Chapter 40

It was, as far as lunches went, more eventful than usual. Aside from a few of our number down in the dungeon helping the Ganesha teams capture and cage monsters, we had a mostly full house, plus Amani and Duran. Even the Oni were here, though they said they'd be leaving after lunch since they wanted to hear what I had to say before heading down to help wrangle monsters.

Duran still being here made me wonder, but that could wait. He was just as cheerful as he had been when I'd met him, and hadn't tried to pull me aside for anything, so I assumed nothing was wrong.

After food, Aisha Ryuu Hagane and I went into detail about everything. Even Duran put weight in and helped clarify things as to 'motivation' and 'politics' for some of the things that went on. Some of the information was 'known' but only so much as we needed to report over the Occulus, or what we'd learned from Rias and Akeno from the Earth side of the Gate. But as with any proper dungeon report, we went over everything, answered questions and brought everyone up to speed.

Then there was the... thing with the Amazons. Eina didn't interrupt, but was giving me 'the glare' almost the entire time. I didn't blame her, but there was little else I could have done to prevent that. So in the end, she had to relent and say, "I'll report it, and hope they don't blame us."

In return, our 'away team' was given a run down of what had happened in the city. Simple stuff, with the added spice of the Gate showing up, but thankfully, nothing really bad happened. I was very surprised that Brisid was allowed to see the Oni-zon children, but she made no sudden moves and Shinkage said she'd earned a 'tip' for a job well done getting her back to the city.

But, all caught up, all the 'what ifs' resolved, we got to 'what now'.

"What is the general plan for our visitors?" I asked, "We can't keep the Gate open for very long, but since they're here..."

"The Guild, for the moment, is taking a 'watch and wait' attitude so far. The city doesn't seem to mind them, and there has been a lot of interest from the adventurers and Gods. Their diplomat, Sugawara, is seeing what he can do to find trade goods for us, but has admitted the bulk of that world is far behind us for most of what we might care to buy." Eina explained, setting her teacup down and picking up Loaner, who submitted to ear scroofles shamelessly.

I myself was occupied with Toshi, who'd become a little fox for me so he could nap in my lap. He'd missed me terribly it seemed but I was happy to pay attention to him. "Duran? Any ideas?"

The 'off duty king' had apparently made friends with Maki's fox, who was sitting on his knee imperiously and allowing him to pat her head and neck, "While it pains me, our world is indeed far behind even this one when it comes to things we have in common. We use swords and armour, but even those may as well be made of wood compared to the work Master Welf does." He hmm'ed thoughtfully though, not willing to give up, "However, we do have skilled artisans, and I'm sure we have some fruits and vegetables that this world does not. Even the JSDF has commented on some of our 'exotic tasting' foods."

"I'll vouch for that one." Aisha raised a hand, "They've got some weird leafy greens that look like cabbage, but taste like onion. And the fruit was nice too."

"The nobility there favoured marble statuary." Ryuu added, "Good quality, though it favoured questionable subject matter."

Everyone in the room probably felt the same shift in reality I did. The Amazon commenting on fruits and vegetables, while the Elf mentioned nude statues?

"Ahem." Eina nodded, writing that down, "Anything else come to mind? The more ideas we have the better, even if some end up fruitless in the end."

"Clothing." Hagane said, "Not like I'd know, but from the simple to the overly frilly, they have a wide variety of styles."

Eina nodded, writing that down as well. "What of the monsters there? You've mentioned the dragons, and even brought eggs over."

"They'll take a while to grow, but in the mean time yeah." I looked to Duran.

"Those would likely be the highest cost item to your people. But a good dragon is priceless, and only a fool would skin one for a few gold." He smiled, "But it's certainly not a bad idea."

When no more suggestions came up, Eina nodded, put her pen away and tucked her clipboard under one arm. "I think that will do for now then. The next few days will see more coordination with our Guests, and we may be sending people through soon. I admire the JSDF's organizational skills." She put Loaner down on the seat next to her and stood, "We have our own line of communications with them, but do you?"

I nodded, "I left an Occulus on their side with the mages. I'll make sure to let you know if they say anything. As it is, they have people looking for problems related to the Gate being open. So we know what to watch for."

Eina nodded, satisfied, and parted with a, "Be sure to take a proper rest. Then I'm sure any number of things could use your attention." A nice way of saying 'don't hurt yourself, but get back to work'.

"I'll see you back, Miss Eina." Bell said.

Most of the others started to disperse, leaving behind the Oni, Haruhime, Aisha and Duran. Oh, and Toshi, who was still napping on my lap. "Your thoughts?" I looked to the Oni.

