"Making a name for myself is only part of my dream. I want to make the world a better place!" ~Someone in Shallies' tavern

"Are you folks on an adventure today?" Shallies asked her guests. They were new faces. Adventurers. And it was painfully obvious that they weren't from around Cinterbrim Province.

One was a young male dwarf with a fully decked out set of leather armor who had a magical dagger dangling on his belt. He had purposefully left it there, which was a common trick bounty hunters pulled to catch petty thieves.

The second one was a female dog-ferim. The dog ears, blending well with her hair, had a cute, blue, gem-encrusted flower pin. Shallies could tell its rarity at a glance, but she acted as if she didn't know. Regardless, within the entire group, she was the most difficult to gauge with regards to her Class.

That was because the third and final member was a human female that was obviously dressed to be a Spellcasting Class. Magical robes covered most of the intricate, runic embroidery that peeked out on her corset. She also wore one of those ridiculously large witch hats. At first glance, she seemed to be the leader of the group. Shallies was convinced when she was the first to reply.

"Not today, ma'am. We're just looking for a simple breakfast."

"Nice place you have here," said the dog-ferim. "Last time I was here, this place was abandoned. Thought of buying it, but it didn't turn out that way."

"Thank you," Shallies said first. "The scenery is indeed nice out here. Please take your time with the menu, you can call for Apple once you're ready. For now, have some water and crackers to freshen up. They're on the house."

"Thank you, ma'am," said the young dwarf. "Pretty generous, I should add."

"Well, we just opened," Shallies admitted, returning to the bar. "After our opening ceremony yesterday, you three are my first official guests. Please think of it as a small gesture of appreciation."

With that, the guests took their time with the menu. They made questions about some of them, mainly the Vinegar-Braised Pork and the Cottage Pie. Shallies explained what they were, but since they made no question as to how she had learned those recipes, she simply navigated the conversation away from them.

It's a good thing Phey'lan and the others are out today, Shallies quietly pondered while working in the kitchen. The group had ended up choosing the same thing. Bacon and Egg Fried Rice. That was her recommendation for breakfast, anyway.

"Better inform them about our guests," she said to Stachie.

[Shall I do the same for your students?]

"Only when they're not meditating."

[Copy that.]

While she was working on pan-frying three thick cuts of bacon per pan, utilizing three of said pans at the same time, Shallies listened in on what the adventurers were talking about. Since she had heard what all of them sounded like, there was no trouble identifying who was who.

"It's nice out here," the dog-ferim started.

"Did you seriously think of buying this place?" the dwarf asked.

"Yeah. Got a loan available. My boyfriend said it was a good investment, and wanted to chip in. I was about to sign the loan papers but things changed."

"You two broke up?"

"Something like that. I ended up not taking the loan, which, I think, was a blessing in disguise. Things happened here and there, and now I'm with you guys."

"Well… I think settling down as early as Hero Class is a waste anyway," said the dwarf. "People who do that don't have the guts to be an adventurer."

"The Mayor of this town retired at Hero Class," the woman with the hat said, interrupting the dwarf. "He did so as a single Class as well. As far as I know, the wife retired at the same time with the same accolades. Without them retiring that early to govern this place, we might not be eating in this tavern today."

Just like that, the bacon was done, so she went on to work on the big wok for the Egg-Fried Rice. The group didn't seem to be bothered with all the tossing she was doing, continuing their conversation without pause.

"What about you, then, Yoshelle?" the dwarf asked. "No aspirations of settling down, yet?"

"Not until I build my own tower," replied the human with the hat, presumably Yoshelle.

"You have the bits for it," added the dog-ferim, delivered as a fact, not as a guess. "Why not start now?"

"I'm still looking to ascend," Yoshelle admitted. "I just need a god to take interest, then I can work on being a Cataclysm Archmage."

"Still betting on Godkiller Bernadette to take you in?" asked the dwarf.

