Kael
The cargo quest paid thirty-six copper. Twelve each.
The description said: *Move cargo from warehouse to dock.*
It did not say the cargo was alive. It did not say chickens panic when carried. It did not say Rael's fire enhancement activates under stress. It definitely did not say chickens are extremely stressful.
Nobody died. The chickens survived. The warehouse survived.
Mostly.
We paid for the part that didn't.
Nine copper each.
Rael walked ahead. Senna and I followed behind.
No one mentioned the chickens.
For about thirty seconds.
"Thirty-six became twenty-seven," I said.
"I know what we earned," Rael replied.
"That's nine copper missing."
"It's nine copper invested in structural correction."
"That's not what investment means."
"The chickens initiated conflict."
I looked at Senna.
She was writing.
SCRITCH. SCRITCH.
"Are you documenting the chickens?"
"Stress-triggered Vein flare. Very consistent pattern."
"It cost us nine copper."
"Eight," she corrected. "The owner discounted partial damage."
"Partial?"
"The ones that reached the road were surprisingly fast."
A chicken memory flashed in my head.
FWOOP—WING—CHAOS—SCREAMING.
I decided not to relive it.
We walked in silence.
Nine copper was still nine copper. Nine copper was porridge. Nine copper was not hay. Nine copper was progress.
The debt was still one gold and ten silvers.
I did not say that out loud.
Back at the guild.
Rael stood a reasonable distance from the board.
Senna read postings.
"Herb gathering. Three copper."
"I'll take it."
"You don't know the herbs."
"I'll take you."
"I am not your herb identification service."
"You already function as one."
SCRITCH.
She wrote something.
"What else."
"Escort quest. Merchant. South road. Fifteen copper each."
Rael looked up. "We take that."
"You just said I'm F rank."
"You are."
"E rank goblin nest."
"One nest."
"Twenty-one goblins."
"You died."
"Temporarily."
"Twice."
"That's iterative learning."
Rael stared at me.
"You stay behind me."
"I can fight."
"You lift."
"I also fight while lifting."
"You lift."
Senna added calmly, "He lifts."
I looked at both of them.
"This is misrepresentation."
The escort went smoothly.
No ambush. No fire. No chickens.
The merchant was so relieved he gave us two extra copper each.
CLINK.
Seventeen copper in my hand.
I felt good.
Genuinely good.
Rael ruined it.
"There's interest," she said.
"…Interest?"
"One gold and ten silvers now."
"That feels aggressive."
She told me the total.
I looked at my seventeen copper.
CLINK… CLINK…
I looked at the sky.
I thought several things loudly.
Temple district.
That's where we saw her.
A girl sitting on the steps.
Still.
Needle sword on her back. Thin enough I almost missed it.
"Needle blade," Rael said quietly.
"What does that mean?"
"Precision work. Healers use them."
"Healers use swords?"
"For internal repair."
"That sounds illegal."
"It's precise."
Senna spoke. "Third rejection."
We looked at her.
"I saw her this morning. Entered temple. Returned. Three times."
The girl looked at us.
Calm. Neutral. Like she had already categorized us.
I walked over.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
"Probably not. But we're going to the guild."
She looked at Rael's axe. Senna's hat. Then me.
"I don't know you."
"Kael. That's Rael. That's Senna. We are not a party."
"We are not a party," Senna confirmed.
"You have a needle blade," Rael said.
She nodded.
"Temple rejected."
Another nod.
"Three times," Senna added.
She didn't correct her.
"Why?" I asked.
"My healing method is non-standard."
"Define non-standard."
"I repair from the point of injury outward. Most healers repair from the surface inward."
"That's better for internal trauma," Senna said immediately.
"They said it resembles combat."
That was not a denial.
"What's your name?"
"Mira."
"Kael."
She inclined her head slightly.
"Guild," I said.
She stood. Her bag was already packed.
"…Were you waiting?"
"I wanted to see what happened next."
"And we're what happened next."
"Apparently."
We walked.
The guild master saw four of us.
He stared at me.
"No."
"We are not registering."
"You were three."
"Correct."
"Now four."
"Also correct."
"At what point is this a party."
"When paperwork happens."
He stared longer.
"…Four people may look at the board."
Victory. Small, bureaucratic victory.
Mira read quietly.
"You read everything."
"I like context."
I pointed.
"Missing child. East district. Three days."
"That escalates," she said.
"To what?"
"Predator. Or worse."
Silence.
Rael took the notice.
"We take it."
"It's eight copper."
"Split four ways," Senna added.
"That's two copper."
Rael didn't hesitate.
I looked at Mira.
"I'm in," she said calmly.
Senna closed her book.
"Agreed."
I pulled the notice down.
RIP.
Two copper each.
Less than herbs. More than nothing.
Three days missing.
We took it anyway.
--
Far above.
Veyra leaned forward.
The viewer count ticked upward.
…tick… tick… tick…
Gabriel watched from the corridor.
Raphael beside him.
"Four," Raphael said.
Gabriel nodded.
"The quiet one changes the tone."
"It stabilizes the group."
On screen, Mira stood slightly apart.
Still. Measured.
"That one complicates things," Raphael said.
Gabriel didn't answer.
Veyra smiled.
"There you are," she murmured.
The count kept climbing.
Not curiosity.
Retention.
Which was better.