Chapter 76

Food eaten, adrenaline gone, just about everyone in the party was quite thoroughly toast. That was just fine. We had camp supplies and the Freya Familia camping on the other side of the safe zone were also too exhausted to do much more than sleep.

So, I volunteered for first watch, and told the Brothers what exactly we were doing. But, just so I could get my own nap in, I told them to ask Bell how it all went. I figured he needed to get better at story time, especially since he was still dating Ais and it seemed to be going well. Who knew what might happen in the future?

The Oni however told me about their trip. It was super obvious they were successful. They'd been down here a little while now and it showed. But that just meant they left out the obvious (that they had been fighting lots and lots) and told me something new.

"We think there is a secret to that grand arena." Fukawa rumbled.

"It spawns constantly, the walls healing almost before the new monster stands up." Okakai said, "Almost."

That got my attention, "Oh? Have you gotten good enough to cover the entire arena yourselves?"

The two of them... pouted at me? No, couldn't be it. "No. We started to throw monsters against the walls, to break them to prevent them from spawning." Okakai said.

"But too many things get in the way for us to shatter them all." Fukawa added, "Or we miss."

"Or the monster breaks apart on the way."

"Or another monster bites it out of the air."

I held up a hand, "I understand. Well... Keep it in mind. And when they are ready, maybe we'll try this again."

They both chuckled, "Then we may all smell like blood and victory." They said, "As it should be."

We shared a nod, and I stood up, "Get a nap or something yourselves. We're in no rush to get back up, but we aren't taking any unnecessary risks."

"We will take this watch, then wake Bell for his vigil." Okakai said.

"And if Freya Familia bothers us?" Fukawa asked.

"Ask nicely for them to leave." I shrugged, "They've been good so far."

I had no idea why I was awake, on my feet, and a second away from combat readiness. One moment, I was almost sleeping, the next, awake and looking for targets.

Then I felt the two Oni stomp their feet in unison over by the 'fire pit' we'd made for the little magic stone burner. Almost everyone else was up as well, be it sitting up, half standing, or like me, on their feet with a hand on their weapon (or fists clenched). Oh, except Shinkage. She just rolled over, awake but daring anyone to bother her.

"I'd rather not cause a ruckus, but... what the hell did you give our healer?" A familiar voice asked.

I looked towards the voice and spotted the two Oni and Bell looking down at a Palum with a massive axe over one shoulder. "Hold on." I called out, making a couple of hand motions to everyone, "Just..." I yawned, walking over to them. "You're... Not Alfrigg."

"We get that a lot." He said, "Berling. Now answer the question."

"What exactly is the problem?" I asked, getting close and kneeling down so he didn't have to look up at me.

"Can't you hear it?" He asked, "She's been like that for hours and we're starting to worry."

So I looked past him, and did a little head tilt, my ears twitching a couple of times. And very quietly, on the other side of the safe zone, I could hear a very quiet, very happy voice saying, "And you get a heal! And you get a heal! Weeeee! Magical boop of healing! And you too! Annnnnnd you!"

"For hours?" I asked, a bit wide eyed.

"Most of a day by now. Ever since you gave her... what ever it was you gave her." He grumbled.

"Was that..." Bell started.

"It's just proof she needs real sleep." I said, "I know you take your training seriously, but she might end up dead of exhaustion at the rate you were pushing her."

He snorted, the sound kind of odd through the helmet, "She has a job to do, like the rest of us."

"She'll be back to normal soon I think." I said, thinking about how long ago I'd given her the Instant Coffee pill, "Hour or two at most I think."

"Then what?"

"She'll probably pass out. It's a pill that gives you a good sleep almost instantly. But depending on how tired you are, it can have serious recoil." I explained, standing up, "Then she'll sleep like a rock for most of a day."

I couldn't tell what he was thinking, since his helmet covered any real chance I had at reading his expression, "Why the hell don't you sell that then? Something like that would make your Familia rich."

"Cause if you skip too much sleep, you die." I shrugged, "Even with all the stuff I have to do, I've had maybe... a dozen over the last three years?"

He turned suddenly towards the camp, then looked back up at me, "If she doesn't wake up..." And he started to leave at a jog.

