“Team Apex?”

“Team Apex.”

Samantha confirmed without any explanation as she and her confused teammate sat in the guild lobby while waiting for Margaretta to get back. The receptionist was off grabbing a new set of documents for the duo to sign to complete their official promotion to the next Adventurer rank. Why she didn’t have them prepared in advance when she was the one who recommended the pair was a mystery only she could answer which she didn’t. It gave Team Apex a chance to soak in the news of their promotion or it would have had the unofficial leader not been too busy questioning their lovingly picked title.

“But why?”

“You called us it when we fought the big white dog, I just submitted the paperwork.”

Valerie smacked her forehead and exaggeratedly dragged her palm down to further emphasise her incredulousness. While the noun was used in numerous teams it was always followed up with another word such as ‘The Apex Legion’, ‘Apex Ascendant’, ‘Apex Anonymous’ and ‘Upex, Wepex, Apex’. Simply ‘Team Apex’ had yet to be claimed and thus the approval came relatively quickly following the Alpha hunt. The huntress did not care how quickly the name was accepted however, she simply despaired at the poor moniker itself. If it were up to her she would have called them something far better like… Team… okay she didn’t know what to call them but given time she surely would come up with something clever and snappy. It wasn’t like they had to be Team Apex forever they could always change the name at a later date especially if they got more members who could add their two cents. They had discussed the idea on a number of occasions to find more people for their two-woman band to help shore up their weaknesses. They were overflowing when it came to offence and support roles thus they just needed a defender or some kind of spell caster, preferably one who could heal injuries. That was the advice the guild offered new recruits trying to form teams, unfortunately the pair suffered from an acute case of ATW, otherwise known as: Avoid The Weirdos.

Quite a few new guild members suffered from the condition due to their rookie status and in some cases sense of self-worth. It didn’t matter how many tutors you had or who your parents were when a monster was trying to gobble you up. The duo suffered from their own variant of ATW due to one of them being a walking repellent exuding fear and the other a manic psycho with a perpetual scowl. This isn’t to say they weren’t approached several times with generous offers however this was mainly by young men who thought having a couple of girls within his party would lead to something more intimate. That was Valerie’s assumption at least and the main reason as why she never gave the offers much consideration although she was trying to be more sociable due in no small part to Joanne’s influence.

“Being an adventure comes down to three things: networking, advertising and monster killing in that order for what will get you paid the most.”

Was what she said after finally agreeing to take the duo on as disciples provided they fulfil whatever demands the beast woman made of them. Sacrifices had to be made and if joining the ex-adventurer for a mani-pedi session was the price then they would pay it, better than another week in the kitchen that was for sure. One of the first pieces of wisdom she bequeathed unto the two was about how to advance in the guild and, in their opinion, they were not too far off. They had monster killing down to an art while advertising was a little bit trickier given their knack for turning heads in the opposite direction, it still made them stand out and that was better than nothing. As for networking they were at a complete loss, almost no one would give them the time of day or try to interact with the girls without ulterior motives. It was a common disadvantage with rookies, you only ever worked with who you knew already or who you grew up with. That was all about to change however as they were now a level higher on the pecking order.

Margaretta soon returned while the two were hashing out ideas for a new team name and set down a small stack of papers before falling into her seat exhausted like she had just run a marathon. She had done the exact opposite as the reason she was gone for so long was because she took an impromptu break telling nobody and letting everyone wait on her return. After signing more documents in their gradually improving but still chicken scratch handwriting, Margaretta unceremoniously handed them their new guild insignia. The new badge was similar to the first but made of stone rather than wood and where the previous featured a simple dragon silhouette with a sword sticking out of it the new one was much more detailed with lines and etchings that made the image pop. The guild ranking system went from wood to stone, metal, gem and finally mithril with each position affording various benefits in and out of the guild. Very few had ever reached Mithril, the standards of which were set by the founder, but for those that did they were treated like royalty especially by royalty.

“Congrats, woohoo and whatever. You are now Stone Ranked Adventurers and can take on all requests available on the job board. Your names will also be featured within the official Adventurer registry so any shmuck looking for a hunter or a freak can specifically request you two.”

Margaretta announced unenthused and ready for her shift to be over already. Before then she would do the minimum required of her and reached into her desk drawer taking out a folded sheet of paper with the two’s names written on the back.

“Speaking of, congrats you two have a request, already making waves.”

She held the folded letter out to the pair who stared reverently at their first new rank request. Valerie extended a shaky hand out and took the parchment, however upon opening it she frowned at the contents.

