Chapter 48:

"Well…this is certainly something," said Finn after getting into Knossos

On a makeshift cot lay Alicia, face still pale. Frei, the siren, was sitting beside her, who was holding onto the elf's hand. The siren looked worried for some reason, and no one dared disturb her from her spot.

"She's been sitting there all day," replied Gareth. "And the rest of the Sun Seekers have just been sitting around and doing nothing."

Finn rubbed his chin, looking down at his thumb. When he felt nothing happening, he frowned and turned back out into the rest of Knossos. Surprisingly, the Sun Seekers had actually organized themselves well. They had set aside places for homes and spots for sanitation. Finn also took the opportunity to stare at what monsters had been left behind. They were not extremely powerful or cunning. Many of them had been subdued by the adventurers quickly under his care.

"These aren't warriors," mumbled Finn.

"Hmm, what'd you say?" asked Gareth.

"These aren't fighters. They look like children…or even civilians," replied Finn. "What was the situation like on the eighteenth? Have we gotten a report yet?"

"The big gargoyle one, Garess, was killed. The monsters are still being culled, but most Sun Seekers are retreating," explained Gareth. "That was the last report from Bete, though. No idea what's happening now."

"Not much a loss for them," said Finn. "In fact, with these Sun Seekers up here, we're going to need to leave people behind to watch them." He scowled. "Our opponent is forcing us to split our forces."

There was a second option Finn did not mention. If they took no prisoners, then they could move on without a care in the world. The problem was that they would lose Hestia Familia's support, not to mention anyone else who left with them.

"This Typhon and his General, Scipio, are much cleverer than I thought," commented Finn. "But still, we can do nothing about it but keep moving forward."

"Gareth, ask one of the Ganesha Familia units to stay behind and send for the other Xenos on the surface," ordered Finn. "They'll keep an eye on things here while we go deeper. But no one goes into the eighteenth. Rivira is still a hot spot, and I don't want anyone trying to get back into the Dungeon."

"What about the upper floors?" asked Gareth, stroking his beard. "The Guild is going to want Adventurers to start getting back to work, even if it's the level one scraps we left behind."

Finn nodded. "They should be ok down to floor ten; any lower is a no-go zone."

Gareth nodded once more and lumbered off to send some messengers. Watching him go, Finn studied the rest of the area. In truth, it was a tiny town, with Xenos living in quiet peacefulness. He made sure to note the situation and everything happening within it. Ideas floated around his mind, and the Braver knew he was onto something here.

"Finn," called out a weak voice.

The pallum turned to find Alicia awake, her eyes open. After emergency care had been administered, colour was returning to her face slowly.

"Thank goodness you're awake, Alicia," said Finn, stepping close. "The first thing I have to do Is scold you for your recklessness. I don't know what was going through your head, but it was nothing smart, I'm sure."

Alicia giggled. "Oh, I knew I was going to be alright. After all, I knew Frei wasn't going to kill me."

Frei blushed, looking away. "What makes you say that? You've never met me before, have you."

The elf shook her head. "No, but I knew you in another life. You were a wonderfully kind person then too. You would never have hurt anyone if you didn't have to." Alicia's smile got even brighter. "Especially not your friends."

"I never said that we were friends!" exclaimed Frei, stuttering.

Alicia chuckled. "No, of course not; we're just good acquaintances."

"I stabbed you!" shouted Frei.

Alicia tried to shrug while lying down.

Yeah, but it's not like you hit anything important," she said. "And it's not like you were trying to kill me."

Before Frei could continue protesting, Alicia looked over at Finn.

"I'm going to need to stay here for a while, right?" asked Alicia.

Finn nodded.

"Ok, so I want Elwin to take over my unit. He's probably the best one for the job," she said. "If nothing else, we know he'll listen to whatever Riveria and Lefiya say."

Finn kept nodding. These were plans that made sense, so I elected to follow them. After all, part of being a good leader was knowing when to listen to one's subordinates.

"Are you ok if I leave you here?" asked Finn. "I have to go and check on the others."

Alicia nodded. "Go right ahead! I'll be fine!"

Finn bid his goodbyes before ducking back outside. He toured the Knossos facilities, admiring how much the Sun Seekers had cleaned everything up. He walked back towards the Dungeon's eighteenth-floor entrance when that was done. The operation there to remove all Sun Seeker influence was taking longer than expected. Small pockets remained, and Finn was left scratching his head at just how many Xenos there were. The estimated numbers were a lot higher than expected. Thank God that none of them wanted to fight anymore. They just wanted to live a quiet life amongst themselves. The only problem was, Finn didn't know how to give that to them.

