Joseph had a lot of questions about his new teammate, Kara.
The most immediate one was how the hell someone fought monsters with their bare hands.
"So," Joseph said as they walked out of the guild, his rusty pipe resting on his shoulder, "you're telling me you fight with… just your fists?"
Kara shot him a look. "Yeah. You got a problem with that?"
Joseph hesitated. He wanted to say "Yes, absolutely, that is a terrible idea, what are you even thinking?" but he also didn't want to get punched in the throat.
Instead, he went with, "I mean… that sounds a little, you know, suicidal."
Kara smirked. "Says the guy who's swinging around a rusty pipe like it's an actual weapon."
Joseph opened his mouth to argue but immediately realized he had zero ground to stand on.
Still, he couldn't let this go.
"I'm just saying," he continued, "you can't exactly punch a giant bear to death. Or, like, a dragon."
Kara snorted. "Depends. How big is the bear?"
Joseph stared at her. "I—what? No! That's not—why is that your first question?"
She shrugged. "Look, you'd be surprised how much damage you can do with a solid punch. Plus, you ever heard of aura reinforcement?"
Joseph blinked. "Aura what now?"
Kara rolled her eyes. "Figures. You really are new."
She cracked her knuckles and suddenly—
A faint glow surrounded her hands, like a flickering orange flame.
Joseph took a step back. Okay, that was new.
"See?" Kara grinned. "Magic reinforcement. It's not flashy, but it makes me hit harder, move faster, and tank hits way better than some idiot swinging around a rusty pipe."
Joseph squinted at her glowing fists of death.
"…So you're telling me you just… punch monsters really hard until they stop moving?"
"Basically."
"That's… actually kind of terrifying."
Kara gave him a very sharp-toothed grin. "Glad you're catching on."
Joseph scratched his head, still processing all of this. So fists were a viable weapon in this world? That didn't make sense, but then again, neither did getting isekai'd via Truck-kun.
"…Okay," he admitted, "but you still wouldn't beat a dragon in a fistfight."
Kara shrugged. "Not yet."
Joseph decided right then and there that he was never going to piss her off.
Now that Joseph had Kara the punching expert in his party, the next logical step was finding more people.
Because while a guy with a rusty pipe and a girl who punches monsters to death was a strong start, it still wasn't exactly a balanced team.
They needed at least one more person, preferably someone with actual range.
"A mage or an archer," Joseph muttered as he and Kara walked through the guild. "Or, you know, anyone who doesn't fight by just running straight at danger."
Kara raised an eyebrow. "You saying I'm reckless?"
"I'm saying I watched you crack your knuckles and talk about punching a dragon like it was a reasonable life goal."
"That's just called confidence."
Joseph sighed.
Their first stop was a group of mages gathered near the job board, dressed in fancy robes that definitely did not come from a dumpster.
Joseph cleared his throat. "Hey, we're forming a party. We could use a mage. Interested?"
One of the mages, a tall, snooty-looking elf, glanced at Joseph's rusty pipe and Kara's bare fists.
Then he turned back to his friends and said, "I believe they are joking."
The whole group laughed and walked off.
Joseph clenched his fist. "I hate elves."
Kara patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Yeah, that's fair."
Next, they found a lone archer, drinking at the bar. He looked rugged, experienced, and most importantly, desperate for work.
Perfect.
Joseph approached. "Hey, we're looking for a ranged fighter to join our party. You interested?"
The archer took one long look at them. Then he took an even longer sip of his drink.
"No."
"…Not even for money?" Joseph tried.
The archer laughed. "You think you have money?"
Joseph sighed. Damn, he saw right through that.
After several more rejections, Joseph and Kara sat down at an empty table, utterly defeated.
"Alright," Joseph said, rubbing his temples. "This is harder than I thought."
Kara leaned back, smirking. "Maybe it's because you walk up to people with that sad, broke energy."
Joseph groaned. "Okay, then you try."
Kara shrugged and stood up.
"HEY!" she shouted across the guild. "WHO WANTS TO JOIN A PARTY WITH A GUY WHO FIGHTS WITH A RUSTY PIPE?"
The entire guild went silent.
Dozens of adventurers turned to stare at Joseph, who sat frozen in place, contemplating his life choices.
A moment later, everyone went back to ignoring them.
Joseph buried his face in his hands. "Kara, I swear."
"What?" she said, laughing. "Just cutting through the nonsense. No one's dumb enough to—"
"I'LL JOIN!"
Joseph and Kara both turned in shock.
Standing before them was a young girl.
She was petite and had long, messy blond hair, and wore a robe that was way too big for her. She carried a wooden staff and her bright green eyes practically sparkled with excitement.
Kara raised an eyebrow. "Uh, are you sure about that?"
The girl nodded aggressively. "YUP! I'm a healer! You guys look like you could use one!"
Joseph's entire body froze.
A healer. A real, actual, honest-to-god healer.
Someone who could fix his injuries, which were definitely going to happen at an alarming rate.
He turned to Kara without a second's thought. "We're taking her."
Kara crossed her arms. "She looks inexperienced."
Joseph grabbed Kara by the shoulders. "So am I. Plus, she heals, Kara."
Kara sighed. "Alright, fine."
Joseph looked at the girl. "What's your name?"
The girl beamed. "Lily! Nice to meet you, Boss!"
Joseph blinked. "Boss?"
Lily nodded. "You're the leader, right?"
Joseph hesitated.
He was broke, unskilled, and his only weapon was actively rusting.
"…Yeah, sure," he said. "I'm the leader."
And just like that—
Joseph, the broke guy with a rusty pipe.
Kara, the psycho who punches monsters.
And Lily, the overenthusiastic healer.
The most questionable adventuring party in history was officially formed.
Joseph took a deep breath.
"…Alright. Now let's find a quest that doesn't get us all killed."