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It had definitely felt like a long time, Kazuki agreed with that much. Still, he couldn't help but slightly raise an eyebrow as Alex drank. The tavern obviously reeked of alcohol, but he was a little surprised to see someone his age--were they the same age?--take a swig like an experienced drinker. Then again, he couldn't really blame him, even if he wished he had arrived beforehand to stop him. There was just something wrong about seeing an obviously sullen Alex trying to drink his woes away. Gone was the warrior archer from yesterday, replaced instead with a young man that seemed like he was in over his head.

Not that he was one to talk.

Alex spoke of a letter and followed where he had gestured to, only now seeing Seele and Alja. It looked like Alja was in the same boat as Alex with Seele comforting her. Was there ever a moment she wasn't comforting someone? He had to admit it was admirable to see her the same as yesterday as she continued to be there for everyone. He never did thank her, did he?

Kazuki tore his gaze away from Seele and looked over to Kazuma for advice, only for the latter to have gone elsewhere. Alright, he supposed recruiting Alex would now fall to him, the socially inept Kazu. Well, if he succeeded, maybe afterwards he could catch Seele and Alja. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a handkerchief and offered it to Alex. He was pretty sure the poor guy didn't even realize he had ink all over his chin.

[color=plum]"Actually, 'plans and stuff' is why we're here,"[/color] Kazuki told him with a slight shrug. [color=plum]"Ka--Benkei and I thought that maybe banding together would be more effective than staying apart. At the very least having more people to rely on isn't a bad thing nowadays."[/color]

He had no idea if what he was trying to say even made sense, but he knew he had to try. [color=plum]"Yesterday happened and we're all still here. We're still alive, and that only happened because we were together,"[/color] He continued, pausing for a moment as he scratched his cheek. [color=plum]"Truth be told, I--It's difficult to find people that are trustworthy. People that are reliable. You're someone that people can rely on and you pull through when needed."[/color]

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