Callie did not grumble ar all for the rest of the day. We grinded the first floor of the dungeon and she did not lose her focus once. I thought that she might lose interest after the first dozen rounds, but she proved my worries wrong.
It was still early in the day, but I decided to call it early. I was proud of the progress she had made. She was right, of course. If we grinded this dungeon any longer she might develop bad habits. It was best to experience lots of different things when you were a new hunter.
"Let's call it a day. Rest up well and I will see you again first thing in the morning."
"We are going to a new dungeon tomorrow?" Her hopeful eyes melted my heart a bit more.
"Yes. However, you will only be healing in the beginning. If I tell you to run, you will run away at once. Do you understand?"
"Yes!"
I didn't want to be so firm with her. Dying was a very real possibility. I would need to be very careful in the dungeon we entered tomorrow. I would have to scout beginner dungeons to see what would be an acceptable, but still challenging trial for her.
The only problem was that she was so unbelievably weak. On rare occasions, she took damage from the monsters on the first floor here and it was as if I took a heavy blow from the tiger on the second floor. We needed to find someone else to round out our party.
I waved goodbye to Callie and entered the association once she was out of sight. Instead of heading to the lounge, I veered towards the bulletin boards where many hunters gathered. Since it was late afternoon, there weren't many people hanging around looking for a party. It made sense. Most parties were formed in the mornings and the group would then spend the day going through the dungeon.
I stood in the spot I had used before and viewed the room. The last time I was here the whole room was packed, but now I could see some small tables opposite my position in the room. Sitting at the tables were grim faces and loners.
Despite their grisly appearance I could tell that they had at least some experience. To the untrained eye they looked ragged and not put together. However, under the ripped clothes I found suitable armor and determined looks as they stared into the glass of whatever beverage the association was serving.
In particular, one man who had a shield sitting beside him caught my eye. He wasn't paying attention to the rest of the room and was heavily drinking whatever was in his glass.
A drunkard was the last thing I wanted to introduce to Callie, but no one else in the room carried a shield like that. I took in a calming breath and headed over to the chair opposite him.
"What do you want?" The man glared at me with a fierce look, but I stared back at him unfazed.
"I'm interested in your shield. Do you know how to use it?"
"What's it to you?"
I had been prepared to handle a drunk, but the look in his eyes was not unfocused and there was not a hint of alcohol on his breath as I sat across from him. I got the feeling that it was an act to keep others at bay. Why would he need to put up such an act?
"I have something to protect, but I lack the necessary skills. Would you consider joining my party?"
The man scoffed at my proposal and slammed his glass heavily on the table. I worried it might break, but no cracks appeared. The only casualty is a bit of his drink came sloshing out of the glass and onto the table. It looked like juice.
The man glared at me for a moment, but perhaps because I didn't let his aggressive display affect me, a look of interest twinkled in his eye.
"If you need a shield, does that mean you don't have a fighter or tank in your party?" His voice was softer and was only loud enough for me to hear.
My heart stirred for a moment. Was he considering joining with just that little information? I had not even used my healer card yet. I planned for this discussion to be much harder.
"That is right. I am only good for critical hits and my partner is a support class."
His eyes squinted when I mentioned my partner. I know I wasn't doing a good job of selling the idea to him, but I wanted to protect information in regards to Callie. If word got out there was a fresh healer out there she may be swarmed with offers and I didn't know if another party would prioritize her growth.
It was important to carefully raise support type hunters. Their powers only became important in the larger, more difficult dungeons. My light build would only get us so far. We needed to have a more diverse party in order to take more risks. Plus I wasn't convinced completely that Callie was ready to leave the first floor of the Beginner Dungeon.
"I am not saying that I will agree to join your party, but let's see how well we do on the front line. Have you been to the second floor of this city's dungeon?"
I nodded my head. So it would come down to how compatible he and I were in the dungeon. This was better news than I could have hoped for.
"My name is Kai Richards. It is nice to make your acquaintance." I held out my hand for him to shake.
