With a puzzled look, the three other members of the party went beyond the clearing as instructed. They remained vigilant and didn't dare make any sound for fear of attracting unwanted bears around them.

"What was with that? You weren't like that before? What happened?" As soon as they were left alone she turned around and began to berate Aima.

"I saw that your other members were still wet behind the ears so I gave my experienced input. There was nothing wrong with that."

"No there was a lot wrong with that and you know it. You calling out everyone's movements disrupts the flow of combat. It is very dangerous. You know the reason why I wanted you to join our party right?"

"Yes, I haven't forgotten. However we need to make them into capable adventures for that isn't it?"

"This isn't the way. Next time focus on your support. You don't need to be pedantic about everything in combat. They are capable to a point."

"Ho, the stoic Becky acknowledged another party after her previous one. How heartwarming." Aima grinned as she waited for Becky to respond to her jab.

"Do not disrespect my previous party members. They were adventurers you could never s.h.i.+ne a light to." Becky turned away as she headed to where the rest of the group were.

"Got it, I'm sorry. I'll do as I'm told for the next fight. Tch, even though I'm more mature than everyone here." Aima also walked behind Becky as she didn't hide her dissatisfaction to her rank in the party.

'They're coming here, I better stop my [Augment]. It seems I can't let my guard down with these two.' Sebastian pretended to be checking his swords as soon as Becky and Aima came to the clearing.

***

"[Spear Slash]!" Jin was facing off with another bear as the other members got to their positions.

"[Augment] Steel body and mind, Hyper senses, Reinforce Legs!" Sebastian appeared at the bear's side as he slashed and stabbed.

SSCHWING! SSUP!

"I can't do much damage with my swords! Mel and Becky please!" Sebastian stepped back as the bear turned towards him. Jin took this chance to swipe the bear's paws, disrupting the center of gravity.

THUMP! GGRRROOOOAAAARRR!!

"[Poison Strike]!" Becky came like clockwork to the bear's blind spot and aimed for his face. Her strike found it's mark as the bear staggered from the blow and the poison immediately flowed through it's ma.s.sive body.

In the confusion, the bear suddenly turned and swiped at Jin with it's back hand!

THWACK!

"[s.h.i.+eld Block]!" Jin stood his ground as he reinforced his body with his mana.

"[Oakskin]!" Aima didn't miss a beat as she reinforced Jin's body with her own spell. With two spells reinforcing him, Jin didn't appear fazed at all. The blow instead stunned the bear as it was pushed back successfully.

"[Power Arrow]!" Mel took the chance to hit the bear's face, turning it towards Sebastian. "Now Sebastian!"

"Got it! [Augment] Reinforce Arms!" Sebastian stabbed his two swords into the bear's throat and head, ending the fight with his fatal blow.

THOOM!

With a loud thud, the bear fell down. When the bear's entire weight fell unhindered onto the ground, it sounded impressive. It seemed to shake the nearby trees and foliage as well as if to indicate that the fight was finished.

"Whew. That was better than the others. Thank you everyone." Sebastian looked especially at Aima as he was giving thanks.

"We've faced mutated wolves before so bears wouldn't be a problem. They only have their size going for them. Especially now that our teamwork is smoother." Jin kept his glaive raised at the bear's corpse until he was sure the bear wasn't moving or breathing anymore.

"That makes it a total of 8 today right? Our loot today is quite good. Let's skin this one and be on our way. It looks like night is approaching and we've gone past the quota." Aima gave her inputs again, but this time it was after the fight - to everyone's relief.

"For the loot, can we leave it to Becky and Aima to settle tomorrow?" Jin suggested as he and Mel started skinning the bear.

"Ah. Regarding that, can I come with as well? I want to see how the loot is handled - so that in the future maybe I can manage our spoils together with you." Sebastian quickly interjected before the others could react.

"That sounds good. For a country hick you're quite eager to learn aren't you. We'll talk about the details when we're going back to the city." Aima patted Sebastian in the back to show her approval in offering his service.

'After hearing your conversation earlier, it doesn't feel right leaving you two with our spoils.' Sebastian tried to smile to hide his caution, however it ended up awkward - causing Aima to quickly withdraw to Becky's side.

***

"Get out of my shop ye d.a.m.n witch! There's a limit to your haggling you know! You don't threaten me in my shop!" The shopkeeper furiously threw a pot which was unfortunate to be within arm's reach during his moment of anger.

BAM!

Becky, Aima, and Sebastian ducked the flying pot and quickly ran out the shop's door. This was the third shop they were kicked out of. It seemed to be getting more physical each time.

"For crying out loud, can't you ease off with your 'haggling'? It seems like you're coercing them you know." Becky crossed her arms as she stood over Aima.

"We're trying to sc.r.a.pe as much coin as we can. They say that there's enough bear materials in the city, but the quest's been posted only for two days. That's downright ridiculous I tell you." Aima was also standing her ground as she rearranged the spoils they collected yesterday.

