The door closed behind the bespectacled woman and the ashen-haired girl.

The quartermaster sighed and stood up and waved at the bruiser 97-F to do the same.

"So her name is Wrath? Just like one of the southern territories..."

Bruiser 97-F fidgeted, too busy looking at the door to notice the quartermaster's gesture.

"After hearing those two talk, I think it's safe to assume that it's not just some coincidence - and that girl is from THE Wrath family."

"...!"

The man shrugged his shoulder and made the boy flinch and lower his head.

"How old are you again?"

The quartermaster asked.

"Fourteen years old, sir!"

The boy responded.

"Then, what's the matter kiddo?"

The quartermaster made a surprisingly friendly smile and asked as his demeanor changed completely.

The boy fidgeted and glanced at him, unsure how to start.

"I-I'm not saying that I like her or anything - we only just met - but it's, I don't know, a bit sad knowing that I have no chance..."

Bruiser 97-F confessed with a pitiful expression.

"Knowing? What are you talking about?"

The quartermaster shook his head and laughed.

"Um... well... I mean, sir, you've said it yourself... she's someone from the seven main families, and before becoming a soldier, I was just a commoner from the backward village in the Lust territory..."

Bruiser 97-F explained, twiddling with his thumbs.

"Oh, please! Kiddo, you saw her reaction when you told her your stats - by the way your decisiveness about bringing someone who looked like a lost recruit here was nice, I will put a good word for you to the higher-ups - she instantly threw herself in your arms!"

"Sh-she just tripped!"

The boy blushed deeply making it clear that he didn't even hear the middle part of the quartermaster's speech.

"Yeah, yeah, sure."

The man waved his hand dismissively and looked away with a mocking smile.

"Still, it sounded like she was going to leave soon. Why not go say goodbye and ask for a little kiss on the cheek? You're a proud Sloth soldier busting your butt off on the frontline, protecting the whole nation from titan-class monsters!"

The quartermaster's smile changed into a cheeky smirk and he winked at the boy.

"...! Sir, do you think she would agree...?! No! Sir, please don't tease me like that!"

Bruiser 97-F looked like he was about to run after the ashen-haired girl but then he shook his head and made a pitiful face.

"At least go say goodbye, those southern girls aren't as reserved as the girls here, you might get a hug."

The quartermaster pointed at the door and glanced at the buzzcut boy.

"Sir..."

Bruiser 97-F clenched his fists and bit his lip.

"Go see her, that's an order from your superior."

The quartermaster made a serious expression and glared the boy down.

"Sir! Yes, sir!"

Hearing an order caused bruiser 97-F to straighten his back and salute, it was more than just a fast reaction, it was basically a muscle memory by now.

"Dismissed."

The quartermaster waved at the door and turned away.

"Sir! Yes, sir!"

The boy saluted again and left without any more protests or complaints.

"...damn it..."

When the door closed and the sound of the footsteps disappeared, the quartermaster sat heavily on the simple wooden chair behind the counter and hid his face in his hands.

"...the -F series are the experimental batch that the avatar shared a custom modified Acedia skill with. That makes them level up a bit slower than the rest of us, but their stats are sky-high in comparison..."

He sighed heavily, leaned back, and started staring at the ceiling.

"But that also means that their bodies are that much more prone to break from the unnatural growth... he said that he was fourteen... his number was 97... that's the highest number we got in seventy years..."

The quartermaster started rocking back and forth in his chair.

"That means he has like what...? Two more years to live? Three, if he's lucky...? System-damn it...! That's not how it's supposed to be! How are those -F kids any different from a cannon fodder?!"

*WHAM*

The man gritted his teeth and leaned forward, making the front legs of his chair slam against the floor with a loud sound.

----

"I'm sorry for causing trouble..."

Mika apologized, following medic 7 with her head down.

"I wouldn't call it a trouble, only a slight annoyance."

The bespectacled woman responded without even looking back.

They were walking for a while in silence.

Every hallway looked the same to Mika, so she wasn't sure whether they were returning to the white room or going in a completely different direction.

"Still, there was a slight change of plans."

Medic 7 suddenly spoke, making Mika raised her head and look at her in confusion.

