"While the party was working well, Jake didn't want to join a guild, and that was the only way we could return home… that was why the party was disbanded," Louise said. "He also said that it would be fine like that and that we could work together now and then."
"While he said that, it doesn't look like he felt the need to inform you of all of his goals and intentions, I can see how well he trusted you guys," Arilene said while showing a slightly annoyed expression. "In the end, you all chose to live with your friend alone, facing dangers unknown to you all only because you missed home, which was only an illusion of what happened in the past."
"Hey, girl, I think you have said too much," Karina stepped forward with her arms crossed. "Jake had the means to survive on his own, and we trusted that. He never complained about anything, so you aren't in a position to act like you understand his struggles or our decisions."
"... That is true. I might have said a bit too much now," Arilene. "Still, it is clear that we can't work together. Despite your words, I can also feel some guilt on your face, so you must be hiding something."
In the end, they spilled the beans and told the others about the fact that the other guilds might have been hunting Jake in the past. Their other versions didn't see each other eye to eye, and they fought. Jake won, and the others died… now, they want to be sure that the same thing won't happen by dealing with Jake before he can become an enemy.
"Unbelievable… the nerve of some people," Arilene said. "You were fooled twice by your guild master, who tried to ambush your friend, and you still are working with them."
"Luke said that they never fought, and if they had fought, Jake wouldn't have let them escape unscathed," Lana said. "We also owe a lot to the guild, so we can't abandon them like this. We are trying to solve this situation before it escalates even further."
"I can understand their point of view," Myrna said. "We also had to endure similar problems. Once we learned the truth, many people thought that it would be a waste of time to follow our leaders since they had failed before. Infighting broke out because of that… you are someone from this universe, so you might not understand it…"
"Yes, I can't understand it… your whole situation is way too abnormal," Arilene said. "Criticizing you all won't solve anything. However, I need to know what you guys are going to do if the guild masters are still willing to fight him. Are you going to choose your friend or them?"
They looked at each other since it was another difficult thing to say. It would be hard to side with Jake since the guild masters had under their command thousands of people.
"He saved my life once, so I think I need to repay the favor now," Julian said. "Until now, he didn't do anything against the guild masters, and while I don't know the past, the current situation shows me that he doesn't want to deal with them. If that were to happen, I will side with him."
"... While he is hard to deal with, he is also the person who freed me from the control of that asshole," Karina said. "Truth be told, I don't like Jake very much, but I also need to repay the favor."
"... Jake is annoying, but he isn't someone who would betray the human race," Lana said. "While he likes to trash talk me, I kind of miss his food. He has an attitude problem, but he never lets us get any closer to danger… I guess his bad points are pretty well countered by his good points. A bad friend still is a friend. I don't want to let down a friend."
"Lana, your comparisons are all over the place…" Louise said. "As for me, I don't need a reason to help a friend. Lana and Jake helped me once, but it doesn't matter. I don't need that kind of reasoning. Not like your reasonings are flawed, mind you."
"I really hope that you all won't forget these words and change your minds later," Arilene said. "Still, even if you do, it won't matter. As long as you help me find him and repay my debt, everything else won't matter."
"You are saying that, but we will get along; as a princess, you never learn that are some things that shouldn't be said," Karina said while furrowing her eyebrows.
"Let's not fight, we don't have to like each other immediately, but we certainly don't need to decide to hate each other so soon," Louise said.
"I also have a debt to him, but I have responsibilities. One day, I also hope to repay my debt," Myrna said. "In any case, perhaps you all should come to my word to be able to move and visit me now and then. There is a chance that Jake will show up and give hints about his whereabouts."
In the end, the group decided to follow Myrna and her people to her world. Still, they quickly returned since they had a lot of work to do.
While Myrna didn't have time to help them that much, she also told them how to use the technique of her people. They might be able to learn something important from their past, even though their worries were currently somewhere else. Besides, none of them felt like they had seen Jake in their previous lives, or the guild masters for that matter… the reason for that could only be something bothersome.
"Our options from here on out will increase a lot, but we can probably beat Jake in terms of hunting speed if we work well together," Louise said. "We should show Arilene what we can do to make her more used to our skills and the way we fight, and we also need to pay attention to her skills."
Louise knew that Arilene and Karina wouldn't get well, they were the same age, but they were like water and oil. One usually doesn't speak what is in her mind. Meanwhile, the other speaks without reservation. Still, she was hoping that they would put their differences aside to reach their common goal. As for Arilene's fighting style… they couldn't help but frown while looking at it.
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