The opening ceremony was held in an empty mansion in the royal capital. Apparently, it was a building that some count once used as a villa, but which he put up for sale because he urgently needed the money. Since the building did not require special repairs, it could host a banquet without problems. Only the thirty members of our new unit and their godparents were invited to a quiet ceremony.
It was really fast.
It took the marquis and other patrons about thirty minutes to take the stand one by one and offer words of encouragement and support.
«Since everyone else has already talked about saving the country and becoming heroes, I'll be brief. Let's kill a lot and win a lot». The team leader's (me) last speech lasted about ten seconds. With that, the formal event ended, and we moved on to the banquet part.
The Prime Minister, Duke Kealunus, an alliance of small and medium-sized nobles, the three churches, the Alminus Company and the Adventurer's Guild... Although the banquet was filled with all kinds of influential figures and their supporters, one could argue that the party itself was scarce for an event with so many big names present. The food was plentiful, but it was cold because it had been prepared in advance. There was not even a music group, nor servants serving drinks, nor a crowd of spectators witnessing the event, common things at banquets. But no one disliked it. Everyone knew it wasn't a place to get drunk on wine, laugh, talk or shake your body.
«Nice to meet you, Mr. Schuitz.»
«I heard you fought those four. How did you win?»
«'Did you fight those four?' What is all that about?»
«Ah, you are a member of Sir Kaislan's team, right? Didn't Sir Kaislan tell you? About what happened the other day».
«It's been a while, Spirit of Blood».
I was sitting there silently, but numerous members of our expedition approached my seat to greet me first.
Ugh, is this the life of a powerful man?
«Nice to meet you. I am the leader of this mission, Riehen Schuitz. What's your name?»
«Ventis Gerod. I hope we do a good job together».
Instead of rejecting those who approached, I greeted them one by one and introduced myself to familiarize myself with their faces. From now on I was going to be responsible for them. I should at least know their names.
I had been greeting people for a long time when a woman with a familiar face approached me. «I never thought I would see Riehen Schuitz's name at this opening ceremony. Nice to meet you. Versyl Gowland».
Wow, I never thought I'd see you here either.
«Riehen Schuitz.»
«Was my presentation enough? I am...»
« I know. The sub-commander of Clan Larer.
The first time I saw this woman was the day the Crystal Cave on the first floor became a war zone. Teleportation to take everyone to the safe zone had fifteen fewer seats, and this woman had flipped a coin to choose who to leave behind. Among the unfortunate ones was our team.
We almost died trying to break through Noark's forces with fifteen people.
«I'm flattered that you recognized me, but it seems like your news is a little outdated. I am no longer deputy commander». Versyl gave a pained smile, with a tone of self-hatred. «I guess I've slept too much. When I woke up, my position was gone».
«Ah... I heard you got caught in the explosion».
«Yeah. I was sleeping for over a year after that».
«Still, I'm glad you woke up».
«Yes... if it weren't for the Representative, I would still be in that state...».
«Representative» was the nickname of the high priest of the Tovera Church. Apparently, no other priest could compete when it came to divine recovery spells.
But something about the way he put it didn't fit.
To be exact, his complexion and facial expression were not very good. He didn't look like someone who had recently received an act of kindness.
«Versyl Gowland, what team are you part of?»
«Team Four.»
«Team Four...» That was Paladin Jun's team. He had been able to learn the identity of four of its members before the investiture ceremony, and all of them were members of a religious faction.
But is any magician there too? You must be indebted to them, then.
I was able to roughly deduce the situation this woman was in, and she seemed to realize it at the exact moment I deduced it. He looked at me with an unreadable look and nodded. «...You are different from what you seem at first glance».
«How do I look like it?»
«Don't be offended. Anyone who had heard that speech before would have had the same impression as me.»
Hmph, when it came to speeches, the shorter the better. This was a universal truth I came to while listening to my principal's lectures in middle school.
Erwen jumped into our conversation from the bench. «How long are you going to talk to him?»
«Spirit of Blood...»
«It's been a while. The last time we saw each other was when you abandoned us, right?».
«...I regret what happened then. Really.»
«As you should. The end result of you abandoning us was that, after all». His sharp tone suggested that he still held a grudge. Versyl looked at me, bowed, and excused herself. «Did I do a good job?» Erwen smiled shyly as if she had done all that for me. I didn't know what to say, so I laughed.
«Um... nice to meet you. I'm Pyke Neldine». As soon as my conversation with Versyl ended, the team members wandering nearby gathered around me again, I introduced myself and had brief conversations with each of them.
«Relax a little here».
«Where are you going?»
«There are some people I haven't greeted yet».
«They haven't approached you first, why bother?».
«Why are you so angry? If they don't come to me, I can go to them».
«It just seems like you're admitting defeat, then, sir».
Erwen seemed dissatisfied, but my decision did not change. What would pride do for me? I had to do what I had to do and move on.
«Usted es…»
«Nice to meet you. Riehen Schuitz.»
«…McKelly Rayothers.»
I approached people who didn't approach me first and had brief conversations. There were only twenty people on the file that the marquis gave me. That was not because there was a lack of information about them, but because not all members of our squad had been killed at the time.
What... why is this guy here?
As I walked around the banquet hall greeting people I didn't know yet, a man caught my attention. «...Sven Parav.» The deputy commander of the Second Order of Paladins of the Church of Reatlas.