"That tamer who was with your group. She was able to subdue a pack of shadow fangs and even an emperor griffin. The higher-ups declared their interest in her, and decided to make an exception and invite her to our territory... together with the rest of your companions, for whatever reason..."

She sighed and massaged her forehead as if she got a migraine just thinking about so many southerners arriving without fulfilling the normal procedure.

"Wait... does that mean...?!"

Mika straightened her back and gasped.

"Yes... they are all already here - together with some uninvited pests - and they all want to see you."

Medic 7 explained, though the middle part she mumbled under her breath as if clenching her teeth in anger.

"...!"

Mika trembled in anticipation.

If what the bespectacled woman was saying the truth, that means that not only the three bodyguards and the tamer girl were here, but her beloved Corvus too!

And if she plays things right, then maybe she would be able to jump into his arms and pin it on being moved because of their reunion...!

She covered her mouth with her face and snickered.

"We're here. We prepared a guest room for all of you. Enjoy your stay until we'll be done with examining the unusual tamer."

Medic seven suddenly stopped in front of one of the doors and tapped it with an indifferent expression with only hints of annoyance in her eyes.

"Okay!"

Mika nodded her head and braced herself.

In her mind, Corvus was definitely the one who was the most worried about her, therefore he would be the one waiting by the door.

That was the requirement for her touching reunion plan!

"Go in. Don't make your friends wait."

Medic 7 rolled her eyes and opened the door for the ashen-haired girl.

"Everyone!"

As soon as she got the chance, Mika threw herself through the door with open arms.

*squeeze*

And embraced the first person standing the closest to the door, careful to mind her newly acquired strength.

"Hiah?! What the fuck?!"

Someone let out a cute high-pitched voice and then cursed in confusion.

"Eh...?"

Mika gasped and looked up at the face of the person she was hugging.

...and she locked eyes with a tall beautiful black-haired female elf, staring down at her in utter confusion.

"Whoa...! Um... fuck...! Don't get me wrong, kid. I think you're really fucking cute, but... you're way too fucking young for me. Sorry."

The elven woman smiled awkwardly and bowed apologetically.

Wide-eyed Mika was so confused that she released her embrace, but didn't step away.

...it was the elf who stepped away as soon as she got a chance.

"Ashen hair... ah! Forgive my companion's rudeness, young lady Wrath!"

Another person stepped in and bowed deeply.

It was a short and skinny rat-faced man wearing light armor and fingerless gloves that showed the silver wedding ring on his left hand's ring finger.

"Fuck yeah! I got hit on by a high-class lady?! Wait, no... Fuck! Did I offend her by fucking rejecting her feelings?!"

The elven woman flinched and backed away even further.

"Lai-lai... I don't want to burst your bubble, but I'm pretty sure this young lady just made a small mistake due to being overwhelmed with emotions..."

Another man showed up, this one had medium armor, a shield strapped to his forearm, and a broadsword on his waist.

He also seemed to be a bit on the chubbier side.

"...oh... yeah... that makes sense... fuck me..."

The elven woman's long pointy ears drooped down as she sighed dispiritedly.

"Now, now. Don't you all see that you made her confused?"

And then another person showed up, the largest woman that Mika saw in her life.

That is, Mika thought that was a woman, judging by the voice that came from inside the helmet of a full plate armor-clad person holding a large sword and an enormous tower shield.

"Eh...? Eeeeeeeeeeeeeh?!"

Mika gasped, finally shaking off the initial shock.

She stepped back and looked at the bespectacled woman still standing in front of the door.

"Those... those aren't my friends..."

She uttered pointing at the four adventurers in front of her.

"Yeah. They're not. Those four are the pests I was talking about before... your friends are further in."

Medic 7 sighed and pushed up her glasses.

"Ah! Right, sorry, we'll move right away."

The big woman apologized hurriedly and started pushing the others out of Mika's way.

Once she did that, Mika saw Corvus, Cri, Ti, and Cal, all her friends that she traveled together with, with the exception of the brown-haired Mary, sitting by a table in the far back of the room.

"Ah! Young miss!"

The first one to spot Mika's arrival was the copper-eyed Ti.

She stood up from her seat and rushed towards the suddenly timid ashen-haired girl.