Chapter 20:

In her dreams, Haruhime remembered the day things began to change. They had made clear from Orario and were now leaving the Dragon Valley. Their time there had been fruitful, but now they had to go. At Haruhime's request, they were heading back to her homeland to wrap up unfinished business. Unfortunately, Welf, Ryuu, and Lili had their own plans. They would be travelling to Carien and Altena to train their individual skills. Thankfully, Haruhime would still be travelling with Hestia, Bell, and Mikoto. The thought made her smile, returning to her childhood home with her childhood friend. They would have a wonderful time reliving their old memories.

They were staying at a small inn just outside Valhal, the city of the Dragon Valley. They had three rooms, one for the boys, one for Hestia and Lili, and then one for the rest. Mikoto was getting her status updated, and Haruhime was waiting for her. The renard was feeling nostalgic and wanted to retell stories of their youth. When the young Far Eastern woman came inside, though, she was anxious. Mikoto had started to grow her hair out more and had been beginning to weave it for comfort. She was now braiding and unbraiding it. Haruhime had recognized that as a nervous habit.

"What is wrong, Lady Mikoto?"

Mikoto sat on the bed opposite her, looking at the floor. When she didn't speak, Haruhime opened her mouth, "Lady Mikoto, are you not excited to return home? We can visit the shrine and say hello to Lady Tsukuyomi!"

Mikoto flinched from Haruhime's words, and the renard tilted her head, "Is there something wrong?"

The young samurai looked up, "I will not be going home with you, Lady Haruhime."

The renard's ears twitched, "What do you mean?"

"I am joining Lady Lili in her journey to Altena. I will be fighting in the Arena of Nike," explained Mikoto.

A slight frown settled on Haruhime's face, "Why?"

"To get stronger…."

"I see…."

"So…you will not be journeying with me?" asked Haruhime.

Mikoto shook her head. The young samurai tried to smile, "On the bright side, you will have much more time with Sir Bell. It will just be the two of you and Lady Hestia."

Haruhime shook her head. At that moment, she didn't want to spend time with Bell. She wanted to adventure with her dearest friend. Something strange started to grow in her heart. Those next six months, where she journeyed with Goddess Hestia and Bell, should have been the best of her life. She was spending time with her hero, but her heart kept screaming for her to find someone else.

As she journeyed with Bell, Haruhime began to realize she loved the IDEA of Bell. She loved him as a hero who saved lives. She loved him as someone who always stood up for what was good and right. As a person who chased their dreams and ideals, Haruhime loved him. But she realized she didn't actually have anything she loved about Bell Cranel, the person. She didn't hate him; in fact, there was much that they agreed upon. They loved the stories of heroes, and they both enjoyed some of the simpler things in life. The problem was, she didn't feel… that spark. They spent time together and talked together, but Haruhime quickly realized that she could only love Bell as a friend and family member. The initial feelings that had resonated within her began to fade. They travelled farther and farther from the time of her rescue, and her emotions began to solidify. A year and one thousand miles later, Haruhime came to a startling revelation, she did not love the person known as Bell Cranel.

Which was probably for the best, since Haruhime was sure that Bell Cranel did not love her. Even if his skill was not working, Haruhime was sure that Bell would love the Sword Princess again. His feelings were strong, and he was still a forgiving person deep down. Not to mention, she had seen how the others acted. Bell and Ryuu had a bond tighter than she could understand. Hestia had always been the most important person in his life. Haruhime was important to him, but she wouldn't be his number one or two.

Instead, Haruhime felt her thoughts and feelings turning elsewhere. She went home and thought of the little girl that promised to protect her. For as long as Haruhime could remember, Mikoto had stood by and protected her. After she met again with her father, Haruhime found that she only had one dream. To be strong enough to repay the favour. She wanted to find a way to stand side by side with the woman who always stepped in front of her.

From that desire came something new. Every mention and reminder of Mikoto set Haruhime's heart fluttering. Her ebony hair began to invade her thoughts, and she began to miss the young samurai's smile. She had no idea where to put these thoughts, but it was Goddess Hestia who had helped her.