"Even adventurers need four to six hours of rest a day." I waved to him as he left. "Sigh... Bell? If I ever get like that, tell these two to beat me up and tell Ha-chan I've been skipping sleep."

"eh-heh..." He laughed nervously, "You'd seriously die?"

"If you need to sleep, you need to sleep." I said, looking at the two brothers, "You haven't slept yet, have you?"

They both shook their heads no.

"Do I need to kick you again so you'll have at least a couple hours rest?"

They both shook their heads no again.

"Good." I went back to my sleeping spot, put a hand over Delly's forehead, checked her pulse, and nodded to myself. "We'll start back up soon. Delly almost feels normal again."

Skipping the Basin, since Freya Familia was still spawn camping, we started our ascent up the ramp around the waterfall. With the Oni here, and my 'hands off' restriction lifted, I almost considered helping. Just to speed things along.

But no. I returned to my role as 'mana battery' for Haruhime, and all the rookies were given the bulk of the work. Now in slightly less deadly territory, they were quite capable of clearing away all but the most aggressive spawns with relative ease.

"I would have liked to see them fight that dragon." Okakai said thoughtfully, "Was it much bigger than the one from the misty forest?"

"It had actual wings, though it was never given the chance to fly." Mikoto said, "And its breath was much hotter."

Having been exposed to it directly, I agreed, "Certainly hot enough to melt normal steel. The one on the tenth floor could only melt stone."

Fukawa gave Ouka and Chigusa a pat on the shoulder, just a little one, "You did well to stand in the face of that."

"We trust our party members." Ouka grinned, "From the ones attacking, to the ones making our equipment."

"Though..." Chigusa didn't flinch from the big Oni's touch, but she hid her discomfort by holding up her shield, "Those new arrows..."

"To go through adamant like that..." Welf said, "Could you imagine what a shield made from them would do?" He took the shield from Chigusa and squinted at the hole in the bottom corner, "Not too bad, didn't crack the metal either..."

"We'd have to fix the thermal problem." I said, "Oh, and give the old Mama Dragon lots of belly rubs." I laughed, "But until then, arrows are about all we have supply for and not many."

"We recovered all but three of the arrow heads." Momiji said, looking towards Bell, "Our luck with recovery has been exceptional."

I was about to say something witty, but felt a little mental tug from one of my forward scouts, "Ready up. Half dozen beetles, an owl bear and a tiny nest of flying swords."

And like a thrown switch, everyone snapped to attention and made ready.

Since we were being deliberately slow, taking our time with monsters, killing everything we found, and doing our best at recovery of magic stone and monster loot, it took until almost dinner time to get to the eighteenth. At this rate, we could make it back to the surface around the time the main guild office closed.

This of course brought up the question, "Should we eat dinner down here, or head up now?" I asked as we all got under the slowly dimming light of the massive crystal dome of the dungeon's first safe zone.

"We have a lot of stuff to sort out." Bell said, looking at the huge bundle over my back, "And that too."

We all looked to the giant bundle, the last remnants of the adventurers that giant blob thing had killed. "I think..." Haruhime started, "We should sort it at home, and deliver it ourselves."

"You guys are pretty nice about the dead." Amani commented, then held her hands up, a little frantic, "I'm not being sarcastic! Just... We toss ours out into the jungle. If we can recover anything useful from them before hand, we do... but..." She sighed, getting a pat from Maki who was closest, "The dead aren't useful, unless it's to distract a monster from eating the living."

I could certainly understand why that sort of mentality would come about in Telskyura. And I could see it on everyone's face they understood too but didn't like the idea of it.

"Well, you can help us sort stuff." Delly said, "What about the stuff we can't identify? Or has an emblem we don't know?"

"Then we'll ask the Guild." Ryuu said, "But I agree. We will do what we can first, quietly, out of respect for the dead, and the grieving."

"As for food." Shinkage said, "We replace our rations with every trip. We should use up what is reasonable now."

"Good idea." Maki said, "Anyone want to find some cloud fruit with me?"

"We'll be back soon." Delly said, tugging lightly at Ryuu's flower cloak, "Isn't that right?"

