A girl donned in iron armor with a long sword holstered at her waist and a kite shield strapped to her arm walked through a public square. The plaza bustled with movement from people purchasing wares from merchant stalls spread throughout the town center. A merchant called out to the woman as she passed by his stall, but she did not react to him, continuing on as if she hadn't heard him. Or perhaps he was not loud enough to beat the shouts of other merchants nearby and she simply didn't hear him. It did not matter to the merchant anymore because a group soon found themselves in front of his stall, browsing his selection of items.
Near a fountain, a trio sat together around a table talking to each other. Two of them were men and the other a darker skinned girl. One man wore leather armor with two short swords holstered at his waist with a quiver filled with arrows and a bow strung behind him. The other man had a hooded robe on and a staff with a glowing orb at the very top of it. As for the girl, she had iron armor on just like the girl walking towards them, but it looked thinner. The dark skinned girl had a heavy looking battle axe behind her and a mace holstered at her waist.
"Took your sweet time getting here, didn't you Konata?" The dark skinned girl grinned at the other girl who scratched the back of her head.
"Kept you waiting, huh?" Konata laughed nervously. "Sorry about that, Misao."
"We weren't waiting too long." The archer shook his head. "Kishor and I only just got here about eight minutes ago."
"I've been here for about ten minutes." Misao casually added, resting her head on the table. "That's two minutes longer than them."
"So, did you find it?" Konata turned her attention to Kishor.
"Yeah, but Sig was the one who infiltrated the place thanks to his stealth skills." Kishor nodded his head, looking over at Sig. "Take it away, man."
"Right…Ahem…"
Sig laid out a map on the table. It appeared to have been thoroughly written and drawn on; detailing what looked to be a dungeon consisting of five floors with several rooms on each level.
"The dungeon we've been looking for has finally appeared. Luckily for us, no one else has noticed it yet, so we'll be the first to explore it." Sig started, pointing at the floor at the very top. "Each floor has a set amount of monster encounters; at least three groups per floor. There doesn't appear to be any traps or ambushes set up, but we should still keep our guard up just in case. There are no treasure chests on any of the floors, so it is safe to assume that any sort of valuables is on the last floor."
"What about the final floor?" Konata pointed at the largest room drawn on the map that had a question mark written on it. "Can we expect a guardian in there?"
"Yes. I couldn't get into that room, but from what I could see beyond the door; it's a very large and wide area." Sig nodded his head. "Something is sleeping in the center of that room, but I couldn't identify what kind of creature it is. It's definitely massive in size from its shadowy figure, but other than that, we'll find out what it is once we reach that room. That's all I know."
"Good work, Sig. All that's left for us to do now is to charge into that dungeon ourselves." Konata concluded as she crossed her arms. "Misao, I need you to leave a message for second squad back at the guild house. I'm confident we'll make it through the floors, but some backup would be nice for the guardian at the final room. They should be coming back from their own trip in a couple of hours."
"You got it, Konata!"
"I'll load up on coatings for my arrows." Sig said, standing up. "We'll need every available variety of power arrows to give us an edge in battle."
"I'm heading off to the magic shop to upgrade a few of my spells." Kishor rose up from his seat as well.
"And I have an appointment with the blacksmith. I'll stock up on restoratives for all of us." Konata nodded her head. "We'll meet up at the town entrance in an hour. See you then."
"Welcome to Sturdy Perfections, how can I help-oh, hello Izumi-san." An old, but muscular man greeted Konata as she closed the door behind her.
"Hello, Oka-san." She greeted the man with a smile as she walked up to the counter. "I've got a present for you."
Konata pulled her sword out of its sheath and placed it on the table. Then she reached into one of several pouches attached to her waist. Set down alongside the weapon was a ruby that had a small fire burning inside the jewel. Oka's jaw dropped as he picked up the red gem in his hand. He inspected it closer with his eyes before a grin stretched across his face.
"Christmas must be early because this is the first time I've seen a jewel of this rarity. I never thought I'd see the day I can imbue something like this into a weapon." The man's eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Can I count on you to upgrade my sword then?" Konata chuckled, placing a hand on her hip. "Because I could always take my business somewhere else…"
"Izumi-san, you wound me with your cruel words!" Oka feigned hurt, posing as if he were to collapse.
"I need my sword back in an hour. I'm counting on you, Oka-san."
"Your faith is well-placed. I'll get to work on it straight away!"
Konata waved goodbye to Oka as she exited the blacksmith shop. Her next order of business landed her back in the marketplace at the plaza. As she scouted the stalls for healing potions, she noticed a group of girls surrounding someone very familiar…
"Oh, what the hell…" Konata's palm met her face as she shook her head. "You should really turn off your swag sometimes, Sig…You get rushed by other girls when we're not around."
With a heavy sigh, Konata marched her way over to the girls surrounding Sig. He noticed her and could see the relief in his eyes. Konata intentionally shoved her way through the girls, earning their cries of surprise, and stood by Sig's side. She wrapped her arms around Sig and gave the girls a playful and devious grin. The girl's reactions were priceless as they were rendered speechless at what just happened in front of them. A few minutes passed as the two divided parties stared each other down. Well, it was more like Konata against the girls while Sig just stood there with his eyes closed, but one of them twitched out of annoyance. Eventually, the girls relented and turned away, grumbling to themselves as they headed elsewhere.
"Thanks, Konata. You're a lifesaver, as always." Sig said as Konata released his arm and stepped back from him. "I refused them politely at first, but when they did not take no for answer, I just stayed quiet."
"People are like that, Sig. Sometimes you just have to put your foot down!" Konata suddenly groaned as she lowered her head. "Why am I telling you this? If anything, this should be the other way around…"
Sig laughed at Konata, who looked up and made a face at him. Sig reacted by patting her head, which she enjoyed.
