyebrow at her. She grinned wryly. "You are way too good for a Level 2, Captain. The way you fight and cover for our blind spots is way above how the usual Level 2 fights."
"Am I though?"
"You are." Elily grunted. "It's scary how smoothly you coordinate with our movement. It's like you are reading how the battle is going to be and act based on it."
Gin looked at her weirdly. "Isn't it normal to predict five or ten seconds into the future during battles like that?"
"Yup, he's nuts."
"I can't tell if he's smart or if he's really dumb."
"Captain really is a big deal after all."
He shrugged at their words. It might seem amazing, but it wasn't enough for the goal he was aiming for.
He still needed to grow stronger so he could catch up with her!
....
Gin stepped up to the door of Stardust Garden, the home of the Astraea Familia, which surprisingly enough only had a small garden rather than a big one.
So then how should he do this? Well, when the option is to tease Ryuu or not to tease Ryuu, he knew what his answer would be!
He cleared his throat and called out in a baritone.
"O'Ryuu!" His familia looked at him like he was a madman, nothing new there.
"I've come to play with you~!"
"Lalalalala!" Nice assist, Elise!
"I am bringing cakes too~"
"Red velvet and matcha so good!"
Oh, even Pock was joining in too!
Gin looked at the rest of his familia. Hel stood in front of him staring silently and edging the rest to take part as well.
"So…" Gin used all the nonexistent talent he had to annoy the elf girl while his various talented familia joined him as back vocals.
"Come out and play, Ryuu! We have matcha for you. Come out and play, Ryuu! We'll introduce our crew! It's no taboo~! To join us too~!"
"We'll join our two familias~" Elise led the last notes singing in a bell-like voice.
She was actually very good!
"Anew~!"
The door opened and applause came out.
Gin bowed, receiving the praise for doing something so pointlessly stupid.
As he raised his head, the one that entered his view was not the elf that kept blushing whenever he teased her.
Astraea, the goddess of justice, clapped her hands happily, looking like a mother who sees her baby use a spoon correctly for the first time.
"Well, uh, yeah. We brought cakes." Gin lifted up the box of cakes awkwardly. "So… Is Ryuu home?"
"It was a nice try, Gin." Astraea giggled at him. "Ryuu's not home though, so I have to rate it 7 out of 10."
....
The entire Hel Familia sat around inside the Stardust Garden.
Gin looked around, noticing how tidy it was. Well, it was a familia with eleven women. The chance of it being a shipwrecked mess was close to none.
"So, everyone's away, huh? We came at a bad time then." Gin sighed as he helped Astraea serve some tea and cookies.
"Evilus attack?"
"Oh no, all of them are simply heading out for patrol." Astraea explained. "We will be overwhelmed if we only deploy during a crisis. Carrying out patrols will help us respond faster while making progress to a safer Orario at the same time. The mood of the city is quite glum after all."
"Umu, I noticed the same." Hel said as she nibbled on a cookie. "The colors of our children become faded day by day. It is a sign that something big will occur."
Gin nodded in agreement.
It was quite hard to keep up with the news, but he had a feeling that Evilus was getting more and more active.
Orario's peacekeeping forces like Astraea and Ganesha must be run ragged right now.
"Right now I'm still a newbie, but give me one or two years and I promise I'll chip in with my familia too."
Thinking about it, he remembered a promise he made with the Astraea Familia.
It was quite some time ago, and he doubted that any of them would remember it, but a promise is a promise, right?
He was a Level 2 now.
He had a familia that was more or less capable.
Shouldn't he throw his hat in the ring now?
He looked at his familia. It was too soon for them, definitely.
He wasn't going to risk their lives fighting Evilus when he couldn't trust them to fight an Infant Dragon.
Okay, maybe his expectations were too high, but Evilus were people that caused trouble for someone like Finn.
Telling his newly minted members to join in was no different than measuring the suitable size for their coffins.
He, on the other hand… He had some things to offer.
The most obvious one was Ginnungagap.
The fact that it could affect anything in his sight meant a huge deal coupled with his reinforced sight from the [Archer] development ability.
If he picked his place right, like say… The high floors of Babel Tower, and hunted from there.
…Yeah, that would work.
"Astraea-sama. May I have a minute of your time?"
Time to give back a little to the city of Orario!
...
As the telltale signs of sunset began to appear, Lady Astraea offered to prepare some dinner for him and his familia as well, but Gin was self-aware of how much of a big eater he was.