Both Kaede and Momiji nodded, standing beside the Astraea Familia captain, before Ryuu led them into the forest.

The rest of our trip to the surface was... almost boring. A mix of partial food coma, the long day of being a mana battery for Haruhime, and the lack of monsters. With our party of myself, two Oni, Ryuu, Bell, and the rest... Even the mostly insane dungeon monsters wanted nothing to do with us.

Welf and I talked about what we might do to improve our gear for deeper floors. Ryuu suffered(?) being the centre of attention while telling stories about her former Familia members. The Takemikazuchi Familia walked with just a hint more pride than usual around the two Oni. And lastly, Bell, Haruhime and Maki shared some embarrassing stories about me.

But, but... we had been victorious. All of us. Another trip or two like this, and we'd probably have no problems paying down the debts I'd run up trying to solve the problems from another world.

Then again, a bit of debt was a minuscule price to pay for teaching a God a much needed lesson.

"Uh oh... She's doing that laugh again." Maki stage whispered to Haruhime.

"I may just have to complain to No-chan about teaching her that." Haruhime sighed theatrically.

"Like danger and amusement." The Oni said together.

I realized I was fu-fu-ing behind a hand, stopped, then pouted, "No fair!"

Since we had arrived on the surface just as most services were closing up shop in the Tower, we simply took a few 'seasonal task' forms, gave the job board a quick scan and compared it to our monster loot for turning in later, and went home.

Even so, those few who were around to witness us, be it guild employees about to clock out for the day, rookie adventurers who still only went to the single or low double digit floors, or a couple of randoms who were finishing up some equipment shopping on the lower floors of the tower... Even our quiet return got everyone's attention.

There was no fanfare, but we were all getting that... look. People could tell we had hit the dungeon with a purpose. The dirt and damage to our clothing, the packs full of loot, the tired but successful walk we all had. People noticed that. We had a long day, but we returned. No matter how unpopular a Familia might be, other adventurers respected that. They also understood that we all wanted to go home right now, so kept their distance, or their greetings brief.

"Still feels strange." Bell said while we all marched back to the Manor. "For the longest time, we were the underdog. But now..."

"Feel like a hero yet?" I asked seriously, since I knew he still dreamed of being a hero and would never tease him about it.

"I think..." He scratched the tiny attempt his face was making at a beard, "I'm not aiming to be that kind of hero." He paused, but I motioned him to continue, "I think I am more satisfied with acting heroic, than being seen as a hero?"

"An example to follow, instead of a statue to admire?" I ventured.

"Yes." He nodded, "Exactly that. One day, I might do something great, so great they'll make a statue of me, or sing a song, or maybe mention me at important events!" He laughed, though he sounded a little self conscience, "But that one event is only... one event. A hero should always be a hero, even when 'the people' aren't looking." He made the same gesture I did when I said 'the people', waving his hand towards the nearest house."

"Well, if it makes you feel better, you're still my hero." I replied, "It's true!" I defended myself when he gave me his best 'don't tease me' rabbit eyes. "Ask Maki! Every time I just wanted to punch someone's head off, I asked myself, 'what would Bell think if I did'?"

Maki chimed in, so did Delly, "It's true." They said seriously, nodding sagely.

"At least a half dozen very annoying people owe their lives to you." Delly said to Bell.

"Heh... well..." Bell then became a stuttering idiot, but managed to raise his fist up to me so I could tap his knuckles. "Thank you... I think?"

We returned to the Manor, Bell, our captain opening it for us, then closing it behind us, his last 'duty' before we officially ended the expedition. And, as always, as it should always be, Hestia was there, the other two Gods behind her, as she rushed out to meet us and welcome us home.

Also as always, as it should always be, she got around to the back of our little parade towards the Manor and all but pushed us inside. Yes, even the Oni were 'bustled' back indoors. Once inside, the supporters started to strip armour off of people while taking note of any repairs that had to get done. Then the roles reversed if need be, and the 'fighters' helped the supporters out of their armour, and helped them set aside any packs and pouches that needed to be sorted. Now or later, it didn't matter, just that it wasn't dropped on the floor. Sure, we weren't military, and after a really hard day we might slack a little and leave equipment out until after a bath and sleep. But no, not today, not with the trip we had.