With the PrincesS:

On the eighteenth floor, Otohime stood over a pile of dust that had once been a monster. The way they had fought told her that a Sun Seeker was still around here somewhere. She used the butt end of her spear to crack down on the magic stones and stop anyone from harvesting the resources later.

"Where do we go next, Commander?" asked one of her subordinates.

"We should regroup with Aki. I don't like the idea of us all being spread out right now," responded Otohime. "We've definitely found enough of them too." She turned to face the rest of her squad. "We're pulling back!"

The group of adventurers meandered back to the main campsite, set up outside of Rivira, and went to their tent area. Finn wasn't letting any group separate and go back to their Familia, at least during the day. They had to spend their free time within their units to build companionship and trust. Otohime had pouted because that meant that she couldn't spend time with Ura. However, she did appreciate the chance to make new friends, especially with how they looked at her when she first introduced herself.

The average adventurer thought of her as a monster, a time bomb that could go off at any moment. And she couldn't find it in her heart to disagree, now with how she had behaved in the past. Especially when she considered her past experiences. But thankfully, these other adventurers had taken the time to get to know her. They were still largely hesitant, but they were open to the idea that she wouldn't kill them in their sleep.

"What's the food situation around here, again?" asked Otohime.

"The supporters said they would bring stuff around from the baggage train," replied an adventurer. "And where's Commander Anakitty?"

Otohime shrugged. "She's talking to the other Commanders. We're probably staying here for the night and then moving to the next safe zone when we know that Knossos is safe."

An elf frowned. "Seems like pretty slow progress to me. Shouldn't we be trying to march deeper as quickly as we can?"

Otohime rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but if we leave some strong monster of Xenos soldier behind, and they decide to go up to the surface, who's going to protect them?"

That got everyone to shut up and focus on the task in front of them. That meant doing what little weapon maintenance they could and taking care of any minor injuries for many. After that, they swapped previous adventurer stories and talked about their respective abilities.

"What about you, Vice-Captain?" asked a chienthrope. "You grew up in a posh mansion, right? So, where'd you learn how to fight like that?"

Otohime snorted, settling down on the ground. She reached up to remove the orchid she had tied there. The girl had taken the flower from Ura's garden that very morning, wanting to have a piece of him with her at all times.

"In my home, there was a nesting ground for dragons. All nobility travelled there, even if you were a little girl," replied Otohime. "Not to mention, the Far East is quite a violent place, always in a state of upheaval. Even if I was the daughter of the emperor, this isn't my first battlefield."

Her words hung in the air. The others sat in silence, letting the information sink in. They had seen death before, and they had all seen friends and comrades die before them. But the thought of fighting and killing each other, killing real humans, was too much for them to stomach.

"So, did you ever have to…you know…" the elf trailed off.

Otohime's eyes turned to him.

"None of your fucking business," she replied. She looked back to the center of their little area. "I don't like thinking about everything that happened out there. I try to focus on the happy parts. But I did train with normal people too. In fact, my training was with normal people. The ancestral home of the dragons was only for level up requirements."

"…did you have your magic when you went there?" asked another adventurer, a human archer.

Otohime shook her head. "No, I only got it when I hit level four a couple of years ago."

"Any reason why you got that dangerous magic? Like…do you know how it happened?"

Otohime shook her head and stood up. She brushed the dirt off of her battle garb.

"That's enough of that. If we're going to continue telling stories, we should at least have a fire going. Now, why don't I try and track down some food and drink? After all, the baggage train is supplying the food, but we're still going to have to cook it," she said, walking off into the mass of tents.

From the sounds of it, she heard her squadron rushing around to comply with her orders. That made her happy that they were bothering to listen to her. She continued along the path, ducking and dodging around the many different carts and packs they had with them. Much of this would be left behind or carried between a couple additional supporters. They had moved past the point of being able to lug around giant hunks of supplies and flat-bed wooden carts. She tapped a cloaked adventurer on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, where do I pick up dinner for my unit?" asked Otohime.

The supporter stood and turned around, and Otohime was pleasantly surprised to find Haruhime smiling back at her. The renard wore her priestess robes underneath, with the goliath cloak peeking out from underneath her standard supporter cloak.

"Lady Otohime! You're alright!" shouted the renard, popping to her feet. "Oh, I'm so happy that I was able to find one of you!" She wrapped Otohime in a quick hug. "You're the first one I've seen all day. Even Lady Lili has been busy running around with the Braver." Haruhime smirked. "Although, I would have preferred that the first one I saw was Mikoto."