His confidence was something, Shallies admitted. The intention of the adventurer's question delivered a sense of awareness through the Godkiller's Divine Authority. He certainly had a veil on, but not enough to keep him hidden from her. The thing that most people didn't know was the amount of veils needed for someone to slip under her. Most people thought if it worked for one god, it would work for all the others, and then most certainly would work for her.

Nonetheless, Shallies didn't mind. She worked the finishing touches, frying three more eggs for each dish. Apple was also there, infusing some tea to complete the order.

"I think I've given up at this point," Yoshelle said. "She's obviously busy and doesn't take people under her wing unless they become her students first. If only I had known back then, I would've asked my dad to contact her."

"I don't think she would be interested in money, honestly," the dwarf said. "I bet she's richer than all of us combined."

"Us three?" the dog-ferim clarified. "That's for sure."

"I meant the guild."

"I don't think so," Yoshelle said. "The Gaiamaxims are pretty rich. I've never been so humbled by so many bits, until I joined them."

That was the timing Shallies was waiting for as she brought out the orders.

"Oh, I didn't think my first customers were from the Gaiamaxims Guild," she began, placing one plate in front of each customer. "I'm honored. If you don't mind, may I inquire as to the purpose of your visit?"

"Wow, I didn't know the guild's prestige went this far," the dwarf said, gasping. "And what a quick service! That's pretty amazing."

With this, Shallies registered the dwarf as a new recruit. The dog-ferim might have a few years of tenure, with how she had presented herself. Yoshelle was an official, or probably just underneath that rank, given that she was still on the verge of becoming a Favored Class holder.

"Of course," Shallies said, not willing to give anything away. "A guild full of rich philanthropists. With headquarters all around the world, it's only natural for your name to be known even in the far reaches of El'doron Kingdom. And yes, I have the Chef Class. Not high enough of a level, but enough to prepare your orders quickly."

She noticed a slight swell of pride from the three, while she praised their guild. It was all true, so Shallies didn't have a hard time convincing them.

Stolen novel; please report.

"Well, to answer your question, dear tavern owner," the dwarf started to speak, but he paused, looking at Yoshelle. "Err… It would be under Miss Yoshelle's duty to do so."

Shallies looked expectantly at the human, but she quickly withdrew.

"Oh, I don't want to impose, ma'am," she began. "If you need discretion, I'll be happy to keep your identities hidden."

She began to turn away, but Yoshelle quickly spoke up.

"We don't need discretion, miss."

"Shallies."

"Yoshelle."

"Krevan," said the dwarf.

"Laika," added the dog-ferim.

"Good to meet you three," Shallies began, giving a respectful bow. "Please enjoy your meal. If you need anything, I'll be at the bar."

As she left, the three turned to each other, then to their food. The smile on their faces, smelling their meal and appreciating it, gave Shallies a smile of her own.

She already knew what their purpose for visiting was. None of them might be the officer that Mayor Schooner was waiting for, but they were the preliminary deployment. A team to make sure that everything would go smoothly upon their officer's arrival. Shallies didn't need to get them to say it.

Yoshelle and her party's conversations quickly shifted towards their breakfast. Shock, glee, appreciation, and amazement. One by one, they gave their compliments to the Chef.

Shallies thanked them, of course, but she didn't make a big deal out of it.

"Can we have this Slow-Cook Cottage Pie to go?" Krevan asked.

"Of course," Shallies replied. "It is still slow-cooked, but pre-prepared for most of the process. Even with my Perk, it will still require me about twenty minutes to get it ready."

"We don't mind," Laika said almost too quickly. "We can have some tea while we wait. Right, Yoshelle?"

The woman with the huge witch hat thoughtfully looked at her wristwatch. "I suppose it's still early. We'll wait, Shallies. Thank you."

With the Cottage Pie, Shallies opted to measure her portions using the potato skins, like she had originally planned. The ones she was using barely fit her palm. They were a local produce from Cinterbrim Province, and almost twice as large as the usual ones sold in other markets.

While she worked back in the kitchen, she expected Yoshelle's party to talk about their plans. They talked about themselves instead. Sharing surface-level past stories, their favorite Skills and preferred style, and things that they liked and disliked.