"They seem like a place similar to our own time of origin. But they do not seem like a worthy battlefield." Fukawa said after a moment.

"That's a good thing." Duran laughed quietly, "Our world has seen more than enough pointless conflict." He looked at the black fox on his knee, "Harshly spoken, but true."

"We are leaving for the dungeon." Okakai said, "The capture teams could use our assistance, yours too, if you wished to join us?" He looked at me.

"Tomorrow." I said, "I'd like to sleep in my own bed and actually remember doing so before heading out again."

The Oni nodded, stood, and left the room. "Duran-san? Did you need help?" Haruhime asked.

"A question first." He said, applying one last royal headpat to the black fox before it decided it was time to move on and hop from his knee. "While my kingdom basically runs itself, I should return at some point soon."

"Ah, I'll start up a batch of lizard tonic in a moment or two." I nodded, "But just to be sure, you understand the risks, correct?"

"I trust my body to endure at least a little more pain before giving out." He said seriously, "And there are many in my realm who might benefit from your 'clear all' as well. I did not know if I should talk about such things with your 'Guild' here."

"I'll work with the Mages when I can, and maybe find a way for you to make that locally. But it will take time to study the plants of your world." I nodded, "For now though..." I looked to my lap, "Hey... Can't sleep all day."

The blond fox in my lap said 'hehhhhh' with a pout. But, he wiggled around to curl away from the guests in the room and became a two legged boy again. I made him some all black clothing to cover up, and with a sleepy hug he slipped off the couch to wander off to find his actual clothing.

"A bit of a mama's boy," Aisha chuckled, "But adorable." She hmm'ed, "Well, if you're going to play with plants, I'm going to have a proper bath I think, get the jungle off my skin again." And she wandered off as well.

"Duran? You should do that as well. Relax as much as you can. This will be ready in an hour or so." I said, "Love?"

"A bath in the middle of the day... how opulent." But she nodded.

Duran did need a little help to scrub properly, but once he'd been put into the hot water to soak I walked a few steps over to the 'Woman's side of our baths and stopped at the door with Haruhime.

"Now, before you go in, make sure to ask Aisha about the important news she has for you. If I'm not in the infirmary by the time you're both out, please see Duran there for me?"

"Of course, Ko-san." She smiled. She then did a quick look around, making sure there were no observers, and gave me a huge hug. This was followed by a VERY warm kiss and maybe some wandering hands that she'd never admit to. "You will rest properly tonight, right Ko-san?"

"If my love allows it." I smiled, "See you soon." I of course added in a little ear nibble of my own, you know, since I was there.

I stood by the door just long enough to hear Haruhime ask, "Aisha-san? I was told you have something important to tell me?"

And part of the reply, "Awww f...haha, yeah... I kinda do..."

Our children knew not to crowd me while I worked on things. But I was pretty sure they'd somehow figured out some kind of rotation or secret whiteboard strategy. While I mixed up a fresh batch of potions, each of our children visited me. One at a time, just long enough to get a hug, some headpats, and cling to one of my tails, then vanish again.

I even checked out in the hallway, but no, they weren't camped outside, and I couldn't hear them in the nearby rooms... I couldn't help but feel a little pride, I mean, not even five years old yet, and already starting to be mysterious!

When I'd gotten to the infirmary, Duran, Aisha and Haruhime were already there. I myself had all of the children wandering behind me, happily holding the end of a tail and playing with them. When I was out of a 'work space' I was fair game for anyone, especially the children, and they were taking advantage of that. They once again vanished after I got to the infirmary and gave them all a hug again, but only after I promised another story time before bed.

"That was mean Fox." Aisha... pouted? Oh wow...

"Punish me later." I smiled, "Duran, feeling nice and relaxed?"

For ease of access so to speak, he was just wearing one of our house robes, and sitting on one of the four beds we had. On the surface, he seemed practically cheerful, "I'm a little curious actually, is everyone in your world so well versed in medicine?"

Aisha got on the other side of the bed, and put her hands on Duran's shoulders, while Haruhime rolled up his sleeve to expose the stump of his arm, "Every adventurer learns how to treat minor injuries mostly out of necessity." Haruhime explained, "The dungeon is a dangerous place, and healing potions can be expensive."

I set the little bottle of Lizard tonic down and opened one of our 'sharp objects' cabinets. Now, since this wasn't the industrial world of Earth, we re-used our scalpels and cleaned them up afterwards. Now, since we had a Master smith on hand, we sharpened them on site. But other Familia usually sent them to a smith for proper care.

"I hear the prices for potions are down a bit, even with the increase in adventurers." Aisha said, "But yeah, since we adventurers heal pretty fast from most injuries, potions are usually for the really bad stuff."

