Expedition Slots

"I'm back."

At the gates of the Soma Familia residence, Falan said just that.

Having seen the luxury of the Loki Familia, then looking at his own family's utter poverty—

Falan felt somewhat unaccustomed to it. Was this truly worthy of the Soma Familia?

Perhaps in the past, when the Soma Familia had been at the height of its power, even if it had not measured up to the Loki Familia—

It had at least possessed the dignity of a major familia. But the Soma Familia now—

Was merely a place once occupied by a bunch of drunks, where everything had been sold off.

If Soma had not unconsciously protected it in the past, not a single thing would have remained in this familia.

As he entered, he saw countless eyes gathering upon him.

There were children among them, as well as older ones, like Al, whom he had met before.

The moment Al saw him enter, he hurried over. "Captain Falan, you're back."

"Mm. What's going on?"

"Um... Lord Soma said we'll be joining the Loki Familia's joint expedition next. Is that true?"

"It is..." Falan felt a little awkward inside. From the looks of it, had this news already spread throughout Orario?

Yet he, the captain of the Soma Familia, had learned about it so late. If Soma had not told him, he might never have known.

"Don't worry. Lord Soma means for me to take a few people out for experience. You're on the list."

The gazes around them became even more heated. After the Soma Familia had been destroyed once—

They had all lost their last safeguard. Even Divine Wine—Soma—the god they had placed their hopes in, had been forbidden by Lord Soma himself. Over the past three or four months, they had gradually gotten used to it.

Compared to continuing to indulge in Divine Wine, they had sobered up and begun seeking strength. An expedition was what all of them desired. After all, during the previous expedition, those who returned with the force had leveled up. Their captain, Falan, had already set such an example.

They believed that on this joint expedition convened by the Loki Familia, even if they could not level up by accompanying the force, they would still gain something worthwhile. Every one of them wished that Falan's "list from Lord Soma" included their name.

"Is Yunika here?" At those words, the Half-Elf little girl sitting at a nearby table hurriedly sprang to her feet. "I'm here! I'm here!"

"Lord Falan, am I on the list too?" Realizing that her reaction had been rather improper—

The Half-Elf girl shyly pressed her hands together, and her initial excitement gradually softened into a quieter voice.

"You are indeed on the list. Could you demonstrate your magic for me?"

"Okay..." [O nature—Entwined Vines. I am nature's messenger. Entangle—]

Falan watched as plants abruptly burst from the ground and lashed toward him, seeking to bind him.

But with a few casual swings of his hand, the plants winding around him were cut apart.

"This ability is quite good. But Yunika, were you testing me just now?"

"Uh..." The Half-Elf girl's face flushed. "Yes. Since you're our captain, I believed you had to be strong enough not to fear my magic. Besides, my magic is too weak..."

"You lack confidence." Falan shook his head, walked over to Yunika, and crouched down to offer her a little comfort.

"Your magic is actually very practical. You're just too weak right now. Once your level gets high enough, though, this magic can be extremely useful in battle. It can even help the party retreat when they're afflicted by status ailments."

"Really?" The shy elf girl asked with moist eyes.

"My magic is clearly so weak. It can't even deal with monsters..."

Do you have some strange understanding of what 'weak' means?

But upon reflection, Falan understood why she thought that way.

The Soma Familia in the past had, put nicely, practiced noninterference. Put bluntly, it had been falling apart.

Even a little magical prodigy like Yunika, gifted in magic due to her elven bloodline, could only fumble her way forward alone.

In fact, in Yunika's own eyes, her magic probably truly was weak, since it could not even kill monsters.

But in Falan's eyes, she was a support hero skilled in crowd control, with immense potential for the future.

After Falan finished comforting Yunika, everyone's gazes became heated once more.

After all, Falan had comforted Yunika and taken her hand, yet he had not immediately left. What did that mean?

In the eyes of these Soma Familia adventurers, it meant that there were other names on the list in Falan's hand.

Feeling those stares, Falan was somewhat speechless. To be honest, he had only wanted to bring Al and Yunika.

One was the Soma Familia's strongest pillar beneath himself, while the other was Yunika, who excelled in nature magic.