In the end, not wanting to trouble Astraea-sama by overstaying his welcome, he headed back without meeting with the rest of the Astraea Familia.
The misunderstanding about his gayness hadn't been lifted just yet, but at this point, he really couldn't give a fuck.
The thing he needed was a stiff drink and some good side dishes to accompany it.
He asked Pock to accompany him, but he firmly refused, saying that he had no intention of dragging his drunk ass back home.
He didn't bother to ask the girls since none of them were the drinker type.
So here he was, trudging alone trying to decide on which pub he was going to visit.
Orario nightlife didn't have much to offer to be honest.
Only some people would be confident enough to open their business at night with the overall situation of the city.
The districts with the most options available during the night were therefore limited to the Sixth and Seventh Districts.
The former was obviously filled to the brim with red districts and related businesses which, funnily enough, made the place crowded with numerous adventurers that could actually fight back if anything ever happened.
The latter, on the other hand, was the district where both the Astraea and Ganesha Familias resided.
Evilus would be sandwiched between the Orario police force in no time if they ever dared to mess around there.
Between the two options, he obviously settled on the Seventh District. He was already there anyway.
Rather than going to Hibachitei, the bar he frequently visited with Gareth and Raul, he strolled aimlessly around the district and looked for a relatively empty pub.
It was always good fun to find a hidden gem.
He turned left at an intersection. Kept right through a small alley. Circled some buildings before doubling back.
He walked every way possible without any rhyme or reason. There had been some bars along the way, but none of them really tickled his fancy.
In the end, he found himself sitting at a small Far East style pub with nothing but four chairs at the bar alongside two small tables for its customers.
The place was practically empty save for him, the cook, and a single waitress.
He sat himself on one of the bar seats, drinking a pint of beer slowly as he ate a grilled squid glazed with some Far Eastern sauce he couldn't pronounce.
This place wasn't actually half bad.
They had these weird names for foods so he didn't really know what would come out next, but most of the things he'd tried were pretty good so he wasn't really worried.
"Chef, one more of this 'Takowassup', please." Gin pointed to the weird seafood he just ate. "I really like the taste."
"Dear customer, it is called Takowasa."
"That's what I just said."
"…Of course. Please wait a second." The chef, probably accepting his mistake, smiled politely before preparing the dish again.
The sound of a sliding door being opened.
Was it another customer?
"Welcome." He heard the waitress call out.
Yup, he was right. He promptly returned to tasting the foods again.
In his peripheral view, the new customer had picked the seat beside him.
He moved his eyes to the side for a while.
Robed guy, a little tall, muscular as well, an adventurer? Before he could look more, he felt something being pushed into his side.
"Don't panic now. I only need you to answer this." The man beside him said slowly without turning to him.
"Why were you following me?"
"…Don't know what you are talking about buddy. I am not stalking you." Gin continued eating as normal.
"Do not play dumb. I have circled back twice and you were still on my trail." He pushed the thing deeper into his side.
"What are you after?"
"First, I don't even know who you are. Second. I wasn't following you around, and third, even if I did follow you it was by a complete coincidence, man." Gin shrugged.
"I was looking for a quiet place to drink, so I've been going here and there the last hour. It's a freak coincidence most likely."
The man seemed to relax at his answer.
He sighed. "…I see."
"Hey, still, I am sorry if I bothered you."
"It's fine. I am partly at fault with my paranoia. I apologize as well." This guy was surprisingly decent for someone who dressed suspiciously.
"Sure, no problem. So, do you mind taking that chopstick off my sides? I am actually a bit ticklish there."
"You are good. Normally people would have assumed it was a knife." The man nodded.
Gin felt the chopstick finally leave his sides alone.
"Let me buy you a glass as an apology then."
"Hey thanks." Free stuff was always welcome in his book. "Name's Gin. Gin Hvergel. You?"
"Not Gin Hvergel." Gin rolled his eyes at his response.
He obviously wasn't going to give him his name.
Gin gulped down a pint of beer and pointed at him with a dry laugh. "Haha, let me guess. You are a dad."
The man shook his head to the side, placing his own orders to the waitress before turning to him.
'Scars.'
Gin quickly noticed them as soon as he got a good look of his face.
Numerous scars crisscrossed over his eyes, as if his enemies had tried to blind him on multiple occasions.
Well, both of his eyes were intact, so they obviously failed.
"Incorrect. I am not even married. There are a lot of good things in life even if you exclude romance." He responded.
"Good food and comrades are a good example."
