Shortly after coming back to the town, I decided to have another meeting with the party. We were at the tavern together, with an assortment of dishes arrayed before us. I made it sound fancy, but it was really just rye bread and oatmeal. There was also pottage and cheese, but aside from those two, there wasn't really much else on the menu. I want to eat meat! I cried internally, but luckily for me, Rujii-kun was delicious. 

"Won't you eat anything else, Daphne?" Kimmel asked with a somewhat concerned look on his face. I wanted to say everything else tasted bland in comparison, but I reconsidered it. They were used to it, and I didn't want to sound like a snobbish brat, so I said,

"I love Rujii fruit! It's sweet and extremely filling, so I feel like I don't need anything else." It was quite a diplomatic answer if I do say so myself. 

Lucia, who was sitting on my right, spoke to me with a similarly concerned look, "I don't know how common this is, but I've read about some cases where people eventually dropped dead after eating too much of it."

"What?!" I exclaimed, almost throwing off Kathryn, who was sitting on my lap by accident. I didn't want to believe it, but it explained the dizzy sensation I felt after eating too much of it. This mystery fruit must contain small amounts of toxins, I thought to myself as I inspected it. Ah, what a shame, I thought as I wolfed down the bread and oatmeal instead.

"So, why did you call us here?" Kimmel asked once I had finished my food. 

"I wanted to know your levels now," I answered matter-of-factly. If they were all at the recommended levels, then I could go ahead with my plan, but if not, then I would have to introduce that system to them. One by one, they told me their levels, and I was honestly impressed. Kimmel was at level 42, Sarde was at level 45, and Batti was at level 43. They were beginning to approach Phildina and Kathryn, so I was proud of their efforts. Matilda had gone up to level 35, and Hertz, who wasn't present at the first meeting, was already at level 40! The only person who hadn't shown much growth was Lucia, who was still at level 25. Well, it's time to tell them about it...

"You see," I began, "There's a system that allows lower-level party members to level up more quickly. In a sense, you've already been doing it without knowing, as I've benefitted from it considerably. This system is called the Mercy System."

"Mercy System? What does it do?" Kimmel asked, reflecting the sentiment of all who listened to me.

"It's not so much about what it does. The Mercy system is a mindset that pla— I mean, people, adopt to help weaker party members." Shit, I almost said players back there! "The basic idea behind it is what you've already been doing for me: weakening monsters enough for me to finish them off and gain EXP."

"Oh, I see," Lucia remarked, her face lighting up as she gained this new understanding. I'm doing this for you, Lucia, I thought to myself before continuing, 

"I asked for only ten kills, but now, I will be asking for triple that amount for Lucia and me."

"T-triple?!" Batti exclaimed in surprise, his loud voice sending several looks our way. 

"May I know your reasoning?" Kimmel asked.

"Sure, I'll tell you this time," I said to him with a smile. "You are all at a higher level now, and it wouldn't make sense for Lucia and I to become your burdens."

"So, it is for all of us to be on the same level," Kimmel said with an understanding look.

"Exactly. It would be in the party's best interests if that were the case, and everything will go back to normal once we catch up to you. I won't even ask for ten kills anymore."

"Then I'll allow it." That was exactly what I wanted to hear! I turned to Lucia, and we exchanged smiles. I could almost hear her say, Thank you, through her eyes, so with that settled, we chatted a bit more before calling it a day. Each party member returned to their respective houses or inns, but I had somewhere else to go before that.

"Oh, Daphne! How have you been doing?" Our merchant asked me. He was a nice guy, but I could tell he was greedy, so I brought out a heavy bag containing almost 1000 gold coins and handed it to him, saying,

"I want you to buy eight Limit Breaks for me. The extra in there is for you to find out whether the services of royal mages can be bought. If you can, buy their services and keep the rest for yourself as an advance payment." 

"Uh...ah... where did you— How did you..." He couldn't even form his words properly, and it was almost funny to watch. The Wujia paid me handsomely for the aphrodisiac, Sarde, and the unconscious man who served as his substitute (may his soul rest in peace). On top of that, I sold off some of the Mythril we had to gather the funds for this massive investment. I knew I would get good returns from it, so I didn't mind spending so much.

He wordlessly collected the bag with shaking hands, bowed deeply, and staggered all the way to his caravan, where he saluted me with a look of utmost respect on his face and took off. With this, I am finally done laying the groundwork. Promotion, here I come!