While the 'great equipment drop' was happening, those who stayed behind, or those curious enough to watch, chatted with us. Haruhime and my children helped sort armour into bins, knowing we were busy yet eager to help and earn a little bit of attention before it was 'safe' to cling to us. Aisha was there too, helping sort weapons and the like, as well as very subtly fussing over us to make sure we weren't injured, or if we were, that our bandages were done properly. Weine too, since she was a pacifist, yet eager to contribute to our efforts... Or just find what was left of our rations and sneak them to Chime, her kitten, or Sir Skitters when no one was looking.

Finally, initial dungeon decompression done, we moved almost as a single unit towards the baths.

The children, since both O-ma and A-ma had been away, followed us into the baths. Just like most children, there was almost always a little resistance to 'bath time'. Not much, since Haruhime and I awarded obedience with encouragement. Not as nefarious as it sounds, honest, but the children knew that bath time didn't have to just be bath time, so the less time they spent complaining about needing a bath, the more time they had playing in the bath.

We had also adopted a 'one for all' punishment system. Much like the military. If you ran in the bath, everyone's play time was over. If you didn't come in for dinner when called, everyone got less dessert. Success, or failure, together, just like a party in the Dungeon. We had only had a single accident in the bath because of this policy, and Weine's cookies encouraged them to come to dinner on time.

After our bath, a little play time/swimming in our big stone bath tub, and a little parade towards the laundry room to drop off our clothes (salvageable or not) and bloody bandages (some of which were formerly clothing), we all ended up in the living room.

Since I had just been a supporter for like... 95 percent of the dive, I made the executive decision to be a couch. Changing into my car sized fox form, my wife and children curled up against my side while the rest of the room had the 'after dungeon meeting'. I also collected Chime, her kitten, Loaner and Sir Skitters on various places over my body.

Around the time they got to Delly being the first (and only, thankfully) person to succumb to the general miasma under the Basin floor, the Fox-Fairy joined the children and curled up in my tails someplace. This gave me the opportunity to poke her with my cold nose, and make sure she didn't have a fever or the like.

Oh, and poke her with my nose. That was always fun.

Then we got to 'what next', and I had to reluctantly stop being a couch and join the conversation. I made sure to 'grumph' at Haruhime, who collected children and critters so they wouldn't just fall over while I changed size. But then she put them back, since I could still lay on the 'Kodori is a couch carpet', and still be a couch. Just not huge and fluffy.

"Now that we are up to date on all that happened, it would please us to know what you intend to do now." Takemikazuchi said, his small smile never leaving his face as he watched the children, various critters, Delly and Haruhime get comfortable again while I lay on the floor.

"Takemikazuchi-sama. At first light, we were thinking of skipping our morning sparring, and sorting out the equipment from the fallen. Then, since it is our day of rest after a trip into the dungeon, use what time we need to return the equipment to the God or Goddess." Mikoto said.

"After that, if there's any left, ask the Guild. I don't know some of them emblems, and lemme tell you, a few bits of that equipment were old. And I saw at least one bit of metal in there with Ishtar's emblem on it." Welf said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"And if the Guild had no use for it?" Astraea asked.

For a moment, no one had an answer. It was apparent, from the bits of conversation we'd had on the way up, that our views on 'the dead' varied widely.

Momiji finally said something, though she started with a bit of hesitation, "w...Why don't we melt down each unclaimed piece separately, remake them into mementos, and return them to that room?"

We'd all seen Ryuu's Familia 'grave', and it was obvious where the idea came from. Kaede was quick to support her friend, "It's a frontier zone, right? The dungeon won't eat them, like it does with almost everything else you leave behind..."

Welf, Maki and I shared a look, then a nod. This look spread around the room to everyone else, and we seemed to all be in agreement.

"What else do you need to do then?" Hestia asked.

I started to answer, "Aside from turning in a huge amount of magic stone, finding buyers for some rare monster loot-"

"Lilly will help with that!"

"-and getting our own equipment looked after... Paperwork."

Ryuu, Bell (because I'd been strictly support this time) and Ouka, the three captains, all looked stricken.