Otohime scratched the back of her head. "Actually, I think she's already moved on. The scouting unit is already starting to push through the next floors. They have to make sure that there are no more traps waiting for us on our way down to the fiftieth floor."

Haruhime pouted, her ears drooping. "Oh, I suppose that makes sense; I will remain sad that I haven't seen her, though."

Otohime laughed, patting her friend on the shoulder. "I'm sure you will see her again soon. In fact, at the very least, I know that Finn wants to gather everyone on the fiftieth before him and the other executives head down to challenge Typhon and the other leaders of the Sun Seekers."

Haruhime nodded before gesturing for Otohime to follow. The renard led her to what was called the 'the kraft tent' and saw that many supporters were handing out ration packs and the like. The renard gave Otohime a sack with enough packs for her squad before telling her that this would be enough for dinner, breakfast, and lunch the next day.

"So, be careful about how much your adventurers eat," explained Haruhime. "Otherwise, they'll have to starve the next day."

Otohime nodded before giving her thanks. She also gave the renard a hug and told her that she hoped everything would go well for her. The two parted ways, and Otohime definitely felt a lot happier. Of course, there was someone else who could make her even more content, but she had no idea where he was. But Otohime pushed him into a different part of his mind. Urashima would always be there, but she couldn't too much thinking about him. Otherwise, she would be standing around all day.

When she returned to her campsite, she found the adventurers under her care done setting up the cooking fire. Aki was there, too, helping out with menial chores. She waved at Otohime when the girl returned with all the dinner packets.

"How was the meeting with the Braver?" she asked.

The catgirl shrugged.

"Honestly, it was everything we expected. Some adventurers are staying behind to start rebuilding Rivira and keep an eye on the Sun Seekers still here. They're also going to be the ones handling clean-up from here on out, so we're not too swamped down here." Aki smiled. "Thankfully, no one died. Some people definitely have to stay behind because of injuries, but that was mostly in the scouting and vanguard unit. Not to mention that Alicia's mage unit got mangled." Her tail twitched erratically at the mention of her friend's injury. "But they'll be ok after a couple days of rest. How have things been over here?"

Otohime shrugged. "Nothing crazy going on. We've been swapping stories in the meantime."

Aki nodded. Soon dinner was put out, and everyone chowed down, happy to have something too much on. When they finished, Aki motioned for Otohime to follow her. The girl did so happily.

"What's the issue?" asked Oto.

"Be careful with what's going on," replied Aki. "I know you're not going to want to hear this, but Finn has been hearing nasty rumours. Some people think that we've been infiltrated by a spy. Hestia Familia is at the top of the list, and you're at the top of them."

Otohime sighed. "Because I turn into a monster?"

Anakitty nodded. "Yeah, so you have to be careful. Some overly paranoid adventurers might come poking around. And they aren't going to be nice about it."

The Dragon Princess shrugged in response. "Tell me something new. This is what I've been dealing with my whole life. Is there anything else I should be on the lookout for?"

Aki shook her head. "Just keep doing what you've been doing, and you'll be fine." She patted the former Princess on the shoulder. "After all, you're a wonderful person; we just need everyone else to see it now."

The two returned to their squad.

With the smithing team, who were part of the baggage train, Welf sat on his own. He was reminded of his early days in Hephaestus Familia when no one wanted to be his friend because of his background and pride. They still kept themselves apart, but now it was because they were extremely jealous of his close relationship with their Goddess.

Welf ignored that part, though. Instead, he focused on repairing all the weapons that had come his way. The smithing squad's job was to maintain all weapons and keep them sharp. He was also checking on his special box of surprise weapons. He wouldn't be getting them out until the fiftieth, but he wanted to make sure that they survived until they were needed.

"Those sure are some pretty weapons," said a voice.

Welf whirled his man bun bouncing to find Tsubaki standing over his shoulder. She whistled in appreciation of the weapons in the box.

"Those two are probably the craziest," she said, pointing towards particular weapons. "In fact, they have to be the only kind of their type in existence."

Welf allowed himself a satisfied smile. "You think you'll be able to break them as easily as you did my swords from over a year ago?"

Tsubaki shook her head. "Nah, these things are a definite cut above." She patted him on the shoulder. "Almost making your big sister here proud. You really are something else, Welfy boy."

Welf tried not to let his happiness at the comment show, but he obviously did a lousy job hiding it. Welf's face got warm, and he wanted to brush it off.

