Lupus had continued making her way down the cave's sole passageway, casually taking out a few bandits that had the misfortune of finding themselves crossing paths with her. As she finally spotted a light from a side opening in the passageway, a portal had opened behind her. She turned towards the rift and let a genuine smile manifest on her face, she couldn't wait to see her sisters after what felt like a long night. CZ and Entoma promptly stepped out of the portal, each of them taking the moment to inspect their surroundings. After her inspection of the area, CZ looked over to a smiling Lupus and began to question her about the situation.
"Lupus, where are we? What was the "project" that you needed help with?" CZ skeptically asked about Lupus's project, taking into account her wild personality.
Lupus took a dramatic breath and began to explain, "Ok! Since you guys left for your supply run, some bandits came to the village and sneakily kidnapped a few of the villagers! I convinced those two humans we met to join me in retrieving them! Oh, oh! And I might have told them that you guys were taken too, you know, to explain why you weren't here and have some fun with it! Anyway, I found out that Garin had a talent, so I sent him and Briley to look for another entrance outside, while I cleared out the cave! And…I….think that pretty much explains it!"
CZ showed no emotion but was slightly annoyed that Lupus was probably planning on indirectly killing Briley and Garin, she was also intrigued upon learning about Garin's talent. Entoma, had it not been for her unique design, would have been visually wide eyed at hearing about everything that happened in such a short time.
"I see. Then I will leave it to you two to clear out this cave and rescue the captured villagers, I will go outside and make sure Garin or Briley have not been harmed." With this, CZ turned and began to walk the direction she thought would lead out of the cave.
Lupus was caught off guard by CZ's sudden departure and quickly asked, "Shizu! Wait! Are you sure you don't wanna have some fun?"
CZ stopped and turned, "I wish to see what Garin's talent is. You two should work on eliminating the bandits and rescuing the villagers…they would be grateful if you managed to save them."
CZ continued to walk, leaving Lupus with a confused expression at her last words. She knew CZ was not as "dynamic" as herself but wondered why she commented on the villagers that had been captured.
"Hey Entoma, why is Shizu so worried about the villagers? Did Lord Ainz tell you guys something back at Nazarick?"
Entoma walked closer to Lupus, turning her face upwards to look at her directly, "Actually Lord Ainz was not present, he was out adventuring, I think. Anyway, when we went to the treasury, Pandora's Actor gave us some advice concerning the treatment of humans. He told us to show some kindness, this way they hold Lord Ainz in higher regards in the future!"
"Hmm Pandora's Actor said that…I guess he is the direct creation of Lord Ainz. Alright! Then let's make sure we can save the villagers, if they're still alive, and kill everyone else! Let's go!"
"Ok!" Entoma raised her arms and followed Lupus into the side opening she had spotted right before the two younger Pleiades had made their entrance. This room was significantly more open than the previous cavern Lupus had cleared out and a few metal cages caught their attention. Both girls looked to the floor of those cages and immediately noticed four people, seemingly sleeping, huddled together at the bottom. After noticing the cages, Lupus shifted her sight to the left where she saw two guards sitting around a table, asleep.
"Well, finding the villagers was easy! Entoma take care of those two bandits and we'll leave the villagers here until we make our way back!"
Entoma nodded and proceeded to walk towards the sleeping guards, at least they would never realize what had hit them.
Back with Briley and Garin…
Briley Sighed, "It looks like this side is just as closed off as the rest…"
The boys had been trying to search for another entrance into the cave and had come up empty in doing so. There had been one or two promising openings that only led to dead ends after several feet. It didn't help that the mountain was too steep to try and climb, so trying to find an entrance from above was out. Overall, they had spent a lot of time hoping for the stealthy rescue, that probably could've led to a no conflict solution.
"Yeah, I guess we should head back, Lupus has been waiting a while." Garin added, still looking around.