"…But I guess that's part of your charm too." Konata smiled at Sig before turning around to hide her blush. "A-anyways, if you're already done with what you needed, then help me look for some stalls selling healing potions."
"You got it, boss."
The two walked around the several stalls set up in the plaza, buying potions wherever one was available. Once Konata deemed they had enough, the pair headed to the Oka's blacksmith shop to retrieve Konata's weapon. When they entered the building, Konata saw Oka with sweat pouring down his face and looking very exhausted, but proud at the same time. The man turned his gaze over to the pair and gave a big smile to Konata as he held up her sword in his hand. The blade shined an eerie dark red, but it vanished once he set the weapon down on the counter. Konata approached the counter with Sig right behind her. Immediately after picking up the sword, Konata took a step back, eyes widening in shock.
"Whoa…the power I'm feeling holding this…It's incredible!" Konata exclaimed. "I even gained knowledge of some new abilities now."
"That's impressive." Sig whistled to express his amazement.
"I'm happy to have upgraded your weapon to such a wonderful status." Oka said, grinning happily. "Not many blacksmiths in this town are blessed with the opportunity I had just now. I trust you're satisfied?"
"Your payment will be transferred from our guild's treasury like always, Oka-san." Konata said as she holstered her sword. "Thank you as always for your services to me and my friends."
"I'm guessing you guys are heading out of town? You two look stocked up and ready to go." Oka glanced at the potions on Sig and Konata.
"We're heading out right now, actually." Sig spoke up before looking at Konata. "Misao and Kishor are probably waiting for us at the entrance. We should get going."
"You're right." Konata nodded her head before looking back at Oka. "See you later, Oka-san!"
"I'll be seeing you again soon!" Oka waved goodbye to the two as they sped out of the door.
When Konata and Sig reached the entrance, they only saw Kishor standing there by himself. The two approached him and greeted each other before Konata asked about Misao's whereabouts. Kishor shrugged his arms and told her that he had been the first one here.
"It looks like I'm the one waiting now instead of being waited on." Konata smiled in amusement, crossing her arms.
"How long have you been waiting here, Kishor?" Sig asked.
"About thirty minutes."
Sig and Konata immediately recoiled from Kishor's answer.
"Whoa! You know, you could have done something else to pass the time instead of waiting on us here!" Konata exclaimed, feeling guilty now.
"Arriving early is what my mama always taught-"
Suddenly, Kishor stopped through his sentence. Konata stared at him curiously as Kishor glanced at Sig, who stared back at Kishor with a raised eyebrow. Kishor laughed nervously before sighing, drooping his shoulders. Sig chuckled and shook his head before patting Kishor on the shoulder.
"There's no need for that, Kishor." Sig said. "I thought I told you I don't really care much for it now."
"I know, but still…" Kishor lifted his head up and turned away from the two. "I feel kind of bad."
Konata tilted her head, scratching the back of her head as she tried to make sense of their conversation.
"What are you guys talking about?" She asked them, conveying her confusion.
"Oh, that's right…We never told you, did we?" Kishor said before looking at Sig. "It's up to you if you want to tell her, Sig. But she has been our friend for years, you know."
"I consider Konata a close and precious friend of mine." Sig nodded his head. "She deserves to know."
Konata blushed at this, unable to respond to such flattery. But she felt kind of happy hearing that from Sig.
"My mother and father…passed away when I was a child." Sig's lips furled into a tight, small frown. "If they weren't out partying, throwing away their money at gambling, or arguing about their living expenses, the two drank and…slowly killed their bodies with illegal substances. I'm the last of the Asgrimur family."
"His mother died from an overdose injection and his father killed in pub brawl." Kishor stopped for a moment to look at Sig. "My…own father is responsible for the death of Sig's father."
A heavy silence loomed in the air. Even passing strangers could feel it so much that they stayed a fair distance away from the trio as they left or entered the town. Konata bit her lip down, trying to find the words to break away from this depressing subject. She blamed it on herself for pressing the matter further; this all could have been avoided if she never asked, but at the same time…she never knew Sig had been through so much as a kid. And to tell her this too meant Sig really did regard her as a close friend.
"Kishor's family took me into their home." Sig continued. "I lived with them until I saved up enough money from part-time jobs to afford my own place. Through a series of complicated matters that I'm not allowed to speak of, my boss Milla Hope recruited me into the profession I am in today."
"Sig managed to help me get into his job too." Kishor laughed nervously. "…I didn't like the idea of getting stuck behind a desk if I went to college or working hard for little pay. Sig's job offered me both ways out of those options."
"That's our story…the short version anyways." Sig shrugged his arms. "…Konata?"
Sig and Kishor stared at Konata, who had been completely silent. They couldn't see her face because she had lowered her head down to stare at the ground. When Konata finally looked up, her face just oozed sadness and it seemed as if tears were about to burst out from her eyes, but they didn't. She rubbed her eyes to make sure of that.
"…I know it's not the same as what you've went through, Sig, but…I lost family too." She spoke, her voice low. "My mother...had been taken away from me when I was still a baby. All I have of her are pictures of my mom when she held me in the hospital."
Konata turned away from the two, opting to stare up at the sky.
"Sometimes…when I see kids walking together with both of their parents…I can't help but want to cry…just a little bit. Why couldn't I have that? Why is there a missing piece in my family?" Konata then shook her head. "…I'm sorry. My history sounds so insignificant-"
"Don't finish that sentence."
Konata felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked back to see that the hand belonged to Sig, who smiled gently at her.
"Don't belittle your own pain comparing yourself to my own."
Behind Sig, Kishor nodded his head in agreement. Konata's shocked expression quickly turned into one of contentment. She nodded her head and there were smiles all around between the three with no words said.
