"Okumura Koushuu?" Yuuki stated though his eyes remained locked onto the piece of parchment in front of him.
"Yes."
"Class?"
"Berserker."
"Main role?"
"Tank."
EIjun's eyes darted between Yuuki and Okumura as the interview progressed. Though the conversation itself wasn't very riveting.
It just so happened that Eijun had been with Miyuki and Haruichi when Yuuki hunted Miyuki down to sit in for the interview. Out of boredom and curiosity, Eijun tagged along and no one said anything about it; maybe except for Okumura, though he hadn't vocally spoken his inquiries, instead, sent Eijun the occasional side-eye. It didn't help that Yuuki introduced himself as the captain and Miyuki as the main tank, yet here Eijun sat, currently nameless.
They were settled in one of the smaller, unused conference rooms in Seido, with he, Yuuki, and Miyuki sat on one side of the sole wooden table, while Okumura was on the other. Okumura was rigid in his chair, yet his eyes were narrowed into a glare; whether from anger, nerves or that was simply how his face was, Eijun couldn't be sure.
Being witness to the interview brought Eijun back to when he first arrived at Seido, which was a vastly different experience than what Okumura had to sit through. Befuddled, Eijun leaned closer to Miyuki, and with a hand shielding his mouth he whispered, "Why is this so different than when I joined?"
So far, Miyuki had been leaned back in his chair, arms folded across his chest the entire duration of the interview. Even now, his gaze was hyper-focused on Okumura, almost as if he were searching him for something. However, because of that, Miyuki didn't respond right away. In fact, he took so long that Eijun had to wonder if he even heard the question at all. Yet, just when Eijun began to debate asking again or waiting until after, Miyuki tilted his head toward Eijun, eyes still trained on Okumura, and mumbled, "You were recruited. He applied."
Okumura's eyes flicked toward Miyuki for a brief moment before returning to Yuuki.
Eijun opened his mouth in a silent oh of understanding as his mind tuned back into the interview, "-and why did you leave your previous guild?" Yuuki pressed as his gaze finally left the parchment and raised a questioning eyebrow at Okumura.
Now, Eijun had only been a part of two guilds, one that was significantly smaller, and then Seido. The former Eijun conceived with his hometown friends, and the latter he was recruited, thus waiving the interview process altogether, apparently. Yet, even Eijun could tell that whatever answer Okumura gave had the chance to make or break him. It made sense considering if Okumura was kicked out of his prior guild, or if he had left on bad terms, it wouldn't look appealing to any guilds he attempted to join after.
Was he violent? Did he not function well in a party format? Or was it a mutual parting? There were many variables on why someone might leave a guild. Some positive and some negative.
"I felt I had learned everything I could from Daikyou, and that it was time for me to expand my horizons," Okumura answered, voice monotone.
Here, Miyuki snorted and spoke up for the first time since his initial greeting when they arrived, "That's a nice textbook answer, but why did you really leave?"
A sudden, and surprising fury rolled off Okumura in waves, and it took several long seconds for Okumura to reign himself in to respond in a clipped tone, "We had a change of Guild Leaders. The original one left to join a more prominent guild and the replacement ran Daikyou into the ground."
Miyuki let out a low whistle, "That is tragic," his words belied the smirk that pulled at his lips, which only appeared to aggravate Okumura. Eijun understood his pain, Miyuki could be incredibly infuriating when he so desired. And yet Eijun still couldn't find it within himself to dislike that about him.
"Why would a Guild Leader move to an already established guild?" Eijun found himself pondering. Most of the time, those that held high positions in guilds typically remained, as it would be difficult to rise to similar ranks in another.
All eyes turned to regard him, but Miyuki was the one to respond, "Usually if they have connections that promise decent ranks with higher pay."
"But what about all they invested into their previous guild?"
Miyuki shrugged, "Some people don't care, especially not when it involves more gold than what they had been making."
"That is sad," Eijun concluded.
"It is what it is."
"And who are you?" Okumura interrupted, though to be fair, Eijun had derailed the interview first.
"Sawamura Eijun at your service! I'm an extraordinary member of the first string," Eijun happily introduced since no one else sought to do it for him.
"He's our healer," Miyuki wrongfully inserted.
"I am not! I'm DPS!" Eijun had to hastily correct. While it wasn't necessarily untrue anymore, what with Tsubu, he still didn't want to be classified as a healer.
