Chapter 41

After leaving the meeting room, we are now moving to the exploration department's area.

"It seems all the members were at a loss for what to do. So, we're going to have a meeting with everyone."

Selma informs us as we head towards the gathering place.

It seems that, as she said this morning, we will be meeting the party members.

There's no problem with everyone gathering, but how does Selma know such real-time information?

Weren't we together the whole time?

When I ask her this question directly, she smirks and says, "I'll tell you later."

It seems there's some kind of setup.

◇

"Huh, what is this...?"

An honest reaction slips out of my mouth.

The place Selma led me to was filled with a large number of books.

There must be several thousand books here, right?

Glancing at the spines of the books, I see ones about magical beasts and the various floors of the dungeon.

"Even Orun is surprised, it seems."

"Um, are all these books about the Great Dungeon?"

"Yeah, there are many books about the dungeons within the country, but there are also books about the Great Dungeon. We not only record the information that the guild makes public but also the information that our clan has gathered on its own."

This is the power of a major clan.

A hero party can't gather this much information.

Only a clan with many explorers can do this.

I am overwhelmed by the amount of information the clan possesses.

If this is just about the dungeon, there must be a considerable amount of information on other topics, like magical devices, right?

Is this paradise? I want to stay here for a while and read through all the unique information that "Silver Hare of the Night Sky" has gathered.

"Even Orun can get excited like this..."

"Of course, with so much information right in front of me! I can't help but get excited!!"

"Y-Yeah... The members of the clan can read these books, but they can't take them out of the building."

Selma seems a bit taken aback.

Indeed, I don't usually get this excited.

But there's so much information I don't know about here!

Who wouldn't get excited? No, there's no one who wouldn't!

"Can I read them!?"

"Well, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but let's prioritize the meeting first..."

That's right.

The reason we came here was for the meeting.

There's no helping it. The books won't run away, so I'll just have to wait.

◇

There were over ten doors at the back of the library.

Selma opens the sturdiest-looking door and invites me in.

"This is the room assigned to our first team. We usually hold discussions here. — It seems everyone is already here."

It looks like everyone is already inside.

Following Selma, I enter the room.

The room is not much different from the one where we held discussions in the house we rented for the hero party.

In the center is a large table and five chairs, a large blackboard on the wall, and a stock of consumables used during exploration at the back.

In addition to Wilks, whom I met this morning, there are two girls.

Both participated in last month's joint extermination.

"I'm sorry for gathering you all despite being freelancers. As I said, we have a matter to discuss. Let's start with introductions again."

"Sure. Got it. Um, is it okay to say 'long time no see'? I'm Rain Hagwell, twenty-four years old! A mage. Nice to meet you."

Rain emphasizes her age during her introduction.

Rain, to be honest, looks like she's in her early teens.

I was surprised to learn that she's actually twenty-four during the joint extermination.

She has her black hair tied into two pigtails, hanging down to about the middle of her shoulders and ears.

Her eyes are a clear sky blue.

She wears a loose-fitting robe in black and blue.

It seems a bit too big for her...

From what I saw during the joint extermination, she focuses more on quality than quantity, casting high-level magic on a small scale.

"Hi there! Next is me! My name is Lucrezia Oates. My position is a support healer. You can call me Lucre! We seem to be around the same age, so let's get along well, okay?"

She's as energetic as I remember.

She has shoulder-length, wavy blonde hair and blue eyes.

She wears a black blouse, a blue mini skirt, and black tights.

During the joint extermination, she participated more as a mage than a healer, mainly using high-level magic with average casting speed.

"Next is me. My name is Wilks Sevare, twenty years old. I've been acting as a front-line attacker recently, but my main role is a defender. I thought I would continue as a front-line attacker, so I'm glad Orun joined. You can call me Wil. Nice to meet you!"

That explains why he acted as a front-line attacker during the joint extermination.

Indeed, the leader who accompanied us on the guided exploration was a defender. If Ansem or Bernard had been promoted to the first team, this person would have been converted to a front-line attacker.

Wilks has silver hair that's a bit long and amber eyes.

He wears a three-quarter-length jacket, giving an overall flashy impression.

But he's a selected explorer for the first team, so his skills are undoubtedly solid.

"I don't think I need to introduce myself, but I'm Selma Claudel. I'm the leader of this party and a support — enhancer mage. I'll generally give instructions during dungeon exploration, but feel free to ask questions if you have any. Nice to meet you again."

Selma is known as the continent's best enhancer mage.

She is said to have mastered all general magic and excels at selecting the appropriate magic for the situation.

Her casting speed and effects are impeccable, making her one of the top explorers.

"I'm the last one. My name is Orun Doura, eighteen years old. My position is a front-line attacker. I'll work hard to catch up with the party's coordination, so please take care of me."

"Eighteen years old!? We're the same age!"

It seems Lucre is also eighteen.

I think Selma is twenty-one, so the average age is quite low.

Even for a hero party.

"Since we're in the same party from today, there's no need for formal language. Using formal language makes conversations unnecessarily long and inefficient."

"But I'm younger and a new member here..."

"I'm younger too, and I was the last to join, except for Orun, but I don't use formal language, so it's no problem!"

"I think you should show more respect to your seniors."

"What are you talking about! Wil is just a flirt! How can you respect someone like that!"

"He's not a flirt! I act based on my beliefs!"

"Is that what you call flirting with girls?"

"I'm not flirting! Don't say things that cause misunderstandings!"

"Wait, but the other day—"

"Ah! Don't say that!"

Suddenly, the two of them start bickering.

In the end, my excuse doesn't work, and we end up not using formal language.

Not using formal language might help us get closer faster.

Formal language does give an impression of formality.

We need to be mindful of the situation, though.

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