After their task had been unsuccessful, the boys began to head back to the mouth of the cave and where they had left Lupus to wait. They had gone even farther then they intended to and were now visualizing themselves having to go with the direct route. Fighting the bandits head on didn't seem like an insanely difficult task at first but when the situation was fully presenting itself, it seemed like a suicidal mission. Of course, this all relied on how many bandits resided within the cave and how capable most of them were, Briley had been beaten badly by one of them after all. Still, Briley believed that if Lupus was as skilled as she claimed to be, the three of them could work as a team to make their way through. The thought of her killing his assaulter was one of the few things that made him hopeful for a successful rescue.
Briley and Garin had made their way back and started to watch their footing as they neared the cave entrance, careful to not alert the guards they had seen before. As they finally approached the spot where they had left Lupus waiting, Garin looked over to the cave and muttered in surprise.
"Bri…the guards." Garin grabbed Briley by the shoulder and force him to stop.
"What Garin? What are you talking ab-" As Briley looked to the cave, the shock of seeing the two downed guards made him stop talking.
At first, it might have seemed like the guards finally let their drowsiness take complete hold of them, but a good look revealed that one of the guard's head was…missing. Briley, upon seeing the somewhat grisly scene, looked around for Lupus. She wasn't where they had last seen her, and he began to say her name in an attempt to find her.
"Lupus…Lupus!"
Garin finally pulled his sight from the guards and again took hold of Briley's shoulder, "Briley! Quiet down! Maybe somebody new showed up and took care of the guards, Lupus probably moved somewhere safer."
"I don't know about that, Lupus doesn't strike me as the type to run away, if anything…" Briley began to think about Lupus's uncaring nature and her potential strength.
As Briley was playing with the idea that Lupus may have taken matters into her own hands, both his and Garin's attention was suddenly snapped to someone who revealed themselves from the cave.
CZ casually walked out into the open, not bothering to take a good look at the dead bandits beneath her. She scanned the area for a minute, then quickly laid ger gaze upon the boy's direction, causing both to drop a little. Garin was the first to realize that it was indeed Shizu and his body seemed to react immediately, in the form of getting up and sprinting. Briley also recognized the person as Shizu but couldn't say anything about it before Garin abruptly got up to run.
"Shizu! Are you alright!? What happened!?" Garin was suddenly standing before Shizu and was visually inspecting her from top to bottom, trying to locate any injuries. Briley had reached the both of them after being caught off guard by Garin's outburst.
Shizu briefly stared at Briley but kept her gaze on Garin, "Lupus was successful in rescuing Entoma and myself, she is currently working on locating the other villagers. I suggest we wait here for her return, in the meantime, I would like to ask Garin some questions.
Briley and Garin had almost no reaction to her calm explanation but it soon registered and Briley couldn't hold back his flurry of question.
"Wait, wait, what are you talking about? Lupus dealt with the guards and rescued you two already? What, what is going on? We should head inside and help-"
"Lupus and Entoma are capable of doing this, I suggest you allow them to finish this matter. We are capable of more than you might believe…Entoma and me were merely…caught by surprise." CZ had added the last part, trying to play along with the story Lupus had made up.
Briley and Garin looked at each other, half shocked by the thought that Lupus quickly did all this while they were out looking for another entrance and half shocked that Shizu seemed almost embarrassed about being captured. Briley still had the desire to head inside to help Lupus but decided to take Shizu's suggestion, believing her calm tone was means for reassurance.
"Ok, alright, we'll wait out here with you, Shizu."
Shizu nodded at Briley's confirmation and began to ask Garin her question, "Garin, Lupus informed me of your talent. I would like to know what it is you are able to do."
Garin was taken back by Shizu's interest in him and offered a quick reply, "Uh yeah, ok. Basically, I can see farther away and can see better in the dark, kinda the reason I came along." He sheepishly smiled at Shizu.
"I see…" CZ thought about her own eyes and how they offered her similar abilities, albeit with stronger and more specific effects. "That is interesting, perhaps we can find out if your talent holds any more power that you don't yet realize."