The other two names on the list were both supporters. With his two-thousand-slot "Backpack," why would he need supporters?

"All supporters in the Soma Familia, decide among yourselves who gets the spot. There's only one supporter position. I can't be bothered to tell you who Lord Soma put on the list, because saying it would only leave you dissatisfied."

Letting them fight for it themselves was a form of selection by survival. In Falan's view, no matter how highly Soma regarded those two, if they could not even handle the other supporters within their own familia, then there was no need to bring them. It would be better to choose the strongest among them.

The Soma Familia's adventurers who made their living as supporters went mad afterward. This was a chance to become stronger.

Even some adventurers who were not supporters looked eager to try. They simply could not intervene because they were not supporters. Meanwhile, the adventurers who did work as supporters began fighting directly within the familia residence.

After all, no one was willing to give up such a chance to rise to the top in a single step.

Falan also pulled the Half-Elf girl, who had only just stopped crying, back to the side.

Supporters had only a few means of attack: daggers and crossbows.

Getting too close made it easy to be caught up in the fight. Falan himself was not afraid, but Yunika, a fragile mage, was another matter.

Before all the Soma Familia adventurers, the battle finally came to an end.

More than twenty supporters had fought until only one remained.

Falan could even faintly hear the adventurers below discussing it.

"I didn't expect her to have a Magic Sword."

"Yeah. Has she gone crazy?"

Hearing them, Falan did not pay much attention to his familia's adventurers.

"A few of you, go check them. If anyone is dead, throw the bodies out and deal with them."

At those words, silence filled the Soma Familia. As members of the Soma Familia—

Especially after enduring the dark days of addiction to Divine Wine and the incident where the Soma Familia had nearly been wiped out—

Though they were all young, their circumstances had forced them to mature immensely.

They all understood that this was the norm in this world. Only strength was enough to decide everything.

Then a voice broke the silence. "Lord Falan, Liliruca used a Magic Sword. This..."

"Shut up." Falan was growing impatient. "Did I ever say Magic Swords weren't allowed?"

"No..."

It seems my authority is actually pretty high. Besides, Liliruca was quite surprising. She was one of the members on Soma's list.

"So what else is there to ask? Magic Swords may be expensive, but cheaper ones exist. They aren't beyond your means. Besides, since they chose to compete for that slot, they had to be prepared to die first."

"Understand this: I'm taking them on an expedition. If they're too weak, death is their only path. Rather than dying during the expedition, it's better to be eliminated during this selection. Were you close to one of the dead?"

The person who had spoken lowered his head in silence. He really had been close to one of those who died.

Then someone turned their attention toward Yunika. Al's strength was acknowledged by the entire Soma Familia. Liliruca had fought her way out from among the supporters. Even though she had used a Magic Sword, she was the victor.

Falan had placed no restrictions from the beginning. No one else had used one, while only Liliruca had. That showed that while she might not have been the strongest of all the supporters, she had the greatest adaptability. Thus, no one objected.

"Then what about Yunika? She's weak. She can't even kill monsters, and every time, she brings back the least loot in the familia."

At those words, the Half-Elf girl gripped Falan's hand even tighter.

Falan finally understood why Yunika had so little confidence. Born into a familia like the Soma Familia, a familia with no future, and oppressed by her own people day after day, she had been at the very bottom of the familia before he arrived.

Had the Soma Familia not changed, she might soon have died as well, let alone had the chance to fully develop her talent for magic.

"Are you questioning me? Understand this: although Lord Soma provided the expedition list, I am the one selecting the slots. Do you object? Or are you raging helplessly because you couldn't get a slot?"

The adventurer who had raised the objection was indeed furious. But he did not lash out, because he knew he could not possibly defeat Falan. How could a Level 1 be a match for a Level 2?

"Looks like I hit the mark. Al, get up there. Anyone who wants this slot can challenge Al one-on-one. Three attempts maximum. If you win, you'll directly replace Al. As for Yunika's slot, does any one of you know magic?"

The entire room fell completely silent. Magic was not something everyone had the talent for. As for challenging Al one-on-one? No one wanted to be the first. And so, the slots for the expedition were decided.