The process of joining the hero's party took some time.

After the whole slime incident, we all went straight to the adventurer's inn. Quine joined us as well, seeing as she never had anything to do at that time anyway, and tagged along to satisfy her boredom.

It took a while to explain to the girl at the counter, Hale, about the situation, but we eventually convinced her of our plan.

"So you're joining the hero's party, Hisami? I'm so proud of you," she said, as she registered my name. I was now officially a part of Dralk's party.

"Congrats, Hisami! You're one of us now!" Gala said, shaking my hand.

"Thank you guys for having me. I hope I wouldn't be a bother to you guys at all."

"We're all practically beginners anyway, so it's okay!" Werd reassured. "Only Dralk here has the most experience out of us. We were just randomly scouted by the king to be part of his party, after all."

"Really?"

So they were novices too, like me.

"Oh, that only applies to me and Werd. Alene has a bit of experience too because she trained under the world's strongest wizard, who is coincidentally her father."

"...Wow."

"......" Being showered by praise, Alene timidly looked the other way. "I-It's true..."

"So you're a witch too, Alene?" I asked her.

"Y-Yes... But I'm not t-that good yet... I-I'm still very weak..."

"I see. I'm a witch too, so how about we both practice our magic sometime? We're comrades now, after all!"

Alene responded with a nod.

In reality, the reason why I asked her to practice with me was that I was hoping to see some live demonstration of magic. Reading about magic spells and how to cast magic might be easy, but it could be different when it is actually applied.

Since we practically spent the whole day outside, the sun was now setting, which meant that it was almost evening.

"Looks like it's getting dark. How about we stay in this town for the night?" Werd said.

"Good idea! Let's go and rent a room!" Dralk responded, puffing out his chest as he walked outside.

He looks like an idiot.

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The next morning, we parted ways with Quine.

"I have to go now. I've just been to the capital, and I have another city in mind where I want to go and trade in, so this is where we'll be splitting off."

"I understand. Thank you for everything you've done for me. I don't know how I could repay you for all of this." I told Quine as she boarded her wagon.

"Nah, it's fine! You don't have to worry about it! You're new around here after all, so it's the least I could do!"

"...Alright, I understand." I walked over to Gach and petted him. "I'm gonna miss you, Gach."

"Gawr..."

"Don't feel sad, Gach. We're gonna meet again someday, right?"

"Yep! That's a promise!" Quine said.

I walked over to Quine and hugged her small and petite body. Then, with a whip, she ordered Gach to move.

"Goodbye, Quine! I hope we meet again!"

"Goodbye, HIsami! May our paths cross again!" Quine said as she waved to me in the distance.

"She really is something, huh?" Dralk said.

"Yeah."

Quine had helped me start in this world, and I was grateful for that. The next time we meet, I hope I could return the favor.

Since I was part of the hero's party now, I was going to wherever they are going, which was in this case the capital.

Registering me into Dralk's party turned out to be not so simple. Aside from the fact that we have to inquire in the Adventurer's Inn, it turns out that we have to head towards the capital and meet the king himself, the one who organized the party in the first place.

"Don't be so nervous meeting the king. All you have to do is to bow until he tells you to stop, then just do as he says. That's all there is to it," Werd said.

"Sounds easy enough."

We all made our way out of Sirvaelin, following Dralk to where he leads us to.

Just outside the town, a coach was waiting for us. It was covered in pure white and it had a certain elegant feel to it, something that rich people of this world would own. A blue dragon that looked similar to Gach was pulling the cart, and its driver was an old man. He was wearing long, black pants and a black tuxedo with a red tie.

"Welcome, young master," he greeted Dralk as he got off and opened the door. "Allow me to bring your belongings to the back."

Dralk then briefly introduced me to the coachman, who's name was Jole. Apparently, he was one of the butlers hired by the king to escort Dralk and his party to wherever they wished to, so he was technically Dralk's personal driver. He was an old man, having served the king for many years, and now he was nearing retirement. I guess this was one of the last jobs the king assigned him.

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"After this, I could finally retire and live with my grandchildren," He said to me. I was sitting at the front listening to his stories, while the others were chatting merrily at the back. "I've been with him ever since he was still a baby boy. Seeing him all grown-up like this right now brings a few tears to my eyes."

"How was it like growing up with Dralk?"

"Taking care of the hero was a big responsibility for me, so I had to be extra careful in how I treat him. While he was young, he used to play around in the royal courtyard, running around until he got tired and took a rest. Then, after regaining his energy back, he would get up and do it all over again, repeating this process for the whole day." Jole said with a light chuckle. "Although he is prideful, he is a kind and caring young lad, who wouldn't hesitate to help another person in need. I think that part of him he got from his father, the former hero."

"It sounds like he had a wonderful childhood," I commented.

"Yes. He was also good friends with Alene too. Both of them used to play together until the king placed her at his party."

"Oh, so Dralk and Alene are childhood friends?"

"Haha, yes. The memories of both of them playing around the courtyard are still fresh in my mind. How nostalgic," he said with a smile. "Since Alene was the daughter of Renel, said to be one of the world's most powerful wizards, she and her family were given a lifelong residence in the palace by the king. It was certainly advantageous to the Oroland family, who has been practicing the arts of magic for generations since the palace is equipped with up to date facilities specifically for magicians."

"Well, good for them."

"If I am correct, I would assume that you are a witch too, Hisami?"

