You know, it is kind of in hindsight, but they were doomed the moment they called themselves a union. Really? Against a Tyrant? That's like quadruple countering yourself. That's like exposing your neck to predators. Wait, let me change that answer, they aren't predators, please don't hex me.
*A video in 2001 of a comedian doing a standup routine. He did not get hexed.
"Soooo firstly, Zedart." Gamielle pointed. "Apologize."
"Does it matter? He won't join, and we don't want someone with that attitude."
"I'm right here guys."
Ryan gestured to his existence with his right hand. Gamielle ignored him and put the popcorn on the table and placed her hands on her hips as she talked down to Zedart.
"You apologize because you made a mistake and it will keep you awake at night, like the fact that you only got third in that silly tournament for kids."
The [Warrior] opened his mouth and closed it. He didn't take the bait.
"I meant every word I said."
Zedart then, for some godforsaken reason, folded his arms and stared Gamielle down, then turned back to Ryan.
Then it clicked, Zedart was 18. While he wasn't much older at 23, it dawned on him that he'd been arguing with a teenager. No, more like a stubborn child. Now that was embarrassing.
He couldn't maintain eye contact with Zedart and switched to look at Gamielle. He was glad they couldn't see his face. That was until he noticed that she was waggling her neatly groomed eyebrows at him, giving him a toothy grin.
The hair on his neck rose as she switched to a kindly smile, her tone now like a mother lecturing a stubborn son.
"When you spar with someone and accidentally cut them, you still apologize, even if you meant every strike."
Zedart contemplated this, arms still crossed. Ryan was contemplating if he could [Instant Dodge] out of the room.
"This wasn't a spar." Zedart said.
Oh god, please make it stop.
Gamielle put a hand on Zedart's shoulder. "It wasn't a life and death match either until you started it."
Ryan saw the lightbulb moment on Zedart's face. Zedart's face literally lit up in understanding.
"Ah, you're right."
Zedart stood up from his chair, his eyes clear and stoic as he looked at Ryan with a determined expression, then he bowed, he actually bowed. Ryan couldn't keep up with the emotional whiplash.
He looked away from Zedart again, and he saw Gamielle's kindly smile switch back to a toothy, predatory grin, one directed right at him.
Son of a bitch. She was 100% playing him.
Oblivious of the interaction, Zedart continued.
"I apologize. I assumed a lot about you and your life. Please forgive me."
Ryan began internally screaming. It was impossible to focus on both the [Warrior] and [Mage]. Not when the expert [Warrior] was acting like a goddamned child learning a lesson from his mother. His mind raced forward. Had Gamielle planned this entire encounter, or was she picking up the pieces and still expected him to join their team?
Which answer was scarier? Gamielle smiled kindly at him.
"I think you broke Mister Destined's brain by apologizing, Zeddy. Mister [Rogue] this is when you accept his apology."
Why had he dismissed her? He hadn't doubted for a moment when Zedart declared Gamielle was the best [Mage] he'd seen. That should have raised a red flag.
Ryan realized he was still sitting in silence and answered. "I accept your apology." He discarded this move and began to think ahead.
He was realizing this was another classic tactic. The [Warrior] to distract and tank the aggro. A [Mage] winding up for a big spell. Or was she dpsing him down right now? The analogy sort of broke down because he couldn't figure out what she was doing.
There had to be a reason why she was acting so smug. He wasn't even sure why he was getting goosebumps.
He had stood up to the Manager. Gamielle was surely nothing compared to that.
He was probably in his own head. This was the kind of bullshit about how a [Mage] could play 4D chess with everyone. That was provably false. Confident [Mages] died all the time.
Gamielle's expression changed, noticing how the hooded [Rogue] had tensed up. It was like she could read him through his cowl as he stared her down. Her sneer changed to a smug look instead.
Welcome to the board, idiot. I've been waiting for you to show up.
That was how he read her posture and face. Who the fuck was this? Another child of dragonslayers? Ryan felt like he was cornered and he didn't even know why.
The oblivious pawn broke the silent stare-down.
"This doesn't change the fact that attitudes matter. We can't have someone who isn't planning on pushing as far as we are. We won't agree on how to hit the Trials."
