I Want A Refund…

“Whoa, this place is huge!” Evona yelled out.

“This is really our place?” Kaito also said in shock.

The group had just arrived at their private guild building near the eastern edge of Giora. It was in a wooded area, a massive one-story mansion made of a variety of brown bricks and wide windows. The dark oak wooden beams that held it together gave the building a very forest cottage vibe.

Upon entering through the main entrance, there was a large open area. The front counter was on the right side, almost resembling a drinking bar, while their mission board was on the left wall.

Going past the foyer, a bunch of comfortable-looking seating surrounded a fireplace. The seating area connected to the outdoor patio to the left, the dining area straight forward, and the many bedrooms to the right.

The Relic Raiders were scattered about the building, exploring its amenities. A garden, a large bath, a training area—it was like the building had everything possible.

Rina was sitting behind the front counter, poking at Fiona for some reason, but Fiona seemed to be enjoying it.

“Rina, what are you doing?” Kaito asked.

Rina explained, “Now that we have established the Relic Raiders, we should contact Shen back. I’m trying to figure out how to do that.”

“You can’t just poke at her like a phone and expect something to happen,” mentioned Kaito.

“A phone?” Rina questioned.

Because of how Shen would casually mention hanging up when talking through Fiona, Kaito had forgotten that only he and Iori knew what a phone was.

“Oh, it’s pretty complicated…” Kaito gave a vague response.

“It’s something from your previous world, isn’t it?” Rina successfully deduced.

“Oh uh… yeah,” Kaito awkwardly confirmed.

Rina giggled and smiled, “There’s no need to hide things from us anymore, we’re all a team now.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Kaito concluded.

The two continued to try to figure out how to contact Shen, but were quickly interrupted.

“This is the establishment of the Relic Raiders, correct?” an unknown voice asked.

Kaito and Rina turned to the front door and saw a woman holding a large briefcase. She had red eyes, short, yet fuzzy blonde hair, which was topped with a maid-like headdress.

The rest of her outfit looked like a mix of a nun’s and a priest's.

A black, sleeveless, robe-like covering that went to her knees with a white collar that spread to her shoulders. The top part of the robe was white and stemmed down to the skirt, which had golden embroidery that included an emblem.

“Uh, yeah, you got the right place,” Kaito announced.

“Excellent. May I speak with the guild head?” the woman asked.

Kaito and Rina looked at each other and back at the woman.

“That’d be us,” Kaito answered.

“No, just him,” Rina deflected.

“Rina, I told you to share the responsibilities with me,” Kaito whispered.

“No thanks, Guildmaster,” Rina joked. “I’ve had enough of these ‘responsibilities’ with that Duke and Duchess.”

The woman let out a huge groan, drawing the two’s attention back to her.

“Why do I have to work for someone like you?” the woman said as if she wanted to whisper it, but it was well heard.

“Huh?” Kaito responded, shocked by the comment.

The woman swiftly introduced herself to prevent Kaito from acting upon her rude comment.

“Greetings, Guildmaster,” she said in a curtsy. “My name is Celeste, and I will be acting as the Relic Raider’s registered priestess. If you would, can you please show me to my room?”

Kaito’s impression of her improved from her greeting. He almost forgot about the snide comment she made towards him. Almost…

“Surely you are capable of that, correct?” Celeste added.

Kaito quickly darted to look at Celeste from his previously content pose. Celeste swiftly avoided eye contact to ignore her second rude comment. Rina giggled at the scene.

“Hey, Rina… You think we can replace her with another priest?” Kaito asked. “All I’m getting is red flags from her.”

Celeste, who snuck up and stood incredibly close behind Kaito, responded, “I’m happy to inform you, but the decision for my services for the Relic Raiders has been solidified and cannot be undone.”

A vein bulged from Kaito’s forehead. He’s had enough of Celeste’s sass.

“Then we’ll just kick you out!” Kaito announced as he tried to push Celeste out. “We’ll do fine without a registered priest!”

Despite Kaito’s efforts to push Celeste out of the building, she didn’t move a millimeter.

“So… about my room,” Celeste asked again while Kaito tried to push her, but this time to Rina.

“The bedrooms are on the right,” Rina answered. “Your room is at the end of the hall.”

“Thank you,” Celeste responded as she walked to her room, leaving Kaito to fall on his face.

While Celeste unpacked, Kaito and Rina gathered everyone to meet her in the seating area. Everyone successfully introduced themselves to Celeste, but she added flair to the introductions.

“I see…” Celeste began. “It’s nice to meet you all. Dimwitted Evona, Spineless Khrom, Pure Disaster Wizard Xavian, Incapable Iori, Demon Fiona, Imposter Rachael, Runaway Estelle, Bratty Lessia, Short Gurkin, Insect Jett, Plump Menn, Guild Failure Kaito, and—”

Rina glared at Celeste. She couldn’t dare to create a ‘nickname’ for Rina.

“Queen Rina,” Celeste adjusted her sass.

Rina got up eerily, causing Celeste to flinch. Celeste was unaware of how insensitive that nickname was.

“Wait, Rina!” Kaito held Rina’s arm to stop her. “She didn’t mean it like that!”

Rina looked at Kaito and ordered, “Kaito, let go.”

Kaito was terrified, but held on for Celeste’s sake. Fortunately for Celeste, another savior came to calm Rina down.

Fiona started glowing in Iori’s arms, in which Shen spoke.

“I hope all *bzztz* well. No, I don’t have time for greetings,” Shen spoke. “I’ve been found out. I need you all to rescue me.”