Vol. 2 Chapter 2: Klubnika

***The Main Office of the Adventurers' Agency, Philippine Branch...***

"Rico, two enemies trying to breach the shield I erected to our rear!"

"I got it, Temaire!"

Two well-placed shots of her anti-materiel rifle to the head of the cyclops immediately ended its attempts to break through their defense lines. Yuuki quickly handed her two fresh clips of ammunition as the scout went back to the front.

"Thanks, Yuu!" she winked at him.

"Alice, we got two Cetus coming. They are covered by the Qalupalik line," Temaire called out to their automatic weapons specialist while her drone hovered above the monster waves approaching their position. With the advent of fiber-optic drones, the team leader of OyasumiSe7en was offered a crystal-clear view of the battlefield around her. "Get ready with the high explosive rockets!"

"Do I switch or keep the machine guns up?"

"Keep them up; Yuuki, can you operate both machine guns?"

"Yeah, no problem! Just keep an eye on the back."

"I set up a tripwire alarm just in case; but I can send drones raining in any direction," she answered. "You can concentrate on pouring suppressing fire to the normal monsters and the mini-bosses. Rico, aim for the Cetus' and Qalupaliks' heads; try to shed off some of the scale armor. Alice, once Rico injured the bosses, destroy it with the rockets."

"Roger that!"

"Alright, take it away! Fire at will!"

Yuuki took over the dual machine guns set up at their makeshift sandbags, protecting the front approach to their positions. With a tablet computer, he could direct the suppressing fire wherever he points it. In this way, he shredded waves of regular monsters, while Rico shot the towering mini-bosses and the main ones. When the normal enemies were only a few meters away from their defenses, Yuuki switched the machine guns to automated mode and went to melee the creatures that got past its line of fire.

Trying to bait the mini-bosses away from their porter, Rico also bolted from her spot, shooting at her targets to draw their aggression. With her nimble moves and reflexes, she would combine shooting them from afar, and delivering the finishing move with a slash or stab at the vital area. If that didn't work...

"Rico, Yuuki, rockets coming through!"

Alice would launch the rockets at the weakened monsters while the porter and the scout ran to safety. It would immediately kill the enemy, though in real conditions, it would be accompanied by a shower of blood and guts.

As all the members of the party did as they were ordered, Temaire added to their destructive firepower by directing kamikaze drones on their targets. While in actual fights, they would be augmented with magic spells, the setting for the simulation limited its use to 'defensive barriers,' and the equipment to 'guns only.' With orders coming from the 'mother ship' drone operated by the team leader, loitering kamikaze drones hovered over certain spots of the battlefield, which could be called to self-destruct to injure bosses or thin out waves of monsters inside a dungeon.

The only limit of such system is the team leader should know where to correctly place the loitering drones, so the 'travel time' to the target is reduced, and maximum damage is achieved. After all, every second in a battle counts.

As Yuuki poured suppressing fire with the machine guns, Rico blasted monster heads with her anti-materiel rifle, and Alice destroyed the bosses with high-explosive rounds, Temaire kept sending kamikaze drones on the monster clusters, even when it was clear that the enemies were already annihilated. As she always believed, one couldn't be wrong with turning a stone two times.

Like a theater conductor in a fit of frenzy, Temaire commanded her drones with methodical precision and movement. It's as if the massive drone shows of China is on full display.

Nevertheless, as terribly mesmerizing it was, soon, the technician operating the simulation had to manually signal them to stop before everyone damaged the training area beyond repair.

"C-Congratulations, L-Lady Henrietta," he greeted them as he went past the exiting group. He immediately surveyed the training area, and could only whistle at the destructive results of their performance. "It's a new record; the entire sequence lasted for only 6 minutes and 25 seconds."

Temaire and her teammates exchanged high-fives to celebrate their overwhelming victory.

"We improved a lot!" she commented. "And to think it's been only three weeks since we met!"

The technician just listened to their conversation. He was thinking to himself, if that is an 'improvement' to their performance, what more would happen if they reached their full team potential at full membership?