"I don't know what you're talking about; you ain't my big sister!" replied Welf.

"Of course I am! I'm your overly proud big sister! Or you can call me your mentor, and you're my young apprentice!" added Tsubaki. "Take your pick whenever you want."

Welf pushed her away, a grin on his face. "Why don't you quit it and go bother the people in your Familia, huh? I'm sure that they need your help too."

Tsubaki laughed, and the two of them continued joking for the rest of the night.

The next day, everyone packed up their things and continued moving. Things were at the same pace as usual within the Great Tree Labyrinth. Slowly, they started to catch up with the scouting squadron. Apparently, they had been told to hang back because of the Amphisbaena in the Water Capital. Finn wanted all hands on deck to deal with that particular boss. Minimizing casualties and maximizing damage was the name of the game in this war. And his reasoning was sound. The Dungeon was such a solid natural deterrent that there was no need for the Sun Seekers to risk weakening after the eighteenth floor and Knossos. Their mother would do the job for them.

Otohime let these thoughts mull in her head as she walked to the back of her squad. They were separated from the others due to the small corridors of the Dungeon. The Vanguard was fanned out in the front, dealing with any immediate threats. The heavy infantry adventurers were guarding the baggage train and mages. But that left the other squads in charge of patrolling the floors as they made their way down and looking for any traps.

The progress was slow, but Otohime understood that it had to be that way. They had to be thorough and take their time, or else they would be caught with their pants down. She slashed out with a smooth movement to the right, decapitating a monster as it left its crack on the wall. Her squadmate that she had just saved blinked at how quick she was. He was able to see his own reflection in the blade head of her bisento.

"Thanks for that," he said.

"That makes ten, right?" said another one. "Good work, lieutenant; you've really been covering our asses."

"Not her job, though!" shouted back Aki from the front. "You lot need to get better at protecting yourselves. Otohime isn't always going to be there to keep you safe!"

"Sorry, Captain!" they shouted back.

All these interactions had Otohime grinning from ear to ear. This was a special kind of camaraderie for her, an amiable and ordinary kind. Hestia Familia was her family, more like brothers and sisters than anything else, except Urashima. She would never even dream of thinking about her Ura like that.

"She's got that dumb smile on her face again!" shouted a dog person.

Aki turned around and rolled her eyes. "Otohime, stop thinking about your boy toy! Focus on the mission, please!"

"Sorry!" replied Otohime, jumping.

"Isn't that a little hypocritical, Captain?" asked a human with a spear. "I mean, we all saw you making lovey-dovey eyes at the High Novice when we were heading out."

Aki's tail turned ramrod straight. "That is none of your business! Now…double-time march, so we don't fall behind!"

The catgirl took off at a jog; the rest of her under-levelled squadmates were forced to keep up with her. Otohime followed closely behind, whistling as she went. This was a lot more fun than the other war she fought.

With the elf:

On the first floor of the Water Capital area, Ryuu looked down at the large pools of water. At her side was Mikoto, hair pulled tight into a braid. The elf noticed that her apprentice seemed put out and had appeared tired. It had not affected the level four's fighting ability, but Ryuu would be remiss if she did not check in on her protégé.

"Did you sleep alright, last night?" asked Ryuu.

Mikoto shook her head, pouting. "I have become accustomed to having Haruhime's tail draped over me while I slept. It is quite comforting. And she also helps keep calm by being near where I can keep an eye on her. I spent all my time lying awake in worry."

Ryuu snorted. "So, I have two of you to deal with, then."

Mikoto arched an eyebrow. "What do you mean, two of us?"

Ryuu gestured towards the wall where Urashima was slumped. While they waited for the rest to catch up, the ninja occasionally rubbed at his eyes.

"Since he wasn't allowed to go check on his Princess, he says he couldn't get a single minute of sleep," replied Ryuu. "I swear, the two of you are so in love; it's almost comical."

"… don't you still have Syr's lunchbox?"

Ryuu blushed and turned away, checking on the tunnel that led to the Great Tree Labyrinth. As she walked by the rest of the scouting unit, she picked up murmurs. They were starting to get antsy while waiting for the rest of the Adventurers Army. They hadn't run off because Ryuu and Bete were too intimidating when standing next to each other. No one wanted to get on their bad side.

"When we get to the thirty-seventh floor, I think I'm going to ask Welf for my new sword," said Ryuu offhandedly.