I handed Haruhime the scalpel, "I asked about that, and again I'm amazed, the Gods gift seems... lesser than an Apostle, but hasn't suffered for how common it is." Duran's eyes tracked the little blade in Haruhime's hands, "Is there something I should be doing?"

I handed Aisha a bit of clean scrap leather, and she said, "Bite on this, and think happy thoughts." She instructed.

"Ha-chan? Like so." I used my finger to draw an X on the end of Duran's stump, "And only this deep." I touched the tip of the scalpel, "Aisha, hold him still."

Well, he didn't die. But it may have been a VERY close thing. I applied the Tonic, and he went through the usual pain I'd seen others go through. The sudden spike in heart rate however sent him into a seizure, and for a moment or two I thought I'd just managed to kill an otherworldly sovereign with a heart attack. But after a moment or two, he settled down and he stopped foaming at the mouth.

It took about a half hour or so for him to come back to his senses, but by then we'd cleaned up and gotten him comfortable.

But, proving he still had a sense of humour, even after all that he'd been through, he said, "See! I told you so." This was followed by a bit of dry coughing, then, "And if you give me a moment to catch my breath, we can do the leg too!"

"I like this guy. He's got grit." Aisha laughed.

"Well, while you were out, I mixed up a little muscle relaxant. You'll probably miss dinner though." I said, "How are you for bitter tastes?"

"I'm not going to miss 'tawk-o' night am I?" We shook our heads at him, "Then go ahead."

"its like I'm resting on a cloud..." He mumbled up at the ceiling, "i feel so fluffy everywhere."

"Wow. What did you give him?" Aisha asked.

"Remember that one time you tossed Ouka into a tree? And he broke like... everything?" I asked.

It had been one of our rare cases of 'bad luck' on the training field. Aisha threw Ouka, he almost landed on his feet, but a previous fight had put a pothole in our field. So he tripped, stumbled, and ended up wrapping himself around the big oak tree by our training circle. Broke a few ribs, his arm, and twisted his ankle so bad it was dangling at the end of his shin.

Of course, being an adventurer meant he'd recover from even that, but broken ribs were a bit tricky to heal with potions, so we'd just made sure he was comfortable, set everything properly and gave him something for the pain.

"Ohhhh that stuff. Small dose I hope? That's one of those... things some of the workers use after a hard day." Aisha said with a frown.

"Very small dose." I nodded. "Love? How's it look?"

"Both his arm and leg have already healed the cuts I made." She nodded, carefully tying the bandages over the stumps, "And the skin is feverish as it should be."

"yay." Duran mumbled, "i wonder if i'll be able to scratch my ear with my new hand?" A pause as Haruhime gave Duran's ear a rub with her thumb and forefinger, "oh, well the next time then." And he was out.

"He'll be really hungry when he wakes up I think." I said with a quiet laugh, "Is it just me or does he remind you of Kuroyuki-san?"

Haruhime nodded, "He has a similar air of a grandfather..."

"Don't look at me, grandparents aren't a thing for Amazon." Aisha shrugged, "But I'll take first watch over him. Just bring me a book or something."

"Thank you." I nodded, "I'll get you a book, then maybe spend the rest of the time before dinner catching up with people..."

People like the Orphans and Takemikazuchi, who were all too happy to watch me as I got thrown around the dojo. But that was fine. All the recent excitement made me feel like I'd been away for years, and being used as a dust mop for the dojo floor made me feel just as at home as taking a bath did.

Or the Phoenix. They'd never forget who I was, or anyone, if Delly was right about them. But they were taller than I was and I had to keep them from nipping my ears. Again, if Delly was any judge of them, they would never be 'friendly' like a dog, but would be more like a cat, and 'accept' your affection when they wanted to. That was fine, they still got along with everyone, even the Gods... when they wanted to. Gros was the only one who could actually tell them to do something, and get them to listen on the first try. Still, they accepted my presence, headpats, and some bits of dried meat from my hand.

Gros... Well, he was still the 'old man' of the Manor. But wasn't actually in his enclosure when I found him. No, he was actually in our swimming pool.

"Why... are you in the pool?" I asked.

He wasn't even swimming. Just... laying mostly in the shallow end, with his head resting on the deck outside the pool.

"I thought I'd try something new." He said, "Weine asked if I'd ever gone swimming. But I'm a living statue. 'Swim' is somewhat of an impossibility for me I think." He moved his wings a little, making waves in the pool.

"Huh. She probably just wanted to play with you, but also swim." I nodded.

"Likely." He agreed, "But on a hot day I do like this." He put head head back down, "And afterwards, rolling about in my sand feels extra nice." He lifted his head again, "Speaking of. Could you talk to that creature for me?"

