AN: Before we begin, let me explain some things.

One, this is a stress-relief fic for me, so if some stuff doesn't fit, then feel free to blame me for not being attentive enough. I'll see it, fix the problem if possible and then call it a day.

Two, each arc of this story is going to be like missions in a jrpg. Arcs can suddenly change from one chapter to another, and once that arc is over, we can return to a previous arc. So, for this chapter and onwards, we'll be delving into the world of Sakura Dungeon, but well eventually go back to DxD and continue the Fool's Journey plotline. Got it? Alright, movin' on.

Three, I took some liberties with the whole 'karmic rule' idea. I just sort of noted that no one really dies in the game, and that getting stripped is kinda like losing health, hence why karmic rules are in. This, of course, means that if Hanami eventually ends up in a Hentai world or something, I have some way of explaining the stupidity that happens.

Anyways, enjoy!

Sakura Dungeon- 1

Hanami was wondering if she'd inhaled something wrong this morning. She didn't remember consuming anything strange. Her water had been fine, her morning sausages had been perfect, and her milk had been on date. Perhaps it was something else?

Because what the hell was this?

Before her was an inconspicuous convenience store, placed in between two closed family restaurants. Or it would've been, if not for the reality warping purple aura that seemed to seep from every edge of the store.

She'd walked past this store countless times before. She didn't go in all that often; there was a bigger store just several blocks down the road, but she did head in when she needed to. It was a completely normal convenience store. The items had been normal, the person manning the cashier had been normal, everything was normal.

This was decidedly not.

She should walk past, ignore it as if it didn't exist and continue on with her day. Except her mind wouldn't let it go, and she found a mounting desire to head in and see just what was happening.

So she walked forward, pushed the doors open,

And walked in to find that the clean interior had been replaced by a warmly lit tavern, manned by a single professionally dressed individual. She didn't know if they were a man or a woman, or whether they had a gender at all. Their physique suggested them to be male, though she wasn't sure, considering their head was made of blue gas.

"Ah, good morning." They said. Their voice was pleasantly deep, the sort that'd fit perfectly for those ASMR videos. "You're quite early."

She blinked. "...good morning."

They stopped and turned to her. "A new face." He said, his voice growing lighter. "We hadn't had one in quite some time. Do make yourself at home."

"Thank you." She sat down, still curiously looking around. The entire room was built entirely from magic, it seemed. The area beyond the walls was empty, and the family restaurants on both sides were completely gone.

Suddenly, a plate of some delicious eggs was placed before her. She blinked up at them. "I didn't order this." She said. "And I can't pay."

"You're new. It's on the house." He said with a small laugh. She had the distinct feeling that he was smiling. "So, do you have any questions?"

She paused just as she dug a fork into her eggs. "What is this place?"

Their gaseous head rumbled slightly. "A little of everything."

She hummed. That told a lot and little at the same time. She then asked, "Do you hand out missions?"

"Missions, is it?" She nodded, and they hummed. "May I get an example?"

She ate another spoonful of eggs. "Like monster hunting, capturing something, or helping someone. Things along those lines." She then ate another spoonful. "I must say, these eggs are wonderful."

Their head rumbled. "Thank you for the compliment." He said. "And yes, we do have a task board for hunters like you." He pointed at the wall behind her. "Do take a look after you finish your meal."

And as he said, the wall behind her suddenly lit up, and a foam board filled with pinned papers suddenly took shape. She nodded, swiftly finished the rest of her eggs and went up to the board. Just as he said, the thing was filled with papers, each detailing some sort of mission she could undertake. Some required monster slaying, others asked for escort, and some were just plain strange.

She pointedly ignored the mission that asked her to help 'Mil-chan become a magical girl!'.

Oh, but she did find one that interested her.

[Sakura Dungeons]

Please free the true lord of the dungeons and aid her to bring it back to her control!

-Warning! Time Dilation factor of 1 : 90. 1 day in the user's original world will translate in 90 days in the designated world-

She pulled the paper from the wall. The mission itself sounded interesting enough, but it was that time disparity that truly pulled her interest. Three months for a single day? The amount of progress she could make in that world would be tremendous, and her neurons quaked in delight at such a wonderful prospect.

