Dwargon

[Bloodedge]

As Miki tossed her hair about to get it in order, Kou was staring without thought. His expression did not portray the same skepticism it had before, but there was even more confusion present, and... something else that even Kou couldn't explain if he had to. Eventually, he snapped back to reality well enough to speak, though the staring didn't cease even when he did. "Rune Magic is a Lancer Skill, right? If you could apply Runes to my gems, we could sell them for a lot of gold, I think," he stated. When playing as his current Avatar, he'd made thousands from selling jewels alone, so he knew applying additional value to them would be a great boon. As Miki took care of her business in the washroom, Kou went about reclaiming things that he had, at some point, dropped from the bed. His sword and a few small pieces of armor were fixed to his person in a matter of moments, and he was rising to pass Miki en route to the bathroom by the time she was stepping out.

[Apollymi]

"Hai... it seems like a pretty good way to make some extra. I'll do my best to learn some good ones~" she managed a smile crossing her face as she showed off freshly brushed teeth after leaving the bathroom. She'd taken note of his glances but didn't really know what to make of them, somehow the quality of his gaze had changed, but she wasn't sure if he was seeing her in a positive or negative light. Whatever the case, he was at least still talking about their shared ventures so she could take everything at face value. "Anyways, I think we will have an alright time, raising the funding for the Guild before we manage to find the other leaders willing to back us up, or rather while we look for them and complete the necessary tasks. Eonis seems to be a good spot for general commerce. So, I figured we could see about setting up there, after our visit to the Fairy Forest, since that is where our blacksmith is and all..." she commented absently. She'd had the lad pass her on her way out of the bathroom, even so she found herself looking at him with a new and differing appreciation. 'He's pretty nice still... I found an interesting partner for this... damn shame I had to get sucked into a new world for anything like this to happen...' her mind wandered as she waited for such a time as the pair of them leaving this room. All the while she tied up her boots and got properly settled back into her clothing, her cloak thrown back over her shoulders as well. and her hood pulled up.

[Bloodedge]

Kou took the time to freshen up and handle his oral hygiene as well. While Miki was speaking, there was a toothbrush nearly tonsil-deep in his mouth. He spoke in a muffled manner, seeming to ignore the toothbrush in his mouth as he did. "Eonis seems fine. That'll give us Dwargon, probably the Fairy Forest... we'd need two more." As he spoke, Kou even stepped out of the bathroom, leaving the toothbrush between his lips and revealing the toothpaste dripping down to his chin. "So, hey... how much money do you think will be a good amount?" he asked in a manner that returned to his soft-spoken speech of earlier. It was a bit timid a question for his normal mannerisms, but he simply desired an answer.

[Apollymi]

"Yeah, assuming everything goes well, and that being in Eonis will eventually lead into them backing us up as well..." Miki said, still there was the matter of the other places to consider. That being said there wasn't so much to do that they needed to stress about it. Regardless Miki was soon surprised to find the lad standing outside of the bathroom drooling just a little as he questioned the funding necessary for their venture. Miki's face showed uttered confusion but her expression still managed to be considerably softer. She seemed to be considering something for just a second or two. "Well it takes a thousand gold just to start the guild. We should probably aim for about a ten percent buffer on the end just to cover expenses until we are set up beyond that... so like 1100 gold maybe 1200 if we wanted to be super safe. But if we manage to set up any actual business ventures in the meantime it might not be such a tough sell... nothing to worry about though. I'm pretty sure with our combined skills we should be able to live pretty comfortably..." was pretty sure of herself in this moment. But she wasn't the kind of spoiled that would require a specific or ridiculous amount of money. In fact, she seemed to have a very sensible view of life in general. There was one other thing she felt the need to mention. "You got a little toothpaste on your face..." she said motioning to the lad's chin, but it wasn't teasing or negative... she just wanted to help him out a bit.

[Bloodedge]

Kou's gaze was unwavering as he awaited Miki's answer to his question. When she gave it, he seemed to be in deeper thought for a few additional moments before any sort of retort left him. "... Sou ka," he said in a slightly downtrodden fashion. His gaze even dropped then, but he moved on regardless. Miki pointing out the toothpaste on his chin was the only other thing he had to comment on. "Yeah," was his response as he turned back toward the sink and rinsed his mouth, wiping the toothpaste off afterwards. With that, he was ready to leave the room and meet the Dwarves' experienced traders to learn. "They're probably waiting on us now." Kou wasted no further time before heading out and making his way toward the building's main hall, where those who would train them were, indeed, awaiting their arrival. One of the two happened to be an ashen-haired male Dwarf with spiked pauldrons over a long cloak. He was also of the Lancer Class, and considered a master of Rune Magic among Dwarf kind.

[Apollymi]

Miki gave her answer to Kou's question and then pointed out the toothpaste on his chin. And honestly all she could say, is that his reaction was rather strange. He seemed rather suddenly down about something and she couldn't pinpoint any reason for him to feel that way. If he was worried about how long it would take for them to raise the necessary funding, that wasn't something that needed to happen immediately. Beyond this she couldn't have any idea what could have been bothering the lad. 'Ano... did I say something wrong?' the girl was left to wonder. Her interactions with people weren't strange normally, usually any problems she had with communication were due to the way she looked at people, but she was certain they'd already moved past that point as a friend group. 'Hm, I don't really get it...' she thought more but it seemed to be a bit of a headache. "Hai hai." the girl managed though she still seemed a bit confused she followed out of the room they'd shared for the night in the hopes of beginning the other part of their journey.

