A lively feast lit up the night on this day.

The town had survived. Not a single civilian died on a day where without a doubt the town should have gone down in flames from the sheer force of the Wave they were faced with.

Torches lit up the streets and a large bonfire had been prepared in the plaza, it’s flames reaching up towards the sky and shining brightly with the hope of the people.

Merrily drinking their current worries away and eating in celebration of this miracle, conversation was light and loud and laughter could be heard from every which way.

It was a great atmosphere, although still one that didn’t really fit Kal, who quietly perused the streets with notebook in one hand and mug in the other. While drinking and walking around the place he took notes on anything he found interesting with a telekinetic pen. Be that the joy of the people, their meaningless quarrels that usually resulted in another drinking partner or the various conversations about the day’s events.

Of course, the last one was the most important part.

By the time he was somewhat happy with the amount of talk he recorded he already found himself back at the tavern where he initially left because of Amadeus’ antics. He knew that it would be even louder than before now, but he did need a refill so he could only sigh and enter.

And what greeted him was an extension of the loud shouts he had already heard from outside. The loudest voice, of course, being Amadeus himself who was currently chugging from a massive mug along with 3 guards.

His mug was slammed down on the table within the next second, completely empty. The barmaid next to the table checked it over and simply raised her arm, making the crowd go wild. Kal quickly considered his pace and came to the conclusion that this must be about the twentieth round, including time for idle conversation.

“And that’s my twentieth win boys. Still not gonna concede that I could drink this whole town under the table?” Cockily he looked at the three guards that were still gulping down their drinks. Not one of them looked at him, but they knew what his expression was like at this moment. Cocky, but still friendly. Amadeus was just that easy to read, considering he wore his heart on his sleeve.

One of them set down their mug a few seconds later and raised both arms in defeat, while the other two also stopped drinking, even though theirs weren’t empty just yet.

“Damn. You can really hold your own. I think you just about beat everyone that’s here right now. Well, except your friends but eh.”

“Of course, who do you think I am! Amadeus of the Twelve! When it comes to alcohol there’s only one person that can beat me and he isn’t even in this World!” He loudly proclaimed, getting a massive cheer from the crowd in response. It bothered Kal extremely, but he had already learned how to mostly tune out Amadeus’ boisterous nature. Knowing how to cast a noise reduction spell on his ears certainly helped as well.

“Guess that guy must be pretty amazing for even you to praise ‘im that much.”

“That is without question. He’s to me what she is to you all. But enough of that. Is there anyone else that want’s to challenge me?”

“Nah, I think we were the only three left dumb enough to try. Although I will take you up on an offer to just drink like pals.”

“Obviously! Well, let us drink like friends then! In her honour!” A loud shout from him easily ignited the atmosphere once again. The noise levels only grew louder and louder from there. Kal’s had begun developing a headache from the sheer force of the sounds and quickly snuck his way out of there with a refilled mug in hand.

When he closed the door behind him and breathed out a sigh of relief as the sounds became muffled, although still very loud Daron’s voice rang out from above him.

“Too much for you too, huh?”

“Well, yeah. But it’s not like any of us don’t know that. I still wonder what Sis finds attractive in that loudness…”

“Yes, yes. ‘I’ll loathe having to invite him as a brother-in-law to serious celebrations’ yadda,yadda. I’ve heard it before. While I agree he’s a bit too much at times, I actually quite like that nature of his. I mean, it’s what helped him all this time to mingle. Even now he’s merry in the same room as people that mistook his gender ‘cause of rumours.”

“I know, Daron. I’m just personally not great with… big personalities like that.”

“Says the most stubborn guy I know?” At that point Daron finally jumped down from the windowsill where he was sitting and landed next to Kal.

“Well, whatevs. I’ll catch ya later anyway. I still gotta find Lucy.” He began walking away, but Kal stopped him for another moment.

“Have you seen Altair or…”

“Only Altair. He’s that way. Might know about her. Anyway, I’m heading out, see ya.”

