Note: This is the moment when Artorius was called by the Guild Master, from Yuuji's perspective. Since this is an intermission, this chapter will be short.
We waved goodbye to Art, and a brief silence followed. After a while, I managed to break the stillness.
"What do you think of Art?"
The first to respond was our shy mage, Maine.
"Um... He's a very versatile adventurer. Not only can he wield swords proficiently, but he can also use magic. I'm even surprised by the quality of the potions he made."
Next to speak was Bronca, who is usually quiet but insightful when it comes to assessing people.
"I've noticed it a few times, but he seems very adept at observing the battlefield. He occasionally goes to the backline to prevent ambushes on both Maine and Erica. I'm quite impressed."
I nodded in agreement and turned to Ulius.
"He's also skilled at concealing his presence. Right now, he's at my level, but I think he'll easily surpass me. He managed to spot traps before I did. Although he's not great at disarming them, just providing me with information is incredibly helpful."
That much was true. I caught a glimpse of Art talking to Ulius about something. To think he was alerting him to the traps set by the goblins!
"I guess it's my turn," Erica said. "It's not combat-related, but he has a certain charisma—like a leader's charisma. We weren't very familiar with Art before we teamed up, but his friendliness and combat capabilities have helped us bond with him."
Everyone nodded in agreement with Erica's statement.
That's definitely true. He's not arrogant like some adventurers. In fact, he's very humble. I noticed it myself, and just as Bronca said, he's quite perceptive of the battlefield. He takes turns going to the backline to help prevent ambushes and then returns to the frontline to assist us. Additionally, he can use [Heal] to recover our health after a battle.
"Um... I also want to add something," Maine interjected.
"Hm? What is it, Maine?"
"I'm quite sensitive to people's mana capacity, so I can tell if someone has a mana capacity higher than mine. Art has... twice as much mana as I do."
"What?"
All of us were shocked. Maine already has good mana capacity for a D-rank mage, but if Art has double that amount, then his mana capacity must be on par with a C-rank mage.
"That's certainly shocking. That explains why he can use [Heal] multiple times without getting exhausted. He also casts offensive magic from time to time," Bronca added.
We all nodded at Bronca's statement. Hmm... He shouldn't remain at E-rank.
"Hey, guys, I have a proposal," I suggested.
"Hm? What is it?"
"If Art performs well in the upcoming Goblin Subjugation, how about we propose to the Guild to promote him to D-rank or even C-rank if it went pretty well?"
"Oh, that seems like a good idea! His abilities would be wasted if he stays at E-rank."
"Haha. So, do we all agree on this?"
"Yeah!"
We all cheered in agreement.
"Let's have a toast."
Everyone raised their cups of ale.
"To he who will achieve greatness in the future. Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
We chuckled and drank our ale.
Art... I'm sure you'll become the strongest. That's what I thought to myself as I took a sip of my ale.