"Listen…I can't tell you much about what happens next," began Hestia one night. The young Goddess had sent Bell away for some trivial task, "but if you want, we can start heading to Altena. It might just be time to pick up our friends."

So, after formally inducting Otohime and Urashima, the five members of Hestia Familia left to go find the others. All along their journey, Haruhime nurtured her thoughts of Mikoto. She thought about why she was feeling this way.

One night, while she tried to understand what was going on, she came across her first love. Bell was standing on a balcony, looking up at the moon. At the sound of footsteps, he turned and smiled.

Haruhime returned it, "Master Bell, what are you doing up so late?"

Bell flushed from embarrassment, "Well…that is…I was looking at the moon and wondering if Ais was doing the same."

Haruhime asked the question, "Master Bell, why do you love the Sword Princess?"

Bell seemed taken aback by the question, "Well…you see…she sav-"

"That's not what I meant," interrupted the renard, "What about Ais Wallenstein specifically did you love?"

Bell blinked in surprise. He was quiet for a minute and then for several more. After gathering his thoughts, he opened his mouth, "Ais doesn't feel and process emotions like you and me. She has a hard time understanding those things…but even if she doesn't understand those thoughts, Ais will do everything she can to save people."

Bell smiled, "Honestly, she's an airhead. But that has never once stopped her from saving as many people as possible," Bell frowned, "Most people think that she has no emotions, or that she only wants to kill monsters. That's not the Ais I know…."

Supposedly, his skill wasn't working. However, Haruhime thought differently. The renard believed that the skill would reactivate, and when it did, it would be something new. It would be something based on a genuine belief and a love founded on two people becoming equals. Right now, Haruhime believed Liaris Freese was changing and evolving. Right now, it was in its cocoon.

"Then, who is the Ais you know?"

Bell's face turned soft, "She doesn't know how to talk to people, but she's always trying to figure it out. She's absolutely obsessed with potato puffs and hates to be wrong," the boy chuckled, "The first time I trained with her, she didn't know how to train with me. She said she had been up all night thinking about it but wasn't able to come up with a way to train me."

Bell told all the stories he knew then. Every story of his time with Ais. Listening to him, Haruhime thought of her own stories.

The nap had only been five minutes, but a year of memories had washed through Haruhime. When she opened her eyes, she found the object of her affection look straight-ahead, pointedly so in fact. Mikoto's eyes would drift down every once in a while, but then they would snap back up.

Haruhime allowed her eyes to blink open and slowly sat up. As she moved, she realized that her robes had slipped loose. The renard scrambled to fix her garments. Her face began to heat up, and her tail wagged back and forth with vigour. She was excited to have been seen.

"Ah! Lady Haruhime…" stuttered Mikoto, "I am glad to see that you are awake! Now then…did you sleep well? Do you require anything?"

Mikoto busied herself, trying to get ready. Haruhime pulled on her sleeve, "No, I'm ok. Are we leaving soon?"

Mikoto nodded, "We are waiting on Lady Cassandra…."

As if summoned, Cassandra sat up. She blinked a couple times before looking to study her compatriots. She spent only a minute studying her surroundings. Then, she was up and at 'em with the rest of the group. Her movements were jerky, and she almost dropped the supplies she packed. When everyone else narrowed their eyes, Daphne waved them off. She would have her own discussion with her strange partner.

"Let's go, everyone! The sleeping beauties are awake!" commanded Aisha, "We have an expedition to continue!"

"That is Lili's call!" called the prum. She rolled her eyes, "That said, it is time to get sorted. Everyone, gather your weapons and supplies!"

The party got their gear together and began to march into their formation. The supporters and mages bunched together while Ais and Ryuu took up their vanguard positions. Behind them were Ouka and Welf. Lili turned to the rest.

"Now then, Miss Aisha, join the others at the front," began Lili. The amazon shook her head.

"No way. I think I'll move to the rearguard this time," declared Aisha.

Ryuu rolled her eyes. Obviously, Aisha was still feeling guilty about earlier. The elf sighed. If the amazon wanted to blame herself, then so be it. She had more pressing matters to attend to.