"I'm sorry for being late!"
The trio turned to the voice to see Misao running up to them, who bent over and gasped for breath in front of them.
"As of this moment, you have no right to complain when I'm late to a meet-up." Konata smirked when Misao frowned and grumbled to herself. "Anyways…What took you so long?"
"After I left a note back at our headquarters, I ran into Kuroi-sensei and asked if she wanted to tag along with us." Misao explained before a visible sweat-drop fell down her face. "Then she asked me if Sig would be there…and she walked away after that without another word."
All four simultaneously groaned at the same time.
"Does she still feel awkward about the last talk we had with each other?" Sig frowned as he brought his hand behind his head. "I already left her a message before that I'm over it and that I look forward to speaking to her again when she's ready, but…"
"It's because you're the stud of our guild, Sig!" Misao exclaimed. "Eighty percent of our guild requests from potential recruits are from girls!"
"Wait, what about the other twenty percent?" Sig raised an eyebrow at Misao.
"The other twenty percent is from boys for the exact same reason."
"I didn't really need to know that…" Kishor sighed. "How do you do it, Sig?"
"It's not intentional, I'll tell you that much." Sig huffed in frustration. "Can we please get going? I'm starting to get a headache…"
"On that we can agree on, Sig." Konata nodded her head, grabbing all of their attention. "Let's move out, people! We're burning daylight here!"
"Roger!" Sig, Kishor, and Misao responded back in unison.
The four walked away from the town entrance with Konata leading them. As they traversed further down the road, Misao eventually decided to walk alongside Konata and talk to her about various subjects. Sig and Kishor stayed a few steps behind them. Kishor noticed that Sig had an odd look on his face and he seemed to be staring at the back of Konata's head.
"Hey, Sig…You look like something's bothering you." He asked.
"Konata said her mother had been taken away from her when she had been an infant…" Sig spoke, turning to Kishor. "What did she mean by that? Did she pass away? Or is it something else?"
"Now that I think about it, Konata did give a pretty vague statement there." Kishor nodded his head in agreement. "Maybe someday, we can ask her about it again."
"You're right." Sig shook his head. "Another time, perhaps…"
"Hey, who knows? Maybe we'll find the answer out on our own."
"Indeed." Sig chuckled. "The world works in mysterious ways…"
"What are you two lagging behind for? Pick up the pace, you two!" Misao shouted.
"Sorry, sorry!"
Light faded with the setting of the sun and darkness engulfed the skies with the rising of the moon. Konata and her friends were perched on top of a hill overlooking a wide open field below them. They were observing the entrance of a cavern currently guarded by roaming goblins and orcs.
"They were not there during my infiltration." Sig said, bow out and a hand ready on one of the many arrows in his quiver.
"Probably has to do with the night and daytime shift in monsters out in the wilderness." Misao shrugged her arms. "It's like you said before, Sig: We're the first ones into this dungeon. I definitely counted on something like this happening. What's the plan, Konata?"
"The plan hasn't changed." Konata grinned, drawing her sword. "Sig, provide covering fire from here."
"Roger that." Sig said, standing up. He took out an arrow from his quiver and pulled it back on his bow. "First shot on your mark, Konata."
"Misao, Kishor, you're with me." Konata nodded at the two of them. "Keep close and don't let them get a surround on us. We push forward and keep them in front of us."
"I hear you loud and clear, Konata!" Misao happily laughed. "Just let me at 'em!"
"I'll do my best." Kishor conjured a ball of fire in his free hand as the orb on his staff shined a blazing red.
Konata, Kishor, and Misao all crouched down around Sig in a triangle formation. Konata knelt down in front of Sig, Misao to his left and Kishor on his right.
"Three…"
Misao grinned, tightening her grip on her battle axe.
"Two…"
Kishor remained serious with his fire ball ready.
"…One!"
An arrow flew through the night sky, soaring through the air at high speed. It lodged itself into the throat of a goblin, who gurgled for a moment before falling flat on the ground. The other goblins and orcs all stared at the corpse for a moment before turning their attention to where the arrow had come from. Konata lunged forward, sliding down the hill with Kishor and Misao following in tow. It didn't take long for the creatures to notice the three charging towards them.
"It looks like meat is on the menu today, boys!" An orc shouted and several others of his brethren cheered out with roars. "Get those meat bags!"
"Well, let's get cooking!"
Kishor launched his fireball at a group of goblins, setting them ablaze as they dropped to the ground and rolled around, but the severity of the flames proved too much for them and they died. He used his staff to block a strike from a single goblin that managed to reach him, but countered and knocked the short green critter out cold with one swift kick.
"Come at me! Those ready to die, get in line!"
Misao swung her axe at orcs and goblins as they rushed her, but whenever their blades met with her weapon, they simply broke on contact and were cut down one by one. However, one of the taller orcs managed to clash his weapon with Misao's and the two were locked in a power struggle. Misao noticed to her left that one goblin was running at her! She had been flanked!
"Heh, you're not as tough as you think!" The orc taunted her, grinning and exposing its horrible teeth to Misao.
That's when an arrow pierced into the skull of the speeding green critter, stopping it completely. Misao swung her leg into the orc's groin, stunning it before swinging her axe down straight into its head. Pulling her axe out, she kicked the dead corpse into the ground.
"I could say the same to you, bub." Misao smirked.
Konata rushed forward, sliding to a stop as she ducked down low to avoid a swing from an orc. She drove her blade into its chest, pulling it out and spinning around just in time to cut down a goblin. But then another goblin jumped at her with the intent to smash her head with its club. Konata easily blocked it with her shield as the goblin bounced back from the recoil and fell on his back. She killed the monster swiftly with a thrust into its heart...only to hear a roar from above. Konata raised her shield up just in time to block another attack. Just as she moved to counterattack, she took a peek from behind her shield to see an orc fall to the ground on its back with two arrows on both sides of its shoulders and a lone arrow straight into its throat.