She brought the paper over to them. "Oh? An adventurer are you?"

Hanami blinked, before she shrugged. "That works." Their gaseous head nodded as they took the paper from her. They held it up, before the paper suddenly went in blue flames.

[Mission generated]

-Sakura Dungeons-

There once was a benevolent lord that ruled over a dungeon that dug into the abyss of the earth. However, she was betrayed and sealed away. Now she lies within her prison, waiting for someone to set her free. Aid her, free her, and help set her dungeons free.

Enter Sakura Village [x]

Free the Dungeon Lord [x]

?

?

?

?

Reward: As given by the Wordkeeper, 5 Random Skill Tablets, 1 Random (B) Skill Tablet, 1,000 Reqiums

"What name do you go by?"

She blinked. She'd only realized that she hadn't introduced herself. "I'm Hanami."

They nodded back. "Your name and mission has been noted down." They then asked, "Do you require transportation?"

"No need."

[Yes]

[Beginning teleportation…]

She made a small bow to them and smiled. "I'll see you soon, good sir." She said, and she faded into blue sparks just seconds later.

They watched the girl disappear, before they huffed. A personality, that girl was. They hoped she found success on her mission.

The next thing she knew, she was lying on a bed of grass. She slowly sat up, and her eyes went wide as she looked at her surroundings. The tavern had been replaced by sprawling hills, with a town just a distance away.

But more than anything, it was the mana in the air that took her breath away. It was beautiful, vibrant, alive in a way that her world's mana wasn't. It was light, gentle, and her lungs felt light as she took a breath.

She smiled and stood, wobbling slightly as she did. She felt off in a way; her center of gravity seemed to have shifted, and she frowned as she looked down.

Were her breasts bigger than before?

…

She cupped them in her hands. Were they bigger? Strangely, she couldn't remember how big her breasts had been originally. Or was she always this big?

Her fingers unconsciously trailed across them, and she whimpered softly. Had they always been this sensitive as well?

…

She shook her head. That wasn't important at the moment. Her mission told her to head to Sakura Village, and she'd take a guess and assume that the town in the distant was the town she needed to head to.

She began walking, smiling as she looked around. This world really was beautiful, although perhaps she was rather biased. She'd lived in Kuoh most of her life, and as nice as that town was, she hardly saw any other sights. These rolling hills were a pleasant change, and the mana flowing in the air gave the world an almost playful feel.

Idly, she took a glance at her -Inventory-. She had several convenience bento boxes stored in it, bought a couple days ago in case she found a mission. It'd only last her two days at most, but it'd last her long enough for her to find some stable source of food. Hopefully.

On the other hand,

[Crimson Shard]

A strange, glowing shard, broken away from an ancient magical totem. It pulses with manic abandon, and it grows more aggressive the more mana it encounters.

There was this. She could hold the shard just fine, but that was mostly because her magic was still dormant. The moment she used her [Mana Star], this shard would act as a parasite, sapping away her magic to fuel itself. It did present a rather unorthodox weapon to be used against magical creatures. She couldn't help but wonder if she could somehow make it into a weapon however.

On the thought of weapons however, she wondered if she should create some sort of sword or whatnot. It'd help, but she mainly fought from a distance in the first place. Getting close to an enemy wasn't ideal in most circumstances, and she had a far larger chance of evading if she was severa feet away from her opponent. Then again, she'd need to find a suitable material to use before she could even begin.

Such were the woes of a creator.

After several minutes of pleasant walking, she finally made it to the village. Well, perhaps 'village' wasn't quite right. The buildings were fairly modern, built from stone bricks and wooden roofs, the paths were placed using carved stone, and she could see a small stone bridge built over a running river. 'Rural town' would probably fit better, but the name came off a bit too clunky for even her.

The villagers stared as she walked past, and she couldn't help but grimace slightly. Her school uniform looked far too out of place compared to their clothes. There wasn't much she could do about it really.