"Kinda wish I'd come with you." Aisha said, sitting down next to Haruhime, then letting my tails stop her from flopping over my back, "You guys did an amazing job. Worthy of any seasonal dive for sure!" She then wrapped her arms around as many of the children as she could without reaching out, "Told you they'd all do well."

Cheek to cheek rubs and playful 'nom nom noms' got them all giggling, signalling the end of the 'business' of the meeting, and the start of 'quiet time'.

Takemikazuchi had one last word to put in though, standing with that impossible, impossibly human, graceful way of his, "If my Children would come with me, I would be honoured to see how your deeds have reflected on you."

Hestia and Astraea looked at each other then stood as well. They didn't have to say anything after that, and left the room with most of their Familia following. Of the rookies, Delly, Amani and Maki had stayed behind, prompting 'the veterans' (The Oni, Shinkage, Hagane, Bell, Aisha, Ryuu, Haruhime, Weine and I) to give them a look.

"We can wait in line." Maki said with a little shrug. "Or rather... I don't like waiting in line, so I'll just go last."

"Be sure to get an update." Haruhime smiled, "You were just as helpful as everyone else."

"Until my sword malfunctioned." She sighed, "I know I know, not my fault, but it was my problem. Going to have to come up with something new."

The wiser in the room (Ryuu, the Oni, myself and Haruhime) all nodded. She was right, and wasn't blaming herself.

"I'm gonna need something to protect me from that kinda thing." Delly said, "It was just awful, suddenly having my lungs seize up and my stomach upset and... well... you were there, you saw it."

The children, who were still all here (since Aisha, O-ma and A-ma were also still here and giving them hugs/attention/floofy tails to play with) all stopped what they were doing, and gave Delly a reverse group hug, then chanted the universal spell of happiness, "Pain pain fly away!"

"I've just lost my 'the most adorable' trophy." Delly laughed, "Thanks you guys."

"Maybe we can add something to your mask?" I mused, "All the rookies were feeling it, but not having abnormal resistance really makes a difference." I then looked to Amani.

"I'm the youngest... so I go last." She said with a shrug. "Back home, I'd have been beaten for losing my weapon too..."

"Second time is shame." Haruhime said, using her best smile to cheer up the mini-zon.

Aisha, a little more practical, gave Amani a Karate Chop of Justice, "Don't do it again." Then a headpat. "Maybe a spear isn't for you?"

"Maybe." Amani admitted, "But I'd like to at least win a match in the morning spar with it, before I try something else. You know, just to say I tried hard to learn, before putting it down." She grinned, my wife's smile making it impossible for her to stay depressed, "Maybe I can borrow Welf's sword again?"

Haruhime and I looked to Aisha, who shrugged, "I didn't put the idea in her head."

"Well, just make sure to ask first. And to get an update tonight as well." Haruhime said.

"Yes Mom." Amani smiled, getting up and walking off.

"Mom?" Aisha asked.

"We didn't put the idea in her head." I replied, "But, not going to stop her."

"Fair enough." Aisha shrugged, looking towards the two Oni, "You're only delaying the inevitable."

"We know." They said, setting their tea cups down in unison, then standing.

"The first night back is almost as tiring as the time away." Okakai said.

"Almost." Fukawa grinned, "Good night."

Those who were left watched them trundle off, feet silent, yet still vibrating the floor with each step.

"Ryuu?" I looked to my sister, "Something on your mind?"

"I'd almost forgotten how it felt to have Familia." She smiled slightly, "I think I will see if my trees have seeded, so they can try their hand at it."

"Yay!" Delly cheered, "I wanna make a new chair!" She got up as well, with her and Ryuu wandering off.

"We did well, didn't we Miss Kodori?" Bell asked.

"I think so." I nodded, "It felt great, watching how much you've all grown since the last big party I'd joined in on. And we all saw some new stuff too. Think it worked?"

"I hope so." Bell smiled, "I feel a little guilty for saying this, but... Making Miss Eina freeze in place feels pretty good. Especially when we didn't do anything bad."

We laughed, and then waved as Bell wandered off. Weine, and Hagane standing up as well and following.

"Sh-..." I looked to Shinkage, but stopped short.

