Unfortunately, the presence of two beauties like Ragni and Katrina in the guild did not help with recruiting new members. Their aggressive behavior only attracted distant spectators and fans. On one hand, it was good that their crazy fans wouldn't try to infiltrate the guild, but on the other hand, if we didn't find new members by the end of the month, we would be disbanded.
A week had already passed since the completion of the first task, and not a single application had come in. Katrina was eager to accomplish great feats, but the notice board only had tasks that required a significant amount of time to complete. Given the circumstances, we couldn't afford that.
I tried to hint to the girls that they should bring a couple of friends to the guild, but I received only sarcastic remarks from Ragni and indignant cries from Katrina. So, I had to take matters into my own hands.
Unlike the guys, the girls looked at our guild with hostility, often driven by female jealousy. However, I had one person in mind who could join us if approached correctly.
Every day, I continued to visit my favorite spot on the rooftop, always at the same time, hoping to hear her familiar voice again. And finally, after a week, I heard her.
"You shouldn't skip classes so often; you come here every day," came the familiar timid voice from behind the partition.
"But at least I've met you again," I replied.
"Is that why you came here?"
"Of course, why else?" I needed to lure her into the guild by any means.
"Hmm, and what do you want from me?" the girl asked with interest.
"I want to start by confirming my guess. You are Kurone Venres from my class, right? Or am I wrong?"
"Oh, you already figured it out? And I was hoping that not recognizing me in person would make you treat me better."
"But you already knew who I was, didn't you?"
"With so many absences, like yours, Krito, anyone would figure it out."
"Ha-ha, I fell for it so stupidly. Well, in any case, sit tight."
"Huh? What?"
Using the prepared rope, I quickly climbed over the partition and found myself face to face with Kurone.
"Hello! Long time no see," I said, waving at her with a silly expression, trying to lighten the mood.
"H-h-h-hello!" Kurone managed to say, clearly overwhelmed.
"You still talk to me so formally. Last time we seemed to be on a first-name basis."
"Well, I don't know. Last time, you were just a stranger skipping classes and talking to unknown girls through the wall. And now you're somewhat famous, and I'm just a clumsy apprentice sorceress," her voice trembled with excitement; I had to seize the moment.
"Well, well, I'm not that popular, and we've only managed to complete one task; it's hardly an achievement."
"But you defeated the black dragon and convinced her to join you. Many say that at this rate, your guild could become very powerful."
"But even so, we desperately need new people right now. So, I wanted to ask, have you joined any guild yet?"
"Me? Well, no, no one needs me; I can barely conjure a couple of magic arrows. No one takes me in," Kurone lowered her eyes, and tears seemed to be on the verge of spilling out.
"But what about what you said during the exam? Can you really become invisible and read minds?"
"Well, um... I'm not sure since there was no way to test my abilities, but it seems like I can."
"That's wonderful! You can't imagine how useful those skills can be in battle. Can you do it right now?"
"Well, I can try, but I can't do it when someone is looking straight at me. Can you turn away for a moment?" Her voice sounded even more timid than I expected.
"Alright," I said. I didn't know if she felt shy, but if the girl asked, I had to comply.
About thirty seconds passed, and there was no response from Kurone. I decided to check, but when I turned back, there was no one there. However, it seemed that the air slightly shimmered in one spot on the rooftop, forming the silhouette of a person. It was barely visible unless you stared intensely. I decided to approach it slowly.
"Kurone, is that you?" I asked, just in case, addressing the silhouette.
"Oh, you can see me?" a soft voice of a trembling girl came from the direction of the silhouette.
Without much thought, I reached out and grabbed what seemed to be a shoulder. In an instant, the silhouette took the shape of a girl in a blue uniform. Kurone indeed had the ability to become unnoticed, although not entirely.
"An astonishing ability. I could hardly see you, but when I focused on the spot where you stood, your silhouette became clearer," I remarked.
"That's the point!" Kurone exclaimed joyfully. "I don't become completely invisible; at least, I can still see myself. But somehow, I manage to make people ignore me. As long as they don't start actively looking for me, I remain unnoticed."
"Interesting power. And what about telepathy?"
"Well, I can transmit thoughts to others and read the minds of those who open their minds to me. But I haven't had the chance to test it on anyone other than my parents," Kurone said, lowering her eyes. "In our city, the influence of the inquisition was strong, so my parents forbade me from using these abilities, fearing for my life."
"But it's strange; I don't know what type of magic could give rise to such abilities. From what I know about demonic magic, this is impossible," my words seemed to frighten the girl a little. "Don't worry, I can't stand the inquisitors, and I'll never betray anyone for their abilities."
"Thank you, but I don't understand how I can help your guild..."
"Have more confidence in your abilities. And most importantly, develop them. Let me give you a little test, okay? If you can pass it using your power, believe me, you won't be a burden to the guild."
Kurone smiled shyly in response and nodded. I explained what she needed to do and set up a meeting for tomorrow. Now, the next step was to explain everything to Katrina.
In the guild's living room, Katrina and Ragni sat with disgruntled looks. Katrina's frustration was evident. Ragni had received a substantial fourth-grade scholarship of 150 gold coins but had no intention of donating a single coin to the guild.
"Why do you need all this money?" Katrina's face twitched with anger.
"I need it," Ragni replied nonchalantly, stuffing a cookie from a freshly opened pack into her mouth.
Strangely, I had never seen Ragni not eating something during her free time. How did she not gain weight? But then again, if I remembered what I read about dragon physiology, the answer was quite apparent.
"You don't have to pay for your education this year, do you?" Katrina persisted.
"Suppose so," Ragni said indifferently, grabbing another cookie.
"And you don't need to pay for the uniform; your mother had it tailor-made with her money."
"Also true," Ragni confirmed, not stopping her cookie consumption.
"Then why do you need so much money?!" Katrina seemed on the verge of bursting with anger.
"Well, for starters, to rent a room in the dormitory, and the rest is for food," Ragni said, finishing the first pack of cookies and reaching for the next.
"You can't possibly spend that much on food!!!"
"You can," Ragni smirked. "As a dragon, I need a lot of energy, and besides, I can eat whatever I want without gaining weight."
To me, that translated to: "I'll eat as much as I want and won't spend a penny on this guild."
"Girls, don't argue. I have good news - I found a candidate to join our guild," I interrupted this pointless argument. "Tomorrow, I'll introduce her to you, but we need to decide where to meet."
"Hmm, why not bring her here?" Katrina suggested with an unaffected look.
Ragni almost choked on the cookie she was chewing intensely.
"A normal person would run to the ends of the earth as soon as they see this dump!" Ragni exclaimed with indignation. "If you want to recruit someone, at least make the meeting place more acceptable."
"Fine, invite her to some nice place," Katrina reluctantly agreed.
"Hmm, I know a small café in the neighboring city. It's inexpensive, and they serve delicious food, though it's a bit exotic," Ragni said with indifference.
"Tell me, have you been looking for new recruits for the guild these days?" Katrina's voice noticeably trembled.
"Nah."
"You were only looking for places where you could eat delicious food?"
"Yeah."
"You useless lizard!!!" Katrina released a medium-sized lightning bolt in Ragni's direction, but the dragoness easily blocked it with one hand while continuing to munch on her cookies.
Unfortunately, our house's floor suffered from this light show, now covered with a couple of fresh burns.