Garin was too taken by Shizu's interest in him and the way she looked in the moonlight to notice that her interest was leaned towards his talent. He had tried before to attract her attention and it had ended with her slowly shutting the door to his offer. Briley was still thinking about Lupus's quick work and was only wondering why everything seemed so…easy going for the girls, whether it was rescuing or just being released from their captors.
Oxton and his men within the cave…
Ox was still sitting within the largest and final cavern of the cave, it had been a long night for his men and it had resulted in sloppiness. The mission to kidnap the villagers had not gone smoothly and many of his men wished to leave this dull part of the country. Ox was annoyed by this but understood that he could not always use his strength to solve a problem, his men would eventually turn against him and he still needed people to do the grunt work. One of the more promising members of the Oxmen, Kruath, he had already sent out with another group to see if they could take the supplies of a merchant wagon that a solo scout had spotted. After they returned, whether they found this merchant wagon or not, he decided that they would begin to pack up to move at first light. He had already inspected the four villagers his team had captured and deemed them fit enough to be sold to almost anybody, he already had a buyer in mind. As these thoughts were running through his head, one of the men within the same cavern caught his attention by walking up to him. Ox still sat in an elevated part of the cavern and looked down at his subordinate, getting ready to wave off another complaint.
"He…Hey Ox, me and some of the guys were wondering if…"
"What." Ox was tired of people not getting to the point.
"…if we could have some fun, with the girls. After all you did get three of them, it would help us relax…"
Ox was indifferent about his men partaking in such an act. He didn't encourage it but didn't actually know if any of his men had partook in this act before, either way, he didn't want to risk damaging his "goods".
"Hmm…No, I can't trust that you won't injure them. I need them in pristine condition, although I suppose that you could try scaring them into taking off their robes or something, don't touch them."
The bandit before Ox was obviously disappointed but figured that he would take what he could. Most of the men would be willing to take this over nothing.
"Yeah…alright, thanks." He turned to a group that was waiting for their answer, "Hey! Ox said we could scare them into exposing themselves! I'd take that over nothing!"
The group was dispirited at their friend's announcement but got up to make their way over to the captive's room. Only a few men opted to stay, not wanting to be part of such a skewed ratio of women to men who would be in one room. The group left Ox's presence and disappeared as they turned a corner that would lead to the main passageway. Ox kept his eye on them, until they all left and turned to one of the men that stayed.
"Hey Rengi, go make sure they don't get carried away, if they do, come get me." Ox commanded.
The bandit wasted no time in following orders and quickly made his way out to follow the group. As Ox watched him leave, he wondered if his men could hold in their desires. For the most part, his orders went without question, the only time he was disobeyed was if someone thought their life was in danger. Perhaps they did believe that their lives would be in danger if they touched his captives, Ox was the strongest after all and he could easily show them so. He relaxed once more, throwing his head back and stroking his mohawk back, wondering if Kruath would somehow run into difficulty again. As he closed his eyes for several seconds, envisioning his group several years from now, something unexpected made him jolt up again. What sounded like screams and the sound of the cave being rocked by a significant force, erupted without warning. He looked around the cavern he resided in first then looked to all his men who were also caught off guard by the sudden event. His eyes were immediately drawn to Rengi, who appeared from the corner of the hall again and was in full panic mode, covered in blood.
"Ox! We're under attack! There are twuuuhhg-" As Rengi was running, what looked to be a large insect leg rounded the corner, piercing his stomach. The leg then retracted, bringing Rengi back with it.
"Everyone get up! Grab your weapons! You five, go out there and fight this thing! The rest of you form a line in front of me!" Ox stood as he said this, grabbing his giant war axe and waiting for his men to fulfill their orders.
The five men he had sent to fight, shot each other a concerned look but were eventually reassured by their numbers. They ran to the hall that they had just witnessed their comrade die in and kept their weapons in front of them, each trying to slow down, as to not be the first to encounter the mysterious beast. As they rounded the corner, their reactions had changed drastically twice, from surprised to almost cocky. They finally receded from Ox's view and he gripped his axe as he waited to see what would become of them.