It didn't take long for the four to take down the remaining monsters and a few even fled into the nearby forests. Just when it seemed like the battle had ended; Konata, Kishor, and Misao were alerted by the sound of an ominous, loud chuckle. They turned to the direction of the cave entrance and saw a knight donned in black, bulky armor walking towards them wielding a large claymore that matched his size.
"If you've come for what lies inside, then I suggest you turn back now." A male voice came from the armored swordsman. "Nothing but your deaths awaits you here…"
"You know what our answer is going to be." Konata replied, already dropping into a battle stance.
"Then let it carry you to your grave!"
The dark knight charged at Konata and struck her with his blade before she had a chance to react. Konata flew back from blow, but Kishor caught her while Misao retaliated and tackled into the knight, knocking him into the ground. Misao swung her axe down, but the knight blocked the attack and kicked her in the gut and stunned her long enough to get back on his feet and begin his counterattack. However, a volley of arrows from Sig kept the knight distracted long enough for Misao to regain her focus and she clashed her axe with his claymore.
"Your strength is impressive, warrior." The knight complimented Misao as they stared into each other's faces. "But you cannot win with that alone…"
"That's why there's magic, moron!" Misao grinned as she relented and ducked down.
A blast of lightning sent the knight flying back. Kishor whirled his staff in the air as a boulder appeared above him. Then Kishor pointed his staff at the knight, who stood up once more, and the giant rock flew in the knight's direction. The man scoffed as he sliced the boulder in half. However, after cutting through the rock, the knight saw Konata soaring at him with her sword now shining a dark red. He blocked the attack, but just as he did…an explosion set off between them, sending the knight flying back into the entrance of the cave.
Konata and Misao panted heavily, their bodies exhausted from two battles in a row, which proved more taxing on them than they thought. Kishor dug a small little hole into the ground to stick his staff into as the three were now covered by a green light. They all sat down and breathed sighs of relief.
"Whew…My stamina had already been straining after fighting those orcs and goblins." Konata said, fanning herself with her hand.
"Then we had to fight a dark knight immediately after? We haven't even entered the dungeon yet!" Misao exclaimed, face burning red in anger. "And that guy had the nerve to taunt me about my strength. I'm very proud of my power, dang it!"
"Are you feeling okay, Konata?" Kishor asked, looking at her with concern. "You took a blow to the chest region pretty hard there…"
"The armor took most of the blow, but I'm feeling kind of sore." Konata rubbed the injured area. "It should be fine in time. Maybe I'll drink a potion to help accelerate its healing."
"I doubt that's the last we'll see him of him."
The three turned to see Sig whose eyes remained constantly vigilant to their surroundings. Konata grabbed a potion from one of her pouches and guzzled the content down in seconds.
"Yeah, he's probably recovering in the dungeon right now as we speak." Konata nodded her head before glancing at the entrance. "He'll probably try to harass us every floor."
"Kishor, were you able to get any information on him during your scan?" Sig asked as he knelt down to rest.
"Yeah, I scanned him after I caught Konata." Kishor replied before looking at Konata, who stored the empty bottle back inside her pouch. "His name's Oberon, a dark knight associated with Clan Aldrin, a group of people who are allied with the monsters and creatures in exchange for power."
"Sounds like typical bad guy stuff to me." Misao shrugged, unfazed by the information. "We'll beat him to a bloody pulp and send him running if he messes with us again. Nothing's going to stop us from getting to the bottom of that dungeon!"
"Speaking of the dungeon…what should we call this operation?" Sig asked, turning to Konata. "We never titled this dungeon exploration like we usually do."
"How does Operation Raid Night sound?" Konata suggested.
"That works for me." Sig nodded his head.
"I feel the same way." Kishor agreed.
"Hey, no complaints over here either!" Misao laughed happily before standing up. "All right, I'm all fired up and good to go!"
The four stood up, feeling rested and ready. They walked towards the cave entrance, but they all stopped when Konata did. She lifted her blade and pointed the tip at the entrance.
"Operation Raid Night begins…now!"
They all rushed into the dungeon with their weapons ready for battle.
Back at the town, a blond haired warrior by the name of Nanako Kuroi sat alone on a bench. She released a sigh that spoke volumes of her current emotions: sadness. She leaned back against, placing her hands behind the back of her head as she gazed up at the night sky. Most of her day had been spent hanging around town, earning cash from small jobs such as courier deliveries and bounties that could easily be collected at the outskirts of town. However, with night approaching, there were less high end paying jobs available, so now Kuroi basically lounged around doing nothing.
"Hey! Let's head out now! Our hit should be arriving at that area if we get there on time."
"Ooh boy, I hope we're really ready for this…"
Nanako glanced in the direction of the voices and saw a group of six people all huddled up together. They looked ready for a long travel and an intense battle from the looks of their gear.
"Hey, we spent all week training out butts off for this moment." A young petite girl wielding a crossbow exclaimed, frowning at her friend. "I'll shove a thousand needles in my mouth if we fail."
"There's no need to go that far…" A man said, seemingly the leader of the group. "Anyways…As long as we work together as a team, we can do this."
"Let's stop wasting time here and get going." The tallest man of the group spoke in his deep voice. "You heard our leader. We can do this."
The group nodded in unison before bellowing out a cheer and running off. Nanako laughed at them, amused by their spirit.
"…Kuroi-sensei?"
Nanako turned her head to the familiar voice and saw a girl in a hooded white robe looking down at her. This was none other than Minami Iwasaki. She had black wings behind her and a naginata in one hand. With the hood over her head, nobody else could see her face unless they were right under her, which is why Nanako is able to see her blue eyes and light green hair.