"They also have to consider that since it's bear subjugation season, there will be a huge influx of bear materials soon." Sebastian offered his two cents as he ma.s.saged his forehead. He had a feeling that when Becky and Jin managed their spoils from the mutated wolf quest, it wasn't as stressful as this.

"We're running out of shops here in the market district. We're also building up quite a reputation for ourselves. Sebastian and I will handle the selling of loot for today. You just get ready to meet up with the others during midday." Becky sternly admonished Aima before they spent the whole day trying to sell their loot.

"I understand that you're both upset, however we can save money if you let me do the talking. We can try again in that shop over there. I did a few part-time jobs there working the counter, I know the owner personally. How about it?"

"For our mental health let's leave it at this today. Like what Becky said, she and I will manage the rest. You just prepare for another quest this afternoon." Sebastian gave his firm resolution to send Aima on her way.

"Fine, I understand. However keep in mind that we would have earned more if you left it up to me. That leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Tch." Aima didn't hide her annoyance as she left the two.

"Why is she obsessed with money? Is that a dwarf thing?" Sebastian asked Becky, hoping that their past friends.h.i.+p could shed light to his question.

"No, don't think like that - it's disgusting. You don't know her story, but she was raised in poverty. Her parents tried to get by with a small farm on the outskirts of a nearby village. Anybody can tell you that a small farm isn't a lucrative business. So she's learned all her life to save or earn more money than possible. Right now she's sending money to her parents to make ends meet. They're getting older and can't work as much as before."

"I didn't know that side, I'm sorry. Is that why she does a lot of part time jobs? She also comes off strong when she's haggling or coercing the shopkeepers."

"She's learned to fend for herself ever since she came here to the city from her small village. She identifies as a country b.u.mpkin as well you know." Becky finally smiled when she recalled how Aima was very naive when they first met and how she's grown since then.

"Is that also why her subcla.s.s is a blacksmith? A healer with a blacksmith subcla.s.s is quite unique even for me." Sebastian opened the door for Becky as they entered another shop, one that was spared from meeting Aima this morning.

"That's correct. She observed that parties always needed a supporter, and after the quest they didn't know what to do with the loot. So she chose a healer to make it easy for her to move from one party to another. She also chose a blacksmith profession so that she can earn money even when she's not adventuring. She's really grown since she came here." Becky then turned her attention towards the shopkeeper as she began her own method of negotiating the prices and exchange rates.

With Becky and Sebastian managing their loot, the rest of the morning went by without a hitch.

***

"Stop sulking Aima. Here's your share of the loot we sold. I know that you might have sold it for twice the amount, however we simply didn't have the time nor the patience left for it." Becky seemed more stern when she was dealing with Aima. Across them, Sebastian thought that Aima was surprisingly immature in some areas no matter what she said or how she presented herself.

"Hmp. I got it, I'm not sulking. To make up for it, how about this quest? I've scoured the noticeboard since this morning and I think this one's the best for our party." She quickly presented a quest posting for everyone to read.

"This is a mining quest? We're supposed to gather a few iron ores in a nearby cave for this. Hmm."

Jin was reading it quite carefully. When it came to adventuring, Jin always turned serious - a far cry from when he's the clown of the group.

"So we need to mine a wheelbarrow full of ores and bring it back to the city. The location is in Korinne Cave." It doesn't seem that hard for a quest. I think it might be doable for us this afternoon. Sebastian read over Jin's shoulder as he gave his input.

"However you need to consider that it will be in a cave, and mining takes a long time. That's why the pay is quite high." Melissa pulled Sebastian back as she disagreed with the quest choice.

"So does that mean that we have to stay in a cave overnight? Is it dangerous then?"

"There is a high chance for that. It's very stifling and we don't know if we can easily find iron ores in that cave."

"If you're worried about using your bow, I remember you a.s.sured us that you can still use your sword if needed." Becky cut into Mel and Sebastian's conversation as she tried to persuade them.

"There will be other groups of adventurers as well, so it will be relatively safe. A lot of groups in the guild expressed interest in this. This means that we can mainly focus on mining. Korinne Cave is only known for poisonous spiders or rat imps. We can handle those easily." Aima chimed in after Becky's persuasion attempt.

Sebastian quietly thought that these two seemed quite interested for this quest. He looked at Jin and Mel who seemed hesitant regarding this situation. Both of them looked at Sebastian in turn, as if waiting for his decision.

"I suppose that we can also do this quest. We can't keep on doing animal subjugation or plant gathering quests forever. This will also be good experience for everyone right Becky? However let's prepare properly for this quest - let's a.s.sume that we have to stay overnight. We should bring camping gear in our rucksacks. How does that sound?" Sebastian finally made the decision for Jin and Mel as they both looked on.

"That settles it then. We should prepare immediately before we head out. We want to get to Korinne Cave while we still have daylight." Aima seemed as if she was in good spirits as she lead the party on.

'As long as we're prepared for the cave and for these two.' Sebastian thought to himself again as he joined them in their preparations.