Tsubu had an earth attribute that also altered all his skills to add healing properties. However, Eijun wouldn't consider himself within the league of some of the best healer classes, but what he could accomplish now was significantly better than his Rejuvenation skill did with his other two summons. Neither Aoi nor Ume changed the effect of Rejuvenation, but Tsubu drastically improved its healing capabilities on top of the rest of his skills. The only downside with Tsubu was that he did considerably less damage in comparison; which wasn't what he wanted, but it could still be useful.
Miyuki had wanted to take Eijun through a few dungeons so he could play with the new skills and get a feel for them in the midst of battle. While any other time, Eijun would be all for it, however, Miyuki was still recovering; thus Eijun had to put his foot down and decline, despite Miyuki's insistence that it would be fine. They had a raid looming on the horizon, and they needed Miyuki in as best condition he could be between now and then; besides, Eijun didn't want to be responsible for setting Miyuki's health back by another week.
So instead, Eijun had done some preliminary testing with Chris on the training grounds, all while Miyuki observed dejectedly from the sidelines.
"So," Okumura drawled, effectively cutting off any further arguments, "Why are you here?"
Eijun shrugged, "I was bored and this sounded interesting."
"Right," Okumura said in a deadpan tone. His gaze shifted to Miyuki and Yuuki, likely seeking out further clarification, but when none came, he sighed.
The interview commenced.
ooo
"Miyuki, remember to pull fewer mobs than you usually do. Got it?" Yuuki strongly reminded. They were currently on the first floor of The Ryukuso Spire, where a den of naga was gathered. Their snake lower halves were either a dark mauve or a putrid green; their scales continued up their human torsos and arms to blend in with their reptilian heads. Their greasy, limp hair hung in clumps down their backs with the occasional stray strands draped across their faces.
Miyuki waved a flippant hand in Yuuki's direction, "Yes, yes. Though I don't see why not, I feel fine."
"I don't want you collapsing on us because you pushed yourself too hard," Yuuki calmly rebutted; again. For the past few days before The Ryukuso Spire raid, it had been a constant back and forth between them. Yuuki would stress that Miyuki needed to watch himself and take it easy, only for Miyuki to state he was fine. Eijun suspected Miyuki's insistence stemmed from Kataoka nearly benching him for the rest of the month. Of course that would have backfired for Seido, as they would have had to cancel all booked raids since they still didn't have a definite backup tank for the first string.
The Deshiki Depths incident must have caused quite a scare for Kataoka and Takashima, as they soon opened applications specifically seeking tank classes. And with that announcement, the local newspaper took that to mean Miyuki had died. As he was rather popular in these parts, it had elicited a stir amongst the general public.
Miyuki took great amusement from the rumors.
The incident also served as a harsh reminder that Miyuki, was in fact, not completely impenetrable. Eijun himself was guilty as he, too, had come to the assumption that Miyuki would always be fine; that he would be able to withstand any attacks aimed his way. Miyuki's skill level painted him in such a light where no one had to be overly concerned about his wellbeing, yet that didn't mean they should have been complacent just because Miyuki could handle himself. He was only human after all, and everyone was bound to err at some point in time, regardless of how talented they may be.
Logically, Eijun completely agreed with the decision to recruit more tank classes into Seido; however, a part of him didn't want to participate in a raid if Miyuki wouldn't be there. It would feel alien to have anyone other than Miyuki be the tank, despite the fact that Eijun ran dungeons with Wakana as the tank for a couple of years beforehand.
While Eijun heard Seido was strict when it came to allowing tank classes in, he didn't know the specific credentials they sought, but they must be high as no one has been able to meet the standards of the many that applied. At least, from what Eijun last knew. Since Eijun wasn't part of the applicant process, he typically wasn't kept up to date unless he actively asked around, but he had been more preoccupied learning Tsubu for this raid, that he couldn't be bothered to inquire about it.
"Isn't that why we brought Yui?" Miyuki gestured toward Yui, who was startled at the sudden attention before his expression shifted to that of determination instead.
"Yes, for worst-case scenarios, not because you overestimated yourself," Kuramochi jumped in.
Eijun wholly agreed he didn't want to see Miyuki so beaten down again, but at the same time, he understood the desire to not be benched. Though in Eijun's case, if he were in Miyuki's position, the first string would still be able to function in raids without him. Until they selected a backup tank or two, the first string only had Miyuki to rely on. While they did have Yui, he wasn't quite geared enough to be a sole tank in a high-tier raid.
"I'll keep that in mind," Miyuki said with a grin.
