Marie's POV
***
It's been a month since we officially joined the Southern Guild. I remember how the first day was a total blast.
Several minutes after our registration, Leon and the others managed to join us. They were infuriated, Leon wanted to go right away to the capital to find Idiora and make him pay. We tried to convince him that it wasn't necessary but then Erick labeled us as traitors.
But eventually, after a little while, their anger had subsided. We officially became an E-ranked team from the Guild and were dispatched to more missions than we were used to, of course, we weren't beginners, so we accomplished many achievements in a very short time period.
The salary was a little short for a whole party, but we knew that things would get better as time passed. But it actually tends to be the opposite.
During the very same week, we noticed a considerable increase in our power, and after the guild re-evaluated our level, we were promoted to D-rank. It was honestly our peak.
But something changed after this event. Our usual tasks consisted of the subjugation of E-rank rifts, but after our promotion, we were assigned to D-rank rifts, and this is where our troubles began.
D-ranked rifts differed a lot from E-ranked ones, and not just in power, monsters in D-rank rifts were so well organized that it looked like they were a very intelligent civilization.
We were used to the monsters running around endlessly but now, we were facing the commando with a vanguard who rushed to keep busy our strongest fighters and snipers who targeted the healer.
Our very first expedition was, ironically a disaster, we almost lost Sana and Erick and despite being able to summon five tank puppets, the defensive level of my summons was laughable compared to what we needed from an actual tank.
Another time, we fought a lone D-rank Disaster but were unable to inflict any real damage. Leon even asked Erick to focus on poisoning the monster, because he knew that it wasn't the first time that we had to face a disaster built like a tank, we learned to poison it and force it to fight endlessly until it succumbed to the toxicity of its body.
But once again, Erick's poison stab was unable to affect seriously the Disaster and we were forced to retreat.
It was already terrible but the fatal blow came from both Leon and Sana, since Leon proposed this strategy, we remembered its origin, and after this failure, Sana couldn't help but whisper "If we had Dora, we would have won at least here."
It was honestly the stupidest thing she could have said, not that I disagreed, Dora was a master of debuff and could inflict the strangest kind of debuff on his opponents, like once when he infected directly the shell of a shielded monster, making it crack or when he affirmed to have poisoned the bronchi of another monster, making him breathe toxic oxygen.
Dora was a genius in this category, but pronouncing his name here, out loud, in front of Leon, from his new girlfriend who was Dora's ex, and after so many defeats, what a poor idea.
After that, the mood severely deteriorated between everyone. Lilith blamed Sana for her lack of consideration for Leon, but from the indifference of the latter, I can only assume that she doesn't really care.
After all, she was the one who vividly defended Dora after Leon's return.
She even mentioned often, when neither Leon nor Erick was around, how better it would be to team up with Dora now that he was supposedly taking the emissary world seriously. What a drastic change, from the one who claimed that he cheated on her.
Since then, her relationship with Leon has been a little ambiguous, he seems to resent her for her words but at the same time, she now sleeps in his bedroom, is it to save her couple? What is her true self? It's too hard to understand.
For the time being, we've accepted the proposal from the guild to engage some stray emissaries to fill the branches we're lacking, so we often pay the services of a tank and a debuffer.
But at our own cost, we're barely making a living. Hopefully, we will gather enough soul stones to rise in level and fight with only our power.
In the meantime, I wonder what happened to Dora. When we parted, he gave me a formidable gift, a real intelligent phone.
I remember how Liliana teased me about it, I was the only one who received a gift from him, and even Lilith claimed that he told her once that his gift for her was his friendship, I don't really understand the meaning.
I was very happy to have it until I realized that I actually needed something like the coordinates of Dora to talk to him every day.
Basically, he gave me a wonderful gift with nothing I could do with it. I had fun looking at the images inside, mostly his mother and his sister.
I hope he's doing well where he is, I will work harder so if one day, we meet again... And this day will happen.
