Chapter 22: Little Chat

"Sit down. It's fine on my bed too," said Kuroto.

"Ah, thank you so much, sir," Aruta replied as he sat on the bed and leaned back on his hands.

"Haha, no need to be so formal," Kuroto said, glancing at his watch before continuing, "Oh, right. I forgot to explain about the stone you found yesterday."

"Yeah. But Mono already told me about it," Aruta answered. "But if there's any additional information, I don't mind hearing it."

"Hmm, what should I tell you?"

"In your history lessons, have you learned about Arthuria Luminaire?" Kuroto asked.

"Yes. But my studies haven't reached that part yet," Aruta replied. "But I've heard the name. An emperor who once ruled half the world. That's about all I remember."

"Hmm, you're right. But there's one thing that might not be mentioned in the stories about Emperor Arthuria," Kuroto said.

"What is it?" Aruta asked.

"Did Mono tell you about the golden age of LYNK?"

"Yes." Aruta thought for a moment and realized something. "Oh, no one ever brought up the golden age of LYNK back then, did they?"

"Smart! For some reason, people nowadays seem unaware of the existence of LYNK's magic. We also didn't tell the public because we were afraid it might make people anxious. So, there's some benefit to it," Kuroto explained. "Anyway, enough of the serious talk. Let's talk about something else."

"What should we talk about?" Aruta asked.

"Hmm." Kuroto rested his fist on his chin as he thought. He glanced around and noticed Aruta's shoes. Kuroto didn't say anything but simply smiled. Aruta was initially confused, but when he realized Kuroto was looking at his shoes, his expression turned into a frown.

"What are you looking at?" Aruta said.

"Pfft. Pervert."

"HEY!!!"

Aruta and Kuroto's room became quite lively. Kuroto often teased Aruta there. Although they also often laughed together heartily.

***

An hour passed, and Mono finally arrived at the headquarters. Mono entered the base and saw Mrs. Haruki watching TV. Mrs. Haruki noticed Mono entering and immediately stood up.

"Hi, Mono," Haruki greeted.

"Good afternoon, ma'am. Has Aruta arrived yet?" Mono asked.

"Good afternoon. Yes, he arrived earlier. He's in Mr. Kuroto's room now," Haruki replied.

"I see, I'll head there then," Mono said.

Mono started walking toward Kuroto's room. However, still far from the room, Mono was startled by the sound of loud laughter coming from Kuroto's room. When Mono reached the front of Kuroto's room, he saw that the door was wide open. Mono peeked inside and saw Kuroto and Aruta playing cards together on the bed.

"Bwahahahaha! Good thing there's no bet. You'd be selling your house if there was," Kuroto said, laughing heartily.

"Damn it... again, again! You must have cheated when shuffling the cards!" Aruta exclaimed. "Let me shuffle the cards!" Aruta tried to grab the cards, but Kuroto held him back.

"Eits, no way."

"Ahem," Mono cleared his throat, causing Aruta and Kuroto to fall silent and turn toward him.

"Oh, Mono. Do you want to join?" Kuroto asked.

"Hey, you said there's a mission," Mono said.

"Oh, right, I almost forgot. You took so long to get here," Kuroto replied.

"Typical, big sis," Mono answered. "What class is the mission, sir?" Mono asked.

"Just a light class. I'll explain the mission later," Kuroto replied.

"Class?" Aruta asked.

"Yes, class. There are several mission classes: light, medium, heavy, and special. Mages also have classes: light, medium, heavy, and elite. The same goes for junoi. The danger level of the mission determines its class. That way, we can decide which class of witch should handle it," Kuroto explained.

"Oh, really? Then what class am I?" Aruta asked.

"Hoho, for you, of course, there's a special class~" Kuroto said.

"Oh, really? Tell me, tell me!" Aruta said, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Your class is... " Aruta waited with a hopeful gaze.

"Light class."

Hearing Kuroto's answer, Aruta's hopeful expression shattered instantly, and he collapsed weakly on the bed. "Then why did you say my class was special earlier?" Aruta asked in a weak voice.

"Hey, come on. You just joined. You can improve it later," Kuroto replied.

"What about Mono? What class is he?" Aruta asked.

"He's already a medium class. And since he's the highest class in this team, he'll be leading this mission," Kuroto answered.

"Yup- hey, wait. Leading?!" Mono asked, surprised. "Why me? Couldn't it be Oliver or Bela?" Mono protested.

"They're both on a mission with Mr. Gren right now. You also need the experience," Kuroto said.

"Huff, alright then," Mono sighed.

Not long after, Haruki called from outside the room, "Hey, Kuroto. Our new member has arrived."

Kuroto immediately stood up from the bed and said, "She's here already? I'll head over!" Kuroto looked at Aruta and Mono and said, "Alright, you'll have a new teammate. Let's go welcome her."

"'Her'?" Aruta muttered.

Aruta, Mono, and Kuroto started walking toward the living room. In the living room, Haruki was talking to someone. Haruki noticed Kuroto and the others arriving and turned to them.

"Ah, you're finally here," Haruki said. "Aruta, Mono, this is your new teammate."

Haruki stepped aside, revealing a short-haired girl wearing pants and a jacket.

"Aruta, Mono, let me introduce our new teammate, Yurisako Ayame! You can call her Sako," Kuroto said enthusiastically.