…

Strangely, there only seemed to be females in the village. She hadn't encountered a single man on her walk through the village.

She had a sinking suspicion that there were no men in this world. She wasn't sure why, but her gut told her so.

At some point during her walk, she spotted a building with a wooden sword hung over the door. She walked towards it, and she quickly noticed the sudden spike in mana. It wasn't malicious, far from it, but it was disjointed, chaotic, much as if the mana signatures of hundreds of items were being mixed.

She'd found an item shop.

The bell jingled as she walked in, and she gaped at the large assortment of items being displayed at every corner. Weapons, armors, trinkets, consumables, and other strange objects she couldn't quite decipher from a glance. A burst of excitement shot through her, and she found herself grinning.

"Welcome!" Hanami blinked and turned to the counter at the far right corner. There was a woman standing behind it, with bright blonde hair, curled on one side. Her clothes were…conservative, her stomach and thighs open to see. What little clothes she wore hugged her figure, and it-

Stop staring.

"Sorry. I didn't realize you were there."

"It's fine! I'm quite quiet after all." Her smile turned a tad softer then. "What might you be looking for, dear customer?"

She took a deep breath. It's time it seemed. "May I ask you to perform a quick observation for me?" The woman stared at her, confused, before she slowly nodded. Smiling, Hanami brought out her fully mastered [Trainee Bow] and set it down on the counter. "How much would this simply bow fetch?"

The woman blinked as she looked down at the wooden bow. "Simple, you say?" She whispered, sounding both amused and exasperated. "Any magical weapon would fetch quite a sum of mana shards, even for something as simple as this."

Hanami blinked, and blinked again. There were several things to unpack there. The [Mana Shards] the woman mentioned were probably some sort of currency. But 'magic weapon' she said? Her [Trainee Weapon] didn't consume any mana, and it certainly didn't-

Except it does, doesn't it? Its secondary effect allowed her to power up her damage by simply holding her arrow on the string. That, by all accounts, was magic.

Mastering a weapon turned it magical.

Oh dear.

"Is that so." She said lightly, quickly pushing away her thoughts. "How much would it fetch?"

"200 Mana Shards." The woman immediately said, her smile somewhat predatory.

Hanami smiled helplessly. "How much does a meal cost?" She asked instead.

The woman stilled, her smile slowly falling. "Maybe 10 Shards. 15 at most." Her eyes narrowed at her, and Hanami took a slow step back. "Is something wrong, dear customer?"

"Simply curious." She said with a small sigh. "And I'll take those 200 Shards please."

The woman stared some more, before she suddenly smiled brightly. "Please wait, dear customer!" Saying so, the woman took her bow and ran through a door behind her. She heard some shuffling from the other room, before the woman returned, a leather sack pouring with mana in her hands. "Here you go!"

[400 Mana Shards obtained]

Hanami blinked. "Excuse me, did you not say that-"

"Ah, I meant 400 Mana Shards, dear customer." The woman interrupted, smiling. "I must still be rather sleepy!"

Hanami silently gulped. She'd never felt so threatened by such a gentle smile. She would've said that the woman had given her too much, but she felt that she'd only break herself if she did. So instead, she discreetly pulled the bag behind her back, stuffed it into her inventory, and bowed. "Thank you for the help."

The woman smiled. "No worries, dear customer!"

Hanami smiled back and turned to leave, before stopping just as she grasped the door handle. "Ah," She turned back to the lady. "I can't believe I forgot to introduce myself again." She huffed. "My name's Hanami."

"My name is Charlotte." She said. Hanami nodded and pulled the door open. "And don't forget to get a good meal!" She then added, and Hanami couldn't help but smile back.

Well, Charlotte had given her quite the sum. Might as well listen and get herself some food.

…

Lunch was quite the pleasant affair. The tavern she found was quite homely, and the food she ate was incredibly delicious. The lady that served her, Isabella, was very kind as well and struck her a fairly generous deal. A room for herself and three meals a day, all for 40 Mana Shards a day. If all went well, her stash would net her five days. She didn't know whether that was cheap or not, but the woman had been very kind. She'd offer a limb and assume that she wasn't scamming her.

