Prytaneum
Covering
The calm-looking elf that was, as far as I knew, Syr's best friend, looked up from cleaning a table and glanced towards us without the slightest change in expression. Beyond the fact that she was an elf and Syr's friend, I honestly didn't know much about Ryuu—but hey, she was the friend of a friend, so there wasn't any real reason not to trust her. I probably could have found out more if I tried, but Syr had told me that Mama Mia took in a lot of girls with unfortunate pasts and asked me not to pry, so I didn't.
"Mr. Jackson?" Ryuu asked, thankfully not seeming to see anything wrong with me calling her over. I still wasn't used to the customs in Orario and wasn't sure what exactly counted as impolite. "Are you ready to order?"
"Uh…you guys can if you want," I told Welf and Lili, turning their way at the question. Syr wasn't back yet, but I didn't want to hold them up if they were hungry. "I'll just wait for Syr to come back."
Welf smiled slightly at that and ordered his usual. I call it his usual, because I still didn't know what it was. Granted, I still wasn't sure what I usually had, either, and at this point, I wasn't sure I wanted to. Sometimes, it was best not to know. Lili, for her part, just frowned.
"Mr. Percy…"
"I'm sure Syr will appreciate that, Mr. Jackson," Ryuu said, expression still unchanged. "However, Syr will not be able to take a break so soon after coming back from lunch."
"Ah…" I said, not having thought about that. It made sense, though. "Well, she seems to enjoy it, so I guess I'll still wait."
Ryuu inclined her head, accepting that easily. If she felt anything about it one way or another, I couldn't tell. Ryuu seemed like she was probably pretty good at poker.
"Will that be all?" She asked after only Welf ordered.
"Actually," I began. "Ryuu, you're a Level 4 adventurer, right?"
Ryuu looked at me for a long moment, as did several of the other waitresses, whereas Welf and Lili abruptly drew away from us, leaning away. I wasn't sure why, seeing as I'd already told them both, but…was saying it out loud something rude? I mean, I guess I'd found out just by sensing her instead of asking, so maybe it came off like I'd asked about her behind her back? But I thought the Guild posted everyone's Level to begin with?
"…May I ask how you know that, Mr. Jackson?" Ryuu asked, tone unchangingly polite.
"I just used magic; don't worry about it," I said. Hey, as long as people would keep accepting it as an excuse, I'd keep using it as an excuse. "Also, you can just call me Percy, you know? We're both friends of Syr, after all."
"I see," She said, blinking slowly after watching me for a long moment. Maybe she thought that my ability to roughly tell people's Levels was odd. Or maybe she thought it was rude. Hell, maybe she just thought it was kind of neat; I don't know. For all I knew, she could have been thinking about killing me, because seriously, I couldn't read Ryuu at all. "Then yes, my Level is 4."
"Cool," I said. "Can I ask you an adventurer question, then?"
Ryuu tilted her head to the said, holding a serving tray against her chest. I took that as an affirmative.
"What are the best ways to get stronger as an adventurer?" I asked.
"Leveling up," She said promptly, to which I could only give a chagrined smile.
"Besides that, I mean," I said. "I just did that, so it'll probably be awhile. But I probably should have been more specific. Are there any ways to get stronger without entering the Dungeon? Because the last time I was in the Dungeon, two monsters that were at least Level 4 sprouted from the ceiling and tried to kill me, so I thought I should play it safe for a while. But I can't stop going into the Dungeon, either, so we're trying to make preparations, and if possible, I'd like to become at least a little bit stronger before going back."
Hey, I'd apparently rudely revealed her Level. The rest, if it wasn't public knowledge yet, probably would be soon, for all that I saw several of the waitresses eavesdropping start to choke. Fortunately, Ryuu seemed to view the world in a pretty accepting way, because she merely widened her eyes slightly for a moment before returning to normal, and one way or another, she seemed to accept it.
"My apologies for misunderstanding," She said evenly. "In that case, it would be best to train outside the Dungeon. While monsters are perhaps the best opponents for an adventurer to face, as they are easily accessible in Orario, repopulate quickly, and it's easy to find strong opponents in large numbers, the fact of the matter is that any type of opponent will suffice."
"You mean fighting animals or monsters outside the Dungeon?" I asked, frowning. "But if I wrestled some poor bear to death, I'd just feel bad afterwards."