"Alright then…Master Bell, please move to the vanguard," directed Lili.

This command was met with a loud eep. Bell looked between the Sword Princess and the Faerie Princess. Meanwhile, both women let their gazes dig into him. Then they turned to look at each other. Even though they were in a humid, boggy swamp, the temperature dropped to freezing.

Welf smirked, "Take it easy, you three. What about the rest of us, Lil Bit?"

Lili nodded, "Behind Mister Ouka and Mister Welf will be Miss Daphne and Miss Mikoto. Mister Urashima will help guard the supporters."

"Actually, Lady Lili!" interrupted Mikoto, "I would like to volunteer to protect the supporters."

Lili raised her eyebrow but nodded. Mikoto smiled, and then she turned to smile at Haruhime. When they made eye contact, Haruhime returned the grin. After realizing that everyone was staring at them, they blushed and looked to the floor.

What was Mikoto doing? Lady Haruhime was in love with Sir Bell! And Mikoto loved Lord Takemikazuchi! At least…she thought she did…what was going on with her? Why was everything going so wrong in her head?

Lili finished handing out orders, "Miss Aisha and Lady Otohime will then take up positions in the rearguard."

Everyone left for their assigned positions. Bell, Ais, and Ryuu all stood around at the party's front, glancing between each other. This was most certainly not going to be an awkward expedition, not in the slightest. Everything was going to be perfectly normal.

The three led the way along the path of roots, swatting away the occasional long neck or gilman. There was a pack of Will-o-wisps at one point, but Ryuu used her wind sword to get rid of them.

"That's a powerful sword," commented Ais.

"It was a gift from Welf for officially joining Hestia Familia," replied Ryuu.

Bell looked between the two women. While it sounded like they were exchanging pleasantries, their faces and tone of voice were stiff. Usually, that would be normal for these two particular adventurers. However, this was more subdued than usual. They were especially quiet and cold. Every time Bell tried to break the ice and talk to one, the other would immediately get offended. He had tried to walk that tightrope but soon gave up. Now, there was an awkward silence.

That silence was what saved the party's life.

The cackling started at a high pitch. It bounced off the trees, echoing around them. They had entered on a dip in the road, where water washed over the path, and the mud was of a more solid nature.

"Everyone, group together, now!" called Ryuu.

The party complied, with the supporters moving to the middle. At each cardinal direction, a level five or greater member took up a defensive position. The rest of them filled in the gaps. It was hard to pinpoint the sound of that awful noise, as it seemed to keep moving around them in circles. Then came the stumbling.

From behind sheets of vines, humanoid monsters began to shuffle out. Their pallor was grey, and their skin was rotting. Their nails were long and jagged, and most were missing teeth, hair, or even bits of skin. These creatures were known as revenants. Zombie-like in nature, they were not dangerous on their own. However, these monsters almost always travelled in hordes.

"Oh great…" began Aisha, who pointed her padao at the closest revenants.

"Alright, Lil Bit," cried Welf, "What do we do?"

Lili ground her teeth together and almost cursed her luck. Then she remembered the teachings of the Braver, and the Dauntless took a deep breath. She took stock of the environment, and then the prum made a split-second decision.

"We stay here for now," began Lili, "We must hold off the horde as best we can until we know where the Witch of the Woods is."

As Lili surveyed the party, she made particular eye contact with Otohime. The level four blinked, a frown on her face. Lili shook her head and held up a fist. What happened next was a sigh of relief and a smile.

Lili watched more and more revenants shuffle in. They had long fangs, rotting skin, and long claw-like nails. They moved slowly but had high endurance and strength.

"You sure you don't want to try and skedaddle?" asked Daphne, "We've got the mobility."

Lili shook her head, "We'll be stuck on the narrow path. For now, we fight in the open space for a full range of movement. Until we know where the witch is, we stay here!" the monsters were almost upon them, "Thousand Elf! We're counting on you!"

Standing in the middle of the circle, Lefiya planted her feet and began to chant. As she focused, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. She looked over to find Elwin smiling at her. The half-elf gave her a nod, which she gladly returned. Then, Lefiya took a deep breath.

