Your rank denotes the Guild's assessment of your experience, general capability, and combat ability. Higher ranks will receive more dangerous tasks, but also higher pay. The ranks are, in ascending order:

J (Junior Member, set while younger than 18)

F

E

D

C

B

A

S

-Guild Agent Handbook, Introduction

"It was actually pretty boring," IF closed her recounting. "We walked around Virtua, kept an eye out for traces and killed a few Dogoos. That's it."

She had expected it to be underwhelming, but not to this extent. Everyone knew Monsters could not spawn near humans, the occasional oddities excluded. It still irked her that the worst she had seen were blue blobs with cutesy animal faces.

Compa, who walked by her side, was intrigued nonetheless. She listened with rapt attention to any little detail the brunette offered. What felt like little more than a long stroll to one girl, the other saw as the beginning of a great adventure. "I'm sure there will be a lot of interesting things happening soon!"

Seeing how excited her friend was, IF could not bear being realistic about the matter. She just smiled to herself and turned her attention back to the street. "I guess."

"So, this girl, uh..." "Nepgear?" "Ah, yes, her! What is she like?" Compa sounded eager to hear about the purplette, possibly because IF only talked about her briefly. The peach-haired girl was surprised to hear there was someone their age beside IF, but happy about the chance for her friend to make a new friend.

IF did not respond at once, taking a few seconds to mull over what to say; Nepgear and her only spent a scant few hours together so far, most of it focussed on their respective tasks.

That was when Compa stumbled and fell with a startled sound. IF quickly came back from her musings, but failed to catch the other girl. "Hey, are you okay?" Her question was mostly instinctive, though Compa grimaced in response and looked down at the hand she tried to catch her fall with. From her position, IF could see that she scraped it rather badly; slight traces of red tinged it.

"Ouchie, that's worse than usual." Compa did not sound too hurt about it, more annoyed for some reason. The aspiring nurse sighed and let IF help her up, then she looked back down at her hand; a faint green shine enveloped the palm, quickly knitting the skin back together.

Once this light died down, the people nearby stopped watching. Everything was visibly fine, so neither of the girls needed any help. Not that IF noticed, her attention was mostly on the hand Compa had just returned to pristine condition. "You're a mage?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah." It had never come up over the years, yet Compa appeared a little sheepish about not having said anything. "I'm pretty average, though. My affinity is healing magic, so I'm really good with little cuts and scrapes and stuff. I can do the others too, but I'm... not really good at anything except ice." The smaller girl created a small orb of flickering light on her fingertip for emphasis; it sputtered out after a few seconds.

This was still much more than IF herself dared to do, though she could understand the sentiment. She nodded and changed the topic as they got back to walking, their target being the mall. "I see. Nepgear is a healing mage, too. I haven't seen her do anything yet, but she said hers was pretty strong."

Her friend's lips formed an O for a moment, then curled into the familiar smile. "She sounds nice, now I have to meet her."

"I wouldn't get my hopes up," IF warned with a light frown. "I think she's pretty anxious, so I can't just go ask to hang out with her." She had considered, but they only knew each other for a day now. IF planned to give Nepgear some time to get used to her.

Then, just as they turned the corner toward the mall, she spied a familiar curl of lilac in a shop lining the street. Pink hair was common in Planeptune and she was used to it from being around Mari. Although light purple tones were not all that rare either, something made her pay attention to this one. It took little more than a second glance to be sure this was indeed Nepgear, considering she wore the same uniform as the day before.

IF slowed down and stopped to take in what she saw, with Compa doing the same while following her gaze. The purplette was busy going through a number of circuit boards on display, moving quickly from one case to the next. Her back was turned most of the time, but she turned sideways and revealed her profile to the watching girls for a few seconds; there was a joyful grin etched onto her face.

"Is... is that her?" Compa sounded as confused as IF felt, though she knew that kind of thing was not too weird. Everyone had their hobbies.

Although, she admitted, she did not take Nepgear for the kind of girl that liked to play with electronics. With how well-maintained her appearance was, she put her a little further into the category of people who wasted way too much time on it. Which was not the kind of person she usually got along with, though Nepgear was also good enough to be an agent at sixteen.