That, and she was quite nice to look at-

Stop.

Hanami grimaced. It's odd really. She'd never been one to stare, and she had never been interested in girls. But from the moment she stepped into this world, she found her thoughts straying into the strangest corners. She guessed it was some sort of karmic rule that this world had. Annoying, but ultimately harmless.

She shook her head. She had something more important to do.

She'd spent half of her Mana Shards for her stay at the tavern, leaving her with a nice sum of 200 Mana Shards. As per their name, they were small blue crystal shards, each pulsing with a minute amount of mana. She'd planned on using her [Mana Star] to forcefully unlock her own mana, but this was a better, and much more efficient option.

So here she was, some distance away from the village, sitting down on a grassy hill as she read through [Ashen Lament]'s description. Her eyes roamed the panel, scanning over each sentence, reading the lines over and over.

She was dallying, she realized. Some part of her was hesitating, worried, afraid.

It was a younger her, a small part of her that still yearned for some normalcy. I'm still 17, it said, voice small and whimpering. We'll change after this. I don't want that. I don't want to change. I don't want to lose this.

Hanami swiftly crushed those thoughts. She lost her chance at a normal life the moment the A.I.M. system chose her as its new host. She would've changed sometime down the line, even if she tried everything she could to remain normal.

What would be so wrong with starting early?

Taking a deep breath, she brought out the remaining 200 Mana Shards from her inventory, letting them pile up just beside her. They sparkled beautifully under the sun, and she smiled as she placed a hand over them. She equipped [Ashen Lament] onto her other hand, took another breath, and-

[Mana source detected. Allow [Ashen Lament] to consume [Mana Shards]?]

She blinked, before she tapped [Yes]. The panel lit up for a moment, before the words on the bottom of the description shifted.

A spell crafted by the ancient keeper. Fires bolts of malice at a cost of 10 Mana/5 Mana Shards

Her eyes widened slightly. The system had done the hard work for her. How convenient. Narrowing her eyes, she held her hand forward and casted.

A burst of power rushed through her body, her chest heating up as she felt the pile of Mana Shards grow smaller. Their mana had been used, and now they were travelling through her body, heading towards her other hand, eager to be lapped up by her spell.

She focused on that heat, did her everything to remember and capture that feeling. But alas, the feeling soon vanished, and a bolt of black shot forth from her hand, crashing into a nearby patch of grass and turning it black.

She did it again. The rush returned and she focused as much as she could before the heat vanished. Again, the strength left her, and another curse bolt was fired.

So she did it again, and again, and again, her image of that strength growing more and more vivid with every repetition. The pile of Mana Shards continued to shrink, and her hands soon turned numb from all the magic rushing through her, but she pushed onwards. She was close. She could feel it.

So she casted, again and again and again, and soon the pile of Mana Shards she'd been pressing was gone.

But that was fine, because she didn't need them anymore.

With a smile, she stared at the spot she'd been firing at for the past few minutes. All the grass had died, and the soil had turned a foul black from all the curses she'd flung at it. She gave it a silent apology before she raised her hand at it once more.

At her call, a well of heat surged from her chest, pulsing through every muscle in her body, all rushing towards her hand. Slowly, a ball of accursed magic formed over her palm, growing in tandem with the beat of her heart. Then, with a wide smile, she let her spell loose.

Whoosh!

The bolt flew and slammed into the dirt, digging into the hill and sending small pockets of dirt into the air.

She was numb, sweaty, and tired, but she couldn't be any happier.

Magic: F [1%]

Mana: 90/100

She fell back onto the grass with a satisfied sigh. She'd done it. Her magic was now active! She let herself rest for a few minutes, content with enjoying the new warmth in her chest, before she sat back up. She wasn't done just yet.

Reaching into her -Inventory-, she pulled out the [Mana Star].

[Mana Star]

A crystal formed from stardust, created from lingering nebulas and condensed by the pressures of the early universe.

When consumed, the user's -Concurrent- Mana and Mana Regeneration will be tripled, and the user's -Concurrent- progress in magic will be doubled.