"Hello, Iwasaki." Nanako smiled at the girl, noticing all the attention they were currently receiving. Minami didn't exactly blend in with the crowd. "Just got back from a trip?"
"Yes…The rest of our squad is resting at the guild house." Minami nodded her head, sitting down besides Nanako. "They are exhausted from our mission, but we completed what we set out to do."
"Ah, is that so? Good for you." Nanako moved from her hands away from the back of her head, letting them rest on her lap. "You don't seem tired though."
"I'm fine. In fact, I'm heading out again right now." Minami stood back up. "Kusakabe-san left a message at the guild house requiring our assistance if we're able to. She left map coordinates to the dungeon they're raiding, but since I saw you, I thought maybe you wanted to come along?"
"Thanks, but…Kusakabe already beat you to that question and I declined." Nanako shook her head, laughing nervously.
"…Does this have to do with Asgrimur-san?"
Nanako immediately flinched at the name. Minami's expression softened as Nanako fidgeted nervously in her seat, refusing to look Minami in the eyes now.
"I know it's not my place to talk about your business with other people, but…I think you should make amends with Asgrimur-san." Minami told Nanako, tone soft and gentle like a mother soothing a child. "You two were very close and I think that…whatever transpired between you both shouldn't decide the state of a friendship. Just take that into consideration, Kuroi-sensei. I'll be going now."
Minami turned around and walked a few steps away before taking flight into the sky. Nanako had stopped moving around in her seat, opting to look down at the ground. She started chuckling, but it lacked mirth. She shook her head and stood up on her feet before walking away.
"…And I'm supposed to be the adult here, damn it…"
Konata and her group were making progress in the dungeon, already down to the final floor. The fight to get down here had been exhausting. Oberon didn't exactly make it any easier for them as he had gotten stronger with every encounter on each floor. They stopped at a large pair of double doors.
"I'm definitely getting 'Final Boss' vibes from this door." Misao said, opting to sit down on the floor.
"We're on our last batch of potions." Konata handed out the elixirs to everyone. "This is it: Make or break."
They all sat down and guzzled down the contents in the vials. Once they were finished, the four stood back up and Konata drew her blade. She glanced back at her team, looking at them with a meaningful stare. They all nodded in sync.
"Well then…"
Konata's sword started to glow a dark red hue. She took a step back and grinned.
"Here we go!"
She leaped at the door and struck her blade at the door. An explosion set off, sending pieces of the doors flying in different directions as the four charged into the large room. They spotted a large figure in the center of the room, just as Sig had told them. Surrounding it on all sides, they realized that the creature seemed to be sleeping. The creature had wings on its back, but that seemed completely unnecessary for it looked to be attached to the floors; therefore rendering the ability to fly useless. Bandages were wrapped around its face and its tentacle arms were longer than itself. One noticeable feature on its face seemed to be the number nine written in Roman numeral form.
"Kishor, scan it." Konata ordered, keeping her shield up.
"This guardian is doesn't have a personal name itself, but it belongs to 'Hermit' of the arcana series from tarot cards." Kishor spoke as he closed his eyes. "It's strongest against lightning and weak to earth spells, but I can't figure out what kind of ability it has."
"That explains the number nine on its forehead." Sig added, grabbing an arrow from his quiver. "I had been thinking the same thing."
"All I know is that this thing is one of hell of a heavy sleeper!" Misao exclaimed. "We didn't exactly come in here all stealthy and ninja-like."
"We shouldn't waste this opportunity then. Let's attack first before-"
Suddenly, Oberon appeared in front of the monster, cutting off Konata from sentence as he spun and slashed the creature in question. The Hermit screeched loudly and Oberon vanished out of sight before Sig's arrow could hit him. Lightning bolts struck them all, but Kishor and Konata were able to block the blow. Misao and Sig were not so lucky and had been sent flying back.
"Oh, damn it all! That Oberon guy is really starting to piss me off!" Kishor shouted as he launched a boulder at the Hermit.
"We'll deal with Oberon later! Right now, let's take this sucker down!" Konata responded, looking over at Misao who got back up on her feet. "Misao, let's go! Sync with me!"
"You got it! Let's do this!
Misao and Konata charged together at the Hermit and the creature raised its tentacles up and swept it across the floor. The two easily dodged the attack and Kishor made it out of range from the attack, but Sig ended up falling on his back again. Misao reached the Hermit first, striking the monster with a hard slash, earning a screech of pain as her reward. But her moment of pride faded when she felt something wrap itself tightly around her leg and found herself being hoisted up high off the ground.
"Watch your head, Misao!" Konata shouted as she sliced at the arm holding Misao.
The Hermit released Misao and she fell and hit the floor right on her noggin. Konata winced at the sound Misao made when her head collided against the concrete, but at least she didn't break her neck.
"…Ow…" Misao muttered, voice muffled by the floor.
A loud zap noise followed and Konata was blasted by a lightning bolt to the back. Her face met the floor faster than Misao's landing, but Konata managed to retain consciousness. She rolled over to see a tentacle coming down to slam her, but three arrows precisely hit the long arm, giving Konata enough time to roll out of the way before it hit the spot she had been in just a few seconds ago. She quickly got back up on her feet, looking over at Sig and giving him a nod of thanks for his support.
Sig loaded a new arrow on his bow that shined a bright yellow. When he released the arrow and it hit the hermit, several mini explosions blew up along the Hermit's body. The monster screeched in pain, but when Kishor followed up with another boulder spell, the giant rock simply stopped when it almost reached the Hermit. Then it flew directly at Sig. However, Sig remained unfazed, switching to a glowing purple arrow. When he fired the arrow at the boulder, it pierced through the rock and broke it into several pieces. The arrow continued onto its destination and landed a direct hit at the head.