Shallies recognized this immediately. They were building rapport, making an effort to understand each other, so that they could work better together.

A newly formed party.

That was something she hadn't expected. Especially for tasks like negotiation and preparation, a new party would have a lot to prepare, in order to function properly.

They're stretched thin… Shallies assumed.

She realized that the Gaiamaxim's main force was probably busy preparing for Thrush'ven Alir. They would need to be able to move swiftly. A month was long, but with The Great Storm in the equation, things would never be smooth sailing.

Shallies emerged with the pies for takeout. She had them wrapped individually with a disposable mana-fabric. Neat thing, that was. Tailors developed the ability to create fabrics out of mana. They were nothing like normal cloths, able to inherit a variety of properties not common to normal textiles.

The ones she used had the properties of glass, without the fragility. It made for easy containers specifically involving dry foods. Soup and other liquids would still seep through the fabric. One other thing to watch out for was its expiry date. Out of their own Material Container, these things wouldn't last a week, reducing into motes of mana. At about the same time that the food it contained would spoil.

Easy to make, easy to dispose of. Shallies' preferred style of takeout containers.

Yoshelle and the others understood as soon as they received their package. It was a common practice in the big cities, after all.

Apple went and managed their payment. Of course, it was Stachie who delivered the breakdown, allowing the teacup fairy to bypass her Great Sacrifice. There were only menu items and prices on the receipt, no other messages or personal words from her.

And just like that, the party left. Shallies watched them take the direction towards Cinterbrim Town. Not far from them, walking through Catelyn Road, were Grace's group and Valor'el's group. A few minutes later, they arrived.

"Are those the Gaiamaxims?" Grace was the first to ask. "They don't look like Favored Class holders."

"No, but they're experienced enough," Shallies started, working on an entire batch of coffee cups while passing around menus with her mana-control. She had specifically chosen not to use them earlier and now she was feeling the need to stretch it. "They didn't even attempt to Scan me."

"Is that really a sign of experience?" Tayin asked. "I've heard people keep mentioning it."

"It's more about subtlety now," Shallies admitted, not wishing to go through an entire explanation and discussion of history. "Before, it's considered rude to Scan others. It's like staring at them while they're naked."

"Valor'el tried to Scan me when we first met," Grace said quickly, earning stares.

"Dear, you pervert!" Phey'lan jumped at it just as quickly, playfully slapping her partner's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, what?" said the seraph, completely oblivious to the discussion. "I was busy sending a message back to Avel Paradise."

"What about?" Shallies asked, desperately trying to move the discussion away from the topic of Scanning.

"Oh, just sending instructions to prepare land and shelter for the cattleblinks."

"Ah, that's good. Did you talk to Marisa about it this morning?"

"Yes." Valor'el frowned, noticing the odd stares at him. "Sorry, did I miss something?"

Shallies sighed. "It's not like that, okay? Can we please drop it?"

Grace giggled, and so did the others.

"Huh?"

The poor Acting Deity was left there, with no one willing to explain what he just missed. Even Arun'dul made some poor excuses about cleaning up his room.

"Whatever…" Shallies went back to the kitchen to cook for everyone.

"Thank you, Mayor Schooner," Yoshelle started, taking the seat across the table. Krevan and Laika stood behind her. "We brought you a gift from Bluepearl Sea. I think your wife will like it."

From her Class Inventory, Yoshelle pulled out a small box. From within was a frostfire pearl, a rare stone from the depths of Bluepearl Sea. A small spherical thing, no larger than a fingernail, but contained so much mana. Within it was the essence of frostfire, a paradoxical element that a lot of Spellcasting Classes could utilize.

The orcish Mayor stared at it with widened eyes.

"This is easily worth five mana-engine vehicles," he said, gasping with amazement. "I can't quite possibly accept this gift. As a visitor's gesture, it's too much."

Yoshelle left it on the table, letting the box face Schooner.