The description had changed, and she could now consume the object. Grinning, she tapped the glowing crystal, and a new panel popped up.

[Consume?]

She swiftly pressed [Yes].

And the world spun. The world around her seemed to fade. Her sense of touch dulled, and it felt as if she was floating in outer space. An unbearable heat rushed through her, cutting through every cell. She screamed, but no sound came out. She could only watch as her hand slowly disintegrated, broken apart and floating back into the universe whence she'd come.

Then, she was back atop that grassy hill, her breaths shaky as she raised her hand. Her hand was still there, uninjured. Slowly, she turned her eyes to her -Status-, and she let loose a slow breath.

Mana: 90/300

It'd worked, it seemed. The process had been painful, though not unexpected. Tripling one's mana didn't come easily. [Cosmic Ingenuity] had protected her mind from being blown apart, but it didn't dull her sense of pain.

Sighing, she pressed a shaky finger onto her Magic attribute.

[Magic (F)]

19%

Magical Damage: 100% | Mana Regeneration: 3 Mana/Minute

Progress Multiplier: x14

Oh dear.

Her progress had already been increased sevenfold, and now that increase had been multiplied by two. Her progress was evidence of that. She'd only casted a spell once before she used her [Mana Star], and yet she sat at a comfortable 19%. The amount of progress she could make was going to be staggering.

Her mind was already tingling at the idea.

With a small groan, she stood up. 3 Mana a minute; that was roughly one shot every three to four minutes. And she had several hours before sun down.

She grinned. It was time to advance!

It was night now, and Hanami sighed happily as she fell onto her bed. The dinner had been amazing, Isabella was wonderful, and the ale she provided after her meal was perfect.

More than anything however,

[Magic (D)]

37%

Magical Damage: 300% | Mana Regeneration: 12 Mana/Minute

Progress Multiplier: x14

Mana: 712/1,500

[Cosmic Ingenuity] was truly a cheat.

But she was tired now. She could feel herself sinking, and she didn't bother stopping it. She'd done quite a lot today. She deserved some rest.

So she closed her eyes.

A new day had come. She'd woken up, ate her breakfast, made some light chatter with Isabella, and began walking around the village once more. She'd explored most of it the day before, but there was a strange cave just south of the village, built from stone bricks and maintained by several impressive magical seals.

So here she was, standing before a pair of large wooden doors. They were sealed by a crude magical seal, although that crudeness seemed to be intentional, almost as if it was a simple barrier to keep those too weak from entering.

The seal lasted barely three seconds before it fell against her mana.

The moment she did, the doors opened on their own, and she was greeted by a giant magical circle drawn on the floor. The circle was complex, too complex for any normal mage to have created on their own, and it pulsed with a tremendous amount of mana.

But [Cosmic Ingenuity] was a cheat, and she could easily see what its purpose was.

[-Sakura Dungeons- has been discovered]

Unlocked floors:

-Floor 1-

It was essentially a magic elevator, with ten options of teleporations. The first was active, and the other nine required her to connect their specific arrays back to this one.

Well, there was no time to waste. It's time to go.

[Teleport to -Floor 1-?]

[Yes]

The circle beneath her lit up, and a sense of weightlessness overtook her as she fell through the void, pulled along by the magic of the circle. The sights of a thousand worlds flutter pass her eyes, and before she knew it, she found herself in a cavernous corridor, standing over a similar magic circle, though this one far smaller than the one above ground.

"Hii…!"

And immediately dodged to the left as a ball of wind flew just over her shoulder. The ball exploded against the wall behind her, and she turned back to see-

She blinked.

Before her stood a girl, with light brown hair adorned by a pair of fluffy bunny ears. She wore the barest of clothing, and what she did wear were either transparent or covered nearly nothing. That, and her chest was-

Please. Focus.

She shook her head. That was right. She had a bunnygirl to hu-, defeat.

She frowned. She needed to ki-, defeat her. No, k-, defeat her.

…

Ah, so that was another karmic rule this world had. No mur-, kil-, hu-, that. Which was fine with her. Completely fine. It wasn't as if she could truly harm a girl as beautiful as-

Alright, backpedal there.