"Yes. I'm still a novice, so I intend to train under Alene's father so that I could hone my magic skills alongside her. We're part of the same party now, after all."

"Haha, good luck with that!" he said, laughing out loud. "Even if you're a beginner, Renel won't go easy on you! so you better prepare yourself, young lady!"

"I-Ill keep that in mind..."

It looks like my future training under the world's strongest wizard will be rough.

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It took us three weeks to reach the capital, stopping by every so often in different towns to eat and sleep in.

I was fast asleep in the back seat of the coach when I felt someone shaking me lightly. We left early in the morning, and since I didn't get a lot of sleep last night, I dozed off fast on the way.

"Wake up, Hisami. We're here," I heard the voice of Gala say to me. "Look, you can see the entrance gate from the window."

Rubbing my eyes and wearily opening them, I saw the outer linings of the city. It was a huge cobblestone wall, decorated with different colored ribbons. It was being guarded by knights, all of them holding long, sharp spears.

As we slowly approached the gate, one of the knights put his hand forward, gesturing to stop the vehicle.

"What is your business sir?" He said, heading over to Jole's side and asking.

"I'm here to drop off the hero. You should have known at first glance. This is a royal coach, you know."

"My apologies sir. It is my job to make sure."

He made a signal with his hand to the other knight and nodded, raising the iron bars that separated us from the city.

The capital, named Elcor, was big, almost ten times bigger than Sirvaelin. there were bigger houses, the roads lead off to different sections of the city. There were plenty more people, most of whom were adventurers. But the one thing that caught my eye was the hill situated in the middle of the city.

"Is that the royal palace?" I leaned forward in the driver's seat and asked Jole, pointing towards the building on top of it.

"Yep. That's it," he said. "It has been the home of the von Fraude family for generations. I would even as to go far saying that they've been there ever since the creation of this world."

"Wow..."

It was a tall and grand complex, decorated white and yellow, surrounded by an iron fence. It had a royalty feel to it, something that you would normally see kings and queens living in.

The sight of the palace got me excited.

This is where I will be living for the next years of my life?

How will the king think of me?

Will he see me as an inconvenience or not?

What will the other residents of the palace think of me?

Many questions flooded my mind as we made our way up the hill and passed through the gates of the palace.

Inside the entrance, a wide field of green grass greeted my eyes. Up ahead was a fountain and a roundabout, and in front of it was the entrance to the building. The cart stopped in front of the entrance.

"We're here, young master," Jole said as he opened the door.

"Alright! We're here!" Werd exclaimed, pumping his fist in his air.

They all got off one by one until it was my turn.

"Here, Hisami. Let me help you," he said, holding out a hand to me.

"Thank you, Jole," I replied, gently accepting his hand, helping me get off the cart safely.

"Ahh, how good it feels to be home!" Dralk said, stretching his hands. "After three weeks of traveling, I could finally get to sleep on a decent bed!"

Dralk sprinted towards the inside of the palace and turned around a corner, inside the palace, out of sight.

"Hey! No running inside! Where do you think you are?!" Gala tried to reprimand Dralk, but he didn't hear it.

"Looks like Dralk's excited to relax, huh? But don't we have an appointment with His Majesty soon?" Werd said to Gala.

"Yes, we do."

"Right. I'll go after him." He said as he went the same way as the hero did.

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After a few minutes, we were escorted by Jole towards the throne room.

It was a huge room, guarded by knights on all sides. Right ahead was a throne, and sitting on it was an old man with a long, white beard, dressed up like royalty. He was wearing a crown on his head decorated with all kinds of colorful jewels.

"Your Majesty."

All four of them, including Jole, bowed on their knees. I did the same.

"You all may rise," the king said, "And give me your report on your expedition."

"So far, there has not been any monster sighting in the regions of Rarteli. Then, we went out further, near the Bercut Mountain Range that serves as the current border between the Monster Kingdom and the Human Kingdom. We went to various cities and towns as well near the area, but there weren't any large-scale attacks there. Well, except in the city of Sirvaelin," Dralk said, giving his report to the king. He gave a quick summary of his encounter with the horde of slimes, and the eventual recruitment of me, a new member of his party.

I was taken aback by his sudden attitude. I thought he was going to act all rude and happy-go-lucky in front of the king, but the extreme opposite happened.

"Despite his personality, Dralk is still a hero, you know," Gala whispered to me. "He has to act politely in front of His Majesty."

"Ahh, I see."

"That is all for my report, Your Majesty."

"Very well. It doesn't seem like Tania is making a move at the moment. But, she may simply be preparing for a large attack instead of idling around. In the meantime, continue to be on high alert in case any more monster attack occurs."

"Understood, Your Majesty."

"Now then, concerning your newest member," he said, his old yet sharp eyes meeting mine.

I instantly felt my spine chill. He had some serious presence if he could do that by simply gazing at me.

"While I do not mind you acquiring a new member for your party, it is my concern that she isn't strong enough to keep up with the likes of your other members. Have you properly assessed her skills yet?"

"Not yet, Your Majesty, but we do plan to enroll her in master Orland's special magic class along with Alene since she has the witch class as well."

"Hmm, very well. I will personally speak to Renel himself concerning his new pupil. Because you are now part of the Hero's party, you may stay here in this castle, little one. My servants here can escort you to your new room." He said as he motioned a knight over him and whispered something, to which the knight nodded and gave a salute.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," I replied.

"That is all. You are dismissed."

And with that, we all gave a quick bow before the king before heading out of the throne room.