"What do you take us for?" Alice chuckled. "The platinum bands in our IDs aren't for a show! We may get rusty, but our bodies already memorized fighting and adventuring!"

Rico suggested, "How about we celebrate by eating out?"

"Ah, that's great!" Yuuki took out his wallet and counted his money. "There's a Jellibee near this place. Want to go there? It's my treat!"

The three ladies fell silent. They only gave him a puzzled look; it was as if Yuuki uttered the most amazing thing they heard.

"W-What?" he asked, unnerved at their bewilderment.

"Uh," Temaire took his wallet and closed it. Then, she handed it back to him. "Are you sure you want to treat us?"

"We got our money, so don't sweat it," Rico added.

"What is this about?" Yuuki was surprised at their reaction. It was common Filipino courtesy to treat their friends whenever they celebrated something; it seemed that his companions forgot that aspect of him.

"What are you talking about?" Alice put her arm around his neck, pulled him closer and ruffled his hair. "You are stingy as feck! You won't even throw an old, worn-out shirt because you say 'it's a huge waste of money!'"

"I-I did?"

"Tell you what, remember when we chipped in money before just to buy you equipment?" the brawler whispered. "And it's because you will not switch to higher-end weapons; you'd tell us, 'It's still useful.' Don't tell me you forgot that part, huh?"

"Ahaha...well, I guess I did forget," the porter admitted. "Maybe it's the years I worked in the government that changed my attitude. I mean, my workmates often ask me to treat them to lunch because I'm the single guy in the group."

"You can say 'No.'"

The sparkle in Yuuki's eyes turned pitch black as he narrated in monotone, "Nope...if I can, I will. But, no...those guys will make my workplace a 'living hell' if I don't treat them. I mean, I saw it happen to my other co-workers before, ahahaha...welcome to the Philippine office setting. I don't want trouble. Ahahaha..."

"Why did the air suddenly turn depressing?"

"Yuu's having his suppressed memories coming back in his head..."

"I should destroy my husband's bullies!"

"Any case, Yuuki, snap out of it!" Alice gently pinched his cheeks. "Look, you just lost your work, right? And you don't want to accept Temaire's money as your 'wage.' So, keep it; we will treat you, instead. After all, you would still be in your office work if not for us."

"Eh, stop with the guilt-trip, though I appreciate your sentiments," Yuuki countered. "I won't agree to treating you if I know I have nothing to back it up. Besides, you still remember my promise to bring you guys on a date before, right?"

The technician, who was still with them inside the simulation room, was surprised and amused while watching steam rise from the heads of the ladies. Their faces were also beet-red, way up to their ears.

That guy with the green-banded ID charmed them like he was breathing...

-----

When the group reached the main lobby of the Adventurers' Agency, they were surprised by the number of people gathered. Cameras and floodlights were also set up, turned towards the direction of the main doors. Temaire had to back away, assisted by Rico, lest she was seen by the crowd and their plan to eat out frustrated.

Alice and Yuuki were the ones left to proceed to submit the results of their simulation, and head out to the main doors, since no one knew them outside the adventurer circles.

"What's going on?" the brawler asked one of the employees in the Training department. "We saw lots of people gathered in the lobby."

"I think it's the platinum adventurers coming from all over the world to apply as Lady Henrietta's teammates."

"Oh...?"

"I'm not sure, but I heard rumors from the Information department that it is so. However, there are also those who say that there are politicians dropping by to do some campaigning among the adventurer voters, since it's already election season in this country. Maybe that's the fuss outside is all about."

"I see..."

"Ah! This is a good improvement from your previous performances!" the employee commented, pointing to the numbers on their results. "I think Mister Yuuki is also getting the hang of adventuring with platinum ranks like Miss Alice."

The pair exchanged amused looks. Alice grabbed Yuuki by the neck and pulled him closer, declaring, "Ah, this green band's still has lots to learn, Ma'am! I'll make sure he becomes the greatest porter the Adventurers' Agency will ever produce!" Like what she always did, she ruffled his hair, much to his annoyance.

"Riiigghht..." he smirked. "I got lots of things to learn from Miss Alice."

"I can feel your sarcasm from over here, Mister Yuuki."