The only thing he heard was his men's war cries and then screams, only one had managed to run back but was again pierced by a giant inspect leg and pulled back into the fray. Ox was concerned, if this was another group of people, he was sure he could take care of them but from the looks of it, this was some kind of beast.
"Get Ready! We'll show this thing who the hell it's messing with!" Ox added some final words of encouragement before the fight, his men cheered and howled.
After their brief group rally, there was nothing, only silence and the room fell with tension. No one took their eyes off the only entrance to the cavern and they gripped their weapons like their life depended on it. Eventually they could faintly hear footsteps…although they were expecting a monster of some kind, Ox was the first to wonder what this thing was. Finally, after sitting in only the sound of faint footsteps for what seemed like eternity, something rounded the corner.
A small person appeared before the men and didn't seem to be covered in any blood at all, it didn't even seem like this person was a monster of any kind. Ox was the first to discern that this person was likely female, judging from the figure's build and hair style that was only slightly visible from her hood and torch light. His mind went back to the spider leg that they had all witnessed and he guessed that this was some kind of front, all he knew for sure was that this girl had just killed groups of his men. Just as he was getting ready to attempt communication with the girl, another figure made its way around the corner, this one much more obvious in terms of looks.
This other person was a much taller girl and had tanned skin paired with red hair. Her eyes were a golden color and shined through the little darkness that was not illuminated by the torches. Some of the men relaxed at the sight of this beautiful woman and even felt somewhat relived, completely forgetting that they had just lost groups of men.
"All of you on guard! What the hell are you thinking!" Ox yelled, after he had seen his men slack. After this he decided to transfer this angry energy over to the two girls.
"And who the hell are you! Who are you with!"
Lupus was the first to respond, "Are you the last of the bandits in this cave? It's kind of been a pain to get this far, you're like roaches! Haha!"
"At least you have more filling potential! Roaches don't usually fill me up." Entoma added.
Ox wasn't sure how to respond, these girls were strange and showed an overwhelming confidence that he didn't like. They also seemed to be taking the killing of his men with no concern whatsoever.
"So, you've killed everyone else huh? Who are you?" Ox asked again.
"I'm Lupus! And this little cutie is Entoma-" Entoma waved slightly, "-we're here to slaughter all of you!"
Ox kept his composure at Lupus's sudden proclamation and replied, "Really now? For what reason?"
"Well I guess the big reason is because you kidnapped those villagers! But honestly, we would've done this even without a good reason, you're just humans, and bandits at that! You're completely useless!" Lupus offered her best sympathetic look, although it looked like she was holding back a laugh.
Ox was listening, but at the same time trying to figure out how they fought, the only weapon he saw was a mace that hung from Lupus's side. This paired with the fact that the giant insect leg was still nowhere to be seen.
"Look we don't gotta go killing each other, leave and I won't hurt you two." Ox added a menacing tone to this statement.
Lupus let out a giggle, "Humans really are delusional to real power, we're going to go ahead and finish this, this has gotten all the way boring. Entoma…" She gestured for Entoma to attack.
Entoma nodded at Lupus's signal and brought both of her arms up in a zombie fashion, letting the robes drape in front of her. The next thing Ox and his men witnessed was a swarm of bugs, that had come out of nowhere, appear and fly into Entoma's draped arms. Ox saw this strange, what he presumed to be magic act, occur before him and quickly reacted.
"Charge!"
His men, thinking they could reach her before anything happened, all broke out in a sprint. As they ran towards Entoma and Lupus, a sudden barrage of loud bangs and projectiles filled the cavern. The charging gang we're soon met head to head with a flurry of hard bullets, being shot out from Entoma's sleeves. The men we're quickly taken down, a few trying to take cover behind some chairs and tables, only for those to be shredded as well.