"Don't let them bite you!" called Ryuu, "They leave an infectious rotting disease!"

The only cure was immediate elixir application, or risk losing the infected body part. These were the last words most people heard, though, and then the horde was upon them. For what seemed like an hour, the only sounds were the mad cackling of the Witch, inhuman grunts, and the sound of metal biting into flesh.

Ouka split one revenant in two with his great axe, but then two more jumped up to fill the gap. Chigusa fired arrows into them, but they kept on shuffling forward. One managed to slip past the defences, its jaws unhinging, aiming for Otohime. Urashima caught it with his metal arms, stopping the bite. Otohime finished it off with a swipe from her bisento. There was no time to talk though, more were on their way. One loomed over Mikoto, about to bite into the back of her neck. Then, a gust of wind passed by, and it exploded.

Ais Wallenstein stood in its place, wreathed in the wind. Ariel provided a type of shield to the Sword Princess, giving her an extra second before a revenant could slip through. The second she appeared in front of Mikoto, though, she disappeared.

The water began to kick up into a circle as Ais moved around the party. Her sword sang as it cut through the relentless horde of monsters.

'Faster,' thought Ais, 'I have to go even faster.'

For the Princess who had forgiven her, for the smith who had comforted her, and for the renard she spoke with. The Sword Princess was going to protect these people with her dying breath. Ais Wallenstein summoned as much wind as she could, and she kept moving. Her speed got faster and faster, but it also meant that she had to keep careful not to slip on the wet floor. Bell watched on, guilty with his inability to do anything. The gasses of the swamp hung in the air, meaning that a stray firebolt could cause more harm than good.

"We need to clear the air," shouted Elwin right before his fist sent a revenant head flying. Boosted with Datauri and his mind load skill, the half-elf was a true front-line fighter now.

"We also need to get ourselves a boost!" responded Aisha.

"Miss Ryuu, Lady Haruhime!" shouted Lili.

"In the sky of a now distant forest. Infinite stars scattered in the endless night sky," began Ryuu, dashing between monsters. She did not have the speed of the Sword Princess, but she was not going to be outdone today. She proved that she was the best concurrent chanter in Orario, her perfect pace of combat not slowing down in the slightest.

"Kokonoe. Beloved snow. Beloved crimson."

Haruhime added her voice to Ryuu's. The two's magic duet fought back against the crushing horde. A green glow formed around Ryuu, and beads of light flocked to Haruhime. This did much to attract the monsters, though. Ryuu was perfectly capable of defending herself, Haruhime on the other hand…

Did not falter because she had faith in her guardian. Mikoto stood by. Her katana was dancing in her hands. Revenant limbs went flying around the swamp as she fought to buy her precious friend more time. With masterful sword strokes, she severed heads and bisected bodies. She wore a mask of perfect calm, but inside she raged. No one threatened Haruhime.

"Grow. That power and that vessel," continued Haruhime. Now a level two, the number of tails she could potentially produce had doubled. However, she was still learning, so her maximum number was nine…for now. Her tails danced behind, a dazzling display of golden, shimmering splendour. In this way, she indeed looked like Enchantenko. It took all of Mikoto's willpower not to stop and stare.

"Imbue the light of stardust and destroy the enemy," finished Ryuu, "Luminous Wind!"

Churning out from the Faerie Princess, great blades of wind shook the trees. Branches came tumbling down when they were cut, squishing revenants beneath them. The wind continued to rage at the elf's beckoning. The leaves of the Dungeon sang in response. The noxious gas cleared, if only for a moment, and the beasts had been pushed back.

Lili grinned, like a predator, "Master Bell, Mister Welf, feel free to cut loose!" She turned back to Lefiya, "Miss Thousand Elf! Let em have it!"

"Firebolt!"

"Hii!"

Welf's flames exploded into the horde of beasts. Each revenant caught in their attack cried out in pain, frozen in its onslaught. In their hesitation, Ais Wallenstein cut them down like blades of grass.

Meanwhile, Lefiya Viridis had her own plan in mind. She had used her elf ring to save one spell, waiting for the time when fire magic would be usable. Now that she had gotten the all-clear…

Magic circles popped up all over the clearing. The largest was underneath Lefiya herself, but countless others formed. Each one acted like a target for what came next.

