☀️ Arselia and Akonia

-- Thank you, -- another bow and he goes into Carneol.

It was a long day, but tomorrow promises to be both harder and longer, and the current one isn't even over yet. We need to meet the otherworlders in good health from Kripov -- they will return in good health, right? Tomorrow I need to pay my respects to the Princess regardless, for the headquarters and everything, and also discuss a few other matters. About hiring new people, for example... About how to obtain space ore. Also forging tomorrow. Also check the fighting club tomorrow, has it opened? Also spend the remaining OP points. Not yet clear on what.

A tough day, we're preparing. However, the main thing now is the lives of Garrett and Merel; if they don't come, the other pursuits won't matter much, and we'll have to play a funeral march.

Entering the headquarters, the redhead runs into Guyon and Beata, who were sitting on the couches and clearly wanted to say something.

-- What's up, guys? Everything alright?

 - Sit down, boss, we need to talk, - Beata nodded at the couch.
 - We have several rationalization proposals, questions, requests, wishes, and thoughts, - Guyon smiled, - mostly good ones.
After waiting for FyrFyr to sit down, Beata and Guyon exchanged glances and began their story.
 - Firstly, we were in the archive, and there's a lot to see there, - the adventurer began. - Unfortunately, there are no skill books left there, and only two professions can be learned: trade and medicine. But Guyon has a textbook on medicine; I think he'll share if needed. However, there's a lot of other interesting stuff there, look, - she hands Erefir a list of books from the archive, - we'd love to read it all, very interesting books. And even though we can't learn something simple, we can learn some absolutely awesome skills; someone named K.P. from the RSV put a lot of effort in, - she shows a list of skills from the Baldr school. - This will require immense effort and a ton of time, but it will be worth it. We don't know, of course, what Her Highness's plans are for us or if we'll have time to learn all this beauty before our next assignment, but I think we should. Guyon and I will definitely learn it; the rest can if they want, but we need to tell everyone on our team about this information. And as for what we'll learn... This one looks very tempting, - she pokes at "Freedom", - but it will only pay off over a long distance. If we had learned it in June, we'd be sitting pretty now and getting huge bonuses, but if we learn it now, we'll only feel the difference by next June. I also wanted to convince Guyon to go for this, - she points at "Ataraxia" and "Vivifying Circulation", - but he flat out refused. So we'll both take on matter. We can apply elemental damage through enchantments anyway, Amamius can help Guyon with injuries or he can get patched up at the hospital, learning anything from light, darkness, or cosmos would be very long and tedious, and matter will pay off in the shortest term; we can demonstrate new skills almost immediately after finishing the training. Boosting natural armor, learning to break enemy weapons, or imposing a blood tax on the opponent sounds really cool, right? If Her Highness has no objections, we plan to start on Thursday.
 - Secondly, - Guyon laid "Starfall" on the table, - you're really good at forging. Maybe you could supply us with a couple of new toys, huh? We'll see what gifts Her Highness sends tomorrow and what's in the shops, but personally, I wouldn't say no to armor. My suit is decent, sure, but it won't protect against a sword or axe. And Beata needs a crossbow; her club is sturdy, but it's a very unusual weapon; she prefers to keep her distance in battle and handles crossbows so well you'd love to watch. Our people might want something too; Garrett, for instance, is completely unarmed. If it's not too much trouble, of course, we're asking, but not insisting, - he raised his palms.
 - Yeah, you can't just keep making gifts for our enemies; you could come up with something for allies too, - Beata grinned slyly.
 - Are you going to remind her about this until the end of days? - Guyon rolled his eyes. - It's fine. And this sword is mine now.
 - I will, - the adventurer snorted, but immediately gave Erefir a guilty smile, - sorry, boss, no offense.
She paused and continued.
 - Thirdly. Any fresh blood coming in? Half the squad has scattered. I'm really glad they found a new calling in life, but we need to think about ourselves too! We have, - she began counting on her fingers:
1. You. Our leader, our terminator, our killing machine. Thanks to you, we defeated that apostolate on Taissa; your merits cannot be understated. Plus, you can make us cool gear, which is very valuable.
2. Kilika. She trained a bit in hand-to-hand combat and some special techniques, which is great, and she's also an excellent mage. She's very quick and nimble, and a good shot. Even if her magic is blocked, she has a couple of tricks up her sleeve.
3. Merel. An awesome support mage, a jack of all trades; I don't think there's anything he can't conjure up. Plus, he studied a bit of medicine. His downside is that he relies on magic. In Margel, mages are watched, and if we stir things up here, he'll only be able to whack someone with his staff.