"Sarcastic? Nope, you're imagining things, miss! Don't lower your strictness, though. You'll still going to teach me the basics of washing clothes while camping, cooking stuff using available ingredients, and preparation of logistics."

"S-Shut up..." Alice couldn't counter Yuuki's arguments; as a porter, he was in-charge of those things.

The employee ignored their banter. "Please wait while I upload your report to our database."

"Separate white clothes from colored ones. Don't put every cute mushroom you see in the pot. And you also have to consider the days and months you might end up stuck in the dungeon while planning stocks of supplies. Yep, I learned all of those from Miss Alice."

Cold sweat formed on the brawler's head; she had done everything wrong during their adventuring in the past.

"Getting ahead of ourselves, don't we, Miss Alice?" he whispered in her ears.

"Kyaa!" Alice suddenly let out a moan, much to everyone's—including Yuuki's—surprise. "Stop; it tickles! Yes, I will do it, but you'll have to behave for now, bad boy!" She said that last part so loud, complete with a seductive wink, that every person inside the Training department turned their heads on them.

Yuuki wanted to bury himself at that moment. The brawler had a triumphant smile on her lips as she shot back a teasing stare at the porter.

"A-A-Anyway," the employee's cheeks were flustered as she handed them their IDs. "T-Training report is already submitted. Thank you for your hard work and patience, haha!"

-----

***The lobby of the Adventurers' Agency...***

The employees of the main branch's Information department lined up at the lobby along with the secretary, Lady Yanari. They were joined by people from various media outlets, as well as other adventurers who happened to be present. The occasion? A few platinum-ranked adventurer teams flocked to the Philippines when the news broke out that celebrity mage Henrietta d'Anvilles was looking for party members.

"Rumors about that she also seeks to reconstitute her old party, the legendary all-girls adventurer group, OyasumiSe7en. However, only Lady Henrietta herself can decide on the matter, as her managers say. With many platinum bands coming to Manila, who will be the lucky ones to be chosen?"

"That reporter lady sure keeps on hyping this," Lady Menea whispered to her boss. "Should I send someone to keep their reports on the facts?"

"She's just doing her work; don't think too much about it," Lady Yanari calmed her assistant. "Besides, this can be helpful to the Oyasumi guys. If their former teammates see the reports that Lady Henrietta is recruiting again, they might consider coming back."

"But aren't they disbanded because of the human boy?"

"Well, it's their internal issue to solve."

The assistant said nothing as the first batch of platinum band adventurers entered the lobby. With their flashy looks and famous adventuring stories preceding them, a great crowd of fans, lower-ranked adventurers, and even some of the Adventurers' Agency employees tried to get close to have pictures taken and autographs signed.

At the head of this first batch was the team leader of the all-boys adventuring team from Europe, 'ChasseursAlpins,' call sign 'Eodvig24.' With his silver hair, chiseled jawline, and steel-plated Kevlar vest and knee pads, Eodvig was like a princely knight straight from the fairy tale books. And the moment he saw Lady Yanari, he kneeled before her as he kissed her hand.

"It's always an honor to lay my eyes on such a dignified and beautiful elf like you, milady."

"Thank you," the elf lady didn't show it, but she cringed at his gesture; a far cry from the others who swooned like crazy. "I welcome you to the Philippine main branch of the Adventurers' Agency. As Lady Henrietta is busy, we prepared accommodations for you and others while the recruitment for her party is ongoing."

"Yes, it's fine, milady; no rush. We also plan to take a break while waiting for the application results. I hear that this country is beautiful."

"Ah, you're right, especially that island to the south, Boracay. You should try that one time," Lady Yanari then introduced Lady Menea. "My assistant will guide you to your dormitory rooms. Please follow her."

"I will, thank you," Eodvig looked around, as if searching for something. While the cameras kept flashing, and fans and adventurers alike fought for the front spots, his eyes fell on the peculiar couple walking a few distances away from the crowd. A buxom lady with pink, curly hair was followed by a black-haired guy who wore the uniform of a 'green-banded' adventurer recruit.