Ox witnessed his men being cut down like wheat stalks, he was so engrossed in the mayhem that he barely had time to react to Entoma turning her arms to him. Since he was farther than his men, he had a wider spread of projectiles hail him, he jumped to his left, attempting to reach a stalagmite that would offer better coverage than a wooden table. As he made the jump from his elevated position, he dropped his weapon and had felt several objects puncture his body. He only had to run a few feet and finally dived behind the cave formation using his hands to cover his head. The sound of the bullets hitting the rock rang throughout the cavern but eventually stopped after a short time, most of the shots had been used on the group charging.
Ox heard that the attack had come to a halt and the pain of his own punctures began to make themselves noticeable. He uncovered his head and could hear the sounds of pain from the few men that survived the initial sweep, they were quickly silenced. He looked over to spot his weapon and began to crawl to it, it was his best shot at killing these two. As his vision was only focused on his weapon, he finally reached his hand out to grab it. Only to stop, when his hand was suddenly on the floor. His eyes widened, and he looked up and to his side to see Entoma with a blade and Lupus with her hands on her hips, smiling. Ox retracted from his axe and fell on his back, clutching his hand and letting out a flurry of curse words.
"Hey, hey, don't get all upset, you were the smartest to find some decent cover!" Lupus mockingly said.
Ox's initial terror had passed, and he looked up to the girls, "Wait! You two are strong, real strong! I am too, I got all these idiots to work for me after all! Let's work together! We can do great things together!"
"You think you're strong?" Entoma questioned.
"I am! Obviously, you girls are too! I can be useful and we could get a better group together than these weaklings!" Ox's adrenaline was fleeting and pain was starting to really set in.
Lupus leaned over Ox and her smile dropped slightly, "We are already part of the most powerful group in this world, it's actually insulting that you think you could ever build anything of that caliber. Once our supreme leader decides that the time to truly reveal ourselves has arrived, the world will know true power."
Ox was speechless at this woman's sudden turn to seriousness and was preparing himself to be killed on the spot.
Lupus's soft smile once again altered, back to its goofy-like state, "Alright! I really wanna have some fun with you but we've spent too much time in this dreary cave, so I'll just make sure you suffer for a while after we leave!" Lupus poked Entoma and pointed to Ox, Entoma looked down to Ox and raised her blade.
The next thing Ox knew, both of his feet were detached in a clean slice and his remaining hand was as well. The girls left soon after the mutilation, Lupus being particularly merry about leaving the bandit leader to die slowly.
Outside the cave…
Briley was getting anxious about how long all three had been waiting outside, he couldn't shake the feeling of uselessness that draped over him. The only thing that lifted Briley's spirits was looking over to see Garin conversing, somewhat, with Shizu and appearing very happy about it. Garin was doing most of the talking but Shizu seemed to be paying attention to every word, like she was studying his ramblings.
"But yeah, I just do whatever, I don't dislike any job in particular. What about you Shizu?" Garin had asked Shizu, attempting to shift the conversation over to Shizu once again.
"I will try to accomplish what is asked of me, as long as the request is from…my boss" Shizu had been throwing in substitutes for anything related to Nazarick or Lord Ainz, she was attempting to show the kindness that was recommended from herself and sisters.
Garin was about to keep the chat going when Briley had spoken for the first time in a while. Lupus and Entoma had finally emerged from the cave, each holding two of the villagers over their shoulders.
"Lupus! Entoma!" Briley made his way to the girls and began to ask questions.
"Are you two all right!? What happened to you waiting out here for us!? How did you-"
"Calm down Briley! We just went inside and freed everyone, simple as that!" Lupus joyously said.
"I see that, but how did you…I mean I suspected you were strong but this…this is unbelievable…"
Entoma was the one to speak up this time, "We're strong alright, let's get these villagers back while I have a full stomach."
Briley had no clue what Entoma meant by this but surmised that it was some sort of saying that he wasn't familiar with. CZ had broken her conversation with Garin to address her sisters, after Briley had finished offering his shocked praise.
"Lupus, Entoma, I assume nothing else of value surfaced within?"
"Nope!" Lupus quickly answered.
Garin was the next to interject, "Hey, me and Briley could help you in carrying those people, here." Garin walked to Entoma and she allowed him to take one of the villagers.
