[X] You started a recruitment stand somewhere for interested commonfolk
You decided to go and start up a recruitment stand after a short debate with Motoyasu, saying that they could set up something like a little booth he remembered the JSDF did at his University once for recruitment for volunteers to save money. Hearing this made you sick, you hated the JSDF with a burning passion but the more Motoyasu revealed about his past the more you got curious.
"Hey... Motoyasu. Who's the prime minster?", "Huh, oh isn't it Akagi Kakuzo*?" Your face turned into a grim line, "Motoyasu, how did you survive the World War?", "Huh! What? I was born way after World War Two you know I'm not that old." Everything clicked, you weren't from the same Japan. Yet Motoyasu is damaged, you can see the clinks in his armor by how fast he attached himself to you. He's using you right now to distract himself from his own pain and you can guess a little on what you can read on him exactly what hurts him.
It's the stench of failure. Motoyasu failed someone so hard that it's eating him up inside.
You smile, to conceal the bile that almost came up your throat and the pain. You close your eyes, breathe in, once, twice, thrice, before the pain numbs back into a dull ache for now. Talking to Motoyasu is making you remember. This is bad, Motoyasu is causing more suffering to you then many of your enemies could dream of doing by accident. You don't hate him, but it's getting difficult to stay near him. "Ah, Motoyasu does this look like a place we can design simple recruitment signs? I'm pretty short so don't forget a box!" Motoyasu is a simple person, and for that you are grateful if he started to pry you don't know if you can keep going. Motoyasu ran off into a random store so earnestly that it hurt, reminding you of your father and your daughter. You rummaged through your pocket and pulled out a cigarette, the familiar task helping you forget for just a moment but your scars still burn.
You finish your cigarette by the time Motoyasu comes back, carrying recruitment sign with a cute drawing of a shield and a spear 'Come be a Hero with Motoyasu and Yukihime!'. Despite yourself you give a short laugh, and Motoyasu looks pleased at your reaction for some reason. Sure enough, he didn't forget a box either. You both continue down towards what you assume to be the town square, you haven't seen this many people in your entire life at one time just... Doing something normal. We just arrived but we seemed to have drawn a crowd just by showing up, people are excited to see the Spear and the Shield Hero huh? You suppose it'll make recruitment easier.
You feel a little foolish stepping onto a box to make yourself taller, but it's necessary to make sure everyone gets a good view on you and pay attention. "Good afternoon! I am the Shield Hero, Yukihime Sakura! This is my associate and fellow Hero of the Spear, Motoyasu! We wish to recruit able bodied men and women to accompany us on our quest to save the world effective immediately!" You shout over the crowd, Motoyasu using his height and the sign to great effect in support. You know it wasn't an inspiring speech, but it was simple and got the message across but you hoped your status as a hero and projecting a strong persona would entice confidence towards even your mangled frame.
You had many people interested in joining, even with the prejudice you can detect in some of the crowd and Motoyasu was absolutely swamped with applicants. After you made your decision you parted ways with Motoyasu, you couldn't stand the pain of being around him much longer, and you couldn't help him from his own.
[X] In the end you settled on William Blackwood, an aging monk seeking enlightenment.
[X] You met a merchants bastard daughter, Eleanor of Greenville eager to prove her worth to the world.
[X] You found a starving failure of a magician, Franics Brooke.
[X] You rejected all applicants.
We finally get our choice of companions! Yay!
Also you're slowly breaking under stress.
You have discovered that the commonfolk mostly aren't hostile to you, it seems like that the hostility is a recent thing rather than something inherent in this part of the world.
*I don't think they specify a name for the different Prime Ministers in the manga, if anyone corrects me I'll put the correct name in here if they did put one in one of the source materials.
