While they waited for the receptionist to return, Inari led Jun and the others back into the Guild tavern to have a drink and relax, the group splitting up to cram into a pair of booths. Jun rarely spent time in there, the atmosphere usually a mix of revelry and uncomfortable attention sent her way by the rough crowd of adventurers, but being there in a large group was fun.

Dozens of hushed conversations mixed with stories of daring yelled by half drunk adventurers waving about trophies both impressive and grisly, all while smiling waiters and waitresses darted between the bar and tables, slamming down frothy mugs and plates of steaming food. The smells of freshly baked bread, savory stew, and yeasty beer filled the air, mostly covering up the scents of old wood, sweat, leather, and blood.

But putting all of those smells and sounds to shame were the sensations flooding into her newly unlocked mana senses. A whole new way to perceive the world around her was an amazing gift. Her new sense revealed secrets to her she never would have thought possible. Dozens of adventurers in the hall radiated conflicting sensations that made the space feel chaotic and lively in a way Jun never thought possible. Aspects of fire and air clashed chaotically, sending out flashes of soot that water and earth fought over, throwing about spikes of cleanliness. It was overwhelming.

"Your mana senses are part of you. Just as you do not need to think to see or hear, sensing mana is instinctive. You have always sensed mana but ignored it as something you couldn't interact with. Stop ignoring the mana. Let it come to you and accept it as part of the world around you, not a separate thing. It will be overwhelming at first, but with time and practice you will get used to it. But until then, you can pull your senses back. Just as your eyes focus on what you choose to look at or how you can choose to ignore what you hear, will your mana senses to dull and pull back." Shiori's words echoed in her memories as she pulled her mana senses back, slowly putting the riot of mana sensations out of her mind. She could still feel the mana in the background, but the sensations were dull.

Jun started as a server set a heavy mug down in front of her, the scent of apples and alcohol wafting up from the pale golden froth. Staring at the mug for a moment, Jun's mind finally caught up with the world around her. Looking up from the mug in front of her, she saw Sara across the table. Jun sat transfixed watching Sara drink, the look of bliss on her face mesmerizing.

Sara sighed with satisfaction as her mug hit the table with a hollow thud, her lips shining wetly with the drink. "You should enjoy a drink when you have the chance Jun," Sara said, meeting her eyes with a smile.

Jun felt the heat bloom across her face as she realized she'd been staring at her friend and roommate. Panicked, her eyes flicked to her right to see Aya and Lane next to them, though the two seemed to be in another world. But when she looked to her left, her stomach sank even as the heat in her face grew worse as Inari looked at her with a mischievous smile and winked. Even as the older woman started talking to Shiori about farming of all things, Jun couldn't help but feel like her and Sara's mothers were watching them like mice to hunt.

Fidgeting awkwardly, Jun grabbed the mug in front of her and took a large gulp, barely tasting the cider as it poured down her throat. The burn of alcohol helped to distract her from her embarrassment, but she still couldn't bring herself to look up from her mug. Sara had caught her staring. Worse still, Inari, Sara's mother, did too, and she was sure Shiori knew. It always seemed like Shiori knew everything that went on around her, and Jun hadn't exactly been that good at hiding her attraction.

But hiding poorly was a far cry from openly staring. It was almost like making a move, something that even the thought of doing paralyzed her with fear. How could she? It was just awkward to talk about attraction and love and… more physical things. Just the idea of trying to broach the subject with Sara made her want to crawl in a hole and die. Knowing that both Inari and Shiori knew made it worse. She'd rather fight a hundred goblins with just her bare hands.

Peeking up from her mug, Jun saw Sara glance at her with a smile before joining in on their adoptive mothers' conversation. At least her friend had the grace to ignore Jun's awkwardness. Jun knew it was ridiculous, but she still felt relief that Sara didn't push the subject right now. She wasn't ready for that. Trying to ignore those thoughts and the strange ticklishness she felt in her hands and feet, Jun took a smaller sip from her mug, following the mild burn of alcohol as it traced a line down her throat and into her chest. Near her core.