"Fusillade Fallarica!"

A magical bombardment of fire came next. Countless revenants exploded into dust. The flames were so intense that the trees began to catch fire as well. Lefiya continued her bombardment, her spell obliterating everything around her. In her mind, she saw Filvis. Lefiya believed, no…she knew that if she had been stronger, her dearest friend would still be alive. Lefiya was not holding back anymore. When the attack finished, the clearing had grown much broader. Countless trees still burned, but there were almost no more revenants. Some were still hidden in the trees, but they were scattered now.

In the heat of battle, though, the group of adventurers had forgotten about the even greater enemy. The Witch of the Woods dropped down in front of them and started lobbing fireballs. The monster had a long-necked and a pinched face. What passed for hair on its body was a clump of wispy stringy threads. Its skin appeared to be rotting, and its fingers were long and grey. It was one of those rare monsters that could use magic, able to lob fireballs with one hand and fling spikes of ice with the other. Its mad laughter worked to send nearby monsters into a frenzy. Those monsters could then fight harder and faster while helping to gather them into one area. That was what attracted the horde of revenants.

Despite its name, though, the Witch moved with extreme speed and agility. It hopped from tree to tree, swinging around the party. Its magical attacks exploded into the crowd, burning the members too slow to get out of the way.

As Lili tried to evade the attacks, she called out, "Use the spell, Lady Haruhime!"

"DANCE!"

The golden tails of Enchantenko shot out, blasting themselves to everyone who wasn't a level five. The golden glow raised the level of everyone in the area except Haruhime herself. This helped alleviate some of the fatigue they were feeling after taking down the horde of revenants. With renewed vigour, they began to try and nail down the Witch.

As the cackling continued, though, more revenants, gilman, and long necks joined the fight. The worst, though, were the flies. Now gathering in significant, dangerous swarms, they milled about the adventurers and began to bite and sting. When the adventurers got distracted by the bugs, fireballs and ice spikes slammed into them. The level boost helped almost everyone, though. Now, everyone in the party was either level four or five, meaning that they had the endurance and agility to withstand their attackers—everyone but the one who had cast the spell. The poor little renard tried to dodge out of the way, holding her goliath cloak close, but still took a spike to the back.

The blow sent her face-first into a tree, where she crumpled to the ground. She had slammed so hard that her nose had been broken. Blood began to run down her beautiful face. What happened next was a frightening loss of control. Seeing Haruhime unconscious triggered some kind of berserker rage in Mikoto. She saw the attack occur in slow motion, saw Haruhime fall to the ground, and saw the blood and mud begin to flow. For lack of a better term, something in her snapped. Her vision tunnelled onto the Witch cackling above her. Some sort of guttural cry ripped itself from her throat. Mikoto launched herself at the Witch of the Woods, following her into the treetops.

"Black Crow!" shouted Aisha.

"Get back into position Miss Mikoto!"

The Black Crow heard none of that, though. She was on the hunt. Unfortunately, the Witch was cunning and led the boosted level four away from her party. The feral ex-gladiator followed, all reason out the window. Her primal instincts had kicked in, months of life-or-death fights driving her away from her friends.

She screamed, "I'll kill you!" as she moved. Her only response was the mad cackling of the Witch.

Eventually, once she had been taken far enough away, the Witch turned to launch its counterattack. It slammed into the Black Crow, dragging the two of them down to the roots of the great trees they walked upon.

They wrestled in ankle-deep water. Mikoto felt claws dig into her skin but took satisfaction because the Witch was losing limbs. The Witch had speed and magic, but not strength. Its appendages were easily severed, and the monster was quickly contained. Eventually, Mikoto was able to wrap her hands around the monster's throat, wanting to inflict pain on her enemy. Horus screamed his encouragement in her head, telling her to give in to the rage. However, even though the Black Crow crushed and squeezed, the Witch's laughter continued and then came the hemahs. Giant hippo-like beasts with pale skin came marching through. They knocked over all the debris in their way.