With a light night breeze picking up, Daron disappeared from sight. Kal began tracking him and to his surprise didn’t find it all that difficult. He must not care about being found by the other Twelve at this time, so it was unlikely he would be up to mischief. For now, at least.

Instead of bothering with him anymore than that, Kal just moved on to the direction where Daron pointed towards Altair. Considering that Altair could see the Spirits, which they found out includes the Souls that she uses, he should be able to find her even without knowing.

On the way there, there was a short incident where he bumped into a girl that walked at the extremities of a group of friends, but only a quick apology was uttered. He completely forgot about this event by the time he saw Altair. Forgetting about tracking Daron’s wind at the same time also didn’t bother him.

Although it probably should have, considering those two were now hiding from the other Twelve.

But it didn’t, so instead he looked at Altair, who was happily dancing in the middle of a circle of people, gusts of winds, small pillars of fire and streams of water moving around him in unison with his dance. It was a mystical and serene performance if you simply look at the part the Spirits played. But once Altair was added, ‘cute’ became the overwhelming nature of it.

Once the adorable creature in question saw Kal, the dance immediately stopped as he jumped towards him. Without missing a beat Kal caught him, but also put him down immediately, not allowing Altair to finish the hug he was going for. It resulted in a small pout, but nothing that could persuade Kal.

“Could you take a moment to look for Kuna?”

“Only if you take a moment to dance with me!” Wordlessly Kal moved on. Once again Altair pouted at him, but he knew it actually useless to try that with him. Even normally he would never accept an invitation like that, much less in an atmosphere like tonight. Instead, just before he left earshot, Altair shouted after him.

“She’s around the Plaza! Just find Kid!” By the time he finished his sentence he had already resumed his dance, now having other people join in. But only Altair noticed how some extra magical lights and flames have stealthily joined the ensemble.

Once again Kal then found himself at the plaza where a giant bonfire was burning. And then, after taking a proper look, he quickly found Kid and the other Skeletons, surrounded by townspeople. Some civilians, some guards, but largely Adventurers.

What fully caught his eye were the bright flames in their eye sockets, darting around as they held conversations with the people, none of them wearing their helmets or hoods. Of course, considering the addition of almost a hundred new ones, most of them didn’t have anything like that.

“Kid, are you having any issues here?” He walked up to the crowd, which had already begun splitting after noticing him, one of the Twelve, show up.

“…no, no. Did it look like that? I’m sorry for bothering you then.”

“No, I’m actually for my sister. But while I’m here, I figured I should help with the Undead-Human relationships I planned to build.”

“…There’s nothing to worry about... All of the new kids aren’t having any big issues with their memories… The ones that were ‘revived’ remember their lives almost perfectly and don’t have problems moving… The ones made with older Souls are having some trouble, but much less than we originally had… We were just discussing about leaving the ones that live here… well, here…”

At that point Kal looked over at the person that originally introduced themselves as the Guildmaster of the Adventurers Guild here. They nodded in response instead of chiming in, not daring to enter the conversation between a member of the Twelve and an important companion of theirs.

At first, obviously, it was quite a shock that the Twelve would use Undead, but explanations were given and double-checked with Mages. Once The five apart from Kuna arrived, all problems were resolved.

Yet, most people were naturally fearful of her Skeletons, even if they were their benefactors that had proven themselves with their hero-like actions, polite demeanour and resistance against a Demon. It was simply difficult to accept when it speaks against their natural fear.

Although it luckily began tapering off in this town. First the Adventurers, who happily talked with the few of their comrades that fell and were now back in action with the same spunk as they once had. Then the guards who, while not quite as used to weird magical situations, were in fact braver than common people. And Human curiosity must not be underestimated as some curious civilians also stepped up to begin talking with them.