"Sure."

In Gros's enclosure, moments later, "Hey you! Yeah you! You gotta share." I was speaking in the 'Special Region's language too.

With a sad grumble, Duran's personal dragon rolled over, stood up, and went back to the far side of the enclosure to pout, its now glossy scales shedding white sand as it walked.

Sir Skitters found me when I went looking for him, again making me think he had some kind of unknown super power for being where he was wanted. There wasn't much need to 'reconnect' with him, but I still gave him all kinds of gentle pats, and brought him over to the next person I wanted to visit.

"Well Jiru? Any idea?" I asked, looking at the chess game I was hopelessly losing.

"Blup." He said from his perch on my shoulder.

Sir Skitters was already doing the celebratory crab dance, but then I saw the opening in his defence, and moved a pawn forward. He paused in mid sway, put his front legs down, and then with a little blur of motion, flipped himself over in a 'dead spider' curl.

"That'll teach you to celebrate early." I said, taking the opportunity to rub his underside, then let him cling to my arm so he could right himself. "But I know you were going easy on me."

He rubbed the back of his set of eyes, much like Issei, or Bell, would scratch the back of their head when embarassed. But I still gave him another pat on his fuzzy rear and set the board up again, "We'll play again later. Go visit Astraea and maybe help in her greenhouse."

He zipped off, and I made my way over to one of Jiru's many windowsill perches. People wondered why I insisted they be built into the very stone of the Manor, but then they realized just how personable this impossible patch of moss was, and agreed with me that he was more than worth the trouble.

I set him down, made sure to pat his back, and then knelt so I could look him in the 'face'. Or at least, 'the side that moved forward the most when he moved'. "So, I found some odd moss in the jungle, and I wanted your opinion. I'm not going to bring it out near you, since it seems to eat magic, but I'm wondering if you know any other plants that suppress or hinder magic?"

On the topic of plants, I went to visit Astraea. Not too surprisingly, Ryuu was in the greenhouse with her, and was working with Sir Skitters to tend a long vine of really nice smelling flowers. Sure, I used Jiru to 'cheat' things like this in to the world all the time, but seeing it actually grow was much nicer.

Astraea and Jiru also had a bit of a special bond as well. She'd commonly use his 'services' to grow flowers instantly, just so she could transplant them into her garden. But later, Jiru would wiggle his way next to the newly made garden, and try and imitate her work on his own. A weird helper/rival relationship.

But also in this greenhouse, were Ryuu's trees. I'd wondered how she had managed to 'grow' her furniture back when I'd been in her room at the Hostess of Fertility, and well, here she was growing more. Kind of like the art of Bonsai, except you were expected to be able to sit on it later. Or hang clothing off it...

The trees she used were special. The 'top' would be pliable, like rubber, and you could weave many branches and trunks together, but after a week or so, the trunk would harden. So you had to tend to them very carefully, constantly, and if you were neglectful at all, you couldn't go back to 'trim' the parts you might have not shaped correctly. Doing so would leave ugly scars on the otherwise smooth silvery bark, and not actually work anyhow. Kind of similar to a 'money tree'.

These trees were one of the very few things Ryuu wouldn't let me help with. Only Astraea could oversee them when she was away, and by the smiles on both their faces (while I was politely doing something else with Sir Skitters) told me the Goddess had done a good job.

Maybe when I retired, Ryuu would let me grow some of my own? But at the moment, knowing my luck, I'd start, then have to restart, every single time I found the time to check.

Next on the list was Hestia. She was in the Manor's library, reading a new book. Judging by the cover it was one of the new textbooks for the school. Since she was one of the teachers, I assumed it was about the topic she taught, that of 'house maintenance'. It had taken a bit of brainstorming to find something our Goddess could teach and actually teach well, but really it should have been obvious. And while she as a teacher was quite popular, her topic wasn't exactly the most fun. I mean, what child wants to actually do chores?

But that's what she taught. How to care for a stove, clean the sinks, what to do when you see ants, or simple fire safety... Yes, Hestia was the world's first 'life hacks' teacher. And she was good at it. And probably made even better because she was only just a little taller than the oldest boy in class. No one could tell her 'she could only do it because she was a grown up'.

However, she wasn't actually reading about that. She was reading a simple manual for architecture, and if my guess was right, it was written by the Rhibus.

"Lady Hestia?" I called out to her as I entered the library, taking note of the book and smiling, "Something new?"

As usual she was dressed in her nice while and blue dress (the new one that didn't threaten to expose her with a little breeze, or knock her out if she went down the stairs too fast), but she was also wearing a pair of glasses. It made her look much smarter, but I knew they were just for show. She took them off, set a bookmark, and gave me her Best Smile.