Gamielle shook her head. She turned to Zedart.
"Having a calm and collected person is good, having three hotheads that just want to go for max achievements will probably kill us. If you're still in doubt. Then I'll give you the odds. There have been eight known S-grade Trial one clears in the past decade. Not a single one has stagnated. They and their teams are well beyond their realm's power level… Or they lost both of their lives. None gave up."
She was even using his beloved stats against him. That hurt. Still, he had no idea what she could do or say to make him join their team. This wasn't a game of chess. He could just sit here and decline their offer.
"I'm still not sure why you think I would want to join your team after-"
"DID you know, mister Destined, that competent strong parties, even for those only of three, fare better than incompetent weak ones? Yes, we might go for higher achievement clears, but that doesn't mean we want to lose our lives either."
Interrupting was a cheap move, below the belt. Gamielle obviously didn't care.
"If you're significantly better than the other members of your team, you're going to end up taking most of the slack. Maybe if you're a [Warrior] it'd be okay, less so when you're a [Rogue]."
"I'm still saying no."
If she was going to play a cheap move, then Ryan would do the same. Let's see you break his [cashier's stonewall] skill. The manager isn't in right now. I'm the only one you can deal with and I have no authority to agree to anything!
Gamielle clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Is it because of those soldiers you killed?"
Ryan blinked. How the f-
"Are you worried about reprisal? Don't be, being in a loud team will get you more protection than otherwise. If they're sensible, and they should be if my guess is right, they'll blame the Manager and leave you alone."
He'd been too silent for too long. Nobody was going to believe it if he'd denied it now. This was why she was so confident. She knew what he'd done, somehow.
Gamielle had an arch look, she looked down on him, like she was expecting him to have a counter to that. Ryan just crossed his arms.
Gamielle rolled her eyes and let out a scoff. Her expression said it all.
Was that it? I'm not sure why I expected more.
He'd never had someone so effectively insult him with just their facial expressions before. Zedart the stupid [Tank] still hadn't picked up what was going on, he still thought everything was done.
"Get off it, Gamielle, he isn't budging."
The [Mage] sighed as she spoke to Zedart. "We have a map to an instant Trial in a free area. I know you're not convinced by his attitude, but we can do a one time tryout and then make a decision. It's worth the risk."
She spoke in a tone that implied Ryan's participation was a matter of fact. That annoyed him.
"Hey, I haven't agreed to anything."
Gamielle just waved her hand at him like his opinion didn't matter. Zedart just stared at his teammate in confusion. The [Warrior] seemed to finally understand that she had a plan and was playing an angle. Still, it was clear from Ryan's childish posture that he had no intention of joining their team.
Then a flash of understanding went by Zedart's face. The [Warrior] nodded in agreement.
"Oh, I can accept that."
Ryan's eyes widened. Now he was the stupid one, the one that didn't know what was going on. His eyes darted between the duo, trying to figure out what was going on.
Gamielle
"One million United States dollars, or one thousand realmcoins, to start. A signing bonus, half that if you don't pass."
"Oh, I put myself in checkmate ages ago."
Ryan was a lot of things, being poor was one of them. He couldn't turn down a million dollars, hell, half a million just to try out for their team? Now that would be completely stupid to turn down. Especially considering he could just flunk out of the tryout.
Damned rich adventurers.
–
Gamielle already had a contract prepared in simple but undeniable terms that everyone could understand.
"Could I get funded for an early energy control tutor?" Ryan asked.
Gamielle frowned at the request. "Why? Everyone can do that for free at realm four."
"I need the help sooner. You can get good skills for doing it earlier."
That was his excuse for needing one. The reality was he wanted to go back home as soon as he could and tell his parents the good news, and brag to Milock.
"It's not that beneficial, but sure, as long as you know we won't slow down."
That was two of Ryan's problems sorted, assuming everything went alright in the instant Trial and he joined their team. Gamielle's arguments had been immaculate, and her terms were too good.
A million goddamn dollars, and that was just the signing bonus. She promised much, much more if he ended up gelling with the team and continued past the fourth realm.