Although one of the biggest reasons this could happen was the existence of a priest who fell in battle. That is, the Skeleton wearing priestly robes and standing slightly behind Kid. A Skeleton that was integral to helping the wounded by casting healing spells. A Skeleton that could use Holy Magic, a feat that almost single-handedly carried the trust the people could put into them.

“…If you’re looking for Master, she should be around here somewhere… Ah…” Kid pointed at a weirdly quiet and dark alley relatively close by. A place detached from the thoroughfare of people and yet with a perfect view of this place where the Skeletons stood. Kuna was trying to hide awkwardly, which was enough for the common people who were absorbed in their happiness about life, but not enough to hide from her own children.

After Kal said his goodbyes and left Kid to discuss the particulars, he made his way over and easily found his sister sitting on a crate, hood up and mug held in both hands.

Instead of saying anything first, he stood next to her after putting down his mug. His arms ended up around her shoulders and she leaned into it without a word of her own. Minutes passed in this position, but awkwardness was not felt by either. Just showing their affection instead of talking was most natural to them after all. And both would always wait for the other to initiate a talk about their problems.

And they always got resolved.

“…fuu. You know they call me Saintess around here now, right?”

“I’ve heard the nickname thrown about.”

“Kind of ridiculous, huh? The Necromancer of the Twelve, the one with an occupation everyone fears and hates, that ‘Creepy Girl’. That person, a Saintess. Hell, apparently, they’re going to officialise it now that that new Priest kid decided to follow me as well.”

“Well, having another Priest on our side is going to be useful.”

“It is. Plus, with this we might not have to bother Emmy with helping us as much. She is already too busy anyway.”

Silence descended as their conversation ground to a halt, but it wasn’t weird. They looked around the plaza as one and wordlessly pointed out things to each other. Altair had begun pulling a parade of sorts through the streets, with more people joining as they went, dancing and singing every which way. Kal finally caught another hint of Daron’s wind as he pointed Kuna towards one of the rooftops where they saw a naked Lucy and Daron sitting around. Both of them waved at the siblings, before Daron disappeared and Lucy took on the form of the girl that Kal previously bumped into, at which Kal shook his head in exasperation and Kuna giggled a little.

But the main performance was quietly looking over Kid, handling herself perfectly amongst this crowd of people around her. She talked to everyone and was busily handling their concerns while the Priest and the others of her original entourage supported her. It almost looked like a celebrity at a press conference, protected by bodyguards with a manager behind them.

Watching this Kuna pulled up her legs to hug her knees on top of the crate.

“… I just don’t know what to think. I… I want them to be happy living their lives. They deserve to live the life they couldn’t. And… if it’s this town I’m sure they’ll be able to…”

“So you’re thinking of just having them all stay here.”

She retreated further in on herself, now hiding her face behind her knees.

“…Yeah. I… I’m weak. Both physically and mentally. I couldn’t do anything against that thing without exposing them to danger and now look at me. My conviction is wavering this early… Ray would just laugh at me…”

“…He would. He absolutely would. But at the same time he would pull you into a hug and tell you stop being an idiot. And honestly?” He stopped briefly to take her hands and pull her up from the crate in one movement, before continuing. “So would I. You stupid little sister of mine.

“Since when was them following you, them giving up the comforts of a peaceful to join you in battle… since when was that your choice? You gave that up the moment you decided to take Necromancy down the path you chose. It’s not on you to decide where they settle down. And so, it’s not on you to worry about it. Plus, if you’re so weak, you don’t have the power to force them to do anything anyway.”

“…You’re just being facetious now.”

“You brought up Ray, I’m just channelling his energy. But seriously, isn’t it fine to be ‘weak’? That’s why we’re the Twelve and why we were summoned as a unit. If one of us could do this individually they would have been summoned on their own. I mean, you know who else wasn’t summoned alone? Not everyone is as strong as they act, so it’s fine to be weak at times.”

“…”

“And if you still are that worried, just talk to them, like we did. Do you think any of them would belittle you? I can assure you they won’t. If you want both Ray’s and my advice: ‘Just go for it’.”

