Common Goal

'Good, that's about everything I wanted to ask and do here. All that's left is to visit a dungeon in person. If I have anything else to ask after that, I can just come here again.'

"Do you have any other questions?"

"No, that is enough. Thank you very much."

"In that case, here are your adventurer cards."

With a wry smile and a shrug, the lady handed over four jet-black plaques the size of business cards. They bore each person's name and rank in silver font.

'The color theme of my grimoire and the Appraisal Ceremony display are also silver text on black. Are the gods of this world purposely sticking to a design? Not that I mind, though; I actually appreciate the sense of uniformity.' 

"Thank you for the cards. Is there anything else we have to do for the registration process?"

"One last thing: would all of you here be registering as a party?"

'Oh right, that's a thing. I guess we might as well.'

Allen recalled Raven telling him about the system where adventurers who often worked together officially registered as a group referred to as a party.

Adventurers in parties were seen as more trustworthy and would therefore receive more designated quests. Although Allen had no intention of accepting such quests, he figured it would not hurt to register.

"Yes, please."

"Have you decided on a name for your party?"

Allen looked at Cecil, to which she responded, "You decide for us."

Upon seeing Krena and Dogora nod in agreement, Allen turned back to the staff. "Please write us down as 'No-life Gamers.'" "What does that mean?" Cecil asked, her curiosity piqued at the unfamiliar phrase.

"A no-life gamer is someone who thoroughly masters the path they choose. It is a title only for those who dedicate everything they have to dive as deep as they can into something."

"That sounds pretty impressive. Sure, let's go with that."

Allen nodded. "Then No-life Gamers it is. Miss, please register us."

"Understood. Please wait a short while—this will not take long."

The staff member stood up and headed to the back again. Allen turned to his friends and lowered his head. "I'm sorry for taking up so much of everyone's time."

Cecil waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine. We also learned a lot thanks to you. So, what are we going to do after this?"

"It's gotten quite late already. How about we go look for a property first thing tomorrow?"

"Sounds good to me. After we decide on a place, let's all discuss what we'll do going forward," Cecil said, looking at Krena and Dogora in turn.

"'What we'll do'?" Krena parroted, tilting her head. "Allen, what does that —"

"That's right, Krena," Allen nodded. "We have a goal for the coming three years. I'll go into more details after we first get a hou—" Whoosh!

"Wah! A big book!" Krena exclaimed, her eyes sparkling as she reached for the grimoire that had suddenly appeared in front of the group.

'Wait, what?!' Allen looked down at the cover and saw new lines of silver text.

<Krena has joined your party.>

<Cecil Granvelle has joined your party.>

<Dogora has joined your party.>

'Oh...' 

"What's with this book that suddenly appeared?" Cecil asked, somewhat calmer than the others. She turned to Allen, who looked entirely unsurprised at the phenomenon. "Explain, Allen."

'There's no doubting it—they can totally see my grimoire. Oh, heck yeah! Wait, could it be...' Allen opened the book without paying his friends any attention. 'Their Statuses are here! Yes, my four months of praying have paid off!' 

Right after Allen's own Status page, three new pages had been added in.

Allen looked for another letter from the gods, but there was none this time.

Finally feeling everyone's stares boring into him, he smiled sheepishly and said, "Um, I'll tell you all about it when things settle down, okay?"

Just as Allen managed to placate his friends, the staff returned. After the party registration was complete and the quest for ten thousand Rank D magic stones had been processed, the group left the building with the intention of looking for a house the next morning.

***

The next morning, Allen and his friends visited the Real Estate Guild.

"Welcome. How may we help you today?"

'Hmm, they're still treating us courteously even though we're showing up as a group of four children. Is this how it's like everywhere in Academy City?' 

The service level here was markedly different from that of Krena Village.

Just like at the Adventurer's Guild, a staff member guided them to a counter.

"What kind of a property are you looking for?"

"A single house large enough for five or six people, please. Preferably close to multiple dungeons and a magic train station, with easy access to the Academy," Allen replied with the casualness of asking for a place in Tokyo near a train station and a convenience store.

"I see, I see," the staff replied, taking down notes on a parchment while flipping through what looked like a catalog of properties.

After returning from the Adventurer's Guild, Allen and his friends had shared what they each wanted from the property. Just in case, Allen had also stressed the point that they would be living together as both boys and girls, but everyone confirmed they had no issues with the arrangement. After all, he had lived in the same house as Cecil for four years now and had even slept with Krena in the same room when they were younger. Dogora, for his part, simply went, "I see."

"In regard to the dungeon requirement," the staff asked, "would Rank C suffice?"

"It would be even better if there were Rank B and Rank A ones close by as well."

The sound of flipping pages continued for a short while longer.

"Hmm...the ones that fit that condition are mainly located along the major avenues running through the areas where dungeons are clustered together."

'Tell me more; that sounds perfect.' 

Cecil also seemed satisfied. "That sounds like what we're looking for," she said.

"However, those properties are all quite large..."

To sum up the staff's explanation, those wanting to challenge higher-ranked dungeons normally did so in parties of twenty to fifty people. Consequently, the closest properties were all rather sizable. None were small enough to house only five to six.

"We don't mind the size," Allen said. "Prioritize the other conditions, please."

"In that case, here is one for twenty."

'That might work. Let's give it a visit.' 

Allen proposed seeing the property in person first before making a decision.

The other three expressed their agreement. The staff then escorted them onto a magic train and brought them before the house.

"Here it is," the staff said. "What do you think?"

Allen nodded. "It is indeed close to the station. Which way are the dungeons?"

