Serandur hesitated a moment but ultimately kept his question to himself.

They weren't true teammates yet; prying into someone's strength was taboo.

But sitting and waiting was dull.

So the two of them strolled toward the entrance hall to pass the time while they waited for Alia outside.

The entrance hall offered free juice and mixed dried nuts; most spellcasters couldn't be bothered with such trifles, but Gauss didn't mind sampling.

They found empty seats.

Gauss brought back a big plate of nuts and two drinks.

As he passed Serandur, his gaze couldn't help lingering on the serpentfolk's posture: that thick tail had threaded neatly through the gap beneath the chair's armrest and coiled on the floor, acting like a stable spring base for the upper body.

Looked like he'd done this plenty.

Gauss recalled a passage in a book: a thousand years earlier, humans and non-pureblood races had still been enemies; the two of them sitting together chatting like this would have been unthinkable. Even today, some primitive demihuman tribes still shun human visitors; a few will even drive out or hunt humans who enter their lands.

The reconciliation between humans and other sapients only began in the last millennium as demonic forces rose—faced with demons and the monsters they commanded, the sapient races had no choice but to unite, set aside grudges, and thus came today's multi-racial prosperity.

"Serandur, where's your homeland?" Gauss asked, curious.

They hadn't decided on his joining yet, but he still felt it right to learn a prospective member's background—or, fine, he was simply curious.

"Not on this continent. My home is an island off the west coast—hot, rainy, damp and dim—perfect for serpentfolks like us."

Talking about home, a smile crept onto Serandur's face—though to others it might look a bit eerie.

Gauss, seeing it, wanted to suggest he smile less to avoid misunderstandings—but swallowed the thought. Everyone has the right to show joy; whether it looks unfriendly is a trivial thing.

Once he started, Serandur didn't stop: half-underground villages in the rainforest; the fate of banishing low-witted kin; the tribe's strict hierarchy—he told it all.

"I'll visit someday, if I can," Gauss said.

"Best not," Serandur sighed with a wry shake of his head. "My tribe is very hostile to humans.

"They're convinced humans stole our homeland and drove us from the continent to the islands.

"If you landed there, being driven off might be the best outcome."

Gauss nodded thoughtfully. You couldn't judge a whole people by one person. He'd assumed a serpentfolk so friendly to him must come from a human-friendly tribe; turns out, the opposite.

While they talked, Alia approached with a spring in her step.

Noticing Gauss suddenly fall silent, Serandur glanced up and saw her.

"All done?" Gauss asked.

"Mm." Her smile was bright—she was clearly pleased. She'd come to consult on a druid's advancement to Level 2 and to talk shop with other druids.

"Congrats."

She'd meant to demur, but her eyes slid to the familiar-yet-strange figure opposite Gauss and her body tensed almost imperceptibly. She knew he was a good person, but the golden scales across his cheek and neck, the cold slitted pupils—his eerie looks still made her uneasy.

"Hello."

"Hello."

After a brief greeting, she chose the seat closest to Gauss and edged it even nearer, shooting him a questioning look.

Gauss hurried to introduce them.

"This is Serandur, serpentfolk adventurer, a priest by class. Alia, you should know him pretty well by now."

"Serandur, this is my companion Alia, a druid."

They nodded to one another.

With the basics exchanged, Gauss went straight to the point.

"Serandur wants to join our party. Alia—what do you think?"

Surprise crossed her face, mirroring the look Gauss had worn when he'd first heard the request.

Join the party?

Priests and Clerics are hot commodities.

In the months since they began adventuring together, strangers had asked to join before, but none had made the cut. Those applicants had been Level 1 fighters and rangers, mostly. Never a cleric.

Why?

Because priests are fewer than fighters, rangers, and rogues; many don't choose adventuring at all—serving instead in churches, temples, monasteries, hospitals. Only a few with the spark for the road take up the rough life. High-level clerics, especially, are snapped up.

And a tribal serpentfolk priest—his job prospects might be narrower than a cleric's, but finding a team should have been easy. A Level 3 priest could fit right into a four- or five-person party of Level 4/5s.

But them? She might be on the verge of Level 2; Gauss fought far beyond a typical Level 2 caster—but theirs wasn't a famous team. They didn't even rank in Grayrock; in talent-stuffed Barry, they barely rippled.

For him to want in was… gracious, to put it mildly. And he'd helped them besides.

That was a good thing.

She looked to Gauss. "No objection here. Your call."

As usual, she left the final decision to him.

"Well, then…"

Under Serandur's gaze, Gauss nodded firmly.

"Welcome aboard, Serandur!"

He offered his hand—the Gauss party had its third member.

Serandur exhaled and smiled, shaking it. "Hello, Captain."