She even had examples of adventurers being fine after encountering hostile soldiers from their own country. If he was still paranoid, he just needed to move his parents closer to the cities near the System portals on Earth. Even the worst of nations on Earth hesitated on going after loved ones of adventurers. It was the primary reason why the Tyrants had gone to war after all.
Plus, the Adventurer's Guild had become too big to piss off these days. He really had no idea what his country was thinking when they sent in soldiers the way they did.
There was a knock on the door.
"Have you finished eating?"
Gamielle answered for him. "Yup, come in!"
There was a pause, then the door slammed open as the receptionist took out the two-handed warhammer from her back.
"Gamielle! So this is where you were! How'd you get past me?"
Zedart glared at his teammate, realizing that she had not, in fact, been given the go-ahead to come in. Gamielle laughed nervously.
"Ahahaha, oops, I mean, good news Sab! Mister Destined has agreed to join our team under very good contractual terms, you don't have to worry about organizing any more people."
Sabrina, the Guild [Warrior] receptionist, who was now wielding her weapon, spoke through gritted teeth.
"They're all finally in order, everyone other than your team, which I've been looking for. For the past twenty minutes."
"Oh, come on Sab."
"You don't get to call me Sab anymore!" The receptionist [Warrior] started stomping towards the [Mage].
"Mister Destined, save me!"
Ryan didn't move a muscle. A swing went wide as Gamielle did a perfect dodge roll, then sprinted outside. She was smart enough to know that neither of her team members were likely to come to her protection.
Sabrina didn't chase. She coughed in embarrassment as she realized what she'd done in front of the new Destined. She grabbed a pouch from her belt and took out a phone and wristband.
She handed both items to him.
"Here's your adventurer's phone along with a walletband. 10 Realmcoins have been added to this wallet as payment for the Skeleton Lord's crown. Please memorize the passcode and obtain a secondary adventurer's account with a registered bank."
Ryan accepted the bulky phone along with the walletband. The phone was specially designed with adventurers in mind, durable, waterproof and also was a fully functional walkie-talkie. That last feature was needed because The Realm was too large for full radio coverage.
He handled the electronic walletband with more care. It was basically a tough latchable rope with a chip reader woven in.
"Finally, we have your adventurer's name to finalize." Sabrina said, taking out her own phone and tapping through it.
"I was thinking about Artigan, is it free?"
"Artigan with an i is free, is that what you meant.?"
"Yup."
Expecting a perfectly unique name after millions of registered adventurers was unlikely. Sabrina nodded her head to him.
"That's all sorted, the name will be reserved for you, and that will be your realmnet login. You've been verified and can log in with your walletband. Your phone will log in automatically and ask you to change your password. Please do so before you forget."
Sabrina finished tapping on her phone and put out her hand to him.
"Alright, let's see the contract."
Ryan did as asked. His mind was still on the fact that he was now rich. Sabrina took the contract and gave him a cautious look.
"You should probably be more careful who you show this to."
"Gamielle said to give it to you to review."
The receptionist looked over the contract, reading quickly. She whistled.
"Damn, I knew the girl was rich, but I had no idea she had access to this kind of money."
Ryan finally snapped out of his daze. He had to ask, looking at both the receptionist and Zedart for the answer.
"So who the hell is she? Are her parents also dragonslayers?"
Zedart just shrugged. "Don't know. She arrived from the portal one day and challenged me to a spar."
They both looked at the [Warrior].
"And you haven't asked about her since? Checked out her background?"
Wasn't he supposed to be the team captain? That should have been the bare minimum. Ryan was pretty sure that the duo had to have been around each other for at least a few weeks now. Zedart didn't seem to get it.
"No, she's trustworthy and has the same goals as I do. If it were important, I'm sure she'd tell me."
"I thought she was just another entitled rich girl," Sabrina said.
"She's a goddamn monster is what she is." Ryan said.
Sabrina was looking away and at the door, her mind probably coming to the same suspicious questions that Ryan did. She shook her head and handed the contract back to Ryan.
"Well, it looks good, just remember that while team contracts aren't enforceable by Guild law, I don't recommend breaking them."
"I know."