Her train of thought stopped there, seeing that Nepgear had made a full turn now. Her eyes were on them immediately, once again adopting the deer-in-headlights feel they displayed the previous day. At least IF thought so for a moment, because that was how long it lasted before being wiped away; the brunette raised her hand in greeting, which the purplette returned immediately.

It was an awkward situation indeed, though no one but them took note of it. Nepgear quickly motioned for them to wait and darted away, before emerging a few minutes later with a little bag. She fidgeted a little while walking up to where they were waiting, but IF doubted that Compa even noticed. Her friend was already beaming.

"I, uh, didn't really expect to meet you this early. Hello, IF. And...?" "I'm Compa! You must be Nepgear, right?" "...yes?" Compa excitedly shook the other girl's hand while IF threw her an apologeptic look. Nepgear appeared a little overwhelmed, so she decided to try helping. "I didn't expect you to be into electronics."

"Huh?" The lost gaze she got in response confused IF. "Why not? That's a pretty normal hobby, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it's just..." She already hated herself for having said anything. Instead of responding, she just made a vague motion toward her colleague. Compa took over from there, though her words made the brunette's ears heat up: "Oh, she means because you're so pretty and all. I mean, I get it, most girls who like tech-stuff look a little more rough or don't care all that much, so-"

As Compa went on, Nepgear herself just looked down at herself and then took a step aside to be in front of the window again. Her reflection appeared as lost as herself while she took in how she looked. IF did notice the faint blush all over her face, but refrained from commenting.

"W-Well," the purplette finally interjected once Compa paused, "I actually liked tinkering since I was little. Machines are fun. But anyway, what are you doing today? I'm pretty sure school didn't let out yet." There were only very few students on the streets around them, after all. IF glanced around before shrugging and accepting the distraction. "Our last class for the day was cancelled, so we got out early."

"Ohh!"

"What about you, Nepgear?" Compa's question made the other girl blink, then she seemed to grasp what was asked.

"Ah, right. I'm homeschooled and my schedule varies a little. Sis told me that store had a new batch of parts coming in, so I wanted to do some shopping before we head out later."

IF quickly interfered with Compa's cheerful questioning here, else it would have gone on for a while. "We were on the way to the mall to get some lunch. Do you want to come?" She did not even need to ask her friend if it was okay; Compa loved meeting new people.

Nepgear for her part appeared somewhat flabbergasted, though it took only a moment until her expression transformed into a grateful smile. "Oh, if that's okay? I'd love to."

::

"So," Compa restarted the conversation once they all placed their orders and took a seat. "Iffy and I were talking earlier and she said you're a mage?" She waited for the purplette to nod, then continued with delight. "Really? What's your SP? I'm at three forty-two."

Spellpower, IF noted to herself, the quantification of magical energy a person could store. Any Basilicom had Sharicite-based equipment to measure a given person's SP. She also read that the most common amount was between 240 and 360, averaging out at three hundred.

Nepgear tapped her fingertips together and fidgeted a little before giving in to Compa's hopeful smile. "Um... a bit above a thousand?" To IF, this meant she was already in the category of gifted mages. She did not consider to ask how much 'a bit' was.

"Wow, that's a lot! And you have a healing affinity like me, right?"

"Uh, yes. Um..." Nepgear hesitated with another glance at IF, then sighed and lowered her head. "I have fire, too."

Now she had IF's attention; having two affinities was rare. She quickly ignored the voice whispering that she herself had three, fast enough to catch another amazed sound from her friend. "Ohh! Um, actually... how do you find out you have more than one affinity? I don't really get how that works."

This time the brunette answered, seeing that she read up on the topic and brought personal experience. "It's like with the first one. If you just use magic without turning it into anything, it can turn into any element you have the affinity for." She thought for a moment, then went with the first example she could think of. "With Nepgear, hers would turn into healing half the time, and the other half is fire. Statistically, that is... I read some reports of mages who didn't find out about their second affinity for decades."

IF stopped when she felt their surprised gazes on her, to which she blushed a little and averted her own. "Stop looking like that, I just did some research because I was curious."