She didn’t immediately let go, but just dug into her brother’s hug a bit further for a few minutes. And only after wiping her tears with Magic did she walk out towards the gathering of Skeletons and Humans. When they noticed her they immediately erupted into cheers and the conversation shifted over towards her as the main focus. And it was obvious that she had regained some of her composure from how she carried herself.

Something that Kal could only sigh at.

Just like that, the festivities fizzled out over the night, Amadeus drinking himself into a stupor, Altair having fun to exhaustion, Daron and Lucy pulling pranks of their own variety and Kal now watching over his sister from the same spot she held before.

And, of course, the guest of honour. Kuna who held varied expressions throughout the night. From the mask of a stoic, yet apologetic hero, to breaking past it and to a genuinely kind person. As it went on ,she was shocked for a moment before erupting into tears. Even without hearing, Kal knew that her worries were resolved. Even from a distance, the weight taken from her shoulders was obvious.

The first mission for the Twelve ended in a success.

***

“…so then the last one tried a final ditch effort to cut me down, but a single downwards strike bisected him easily. It was pretty exciting to be in the middle of all that, unnoticed.”

“So that’s why the Orcs on that end have been quiet for so long. Fuu, that’s another thing to add to your report then. Along with the fact that you are actually crazy enough to overcharge your Mana. What were you even thinking there?”

“Nothing much, except how much I wanted to tear that thing apart.” Ray casually answered before taking a sip from his coffee, made almost more sugar than coffee. This moment caused a quick lull in their conversation as the ‘Stalker Girl’, Elle, as she had introduced herself, wrote something down on her notepad.

“Did being hit really enrage you that much?”

“What? No, no. The hit itself was in the end my own fault, what actually pissed me off is the fact that it was too strong and broke my armour. One of the few mementos I have from them right now and that low-level pissant dares…”

“…Quick correction, for clarities sake. That wasn’t a low-level Demon. After having a look at the data our teams got from it, what you single-handedly beat down there is one we would classify as a relatively strong intermediate-level.”

“If it’s not a threat to me, it’s low-level.” He left that statement hanging and instead turned to look out of the window to observe the world through the window. Azure light danced in his vision as they had moved over to the Magic Realm where the flow of Mana was abundant and vibrant.

With the same azure light shining in his eyes and colouring his pupils he painted a gorgeous picture to onlookers, but to anyone that saw past that and to what he was doing it only made him more terrifying, as if beating a Demon alone and with ease wasn’t enough.

After all, while looking at the flow he was busily moving his own Mana and adapting the principles he observed to his own body. He was trying to shape his muscles into natural conduits, even while resting.

Elle felt she had to interrupt him before he got too far absorbed in meditation.

“Well, be that as it may. Your fighting style was impressive. Swapping physical weapons that quickly mid-fight so that you always use the one that would have the greatest effect. Some of our own can’t even do that with shape weapons.”

“A shape weapon… I’ll assume that’s a tool that’ll change form according to the Mana you pour in?”

“Exactly. It is very useful. If you’d like I could attempt to requisition one for you, but as you can imagine, giving such items to outsiders is a little…”

“Then scratch my interest. I only really care about intel anyway. So, let’s stop the preamble and get to it.”

She locked gazes with him, immediately as he mentioned this the somewhat amiable atmosphere stiffened up. An atmosphere that all observers that were stuck onto them couldn’t bear as some fled the scene and others collapsed on the spot.

To Ray’s surprise, she was actually matching him pound for pound on pressure. He thought about turning it up another notch, but since he had already achieved his goal he decided against it.

Instead he took the initiative and asked the first question.

“So, a Necromancer was running around and summoning Undead in the Material Realm. As far as I’ve understood this has been happening for a while now, even before I properly joined. You got anything to say about that?”

“It is our policy to thoroughly examine and investigate any issue at hand before taking action as thoughtlessly intervening in an active mission could lead to catastrophic events.”