The force from the blow of the arrow had been so strong it caused the Hermit to reel its head back before bowing. At the same time, Misao groaned as she got up and saw an opportunity for a strike since its head was low enough for her to reach. She screamed at the top of her lung as she swung her axe up, sending the head right back up into its original straight position, but judging by the way the Hermit's head spun around, the creature was currently in a daze. The four all lined up alongside each other and Sig switched to his dual short swords.
"All right, here's our chance for an all-out attack! Pile on, team!" Konata shouted.
"Empower!" Kishor raised his staff up in the air as Konata, Misao, and Sig were covered in a red aura. "Go get 'em, guys!"
"You're going down!" Sig charged first.
"Hey, save some butt-whooping for me!" Misao laughed, following behind him.
The three charged forward and unleashed a furious amount of attacks on the creature, pouring all of their stamina into one combined effort of swift and powerful attacks. They halted their assault and took a leap back from the Hermit as the red aura around them disappeared. Now out of breath and panting heavily, they watched as the Hermit started to convulse before falling limply to the ground and disappearing under a shroud of dark mist. Left in its place was a glowing red orb.
"Thank you…you imbeciles."
The sphere flew into the hands of Oberon who had appeared in front of the final room of the dungeon.
"You've finally given me the power to finish off what I started…"
He punched his fist into the floor. Several hands shot up from the ground and rising up from the ground were orcs and goblins in the dozens, but with deformed faces and bone structure showing. Oberon screamed at the top of his lungs as he exploded, sending his armor pieces flying everywhere. A large gargoyle with bright red eyes wielding a pair of large scimitars replaced the dark knight. But when it spoke, the winged creature had a human voice; Oberon's voice.
"…You."
Kishor lifted his staff up in the air as a green light enveloped them for a second, but suddenly, the color of the light changed to black and the four screamed out in pain. They all collapsed onto the floor while Oberon, now transformed into a gargoyle, chuckled in amusement as he lowered his scimitar that had been emanating the same black color. He walked towards the group while his army stayed where they were. Oberon stopped in front of Konata Izumi, who resisted passing out from the attack.
"I did not expect you guys to survive this far, but you did give me the opportunity to boost my powers. With this new form…No one else will ever come as close as you to this floor or any of them at all. For your reward…"
Oberon lifted his scimitar, intending to decapitate her.
"I'll allow you a swift death."
The blade swung down and Konata closed her eyes, waiting for the end. But she didn't feel anything. When she opened her eyes again, Konata saw a pair of wings in front of her belonging to a girl in a hooded robe wielding a naginata.
"I'm afraid this is one prize Izumi-san will have to decline."
Konata recognized the voice of Minami Iwasaki.
"I insist."
Minami shoved the scimitar back and struck Oberon, sending him flying into his reanimated army. She looked back at Konata and pulled off her hood, showing the small smile on her face.
"I apologize for being late." She bowed her head slightly before holding out her hand to Konata.
"Heh, better late than never, I'll say." Konata chuckled despite the pain and grabbed Minami's hand tightly as Minami hoisted her back up on her feet. "I'll give you an 'A' for your dramatic timing."
Minami shook her head before holding up her naginata into the air. A blue light enveloped the five of them and Kishor, Sig, Misao all started to stir from their sleep. They immediately got back up on their feet with surprising quickness. The three took notice of Minami.
"Thank you for your assistance, Iwasaki-san." Sig nodded his head in gratitude.
"Yeah, what he said." Kishor followed.
"You just had to be the big hero and save us at the last moment, huh?" Misao grinned and shook her head. "Whatever…I'll allow it just this once."
"Oh…I think you mean…heroes instead, Kusakabe-san." Minami smirked.
Before Misao could even respond to that, a voice from behind them shouted loudly.
"The cavalry has arrived! Sorry for the wait!"
Konata, Misao, Kishor, and Sig turned around to see Nanako Kuroi standing at the door entrance with the biggest grin on her face. But she did not stand alone. On Nanako's right was another fellow blond by the name of Patricia Martin in steel white armor with a holy cross painted on the front chest and both arms. She held a claymore with both her hands.
"Paladin Patricia is on the scene! Watch out now!" Patricia declared gleefully.
"I-I I'm here to h-help too!"
To Nanako's left, a meek voice called out. If one looked a little lower, they could see the petite girl with pigtails that went by the name of Yutaka Kobayakawa. Similar to Patricia's outfit, she had a robe adorned in holy crosses and glyph symbols and for her weapon; she had a staff like Kishor, but with a white orb at the top.
"Now!-"Nanako drew her two blades. "Everyone charge!"
The three sprinted forward, running past Konata and her company. Minami and Konata exchanged glances at each other.
"We'll keep the army busy while you guys take down that gargoyle." Minami said.
"Right, we have a score to settle with Oberon anyways." Konata nodded her head before glancing at her own group. "Let's go, guys!"
Minami flew ahead of Konata, joining Nanako's group as they fought against the army of orcs and goblins. Oberon had gotten back up on his feet just in time to meet blades with Konata, who grinned as she stared into his eyes.
"I believe you and I have some unfinished business." She said before shoving him back and bashing him in the face with her shield.
Oberon roared as a force of air exploded around him, but Konata managed to hold her footing, only being pushed back instead of flying away. Misao rushed past Konata, striking him on the head, but her weapon didn't cut through, only leaving a mark on his head. Oberon slashed with both his scimitar, nearly cutting through her armor as Misao fell on her back. He raised his scimitars up to finish her off, but then Konata stepped in front of Misao and blocked the attack with the shield and Misao used this time to roll away.
"You're all annoying pests!" Oberon shouted in rage as he repeatedly struck down on Konata's shield. "Get out of my sight!"