"Eo," one of his companions called his attention. "Am I seeing things, or did we just see Klubnika walk by?"

"I think it's her," he answered in whispers, not taking off his eyes from the couple until they exited the building. "And knowing her rank, I'm sure Klubnika is also here to apply in Lady Henrietta's party."

-----

***The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Wind Elves, Manila...***

The aftermath of Kukichiyo's destruction was hard to ignore, yet the authorities sought to keep it under wraps.

"The culprit for the explosion at the embassy was caused by a faulty gas pipe, according to the Bureau of Fire Protection spokesman. Witnesses say they thought they saw someone throwing magic spells, but the Philippine National Police confirmed those to be possible hallucinations due to the effects of the gas leak."

"..." Inside the office of the elf ambassador was the Queen of the Wind Elves herself, having rushed to the place when her daughter's mayhem reached the royal palace. Of course, it was an emergency, so there was a considerable skip of normal protocols for visiting heads of states.

"We assure you that we're cooperating with the Philippine government to find Her Royal Highness," the elf ambassador reassured her queen, though the lady was still anxious.

"She says she wants to come back with her old adventuring team!"

"Milady," the chief of the Philippine police entered the conversation. "We have doubled our men deployed to find the elf princess, and we're looking for her 24/7."

"Thank you for the help, General," she bowed, much to the officer's surprise. "But you must understand, my daughter is a wielder of powerful wind magic; she can cast disguises to make searches for her difficult!"

"We also deployed detection orbs to help the search."

"I can help you find her, though!"

At that moment, everyone was surprised to see an old man in a casual floral shirt, shorts, and slippers appear inside the ambassador's office. There were elf yeomen standing guard inside and outside; they were reinforced by Filipino soldiers and police, with strict orders not to let anyone near the place.

Yet, he casually announced his presence...

The elves immediately trained their pistols on him.

"Please keep your weapons," the old man laughed, spreading his arms as he walked towards them. "As you can see, I'm unarmed."

"Who are you?" the chief of police demanded; he gestured for his men not to fire, though the military and police already pointed their guns at the trespasser. The elvish yeomen surrounded their queen, but couldn't get her out because the only way was through the old man.

"Just call me Greg," he replied with a smile. "If you doubt me, you can call the Adventurers' Agency and ask the secretary of the Philippine branch, Lady Yanari. I'm sure she can verify my identity to you. But allow me to demonstrate my harmlessness..."

"!!!" The pistols and rifles suddenly turned into bouquets in the military, police, and yeomen's hands. When the elves tried to pull their sabers, all that came out were balloons. The chief of police and the ambassador held their breaths; the elf queen remained calm and composed, however, while Greg approached her.

An elf yeoman finally lost his cool and attacked him with his bare hands. The old man, without breaking a sweat, swept the yeoman's feet and sent him to the floor. A pair of human soldiers followed, trying to subdue him, but he just threw them behind him without any visible effort. Paralyzed by their fear, no one dared to move against the old man. With a flick of his finger, he caused the guards to step sideways, even though they didn't want to move.

The chief of police and the ambassador could only close their eyes; they didn't want to witness the inevitable.

However, when he got near, Greg kneeled before the elf queen. "Greetings, Lady Aranea! It's been a while..."

"You always surprise me with your pranks, Lord Greg; even I missed to identify you, had I never read your mind. But why are you kneeling when you're superior to me?"

"I always give respects; you know how I do things."

Everyone in the room was bewildered at the sense of familiarity the queen of the Wind Elves showed to the trespasser. What was even more confusing was her way of addressing the old man as 'lord' and 'superior' to her. The queen finally dispelled their suspicions with, "Please relax; I know this person. The Lord Greg poses no danger to us."

With that, the yeomen, military, and police breathe easy. Others picked their guns beneath the piles of flowers, while the elves had to pop the balloons to retrieve their swords. Meanwhile, the chief of police commented as he offered the now-revered visitor a seat. "You really got us there, milord."

"It's fine, if I mean harm, everyone in this room is already dead. But, as I told you, I mean to help find the elf princess. I just don't like it when guns are pointed at me; I'm not even an American!"