“What does Smitty want with us?”

The sparse letter only had the pairs names, a request to come to his store and a guaranteed reward of one gold coin, total. Margaretta massaged her temples while answering.

“I don’t know, he has been sending those letters to the guild every day for weeks. He only asks for you two and nothing else. Feel free to reject the offer but at least go and tell him face to face. I can’t keep using the shredder or someone will think I’m deliberately getting rid of paying work!”

One of the myriad problems that could arise from guild office fatigue. Some people simply became too jaded and saw the requests as nothing more than the whining of weaklings who never faced a hard day’s work in their life. Considering the vast majority of basic requests were submitted by farmers and country folks pooling funds, it was quite the audacious mentality for a receptionist to have. Bidding Margaretta farewell, the pair of freshly ranked up adventurers sauntered off to Smitty’s workshop, their not so gleaming badges on full display for all to see. They were on top of the world, and nothing could tear them down not even a certain gnome’s rude attitude.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

“Well, if it isn’t the charity case and her much more appealing companion.”

Or so Valerie thought. Hearing his snide remarks as the pair entered Smitty’s Smiths utterly soured the huntress’s mood. That is until she realised a very important fact; they didn’t need the gnome’s help anymore and weren’t beholden to accept his attitude. Smiling smugly and without saying a word, Valerie turned on her heels to walk back out the door. Her victorious retreat was stopped by an antsy call from the uppity craftsman.

“Wait, wait, wait, before you go won’t you hear what I have to say?”

Valerie stood in the doorway and sighed, she looked to Samantha who shrugged, fine with staying or leaving. Cursing herself, the huntress turned back and stood before the gnome while ensuring he knew his place.

“Fine, but one word that I don’t like and were gone. Got it pipsqueak?”

Smitty bit back an ill-considered retort and did his best to play happy host.

“Ofcourse, ofcourse. I am happy you decided to accept my request, I wasn’t sure you ever would. Congrats on your recent promotion by the way.”

He hastily added, his demeanour and odd summons reminded Valerie of a weasel or worse a lawyer. The two adventurers were directed to the workshop once again where they found Becky shifting and adjusting a pair of mannequins with a more determined face than either had ever seen from the lazy receptionist. Smitty stood beside his, for once, hard at work employee and began his sales pitch.

“I am sure you two are making full use of your classes, yes? Adjusting well and discovering all kinds of talents you didn’t know you had?”

Samantha’s scrunched up her face and averted her gaze from the gnome forcing Valerie to answered on their behalf.

“Yes and no… I’m starting to get a feel for it, but Samantha here… isn’t. She hasn’t got any better than when you last saw her.”

The gnome’s face dropped for a split second, then quickly reverted to his rosy cheeked smirk.

“That is disappointing but not unexpected. It would seem your class will indeed require further examination which brings us to the crux of the situation.”

Smitty clapped his hands and coughed to get the attention of Becky, who rolled her eyes and turned to face the pair of adventurers, her eyes scrutinizing each fraying edge or shoddily sewn patch adorning their clothes.

“I was wracking my brain on an issue until my lov- hard wor- punctu-… my assistant here proposed a trade of sorts.”

Valerie narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms as did Samantha imitating the gesture because she wasn’t sure what else to do.

“What kind of trade?”

Asked the huntress to which Smitty’s smirk turned devilish.

“The mutually beneficial kind. You two are, let’s be honest, fashion disasters and poorly equipped for the kind of work you undertake on the regular. I mean, do either of you even own a piece of proper armour?”

They did once but repeated and excessive adventuring work had reduced what protection they had to scraps or cinders in Samantha’s case. The majority of their accumulated funds were intended to acquire a decent set of armour that was tailored to the two’s personal needs. That goal was still far off however as the girls seemed to spend their money whenever they got it.

“We don’t… but that will be changing soon now that were a rank higher.”

At Stone rank the types of contracts they could take expanded greatly as did the rewards and danger. There were also the guilds regular incentives for hard working adventurers and Valerie had her hopes set on a particular cuirass that was bound to offer better protection than the simple shirt she typically wore. It helped the design on the chest plate was appealing to the huntress and would make her look good although she would never admit that was a contributing factor. Throwing his head back in a forced laugh, Smitty disparaged the two’s hard work.

“Trust me, anything you can find on the market at your level will cost far more than its actual worth. What we offer however will be top quality guaranteed.”

The pair of adventurer’s side glanced one another not entirely buying the gnomes words.