This prompted the staff to go into detail regarding the location and features of the building. Allen listened to her while sending a Bird E into the air to confirm the specific locations of the nearby dungeons for himself.

'Is that three-story building a dungeon? It really is close by, and so is the train station. I see quite a lot of eateries nearby too.' 

No one in the party knew how to cook except for Allen, who had only learned the most basic of basics from the head chef during his time as a manservant. Besides, he was hardly going to waste time cooking multiple meals for everyone when there were dungeons right in front of his nose.

Without further ado, the group walked through the heavy front doors into the house. It was a large, three-story building with a yard.

"The first and second floors of this property have ten bedrooms each. What's more, there is an underground area as well."

On the first floor was a common room, parlor, two bathrooms, and two toilets. This city had a proper sewage system, so the toilets were flushable and the baths were drainable, with taps installed that drew water heated by magic stones. The basement served as both an armory and a storage area for items found in the dungeons.

"The monthly rent for this place is ten gold, you said?" Allen asked.

"That is correct, yes," the staff member confirmed.

Allen turned to his friends. "What do you think, guys? This place works for me."

Dogora looked somewhat anxious at hearing the price of ten gold a month but stayed silent.

Allen told the staff lady that they would be taking the place, so they returned to the Guild to fill out the necessary paperwork and ended up receiving the key that same day. On their way back to their new home, the group bought dinner and the bare minimum in daily necessities.

They gathered in the first-floor common room to eat their dinner.

"Now that we have a base of operations, let's talk about what we'll be doing here in Academy City," Allen said, giving Cecil a look. She nodded.

"Meaning?" Dogora prompted.

"There's something that Lady Cecil and I will be working toward over the next three years," Allen replied. "To that end, there is some important information that we need to share with you. Please listen while we eat."

And so Allen divulged the full details of Demon Lord history. Everything that the magic tutor taught him, he now imparted to Dogora and Krena—from the international effort against the Demon Lord to the true purpose of the Academy. It took about an hour with him speaking slowly.

"And that is why Lady Cecil will have to go to the battlefield three years from now; it's her duty as a noble. And Krena, you'll have to go too."

"Huh? Me too?"

Apparently Academy students learned Demon Lord history in their second year after the summer holiday, although only those who completed the assignment over the break—clearing a dungeon—were taught. The students at Nobles College in the royal capital also learned about it around the same time during their second year. As a general rule, Nobles College never failed any students, so everyone enrolled there would come to learn Demon Lord history and what the noble duty was.

When Allen finished speaking, Dogora asked with a pensive face, "And you'll be fighting to protect Lady Cecil?"

"No, that's not correct," Allen replied just as Cecil nodded.

She immediately whirled on him. "What do you mean by that?!"

"I won't be fighting to protect her. I'll be fighting with her, and we'll be defeating the Demon Lord," Allen said in full seriousness.

Krena laughed. "That sounds just like something you'd say, Allen!"

"That's fine with you too, right, Krena? Let's fight the Demon Lord Army together."

"Sure!"

Seeing Krena's bright smile, Cecil fell silent. Although she had been surprised to find herself co-opted into a Demon Lord-killing task force, she understood Allen enough to know this was just how he was. Allen turned to the other boy.

"What do you plan to do, Dogora?"

"Huh? Me?"

"Will you join us in fighting the Demon Lord and become a champion? Or will you enter the service of some noble and become their knight?"

"A champion or a knight, huh?"

"I described everything rather casually, but to be honest with you, I expect the fighting to be very dangerous and demanding. That's why I won't force you—you should make your own choice. Of course, not going to the battlefield after spending these three years with us is a totally valid choice too."

"Nah, I'm going," Dogora replied, crossing his arms and smiling. He looked up at the ceiling as if his worldview had just expanded. "Who'd have thought? Turns out wanting to be a knight was just a tiny dream..."

***

"So, what're we going to do now?" Krena asked.

"There are several things." Allen raised a finger. "First, we'll be going through the dungeons so that we can all overcome multiple Trials of the Gods and get some better gear."

"I see," Dogora nodded.

"Also, I want to expand our party. Specifically, I want to find a Cleric."

"A Cleric?" Cecil started as understanding dawned. "Ahh, because we don't have anyone to heal us?"

Allen thought that their party now needed a dedicated healer. Although he had Grass-type Summons, using them burned through his magic stones, which he wanted to avoid if possible.

"So to that end, the second thing we'll do is look for someone with a healing Talent, either at school or at the Adventurer's Guild, and have them join our party."

"By the way, what was with you asking about some ring and requesting a ton of magic stones at the Guild?" Cecil asked. "Oh, and tell us about that big book too."

'Yep, this seems like a good time to share everything.' 

"I'm saying this ahead of time, but I grow much slower than all of you. That's why I almost failed the entrance exam the other day."

"What're you talking about? I've seen you fight. You're way stronger than all of us."

Allen responded by talking about how he had been burdened with the Trials of a hundred people and that, in order to overcome those Trials, he needed an overwhelming number of magic stones and MP Recovery Rings. Furthermore, he explained that his grimoire was a part of his abilities as a Summoner.

"You were doing all that while staying at my mansion?! But...Trials of a hundred people?! That just sounds impossible!" Cecil exclaimed.

In contrast, Krena said understandingly, "I see, so that's why you've always been working so hard."

"Huh?" Allen looked surprised at how easily Krena accepted what he said.

She had been watching him closely throughout their childhood, much more than he had thought.

Dogora just nodded once.

Allen looked at each of his companion's faces, then concluded, "This is why we will be very busy in the three years to come."

In this way, Allen and his friends secured a house in Academy City and came to share a common goal for their upcoming years at the Academy.