Just because party contracts weren't governed by the Guild didn't mean that public opinion didn't matter. If you were found to be a contract breaker, then the chances of finding a team to work with would plummet.
Sabrina turned to the door then shifted nervously.
"Okay, but if you are having second thoughts, can you at least talk to the first two teams? You'd honestly be doing me a favour."
He looked up. "Sure, why not?"
–
Zedart stood up, feeling less confident than he had when he walked in. He nodded his head at the [Rogue] and walked out with Sabrina. After he turned a corner and Sabrina went ahead, a sneaky Gamielle appeared next to him and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Told you to trust me, right?"
"Manager's sake, Gamielle, you think he's worth all that?"
She wrinkled her nose and spoke.
"Maybe? Odds are good. The only way for him to have encountered those soldiers is for the Manager to have singled him out. For someone like that? A million? That was a steal."
Zedart reviewed the encounter in his head and realized she was probably correct. Then he paused. Something was still bothering him.
"What does snowballing mean outside of the Trials?"
Gamielle started cackling, she put her arm around his shoulder. "Oh, you sweet summer child, come, let's go look it up on your phone."
–
Ryan realized he needed to sleep. Not from physical exhaustion but just the sheer mental overload. He had done too much in one day, and the round with Gamielle had basically finished him off. The only reason he'd lost to her was because he was tired and unprepared and she had hidden her fangs. That had to be it.
He was still thinking about the encounter while the impressive bear of a man spoke to him passionately.
"So that's why you should join our team." The leader, Garbolt Kingstrike said.
The man was definitely a child of adventurers with that last name. Maybe even had orc blood in his veins.
Ryan just pulled out his contract, unwilling and unable to be polite.
"Can you beat this?"
The man frowned, scanning the page, then he gave him a ridiculous look.
"This is silly. I mean, sure, we can pay more, but just to get to the fourth realm?" Garbolt shook his head. "I didn't think Zedart was the kind of guy to make a team with a merc adventurer."
Ryan didn't bother to correct him. Technically, that wasn't even incorrect. He was acting like a merc adventurer. What really tickled him was that these captains were able to just pay a million dollars just like that. Ryan shrugged.
"Well, I do need the money."
The man scratched his slightly elongated bottom tooth. An orcish gesture.
"Even if I believed in making a team with someone getting paid to be in it. We don't even know you're really an S-grade."
That said it all, really, for both of them. Gamielle had somehow immediately figured out he was legit. And Zedart didn't flinch at Ryan's outfit, unlike two of Garbolt's other team members.
"Then I guess we're done here?" He asked.
"I guess we are. It was nice to meet you. Keep an eye out for us. We're going to go far."
Ryan didn't want to be a dick, but he felt they were lacking. Garbolt was definitely better than he was, but compared to Gamielle and Zedart the man felt…
Wait, what was he thinking? He was comparing a regular team to a literal world-class swordmaster and whatever the hell Gamielle was.
He shouldn't have any business being disappointed in any team. Then again, if this was what he felt with the first team in line, then there probably wasn't a point in meeting any more people.
He walked out after Garbolt's team had left.
"Hey Sabrina, I'm not joining a different team."
The team next in line did not take that well.
"Oi! You didn't even hear our team out. We got a [Warrior], a [Mage] and a [Rogue]. Having two [Rogues] would work perfectly. Why was garbage Garbolt even first?"
Garbolt did not take that line well.
"The fuck you call me?"
"Knock it off!" Sabrina shouted over the bickering adventurers, "and that's why Garbolt was first. Everyone back to your seats, Artigan's made his choice."
After the adventurers returned to their seats, he approached Sabrina.
"So, I really need to sleep. Where's the cheapest inn?"
"Oo, ooh, we can take him!" Sabrina jumped as Gamielle yelled out from right behind her. Not even Ryan had noticed that.
Before the receptionist could take out her weapon, Gamielle skipped ahead and gestured for him to follow. Zedart was already standing by the entrance, ready for him to go.
Ryan shrugged and walked after the duo, keeping a healthy distance.
The guildhall watched the trio leave. All wondering exactly how far this team would go.
He just hoped that the instant Trial would go better than his first one.