Briley was glad to see the villagers safe and seemingly unharmed and offered to take one of the villagers from Lupus. Eventually the group decided to depart from the cave and head back to the village.
The walk back from the cave was filled with questions, mainly from Briley and Garin who were asking the three girls about their origins and abilities. Any questions directed at the girls always led to the same type of answers, vague replies or jokes from Lupus. Eventually the group separated into the boys and girls, the girls being able to keep ahead, showing no signs of exhaustion. Once the two village boys had slightly separated, CZ began to softly talk with her sisters.
"Entoma, since Lupus agreed to helping Briley and Garin return their villagers, I'm guessing you informed her of Pandora's advice."
"Yep, she knows, right Lupus?"
Lupus nodded and brightly smiled showing her perfect teeth to her sisters. She didn't think such advice would be given when dealing with humans, but if Lord Ainz's creation thought it would help, she would try to keep his advice in mind.
CZ asked both her sisters a follow up question, "I assume we will discuss everything that happened once we leave the village, we must make sure Lord Ainz is aware of Garin's talent. The report should also include Lupus's individual experience and what you two encountered within the cave."
Entoma and Lupus nodded in unison and continued to walk at a brisk pace.
Garin and Briley were having their own conversation and were trying to keep it at low volume, since they were talking about the girls.
"Not very satisfied with their answers to your questions huh? Garin asked.
"Yeah, uh, it's just that they've gotten more…interesting as we've gotten to know them, you know what I'm saying right?"
"Yeah, I know. I mean Shizu and Entoma don't even seem bothered by the whole situation and Lupus apparently took out a whole squad of bandits, it's a little strange."
Briley sighed, "It sure is, but they helped us with the rescue, I don't know if we could've done that even with the rest of the village's help."
Garin simply looked forward, staring at the three people in front of them, wondering how much longer they would stay, he still had the selfish desire to try and keep Shizu around somehow.
"You think they'll leave soon"
Briley felt his friend's sadness but replied honestly, "Yeah probably, but she seemed interested in your talent, maybe that's a way for you two to stay in touch."
"I guess." Garin finally said, trying to draw his gaze away from Shizu.
Kruath and his group arrive at the cave…
Kruath had seen and heard of strange things occurring this night but what he had just arrived to, was the biggest surprise of all. The first thing he came upon was two dead guards outside, one decapitated, and figured that this could be Ox trying to scare people away, although he had never done something like this before. Kruath and his men entered the cave, finding more dead bodies and Kruath noticing more unusual details. The dead Oxmen he discovered so far had been thrown, beaten or punctured with brute force. When he inspected the jail room, he discovered the two guards stabbed smoothly and the villagers gone, had the remaining villagers mounted a rescue? There was no way they could've found them this quick, killed this many men without more of a struggle and left without leaving a shred of evidence. He continued walking deeper into the cave, expecting the worst and keeping his guard up. As he neared the final cavern, a pile of dead men clogged the entrance and he opted to step on these men's bodies to get over. Once he reached the final room, he visually swept the chamber to see scattered dead men all over the place. It looked as if they dived for cover and there were signs of small projectiles penetrating the furniture and hitting the floor and walls. Finally, he searched for his leader, Oxton, not spotting him immediately raised some hope in his survival. As he thought about his boss, a weak voice caught his attention, the rest of the men were still either crossing the pile of dead bodies or checking for any survivors.
"who's…there."
Kruath looked for the voice and found the source, half hidden behind what used to be Oxton's resting position. As he made his way to the voice, he was shocked to see Ox, his hand and feet sliced off and slowly bleeding out. He kneeled and lifted Ox's head closer, it was clear that he could not be saved and was on the verge of death.
"Ox, what happened?" Kruath had a bitterness to his tone, not because he was sad for Ox but because he had been so decisively beaten.
"these…two gu…just slaughtered us…" Ox sounded as if he was beginning to fall into his deep sleep.