"Weine, and Jamil were talking about how there were so few birds in the city." She said, taking her feet off the footrest in front of the reading chair and patting it to encourage me to sit in front of her. "So I thought, why not have the next class project be to make bird houses?" She gave the book a pat, "Of course... I don't know the first thing about it, so I looked it up."

"My Goddess makes me proud." I nodded, "And if you wanted to go that little bit further, you could read the book Lord Anthus wrote about what birds eat."

"Oh... that's a good idea." She nodded, but then reached out for me. I didn't take her hand, but of course one of my tails went to visit, "Is something wrong?"

I moved the footstool a little closer, not just so my tails could visit easier, but also so I could lower my voice a little. "You know I'm a bit different, when it comes to being an adventurer."

"Maki too." She nodded, "She's... she's starting to pull away from the others, stat wise, now that she's hit level two. No where near as fast as you or Bell, but close." She then squinted at me, and put a hand to my forehead, "What's this? You didn't hit your head, did you?"

"One of the things a Kitsune, or any Demon from my world have to contend with, is... 'corruption'. It has a few names, corruption, malice, curses, evil, malevolence. The only difference is how much you have when you are born."

"You mean like the Oni, who were born with 'cursed blood'?" Her hand stopped rubbing my forehead and went to pet my ears instead.

"Yes. Demons aren't always 'born' from parents, like they were. Some are made like spirits. For example, the last thought of someone about to freeze to death, or someone who killed themselves wishing it were someone else, or a pen that had been used for so long that it became a person all its own. A great many Demons have their origins in darkness. But some, like me, are more divine. But like all people, we can choose to be good or evil."

"Except Demons are prone to one or the other at birth?" Hestia stopped playing with my ears to scratch her head, "I think?"

"Yes. The Oni were shown a way to master their darkness, while not letting it consume them. I on the other hand, well, I took on corruption from an outside source, and nearly lost to it."

"But you said you got rid of it? With that Jade and when you... created Sachiko?"

"Most of it. All but the smallest bit. I'll never be rid of it. But so long as I don't feed it, it will never grow." I moved my hair out of the way, the two tiny, almost unnoticeable lumps tingling when I touched them, "But when I was in Telskyura, I went a little overboard, and tore down part of their city wall. I think it was made with the help of the Gods, and the corruption inside me reacted to it."

She took a moment to digest that, then went wide eyed, "That shouldn't be possible."

I sighed, "I thought so." I shook my head, "I know the Gods did a little cheating here and there to secure the future for their Children. I mean, Babel is the most obvious example. Something like that just wouldn't work under the normal laws of physics."

"You'd have to ask Ouranos about that." She shrugged, "But, what does this mean for you?"

"I just... wanted to let you know. You're my Goddess after all, no matter what happens to me." I leaned forward, and she started to pet my ears again (because she was also the best Goddess ever), "And even though I was only gone a few weeks, it felt like years. It's going to get a little more exciting around here for a while, and before I run off to do things..."

"I understand." She said, letting my ears go and instead hugged my entire head. After a moment of flower scented darkness, she let me go, "Did... you want me to give you an update? You haven't had one since you reached level seven."

"No... I am still growing as a Kitsune." I replied after a moment, "And you said it yourself, not even death will change that." I laughed quietly, "And no matter how strong I get, no matter what the numbers and letters say on my back, to me that is the most important line."

She nodded, then broke the serious moment by booping my nose, "Well, if you could make some iced cream for dessert, I would be most pleased." She giggled, unable to hold the 'imperious' tone.

"I will see it done."

The last person on my list before dinner was technically someone I would never have need to 'reconnect' with. The reason was simple too.

"Fen-chan?" I called out.

Like smoke and shadow, the House Guardian, the fragment of Fenrir's soul and my own magic, bled out of the walls around me and sat at attention in front of me. Less than Sachiko, my Kitsune spirit daughter, but far more than my usual fox spirits, he was always connected to me.

But he wasn't me. So, after a moment of watching him, watch me, I reached out with both hands and scroofled his fur for a solid ten minutes. The act of reducing the giant foxxo to a happy tail flailing leg twitching bundle of ghostly fur was quite satisfying. I then told him he was still the best Foxxo ever, and that he should go find people to help with dinner. And just like a switch had been thrown, he stopped acting like a silly boy, rolled over, nodded once and faded into the walls again to do what was asked.

After dinner, while people enjoyed their iced cream, we got to 'what next'. With some of our number already in the dungeon, and most of the 'after dungeon' meeting having been done yesterday, this was a more causal affair.