How truly annoying.

She sighed, and the bunnygirl whimpered as she took a step back. Hanami stared at her for a full second or so, before she fired a bolt of accursed magic. The bunny shrieked, but her magic was faster, and the bolt slammed right onto her chest-

And blew her top apart.

What.

The bunny shrieked as she pressed her arms over her breasts, whimpering as she did her best to cover her chest. She had some light scratches on her body, but she came out mostly unharmed. It was as if her magic had damaged only her clothes, and nothing else.

Silently, she fired another cursed bolt at the bunny's shoulder. She shrieked again as the bolt fell down on her,

And caused her panties to tear.

WHAT.

She gaped. W-Was this another karmic rule of this world? What kind of rule was this!? Did clothing act as this world's health point or something!?

"Um," She began, doing her everything to not stare at those exposed breasts. "Are you alright?"

"My clothes are gone…!" The bunny cried. Her sorrow was clear, and Hanami felt a part of her break slightly.

"Can," She coughed gently. "Can you not get new clothes or something?"

"The-, the new dungeon lord doesn't give us new ones…" She whimpered as she hugged herself. "She so scary. I miss the previous lord! The new one is so mean!"

Hanami stilled. The new dungeon lord didn't present new clothes for these girls? How-, how evil! Such travesty! To think she dared to commit such a crime! Every girl needed their clothes! They needed fashionable clothes, great clothes, wonderful-

Alright that's enough.

She messaged her forehead. Another karmic rule was added to the book, and this world was becoming more and more ridiculous. But, being ridiculous was better than being dangerous, she supposed.

This was really pushing it however.

With a sigh, she pulled out one of the many shirts and pair of shorts she had in her -Inventory-. "Here." The bunny blinked as Hanami handed them over. "You can wear this for now."

The bunny blinked again, before she took them and smiled. "Thank you! You're so kind, miss mage!"

She smiled back. "No problem." She said, before her smile fell. "But if the new dungeon lord is so mean, then why don't you just leave?" After all, the bunnygirl didn't have anything from using the magic circle to teleport back to the surface.

The bunny's ears drooped. "We can't." She whispered sadly. "The new dungeon lord put some weird spell on us, and now we can't get out."

Hanami narrowed her eyes. "Is that so?" The bunny nodded, and she hummed. That sounded an awful lot like a slave seal, and the sheer thought alone sent shivers up her spine. "Did she put a magic circle on you anywhere?"

The bunny blinked, before she nodded and turned around. She pulled her hair aside, and there, etched on the back of her neck was a glowing magical circle, occasionally pulsing with dark magics. It was a crude little thing, but it was powerful, and it acted as a parasite.

It was heinous.

Silently, she pressed a finger onto it and pushed some of her mana into it. The circle shined, but she immediately began moving her mana to disrupt the crude mechanisms of the circle. It shook for a moment before the sound of cracking glass echoed throughout the caverns. The glow of the circle dimmed, before it faded.

"Eh?" The bunny reached to her back, patting the spot where the magic circle had been. "It's gone?"

"It is." She said, gently rubbing the bunny's back as she began shaking. "You can leave now."

"Really?" She looked up to her, tears in her eyes. "Miss mage is sure?"

Hanami nodded, and the bunny finally cried.

[Glossary has been updated]

They successfully came back to the surface, and the bunnygirl gave her a teary hug before she left for the plains, promising to come back for a visit after she found the rest of her family. Hanami watched her leave with a small content smile.

Her smile then fell. This seemingly simple mission had turned quite a tad more complicated it seemed.

Silently, she walked back to the tavern, mind stewing with thoughts over what that strange energy she felt was. That magic circle was constructed by mana, but the parasitic energy that kept that bunny bound was definitely not. It was something else, something heavier, and far more sinister.

She entered the tavern, and Isabella smiled at her from behind the counter. Hanami made an attempt at a smile.

It wasn't a good attempt it seemed, considering Isabella immediately walked up to her. "What's wrong?"