Small amounts of mana spread out from her chest, slowly heading towards her pulsing mana core near her heart. Following the heat, Jun focused inward, following the foreign mana as it seeped into her mana channels and slowly melted away, becoming her own. On a whim, Jun started to actively cycle her mana, imagining the drink's mana carried her embarrassment with it. Jun drank more cider, feeling the heat of the alcohol begin to replace that of her shame before she pulled the mana and the heat into her mana channels and absorbed it.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Jun moved through her cycling technique, the one taught to her by Shiori months ago. Keep her mana moving, ever flowing. Her mana channels were an endless river, flowing from the lake that was her core throughout her body, into the space where she would one day carve a new lake, a second core, and back to her first. Again and again in an endless cycle of mana.

With every revolution of her mana, Jun felt the twin heats of shame and alcohol fade, slowly replaced with cool clarity until she took another sip, washing away more of her embarrassment.

So focused was she in her meditation that she didn't see Inari glance at her, nor the way Shiori's tail wrapped protectively around her while she stuck her tongue out at her foxkin friend.

Galimund wordlessly handed the letter off to Lana to read, frowning as he considered what he just read. He shouldn't have to deal with this, it should be something the Guild Leader took care of, but of course the man left him to actually run everything while he did who knows what.

Lana sighed, shaking Galimund from his thoughts. "I don't like this. It's too convenient," she said, pointing to the array of papers spread out on Galimund's desk.

"Agreed. It reeks of politics, and I don't like those damnable nobles messing with my guild," he snarled, glaring at his desk like it was the mastermind behind everything.

Galimund's draft report on the cancelled Expedition stared back at him next to a pile of witness statements, analyses on samples, and other documents. On top of all of it were a pair of adventurer profiles. Goblins that'd gained hundreds of levels in just a year, an incursion on Kresh that'd been quietly sealed, a dead Peak Gold who'd been a favorite of the Guild Leader's, and now a new pair that seemed to be replacing Arwen. Who wanted to take students, low Irons and low Silvers even, into a restricted area on Gold level contracts. To cap it all off, one of them even had a letter from the Kresh Adventurers Council that amounted to telling him to give them what they wanted.

Shiori the catkin and Inari the foxkin. Peak Golds from Yushan continent on the other side of the Storm Mother. He only had whatever information had been stored in their badges, which wasn't much, but what was there only confused him more. All of their past contracts were redacted with no information available, not even when they did them.

The only thing he could see was the last Guild Hall they checked in at: the Guild headquarters in Tianyuan, the capital of the Lao Empire. Which only confused him more since the IAG shut every Guild Hall in Lao when the civil war started… ten years ago. At least officially.

A pair of Peak Golds didn't simply vanish for 10 years without checking in. At the very least the Guild would have added their badges to the missing registry so that the staff would be notified as soon as their badges were scanned. Peak Golds also didn't just get given free rein by a continental council. Even their weakest servants were Diamonds, while the councilors were all Mythrils, the strongest beings in the world. Golds were strong for most people, but less than ants at that level. No, he didn't like this at all.

"If it were just these two, it wouldn't be a problem. The problem is they want to take students into the current restricted area. I don't know what to do," the stressed Vice Leader growled.

Galimund looked up at Lana with an unvoiced question only to see the Information Officer waiting for him expectantly. Unsurprising that she'd already figured out what to do.

"What's your idea?"

"Let them go in," she said with a shrug, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"If it was just them that'd be fine, it's their lives to risk and we need the help, but they want to take students in there with them! If it were just the older students, I could maybe live with allowing it, but they want to take in Irons! Low Irons! The low Silvers might stand a chance with a pair of Peak Golds, but it'd just be certain death for the Irons! I won't sentence a bunch of students to death!"

"You don't need to send them alone. You already wanted to assign Kora as Arwen's replacement but Sean's been blocking it. So assign Kora as a guide instead. In fact, pull a few of the staff Platinums up to guide Academy groups until the restriction is lifted. Sean won't be able to block that. Especially not if the Lord Mayor and Guild Leader support it, and you know they'll do it if only to take credit with the nobles for keeping their kids safer."

Galimund thought about Lana's idea for a couple minutes before he finally nodded. He'd have to ask the staff for volunteers, but he could trust them to keep the students safe. Besides, having a few of his Platinums at the Academy would give him more leverage with Sean Getting the Guild Leader and the Lord Mayor to agree would be harder, but doable. Especially if he volunteered to oversee the Lord Mayor's son personally. The arrogant lordling had been demanding special treatment for over a year.

"I have a few letters to write then. Get me your fastest messenger and summon Kora. We don't have much time."

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