She heard and felt Mikoto hop to her feet, her previous sadness forgotten at the moment. The young adventurer was bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"Really? That's incredible! Oh, I just know that sword is going to be amazing! After all, with what it's made from and the skill of Sir Welf, I'm sure you'll do incredibly!" exclaimed Mikoto.

Ryuu smiled, happy to bask in Mikoto's adoration. This feeling of being an older sister or a mentor was relatively new to her, but it was not unwelcome. In fact, she quite liked it.

It would be an hour later that the other members of their expedition army would appear. They filed in and began setting themselves up based on Ryuu and Bete's instructions. And Ryuu and Bete were establishing their instructions on what Finn had told them to do. This included setting up specific squads in front of others and distributing protective wear. Not everyone would be wearing undine cloth, but anyone involved with the main battle would be. Eventually, the Braver himself showed up, the Dauntless shadowing him. The two pallums lived up to their reputations and were quick to issue orders to everyone. After an hour of reshuffling, during which they had to stop and take time to kill monsters, Finn seemed satisfied with the current Monster Rex formation. He nodded before giving the signal for the attack. Amphisbaena went down in less than an hour, such as the firepower of the assembled Adventurer Army Alliance. And their original objective of sustaining no major injuries was also accomplished. Obviously, there were minor injuries with some of the adventurers, but nothing that a quick potion or healing couldn't fix.

The whole affair took three hours to set up and complete. After that, it was a quick rest for everyone before they were on their way again. The only difference was that Familia members who had been separated were allowed to meet up and say hi. At least, that's what most of them did. One unlucky, armless warrior was instead bowled over and knocked on his ass.

Otohime didn't even bother saying anything. She just buried herself in his mid-section and clung on tight. Urashima responded by running his cold metal hands through her hair. He knew that it made Otohime seem clingy, but that was who she was. She was someone who was more affectionate through touch than words. That was why her declaring her love never affected him as much as it should have; it didn't mean the same as when she reached out to grab him. Those were the moments where he could almost believe that he was ready to accept and honour her feelings.

Eventually, though, Otohime had to leave. After all, she had responsibilities to tend to, and so did he. But still, no words were spoken. The former Princess instead took a moment to touch foreheads with him. Her hands were pressed against his temples, and he could feel her breathing with how close she was. That sound was music to his ears. She stood up afterwards and waved goodbye, rejoining Anakitty. Ura soon did the same, walking over to where Ryuu stood.

"Where is Miss Mikoto?" he asked.

Ryuu jerked a thumb over her shoulder where Haruhime and Mikoto shared whispers. The two did not giggle or frown but had quiet, contemplative expressions. Evidently, Mikoto could sense someone watching her because she turned soon enough and found Ryuu and Ura waiting for her. She waved goodbye to Haruhime and jogged over to rejoin her compatriots.

"Feeling better?" asked Ryuu.

Mikoto nodded, a smile like sunshine piercing through clouds on her face.

"Good, we still have work to do," replied Ryuu. "We don't stop till we get to the Dessert."

After that, it was a long trek, first through the swamp of the twenty-eighth floor and then through the first floor's desert-dwelling. The sight of their previous misadventure cast a slight pall on Hestia Familia. Meanwhile, many other adventurers stared around in wonder. This was the deepest they had ever come for a large majority of them.

"Do you think we'll keep walking all the way through?" asked Ura.

Ryuu shook her head, glancing up at the artificial light. "What passes for nighttime in this hellscape is soon approaching. We should perform one last sweep before heading back to the others."

The second day went like this, largely uneventful. The air was quiet and dry, and the sound was minimal. Ryuu hated it. She was jumping at shadows the entire time, her hand never far from her blade. And it was only when she saw the rest of the Alliance that she realized that it was part of the plan. If the adventurers spent all their time jumping at shadows, their morale and energy would be on a constant drain.

"Get some fires going," she said. "And I want everyone whose been this deep or deeper mingling with those who haven't. Start telling some funny stories from your time adventuring down here. Keep it light-hearted."

The more experienced adventurers nodded before setting to work. Evidently, someone had told Lili or Finn about this because the same orders were being passed around the entire army. Captains and Lieutenants were made to entertain their troops.

With the Kenki:

While these campfires hosted any number of adventurers telling stories, Ais felt left out. She didn't feel like she had stories to contribute. Instead, she sat alone and kept watch for her Vanguard unit. Eventually, the telltale sign of boots approached. Bell allowed himself to drop down next to her at the corner of her vision, legs crossed. Before Ais could ask him what he was doing, he drew a dagger from a sheath and handed it to her.

