A team full of oddballs

This time the inside of the cave had a familiar presence, it was like a common dungeon, and with a lot of traps, and one of the enemies I thought I would never find.

“Skeletons…”

I said as I tried to hit them but just as expected, they came back once they managed to have their bodies back, fusion themselves into shapes that were strange to the normal anatomy of a human, the good thing is that.

“ONE MORE!”

Alexander was strong enough to make these skeletons their plaything, a punch pulverize them, our weapons weren't enough, or at least, us, we weren’t as strong to break the bones or make them fall as Alexander was doing.

We managed to get to the bottom of the dungeon where it was the same as a cave. There was a little obelisk with something written on, but it wasn’t the one we were searching for.

“As I continue traveled to find a way out of my monotony, I was made fun when members of different guilds try to join me, but I must be straight with them, if they are not willing to participate in this search or at least go with me, then they are as good as dirty for me… but right now, I found a person, a man that decide to help me with my travels”

“It seems that he found another companion” —I said.

“Are you sure it is a man? It could be a woman” —Elizabeth said.

“True, I don’t know why, I feel like this was a man too”

“I agree with Ryu, a woman could have written it differently, more…”

“More like a woman? I understand, still, it could be one or another, I guess we will discover it as we go on” —Elizabeth said.

We left the place fighting against the skeletons but as soon as we reached one of the first floors they stopped appearing, and with that we went to the inn that was nearby.

We were eating as we had the notes from Alexander on the table, I was trying to make it sense.

Why would anyone from my world write this in the language of here? It seems rather odd and a bit convenient since when I found one in my mother tongue, I would know that is the one I need, also…

I was remembering the text from Akari’s notes, the one where the ones already leave and he may already leave, why wouldn’t they leave the exact location if they knew it?... but maybe they didn’t….

“Ryu?”

Elizabeth took my hand as I was shaking my drink, I took a deep breath, drank and sighed.

“It’s okay, Liz. I’m just thinking how everything is going to make sense”

“Don’t force it, Ryu, we only have two notes so having other ones would make this easy to understand” —Alexander said.

“But you could also do some digging if you don’t know what are you searching for”

A voice behind us made me turn around and there was a young woman, holding a book and with a look that could be seen as judgmental.

A young woman with dark clothes, black pants, dark brown boots, a tight blouse and long hair.

“Uh… can we help you?”

“I see that you are searching for a specific pattern or are unable to make any assumptions, and that would be based that neither of you are scholars”

I looked at the girl with a bothered look and she moved her head up, holding her book tight.

“I-I could help you out since you are not perfect with this”

“We… have it covered… miss…”

I said as I turned around and she held my face and she made me get close to hers.

“Are you sure you understand this? I could be the one that helped your little minds to understand the meaning behind the papers, what are you searching for, a story? A treasure? A location?”

The girl was about to continue with her talk but Elizabeth took her hand tight and looked at her in the eyes.

“Don’t get so close”

I felt a chill feeling when Elizabeth stood and talked like that, it was the first time seeing her like that, she even made the girl sweat with only those words and she calmed down, she was about to turn around but Alexander stood up.

“Wait! We can use a four head to understand this if you want!”

The girl was moving her arms and she turned around with a proud look and she started to get close.

“I-I suppose you could use my intellect to know what are you searching for”

Now I get a familiar feeling with this, this girl is too shy. When she got close, she took a look at the documents up close and was moving her head up and down and when she finished.

“Yeah, this could use some more notes, they are too ambiguous”

“THAT’S WHAT WE TOLD!”

She got a bit scared but she sat down and opened her book, I told her what we were searching for and she tried to match something.

“An obelisk hides in an underground structure, it could be a dungeon, a cave, a castle… everyplace actually, but you have the locations in this map… these locations are unknown to me, they definitely have been searched but I see why people haven’t searched for them, they don’t something that they want”

“Thanks anyway” —I said.

When the waitress came to take our empty plates, we were left just with the drinks and the girl was dead silent. She was trying to say something but I sighed and touched her shoulder, she jumped a bit and I laughed.

“If you have something to said just say it”

“I… uh… would…. Would you let me join your exploration?...”

“What’s your name?”

“Beatrice… Beatrice Umbrian, I am a mage…”

“Welcome aboard”

“R-Really?!”

I look at Alexander and smile at him.

“You must have a reason why you couldn’t join a team, right?”

She nodded, and she held her book tight.

“People said that I don’t have feelings for other people, that I feel superior but…”

“You don’t have another way to express yourself, yeah, I know how that works”

“You sure you want me on your team? After hearing that?”

I nodded and the girl jumped at me hugging me and I hugged her back.

“Too much… persona space”

“Sorry, sorry”

Beatrice looked down with a reddish color in her face as Elizabeth was drinking her drink.

“Well, let’s go, we have a place to go”

We stood up and the girl followed us still with some shyness into her, but she was smiling, as we were walking, Alexander touched my shoulder and lifted his thumb up.

“Thank you, Ryu”

“And you were the one that didn’t want new people around” —Elizabeth said.

“Well, you made me realize that… maybe they are not so bad”

Elizabeth smiled at me and turned back.

“HEY!”

Beatrice was way too distanced from us, we waited until she got with us and started to scold her.

“Why are you so far away? Stick with us, you are going to get lost!” —Elizabeth said.

“Sorry! I just… didn’t want to get in the way”

“I understand how you feel, but if we are going to be a team now you cannot get yourself down with us, you need to trust us and we will trust in you too” —Elizabeth said.

Beatrice nodded and she started to walk among us, we went to the carriage and Beatrice started playing with the horses, it seems she had a better time with animals than with humans, once we got inside the carriage and followed our next destination Alexander asked.

“By the way, how old are you?”

“I’m 34 years old”

Every single one of us remained silent until we opened our mouths in disbelief, I laughed after a bit and I could only say one thing.

“Now I know how it feels, but you are quite shy for someone your age”

“I… don’t handle very well with humans”

“I could notice that”

“I am a scholar but… I study on my own and just keep studying, learning arts and magic, stories…”

“So, you are a hermit”

“You could say that”

“I get it, well, you are an odd one, shy but prepotent, younger looks but older”

The girl could only laugh and she looked at the horses.

“What are their names?”

“This one right here is Sebastian, and her is Renala”

“Such splendid names…”

“Oh, now that I have someone who studies magic, Beatrice, can you help with this?”

I took the book and showed it to her, she started teaching me, we remain the rest of the way talking with Beatrice and make her help my out with my magic abilities, a new party member joined us and I know she would help in this travel very well.