"snr." She had fallen asleep sitting up, and had Maki's fox, Chime, and Sir Skitters around/on her snoozing too.

"Shall we find a book to read?" Haruhime asked, "We have much to do tomorrow, but we are taking the rest of the night to ourselves."

"Yay!" The children cheered (quietly).

"I'll just go back to being a couch in the library then." I said, slipping back into my giant fox form and walking silently towards the library, my tails picking up children, then my two lovers as we paraded in that direction.

The next morning, after various morning things, we got our big city map out. It had originally been enchanted by Fels, but since then, as I got better with enchanting, and with the help of Delly, we'd upgraded it just a tiny bit. It was still just heavy paper, so it couldn't really hold a lot more magic than it already did. But all we'd done was add a secondary 'legend' on the side. This let Delly (or Maki) use a little illusion magic to denote where Familia homes were. Since it was all public information through the Guild it was easy enough to keep up to date.

Using that, we organized all the old equipment we'd brought back up, split up into teams, and picked neighbourhoods to go to.

Of course, I volunteered for the items from Freya Familia, while the others went to places they were more familiar with. We even had Ryuu head out with Delly to Melen, since one of the items was from Njord Familia.

The plan, after we'd all returned, was to invite Eina over for dinner. Even if we had exceptionally good news from all the 'high powered' level twos in the Alliance, duty came before celebration.

It was no surprise that as soon as I got within sight of the high walls of Folkvangr, the Freya Familia home, I felt eyes on me. I mean, past that of the normal 'Kodori is walking around' looks I got just for being me. You would think I'd get used to that kind of celebrity status, but no.

By the time I'd gotten to the ornate and heavy gate set into the high imposing outer wall of their compound, the usual guard of four (yes, Lilly had passed on her observations like a good little spy master/best supporter) had doubled, then as I stopped in the middle of the street to face them, I spotted Hedin Selland, one of the top three mages of the city, striding up the path to their gate.

He was, as always, a near perfect looking elf. Fair skinned, handsome face, golden flowing hair, calm expression... When I'd first seen him, I'd almost have mistaken him for a God. But Gods didn't carry weapons usually, and his weapon of choice was a staff that was half sword, half handle. Yes, it was a replacement, since Shinkage had the original mounted on her wall.

And yes, Shinkage had told Hedin the only way he would get it back from her, was if she installed it permanently. Considering the last time the two fought, Shinkage had used my old black suit of armour to break his spine, Hedin backed down.

So, I stayed where I was, three good paces from the guards, and waited for him.

"Demon Fox." He greeted, the terse tone of his voice still beautiful somehow.

"Hedin." I nodded, "Fully recovered?"

"I am." It looked like he wanted to frown, "Your business?"

I didn't expect any warmth from any of Freya Familia. So, I slowly took the little pack I had over my shoulder, set it down, undid the draw string on it, and took out a few small items. An upper portion of breastplate, made for a man, with Freya's emblem still visible through the corrosion wrought by the Blob we fought, "We found a frontier zone on our last dive."

"I'd heard you were harassing our hunting party at the basin, yes."

"Alfrigg should watch his tone." I said with an implied shrug, setting down a shoulder plate. Sized for a woman, or a very young man, it still had Freya's logo, and much of its artistic curves from the armour's creation.

"And giving out best healer strange potions."

"Give her a day or two off. There are limits to an adventurer's ability to recover mental fatigue." The last object I set down was a bracer. Nicked and scratched by numerous monster teeth and blades, the only part the own had kept pristine was Freya's insignia. I could tell that even through the additional little holes that had been corroded through the metal.

"Humph." He said, "And this?" It was clear he didn't want me there, but there was a subtle shift in his tone. He understood why I was there. He hated me, but we were both adventurers.

"Behind the wall of the water snake hazard was a creature." I set the cloth bag down, flattened it, then set the three items on it so they wouldn't be on the street. I had no idea how to conduct a funeral, but I did my best. "We have no idea if it was an irregular, or something that slipped in from an outside water channel long ago. But it had amassed a large collection."

I stood, nine pairs of eyes following the motion, "And the rest of your alliance is doing this as well?"

"Yes." I nodded, "My duty is done."

