—Sorry if it goes to my head, but it really feels like as long as we're together, we can overcome any obstacle!
Hearing Sein's wild idea, Shoun chose not to scold him, letting him bask in the brief thrill of victory.
—Heh! Maybe you're right, Sein! Robin affirmed, grabbing Sein by the collar to ruffle his already messy hair even more—In any case, our target is that shiny thing in the creature's chest, right?
—And the body itself is our reward. Thinking about it, they're paying us with loot we already got. Well, I guess we don't have HR to complain to—he confirmed mockingly. Inside the lab, the group moved the vestige's corpse along with the large blue orb, both of which would be handed over to Liam almost immediately.
—Congratulations on completing your mission! The AI once again shot off balloons and confetti.
—Well, that confirms it. They're gonna do this every time we finish a mission—Shoun sighed, exhaustion clear in his voice—By the way, Sein, are you ready for your promotion?
—Points-wise, yes! he exclaimed excitedly—I can't wait to be as strong as all of you!
—It won't be long now. Robin, do you have a uniform?
—I do, but the government only lets me wear it when I'm out hunting vestiges with them...which, y'know, I never actually do.
—Hmm...considering everything, what if we use the poor bastard's corpse and what's left of Kalgoros to upgrade your uniforms?—Shoun suggested. Everyone agreed, and just for fun, Shoun ended up replacing all of Robin's clothes with a uniform (except their glasses), which the scientist didn't seem to mind. In the end, both got uniforms of higher-than-average apprentice rank—...With that settled, what should we do with the artifact?
That was a tougher question. Though everyone might want it, no one could really justify claiming a new artifact. Kaze and Sein already had powerful weapons that were the source of most of their abilities, so another weapon wouldn't be useful. Deuz and Robin were versatile—neither used artifacts since their skills already covered those areas. As for Shoun, he still had Iron Serpent, which remained useful in many situations, but its low rank meant it would eventually fall behind. So...was replacing it really necessary right now?
—How about an amulet? That should be useful for anyone—Robin suggested hesitantly.
—Sein already covers buffs, and that'll likely improve even more after his promotion. Sure, more buffs would be better, but how much is really necessary?—Deuz's words brought the discussion to another standstill, with no clear use for the artifact—Haaah, how about we wait until Sein gets promoted? Maybe we'll find a use for it by then.
—That sounds reasonable. When do you think you'll be ready, Sein?
—In a couple of days, Shoun. I've never killed a Forsaken alone, so I want to train a bit more.
—Alright. So, what now? Another mission? Hunting vestiges?
—You still have energy for all that, Robin? I sure don't.
—Then we leave?
—I think we should wait a little longer. Leaving now might not be safe. Time works strangely here—if we leave too early, we risk someone spotting us.
—What do you mean by 'strangely'?
—Basically, like everything in this damn dimension, time behaves weirdly. At first, we thought if it was day here, it was night outside, and vice versa. But after a while, we realized that made no sense. The days here do match the outside, but there's a weird time lag—sometimes more, sometimes less. Last week, Sein stayed outside measuring time while I went in. The first time, one hour inside was one hour outside. But in the next test, an hour passed for me, while only thirty minutes passed for Sein.
—...Could it be time dilation?...No, if that were the case, fluctuations in the same place shouldn't vary like that...then...—Robin began rambling about possible explanations before stopping when they noticed everyone staring—Ahem...So how do you know when to leave?
—Well...it's dumber than it sounds. Basically, whenever night falls here, it's roughly safe to leave. Same if we leave around that time.
—...That's it?
—Pretty much. We don't know how it works, but we know it does. Generally, if we leave at night, it drops us outside at 12 PM consistently. So I guess that's the 'signal' to go.
—Fascinating. Another mystery of the mirror world to uncover, I suppose.
—One of hundreds, apparently—Shoun sighed at the sheer scale of unraveling the dimension's secrets.
—Well, since we've got free time...how about we play something!—Sein suggested eagerly. Everyone agreed, but first, they left the base to check the time until nightfall outside. After that quick task, they gathered around the round table as Sein checked the board games—We've got Starlit Path, chess...though that's not for five players, cards...
