Mage Effect

The sudden voice startled all three of them.

The Short-Haired Girl, especially, visibly trembled from head to toe.

The Archer girl studied Gauss with a scrutinizing gaze, wary of a stranger.

She did not respond.

However, the reluctance on her face made it clear she was inclined to refuse.

In her eyes, Gauss did not look particularly capable.

Aside from the cheap Small Round Shield at hand, he had no decent armor. He wore a Linen cloth shirt washed so often it had faded white, with several little holes torn in its hem that let the wind through. The only weapon he carried was the Broken Dagger at his waist.

Rather than an adventurer, he looked more like a young man who could not afford food and had gritted his teeth to take one desperate gamble.

The only commendable thing about him was his fairly clean and handsome appearance. He had black hair and green eyes. He was not exceptionally handsome, but his bright, lively eyes made people want to look at him twice.

She rather liked those green eyes, but she could not bring a "pretty face" with no combat ability into the team for that reason alone.

Her silence was merely because she was thinking of an excuse to reject him.

After several seconds of silence, the atmosphere became a little awkward.

At that moment, the young Swordsman leaning against a pillar spoke up in response to Gauss.

"We're newcomers too. If you want to build up adventuring experience, you'd be better off teaming up with some veterans."

He spoke listlessly, but his words were frank and carried a hint of goodwill.

"It's fine. My target is a goblin commission too. I just haven't found one suitable for completing alone, so I thought I'd try forming a temporary team with someone." Gauss did not really want to team up with veterans who had spent years among the lowest-ranked adventurers.

"I need to discuss it with my companions." Seeing Gauss put it that way, the Archer girl finally spoke.

"No problem." Gauss nodded.

He was not insisting on it anyway. He had only come over to ask with a try-it-and-see attitude.

If they refused, he could just look for another suitable commission.

"Oh, right."

Gauss was just about to move farther away and give the three of them room to discuss it privately when the Archer stopped him as though she had remembered something.

"Is your primary weapon a dagger? Or do you have any other specialties?"

She had not expected any useful answer. The weapon an adventurer carried was surely the one they were most skilled with.

She had only asked to keep the conversation going, intending to use the fact that the team already had a companion skilled with daggers and did not currently need another melee fighter as an excuse to politely turn him down after their discussion.

However, Gauss's answer caught her off guard.

"For melee combat, I use a dagger and a Wooden Spear. As for specialties, I used to be a hunter, so I won't get lost in the wilderness. And I just learned a spell."

"A spell?"

As soon as Gauss finished speaking, all three looked over at once.

Their gazes plainly said, That has nothing to do with you.

"You're a Mage?"

"I don't know if I count as one, but I have indeed mastered a spell." Gauss had no intention of hiding it.

Since he was asking to join someone else's team, there was no need to keep things under wraps.

Thinking that words alone were no proof, he immediately cast Mage Hand.

The air distorted slightly for a brief moment, and an invisible ghostly hand condensed from magic power.

He handed his dagger over to it.

Mage Hand gripped the hilt and swung the dagger twice at the empty air.

"It really is magic!" The Archer girl watched the dagger floating in midair and slashing at nothing, her eyes lighting up uncontrollably.

She moved closer and asked Gauss eagerly.

"What spell is that?"

"Mage Hand. It creates an invisible hand." Gauss gave a brief explanation.

Although he had no intention of concealing the skill, he did not elaborate for now. Who knew whether they would even agree to let him join?

If he explained too much now and they rejected him, would he not be wasting his breath?

"Mage Hand. Mm, that sounds pretty good." The Archer girl nodded repeatedly, her eyes still gleaming with excitement.

She seemed to be enthusiastic about magic and spells.

"Then let's discuss it first. Wait here for us, okay? Don't leave yet." After saying that, she quickly pulled her other two companions into a corner to talk.

They did not go far. Gauss had no intention of eavesdropping, but their voices still carried to his ears because they had not lowered them.

"Are we really going to team up with this stranger?"

"He's a Mage!"

"With a Mage joining us temporarily, it should be safer, right? Our first commission involves seven or eight goblins, so it's better to be cautious."

"..."

After their brief meeting, the three returned to Gauss.

"My companions and I have no objections. Welcome to our team. I hope we'll work well together on the upcoming commission."

The Archer took the lead in welcoming Gauss and extended her hand.

"Mm, please take care of me." Gauss shook her hand as well. "What should I call the three of you?"

"My name is Hailiel. I'm skilled with a bow and can provide ranged support for the team. Uh, I can cook too."

"I'm Mia. I use daggers."

"Bell. Longsword."

The three had different personalities. After learning that Gauss was a "Mage," Hailiel had become the most enthusiastic. Mia was the shy short-haired girl, while Bell was the lazy-sounding young Swordsman.

Though their personalities differed, Gauss had a feeling that none of them were bad people.

"You're not locals, are you?"

Gauss had spent over a year in town, but he had never seen any of them before.

"That's right. We're all from Barry, friends since childhood."

On the first day after joining the team temporarily,

Hailiel, as the captain, generously treated everyone to a meal and led them to a tavern to celebrate together.

The three from Barry City truly came from fairly well-off families. They were certainly not born into nobility, but they at least never lacked food or clothing.

Roast meat, Malt beer, Salted sturgeon, Venison sausage...

Gauss had the most lavish meal he had eaten since arriving in this other world.

Chunks of meat sizzled with grease on the grill, drizzled with the tavern's secret sauce. The instant he bit down, the meat juices mixed with the salty fragrance of the sauce and burst across his taste buds.

The sliced Venison sausage had a distinctive flavor as well. It carried an intensely rich cured-meat taste, somewhat like beef, mixed with an inexplicable smoky, fruity aroma.

The chefs of this world were not lacking in skill. Especially after Gauss had spent several days eating black bread, oatmeal porridge, and pickled vegetables, the dishes before him seemed incredibly lavish by comparison.

However, when it came time to pay, the price announced by the server made Gauss, who was rubbing his full stomach, click his tongue inwardly.

"That will be 3 silver coins and 40 copper coins."

One meal had cost him all of his assets.

He had wanted to suggest splitting the bill, but silently swallowed the words, a trace of embarrassment appearing on his face.

Having just paid the adventurer registration fee, he truly did not have enough money to cover an equal share of the meal.

"You don't need to be polite with Hailiel. Her family is in business, and they have a little money," Bell said quietly.

Gauss nodded, suddenly realizing that the gap between rich and poor in this other world was no less staggering.

They were all young people just starting out on their own. When the Original Body had left home, he had carried only 30 copper coins, a set of spare clothes, and 1 pound of black bread. After working hard for over a year, he had saved more than 3 silver coins—yet that was only enough for one meal.

He shook his head.

He felt something at the disparity, but he was not discouraged.

After all, the future was his.

Though his pockets were empty now, he knew it was only temporary.

Once he had money in the future, he could treat them in return.

Gauss rubbed his deflated coin purse and followed the three out of the tavern.