“I can assure, as well as a weaponsmith I am well versed in the arts of armour crafting and design. You are adventurers and part of that work involves making yourselves presentable to potential clients which is where my loyal employee comes into the mix.”

Smitty added while presenting Becky who waved absentmindedly after finally being acknowledged.

“She has the Fashionista class, thanks to yours truly no less. She will ensure whatever style you want is accurately reflected in my designs and fits you like a second skin!”

The Fashionista class was exactly what it said on the tin and offered the user greater insight into what articles of clothing, or in this case armour, were best suited to the job. Not all aspects or classes were combat focused, and the Fashionista was no different being intended for the growing couture culture within the Capital. Possessing the ability to not just design but easily manufacture a set of armour that fit an adventurer perfectly for everyday use was an invaluable skill in the current monster hunting scene. No chaffing leather or itchy fabrics just expertly tailored suits of war that were as efficient as they were stylish. It was a fantastic offer that anyone would be foolish to turn down, so ofcourse it came with a catch. Sighing, Valerie put a hand on her friend’s shoulder.

“What do you want from Samantha?”

“Yeah, what do you want from Samantha?!”

The shadow user added a bit too aggressively. She was not actually angry or upset just trying to support her friend as always. Smitty held his hands up in mock surrender.

“You got me, I am looking to gather all the information I can on the Deep Jailer. A customer with a single option for their class and with the bare minimum number of aspects hasn’t happened in decades. But it’s not just her I am invested in. The Trophy Hunter is not uncommon but the manner in which your class was formed does grab my interest and I wish to learn all I can about how it has affected your development or if you are still technically a trophy hunter at all.”

Generally, a class was formed from the combination of two or more aspects and depending on a person perception of those powers it could become one of many variations. Although she didn’t fully realize it, Valerie’s desires to become physically stronger altered her class to grant her only physical attributes. If she did not have her crisis prior to obtaining her class she may just have fallen into a similar but marginally different power set. Smitty could have explained this at the time, but he didn’t like Valerie and was far too caught up on Samantha’s single choice to focus on anything else. The very idea of a singular option intrigued Smitty to no end and he wished to learn exactly why and how no other class existed with the same combination of Aspects. He also couldn’t help but slap himself on the back for how well the Trophy Hunter forging turned out but with how the class formed and the materials used it could result in a new title being established. Such a momentous event had to be recorded in the Smitty’s books as it had been over six hundred years since he last added an entry to the mystical log and what kind of craftsman would be he if he didn’t understand his creations inside and out?

“That’s it?”

Valerie asked sceptically with Samantha repeating her words once again.

“That’s it, free of charge ensemble tailored to your needs. Very enticing, no?”

Too enticing thought Valerie. What was it with people and giving stuff away just to examine Samantha and her rare aspect? The huntress was sure this wouldn’t be the last time and was thankful their official guild records didn’t list all their aspects. Or they didn’t, until her friend just had to go and blab all about her origins to those officials. No doubt they were already sharing it internally which would then be shared within the guild and before long it would be common knowledge. A problem for later, however, at the moment Valerie was just interested in this deal. Despite her apprehension, it was indeed an alluring proposition with little to no effort on their part. Still, they wouldn’t be indebted to the gnome and his ambitions that easily.

“Samantha, come join me in the corner for a second will you.”

Smitty watched patiently as the duo huddled at the back of his workshop to discuss his proposal. Well, Valerie discussed it, Samantha occasionally looked back at the gnome, squinted her eyes then turned back to the huddle and said ‘whisper, whisper’. It was a little hurtful that they doubted the expert craftsman’s hearing to the point they would openly disparage him a few feet away. Becky at least had the decency to wait until he was out of the room before making comments on his height and other perceived failings. Valerie and Samantha soon broke their huddle, voicing their unanimous decision.

“Fine, we accept your proposal, but only this time. You can poke and prod all the information you want out of us today but if we ever come back for repairs, we will just be regular paying customers. Anything you learn afterwards will be because we decided to tell you.”

It was similar to the arrangement they had with Albert, the two, mainly Valerie, refused to be free loaders or take advantage and be taken advantage of. Smitty’s forced smile did not reach his eyes which twitched with restrained annoyance.

“Very well, happy to help.”

He said bottling his disappointment. It was alright, he would learn what he needed today and then next time would simply turn on the charm. Wiping at the sweat on his forehead and smoothing his hair back, Smitty turned to Becky.

“Well? What are you waiting for? Get to taking their measurements!”