The beasts just about stampeded over the adventurer, but she was able to roll out of the way just in time. Her survival instincts kicked into overdrive, and she spent a second battling away her bloodlust. That was when a hemah knocked into her with its large head. Mikoto got launched off her feet and into a boulder.

She screamed out in pain and only had a moment to focus before another beast charged her down. The cackling made the otherwise slow beasts incredibly fast. They came barrelling down at Mikoto, and she thought she was gonna die.

"Firebolt!"

A tremendous white blast of flames lit up the swamp then, and hemahs were sent in every direction. Bell Cranel and Ais Wallenstein landed right afterwards and began their battle. Mikoto tried to stand up and join them, but the shock had left her legs like jelly. Thankfully, her mentor swooped down to pick her up. Ryuu carried Mikoto back up to the branches; the elf's face was stony and distant.

"Ryuu…" began Mikoto.

"Don't talk," responded her vice-captain.

Ryuu deposited her a bit farther away with the other supporters, then the elf turned around and returned to the fray. Haruhime crouched down to help Mikoto; the renard's usually gentle face was stern and severe.

"Are you ok, Lady Haruhime?" asked Mikoto.

"I'm fine," was Haruhime's curt reply.

Sufficiently cowed by the renard's tone, Mikoto took the healing in silence. She didn't see it happen, but her friends defeated the hemah's and cut down the Witch of the Woods. When that finished, they gathered around the Black Crow. Mikoto winced when she saw how injured everyone was. Even Otohime was scowling since Urashima had taken some long claw marks to his torso. Thankfully, no one was grievously injured or bore bite marks. Ura had been the worst of it. However, all these injuries happened after she had left to chase the Witch. Thankfully, they were already starting to heal; even Haruhime had mostly recovered from the ice spike to the back. Lili opened her mouth, ready to reprimand, but Haruhime beat her to it.

"How could you do something so foolish?" asked Haruhime, voice much louder than usual. Her tail was erratic behind her.

"Well, it hurt you," replied Mikoto, uncertain.

Haruhime's body shook from anger, "So, you go ahead and almost die? What if we hadn't been able to catch up?"

Mikoto looked away, "I hadn't thought that far."

"I most certainly think not!"

Haruhime did not shout. She was not an angry person. That changed that day in the Dungeon.

"Why in the world would you just lose it like that?" asked Haruhime.

Now Mikoto was getting annoyed. The young warrior stood, "Because that monster hurt you! I wasn't going to just let it hurt you!"

"Why in the world would you risk your life over someone like me?" Haruhime stepped forward. Everyone else stepped back. Her face was red as she leaned in towards the most important person in her life.

"Because you obviously don't seem to care," responded Mikoto.

Formality be damned, she was tired and injured. She hadn't meant to take off, but her animal instincts had taken over. She was sorry, but she also knew that other people in this party would have done the same—especially Haruhime's precious Bell Cranel. Jealousy took root then.

"Then why chase the monster?" retorted Haruhime. That moment had been so unlike Mikoto. Why would she get so angry over Haruhime getting hurt? That didn't make sense. After all, she was still just a useless little supporter. Besides, if Mikoto was really angry…

"Why didn't you come to check on me and protect me?" asked Haruhime.

At that, Mikoto's anger deflated. She seemed to whisper something. Before she could repeat what she had said, though, Welf coughed into his fist.

"Hey Lil Bit, why don't we finish collecting magic stones?" asked the smith.

Lili tore her eyes away from the spectacle in front of her and nodded. She gave the command, and everyone else happily went away for a moment. Even the ordinarily dense Ais picked up on the tense situation. She dragged Bell away, who was still busy staring.

"Miss Mikoto, why didn't you come to try and help me?" asked Haruhime. Her voice was low and quiet.

Mikoto frowned, "Because I would have been useless."

She was not a healer, and she doubted she could've done much to defend her. In fact, she hadn't been the one to save Haruhime, not truly. It was Bell that had done that.

"And you'd be more useful dead?"

"No…but at least I could do something…."