And for the first time, from anyone but Ottar, someone from Freya Familia spoke back without a hint of scorn or contempt, "We thank you for your service." Then right back to the usual contempt, "Now leave."

But I was already walking away. As tempted as I was to flash a rude hand gesture or something back at them, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Not at a funeral.

The key to humour, is surprise.

Now, after a dungeon dive that was just over three days, with Eina knowing we intended to do our seasonal exploration, there was very little chance she didn't suspect something was up when we invited her over to dinner after our 'day of rest'.

Sure, we tried to hide it with words like 'official business' and 'paperwork' and 'memorial services'. But she was no fool, and we'd been her best/worst students. You could tell she was 'braced for impact' for what ever news we were about to give her. From her arrival, through the initial greetings from the children to the Gods, during dinner, and even when we sat down finally for 'after dinner tea' in the living room. She had this air of professional preparedness about her. She seemed determined not to be surprised by whatever news we had.

"We have a few things to discuss today." I started as the last cup of tea was poured, and I sat between Haruhime and Aisha, the children gathering around on our laps and settling in for cuddles.

We all nodded while Eina waited expectantly, "So I've heard. Rumour has it that you brought back a significant haul of magic stone, and were out in town today visiting other Familia." She said, sipping her tea, then reaching towards the coffee table and patting Jiru, "Perfect as always. Thank you."

"Blup." The magical moss replied, likely translating to 'any time'.

"But you haven't been to the exchange yet?" Eina questioned, leaning back after a moment of 'impossible moss appreciation'.

"Well, one of the things we did was lost equipment delivery." Bell said, "It took a lot of time, but it's one of the reasons we called you today."

"Some of the equipment is old, and the emblems worked into the metal are unfamiliar." Mikoto added, "Our duty done to the best of our ability, we are turning the last of it over to the Guild."

Eina nodded, but Welf spoke up before she could reply, "For the stuff you can't identify, or if any of the Gods have returned, we were thinking of taking the rest and making it into something."

"The space we found it all in was a large frontier zone. One of the other things we wanted to talk about." Maki said, "What ever that monster was, it had been there a long time."

"Just how much did you recover?" Eina asked, her eyes a little wide. Usually, something like this would be 'the odd bit' of equipment. One or two names crossed off the 'active' list of adventurers.

"Welf, Maki and I figure around a hundred unique sets of equipment, not including weapons fragments." I said, "The monster seemed to have trouble digesting metals, but had no trouble with leather or cloth. So yes, some of the bits we found were as small as the back of a gauntlet, or a steel toe from a boot."

"Of course, not everyone upgrades all their gear at once, so our guess might be way off." Welf said, "Still, we've got a respectable pile of stuff we can't deliver."

"I understand." Eina nodded, "The... memento act, bringing lost equipment back, isn't an official service. There are no laws saying what you found isn't yours to do with as you will. But, we will be glad to try and find the owners of what you cannot, and return the leftovers to you."

Not an official service, but being seen with a dead adventurer's equipment, and not be of the same Familia? Your reputation would likely never recover.

"Next." Ryuu said quietly, putting a bit of paper in front of Eina. Bell and Ouka did the same, submitting their 'seasonal dungeon task' reports.

We sat quietly, Enjoying tea while Eina glanced over the tightly written Kione of Ryuu's paper, the neat Eastern of Ouka's sheet, then the slightly messy essay from Bell.

"Quite the accomplishments." Eina nodded, "I'll be sure these are reviewed properly, compared to our current knowledge, then archived." She smiled, shaking Ouka's report a little, almost expectantly, "Slaying a green dragon, with arrows no less. Even if they are special made," She gave me a tiny hint of a glare, "I think it might be the first time its been reported killed in such a way."

Ever humble, the Takemikazuchi Familia members only smiled and said thank you.

"The frontier zone sounds incredible. We might have to commission a party to explore it properly, maybe even the Xenos, to see where the cold water is coming from." She motioned with Ryuu's report. "And the monster you found there... If it is a unique spawn, that hazard zone may be 'safe' now. If it isn't, it will be much easier to deal with, now that we know more about it." She said, Bell's report in hand.