"So, is anyone going to follow me down to help the monster capture teams?" I asked.

"I wouldn't mind." Shinkage said, "Though, I think I'm more suited for escort duty back to the surface."

"Can I go?" Amani asked, "I mean... That's part of why I'm staying, right?" She had a little iced cream, "So gooooood!" Then had a full body shiver while holding her forehead, "brr cold..."

"I'll come with you." Chigusa said, "Every team should have a supporter."

"We could just take the Golem." Shinkage shrugged, "But we'd be thankful."

"With Miss Kodori going down with you, you'd hardly need more hands." Bell said, "And you would be coming up with the Ganesha teams."

"True." Shinkage nodded, "Unless we decided to explore a little on our own. But I am sure Hagane will come as well."

"Ah, what about me?" Duran asked, mimicking the same 'brr cold' shiver as Amani.

"I will escort you to the Gate." Haruhime said, "I would like to see the object that has caused so much trouble for us."

"I'm sure the Guild will be happy to see you off as well." I added, "No doubt they'll have some sort of paperwork for you to deliver to the JSDF on the other side. Speaking of, I should call them. Just to make sure Arpeggio got her gold back."

"Speaking of adorable, wonder how the Mama is doing with Ganesha." Aisha asked, "Oh, and while you're down there, kick Welf in the shin for me so he'll come back up."

"He is with Brisid and the other Amazon, helping the capture teams." Takemikazuchi said, "While part of their payment is to equip Brisid and her party properly, the materials were not part of the payment."

"So long as they leave the city properly outfitted, the contract will have been fulfilled." Astraea said, "Check on Delly for me, Kodori?"

"Of course." I looked to Ryuu, "We'll go make sure Ryuu's little sister is doing well. Mine too." I thought of Maki.

The next morning started with a very quiet argument. I have to preface this just a little, since the two arguing were like night and day when it came to culture and 'preferred methods' when disagreements arose.

In one corner, we had Aisha, who's entire race was all about competition. Want to prove you're stronger? Start fighting. Want to prove you can stop the other from getting their way? Start fighting. Want to prove you can kill something bigger? Start fighting. And most recently learned... Want to stop being the one who cleaned up after everyone else? Start fighting.

And in the other corner, you had Haruhime. If she thought she was right, she would calmly argue her point until proven wrong. Calmly and logically. If proven wrong, she would simply back down with a nod, and usually a smile just to show she had no hard feelings. If it was something she could do nothing about, like say, stopping someone for doing something she didn't like, yet had no real say in... like me needing to deal with politics because I couldn't help myself... Well, she'd let you, but probably not smile about it.

But if she knew she was right, could not be proven wrong, and DID have a say in things? Well, she was an immovable object. Kind of like arguing with a very pretty glacier. Most of the time, she'd just get this look in her eyes, and you'd know you've already lost.

So, after falling asleep exhausted between my two lovers the night before (one to catch up, the other to 'punish' me), I woke up to the very quiet argument of, "I'm pregnant, not invalid." Aisha grumbled quietly.

"You shouldn't take risks." Haruhime replied, "We didn't, once we knew."

"Neither of you are Amazon. We're usually going out until we start to get too big to move properly." Aisha replied.

Haruhime and I hardly ever argued, but it felt kind of amusing to have someone else try and move her when she knew she was right. So, I just lay between them while they sat on either side of me and grumbled at each other.

"I know your bodies work differently, but not that differently." Haruhime countered, "Even the Amazon in our dorm wing stopped working soft jobs early in."

"That's because most men have a hard time performing when faced with a woman they didn't knock up." Aisha switched tactics a little, trying to embarrass Haruhime. "And those who can, usually like playing too rough."

Haruhime didn't shy away, "They made sure they didn't take any risks, for them or their child." Through my barely open eyes I saw Haruhime starting to frown, the almost imperceptible beginnings of her facial muscles relaxing, then moving downward.

So I sat up, wrapped them both up with my arms and tails, and said, "My pillows are talking. Bad pillows." And flopped back down, the two of them laying with their head on either of my shoulders. Then just to make a little more of a show of things, I hugged them just a little closer, so they were almost nose to nose, "No fighting over me."

"Well..." Aisha sighed, wiggling a little so I'd relax my arm and tails so she could get comfortable properly, "Since you're awake, what's your say?"

Haruhime didn't need to wiggle for me to relax my grip to let her get comfortable. She also didn't need to ask me, instead just turning one eye up at me with the question practically floating in the green surface of her eyes.

"I don't have a say, just an opinion." I said, "And we should trust each other to know where our limits are." My hands, unable to help themselves, reached down to squeeze each of their rears, "Ha-chan and I thought we had only one chance at things, so when we knew for sure, we left the dungeon until they were born."