"Iffy knows so much!" Compa only appeared excited like usual now. Though for some reason, Nepgear started giggling a moment later. She hid her mouth behind a lithe hand, the gentle laughter making both of them wonder what this was about.

"Ehehehe... Iffy..."

So there it was. IF quietly hid her face in her hands while their food was served.

. .

. .

They got along quite well, all things considered; a week went by since their first meeting and Nepgear had quickly warmed up to Compa. The purplette quite liked her goal of becoming a nurse when it was brought up. Thanks to Compa, IF and Nepgear had actually thought to exchange numbers. Neither of them did it all that often, so the idea slipped their minds.

"I was wondering," Alexis broke the quiet the team had descended into. Her eyes were firmly on Nepgear and IF, though she paid attention to her surroundings as well. "Mid-term exams are soon, aren't they? How do you juggle your studies with work and everything else?"

The brunette shrugged. "Eh, I can just shave off some time from my exercises if I need more to study, but I should be good." Between Compa and Nepgear, she still had enough time to read a book at times or do something else to relax.

The purplette just deflated a little before poking her index fingers together again. "I, uh, I'm homeschooled, so I don't really have mid-terms. My tutor does expect a lot from me, though. But that's normal for me, no real change there."

"Is that so? Interesting. Say, IF, how much time could you 'shave off' from your training?" Alexis appeared genuinely curious, so the younger brunette decided to indulge her.

"If I don't do anything at all, I get... about four and a half hours a day, I think."

"You what?!" The men, who had been ahead of them so far, both turned their heads while Alexis' gaze bored into IF's eyes.

The brunette just raised an eyebrow. "That's with preparing myself and all, I do exercise four hours and three minutes per day."

It took a moment until the older woman stopped working her jaw; once she did, she closed her eyes and shook her head. "Not sure I believe you. That's insane at sixteen, or any age really."

Even though André and Gabriel had already turned back around, IF could tell they were still listening. She just shrugged again, knowing that doing this much was normal for her. "I started small when I was young and slowly ramped it up. At ten it was an hour per day. I have been adding three minutes per month since then, with two months off each year, that's half an hour per year. I'll probably stop once I hit eighteen."

Alexis continued muttering about this under her breath, but she did not say anything else. Nepgear just shrugged when IF looked her way. "Why don't you add another three in these two months each year?"

She shrugged back. "Thirty minutes sounds better than thirty six, that way I'll land at exactly five hours at eighteen."

Like this, they fell back into their usual quiet concentration. One of the older members would point out less visible tracks or other clues once in a while, which the two girls quickly took note of. Neither of them had given Gabriel cause for complaint so far. Granted, there had been no real battle to test their resolve, either.

They were quite far out this day. Despite it being the middle of November, surprisingly many trees outside of Virtua Forest's safe zone still displayed their leaves. Pine trees in particular worked with the remaining foliage to create a dim twilight, despite it still being at least an hour until dawn.

Wolves howled somewhere ahead, the noise telling them that these Monsters were not far away anymore. It grated on IF's nerves a little, but she refused to let something like this bother her. She slowly double-checked her katars' straps to make sure her previous blunder would not repeat itself. Then she snapped up a hand and cut a mosquito in half, the bothersome insect having sirred close by her ear.

"I heard there are lots of mosquitos in forested areas," she started. Gabriel snorted in response, but she pre-empted him before he could even turn around. "I know it's close to Winter, but I haven't seen many in Virtua at all during summer, either. There is a lot more in the city."

"Ah, that thing." André chuckled a little before motioning with his club; the weapon pointed at a Dogoo wiggling about in the distance. "That's one thing those little pests are good for. Mosquitos sit on them and get eaten a lot, so you won't find as many of them outside."

IF made an understanding noise, then silence blanketed them all again. All to be heard was the soft noises of boots on untreaded ground, the occasional cracking of a treebranch, and sounds of monsters in the distance. Nothing happened for a while.

Until the wind turned.

Within moments, the howling intensified and Gabriel started cursing under his breath. The redhead stopped in his tracks and everyone else fanned out. "Damn, we're too close! Get ready!"