As they made their way to the Throne Room, they were confronted by the sight of the pair of Dwarves they'd asked to see, the Lancer Class Dwarf with ashen hair who was likely the man Miki had asked for. And beside him, a younger Dwarven female. She wore her hair in giant pigtails which were rusty red in color but pink on the tips. Beyond this she seemed to wear bits of leather armor sewn together with a pair of goggles around her neck. She would be considered the most masterful jeweler the Dwarves had to offer. "Osu! Someone wanted to learn how to make stuff? I'm the person for that... best there is~ I'm Ambra." this woman exuded confidence and had the same kind of boisterous personality that had been seen in several Dwarves the night before.

[Bloodedge]

"The best for trinkets, maybe," spoke the Runemaster in response to his female companion. "I have the greatest knowledge of Runes this kingdom has to offer. My name is Endros," he said further, stepping forward to discover which of these Adventurers would be his charge. Kou stepped up afterwards to face the woman named Ambra. He bowed before her to acknowledge her as his mentor. "My name's Kou. I'm looking to learn as much as I can about Jewelcrafting while we're here. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu." With that said, Kou rose from his bow and patiently awaited guidance to wherever he would be learning, and then whatever he would learn.

[Apollymi]

"Oi, no one asked you, Endie~" the girl quipped in quick reply. True enough she made what most Dwarves considered to be trinkets, but she had a knack for it, which meant she'd get a good teacher. As Kou stepped up and introduced himself, Ambra looked him over and nodded. "Oh, it's you huh? Aww, I was hoping to hang out with a girl for once... oh well. I won't hold it against ya'.... come on. I can show you all the basics in my shop..." she mentioned as she began to walk off, her hands tucked in behind her head, seemingly without a care in the world. "You don't have to be so stern all the time ya' know... see ya' later, Endie~" she chimed walking off and making the assumption that Kou would follow. If he did they would eventually find themselves in an offshoot of the castle, it was a small room with dozens of little tools around and lots of trinkets as well as tables with magnifying glasses over them, covered in scrap parts and all of it a bit tinged with magical influence.

Meanwhile, Miki managed to look at the man who introduced himself as Endros with the same general stare she gave most things. She also gave a brief bow in full acknowledgement of the man's position as her teacher. "I wanted to learn about runes, I'm Miki, yoroshiku..." Miki said addressing this man before rising from her bow. She thought about Kou in this moment and wondered if he'd be leaving for a long while or not. She knew she'd intended to learn this part of her skill set even so... she hadn't spent any time away from this lad since they'd found each other in this world. 'I didn't know I'd feel like this again...' the girl mused inwardly while steeling herself for some hard studying.

[Bloodedge]

"I asked me!" Endros replied in a snarky way. Noting that the young male was clearly to be Ambra's ward, he took an additional step forward, leading him to Miki instead. Meanwhile, Kou had his acknowledgement returned by Ambra. "Uhh... right. I'll do my best," he said, brushing off Ambra's alleged preference for a female apprentice. Since she was still keen to teach him, he followed behind her as she led the way to her shop. 'She's pretty young for a trade teacher. I'd say we're somewhere around the same age, at least,' he thought while trailing behind.

Endros bore a furrowed brow as he looked upon Miki. "Well, Miki... you're going to learn a lot of Runes. We'll do it right here, right now. Tell me what you already know first," he demanded. This man boasted a threatening aura, not like that of King Gowther, but certainly that of a man who felled many, many powerful foes in his time. He had done exactly that over the years, and Runes were the cause of it all. Now that he had someone to call an apprentice, he would ensure she would reach the same level of ability in due time.

[Apollymi]

'Sou ka... I guess they are friends,' this was the conclusion Miki came to given the snarky reply of the man known as Endros to the young woman known as Ambra. As Ambra led Kou off into the distance, Miki glanced his way only once more before the presence of her would be master became something rather present in her mind. He walked up to her and she felt a rather intimidating aura. It wasn't like the assault of a PVP player that she'd been given by King Gowther, instead it was more like the weight of a battle hardened warrior as such she could appreciate it. At face value this man could indeed provide her the kind of information she needed, so she steeled herself not backing down and meeting his gaze. "Hai. I'm ready to learn..." she said with a general amount of confidence normally unseen in her as she was quite used to not being forward with her knowledge. "To be honest, I remember some of the names of runes, but none of what they do. It's really weird... but it's been that way since I started travelling. Like, I know that Ansuz and Ihwaz are really useful, but I can't think of what they look like nor really grasp what they do..." she said. This explanation was likely one to be considered strange, but Miki had been doing a lot of adjusting since she came to this world. Most of her easier things were interface related to her in the game, but Rune Magic was one of the few things she couldn't force nor immediately find a way to use when in combat. It wasn't something she had access to as easily as her other skills, and thus she sought guidance.