The rest of the group looked slightly stunned at Leo's words.
"You... you would want to join us instead?" Judy asked carefully.
"Yup," Leo replied simply. "I know you guys are praising my efforts, but I personally feel that everybody else played their own important roles. You can also treat this as a part of my share instead."
Alex tapped the table with a thoughtful grin.
"If you had asked to join us even after we gave you your part of the reward, we would still have accepted you anyway. I have a feeling you can be a real asset to our team."
"Perhaps," Leo shrugged. "But I'm choosing to join you guys out of my own sincerity. And besides," he added jokingly, "it wouldn't feel right for me to accept so many gifts on our first day together."
Alex looked amused.
"Alright then," he relented. "We'll accept this as thanks for helping us. What does everybody else say?"
"I'm fine with it," Sarah replied. She held a serene expression that was devoid of concern.
Judy, instead, crossed her arms. However, there was no sign of rejection on her face.
She started speaking slowly, "Still though... I can't accept the fact that you don't want to take anything else. Why don't you choose three more magic items here?"
Before Leo could refuse, Judy lifted her hand up to stop him.
"Since you'll be a member, you should accept some of our rules. Our team prefers to provide extra shares to those who deserve it. So please don't reject our sincerity."
"Well..." Leo gave a slightly awkward smile before nodding his head. "Okay. Guess it's only fair."
"Excellent!" Judy uncrossed her arms and gave a thumbs up to Alex. "I have no other objections!"
Exasperated, Alex let out a chuckle before standing up.
"If there's nothing else to say, let's welcome our new friend and companion!"
----------
After finalizing their distribution of the rewards, the team with a newly added member went back to report to the reception lady.
Linda suggested that they allow the guild staff to take away all the recovered magic items for appraisal of any hidden dangers, as well as to categorize all of their distinct abilities. They would get them back after three days if nothing were to go wrong. After thinking for a moment, the team ended up agreeing.
Before Leo and his new friends left the guild, Linda also revealed that one of the staff members had already attempted to make contact with the minister who issued this quest's subjugation. She will personally let them know if anything happens afterwards.
With everything finished, Leo walked out the front door with his new companions. Alex had originally wanted to make a stop at a restaurant and pay for a big meal, but Judy suddenly reminded him that they were tight on savings at the moment and that he needed to worry about getting new equipment. Embarrassed, Alex could only helplessly take back his words which had recently been filled with bravado.
"Guess we'll all have to eat later, when we have more money!" he laughed self-deprecatingly while rubbing the back of his neck.
Everybody smiled as Leo eventually ended up having to bid his farewell. The team all went their separate ways in a happy mood, with each member planning to meet again sometime tomorrow.
After making his way through down the streets, Leo breathed a sigh of relief as he smelled some of the food and ingredients that were in the stalls close by. He was going to the market area to prepare for dinner.
Taking light steps down the streets of the city, he could hear singing from a crowd up ahead.
'Is that a bard?' Leo thought as he pricked up his ears to listen to an exciting melody emanating from a single person surrounded by a dozen listeners.
The person was standing atop of what appeared to be a simple podium. He was wearing a shirt and pants with matching colors of red, yellow, and orange. They had a style of flamboyancy that made Leo recall the headmaster of Halo Academy. Yet, there was a sense of fashion that didn't make the the bard's outfit too harsh on the eyes, and at certain angles the clothing looked quite pleasant.
On the singer's head, there appeared to be a wide-brimmed hat with a tuft of feathers sticking out on one side. Each feather seemed to belong to their own individual species as none of them were the same in either color and size.
As for the bard himself, there was nothing too distinct about him. He had a relatively handsome face that appeared neither too youthful or too old, and medium brown hair that was carefully trimmed at the sides.
Out of curiosity, Leo decided to step closer to get a clearer reception of the bard's music.
While the bard was singing, Leo heard a beautiful melody in the background, but there was strangely no sign of any instrument nearby. More surprisingly, the words that he could hear did not seem to match up with the movement of the bard's lips. But the contents of the song itself were the most shocking.
"--Oh Goblin King, his name was Bru~
"A nasty beast with a foul mood~
"Yet he saw himself as royalty~
"And proclaimed himself the Goblin King~!"
"Huh!?" Leo exclaimed in shock as he nearly stumbled into the crowd. He found himself unable to control his thoughts.
'What the heck is this!? How does this guy know about the Goblin King!?'
Up on the podium, the bard continued singing as his audience began to stir.
"Oh Goblin King, what ignorance~
"You had neither crown nor a throne~
"Yet you still remained so arrogant~
"'Til your arm got brutally pruned~"
Leo could only stand there, dumbfounded, as he blended in with the small group in a daze.
'How is this possible?' he began questioning the situation. 'Could he have followed us as we went to the guild? Did he disguise himself as one of the adventurers there, or did he use a spell to conceal his presence?'
There were many possibilities that went through his mind. The most dangerous one was that this bard may have also been in the ruin at the time of their encounter with the goblins.
Leo nearly wanted to rush up to the podium and pounce on the bard to get some answers, but he ultimately chose to restrain himself and wait for an opportunity. Now didn't seem to be a good time.
Thankfully, the bard seemed to have already sung quite enough for the day. After less than a minute, the bard finally concluded his performance and swept off his hat towards the audience as he bowed elegantly. The feathered hat was outstretched in front of him as a sign to receive coins.
Immediately after the song was over, the people in the crowd each reacted quite emotionally, yet in distinctly different ways. Some were loudly cheering, others were brimming with happiness, and a few were sobbing with melancholy.
Other than Leo, nearly everyone who listened to the bard rushed up to deliver their money.
Despite the cluttering of people, Leo spotted glints of copper, silver, and even gold that disappeared into the outstretched hat. Everyone was busily pushing against each other to be the first one to thank the bard.
"Your music was too stunning for me! I swear my heart was about to burst!"
"I never knew those notes could be played in such a way... You've given me inspiration to write my own song!"
"Thank you thank you thank you!!! It's been so long since I remembered my home town!"
"I now have the courage to confess to my childhood friend!"
If Leo had been confused before, now his mind was completely blank. He could not understand what had gone on. Just what did these people hear? Was there something wrong with their ears, or was he the one who's deaf?
As the crowd was dispersing, the bard casually sat down on the podium and set aside his hat that was full to the brim with coins. Beside him, there was a travel bag that had recently been blocked from view. Just as the singer was about to transfer the coins he received into the bag, Leo quickly approached him.
"Oh? What's this?" the bard took a glance at the last of his audience and gave an apologetic smile. "Forgive me, but I am a little too tired today for an encore."
"...No that's not it." Leo's mouth slightly twitched as he took a brief moment to compose himself. After two seconds, he began asking in a serious tone, "I wanted to talk about the last song you just played. What exactly do you know about the Goblin King?"
"Goblin... king?" the bard looked baffled at the question, as if to say: "What the hell is that?". But soon his expression changed to one of understanding.
"Ohhh. You must have just recently arrived."
"Pardon?" Leo asked, unsure of how to reply back.
"Don't worry, this happens all the time," the bard stood up from his seat and began explaining, "You see, what I just played was a unique spell."