Nepgear was in the front immediately, taking point together with André; IF just fell back a few more steps while Gabriel did the same, bringing their team's sole mage and gunslinger into the center. If any Monster snuck around their first line, it was IF's duty to keep them off her team.

They only had about that long before half a dozen Wolves broke through the fading underbrush; their purplish blue fur stood out against their surroundings, having never been meant as camouflage anyway. Each of the creatures stood a metre tall and rushed into the fray, growling as they went.

The first one did not even see what hit it, its head coming off cleanly while Nepgear rotated away; IF's eyebrows rose in shock at the sheer speed displayed. While she returned to focus on her task, André's club smashed into the second Monster's head and the next two were cut down by a hail of bullets, courtesy of Alexis. All of them exploded into bright particles.

Then she spotted one more Wolf halfway around the group, a quick glance to the other side revealing two more. IF knew she could not get all of them, so she did the next best thing. "Two to your right!" After shouting the warning, she took off at the sole monster trying to circle left.

Everything felt so slow in these moments, from her own body to everyone else. IF's heart beat fast and strong as she propelled herself forward, the Wolf turning to meet her gaze. It jumped the moment their eyes met, but the brunette stepped aside in time. She made a half turn to face the same way, then rushed her right blade forward and into its neck as it passed.

Sharp steel cut through a thick hide, strings of muscles and even the spine, doing the same on the other side and severing this head as cleanly as Nepgear had done just a few seconds before. The Wolf did not even know what hit it when it vanished in motes of bright light.

IF turned back after a quick glance around, only to find their front line done and one Monster at the flank being skewered by three spears of light. The other one used the moment to rush in and jump at Alexis; it barrelled the older brunette over by the time Gabriel made his magic spears turn to their next target.

She considered jumping in, but instead gave the Wolf a kick into its jaw when it came close to her. The disorientation was enough to keep it in place for a moment, enough time for Gabriel to skewer it.

Nepgear rushed over to Alexis the moment the last Monster died while André kept guarding in the front, just in case there were more. IF and Gabriel did the same to the side, shielding their injured ally.

"Come on, it's not that bad." Though the woman herself did not seem to agree on needing aid.

With a hand on Alexis' collarbone, Nepgear began to emit a gentle green glow; it seeped into her patient's skin and flooded her body. Then the purplette nodded. "You're right, nothing is broken or torn... okay, I guess." She let go and both of them got up from their sitting positions.

Meanwhile, Gabriel wandered over to IF with an unreadable expression. He kept quiet for a moment, making the girl wonder what she did wrong. When he spoke, his voice was quiet: "You know, for a moment I really thought I'd have to chew you out for jumping in my line of fire. Good thing you didn't. Oh, and nice kick you gave it there."

Then he lightly clapped her shoulder and wandered off, leaving a confused IF behind. Her cheeks turned a faint pink under the partially hidden praise, but she shook that off quickly and focussed. The slight upward curl of the lips would remain for the day, though.

With everyone in good health, they quickly got going again. Back to the lighter area, where they were actually supposed to patrol. IF kept thinking while the adrenaline gradually left her bloodstream, allowing her to stop shaking after a while.

She wondered why this encounter felt so easy. They were outmatched two to one and Wolves, while not particularly powerful, were no enemies to scoff at. Then again, her team had a plan and competent people carrying it out. Perhaps that made the difference.

Nonetheless, IF felt exhilarated by her personal success; she had practiced all of her basic stances and movements, a hundred sequences for each and every one per week, for the past four years. This was the first time she ever got to use them on a Monster, yet her body moved without any concious thought behind it. She could have missed the neck easily, but it worked out.

This meant that all her practice was finally paying off. Her judgement appeared to be good as well; she managed not to get in anyone's way, if just barely this time.

On the way, Alexis came up and gave her a pat on the shoulder as well. "Good work. That was your first real fight, but things get easier after a few weeks."

The brunettes nodded at each other with faint smiles, then IF sighed. "Yeah, I will need a bit to get used to this."

They both knew it would not take long for that to happen, not in their line of work.