A week had gone by, and I had seen no success whatsoever. I was practically repeating the same routine at this point. I would go to the taverns, introduce myself, get rejected, and return to my room in the inn I found. It was 30 bronze coins a night, so I was already starting to burn through my money. I had also stopped by the item shop to buy some potions, holy water, multi-purpose keys, and other such items, so I was left with two gold coins, not to mention the merchant's services I had to pay for to carry all that stuff, which would be an additional five silver coins. Ugh, this isn't how I envisioned it would be... Just when I was starting to give up, the unexpected happened.

  I was sitting at a table at the lefthand corner of the tavern, mulling things over, when I heard, "Are you by any chance that traveling tactician we've been hearing about?" I turned to see two mounted knights, or, as they were called in the game, cavalry csses, talking to me. One had brown hair and light green eyes. He wore a set of light green armor, and at once, I could sense he was the type who didn't take things too seriously. He had that kind of air about him, y'know? The other had deep orange hair, almost reddish, and brown eyes. His armor, like his hair, was of the same color, and he fit the definition of a knight in mind. I could sense he was the more serious type.

  "Um, yes?" I answered, almost in disbelief at what was about to happen. No one wanted me on their team. I had heard so many excuses I was almost starting to expect them now, but I was pleasantly surprised by what I heard next.

  "We'd love to enlist your services," I instantly froze, resisting the urge to dance on the spot with all of my being. I had to look the part, or they'd assume I was just a kid going around lying to everybody.

  "W-where's your table?" I managed to ask.

  "We're sitting over there." He pointed to where they were sitting, and I started following them there. On the way, the red cavalry said, "You weren't up to your usual antics this time, Sarde. What happened?"

  "She's cute, but I'm not into little girls, so it's a pass for me." You know I can hear you, right? I thought, but he didn't even seem to care, so I was probably right about him.

  A bit shabby, but I can work with this, I thought as I looked at the party. There was a warrior, a mage, a priest, a spy, and a pegasus knight. It had the variety I was looking for, but none were promoted yet, which presented its own problems. I'm going to have to grind them up to higher csses then, I thought to myself as I sat down at the table and introduced myself, "My name is Daphne, and I am a traveling tactician seeking to hone my skills. It'll be nice working with you."

  The warrior suddenly crossed his arms and said, "I do not approve!"

  "Hey, Batti, what do you mean? She seems nice enough, and we do need her services," The mage came to my defense, but he was having none of that.

  "Look! She's a child! What does she know of war?!" It was a surprisingly good point for someone who looked so idiotic. His burly physique, rough brown hair, and the seemingly clueless look on his face would convince anyone that he was a musclebrain, but he had more sense than your average knucklehead, I'd give him that.

  "One week," I said all of a sudden, surprising everyone at the table. "If I do not contribute anything to your party in one week, then you can kick me out of the team, Batti."

  He was silent for a moment before answering, "Deal!"

  The serious knight spoke up and apologized, "Sorry, Batti didn't mean any harm."

  "I know that. I understand his type very well." To this, he frowned in an attempt to intimidate me, but I simply smirked and stared back at him with the same intensity. The atmosphere became weird, so the knight introduced himself next to dissipate the growing tension.

  "I am Kimmel, and this is Sarde."

  "What's up?" He said in a cheery tone of voice. I felt like I'd get along with him. The spy spoke up next.

  "My name is Hertz. I do a lot of sneaking around." He had blonde hair and light blue eyes, and he covered his mouth with a mask. He was reserved, but I could sense he was the calcuting type.

  The mage who defended me spoke next, "I am Lucia." She grabbed my hands in hers and said in a kind tone, "Don't mind Batti. You're welcome here." In a word, she was striking. She had long purple hair and brown eyes that seemed to suck me in the more I stared into them, and she seemed kind, but at the same time, I was wary of her. These types of people were... interesting, to say the least. "Thank you," I responded, and then the next person spoke up.

  "I-I am Matilda, and I am the healer of the group," she said shyly. Protect her at all costs! I screamed internally. She had red hair and light green eyes, and she was the cute, little sister type, the kind that made you want to protect her. But it was fitting for a healer, I thought to myself as I focused my attention on the st party member. Her braided pink hair and deep blue eyes were charming, and she also looked like the shy type.

  "I am Phildina. It'll be a pleasure working with you." I guess I was wrong about that. She, like Hertz, was reserved, but I could sense the confidence in her voice. This is going to be interesting, I thought as the negotiations began.