"It's Vice-Captain Coraline's gift to you, Mayor," she started. "For our sakes, I would like you to please accept it."

"Oh…" Without further hesitation, the orc took the box. "Thank you. It's a mighty gift."

Yoshelle let out a sigh she didn't know she held. The others behind her did the same.

"Now. I would like to discuss our options regarding lodging." Yoshelle placed one leg over the other and locked them by placing both hands on her knee, creating a stable posture to reflect her commanding presence.

"As previously discussed," Schooner began, matching her posture with his by resting his arms on the table. "Our local inn, The Swallowing Whale will be happy to provide lodging for up to twenty people. The Adventurer's Guild will have sleeping areas to accommodate a hundred. We can also retrofit my office building to add more, if needed."

"I'm afraid it won't be enough, Mayor Schooner," Yoshelle said. "If the Vice-Captain verifies the existence of the Inter-Plane Rift, and confirms that it is indeed linked towards Thrush'ven Alir, we will have to accommodate the entire Gaiamaxims Guild. We have to make lodging for a thousand, five-hundred people."

"A thousand!" Schooner exclaimed. "We don't have enough for that!"

"All we require is land, Mayor Schooner," Yoshelle said, clearing her throat to signal for him to calm down. "We have our own Builders who can make temporary lodging. All we need is a place close enough to your town so we can easily protect your people."

The Mayor received the signal. He slumped on his chair, thoughtfully rubbing his temple. Yoshelle could see the gears turning inside his head.

"Well, there is one nearby," he began. "A new land owner. Quite underdeveloped. You'll have large, empty fields you can work with. But you'll need to convince her."

"That won't be a problem," Yoshelle said. "Where can we find her?"

Mayor Schooner opened his System Console, showing them a map.

"Just take the west exit, the one where you arrived. Before you hit the main road, you'll see a gate with 'The Adventurer's Beginning' sign on it. The owner's name is—"

"Shallies!" Laika exclaimed. She caught herself too late. "Oh, sorry, sorry!"

"You know her?" Mayor Schooner asked.

Yoshelle found the question odd. Most people would ask 'You've met her?' instead. It was the sort of question a fan would ask a stranger if they knew the celebrity they were rooting for. She decided to not to point it out.

"We had breakfast in her tavern this morning," she said instead. "We'll spend the rest of the day evaluating the lay of the land around Cinterbrim Province. Tomorrow, we'll give her another visit."

Mayor Schooner nodded.

"Right. The passes I provided you should let you move in and out of town and the surrounding watchtowers without any problems. I would only ask that you don't make unnecessary trouble. And if Shallies refuses to cooperate, please don't take it against her."

Yoshelle smiled as she stood. "Don't worry, Mayor. I'm sure she'll cooperate with us. We'll give her an offer she can't refuse."

As soon as they left the Mayor's office, Laika started hopping cheerfully.

"Didn't think we'd get an excuse to give Shallies another visit! I really like her cooking!"

"We'll get there tomorrow. Calm down, Laika," Krevan said, doing his best not to collide with the dog-ferim. He turned to Yoshelle. "Where to now, boss?"

"Let's make sure the Rifts where it is first." Yoshelle, the Elemental Archmage and Chronoadept, started walking with a purpose. "Shallies can wait."

Back in the kitchen, Shallies was clutching her head.

"Someone talking trash about you, Shallies?" Phey'lan asked. As always, she was there to help out. "Who is it? I'll give them a good butt-kicking!"

"It's fine, Phey." Shallies turned to Apple. "Can you make sure to migrate the animals and trees?"

The teacup fairy nodded and zipped out of the kitchen.

"Oh?" Phey'lan mused. "Sounds like we're actually getting the Gaiamaxims, huh?"

"Yeah…" Shallies sighed. "I might need to ask my students to start hunting for more magical ingredients. I'll have to ask Marisa, too, if they can produce more marlics and ponions for me."

"Well, at least you can put them to work with a purpose."

"Just no six-horned noldzwjaks this time."

"Shallies! You're gonna jinx it!"

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