At the sight of Mikoto's despondence, Haruhime's face softened, and her tail began to stroke her dearest. She did not truly understand what had happened, but there was a chance to help someone important to her, "Mikoto, you are one of the strongest adventurers in this party. You are a vital member of this Familia."

Mikoto frowned, "I'm not, though. I have nothing that makes me special. Besides, I'm still not strong enough…."

Haruhime's head tilted, "Strong enough?"

Mikoto nodded, "I have to be stronger," Mikoto took a deep breath. When she met Haruhime's eyes, the renard shivered from their intensity, "I have to be as strong as Sir Bell."

Now Haruhime was more confused. Why was she competing with Bell?

"Why Sir Bell?"

'Because he has you,' thought Mikoto. Then she shook her head, looking to dispel those false, jealous thoughts.

Looking to calm Mikoto down, Haruhime took her hands, "I think you are incredibly strong. In fact, you might be the strongest woman I know."

Mikoto returned the gesture and squeezed tightly. This conversation was not finished, but she was tired and happy to have Haruhime's attention. Even if she didn't understand why.

With a slight smile, she said, "I believe that I could say the same to you."

Haruhime brought their foreheads together. They were close enough to touch, "Please, do not risk your life over one such as I."

Mikoto shook her head, "I cannot make that promise, but I will try."

After a moment of comfort, the two returned to the party, holding hands. When she saw the rest of her friends, Mikoto assumed the dogeza position and begged forgiveness. Haruhime giggled off to the side.

Ryuu sighed, admonished her, and then set her to work. Welf and Lili rolled their eyes but let it go. Ais watched on as Mikoto and Haruhime seemed to continue working together. She pouted as jealousy overtook her.

"Why is it so easy for them…" asked the Sword Princess.

"Ummmm…Ais, are you ok?"

Ais turned to find Bell waiting for her. Then, she remembered she was angry, but she needed someone to answer her questions.

"Bell, how were they able to forgive each other so easily?" asked Ais.

Bell seemed surprised, "Oh, well, it seems like they took the time to talk. When two people care about each other like that…they usually find a way…."

There was a moment of silence. Then Ais asked the vital question.

"Will we?"

"Will we what?"

"…find a way?"

Bell's eyes popped open. Certainly, she was just mistaken again. Not considering the social context.

"Bell, I care about you. I think you still care about me. Will we find a way?"

No, Ais did understand what she was asking. And she asked anyway. Ais was as exposed as she had ever been, but she met Bell's stare with her own.

"We might…" answered Bell.

"If you really want to try, then you have to trust me, Bell," continued Ais, "At least in the Dungeon," she tilted her head, "Do you think that's possible?"

Bell nodded, "It is. I'm sorry, Ais."

Ais smiled, "Then, do you want to go kill monsters with me?"

Bell returned the smile when he nodded. Ryuu and Aisha watched on. When she saw the elf's frown, Aisha nudged her, "Are you ok with this? You could probably stop it if you wanted to."

Ryuu frowned at the amazon, "If I want to stop it?" Ryuu shook her head, "Look at him; he's happy," the elf sighed, "Besides, things have grown complicated…."

She didn't say anything else and instead began to supervise. When that was done, the party resumed its march through the Dungeon. Ryuu, Ais, and Bell took up their position at the front. Bell happily conversed with Ais as they cut down monsters while Ryuu glowered from behind. Just because he was happy didn't mean she had to be too. Eventually, Bell noticed his elvish companion.

"Ryuu, is something wrong?"

"You are much too trusting, Mister Cranel," responded the Gale Wind.

Bell's face dropped like he had been slapped, "Ryuu, did I do something wrong?"

"No, it's fine," responded Ryuu, "Shall we continue?"

They walked for all of five steps before the conversation continued.

"That was rude," said Ais.

Without looking at her, Ryuu said, "Weren't you the one refusing to talk to Bell earlier? Acting like a child?"

Ais frowned, "Well, that was because…."

"Because you wanted to be immature," responded Ryuu.

"Ryuu…is something wrong?" asked Bell.

Ryuu started to grind her teeth together, "It's fine, Bell."

"Are you mad because Bell is talking to me?" asked Ais.

