Besides...
As a smith, Tsubaki understood weapons far better than most.
With her there, she could also better guide the girls in getting the most out of their new weapons.
He just wondered...
What sort of reaction Tsubaki, a seasoned Lv.5 veteran...
Would have after witnessing these girls unleash carnage in the Dungeon while still at Lv.1.
"Then sorry for the trouble, Miss Tsubaki."
Haimo nodded his thanks.
"You're too kind, Lord Haimo."
Tsubaki laughed heartily and waved a hand.
Then...
After a moment's thought, Haimo asked Tsubaki a question.
"Speaking of which, where's Hestia?"
"With all this commotion, she hasn't come running out to join the fun?"
Normally...
Given that Loli Goddess's personality, she should have popped up ages ago.
"Lady Hestia?"
At the mention of that name...
The expression on Tsubaki's face turned a little strange.
"Lady Hestia should still be sleeping in the guest room."
"Sleeping?"
Haimo raised an eyebrow.
"She's still asleep?"
"Look at the sun outside. What time does she think it is?"
"That's something you wouldn't know, Lord Haimo."
Tsubaki spread her hands, looking resigned and thoroughly accustomed to it.
"During her time freeloading off our Familia, Lady Hestia has developed an absolutely unshakable sleep schedule."
"Namely-she will never open her eyes before lunchtime."
"I bet even if the sky fell right now, she'd just roll over and keep sleeping."
"..."
Hearing that...
Haimo remembered too.
Hestia.
Ever since descending to the mortal world, she had been staying with the Hephaestus Familia, eating her fill and doing nothing.
"All right."
"If she's off dreaming, let's not disturb her."
Haimo waved a hand, decisively abandoning that deadweight.
"Let's go."
Mornings in Orario were always bustling and full of life.
When Haimo's group stepped out through the Hephaestus Familia's gates, the streets were already teeming with people.
"Wow..."
Although they had already gotten a glimpse when they arrived last night...
Bathed in the morning light, Orario still filled the girls with wonder.
Especially the Tower of Babel, which stood in the center of the city, soaring straight into the clouds.
It reflected a dazzling white radiance in the sunlight, like a divine pillar connecting heaven and earth.
"Is that... the entrance to the Dungeon?"
Sasamori Aya narrowed her eyes, gazing at the enormous tower.
"Don't rush."
"Before we go there, we need to get you registered."
It was also where every adventurer began.
-Orario's Adventurers' Guild headquarters.
Whether they were youths harboring dreams or vicious criminals...
Anyone who wanted to legally enter the Dungeon and make money in this city first had to report there and obtain a permit.
That was the power of the system.
Even in this world of swords and magic, bureaucratic procedures remained indispensable. After all, they made it easier to manage Orario's adventurers.
And so...
Orario's Adventurers' Guild headquarters.
-[The Pantheon].
The process of going to the Guild and registering was nothing worth describing.
It was simply filling out forms and entering their information.
Chapter 27: This Child Is Blind and Cannot See, Weak, Helpless, and Pitiful
When Haimo squeezed into the hall with a flock of beauties and two black bears that looked none too bright, they instantly became the center of attention.
After all...
The sheer concentration of good looks in this group was far too high.
Even in Orario, where beauties abounded, a gathering of girls with such different styles yet equally exceptional looks was a rare sight.
"So this is... the Guild?"
"Why is it nothing like I imagined...?"
Kikakujō Mary held her Rapier, looking rather unimpressed.
Walking ahead, Tsubaki spoke without turning around.
"This is what life is really like for adventurers."
"Don't think being an adventurer means spending every day looking glamorous and enjoying your rewards."
"Most of the time, adventurers deal with mud and monster blood."
With that...
Tsubaki deftly pushed through the crowd and led everyone to a relatively quiet counter.
A young female clerk sat there.
She had emerald eyes and distinctive pointed ears, and even seated, her ramrod-straight posture was apparent.
At that moment...
She pushed up the glasses on her nose, solemnly checking the documents in her hands. Her meticulous manner practically stamped the word "serious" across her forehead.
-Eina Tulle.
"Eina!"
As she pushed up the glasses on her nose, solemnly checking the documents in her hands...
With that meticulous manner practically writing the word "serious" across her face...
Tsubaki slapped a hand straight onto the counter.
Smack!
The sharp crack made the documents on the desk jump.
"Hey! I'm here!"
Eina startled, nearly tearing the document with the quill in her hand.
She quickly looked up and saw the grinning, eyepatch-wearing big sister.
A plainly visible look of resignation immediately crossed her previously serious face.
"Miss Tsubaki..."
-Captain of the [Hephaestus Familia], Lv.5.
-"Cyclops," Tsubaki Collbrande.
A prominent figure of that caliber...
Who in the Guild wouldn't recognize her?
Eina sighed helplessly and lowered her voice.
"This is an office. Please don't shout. You'll disturb the other adventurers."
"What business brings you here, Miss Tsubaki?"
"I wanted to take these rookies down into the Dungeon and see what they can do. They even got that tightfisted patron deity to pay out of her own pocket."
Tsubaki shrugged, stepped aside, and pointed to Haimo's group behind her.
"You're taking rookies?"
Eina had no idea what she meant by "tightfisted."
But out of professionalism, she refrained from asking about the gossip.
Instead, she quickly composed herself and looked where Tsubaki was pointing.
Then...
She could no longer tear her gaze away.
A whole flock of beauties.
Mature women, little girls, a young lady, a blind swordswoman, a green-haired girl...
How was this an adventuring party?
Then...
And besides...
Those were black bears, weren't they?
Those two creatures sniffing around the Guild's gleaming floor, even trying to lick a nearby pillar.
They were definitely bears, right?!
Eina: "..."
At the sight, Eina couldn't help raising a hand and firmly rubbing between her brows, feeling that today's migraine might arrive ahead of schedule.
Although the Guild had no explicit rule against adventurers bringing pets inside...
Bringing large, clearly aggressive beasts like these, though...