4. Me. I'm simple; I'm just a crossbowwoman who won't go down from one hit; that's all my pluses.
5. Guyon. An excellent melee fighter; he can slice an opponent into a thousand pieces before they know what's happening. Most valuable of all, he's learned medicine, but he needs a lot of practice to become a full-fledged doctor and revive people after battle without risk. He said he talked to you about this; he doesn't want to risk us. He won't forgive himself if he can't bring someone from our squad back after a fight.
6. Garrett. Our rogue, our scout; his stealth can't be underestimated. Also, a second shooter, which is important.
7. Astellia. She's the best maid, always ready to help with tasks, support us, and have our backs in life. But she's not a fighter. And she's soon going to have a child. Which means - we must protect her, take care of her, and keep her away from our operations.
And who don't we have in our squad? Someone who can help us find new apostols! A psychiatrist, for example, to analyze people's character, or someone who can see people's auras, like that priestess... Ayame? Ayaya? Guyon told me about her; I think they told you too. Someone who can see right through people. We could, of course, learn this thing, - she pokes her finger at "Penetration", - but at best, we'll gnaw through this granite of science in six months. I don't doubt your leadership charm, and we'll take any people, but... But some will be more useful than others. And also... We saw you at the church. Didn't know you were interested in religion. From a scientific standpoint, or do you pray to Mother Anuzish too? Anyway, never mind, none of my business. But a church person in the team wouldn't hurt. I even wanted to go to church myself and learn priestly skills, but... Not with my track record, - she snorted. - And again, that would take time. Guyon and I, Kilika, and Astellia believe in Mother Anuzish and her children, in her goodness and mercy. At least the four of us would feel safer with a priest. We could also bring in a musician or an artist to delight us with their art and boost morale in battle. But these are just my thoughts and wishes. I know such people might not respond to your recruitment. Then again, anyone will do; we'll be happy with anyone. Maybe we'll meet someone just walking around the city or sitting in the library.
 - Fourthly, - Guyon sighed, scratching Mysterius behind the ear, - with this school, we won't have the strength or time to look after our cat. Mysterius is a memory of Aiko, our faithful friend and companion. We want him to stay in Carneol, so we can give him to Astellia or Merel, or someone who won't be going to the school. He can protect Astellia if something goes wrong. But there are rumors that a law might be passed banning pets... I wouldn't want that.
 - Fifthly... - Beata drawled, nervously clenching her trembling hands into fists, - our safety. We still don't know if Metarma was caught or not. We never found the bastard who burned down the old headquarters. Ehnio is supposedly rotting in prison, and I hope she rots there, but who knows. These are the issues I'd like to close so I don't jump at every dark corner. It's my fault and my responsibility, and I'm ready to deal with it, at least by asking the police, but how they work, plus my reputation, I hope it doesn't make things worse...
 - It's not your fault, enough already, - Guyon rolled his eyes.
 - I stirred up this mess...
 - You did not break Metarma's psyche. You did not poison me. You did not set fire to our old headquarters. They broke the law and crossed the line; they made their choice. Go ahead, blame Lavender for Pheasant raping her, why don't you.
 - Guyon, that's different...
 - It's the same thing. Besides, last time you wanted to deal with something like this, you almost got killed and thrown in jail. Do you really need that?
 - I don't care what happens to me, but I'm putting you and all of Carneol in danger...
 - You're not putting anyone in danger. They are.
 - Fine, let them, Rinse with them, - Beata rolled her eyes, tired of arguing, - but it's still a question of our collective safety. I'm very sorry things turned out this way, and I'm ready to make every effort to control the situation. Within the law, of course.
 - And sixthly, - Guyon interrupted this drama, placing his hand on Beata's hands, - our wedding is set for the thirtieth of November. We planned to get married earlier, but... - he hesitated. He was ready to tell Erefir about his curse if she asked, since it no longer mattered, but he didn't want to dump that on her too; they'd already loaded her up completely. - But due to certain circumstances, Yevgeny advised postponing the wedding for a month. We'll have to wait, - he smiled apologetically.
 - So... That's what we wanted to discuss, - the adventurer smiled crookedly, - and it would also be good to get the news; maybe Garrett will bring a newspaper... Some issues might be resolved thanks to the news.
 - In principle, we would have gathered everyone, but we decided to talk to you first; you're the boss, you know better which issues to prioritize, which to try and resolve through Her Highness, and which to handle on an as-needed basis in the course of work.