"Amen to that." Gin raised his glass and emptied it down his throat before tapping on it to ask for a refill.
He watched as the amber liquid and white foam filled his glass again. "Grubs before hoes, am I right?"
"Not my exact words." The man mirrored his earlier action and emptied his own glass.
"You sure can drink, old man." Gin chuckled as he downed another glass. "You sure you are going to be okay, though? If you fall drunk halfway then don't expect me to help you get home or anything."
"No worries. If you get drunk first, I intend to do the same." He wasn't smiling, but somehow Gin could feel his amusement bleeding out.
"Rest assured that I will leave the tab to you as well."
This guy was a fucking riot!
"Hah! That's some serious bluff, old man." Gin slapped his knee before lifting his glass to him. "To seeing you dead drunk, vomiting in the alleyway."
He raised his own glass. "To the free drinks and meals I will get from this lightweight youth."
""Cheers.""
Gin forgot how many glasses of beer he had drunk.
Judging from the glass in his hands, it was only one, but he sure felt a lot tipsier than someone who only drank one glass.
"So you really are an adventurer!" Gin said triumphantly as Mr. Scarface finally let stuff slip.
The man drank another glass before grunting in response.
"Were an adventurer. I got an irreparable injury some couple of years back. The rest of my familia decided to hang their weapons as well following that." He looked a bit forlorn as he said that. "I am retired now."
Right, judging from his sad face he would probably cry if he asked about his familia, so instead Gin asked another question to him.
He really was sensitive and understanding.
"Oh, oh! What alias did you have!?" Gin raised his hand excitedly.
"Alias…? Hmm." The man got quiet for a while before answering it. "[Violent Eater] or something like that. It's been so long I have already forgotten it."
Violent Eater? That was actually… pretty cool.
Like, just see how he gorged on his food and booze. At least his name was accurate.
"Forget about me. You are quite the promising newbie aren't you? Garmr? Or was it Binge Eater? I am sure that you are the current record holder as well."
"Binge Eater? That's cool, but my name's Garmr, woof! Like 'Gar', for being badass but with extra 'm' and 'r'. Don't get it wrong, woof!" Gin didn't have a fucking clue why he barked, but he was Hel's bitch, so technically he had to bark.
Yup, barking felt right.
He drank again.
"Your limit is drawing closer, it seems." Gin scoffed at his words.
"Don't say something like that! I will surpass my limit, right here, right now. Let them come! I will send them running back so they can get back to sucking on their mama's teats!"
"Owner, give me some more food. It's rude to squander some free food after all."
"Oh me too!" Gin drank again. "And what did you say then? Promising newbie? Record holder? Hah! Promising? Yeah, nope. Sure, I am a record holder, but that title doesn't mean shit. What good does leveling faster than anyone do when three quarters of the adventurers in Orario could still kung-fu my ass."
"You are humble." Gin snorted and laughed at his words.
"More realistic than humble, but sure I'll take the compliment." Gin shrugged and chomped on some potato salad.
"I mean, seriously, even a retired adventurer like you could probably wipe the floor with my face." He washed them down with another pint of beer.
"…I still have a long way to go before I can stand by her side."
"Her?"
Fuck. He was drunk, wasn't he? Why would he say something like that to someone he just met?
"Forget it, it's the drunk me talking." Gin drank again, showing his composure. "I am going to drink more and bring out the drunker me. Hopefully that one is going to be too drunk to say anything stupid."
"It is quite hard to forget an interesting topic like that."
Somehow even with a stone face and level voice, the man had succeeded in the most calm teasing tone ever.
"I don't like that suggestive tone, old man." Gin glared at him, but he only stared back at him with his deadpan expression.
"It's not what you think. She was my teacher. I don't see her like that. 'Sides she's a high elf."
"High Elf? Hoo, are you aiming for Riveria Ljos Alf?" He became more invested.
Dammit, he forgot Riveria was the only high-elf here outside the elf sacred forest!
'No, calm down.' Gin lifted another pint to his mouth.
"I am talking about her, yes, but I am not aiming for her." His hand was shaking, spilling more and more beer as it went higher. "Get your mind out of the gutter."
"So you want to settle down with elf royalty. Your taste is not half bad, kid." He patted Gin's back in support.
"It is a bit hopeless though."
Gin planted his head to the bar table at his last words.
The weight of reality settling down upon his back as a conversation with some strange old dude of all things forced him to come to terms with his new feelings.
This fucking sucked!
"Leave me the fuck alone, old man." Gin sobbed.