Brett considered his options. There was a progression dungeon nearby that he could keep on going through as many times as possible. It was only level 4, but maybe there would be less of a wait time? He didn't really want to sit here for another 45 minutes before he could enter just once. 

Once the group of level 4's disappeared into the freshly excavated cave, there were just the four of them waiting. Brett kept his head down and flipped through the report in vain. Unfortunately, there were only a few dozen dungeons near the city. Eventually, he got bored and tucked the document into his armor. The pair of level 6's were talking quietly to each other. Taking another look at them, Brett realized that they were likely still teenagers.

Neither looked like they had to shave yet, though one was starting to get a bit of a wispy mustache. I forget that most people here are going to be younger than me at my level. He glanced over at level 7, waiting in line. He couldn't make much out about the person, though, as they wore a helmet with the visor down. The weather around here wasn't hot, but that couldn't have been comfortable. 

Brett pulled one of his new swords from his back and looked over it for a second. He didn't really know what he was looking for, but the blade was straight, and the handle didn't show much wear. When he went to slide it back into the sheath, the movement felt a little too awkward. From experience, he knew that drawing and putting away weapons were almost as important as using them correctly. At least, that was the case with guns; he just assumed that swords were similar.

Drawing the other blade, he checked it over too. Not that he expected to find anything wrong with it, but both Alan and Bernard were constantly checking their weapons. It would be a good habit to build. Brett checked the clock in his status and sighed. Might as well do something while he was waiting. Getting to his feet, he drew both blades and fell into a guard that Bernard had shown him. Then he sheathed the blades again. And repeated.

Putting away the blades with one hand was a little awkward, but after a few dozen more repetitions, he was able to get it in on the first try most of the time. I got a lot of practice ahead of me. Normally, patience wasn't something he struggled with, but as he sat back down, his leg started to bounce. Am I just nervous?

Over the course of what felt like hours, fifteen minutes eventually passed, and the two kids walked into the dungeon. The helmeted level 7 finally moved. The figure reached up and took off the helmet revealing a young face not much older than the two boys who had just disappeared. Long black hair spilled down to frame the slightly reptilian face of a young woman. Her slitted eyes were covered with scales that looked a bit like green freckles. 

Taking a piece of cloth from a pocket, she wiped her face. When she finished, she met Brett's eyes, and he realized that he had been caught staring. 

"Sorry," he muttered as he looked away. 

The lizardish woman shrugged. "Don't worry," She hissed. "Gilamen aren't common around here."

Gila? Like a Gila monster? Brett felt like he needed to explain himself, "It's not that. Everything is still a bit new to me."

She cocked her head at him, and a forked tongue tasted the air. "You are from the other side, then?"

Brett nodded. "Hard to hide at my age and level."

"Not impossible though. A helmet would help."

I suppose it would; I don't like the idea of it limiting my vision, though. I also don't plan on being this under-leveled for long. Brett thought, but in the end, he just shrugged. Now that the silence had been broken, he wasn't sure if he really wanted to talk. What is going on in my head? This wasn't like him; he was usually better with people.

Luckily, the lizard woman seemed to want to talk and didn't really need his help. "I'm, Shilia."

"Brett Cooper, ma'am," He said on instinct. 

"Well, Brett Cooper. Would you like to share my slot instead of waiting for another instance rotation?" Shelia said with a certain softness around her s's. The offer caught him off guard. He hadn't considered joining a team. Alan and Ravenous hadn't been going in with him because they would fuck with the rewards, but then again, their level was so much higher.

"Uh, I don't know. Won't that hurt the rewards?" He asked. Then after a second, he added, "I've only ever gone in alone before, honestly."

Shelia blinked sideways a few times. "Truly? The rewards are diminished for groups a little, true. But the experience usually is not changed too much, as long as you defeat the similar numbers of monsters. It's usually a bit more efficient for leveling in smaller groups."

"What about the level difference? Won't that matter?" Brett asked, the more pressing concern in his mind.

"It's only one level below me, that's not too big of a penalty." She said in a bit of a defensive tone.

"No, I meant between us." Brett clarified. 

"Oh. I don't think it will matter too much, as we are only five levels apart. Though with you going for a dungeon four levels above you, it shouldn't matter. Though I suppose you might miss out a bit." The last sentence was said with a fair amount of disappointment.

She really wants to partner on this. Why? I'm not against it, really, but I don't understand it. "I just don't see what you get out of it honestly. I'm not against going in early." Brett said with his best disarming smile. 

Shilia's shoulders slumped a little. "Honestly? I only ever went in with others, but my friends are starting to out level me. I need to catch up."

The forlorn look on her face tugged on Brett's sympathies. "I suppose going through it once together won't hurt to try." 

I also have no idea how long this will take; if I can finish a bit early, I can either move on to the next one or run this sooner. 

A pointy-toothed smile split Shilia's face. "Thank you. I won't hold you back!"

Hold me back? She is so much higher level than me, though. Is this a whole "other side" thing, or just her age? "Well, we still have a few minutes. You want to talk strategy?"

"Sure. I am more support-based, utilizing team buffs and the like. I have some racial poison benefits, but my class uses a mace." Shelia said. 

That sounds a bit like a mess, Brett thought; no wonder she needs help. "How's your damage potential? Can you heal?"

"It's not awful, and no, no healing. I can buff speed and endurance though!" She said with a weak smile. Brett was starting to regret this already but didn't feel right backing out just now. She wasn't much more than a kid, really. He couldn't believe her parents were letting her do this alone. Paying it forward, if you will.

"What about you?" she asked. "What can you do?"

Brett thought about how to answer that. What can I do? My class is full of endless movement and violence. Moving forward and taking the fight close to the enemy. I suppose support is useful, but real healing is what I need. He shrugged. "Lots of damage for a long time."