After Uzume mentioned the names of the two Hidden girls, she pointed at Mira, who was already being stared at by Arlon. That made everyone else's eyes focus on her as well. Mira's eyes briefly met Arlon's, which took her by surprise so she looked away, only to see that there too were eyes looking at her, making her realize she was the center of attention.
Mira had stopped paying attention to Uzume halfway through, so her current state took her by surprise, but it quickly got to her head as she proudly smiled.
「Sasori and Hebi you said? That sounds good, though I don't remember seeing this girl before. Though well, I guess I don't need to know anything besides that she'll come with us.」
Arlon was staring intently at the girl wearing a trendy Magical Girl attire. Their mission was of utmost importance, and Uzume was the most aware of that, so he knew she would never select someone with half baked skills. That was a trust he had developed by being there for many years.
「Her name is Mira. She's the benefactor who helped capture that first member of Chimera, and is also the wiseman Danbulf's pupil. Make sure to support her well, Arlon.」
Uzume nodded fully confident in Mira, but a murmur spread through the rest of the room. Arlon was respected as being one step ahead of all the adventurers there, so they expected him to be the main strength of the group, but he was relegated to supporting Mira. On top of that, she claimed to be the pupil of a wiseman who had not shown himself in decades.
「Hmm, sounds interesting.」
But Arlon sounded entertained, smiling as he accepted the mission. He turned to look at Mira again, curious to see just how strong she was to have managed to convince Uzume that she was a wiseman's pupil.
To tell Arlon all the details, the three went up to the second floor of the bar, where a meeting room frequently used to relay missions onto helping adventurers was located. They each picked the seats they felt most comfortable in, and after a short pause Uzume began speaking again.
She explained how they were almost certain that Chimera Clauzen was targeting the Spirit King, even though they had no direct proof, but she mentioned how they arrived at that conclusion, and also how Arkite Kingdom and the Spellcaster's union were also involved in the matters now.
Arkite was known as the kingdom of spellcasters, while the Spellcasters' Union could track the movements of adventurers. Given that spellcasters have a high affinity with spirits, they officially marked Chimera Clauzen as an enemy. Because of all that, Arlon knew he could trust them as a source of information.
With that preface over, Uzume finally spoke about the details of their mission. Arlon would nod in approval every so often to show he was listening to Uzume, while Mira simply sipped on the all-seasons ale she saw in the bar.
The conversation continued into where they would go, means of transportation and the rest of the group. Then she mentioned what kind of firepower they expected the enemy to have, as well as their predicted paths. Lastly she mentioned that capturing enemy members would be handled by the two Hidden.
「I guess getting my gear ready is all that's left now. When are we leaving?」
Having heard all the details, Arlon sorted all the information in his head while also thinking of everything he would need to prepare before departing.
「Tomorrow at nine in the morning!」
Uzume had been looking at Mira, happily tipping her glass to her lips, so she looked away and replied with a sharp voice.
「There's barely any time before then. I guess it's just that important to go.」
Even if they knew that Chimera Clauzen was visiting those dungeons regularly, they did not know exactly when they would show up. In the worst case, they could end up having to lie in wait there for multiple days before anything happened, though that was still better than arriving after Chimera had finished their business in the Libra Fortress.
That was also the reason why they had to leave as soon as possible, and Arlon could understand that much so he stood up.
「Ah, I'll also give you this.」
Uzume also stood up and handed him a blue piece of paper that was shaped like a card.
「Ohh thank you. I'll make good use of it.」
Arlon happily accepted it.
「Anyway, we'll all group up in the usual place tomorrow morning.」
With that last short reply, spoken vigorously, Arlon returned to the room he was staying at to gather everything he needed for the trip. Mira and Uzume also left the meeting room shortly after him.
「Do you have everything you need, Grandpa?」
Kagura stopped shortly after leaving the bar that also served as a gathering place for adventurers, asking Mira that.
「Hmmm… I should have enough medicine if needed.」
Mira scrolled through the emergency supplies tab in her Item Box as she replied, afterwards taking a certain item out and showing it.
「I also have this one left, so I should be safe even if it gets too dangerous.」
She dangled the item, a crystal filled with a viscous pink fluid, as she spoke. That was an Echo Drop, an item of the highest grade that could fully heal one's body when used.
It worked flawlessly even now that the world was reality.
「If I remember correctly, you've been here for less than a month, right? Then I guess you also haven't gotten seriously injured yet.」
「Well, pretty much. Is there something wrong with that?」
Mira replied as she returned the Echo Drop to her Item Box, but as soon as she finished Kagura began knocking on Mira's head with the back of her hand. It was nothing strong, but Mira still felt a slight pain. 「What are you doing so suddenly?」 Mira raised her voice while pouting, but rather than stopping, Kagura began striking Mira's cheeks with both hands.
「Now tell me, how much damage do you think you received from that?」
Mira was glaring at Kagura for hitting her so many times, but Kagura's voice was slightly low and entirely serious, so Mira relaxed her sharp expression.
「Hmm… around ten points in both cases I guess.」
Still unable to understand what Kagura was getting at, Mira concentrated on the lingering feeling on her head and cheeks and replied with so. When kagura heard that, she sighed in an exaggerated manner, then lifting her hand and forming a circle with her index and thumb, saying 「The correct reply is zero.」
「As someone who has been in this world for longer, let me teach you grandpa. First, whether something is considered damage or not relies solely on whether it caused a lasting effect. Something light like I did earlier, which has no impact whatsoever to your health, causes zero damage. Though if I kept doing it for long enough it might have a very slight effect.」
After a short pause, Kagura pinched Mira's cheek and said 「This is also zero.」 Mira glared at her, but Kagura just continued talking.
「In other words, receiving damage means you get closer to death. When this was a game, any damage we received simply decreased a numerical value, our hit points. Now that this is reality, if half of your body is wounded, pain and other effects can render you unable to continue fighting. This also means that if you're at death's door, you won't be able to simply chug some medicine.」