Using Gacha to Increase My Companions and to Create the Strongest Girls' Army Corps

While waiting for the day of our investigation with Gret and the others, Estel decided to teach Runa a disguise spell to help her manage Freesia outside. Despite her reluctance, Runa managed to learn the spell without much trouble, as her aptitude for magic was decent. Now, if her hood accidentally fell off in public, there’d be no worry about her ears being exposed. We also considered teaching Freesia, who can use wind-based magic, but her compatibility with this spell was low, and even if she learned it, her wandering focus would probably cause it to fail frequently. Estel is considering creating a magic tool for this, but it hasn’t been easy.

After a few days of preparation, the day of departure finally arrived. Early in the morning, I woke Runa up and entrusted Freesia to her care. The two saw us off as we headed for Sevarya, where we would start by borrowing some horses.

"At last, a chance to put my horseback riding practice to use. I’m feeling a bit nervous," I admitted.

Since Nooru and the others had me start horseback riding practice, I’d continued it during my free time. Now I could manage solo fairly well, so I thought today might finally be my turn to give Sisuha or Estel a ride. But, as soon as I voiced my hope, Sisuha frowned and quickly shot down the idea.

"What are you talking about? You're still riding behind me, Ookura-san."

"Huh?"

Wait, what!? I thought this was finally my chance—why not now? As if reading my mind, Sisuha continued her explanation.

"Of course. While your riding skills have improved, two-person riding is still a bit advanced, not to mention matching pace with the other horses."

"Indeed," Nooru agreed. "You must gain more confidence in controlling the horse on your own before taking on a passenger."

Estel chimed in with a wry smile, "It's disappointing, but I’ll look forward to it next time, so keep working hard."

It seems I still have a ways to go in meeting Nooru and Sisuha's standards. I had thought my training was enough, but they knew better. A bit dejected but also relieved, I joined the group, and soon we borrowed our horses and made our way to the meeting spot.

We arrived early, but Gret was already there with her horse, along with Mars and a few other people: a robed older man with a staff, who seemed like a mage; a younger man with a large crossbow; and a short-haired woman in light armor, likely a rogue, judging by the daggers and satchel at her waist.

This must be Gret’s party, and from their looks, they seem strong—and very combat-focused. Time for some introductions.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Oh no, we only just arrived ourselves—” Gret replied, then suddenly froze, her eyes widening as she took in my appearance. Mars turned to look at me, his usual stern gaze shifting into a puzzled expression. Even though I’d removed my helmet, they still seemed taken aback.

Gret regained her composure with a cough. "So... this is the ‘famous’ getup. Quite… distinctive, I’d say. I didn’t recognize you at first."

Seeing Gret so taken aback made me wonder if my appearance really was that odd. Still, I felt confident my armor would speak for itself if we encountered any monsters. However, Mars, who had been staring in silence, finally spoke up.

“Oi, are you messing with us? What’s with that pot lid?”

“I’m not messing around. It’s simply the best shield I have.”

“What!?”

Ignoring my armor, Mars was fixated on my pot lid. Granted, it does look strange with the rest of my armor, but still… Mars looked like he was struggling to make sense of my answer. Then, he made an unexpected suggestion.

"... Alright, let’s test that. Try blocking one of my punches with it.”

“Stop that nonsense!” Gret interjected. "There's no need to cause trouble right from the start!”

"But how can we trust him if he’s going into battle with us looking like that? It’s suspicious," Mars insisted.

Gret hesitated, glancing over at me before saying, “I suppose…”

Great. This is turning into a hassle. I had hoped fighting monsters would be proof enough, but Mars is determined to fight me instead. And refusing would likely mean losing any credibility with them. The other party members are watching, waiting for my response. Fine, I’ll accept. I just need to block his punch; if I fail, it’s still better than backing down entirely.

“If a simple block will earn your trust, then go ahead. Attack as you like.”

"Good! I’m coming at you full force, then!"

Mars grinned, slipping on iron-plated gloves. Wait, that’s serious gear! I didn’t expect him to go this hard!

Before I could react, he dashed toward me with shocking speed, aiming a punch at my face. Reflexively, I raised the pot lid just in time, but then I noticed his other fist flying toward me from the side. A feint!?

His surprise move almost threw me off, but I quickly redirected the pot lid in time to intercept his other fist. With a dull, crunching sound, Mars let out a shout.

“Gahhh!”

He clutched his hand in pain, grimacing. …Oops.

“What the hell? That lid’s way too tough!” he shouted.

“Like I said, it’s the best quality shield I have,” I replied, shrugging.

Mars looked bewildered, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Then, he started yelling again.

“... You know what, fine! Let’s see if you can handle this!” he muttered, raising his fist for another try, only to be stopped by Sisuha.

“Oh dear, that sounded painful,” she said, walking up. “Allow me to heal that for you.”

Mars tried to shake her off, growling, "Don’t you dare—!" But before he could protest further, she cast her healing magic, and the tension melted away from his expression as the pain disappeared. When he realized what happened, however, he scowled.

“Good job, Mars,” Gret cut in dryly. "You tried a trick, and he blocked it. It's settled."

Mars clicked his tongue, muttering, "Tch, wasn’t expecting that speed…”

Defeated, Mars walked away, grumbling, with Gret watching him, sighing.

“I apologize on his behalf,” she said, bowing her head. "He can be stubborn.”

"No worries. But is your arm alright, Mars?” I asked.

“Thanks to her healing, it’s fine," he replied, still clearly irritated.

With introductions underway, the mage, named Vaile, struck up a conversation with Estel, intrigued by her youth.

“Well, you don’t see many young mages as adventurers,” he remarked.

"Right back at you,” Estel replied with a smirk. "I don’t see many elderly mages doing it either.”

"Haha! I do it because I enjoy it,” Vaile chuckled.

And then there was Nooru, chatting with the rogue-looking woman, Azelie.

"All-female party? You look tough,” Azelie commented.

"Hehe, just leave it to me!” Nooru boasted, flexing her arm, making Azelie clap in admiration.

After that, we met the last member, Kruse, a young man with impressive crossbow skills who was already busy checking his gear.

Finally, Gret turned back to me.

“I mentioned before that our party has no healer, so having your group along is incredibly reassuring. But with so many people, I know it will strain your team, so don’t feel obligated to overextend,” she said.

“Not to worry! With me on support, this will be easy work,” Sisuha chimed in. "I’m more than happy to jump into the action if needed!”

“You’re staying on support!” I warned.

Gret laughed, “You’re quite the confident one, aren’t you? I’m looking forward to working with you.”

Actually, that wasn’t a joke at all… With a mix of anticipation and some lingering worries, we set off.