Haruhime pouted at me, possibly because I wasn't taking her side, or maybe because her rear was very fun to play with, and I was doing so.

"We know better now." I continued, "But even then, I hope you'll consider our feelings about it?" Aisha's rear wasn't quite as much fun to squeeze, but instead of pouting at me she was trying to capture my leg with her own.

"It's not like I'm going to take any unnecessary risks." Aisha sighed, reaching over to put an arm over Haruhime's back, "But I can't just go inactive."

"Make sure you don't then." Haruhime relented, "Be sure to at least follow the rules." She reached over as well, and the three of us had a mildly naughty group hug. "But... unless we wanted to skip breakfast, I think we should start getting ready for the day."

"Yes Ha-chan." Aisha and I both said.

Breakfast was had (on time sadly), and we all got ready for the day. Chigusa and Amani (since she was 'the new girl' and following Amazon tradition) helped get Duran into his armour and onto his dragon. The Phoenix were actually sad to see the dragon leave, making sad little woo noises as it stomped its way through our gate and onto the street. Gros however was quite happy to see it leave, but actually said good bye to it.

So, with Aisha and Ryuu staying behind today (we expected to be back later tonight anyhow), we started towards the Tower.

"Before I leave, I think I'd like to see this tower up close." Duran said, his nice armour and even nicer dragon getting a lot of attention as we walked down the main street towards the tower.

"Of course, Duran-san." Haruhime said, one of her hands holding the reins of the dragon, leading it how a Page might a knight's horse. "My my, you seem to be getting more looks than Ko-san today."

"I've been wondering about that." Duran said, nodding to anyone who made eye contact with him, much like he would when walking the streets of his kingdom I suspect. "I've noticed that this Guild of yours took your words with a certain... weight. They relented to every one of your requests, even though you seemed quite clear they were just that. Requests."

"Eh, well..." I hesitated.

Hagane, with Shinkage on his back, then said, "That is because she is the strongest in the city."

"She could rule, if she cared." Shinkage said, looking up at Duran, "But as you've seen, she's far too busy doing things that actually matter."

Duran turned to look at me, and I could only shrug, "Yeah... About the only time I've ever really put my foot down on anything around here, was when I told the city not to call me Queen. We spent far too much effort putting the city back under Guild control for me to take power."

"Fascinating." Duran nodded, rubbing his chin, "You don't even rule from the shadows?"

Haruhime replied for me, "No, she simply stands with the Guild and what they represent, a guardian to the throne, not the one behind it."

Duran nodded, "I can respect that. I've seen far too many young rulers being manipulated by their advisors, or ignored by them while they filled their own pockets."

Shinkage laughed one of her rare little laughs, "It is common for an adventurer to throw what's in their pockets away, and only keep what's important in their hands and arms."

Duran looked around at us, Haruhime, Shinkage, Hagane, Chigusa, Amani, myself, as we all just gripped our weapons or made one more check to see if our equipment was on properly.

"You know, if I retire, and the Gate is still open, I think I'd like to stay here. You lot seem far more sensible than the rabble on my side of the Gate." Duran laughed grandly, "And your Gods like showing off instead of causing trouble, or staying quiet."

We all looked at the tower, WAY WAY up at it, "More or less." We all said.

"Love? Take care. I doubt I'll be away more than a day, but I have the Occulus." I stepped in front of the dragon, gave it a pat on the snoot to keep it from nibbling on me or something, and gave Haruhime a hug.

"Yes love. Be careful." She looked to the others, "The rest of you as well. Return at the end of the day."

And with that, she led the dragon towards the Gate, leaving the rest of us at the base of the Tower.

A brief word with the Guild official inside, a small introduction of Amani (who now knew how to sign her name at least on the official register) and we were off. Amani of course, had her own version of 'first time in the dungeon' jitters.

And for her, it made her a total tourist. Eyes wide, looking everywhere except forward, marvelling at all the people and their fancy equipment, commenting about everything as if we hadn't noticed it either...

We could only smile and sigh at the antics, but one we had descended the wide spiral staircase down to the first 'floor' of the dungeon, we all turned to her.

"Now, I know you're level two." I said seriously, "And you have a really overpowered party with you." Chigusa who was close to level three, Hagane/Shinkage and myself. "You have to treat this place just as cautiously as you would the Jungle."

"Do not be afraid, but do not assume you are ready for everything." Shinkage said.

"Yes Ma'am." Amani said, looking around and actually focusing on things, "It's cooler than the jungle, but I feel like there are eyes on me from everywhere..."