"You mad, bro?" Konata laughed. "Don't lose your head before I cut it off myself!"
Konata found an opening during Oberon's pounding on her shield and swung at his gut, stunning him temporarily. Her blade began to glow red and then she launched another strike, but Oberon blocked it with one of his scimitars. Then a small explosion set off as one of Oberon's scimitar shattered into several pieces. Visibly shocked, Oberon took a step back only to be rushed by Sig who rushed in front of him unleashed a fury of swift slashes. Sig dropped his swords and switched to his bow, quickly pulling out an arrow from his quiver with a red coating on the head. He fired the arrow and when it made contact with Oberon's chest, it exploded and sent both Sig and Oberon flying back.
However, Oberon recovered mid-flight, using his wings to soar up to the ceiling. He roared and threw his last remaining scimitar at Sig, but a perfectly timed lightning bolt spell from Kishor stopped it before the weapon even reached him. Kishor held his staff up with both hands before he plunged it into the ground with a resounding slam. Several beams of energy shot out from around Kishor and all flew at Oberon, who evaded them, but then the projectiles quickly turned around at the last second when they passed by Oberon and hit him in the back as he fell down to the floor below.
"This is the end for you!" Misao ran towards the projected area where he would land. Just as Oberon reached the floor within inches of touching it, Misao swung her axe on his back with enough force to bounce him off the ground as she spun around behind him. Grabbing her holstered mace with one hand, she bashed the back of his legs so that when he landed, he ended up on his knees. "He's all yours, Konata!"
Konata walked up to Oberon twirling her blade before thrusting it straight through the gargoyle's skull. Then when she pulled out her sword, she cleaved through his neck as Oberon's head flew and rolled away from his corpse. Konata holstered her blade as the cries of the orcs and goblins shouted together in unison before their bodies descended back into the ground.
"Whew…That got a bit intense there…" Nanako sighed as she put her weapons away back in their sheath.
"Are you all right, Yutaka?" Minami asked her small friend.
"Y-yeah…I'm okay." Yutaka nodded her head, smiling at Minami. "We did a good job, right?"
"Yes, we did." Minami gave her a small smile back, patting her head affectionately. Yutaka didn't mind.
"Then I declare this mission a success!" Patricia shouted happily.
"I wouldn't call it a success yet, Patty-chan." Konata spoke as her group walked over to Nanako's group. "This dungeon isn't finished until we search that final room."
"All right, it's time to reap the fruits of our labor!" Misao jumped up and down with excitement before running towards the unopened door.
"Misao's right. Let's go, Konata." Kishor said.
"All right, everyone. Moment of truth: Is this haul going to be worth it? I sure hope so."
Konata and the others followed after Misao. All except Sig and Nanako, who stood where they were and stared at each other in silence.
"Kuroi-san…"
Nanako jumped a little, startled by Sig calling her name so suddenly.
"Y-yes, w-what's up?"
"I'm sorry about what happened before." Sig walked up to her, narrowing the distance between them. "We both had our frustrations that day. I should have had better control of myself, especially when you were stressed out too."
"No, I'm just as much to blame too." Kuroi shook her head. "In fact, that whole argument could have been avoided if I had just stayed away for a bit to cool my head off."
"That doesn't change the fact that it already happened, but what's done is done. So…are we okay again?" Sig held out his hand to her.
"Yeah…We're good."
The two gave each other a firm handshake and Kuroi grinned while Sig gave a small smile. But Sig's smile didn't last long as his expression turned serious again.
"…But I'm not taking back what I said before, Kuroi-san." Sig said, staring into her eyes with the intensity of the sun on a hot summer day. "You're a beautiful, intelligent, and amazing woman…but it drives me up the wall when you complain about your lack of a romantic life. Both of our statuses have their positives and negatives; it's as simple as that. Neither is better or worse than the other."
Kuroi nodded her head, but she found her mind repeating the three words Sig used to describe her. Feeling her cheeks heating up, she covered them with her hands. The fact that Sig could let loose with words like that impressed her greatly…and made her heart beat faster. It felt so nice hearing something like that from a guy near her age, but she couldn't help but feel frustrated that he was not interested in dating. Kuroi sighed and turned her head at the sound of Konata and the other's cheers inside the other room.
"I guess the only one I can whine to about being single is Narumi then, huh?" Kuroi chuckled, shaking her head. "Since me and her don't really have anyone…"
"Huh?" Sig tilted his head at Kuroi. "Narumi-san is married, Kuroi-san."
"Hah, I never took you for a joker, Sig-kun."
Kuroi looked back at Sig and her amused smile faltered; Sig had no smirk or any change in his expression to indicate what he said is a joke. He just continued to look at her with a raised eyebrow.
"…You're not joking, are you?"
"Why would I?"
Sig's confusion only grew more when Kuroi fainted. Konata and the others came walking out the room at the same time. Misao and Patricia were both carrying a large chest together while Kishor, Konata, Minami, and Yutaka carried smaller boxes. Konata noticed her teacher sprawled out on the floor and looked to Sig for an answer. He only responded with a shrug and Konata just rolled her eyes, but she had a smile on her face nonetheless.
"I'm glad you two made up." Konata said. "Since we're all carrying the loot, I guess you'll just have to carry Kuroi-sensei instead."
"Okay."
"Make sure you pick her up bridal-style, Sig!" Misao laughed. "I'm sure it'll make her really happy when she wakes up!"
The group returned to their guild house with their spoils. After Kuroi regained consciousness and an amusing reaction from her when she found out Sig carried her all the way back, they all gathered in the dining hall. Chefs were setting plates of food on the long table for them. Everyone took their seats with Konata being the one at the end of the table. Konata cleared her throat to gather the other's attention and they all looked to her as she held up her tankard.
