As soon as the two girls were outside the door, Eva’s rough tug became a soft pull guiding Zaria forward, and all the sass in her face was replaced by a rehearsed, peppy smile. It still so uncanny how her behavior changed as soon as someone other than Zaria might see her. 

The simple trip down a few halls and a flight of stairs to the mess hall took forever. Much like her mother, Eva constantly stopped to talk to everyone. Zaria wouldn’t have minded if she wasn’t always dragged into it as her friend insisted on introducing “her bestest friend since forever” to “all our lovely friends—nay, family—in this wonderful guild.” 

When the two finally arrived at the mess hall, the rush of rowdy adventurers made it feel packed despite how spacious it was. The mess hall was a new edition to the headquarters after the guild had bought an adjacent building. Nearly the whole two-story-tall structure was transformed into just the cafeteria with a window ceiling giving a clear view of the sky. The main cafeteria was full of colorful tables shaped like animals and plants, and an entire wall was made of a blackboard-like material that could be drawn on with magic crystals.

Zaria’s awe almost distracted her from how overwhelmed she was by the sheer abundance of people. Almost.

By the time the two were able to sit at a bird-shaped table, Zaria felt beyond socially exhausted. There were various nearby rooms that guild members could use to eat privately—or at least without so much noise, but Eva insisted they sit in the main cafeteria. 

Eva leaned in closer. “Isn’t it fucking awesome getting all this attention?” 

Zaria, who had nearly fallen asleep in her meal tray, sat back up. She had no idea what Eva was talking about.

“I mean, everyone already loves me,” she continued, “but they always get excited when some fresh faces join. There’s also been some relationship drama lately, so I bet they’re wondering if we’re secretly dating and hoping they can see it turn sour. If they knew you were a girl, they’d probably think that even more since Shimmerforce is such a gay-ass guild.”

Zaria kept absent-mindedly nodded as she mustered the energy to eat. She had gotten used to tuning out her friend if she had to.

Her attention snapped back as Eva sat up straight and changed back into her public persona. “Oh my gods, it’s the rest of our party! Silly me, I totally forgot to tell you that Mommy put you in the same group as me.” She stood up and waved frantically. “Gemma! Starlight! Come sit with us!”

Approaching were two of the most stand-out characters Zaria had seen today, which was saying something in a colorful guild like Shimmerforce.

The first was a stout dwarven woman that moved with a graceful but hyper speed. It seemed impossible for the eyes to pin her down, yet one couldn’t help but pay attention. The dwarven acrobat front flipped onto the table, posed, and then blew kisses—seemingly directed to some audience behind Zaria—before bending forward to address the confused wizard. She stroked one of her beard’s tight braids. “You must be Azariah.” She outstretched her hand. “Nice to meet you, boy. I’m Gemma.”

Zaria shook it. “The pleasure is all mine.”

Catching up behind her was an elven man. He seemed about average height, perhaps a little short for an elf, but he had so much presence that he seemed to tower over everyone else. It helped that his open vest and tight shorts did little to hide his chiseled physique.  The elven strongman placed two trays of food on the table so he could bow. Despite his bulk, he moved with an elegance that rivaled Gemma’s, albeit a complete contrast in terms of speed. “Starlight, humbly at your service. I look forward to working with someone that acts with proper manners.”

“And look at this slick getup!” Gemma said. “I finally get to work with a man who knows how to put on clothes.”

“You flatter me.” Zaria gave a slight bow from her seat. “I look forward to working with you both.”

Gemma jumped back, landing in a chair, before swiping one of the food trays Starlight had brought. “So you’re a wizard, right?” She took a generous mouthful of food and chewed most of it before covering her mouth to finish her questions. “What type of flashy stuff can you do?”

Zaria perked up. “Oh! Well, I originally was focusing on transmutation magic before switching to a universalist education for my apprenticeship. I reached novice-level with a dual-focus in enchantment and illusion, but now, I’m trying to specialize in psychic magic for my mage certification.”

Starlight, who hadn’t started eating yet, leaned forward with interest. “That’s quite a unique pick. I don’t recall ever meeting a… psychic specialist?”

Zaria shrugged. “I’ve also heard ‘mind wizard.’ There doesn’t seem to be a standard title yet.”

“Interesting. What led you to this choice?”

“Uh… honestly, after I found out I was lousy at transmutation, limiting myself to any other single school of magic sounded boring. Psychic magic covered most of the spells I liked: communication spells, pacifying spells, etc. I hated combat training, so I kept focusing on magic that’d help prevent a fight in the first place.”

“Ah, such a noble pursuit! And it seems you were assigned to the right party; we are practically never assigned to combat-prone missions.”

“Hell, I think we’ve only once been assigned to even leave the city,” Gemma said, “and poor little Eva didn’t even get to come with us.”

Eva’s eye twitched, though only Zaria noticed. “Aw, well, I’m just an alchemist. I’m happy to just work here where I have all my awesome lab equipment and can see my friends every day.” 

“But!” Gemma held up a finger to keep everyone’s attention as she finished chewing.  “But we gotta get you out of here some time. It’s a great, big world out there, and it’d be a shame for adventurers of all people not to see as much of it as they can! You can learn so much about life and yourself and other people. Isn’t that the whole fun of becoming an adventurer?”

Zaria smiled and nodded. “Definitely.”