"We are unwelcome in the Dungeon." Chigusa said, "and the Dungeon makes its displeasure known. So long as you keep that in the back of your mind, you will do well." And the usually timid, shy and over-aware of people's personal space Chigusa, gave Amani a headpat.

But then she unslung her shield from her back, and readied her short spear. "Let's go for a walk then." I said, "I'll let you decide where Amani fits in the formation."

Being level seven, I had to basically become a shadow, else the dungeon would either have overreacted to my presence, or the monsters would stay away entirely. This however did let me observe Amani more carefully, to get a real reading on how she was handling things. But 'work' wise, the most I did was hold Chigusa's spear while she used one of those special hooked knives to cut out magic stone, making sure to show Amani how to do it as well.

And my first impression? 7/10. Once we got past the initial 'spread' of adventurers coming in to the dungeon and found a bit of space away from them, then started encountering monsters, she focused up and got into a reasonable version of 'combat focus'. Aside from not knowing anything about the monsters aside from 'stab lots to kill it', she treated everything like it could kill her, and only celebrated when it was dead.

By floor six, the most common floor for rookie adventurers to die, my opinion had gone up to about 7.5/10. She was gaining confidence fast. Working well in the party. And was taking advice and criticism with almost no back talk. I actually had to help a little here too, but only to warn them about a sudden rush of ants (the reason most rookie adventurers died) coming down a tunnel.

And by floor twelve, where hellhounds started to spawn, my 'final' opinion of Amani went to about an 8/10. And that was because of how she handled something she knew she couldn't handle on her own. We hadn't really gotten her all of the special equipment yet, and well, Hellhounds breathed fire. But instead of running to me, or hiding under a rock, or running away. She showed absolute trust in Chigusa, who planted her shield and did her job as defender. No screaming, no crying, the mini-zon ducked behind Chigusa, waited until the fire died down, then stepped out again to 'stab lots to kill it'.

Aisha and the others said that me teaching Maki and Delly how to deal with the dungeon took the 'fun' out of things, but I was quite happy to see that all Amani needed was a bit of polish.

"Well kiddo." I said, applying a well deserved headpat to our Mini-zon, "I think you're doing great. How are you feeling?"

"A little tired. Hungry too. It's a bit easier than the Jungle, I mean, aside from the totally different monsters. Less places for things to sneak up on you." She grinned up at me, "I can see why my sisters come here though! I've killed more monsters today, than my entire life so far! Sooooo many monsters!"

"And it's not even lunch time." Shinkage said, "At least someone's having fun." She looked to me, "Plan on actually fighting? Or are you just going to shadow us all day?"

"If I did, you'd earn less." I said, "Oh... You hear that?"

We all turned to look down the nearest tunnel, "Oh, that sounds like Welf." Chigusa said after a moment. "One of the teams coming back up?"

The noise and voices got closer, and it was indeed Welf, as well as a few Amazon and Ganesha Familia. In his hands was one of our old Adamant kennels, just a little one, maybe big enough to hold a puppy, but it had only minimal air holes around the top, and a heavy latch on the front.

"Oh hey sister!" Welf called out, "You missed a lot of the fun already we've got one of their prizes already." Walking at the back of the group was Brisid, who spotted us and nodded, an actual full blown smile on her face.

That worried me. "What exactly did you..."

One of the Ganesha Familia answered, "Ma'am. This is a seed pod for a Violas."

"The scary plant vines with flowers for mouths and a bad attitude?" I asked.

"Perfect for the jungle, don't you think?" Brisid said, her face turning serious.

"I hope you know what you're doing." I sighed, "Anyhow... As you can see, your littlest sister isn't dead. Even covered with the ask of her enemies."

Brisid looked down at Amani, "Good."

That single word of approval seemed to be worth more than all the praise we'd given her so far. But that was okay by me.

"I'll be staying up for a bit. Now that their little quest has started to see some progress, I'm gonna get to outfitting them." Welf said with a grin of his own.

One of the other Amazon spoke up, "We've even been collecting loot from the monsters for him to use." She nodded, "Shame he doesn't want to work for us back home."

"You're far too much woman for me." Welf backed up a half step while some of the women laughed, while the rest pouted.

"Let's continue." One of the Ganesha Familia said, "We'll be needed back down there before long." He nodded to me, "Ma'am." And they all started marching back the way my party had come.

"I agree." I looked to the others, "Let's go see what's up on the eighteenth."

NOTES!

There we go. Back into some action, and a nice chapter of Kodori grounding herself again before the inevitable sideways lurch we all know will happen.

More art soon, so be sure to watch the Ko-fi page (you should all know where it is by now I hope) and see you in five days. :)