“Ah, hitting me with the old: ‘You could have made things worse’. Then let me say this in response. Why didn’t you get backup? You’re… decent at fighting but I can already tell you that that Demon would have ripped you apart in seconds. So if you really did such a thorough investigation you should have know as much. You can nag at me, but you needed me to finish this with the least possible casualties. Zero, that is.”

“Our organization is engaged in similar events all around the planet and as such any request for backup is under heavy scrutiny as we cannot afford to waste personnel. I had tried to get an emergency backup prepared for my final assault, but somebody decided to end the whole thing before I could even get an initial response.”

“And by the time you could have gotten one civilians would have died. Don’t kid yourself. I’m the Hero in this scenario. And you failed. Just drop the act, give me the answers I need and I’ll be on my merry way.”

“I cannot only give you limited answers due to my own clearance, but should it be something I can answer then… certainly.”

“Alright. Well, I only really have… two or three questions anyway. First, how do I get strong faster?”

“… Are you serious?” Her façade of business-like seriousness cracked and shattered and a look of utter disbelief replaced it. His words were that unbelievable.

“You kill a Mid-Level Demon less than two months into using Mana and you want to grow even faster? Did I understand that correctly?”

“Yes.” Non-chalant as ever, his voice didn’t even crack nor did he hesitate with his answer. No matter what others thought, he was completely serious.

A thought at which a supressed laugh squeaked its way out of Elle’s closed mouth.

“…This isn’t even a clearance problem. If we had a way to make people grow faster than what you’re showing, we wouldn’t have this lacking personnel issue. But if you’re willing to take any advice, just trust the ability you’ve shown so far.”

“I suppose I’ll take that for now. Then… well, it’s kind of two questions and a request actually. Does your organization have a way to access specific other Worlds? Is it something that one can acquire individually and…”

“Stop right there. To answer the first, yes. We are in frequent contact with other Worlds as our organization is multi-dimensional. As for the second, that goes beyond my clearance to know, much less talk about. And… I can imagine what your request is.” Her façade had already broken and she didn’t bother putting it up again, so the expression on her face was clearly readable. She was troubled.

Conflicting thoughts, interests and wishes ran through her mind as she tried calculating the best way to handle this. After all, she could not get a proper read on this person they designated as a ‘Variable’ before and now he openly presented a hook for her to use.

She only had to throw the bait.

“Unfortunately usage of this travel network is heavily restricted even for employees. Only the highest ranked individuals can make free use of them and access more information about them. As such, since you likely want to use them… if you wish I can act as your contact and have an employee interview prepared for you. As I mentioned, we are a bit tight on personnel. Specifically people of your skill.

“And even if you won’t join us, I do hope that you can at least think about a cooperative relationship. Who knows, if you continue building a reputation as a Hero we might be able to make certain exceptions for a certain mercenary.”

“…So basically, become an employee exclusively signed with us or a contractor. A classic choice, huh.”

He debated for a bit about the choices.

To become an employee would be to bind himself to their affiliation and their pace. He’d have to deal with their bureaucratic nonsense and do missions that they assign him. In exchange, as somebody more closely linked to them it would be easier to gain their trust and access to certain resources.

And then becoming a mercenary that just happens to cooperate with them. It would probably allow him more freedom when dealing with missions for them, be that choosing which one he wants to join or which he just wants to handle quickly. But it would also require him to do more to gain their trust. And there is a chance that they have information they would never give to somebody not directly part of them.

Although the choice, for Ray at least, was clear.

“Well, I’ve never been one to allow myself to be tied to one place. If anything, the ‘Mercenary Hero’ is more my kind of pace. But even then, I won’t agree to anything without some more info on it. So, go ahead, use those connection with which you’ll make me an employee and get me a tour.

“I’ll at least have a look.”

The first quest for Ray ended like that. Whether it was a success or not, only time would tell.