Third person POV
Later, in the afternoon, Russell woke up, feeling refreshed and renewed. Seeing that it was now late afternoon, he used the time to go out shopping at the village markets. So, he got up, put on his hood, and went to Azalea to ask her if she wanted to go to the market with him. "Sure!" replied Azalea back in happy acceptance.
And so, both of them went out to the village markets to browse some stuff.
At the village markets, they browsed the stands and stalls for anything they would need in the future. Then, Russell bought a clay pot for 2 gold coins. He used the money he got from the village elders to pay for it. At another stand, he bought some roasted potatoes for a quick snack. At this point, Azalea wants to be with Russell wherever he goes on his bus routes, so she uses the time to go out shopping with him to ask him for that. Then, they both sat down on a wooden bench to rest a bit from walking.
"This one is so delicious," Russell commented as he munched on his locally made and roasted potatoes.
"I'm happy that you liked it." Azalea smiled at him.
A bit later, Russell was done eating his snack and was now thinking about what he wanted to do next before going back to his friend's house for the night. As Russell thinks, Azalea gathers her courage to ask him what she wants to ask him for. So, she took a deep breath and said to him, "Hey, Russell-kun…"
Upon hearing that, Russell snapped out of his flow of thinking and looked at her. "What is it?"
"….can I go with you?" Azalea continued on.
"What do you mean by that?"
"I mean, I really want to go with you on your travels with your bus."
Russell was a bit surprised to hear that. "W-What? Really?"
Azalea then nodded. "Yes, I really want to travel the world with you. So, can I go with you?"
Because of that, Russell contemplated and thought about it for a while, before he eventually agreed, saying, "Okay, sure. But how about your family? You'll leave them behind, right?"
"Well, I will, but I'll ask them to let me go with you. After all, as an adventurer, it's my duty to go on adventures and quests."
"Oh, I see."
"And, I don't have a current party to be a part of, so I was thinking about you being my party instead."
Russell was stunned at her thought and idea, but he was also thinking about the benefits of having a party.
So, he responded, "Sure, you're in."
Happy that he had accepted her request, Azalea hugged him tightly and in embrace. "Thank you! I'll do my best as your party member."
Overwhelmed by this, Russell responded, "Yeah, yeah, no problem. You're not just a party member, but also a friend to me as well."
"Yeah, yeah," Azalea sheepishly replied, before pulling back from hugging.
After that, they both stood up and left the marketplace, walking back to Azalea's family home. Later, back at Azalea's house, they are now eating dinner with Azalea's family, who came back from their work for the day. The evening was quiet. As they eat, Azalea asked her family to let her go with Russell to go on adventures. Her family, who had known that Azalea was an adventurer and has no current party, then accepted it and asked Russell to take good care of her.
"I'll do that," Russell replied with a strong promise, "you have my word."
Later, after dinner, Russell prepared his bus driver's uniform in his room, before packing up his knapsack. He had put his manual and clay pot in a small wooden crate that can be stowed away in his bus's baggage compartments. After that, he blew the candle and went to bed for the night. And Azalea is now his first, but unofficial first party member.