"Watch yourself, Miyuki. If I find you're straining yourself, I'll switch you and Yui, so Yui will be the main tank and you are the backup." Yuuki ominously promised. Though Eijun couldn't tell if Yuuki would follow through with the threat or not, since he didn't feel Yui was particularly prepared.
Either way, Miyuki clicked his tongue, "Fine," he said with a sigh and pulled his greatsword from his back, "Stay here."
"Get ready," Yuuki ordered the rest of them as Miyuki took off toward the nearest grouping of naga.
Eijun released his spirit orb and summoned good ol' reliable, Ume. They relocated a little ways away from the long, winding staircase they had to traverse to reach this point, all while they awaited Miyuki. Eijun watched as Miyuki drew the attention of several nagas, observed as he expertly evaded clawed hands or globs of toxic mucus spat his way when he wasn't within swiping distance. When he deemed he had enough, but still notably less than what he would typically pull, Miyuki whipped around and made a beeline back to the rest of them; a swarm of slithering, hissing naga hot on his heels.
Miyuki didn't lead the naga directly toward the group, but several meters off; that way, the rest of the party wouldn't be at risk of stray attacks. Once in position and the naga had clumped together, Miyuki unleashed several flaming strikes in rapid succession. After Miyuki achieved first contact, everyone swiftly joined in, striking the unsuspecting naga at their backs, as their focus retained solely on Miyuki. Eijun was quick to let loose a flurry of air currents, with the desire to take the naga down as quickly as possible. The less Miyuki had to endure, the smoother the raid should progress.
With there being less; the first batch of naga fell, simultaneously forcing the melee to back out of range as they dissolved into green, toxic puddles with lethal bubbles that disrupted the surfaces. Miyuki nimbly danced his way around the edges of the ooze and to a safe patch of the stonework floor.
Miyuki pulled out a small vile, the contents a murky yellow, and downed the liquid in one quick gulp. His face contorted into a look of disgust as he threw the empty container into the viscus sludge where it dissolved rapidly. Unfortunately, they were all stocked to the brim with similar viles, as they were a necessity for this raid. They contained the antidote to the harmful toxin that all mobs, including the boss, applied. Eijun has only been required to drink an antidote a handful of times, and to this day, they have remained the most foul-tasting thing he had ever consumed. Thankfully, the recommended dosage was small; however, considering everything in The Ryukuso Spire had some variant of poisonous attacks, they would be forced to drink the antidotes frequently.
Of course, they weren't required to take one after every strike, but the more attacks they endured, the more poison that would build in their systems and accelerate their deaths.
In Eijun's humble opinion, healing potions tasted the best, with stamina potions a runner-up, only for the fact that they didn't taste strongly of anything. Zero flavors were preferable over one that caused him to gag each time, but antidotes were designed for their effectiveness, not to be tolerable.
In the same manner, they slowly cleared out the first floor, with Miyuki attracting the attention of the naga that had dispersed further away from the rest before he trailed them back toward the party. Normally, Eijun would have grown impatient with their lax progress; however, for the welfare of Miyuki, he discovered it didn't bother him. So it took a while longer than it typically would have, before they eradicated the remainder of the naga, which allowed them to progress toward the second spiraling staircase.
So far, each set of stairs did not include any form of railing to prevent someone from accidentally tumbling off, and considering how high the steps wound along the curved walls between floors, a single misstep would be detrimental. Of course, Eijun couldn't help the voice in his head that instructed him to peer over the edge, just to see exactly how far of a fall it would be.
"Don't fall, Bakamura," Kuramochi abruptly intervened. With a hand on Eijun's elbow, he tugged him away to the relative safety of the center.
"I wasn't going to," Eijun huffed, before he felt the impulse to defend himself, "I was just looking."
"Well, look from a distance. We can't have you plummeting to your death before we even reach the second floor." Kuramochi admonished as he lightly pushed Eijun in the back, silently signaling him to continue upward.
They tread the stairs in peace for several minutes, the only sound resonating from their collective footfalls that echoed around the large, yet empty space. Periodically, they would pass by an expansive window that showcased the darkened clouds that blocked out the sky. They were already too far up to see the ground; furthermore, they weren't even halfway to the very top, where the boss resided. From what Eijun recalled, there were fifteen floors total, and each level contained some sort of enemy to thwart their progress. Even more daunting, this raid was one of few that contained a mini-boss that would need to be defeated before the final boss.
