"Why is this still a discussion? Fighter is clearly the best option. They need all the strength they can to face the Sky Ruler Spawn," Sevaris said.

"Yeah, sure. Because everything is always solved with your fists," Lija scoffed, "She needs to be smart at it. Her spells already about ailments and interruptions. She should go for the controller skill."

"The hunter skill is better," Ganek said.

"Tell me, why the hunter skill is better?" Sevaris asked.

"Just is," Ganek replied.

"I know you have that silent and mysterious thing going on, but you can't join the discussion if you don't explain your point," Lija rolled her eyes.

Hera was sitting on a chair while rubbing her forehead. She had waited to ask about the quest after training, but she didn't expect it to devolve into a 40 minute discussion about what role was the best. In the end, aside from the mages, everyone was suggesting their own roles. Even the captain was pushing for the fighter role. Hera tried to leave that conversation a few times, but to no avail. She didn't want to be rude to anyone. After another half an hour, the team finally finished their discussion. Everyone went back home. The following day, Sevaris would train some advanced skills with Blue, and Hera had to complete her role quest. Naka gave her the day off just for that.

"So, did all that help?" Blue asked as they walked.

"Not really. I mean, all the skills seem to be able to help," Hera sighed.

"Is there one that you didn't like?" Silah asked.

"I'm not much fond of fighter. I mean, I get why people like it, but it really doesn't fit with how I fight."

"How about the controller? We might be able to do some fun combos using our skills. Maybe we can keep chaining taunts and make the griffons fly back and forth," Blue seemed excited about that idea.

"Maybe, but I think that it would take too long for us to get to that point. Not to mention my skills are like, half of what yours will be, and that's not counting with the ranks. If I try to taunt a monster you already taunted, I doubt I can get its attention."

"That's a fair point," Blue replied.

"So what's left is the hunter skill?" Silah asked.

"I guess so. I really wanted to get the mage skill, though. I was practicing my mana regeneration every day to get it," Hera sighed.

"Well, at least you got something, and you can get the mage next," Silah tried to cheer Hera up.

"Yeah. With the hunter skill, I can learn more about the griffons. I think Leo had a thing that made his damage increase the more monsters of the same type he killed. He could even share that effect to some degree."

"Oh right, he had something like that. He could even make some red marks that meant 'hit here,'" Blue added.

"Who's Leo?" Silah asked.

"He's an old party member we had. We split up because he joined an organization and had to go away to work with them. He had a giant frog as a pet, it was cute, but that almost drove Alex nuts," Hera laughed.

"I hope I can meet him someday and know what's a frog."

"That I can help you with. I have a few pictures on my tablet. You should come to our place. If you guys want, I can just lock myself in my room so you two can have your date," Blue poked Hera's side with her elbow.

"Blue! I told you not to say anything," Hera turned to her friend. She was starting to understand how private the dwarves were and didn't want to scare her first date in years.

"It's ok. We tell our friends about that stuff," Silah turned to Blue, "We just don't talk about it in the middle of the street."

"My bad," Blue replied.

Arriving at their place, Hera started cooking while Blue showed the pictures she had on her tablet. Unfortunately, the chicken was already gone, and the buffalo wings' attempt was… less than successful. They didn't have a recipe, and none of them was exactly an experienced chef. To make things worse, there was nothing aside from black pepper in the farms. Without making some hot sauce, they had no clue how to make proper buffalo wings. During all their tests, they ran out of chicken, and since they were still training before fighting the griffons, the meal would have to be made with meat.

"Wait, wait. Is Hera wearing a dress here?" Silah asked.

"Oh, yeah. This was our graduation. She looks great, doesn't she? It's a waste that she doesn't like to take pictures," Blue sighed.

"I can hear you, you know?" Hera said while in the kitchen.

"I know. You're supposed to."

"You do look amazing, and you must really like purple," Silah added.

"I honestly don't have any strong feelings for it, but I do look good in purple," Hera chuckled. She didn't know when she became the 'purple girl,' but most of the clothes and even blankets she had now were in shades of purple.

"Not just in purple," Silah replied.

Blue rolled her eyes, "Can you two wait to flirt after dinner?"

"Can't you wait till we are inside to talk about my dating life?" Silah teased.

Blue stared at Silah for a long moment, "I made a huge mistake helping you two get together, didn't I?"

Hera walked over with two glasses of ale and gave one to each of her friends, "Probably. I at least have no intention of letting you off so easy for meddling with my love life."

"Wow, can you do this again?" Silah asked after seeing a picture.

"This what?" Hera looked over. It was the picture they took during the underground forest, with her using her light spell as a halo of sorts.

"If we move some lights around, I think it can work," Blue suggested.

"Really? I'm in the middle of making dinner," Hera sighed.

"Can I see you like that? Please," Silah asked.

"I'm not gonna stop cooking, so you two figure out a way to set it up," Hera walked back to the stove.

"We are going to need a light," Blue got up quickly and started moving some of the glowing rocks they used as lamps around.

Hera sighed and created her light spell on the spot Blue asked. The last thing she wanted was to have another photoshoot. She focused back on the food. After some tests, she managed to create something similar to pasta. It was basically just flour, salt, and water. The flavor was still a bit off, but it was tasty. Since they had tomatoes and other spices, Hera prepared a batch of noodles and was boiling them. At the same time, she was making a simple steak with potatoes. Blue and Silah tested a few things around and managed to recreate the effect.