Ryuu did not respond.

"Ryuu, you're mad because I'm talking to Ais? You said I should try to apologize…."

Ryuu grimaced, caught by her own logic, "Yes, well…you seemed to change your mind very quickly," her jealousy built higher and higher, "Honestly, sometimes I wonder if I even know you anymore."

The words had been spat out, but Ryuu knew she didn't actually mean them. She was just jealous and alone. She had lost her original Familia, Syr, and now even Bell was starting to drift away. Now that he was getting along with the Sword Princess, how long before he forgot her? Ryuu wanted to keep his attention, even if only for a second longer. She didn't want to be alone anymore.

"Of course, you know me, Ryuu!" responded Bell.

"Oh? Well, recent knowledge about your family says otherwise."

The words were out before she could think of them. Thankfully, only Ais and Bell heard, but it was still enough. The boy stopped in his tracks, his heart in his throat.

"Ryuu…" whispered Bell.

The elf flinched.

"Bell's family…?" asked Ais.

Bell flinched. He started walking forward.

"It's nothing, Ais."

His voice was quiet and laced with disappointment.

The rest of the trip was awkwardly quiet. Ais looked between Bell and Ryuu, worried that she had done something wrong. She knew better than to try to start a conversation but was hoping that someone would interrupt their journey. Unfortunately, no one did. They made their way through the rest of the Great Swamp. The water started to get shallower and began to collect into a river. Things began to get clearer and cleaner. Finally, they came to the next path down. The river flowed next to it, carrying downwards.

The group gathered, unaware of the tension between two of their leaders. Bell was quiet and contemplative; meanwhile, Ryuu was shifty and looking back and forth. Everyone was quick to pick up on what was not being said. Lili frowned but didn't say anything. Without knowing what happened, she didn't know if she had the right. Instead, she looked to Welf and Otohime. The two more emotionally mature adventurers nodded. They would speak to the two of them later.

The group walked down, and immediately the temperature rose. The humid atmosphere was replaced with a dry, biting heat. People began to sweat as they walked. They entered the next floor down and were met with rolling dunes. There were outcrops and layers of rock scattered along the surface, but they were few and far between. The predominant feature was the sand and the river that cut through it. Growing alongside the water were flowers, grass, and bullrushes. Lili gave the expedition party a minute to take it in, but then she ordered the march to continue.

They had trouble adjusting on the sand, tripping and shifting as they moved. They slowly began to walk and shuffle over to one of the more extensive outcrops. When they got there, they found that there were signs of burn marks and a stone circle. There were also clearly designated spots for tents and supplies. These areas were often used by the same groups of adventurers and had become the de facto locations for expeditions. This also meant that there were caches that clever adventurers could access. Aisha dug her hand into a large crack and began pulling out batches of food, water, and firewood.

Ais frowned when she saw that. The fact that they had firewood meant she had nothing to do. She looked around at everyone diligently working away, but then she saw Bell standing on guard duty. Ryuu was at the other side and studying a map with Lili and Daphne. Ais walked over to stand next to him.

"I don't want to talk, Ais," began Bell.

Ais nodded, "Can I stand here with you?"

Bell nodded.

They stood like that for half an hour before the boy opened his mouth again.

"You don't want to know?" asked Bell.

Ais tilted her head, "I do, but I think that I shouldn't be the one to ask. I have my own secrets, after all."

Bell smiled, "So, you understand?"

Ais nodded, "Family is important. If you don't want to talk about it, I understand," Ais paused, "But, you should talk to Ryuu."

Bell looked down, "I should?"

Ais nodded again, "You two need to be friends. You care about her?"

Bell nodded.

With that, they returned to their friends.

Here we are, now officially caught up with Archive. This might mean a slight dip in quality, but I think it's still good overall. This also means that it'll now be a week long wait between chapters. I hope you all enjoy this, because I certainly did. I like the fights, I like the conversation, I like the HaruxMiko, and I like the conversation with Ais and Ryuu. These characters are important, and I wanted to develop their relationships with each other. More on that moving forward. Thanks to all follow, favorites, and reviews! see you next, Wandering Wednesday!