"Thanks to everyone's hard work, I can officially call Operation Raid Night a success!" She stated with clear and loud volume. "Great job, everyone!"
"Cheers to us!" Kishor lifted up his own tankard.
"Cheers!" Everyone responded together in unison before taking a swig of their drink. For a moment, there is silence until Misao groans.
"Why are we drinking cider instead of actual beer?"
"Because it's the closest to looking like beer when it's foamy?" Kishor responded before shaking his head furiously. "Wait, why do you even want to drink beer in the first place? That stuff is disgusting!"
"Hey, don't knock it until you try it, Draggarh-kun." Nanako frowned at him.
"Kuroi-san, you're supposed to be a good influence on these girls…" Kishor scowled back at Nanako. "Sig, help me out here."
"No can do, Kishor."
Sig brought a hand to his face and sighed, but everyone else erupted into laughter. The celebration eventually died down and everyone gathered at the entrance of the guild house.
"Well, it's time to get going." Konata placed her hands on her hips. "Let's do this again next weekend, all right?"
Everyone said their goodbyes to one another and walked out the door one by one until only Konata and Sig remained.
"You may not see Kishor and me for a while, Konata." Sig held out his hand for her to shake.
"Why is that?" Konata firmly gripped her hand in his. "Does it have to do with your work?"
"Yeah, our old boss is retiring and we're getting a new guy." Sig nodded his head and grimaced. "Could be weeks or months before we see each other again…"
"Aw…I'll miss having you guys around." Konata pouted, looking down momentarily. But she looked back up and smiled at Sig. "I understand, though. We'll see you when you get back then."
Sig didn't respond and only continued to stare deeply into her eyes. Konata couldn't help but feel her cheeks flush at being stared so intensely. Then Sig gave her a smile and he nodded his head again before pulling his hand back.
"…Take care, Konata."
Konata watched as Sig walked out the door. She turned around and headed up a flight of stairs to another floor in their guild house. She reached the end of a corridor and stopped at a door that had her name written on a nameplate attached to the door. Konata entered the room and made her way to the desk in the center of the room, surrounded by drawers and chests filled with gold and jewels. She sat at the desk and turned on the lantern sitting on top. She pulled out a notebook, quilt, and inkwell from inside the desk's drawer. Turning to an empty page, Konata dipped the quilt's point into the bottled ink and began to write into the notebook and she spoke aloud to what she wrote.
"Today had been a really fun adventure into a dungeon with all my wonderful friends…I hope all my days will always be like this…" She stopped for a moment, looking up thoughtfully for a moment before smiling and continuing. "We met this guy Oberon who proved to be really strong and annoying, but we managed to beat him every time he came at us and then we fought the boss that we called Hermit, but then…"
The rest is history.
Hello everyone, this is Operator "L.E." speaking to all you readers out there. I hope that you all enjoyed reading my new and improved version of the story Raid Night written by the original Wings of Reparation. Now, some of you may be wondering why I'm referring to myself as "L.E." when my username is in fact Wings of Reparation.
Allow me to explain: Due to circumstances surrounding Wings of Reparation's health, I have been granted permission by the original owner of this account who is a friend of mine I know outside of the internet. She and I have not spoken in a while due to our paths in life, but she came to me in October of 2014 with a request; to rewrite her stories at my own leisure and how I see fit, but also create new stories entirely from her drafted ideas she had given to me through my email. So that is what I intend to do for now until she gets better.
Please favor me with your kindness as I will do the same for you.
At any rate, this is only the first story out of several I am reworking on that is solely based around the Missing Piece series that Wings of Reparation wrote. That means, from chronological order, the stories go in this order.
Raid Night, Missing Piece, One Heartfelt Gift, and then Echoes from the Past.
If you've noticed in this story alone, I've made some significant changes in comparison to the original Raid Night. I'd like for you reviewers, both anonymous and otherwise, to compare and review. Tell me what you think because it would certainly be appreciated to hear what you all have to say.
The next project will actually not be Missing Piece, but another one-shot series between Raid Night and Missing Piece. Similar to how One Heartfelt Gift ties into Echoes from the Past.
Here is a list of some changes in comparison to the original Raid Night story:
- Oberon, the dark knight now named from the original version of the story. He is given a more prominent role than a character only meant to be destroyed a few seconds after appearing.
- Minami Iwasaki, Nanako Kuroi, Yutaka Kobayakawa, and Patricia Martin are included into the fold. Minami Iwasaki's power is not as overpowered in the original, but it does not make her any less powerful than she already is. Kuroi plays with Konata on online games, so it seemed fitting to add her into the mix of this story.
- The implications of this story being in an online game isn't as obviously stated. Unlike the previous version where there is a conversation in reality between Sig Asgrimur and Kishor Draggarh, I saw a better way to integrate the second chapter from the original Raid Night into the revised version without deviating away from the fantasy of the world they are inhabiting.
- Sig and Kishor are more acquainted with the Lucky Star cast members than just Konata alone. From the story itself, I believed adding a contrast between Sig and Nanako to be something interesting in itself. From the other series, it's shown plainly that there are several women have an attraction to Sig who continues to remain single despite all the options available to him. Nanako on the other hand is a single woman who doesn't have much of a dating life, so I saw to create something out of that.
- The 'Hermit' is a secondary boss rather than a transformation into a golden gargoyle. I'm still unsure on whether or not I made that battle with the 'Hermit' better though.
That's all I have to say for now. If you want, feel free to contact me on this site, but I'll be over at the multi-shared account of Wings of Reparation on the Fiction-Press since I frequent that site more often than here. If you wish to message me there, be sure to address the subject title to "L.E." because I'm not the only operator on that account over there unlike this one here in Fanfiction.
I will see you all in the next story. Goodbye for now.