"Hera, can I make a picture of me with your light?" Silah asked.

"Of course, feel free. I just don't like taking pictures of myself," Hera replied.

"No, I mean. Can you make the picture?"

"Oh… sure, and we say take a picture, not make a picture, ok? It's because we are not the ones actually making the image. It is the tablet," Hera smiled and walked over to the makeshift studio.

"Is it really because of that?" Blue asked.

"I don't know, but it makes sense, right?"

Hera and Blue helped Silah get into a good position, making suggestions on places she could be and changing the height of the lights.

" Ready?" Hera asked.

Silah nodded.

"Ok, then. Smile."

Hera took a couple of pictures. Among them, one was fantastic. The tablet tried to refocus, and the background became blurry, leaving Silah basked in the white light from Hera's spell and the warm glow from the stones. Her tanned skin became even more tan, and at the same time, it looked as if the light came from herself. Blue was holding up one of the light stones. Its reflection appeared in Silah's eyes like an otherworldly glimmer. The entire composition gave a mystic feel to the picture.

"Damn, that one looks great," Blue gasped.

"Can I see it?" Silah walked over.

"Of course, here," Hera gave her the tablet.

"Is this.. me?"

"Yeah, girl. You look beautiful," Blue nodded.

"She always does," Hera looked at Silah, who instantly turned red.

Blue downed her drink and walked over to the table, "You guys decided to date yesterday. How the hell are you so lovey-dovey already?"

"That's me when I'm dating someone. Not everyone shares your idea of romance. I mean, my first makeout session won't be beside a dumpster," Hera chuckled.

"Hey! She's the one the dragged me there," Blue gasped.

"Like you didn't love it."

"What's a dumpster?" Silah asked.

Blue stared at Hera, "Don't you dare tell her."

"I can't start a relationship with secrets, Blue. I have to tell her," Hera gave her friend a devilish smile.

"I hate you," Blue drank another glass of ale.

The evening went on, with the three drinking, eating, and talking. Blue was the first one to head to bed, leaving Hera and Silah on their own. Although it wasn't an actual date, being together like that was nice. They avoided talking about the dungeons or the guard and just tried to know each other better. Hera told Silah about her family, her dreams as a kid, and how her life was before she started exploring. She did her best to avoid mentions about other rooms, as King Rutigan had asked, but she figured out it was better to just ask Silah not to talk or ask about those things after a couple of slip-ups. The blacksmith agreed to that, as long as Hera promised to explain what she meant when she could. Silah also told Hera about her past, her friends, previous relationships, and childhood.

"Hang on, Velen? Your best friend is the same boy that asked you to marry him when you both were five?" Hera asked.

"That's the one. We go way back. I've wanted to introduce you two, but it just never seemed like the right time, and I didn't know how you would react."

"I would love to meet him, but do I have to pass a friend test or something? If he doesn't like me, are we going to stop dating?" Hera joked.

"What? No. Why would his opinion of you decided if we could be together?" Silah asked.

"Oh, never mind. It was just a joke."

"Humans have a weird sense of humor."

Hera nodded in agreement, but after that, there was a long uncomfortable silence. Considering the situation, if Silah was a human, Hera would lean in for a kiss. However, she was worried about moving too fast since even a kiss on the cheek seemed to trigger a very different reaction than she expected. Without any idea what to say, she glanced at the door and saw her armor boots.

"I know we agreed not to talk about work and training. But can I ask you a question about crafting?" Hera turned back to Silah.

"Of course."

"Kahala mentioned that she couldn't make my armor stronger without placing restrictions. What are those?"

"Oh? We have a skill that makes armor stronger if we place some requirements. You might not be able to use it without a certain level or if an attribute is lower than the armor asks. The harsher the restriction, the stronger the other effects will get. The skill has some limits too. For instance, mine only lets me create things from level 20 to 30. Kahala's can go all the way to 60. If we don't use the skill, we can make whatever, but the results are not that great."

"And there is no way to make for lower levels?" Hera asked.

"Not as far as I know. The lowest level I ever saw someone making was 20."

"It's a shame. We could use some stronger things," Hera sighed.

"Yeah. And I'm feeling a bit tired. Is it ok if I go?" Silah asked.

Hera giggled, "I get asking for permission for coming inside, but do you have to ask to leave too?"

"I'm a polite person. We dwarves are not barbarians like humans," Silah laughed.

"Fair enough, and thanks."

"For what?"

"This, I'm glad you told me how you feel. Even if it was by mistake. I already thought we were close, but now it's… something more, you know."

Silah nodded, "Yeah. I feel the same way," she looked back at the door, "Say, I know this is not the date I had in mind, but can we consider this our first official date?"

Hera shrugged, "You still own me a date then, but sure."

"Great," Silah pulled Hera's neck towards her and gave her a long kiss, "I've wanted to do this for the past hour, but like I said, it was only for the end of the date."

Silah quickly got up from the couch and headed to the door. With a wave, she said goodbye and left the human's house, with Hera still shellshocked.

"Weren't you supposed to be all coy and move slow? By the system, Silah," Hera mumbled before getting up.

She cleaned up the plates they used for dinner and checked in on Blue, hoping she would still be up and they could talk. To Hera's dismay, the controller was sound asleep already. Her mind was still rushing, and to relax, she decided to take a bath and then sleep. Despite her thoughts that kept coming back to Silah, she had to rest. After all, tomorrow, she would get her new role skill.