"I see, who were these two?" Kruath asked this with a more curious tone rather than a vengeful one.
"I don't kno…they said they were a group…didn't say what…"
Kruath was now fully immersed in finding out as much information as he could, so many happenings just this night, were bound to be more than just a simple killer, as he had previously thought.
"Ox give me details, anything. What did they look like?"
"two gi…girls…one tall, one short…shorty wore…a hood like you…tall one had re…red hair and…and-" Ox's head went limp and eyes depleted of any life.
"Hmm, dammit." Kruath was frustrated that he had died as he was giving the details but was relived that he had got a loose description at least.
"Two girls, one tall, one short. Shorter girl wore a hood like me, and the other girl had red hair. This'll have to do for now." Kruath repeated the information out loud, it helped him remember.
Kruath laid his former boss down and stood back up, thinking about what he had just told him. Two girls did all this and claimed to be part of a group, a very strong one. Kruath had joined the Oxmen to be part of a potentially powerful organization and to further his own skills. To see the Oxmen slaughtered so easily, by two women no less, filled him with some embarrassment. Still, what connection did this group have with the village, if they indeed were the same ones that freed the captives. He also wondered why it always seemed like this violence was centered around him, was it a message of some kind? No, maybe not, but he figured it was worth looking into, especially if a solid group was involved. As he was thinking about the situation, one of the group members he was previously out with began to speak to him.
"Hey…Kruath, what now?"
Kruath had much to think about and made a quick decision that would help him act faster on his investigation.
"The Oxmen are dead, Ox is dead, we have no ties and I will be going my own way." Kruath walked past the baffled remaining members and only thought about what he could possibly do next.
Back with the maids…
The sun was beginning to rise, adding some warmth to the once blue landscape and the three maids had successfully escorted Briley and Garin back to the village, with their rescued villagers. The rest of the village was ecstatic at seeing their once captured friends and family returned, believing that the bandits were not as powerful as they imagined. Briley and Garin had simply told the rest of the village that Lupus and themselves acted as a team to recue everyone, seeing as they were left in the dark concerning details from what happened inside the cave. The village was much more engrossed in the four captives being returned than they were at the unclear story. The three maids paid no mind to the village people's excitement over the rescue and prepared to leave, Briley and Garin managed to catch them before they could.
"So, you guys are heading out huh?" Briley directed at no particular girl.
"Yep! We got somewhere else to get to and helping you guys was never part of our plan." Lupus directed at Briley, he shrugged sheepishly.
Garin approached Shizu and handed her a gift, "Hey Shizu, here. It's a dagger, I've had it a while and think if you ever run into trouble again, could use it to defend yourself. I'm sorry all this happened to you and your sisters while you stayed at our village."
Shizu took the gift and stared directly into Garin's eyes, "Thank you and your apology is unnecessary, this issue was not your fault."
Garin couldn't stop a huge grin from creeping on his face and he continued, "Uh yeah…anyway, the answer is probably no but do you think you'll come back to visit us?"
Shizu thought for a moment, "You have your talent, it's likely our paths will cross again."
Garin was happy to hear her answer and simply replied with a smile.
Lupus interrupted everything with her announcement, "Alright! That's enough with the goodbyes! Entoma, Shizu, let's go!"
The three maids left, following the main path once again. Briley and Garin watched as the maids left, each believing that they would hear from them again and that this night was the most interesting thing to happen in all their years in the village.
"Well Garin, I think I'm gonna go sleep, I only got a little before…this whole thing happened." Birley finally let out, tired from this half a day incident.
"Yeah, I guess I will too, hopefully they find what they're looking for." Garin said, finally breaking his stare from the three girls.
The two boys walked away together and mentally prepared to blow off any work they had for the day.
A/N: Thanks to AlernateReality roogaroosuman97 for leaving a review. To roog., I'll keep you in mind for sure. Thanks for the bookmarks and favorites. Also, I have exams, papers and presentations to take care of this week, next update will be the longest wait so far (Just don't think I abandoned the story or anything).