Today, I am on the duty of finding a stray emissary with Sana, she has been very active with this lately, maybe to show Leon how she's involved. Anyway, we have received an important request, subjugating a D-rank rift near the city, and this time, since it's so close to the city, the prize money from the guild is five million Lyres.
We really need this money so we're determined to do what it will take to win this battle, this time, we won't fail.
***
In front of Marie, Sana carefully consulted the catalog of emissaries, a list of available emissaries listed by rank and class, and updated regularly.
It had become her job to manage this for weeks now, but she was so dedicated that she always took at least one hour before picking someone, even though the task needed just basic emissaries.
But this time, she froze and her eyes widened as a smile appeared on her face.
Marie, handling the phone noticed her change.
"Hm? Got anything? You look creepy."
"... Huh? Ah! Yes! I... Hum... I found interesting candidates... Since we absolutely need a win."
"Good, it took you less time than usual, so who are they?"
She tried to take the catalog from Sana's hands but the healer dodged her hand.
"I'll tell you later! For now, I'm going to send the request quickly, we better hurry now!"
"Oh?"
And then, she rushed to the guild secretariat and filled out a form before giving it to one of the employees.
The employee started filling out another document before stopping and reading the form with a confused expression.
Sana observed her for a moment.
"Is there a problem?"
"Miss, I see that your request is for a D-tank rift, so why are you requesting this emissary?"
She laughed lightly and looked at the office lady, with a big smile testimony to her emotions.
"Don't worry, I never do anything for no reason, we want him at all cost."
Those events took place a little while after the school exchange at Saint Nova. The event itself had a very delicate ending.
Back in the meeting room, every student was chatting to each other. Dora, after his encounter with Freya and conscious of his lie, was counting every second, hoping to see Zuri appear.
The mood was very good and everyone was having fun, Hope in the center was eating one of the appetizers and eyeing the prince from time to time, the latter was surrounded by girls from both academies.
The two were having a silent face-off, with only their eyes.
"If you think you're going to be Freya's knight, you're terribly mistaken."
"I'll become Lady Freya's knight, then I'll show you my worth!"
It was a common occurrence in this place, many students from the Knights were expected to serve the one considered the most beautiful woman from the kingdom, as Moonra had stated, some people make you want to fight for them more than anyone else, and that was the case for at least two people here, Freya and the crown princess.
"Midgard, you know a lot about this place, couldn't you find her bedroom so we meet her there instead? We're dead if Freya comes when we're here!"
"Don't worry, she can only use her veto once per week, to do that she needs to announce her wish to the direction board and they will make it official on paper. Once she puts her emblem on the poor boy you sacrificed, she won't have the power to force you again, especially if you're already under another noble."
"Good... But I would prefer to disappear before she... Ah!"
At the front door, Zuri made her entrance. Many students from the Knights noticed her appearance and showed stunned faces.
"Who... who is it? She looks like a ghost..."
"She's wearing Saint Nova uniform... Is she a student??"
"She doesn't look like a noble at all..."
She walked shyly at first, looking at her feet, then she saw her knight in the distance and her face changed.
"Doranesi! You really didn't run away... I've got it!"
She rushed to him with her crest on her hand. The students of the Royal Academy were taken aback, especially the council members, but on the opposite, Saint Nova students looked happy for her.
"Look! Miss Zuri has found a knight, and he's human!"
"Not only human... He seems to breathe!"
"I'm so glad for her..."
They cheered for her as she joined Dora, under a few applause from the crowd. Dora, looked around him, his expectations of the world completely shattered, and took the hands of Zuri.
"My... My knight? Where are you taking me?"
"We've lost enough time, let's go now!"
"But... I want to show off... Do we have to go... Ooooh... You... are you planning to take me to my bedroom by any chance?"
"I was thinking of mine but yours will... Do." He looked behind him, only to meet the perverted expression from Zuri, once again, a hand on her face.
"Holy crap…"
But then, the door opened once again, to everyone's surprise, revealing the most unexpected person in this place.
Freya, a document in her hands and accompanied by a tall mustachioed man entered the room.