"Hey," Eijun began as a sudden thought wandered to the forefront of his mind, "What happens if we're ambushed on the stairs?" Eijun was roughly in the middle of the group, and as usual, Miyuki led the way while Yui brought up the rear. The staircase was rather narrow, meaning, any form of close-quarter combat would certainly spell disaster. Fortunately, though, the stairs weren't steep, so the risk of missing a step wouldn't be as detrimental. Heart-stopping, sure, but still not as bad compared to typical staircases.
The main issue lay in falling off the edge entirely.
"We die," Isashiki unhesitatingly declared with a shrug. Isashiki was near the front, yet he didn't bother to so much as a glance back as he spoke.
"Guaranteed," Kominato quickly concurred.
Azuma laughed, the sound reverberating off the walls, "You guys might, but I'm not going down that easily."
"If we're being honest," Miyuki chimed in from the front, "you'd all be knocked off. I, however, will be fine. Like an immovable force."
"Yeah? You gonna single-handedly kill whatever comes at us?" Kuramochi was swift to question, clearly disbelieving.
Miyuki snorted, "Absolutely not. I will run and leave the way we came."
"Y'know," Eijun interrupted as a sudden idea popped up, "Maybe if we hug the wall, anything that comes barreling down will go right passed us." To demonstrate, Eijun plastered himself against the wall, palms pressed flat to the cold, stone-brick surface. Ume chose this moment to perch on top of his head, mistakenly under the assumption that they were done moving.
"We'll just have to see how well that works out for ya," Kuramochi said as he walked passed Eijun, along with Shirasu, Yuuki, Azuma, and Yui. Yui, however, halted; unable to go further ahead until everyone was in front of him.
Eijun pushed off the wall with a pout. He didn't really know what kind of response he was expecting, but something more along the lines of praise for his genius, which wasn't what he got.
Yui studied him for a few seconds and said, "I think that's a good idea, Sawamura-senpai."
Instantly, Eijun felt his mood brighten, "Why thank you, Yui! At least someone appreciates my intellect!" Eijun jogged up the few steps to reclaim his spot in the center of the group, which was designated for the range classes —and Kuramochi as he wouldn't do well upon a surprise attack, either.
Fortunately, there weren't many angles from which enemies could sneak up on them.
After some time had passed, they finally reached the second floor where two large, bloated toads sat. Both were a sickly shade of green, however, one had vivid azure spots surrounded by bright rings of yellow, while the other had the reverse; blue outlines with yellow centers. Their flesh was lumpy and uneven with a questionable sheen of slime that reflected the light cast from the luminescent orb hung from the ceiling. With the way their eyes protruded, they appeared to be in a constant state of anger; as if their eyes were narrowed into a permanent glare.
"This the mini-boss?" Isashiki asked, his confusion heavily evident in his tone.
"No?" Miyuki wavered for a moment, "The mini-boss should be on the fourteenth floor. At least, according to our sources."
"Plus, the mini-boss is singular, not a pair," Yuuki added.
Kominato hummed in thought, "Yet, our sources have been wrong before."
"Is it possible for the mini-boss to appear on different floors?" Kawakami theorized, "And change completely?" He tacked on hesitantly; uncertainly.
Miyuki sighed, "I wouldn't be surprised."
"Either way, we kill the bloated bastards," Azuma declared as he pulled his axe off his back, making it abundantly clear he was raring to go.
Eijun himself was befuddled. It appeared as if they had been obtaining more misinformation as of late. Though to be fair, The Ryukuso Spire wasn't very popular as most guilds found the constant poison too tedious to be worth it, as well as the fact that it had higher mortality rates if ill-prepared. So it was entirely possible that there simply wasn't enough information to go around, and Seido was lucky to discover it the hard way.
Isashiki chuckled rather darkly, "Obviously we kill them, but the issue is, we don't know what they do."
"It's probably a rare mini-boss appearance," Miyuki concluded as he eyed the toads critically, "Whether they will replace the one we know about on the fourteenth floor, we'll just have to wait and see."
They were all silent for a moment as they pondered over this new roadblock. Yuuki was the first to break the hush after a few minutes with a theory of his own, "So," he began, but hesitant, "there's the potential that we'll have to face a total of three bosses —four if we count each toad separately."
"All of which will surely apply constant poison," Kominato added.
In tandem, they all turned to lock their gaze upon Eijun, who was startled at the abrupt scrutiny, "What?!" He snapped, unnerved by how in sync the action was.
Miyuki cocked his head toward the two mini-bosses as a lopsided smirk pulled at his lips, "Guess we'll be putting our new healer into action sooner than anticipated."
It was purely on reflex that Eijun denied the claim, "I'm not a healer!"
