Once we reach the square and Irika has considerably calmed down, I can finally inquire about her situation.

It seems that she has been expelled by the NPC who took her as an apprentice under his wing learning about pharmacist skillset.

No, not exactly expelled but she has graduated from the tutelage.

According to Yuna-san and Iris-san, being a pharmacist seems to be a relatively easy job. By easy, I mean "easy until you learn the bare minimum requirement".

You have to apprentice yourself to an NPC and learn the minimum knowledge and be able to make potions. Up to this point, they will certainly take care of you. But once you can actually make potions, they will kick you out without question. So, the rest is up to you to make it on your own.

Hmm… that's pretty tough.

But at the very least, they teach you right away, which may indeed be a blessing compared to Chefs who spend too much time in training.

When I told Irika about this, she finally calmed down. I think if I was in her shoes, being kicked out even though I didn’t make a big mistake, I’d get impatient too.

After that, the story is simple.

Irika-san doesn’t seem to have another acquaintance either, so she decides to join our party right away without hesitation.

Hey, hey, is it okay to trust someone you barely know this easily, Irika-san?

Anyway, we’re not going to refuse if it’s her own will. After all, having someone who can concoct a potion join our party early gives us big boons, and it’s quite a big deal.

After it’s settled, Irika goes to buy equipment together with us. Irika, like me, has been using the initial equipment provided when we first begin the game until now. With the funds Irika and I receive from Yuna-san and Iris-san, We're finally able to wear more decent equipment. This favour, I’ll definitely repay in the future. I make a vow to myself.

Finished with shopping, we now head toward the West Gate.

It looks like the North Area outside Arvan is for beginners, and the monsters there are weak enough that we can hunt them alone.

Once the player has gotten used to the battle system and started forming parties, they will head to other hunting grounds or to faraway places.

We decide to head to the west, where there are many ingredients for each of us, with Yuna-san and I going for cooking ingredients and Irika-san for medicinal materials.

"Alright then, let’s confirm our role before we go outside."

Everyone nodded at Yuna-san's words.

That’s right, if we want to have seamless teamwork, we need to know more about the members of our party.

"As you can see, my main weapon is the bow. I also have a dagger, so I can do a little bit of close combat, but this is for self-defense only."

Yuna-san’s job is as an archer. Her equipment is light. She is equipped with a lightweight bow, just like a typical archer in a video game.

"I'm a magician and good at fire magic. Close combat is impossible for me, though."

Just like what I heard from Yuna-san, Iris-san is a magic user. I thought her main job is a Mage but she is actually an Alchemist, and she also owned a dagger shop. What an interesting person Iris-san is…

"I-I'm a Pharmacist! M-my equipment is a m-maze… no, no I mean mace! and a shield!"

Wow, it seems that Irika-san is still high-strung when interacting with us. The way she speaks and her slip of the tongue are cute, though.

She mainly uses a mace and a shield in combat, so she is suitable for the role of Tank in our party. Since she is a beastkin, it seems that there is a boost to STR and VIT.

"I'm a thief. I prefer to sneak up on monsters and attack them with my two daggers."

It’s my turn to introduce myself.

Iris-san somehow looks at me wide-eyed.

Speaking of which, I’d never told her about it before, did I?

"Eve is a thief..."

Iris-san mutters to herself. I can see the surprise in her eyes.

"Yes, I’m a thief, but I'm not in the Thieves' Guild, and I have no plans to join in either."

When I tell her that, Iris-san is visibly relieved.

Apparently, Iris-san had been PK’d by a thief before.

PK, player kill, is a fight between players.

That time she was ambushed by someone from behind without even noticing, which was most likely done by a thief with [Stealth] skill.

It’s reasonable that Iris-san doesn’t have a good impression of a thief.

Of course, I won’t do something like that. Unless it’s an enemy.

Having done with our introduction, we leave the West Gate and head outside.

The area outside the West Gate is also a meadow, but if you go a little further, you’ll find a forest skirt, where you can find a lot of materials.

In addition, I heard that the monsters there drop various kinds of cooking ingredients.

My motivation quickly spikes up as I imagine the food I can make with the ingredients there.

Yuna-san and I are going ahead of the party. I’m the scout of the party, while Yuna-san seems to have good eyesight as she is an archer. I guess it’s one of her job’s related skills.

I immediately find a pack of monsters as soon as I go a little further. There are three Cuckobirds, and they didn’t seem to notice our presence yet.

"Eve-chan, you go sneak up behind them. I’ll shoot when we’re already in position. After that, Irika-chan will step forward, and Iris and I will attack from distance."

Yuna-san's arrangement is quite easy to understand, and everybody seems to know their respective role.

Without further ado, I do what Yuna-san instructs me to. I nod lightly at the group, activate my [Stealth] skill, and circumvent the monster group to their rear.

When I reach my arranged position, I draw my Aikiri twin daggers and slash at the closest target around me.

Suddenly, a message pops out, sending a notice that I have learned a new technique. It’s a passive skill called [Dual Wield Lv.1] that increases the attack speed by an amount equal to the skill level.

My skill level is still Lv. 1 so it’s only increased by 1%, but when my skill level increases in the future, I can imagine how OP this skill can be.

Wow, that’s exciting!

At the same time, when my attack landed, another Cuckobird was pierced by an arrow.

As expected of Yuna-san!

When I look over, Irika has already rushed to the front.

Until then, I’m alone in this position.

I’ll act accordingly while paying attention not to get into Yuna-san’s and Iris-san’s line of sight.

What I should do is the same as usual. Dodge and attack, rinse and repeat.

There are three of them, but I can still dodge their attacks just fine.

I’ll keep an eye on them and deliver a blow when there's an opening.

"Horryaaaaa!!"

As Irika’s cry echoes across the plain, one Cuckobird ceases to exist. The damage dealt with a mace seems to be higher than what my daggers can do.

After that, I ride the momentum and attack once again.

The remaining Cuckobirds’s attention is lured by Irika and I, using that window of opportunity, Iris-san successfully cast [Fireball], scorching both the chicken-like monsters to ashes.

That’s how overwhelming the might of magic is.