The Mercenaries of Mayhem marched back into town, ready to bullshit their way through another mayoral report.
Mayor Joff narrowed his eyes at them the moment they entered his office. "Well?"
Bob smiled. "Good news! You don't have to worry about the dragon anymore."
The mayor squinted. "Oh? You killed it?"
Derek coughed. "Not… exactly."
The mayor frowned. "Then how, exactly, is this problem solved?"
Jim waved a hand. "Doesn't matter. No more dragon. Problem gone."
Joff crossed his arms. "I'll confirm this myself."
The group immediately panicked.
Bob, sweating, laughed awkwardly. "Ha! No need for that!"
Joff frowned. "Why not?"
Before anyone could think of an excuse—
The mayor's eyes landed on the red-haired girl standing behind them.
"…And who is this?" he asked, suspiciously.
The group froze.
Bob, thinking fast (which is never good), clapped a hand on Anna's shoulder. "Ah-ha! This is my sister!"
Silence.
Jim's eye twitched. "Bob. What."
Joff raised an eyebrow. "Your sister?"
Bob nodded aggressively. "Yep! She, uh… came from very far away!"
Joff narrowed his eyes. "From where?"
Bob waved a hand. "Oh, you know… the, uh… Northwestern Eastern Southern Highlands of the Grand Lower Upper Region."
Marcus muttered, "That is not a real place."
Bob ignored him. "She's the daughter of my uncle's son-in-law's cousin's brother's best friend's nephew's neighbor!"
Jim rubbed his temples. "That's… just nonsense."
Joff stared at Bob. Then at Anna. Then back at Bob.
"…Fine," the mayor said, clearly done with this nonsense. "If the dragon problem is handled, I don't care."
The group exhaled in relief.
Joff sighed heavily. "Just… get out."
Bob saluted. "Pleasure doing business with you!"
And with that, they left before he could ask more questions.
The moment they stepped inside their mansion, Anna stretched her arms and looked around.
"Hm," she said. "I expected worse."
Jim muttered, "Yeah, so did we."
Anna tossed her bag onto the couch and turned to the group. "Alright, listen up. Since I'm here now, let's get something straight."
The group stiffened.
Anna smirked. "I like quiet."
Jim snorted. "Yeah, you're in the wrong house for that."
Anna ignored him. "I like reading. If you touch my books, I will burn you. I swear."
Bob gulped. "Noted."
Anna crossed her arms. "I don't do chores."
Marcus blinked. "Wait. We don't do chores either."
Everyone slowly looked at the massive pile of unwashed dishes in the kitchen.
Silence.
Anna sighed. "This place is a disaster."
Jim nodded. "Yep. Welcome to the team."
Anna grinned. "That's right. I am Anna the Red Dragon. You can call me Anna."
Bob blinked. "Wait, so your name is Anna?"
Anna smirked. "Yes."
Jim muttered, "That's… shockingly normal."
Derek sighed. "Alright, whatever. Welcome to the team, Anna."
The group awkwardly nodded, unsure how to feel about having a literal dragon as a housemate.
Anna, meanwhile, smirked. "Oh, don't look so nervous. It's not like I'm gonna eat you."
Jim immediately took a step back. "That was too specific."
Marcus sighed. "We're doomed."
Bob clapped his hands. "Well, too late now!"
And just like that, the Mercenaries of Mayhem officially gained a new (and extremely dangerous) member.