> Kelly PoV <

"*sob sob* Th- *hic* Thank you *hic* Kelly!"

Ellie's sobbing won't stop.

She had this quiet, calculating air about her the entire time. Every movement of hers was silent, as if she's an illusion.

That's some scary skills she has. I thought the way she was treating that Flatface was to rile him up on purpose.

But in the end, she's just really honest huh?

To comprehend the beauty of my life's work so quickly, she has good eyes. Being moved to tears is almost natural, when you think about it!

"Hohoho, this much is nothing! I have a lot more tricks up my sleeve you know!"

I take a haughty pose with a proud tone.

"Kelly! Show me!"

Wha- she's gone from being way too happy to way too excited in an instant!

"Is it <>!? 

What about <>!?

Or <>?!

Maybe a <>!?"

She keeps blurting out those weird words while looking at me from all angles.

Good, it seems she has some expectations. I look forward to giving a full demonstration!

"Calm down Ellie! We don't have time for this right now!"

Ah, Red shows up and restrains her.

"I know you're excited, but we have a job to do!"

Right, I got sucked into Ellie's pace.

But... she's giving me a look of despair!

No no, Red's right, first things first.

"Red's right, there's going to be plenty of time afterwards. I promise I'll show off as much as you want later okay?"

Let's make a compromise.

She seems satisfied and lets Red carry her away. They get along so well, must be sisters.

"While not as... enthusiastic... as our friend here..."

Bart spoke up.

"I have to say it was a pleasant surprise. The formation was simple but the it was effective. Let's aim to clear out the undead outside before sunset."

Well, at least this old bag of bones got his confidence back.

We all nod in agreement and head out.

* * *

It's sunset now, we returned to our camp to rest. We managed to successfully defeat the undead outside.

No, let me rephrase that.

The undead were one-sidedly wiped out.

You'd need several army platoons of 500 soldiers each to take down that many undead in so little time. Bart must have turned at least 60 of them to dust by himself.

I  had heard those Khamis  priests had effective anti-undead magic, but I had no idea it was THIS good. They rarely leave their church.

The dangerous one was Ellie after all, though. She's clearly abnormal. Elven hair and cat-folk eyes were strange enough on their own.

But that... what WAS that?

'I will throw rocks with [Star Magic] from the rear' she said.

Simple rocks ploughed through multiple undead you know?

They made craters in the ground. She makes catapults look like slingshots.

And what the hell is [Star Magic] anyway? It's like nothing I've ever seen. Also I never felt any mana coming from her, so I'm skeptical if it's really magic.

It's probably related to the [Fallen Star] rumor that I heard a week ago. The girls did say they're from Runetap, so it fits. That place is known for producing nothing but weirdos and crazies anyway.

I still think Ellie's a good kid deep down, though. As long as I don't do anything rude to Red, that is.

"Right, let's get some sleep. Ellie, take the first watch.

After her will be Kelly, Quasse, then me. We'll rotate every two hours."

Bart explained our night watch rotation. It's standard practice when sleeping in the wilderness.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

Wait, who's Quasse?

Ah, Red had a name like that huh? It's long and awkward, so I just forgot about it.

I just call her Red. It's short and easy to shout in a pinch.

I almosted called her 'Kira' like Ellie does, but stopped myself. We're not that close in the first place.

* * *

*DONG DONG DONG*

"Hyapuribu!"

I let out some weird noise as I bolt awake.

What was that?

"Kelly's watch."

I hear Ellie's voice above me. She banged on my helmet with her sword did she?

"Don't DO that, lassie! My head's still ringing!"

"... sorry."

This girl knows how to apologize after all! Today's just full of surprises.

"Okay, I'm taking over. You can go to sleep now."

Ellie nods and moves to her-

Wait why is she crawling into Red's sleeping bag?

"Good night Kira."

She whispers while snuggling into Kira's bosom. Surely that would be uncomfortable.

"Mmmmmm.... Heeheeeeee..."

Red's sweet sounds and grinning face say otherwise though. She even hugged back without waking up.

Oy, that's a human being not a plush toy!

...

I'm honestly not sure what to make of this.

* * *

My watch passes uneventfully. It's about time for Red to take over.

I'm just not sure how to wake her up. That blissed out sleeping face makes me hesitate a little.

Honestly, I have a hard time believing this girl is really from Runetap.

As a person, she's polite, gentle and sensible. Her 'charm' as a woman is plainly obvious, and she clearly cherishes her teammate.

As a mage, she's clearly skilled.

In the past, I've been burned by my allies' magic plenty of times. I seriously thought all mages had a screw loose somewhere. 

So when I heard she specialized in offensive magic, I got worried. But, her spells were accurate and she covered my blind spots without fail.

In a word - she's perfect.

Surely many men would want that ideal women as their bride. But she's an adventurer, so she probably hasn't settled down yet.

"Mmnnn."

Wait, she's waking up on her own?

She wriggles free of Ellie slowly and walks over.

"I'll be taking the watch then, Kelly."

"Right, perfect timing. I was just about to run dry."

I hold up the flask I was nursing to pass the time.

"You... should you be drinking on watch?"

"It's fine, it's fine."

I dismiss her accusations with a wave of my hand.

"Us dwarves drink liquor like water. More importantly, how in blazes did you wake up?"

I refuse to believe it wasn't on purpose.

"Just a little trick with magic. It's not like I don't trust you, but the dwarves I've met so far have been...

Less than punctual."

"Ah, them adventurer dwarves are the worst lot you know?"

"Really?"

I guess she didn't know after all.

"Aye, dwarves have no reason to resort to killing monsters to make a living. Don't get me wrong, we love a good brawl, but there's better ways. 

The ones who become adventurers are the failures of our race."

Honestly, I don't get those people. They're a little afraid of some hard work so they go off and get themselves killed.

"You're one to talk though."

Red flashes me a wry smile.

"I'm an engineer first, mercenary second. I only take these jobs to fund my research in the first place."

Well, it mostly goes into raw materials though. There's a long way to go before my armor becomes perfect. And there's no way to go about it other than trial and error.

"Well that's how it is, I'll be going back to sleep now."

I get into my sleeping bag and doze back off.