"Just Gauss," he said, waving it off. He might be captain on paper, but he wasn't the domineering type; major decisions were made with the others—now two, not one. He didn't care to throw his weight around.

"It's just my habit, Captain," Serandur said. He didn't change the address, and Gauss let it go—a title is just a title.

Looking at the two beside him, Gauss smiled.

A party of three finally looked like an adventuring party. Most teams ran four or five, but lots of trios made it work. More heads weren't always better; you had to weigh shares and synergy.

"Let's find lunch—to celebrate Serandur joining."

Alia's head started to bob, then she remembered: "Gauss—you're on bland food only. No cheating. Doctor's orders."

"Heh… relax, do I look that greedy? Order what you like; I'll eat light," he said with an embarrassed grin.

They walked ahead; Serandur watched their easy talk, and a small, easing smile tugged his lips. Being part of a fixed party like this… felt good.

…

"Say, Serandur," Gauss called over the hiss of wind. He rode Golden Sheaf, his tall, sleek chocobo, hammering down Barry's main road. The serpentfolk slid alongside at an unhurried pace.

"What is it, Captain?" Serandur's rasp came to Gauss's ear via message cantrip.

"Sure you don't want a mount? It's convenient." Gauss glanced at him, genuinely suggesting.

"No need, Captain. Your chocobo can't match me for speed or stamina. Don't worry—I'll keep up easily," Serandur said bluntly.

"…"

Gauss fell silent. So this was racial advantage. Still, even if he could keep up, riding while a teammate legged it behind—people might think he was being cruel.

Two days had passed since Serandur officially joined. Gauss had fully recovered and could take on work. Alia was in seclusion, communing with nature to push to Level 2; she'd been apart since yesterday, and her retreat would last about a week. So he wouldn't dive the labyrinth this week—he planned to take simple nearby jobs, like goblin-clears, as a bridge.

Before that, the lead he'd paid for finally panned out.

"Pretty far—west side…" Gauss rode for hours from the south to Barry's west.

"This is the Golden Beak Trading Company?" He swung down from the chocobo and glanced at the vertical sign on a four-story building, expression complicated.

Calm as he was, his heart had quickened without him noticing.

Half a year had flown by…

People remember their "firsts" most vividly. His newbie days with three other rookies would likely never fade.

He straightened his clothes—a neat, casual set. Not expensive, but presentable.

Serandur had tagged along just to kill time.

Old teammates… what's the point? he thought silently, watching the swirl of emotion cross Gauss's face. He couldn't relate; as a bottom-tier adventurer, his first party had fallen apart in a brawl over silver scrounged from a monster's den. Maybe that was why he'd kept a barrier up ever since.

Gauss drew a breath and stepped into the hall.

Golden Beak was only a small firm in the western district; he'd found it from the south only by spraying coin at an information broker. No map apps here—no tap-and-go navigation in a sprawling city.

A receptionist stepped up. "How can I help you, sir?"

Gauss's easy clothes couldn't hide the bearing and presence that drew eyes.

"I'm looking for Hailier. Is she here?" He glanced around—no familiar faces, just a few staffers.

Hearing the president's daughter's name from a man with that air, the receptionist hesitated. Something about him carried a "leader" aura.

"And you are…?"

"Gauss. I was Hailier's party-mate once. She traveled to Grayrock last year—we met then." Seeing the wariness in her eyes, he added details.

She weighed it. The facts matched: last year Miss Hailier had traveled with two companions to Grayrock. Since returning, she'd stopped talking about becoming an adventurer—settling, laying down her bow, turning to learn the family business.

"Please wait; I'll inform Miss Hailier." She left.

When she was gone, Serandur finally spoke. "Captain, your former teammate's people seem well off."

A four-story building wasn't grand, but on a thriving commercial street, owning a foothold meant decent business. Not on par with true middle- or large-scale firms, but heirs at that level didn't usually become adventurers "for experience."

While they chatted softly, hurried steps rang on the stairs.

A chestnut-curled woman came flying down.

At the bottom she swept the hall with her eyes and locked onto Gauss.

She rubbed her eyes as if to double-check, and after a long moment her mouth fell open in disbelief as she walked toward him step by step.

"It really is you, Gauss!"

She stopped before him, pale eyes still full of amazement.

The figure before her was night-and-day from the Gauss she remembered. Then he'd been slim and slight.

Now the young man was tall and long-limbed, impeccably put-together; just standing there he radiated an unhurried calm—less a stranger arriving than the place's owner.

If not for the forewarning of his name, and the faintly familiar set of his features, she'd never have believed this was once her teammate.

"You've changed so much!"

"Long time no see, Hailier," Gauss said, a gentle smile touching his lips.