"Same. Mat Reynolds." HIs hand was much larger than my own and I could tell that he was experienced by the roughness of his hands.
Mat reached for his shield and started heading towards the entrance of the association. I rushed after him. I could tell that he was tall from where he sat, but it was only now I realized he was over six foot tall.
Physical characteristics did not mean much now, but it felt reassuring that he would be on my side. Let's hope he has really good defensive skills. I don't think that Callie could be protected with just me, but maybe, just maybe, with their help I could somehow save Kei.
Though, broaching the subject about saving someone who had died in the dungeon would be a difficult thing to explain. I couldn't be sure that they would want to help, but I would cross that bridge when I got to it.
We approached the tower and entered immediately as there was no line to enter at this time of day. The magic circle teleported us to the white room. Mat looked around in confusion.
Callie had not made a fuss because she had little experience in the dungeon, but I could tell that he was not used to this start.
"Once you complete certain goals in the dungeon you get more options in the dungeon."
He seemed to accept this explanation and I motioned him towards the holographic screen in the center of the room. The usual greeting appeared on the screen and I pulled up the dungeon map and selected the Crystal City Dungeon. I then designated that we wanted to enter the second floor and we teleported to the jungle with no problem.
I could hear Mat mumbling something to himself, but he was so quiet that I could not quite make out the words.
"Did you say something?"
"No, the boss of this room just defends the exit. Let us make haste."
I stared at him for a moment but decided to let it go. This was probably something I would have to go through with each new person I took into the dungeon with me. It was fine if they wanted to use me for convenience if they helped me achieve my goals in the end.
I lead him in the direction of the tiger. As usual I felt a slight sense of revulsion in the form of nausea when I saw this particular boss. This time the tiger did not seem to remember who I was.
Mat rushed in front of me and began to engage the tiger. It reminded me of how Kei had done the same. A lump got stuck in my throat, but I quickly swallowed it down. I needed to focus on the fight.
With the giant shield, Mat was able to defend against the heavy attacks from the tiger and keep it occupied. I was free to sneak behind the tiger and attack from behind. Instead of the desperate attacks I had to make when I fought this boss on my own I was able to slowly whittle down the health of the tiger until it became so weak that a single shield bash knocked it down.
Mat finally drew his weapon and slashed the tiger's throat, finishing it off for good. His movements looked practiced and I could tell that he either had experience before the fall or had accumulated a lot of experience in the dungeons themselves.
Mat wiped the sweat from his forehead and then began meticulously cleaning his sword. It was a short sword and seemed to match his shield perfectly. I could see Callie standing behind him, providing support to us both. He would be a good fit to our current party.
"I see you have good skills. It would be helpful to have a more damage inflicting member, but I don't see how the current setup would be a problem. It will just take us longer to take down strong opponents," he said.
"True. I had a lot more freedom this time while fighting. Your support would be gratefully appreciated if you want to take me up on my offer."
"Then tell me. What kind of support is this third member you mentioned?"
It seemed he wouldn't agree until I told him all the details. I sighed and started gathering the different materials from the tiger we just took down. There were some herbs I wanted to grab on this floor as well.
"I will tell you so long as you promise not to tell anyone else."
"To go to such lengths? Fine. I promise not to tell anyone else."
"The third member is a healer and a new one not affiliated with anyone else."
"Are you serious? That's… I see why you needed a shield. Very well. I can not turn down such an offer."
"I'm glad you see it that way. After I finish cleaning out this floor of resources I will need your help scouting other dungeons in the area and we will set out in the morning with the healer."
"Fine with me. We can cement our teamwork until tonight then."
The tension in my body seemed to dissipate. I had done it. I found a third party member. I didn't know how I found someone so skilled with a shield, but it felt like someone was looking down on me fondly.
However, the only person who I could think of to do that was the mysterious person who sometimes interacted with me through the system. I hoped that it wasn't that person. I didn't want all my hard work to be for someone who only viewed my actions as a form of entertainment.