She glanced around. The tavern was sparse at this time, but she didn't feel comfortable enough to speak her mind. Not yet. "Is there a private place we can speak?" She asked. "There's something I want to ask."

Isabella frowned for a moment, before she nodded. "Follow me."

She did, walking behind her as they made their way towards the-

Hanami blinked. "Charlotte's store?"

"You've been here before?" Hanami nodded. Isabella smiled before she pushed the doors open.

"Isabella!" Charlotte cheerily said, before she turned her eyes to Hanami. "Oh, and Hanami as well! How're you both?"

"We're well." Isabella said, smile warm, before she grew serious. "Please seal the store. Hanami has something to say."

Charlotte frowned and nodded. A click sounded, and a burst of magic shot through the room. Hanami watched, eyes wide, as magic circles began drawing themselves upon the walls, each pulsing with their own purpose.

"We're safe." The clerk said. "What's wrong, Hanami?"

Hanami glanced at the windows for a moment, before she sighed. "Have either of you entered the dungeons before?" The two women blinked, before they shook their heads. She'd expected that. The two didn't seem to be fighters. She nodded and continued, "Do you know that there is a new dungeon lord?"

The moment she said that, the atmosphere fell. Charlotte's eyes turned dark, and Isabella smiled sadly. "Yes, we know." Isabella said, her voice sorrowful. "Is there something wrong?"

"Do you know that the new dungeon lord is keeping monsters locked in the dungeons?"

"...I'm sorry?" Charlotte whispered.

She nodded. "I went in this morning, and I fought a Bunny." She began, smiling slightly as she remembered that peppy girl. "She said that the new dungeon lord wasn't providing her new clothes," She barely held back a growl as she said that. "And I found a slave seal on the back of her neck."

Isabella gasped. "That's-!"

"How cruel." Charlotte finished, scowling deeply. "To think she would resort to that."

"Is there anything we can do?" Hanami asked instead. The two women looked at each other, before Charlotte turned back to her.

"Can we ask for a favor?" Hanami nodded. "You were able to free that Bunny, right?" She nodded again. Charlotte smiled. "Can you maybe try to free the previous dungeon lord?"

Free the Dungeon Lord [x]

It was time.

Hanami nodded.

Hanami stared. There was a woman chained against the back wall. Her hair was a bright pink, and she had a pair of fox ears on her head. She had a fluffy tail on her back, just as pink as her hair, and she wore a beautifully detailed kimono, which, of course, only covered most of her torso. Her shoulders were exposed, her thighs were exposed, and the kimono gave a wonderful view of her large breas-

Not going there.

She shook her head. After she'd agreed, the two women led her to a secret room hidden within the teleportation room she'd just come from. She was somewhat embarrassed she hadn't spotted it at her initial visit, but she was rather distracted by the giant magic circle on the ground, she supposed.

That aside, she could see why Isabella and Charlotte had given up. There were magic circles drawn over the chains, each a powerful seal. The seals holding the woman unconscious and chained were inhumanly complex, fueled by even more of that unknown energy she felt from that Bunny's slave seal.

The two women were already waiting outside. She wasn't confident the two could stand up to the amount of mana she'd inevitably release, and the two easily accepted her reasoning.

Let's do this.

She immediately went to work. She fed the seals as much magic as she could safely introduce. The seals lit up, and she began forcing her mana to thrash around, forcing them into every nook and cranny she could. The seals thrashed in response, flooding the room with that malicious energy. It was as if the seals were screaming.

More.

Her mana grew more chaotic, more fervent in causing as much destruction as they could. The seals thrashed.

More.

More malicious energy slammed out from the seals, intent on taking her down. She kept herself standing, her own mana standing up against the swallowing tide.

MORE.

Suddenly, a bright light overtook the room before a powerful wind shot forth, sending her crashing back against the wall. Pain shot through her, and she gasped as she slid onto the floor.

Distantly, she heard the doors slam open, followed by the clink of metal. Someone was shouting, and she could feel someone shaking her, but it felt as if everything was worlds away. Black spots filled her visions, and she fell unconscious soon after.

Free the Dungeon Lord [V]