Eina's smile wasn't sunny like Demeter's, or welcoming like Hestia's. But it made you feel like you'd accomplished something, and even if no one else said so, you knew she appreciated your efforts.

"We'll bring the equipment to the Guild tomorrow, once the exchange opens up." Welf said.

"And..." I sighed theatrically, "A loan payment."

Eina nodded, setting her teacup down and neatly folding the reports. "Very well. Is tha-" She paused, looked towards her uniform's breast pocket. We all gave her the 'go ahead' motion to answer the 'phone', and she took our a small crystal from the pocket, "Eina speaking."

"Sorry to bother you this late, but something urgent was just delivered. Overtime is authorized already." I could barely hear the voice coming from the pit of Eina's hand.

"Very well, I have something to drop off anyhow. There soon." Eina tapped the crystal to turn it 'off' and dropped it back into her pocket. "Duty never ends." She sighed.

"That's okay Miss Eina." Bell said, "Ah, did you want, oh."

Before Bell could offer, Spot had uncurled from his place in front of the fire and sat like a good Doggo directly in front of Eina. "Seems I have my escort home already." Eina smiled, applying scroofles to Spot's big head.

"wurf." Spot replied, leaning forward to rest his forehead on Eina's shoulder for just a moment, instead of resorting to something so 'simple' as doggy kisses or something.

(Eina)

She slipped off of Spot's back, gave his head and shoulders a really good scratch, then entered the Guild hall. Since it was after dinner, the crimson haired werewolf Rose Fannett was at the front desk. For all intents, the office was closed to 'the people' but they still allowed people in for emergencies and the like.

"Welcome back." Rose greeted, her voice calm, "It was left in your office."

Eina nodded, then handed over the reports she'd gotten. "Hopefully it won't take too long to deal with. These need to go to the records office, maps and monsters respectively." She put the reports in two piles in front of Rose.

"Sure thing."

Eina nodded thanks, then walked past the front desk, down a hallway, and applied a key to a door labelled 'Team Lead, Eina Tulle'. Entering the neatly arranged office that was part consultation room, part records room for those adventurers she mentored, and part 'lecture hall' for those adventurers she mentored who didn't listen to her teachings the first time (and survived), she spotted 'the urgent delivery' on her desk.

She looked at the scroll tube, and frowned. Only Royman, Rehmer (the team leader for the night shift) and her had the key to this office, yet it was Rose who called her. Rehmer would have left it with Rose, not put it on her desk...

She unscrewed the hardened leather tube and carefully dumped out the contents, pointed away from her just in case.

But no, only five sheets of paper slid out onto her desk. She peeked inside, then gave it another tap to dislodge two more bits of paper, all recognizable as 'official guild paper' made by the near literal ton at their paper mill.

The last two sheets, now on top of the pile, started with, "Update to Familia rank and tax bracket" and the names, "Takemikazuchi" and "Hestia".

And the other five sheets were headed with "Update to adventurer Status" and the names, "Asuka" "Chigusa" "Mikoto" "Ouka" and "Welf".

(Kodori)

With Delly's help, we were all looking at a magical screen of Eina flopping into her nice office chair, a blank expression on her face. Blank except for the little eyebrow twitch of someone who had just realized they'd had a joke played on them.

But, that was as far as we dared spying on our favourite guild employee, and the illusion vanished as soon as she started moving again.

Because the key to humour is surprise, and for once, we'd done all the paperwork before she'd even asked, and her reaction was pretty funny.

"We're going to get a lecture for sure." Bell said, a satisfied smile on his face. "But at least it won't be for turning in our paperwork late."

"If it pleases you all, I picked up my latest batch of Sake on the way home today." Momiji said, holding up a little barrel that might have held about four litres of liquid.

"And I got the cups." Kaede said, "And yes Sir Loaner, you can have the first taste."

NOTES!

Well then. This puts us not quite two weeks into the one month time limit on the Gate.

There is also a vote up in the Discord about how well the refugee mission does! Comment a general 'good bad' here, or, join the discord (be sure to say hello) and go vote on it!

Thank you for reading! And if you want to see any full colour art, join the discord!

aKAQg4bnYu for the discord!

And my actual book, Were Too? is on Inkitt.