—Let's play poker!—Robin declared boldly. Most knew of poker but had never played. After Robin explained the rules and improvised some chips using materials from their bag and their ability, the game began—Alright, I'll be the dealer.
—So...does this mean I have a full house?—Despite the rules being explained, Kaze showed his hand. Out of courtesy (and because their fake money was at stake), they decided to restart the round.
—Raise!
—Call.—The rounds continued, and a small rivalry developed between Sein and Deuz. Shoun and Kaze mostly watched—the masked one didn't really know how to play and knew he'd lose his few chips if he joined, while Shoun stayed out because his hands were always terrible.
—Please, Robin, just one good hand, I'm begging you!—he half-jokingly pleaded. In response, Robin just stuck out their tongue.
The final showdown came: Sein vs. Deuz. Both kept raising boldly, neither willing to back down, until they went all in. The three spectators weren't sure who had the winning hand.
—Sh-show your cards...—Even Robin stammered at the tension.
—Three jacks—Deuz revealed his hand smugly, certain of victory.
—Hahaha...HAHAHA!—Sein burst into laughter, startling everyone before revealing his hand—Flush!
Deuz's expression crumbled instantly, while Sein celebrated by hopping around.
—Hahaha, I won, I won!—Deuz had no choice but to concede. Usually the best at board games, this time, he'd been outplayed by Sein.
The others quickly regained their composure and started cleaning up for another round. As Robin gathered the cards, they paused and spoke up.
—You know...you guys are a really...weird group.
—Says the mad scientist?
—Not in a bad way. It's just—you're all so different. Each of your situations is so unusual that it's surprising you all ended up in the same place. Shoun was born with powers and is one of the few S-rank ability users. Sein's the only Seeker with three innate skills. Kaze's a nameless amnesiac who can transport people to a whole other world...
—Don't leave yourself out, Robin.
—I was getting to that! I'm a handsome, super-smart, incredible scientist—they declared, earning stares—And I guess I've got a...quirky personality. Lastly, there's Deuz, who...sorry, buddy, I don't know you well enough to say what's weird about you.
—Well...Deuz likes to harass people—Shoun chimed in.
—That was an accident!
—Deuz is also a terrible cook—Sein added, shuddering at the memory of the one time Deuz was allowed to cook.
—...
—And he never uses metal utensils—Kaze finally spoke up—I've noticed he always summons his own shadow-cutlery and avoids metal ones.
—What can I say? I don't like the feel of metal.
—But what about your piercings?—Shoun pointed at the various piercings on Deuz's face. Without a word, Deuz turned them into shadows, revealing they were also summoned.
—Okay, that's weird, but not on our level—Robin mused before finally gathering the cards, taking one last look at Sein's winning hand—a flush of clubs. Now that I think about it, we're like clovers. Two or three leaves are common, but four or five? That's one in ten thousand. I think I've got our team name—They raised their hand, revealing five club cards—Clover Flush!
—That's an awesome name!
—That's a stupid name—Sein and Deuz said simultaneously, reigniting their rivalry instantly.
—Ehh, I guess it's fine. What do you think, Kaze?—Shoun asked. The masked one just shrugged—he didn't hate it, but he wasn't thrilled either.
—Since we're the majority, from now on, we're Clover Flush!—Sein cheered.
—Fiiiine, whatever.
—What's wrong, Deuz? Still salty I beat you?—Just as another argument was about to erupt, Robin interrupted.
—Wait a second...Sein, did you mark this card?—They held up one of Sein's cards. Everyone had thought it was a club, but on closer inspection, it was a spade colored in with marker. At some point, unnoticed, Sein had cheated—Hahaha! Guess that means Deuz wins.
—Should've expected it. I was surprised Sein wasn't cheating—Shoun admitted.
—Not cool...—Kaze muttered.
Everyone turned to Deuz, who had his head down. The room tensed until he finally spoke:
—Someone hold me back before I kill them all!