Also, didn't Artemis do some bad things to people who did stuff like that? I couldn't remember.
"Yes," Ryuu stated, an agreeing tone working its way into her voice. "Ideally, one should face an opponent on or above their own Level, or else one's Status will not grow at an appreciable rate. However, you seem to be misunderstanding something important—the death of an opponent is not inherently necessary to improving one's Status. Rather, it's the gaining of experience, whatever the form, that allows one to improve."
"Oh…yeah, Hephaestus said something about that, now that you mention it," I said, nodding as I pursed my lips. "So basically, I should try sparing with someone, then?"
"And preferably someone with great strength in their own right," She said, voice unchanging. "But remember also that it is the amount of effort that matters. No matter how powerful the opponent, if they hold back to be on your level, the gains will be marginal. It's important to struggle with everything you have to grow stronger. The gains will likely still be less than if you had fought monsters, but if it is for the sake of preparing oneself, it is an often used tactic."
"I get it," I said with a nod. "Then can you train me, Ryuu? You see really strong."
For some reason, that request seemed to surprise her more than what I'd told her about how I Leveled Up. After a moment, however, she shook her head.
"I'm honored. However, I must decline," Ryuu said, voice and expression normal once again. "I feel that it would be improper to spend time alone with another woman's husband."
"Oh, well that's…" I began before trailing off, my smile fading into what I could only assume was an expression of utter confusion. No, seriously, what? I rolled the words over in my head a few times, but I had no idea how to even begin processing that. "I…Huh?"
"Ryuu!?" Syr's voice suddenly called out, drawing the attention of every patron in the bar to the doorway. Her face seemed to be trying to decide whether it should be shocked, horrified, or embarrassed and was trying to settle on a mix as she rushed over. "Ryuu, what are you talking about!?"
"I was informed by Chloe and Arnya," The expressionless elf said, turning her way. "You have been working hard to prepare meals for him every day and often taking breaks to eat meals with him, so I was uncertain of what he was to you, but they explained."
Was this an elf thing or an Orario thing? Either way, I should probably run damage control. To that end, I looked between the two of them before speaking.
"…What?" I asked, still stunned that this conversation was actually happening.
"Mr. Percy, please say something of actual value," Lili said on the other side of the table, seeming displeased.
"Ryuu, you're misunderstanding things again…!" Syr said quickly, actually helping.
The elf tilted her head to the said, face still a mask even as Syr put her hands on her arm. The girl tugged on her arm, but had a better chance of moving a boulder than actually pulling a Level 4 along.
"Am I?" Ryuu asked, actually seeming to wonder.
"Hey, um," I said, before clearing my throat. "Ryuu? Like Syr said, this is a…really big misunderstanding. We're not married or engaged or anything, we're just friends. Really."
"Really!" Syr emphasized. "Really, really!"
Ryuu tilted her head again before nodding.
"I see," She said evenly. "I apologize; it was my mistake."
"It's…it's not a big deal," I hurried to brush off, glad for the chance to change the subject to literally anything else. "Anyway, thank you for all the help, Ryuu."
"Any idea who you're going to ask next, Percy?" Welf interjected, apparently enjoying this greatly.
I frowned at him but nodded.
"I feel bad for always relying on her, but I guess I can ask Aiz for help?" I answered. "She'll probably be willing to help if she has the time."
"Aiz?" Ryuu asked suddenly. "That is…Aiz Wallenstein, correct?"
"Yeah," I said, trying not to sound nervous. "We were both here a week or so ago, remember? Well, we first met in the Dungeon, really. But we're friends."
I didn't say 'we're not married either, by the way,' partially because this whole thing was apparently just a prank and she was probably more embarrassed than Syr and I were under her poker face. More importantly, however, while this would probably be something we'd laugh about later, I was staying the hell away from this subject for at least a week.
"…I understand," Ryuu said after a long moment, apparently deciding something. "In that case, I suppose it cannot be helped. Do not worry, Syr; I will train him."
"Ryuu, I can already tell you don't understand at all…!" Syr said, shoulders falling as she looked at her friend's face.
As it happened, I didn't understand either, but somehow or other, things seemed to have worked out, more or less. Everything else, Syr could probably handle. Oh wow, look at the time.
Percy Jackson, out.