The paladin, who was sipping his drink in a corner with a somewhat uncomfortable expression, seemed surprised to see me. «Do you know me?»
Of course I knew him. Not only had I seen him several times during my visits to the church as Bjorn Yandel, but, thanks to certain events, I was convinced that he was Goblin. «Don't underestimate the marchioness's sources».
«…Whether you underestimate it.»
«Then I'm glad.»
«If you want to sit here, I can move from...»
«Let's talk for a moment.»
«Sorry...?»
«Don't you want to?»
«No, it's not that...»
Are you sure? The look on his face definitely says he doesn't want to. Hmm, to be more exact, he seems extremely nervous.
«Did Jun tell you about me?»
«If you mean the bet... yes, he did.» Oh, no wonder he seemed nervous. It was because he found out about all that. «But why...?»
«How come why? We will soon enter the labyrinth together, but we have not greeted each other yet. I hope to do a good job with you inside».
«Yes, I hope so too».
After a brief conversation with Sven Parav, I turned around, feeling a complicated mix of emotions.
Ha, this is funny...
Sven Parav was a goblin. In other words, there was a good chance that he would leak information from our squad like a broken faucet.
Did those religious bastards have to choose him?
Man, how was I going to keep my mouth shut? Maybe if I hinted to him that I suspected he was an evil spirit and insisted on watching him on the 15th of each month, I could force him to disconnect immediately.
...I'll come back to this later.
Afterwards, I continued walking around the banquet hall and talked to all the members I hadn't been able to hear from beforehand. It must be admitted that Sven Parav was negative, but there were also positive things. In particular, I couldn't emphasize this enough: Without Hans there is no problem. Hans' absence was a very encouraging sign.
***
The banquet lasted until dinner was over, after which the opening ceremony came to an official end. We, however, remained in the mansion. As our team's existence was classified and most of its members were famous, it was decided that we would stay here and work on our teamwork until the day the maze opened.
Teamwork, shit.
What difference would it make if the thirty of us worked together for only two days? Each group would enter the maze separately, and it would take weeks for us all to gather on the sixth floor. No wonder, in the meantime, we all forgot everything we reviewed today.
«I think our best option is to leave the battles to each person's discretion and for us all to help each other in case of emergency». This was the conclusion we reached during our leaders' meeting, after judging that forcing thirty people to operate as a single unit would only be a recipe for disaster.
«Still, shouldn't we come up with training just in case?».
We decided to come up with some ways to group together in case of emergency: wizards with wizards, healers with healers. It would be easy to show them their positions after placing a mark on their chest to differentiate them.
«Warriors with shield marks will be placed on the perimeter, and warriors with sword marks will be placed just behind them».
«And the healers?»
«They will be in the center, of course. They have to survive in order to treat the wounded. Rangers with bow markings will be placed in formation to protect healers and users of special healer-type abilities.»
Yes, that should be enough for a two-day training session, especially since everyone already had experience working in a group.
«Mr. Schuitz, are you listening?»
«...Of course.»
Wow, I just rested my chin on my hand for a minute.
As a commander, he really only had two orders anyway: «Separate», so that the parties would split up and operate separately, and «Meet», to gather the squadron into a large group. Over time, my orders would expand to «Assault», «Concentrated Bombardment», «Shield Wall», etc. But for now, it was just those two, so there was nothing to memorize.
«So let's leave it at that for now and decide the rest of the formation when we meet again on the sixth floor. There we can train in our free time. If that seems like a good idea to you».
«Good», I said. «Let's do it».
The structure of the meeting was such that the others discussed things among themselves and asked my permission at the end. Once completed, James Calla, a former deputy commander of a clan, strove to instill Retreat and Reunite orders into our squad.
Two more days passed. It was time to enter the maze.
***
[You have entered the Crystal Cave on the first floor].
The Crystal Cave was filled with bright light. All team members moved quickly while wearing robes that covered their entire bodies. It was best to avoid being seen as much as possible.
Run, run.
Although we had a mage and a special ability user on the team who were not as physically powerful, we made a decent time. That was because everyone had their own means of transportation.
[Riard Ashed has cast the rank four mutation spell Fox Lantern.]
The magician turned into a ball of light and followed us into the air.
[Guld Aldidi ha usado las Botas de Paloma de Lukberta.]
The special ability user covered it with an item.
Amelia was visibly fascinated as she watched the old man keep up with her. «Is it a numerical object?»
«Lukberta's Dove Boots are a 3000 Numbered Item. Although it is limited to non-combat use... It is very useful in the maze for someone like me».
«If you keep going so fast, won't you run out of Soul Power?»
«Haha, you underestimate special ability users.» It was essential for special ability users to maximize their Soul Power at the cultivation stage, so they had higher MPs than most. «Don't worry. I usually only use this up to the third floor. The fifth floor is too narrow and the sixth... Since I'm on a boat anyway, it doesn't help me much».
Was it because he was a high-level adventurer? He seemed prepared for anything.
With this, we should be able to accelerate.
«Emily, increase the speed.» I gave a new order and a truly incredible feeling immediately came over me.
¡Whooom!
The sphere of light shot out like a comet.
¡whipping!
Old Didi floated slightly above the ground and lunged forward, bowing.
«...Schuitz, why are you going further and further back?»
«Just in case... an enemy... comes from... behind...»
Ugh, I'm out of breath. And to think that I am the slowest of the five.