Ais examined the blade. It was nothing special; the only thing that made it stand out was the inscription on the edge. 'To my Meti,' it read.

"I found it down here with Ryuu," explained Bell. "I think my father gave it to my mother as a gift. A token of his love or something." He dragged his hand through the sand. "It really is amazing that I'm walking where they used to walk. That I get to connect to them like this, even if it's just a little bit."

Ais nodded along. "I understand the feeling. I feel the same about mother and father at times."

As if in answer to her words, the wind in the Dungeon picked up momentarily. It swirled and seemed to caress the Sword Princess. She smiled as it did so and tossed her hair.

"We will live up to what our parents left behind," declared Bell.

Ais nodded from beside him.

"Are you excited to fight Udeaus again?" asked Bell. "It's been a while since you fought it, right?"

Ais frowned. "It shouldn't have spawned again, though. Not after Ryuu killed it."

Bell shrugged. "Lili thinks that it came back early. The Dungeon will react to the presence of this many adventurers after all."

"Ooohhh," was Ais's response. "Then it'll be killed again. And we will keep moving."

Bell nodded.

With the Boy:

The next day was much the same as before, except that everything was slower and hotter. Progress was hampered by the shifting state of the sand and the constant monster attacks from the air and land. There were also adventurers tasked with refilling water that got attacked by monsters from the Nile. All in all, an unpleasant experience that was more of a nuisance than anything else.

After a quick lunchtime rest on the thirty-fourth floor, they continued ever deeper into the Dungeon. Soo, they entered the true beginning of the Deep Floors, the White Palace. As soon as he stepped foot inside, Bell found it hard to breathe.

His voice failed him, and he started looking around at the walls. When had they left the main path? Why had they entered the labyrinth? Bell looked left and right, trying to find his way back. All around him, shadows threatened to consume his light. Something tried to touch him, but he shoved it away.

"Stay back!" he shouted, Hestia Knife at the ready. "Stay away from me!"

The shapes around him just got more numerous. He thought he had re-entered the Arena, and now he cursed himself. He was going to die here.

"Bell."

A voice cut through the darkness.

"Bell!"

It was eerily familiar. And with it came a familiar shape.

"BELL!"

The shape struck a chord in his memory. He recognized those piercing blue eyes and long hair. He knew that green cloak and wooden blade. It was Ryuu, the one person he could trust in this depth of despair.

"Bell, you need to breathe," she said, blade raised. "You need to breathe and put the knife away."

"No! What if the monsters come to get us, Ryuu? We have to defend ourselves," retorted Bell. He could feel his heart beating in his head.

Ryuu relaxed her stance and put away her sword. She raised her hands slowly. One foot in front of the other, she moved towards Bell. He let her get close so that he could protect her.

"Bell, we made it. We made it back out, remember?" she asked. "And we're not alone this time."

One of her hands reached out, palm up. It sat there, waiting to see if Bell would respond. Slowly, mimicking her movement, he put his knife away and grabbed her hand. He wasn't sure when it happened, but her glove had come off at some point. He could feel her fingers' warmth and felt his muscles lose some of the tension. Slowly, he became aware of others gathered around him. They were adventurers, just like him. They stared with wide eyes and fear, except for Ais, who just looked worried. He ignored them.

"Ryuu…can you stay with me, please?" he asked, ashamed of how pathetic he sounded.

Ryuu gave him one of those rare smiles and stepped up to his side. She didn't let go of his hand for a second.

"I'll be with you the whole way," she responded.

The rest of the adventurers resumed their march then, eager to move past whatever episode had shaken one of their leaders and heroes. Ais moved forward to give the two some space, unsure how to respond. She reasoned that she would just have to talk to Bell later.

"I'm sorry about this," said Bell. "I didn't think I would react like this…I thought I was strong enough."

Ryuu shrugged. "Maybe so, but it was still hard to go through. And I think that seeing you act so heroic and mature makes us all forget sometimes."

"Forget what?" asked Bell.

"You're young with barely a year of experience to your name. You haven't had to put up the same walls as the rest of us. The armour over your heart has not been forged yet," replied the elf. "But that's why we love you so much, I think."

Bell didn't know what to say to that, so he focused on getting his bearings. After all, while he had been here once before, it was when he was fighting for his life. Much of this place remained a mystery to him. So, he took in the sights and fought the occasional monster. The beasts came so fast that there wasn't much time for breaks. And evidently, Finn thought so too. He made everyone move as quickly as they could so that they could get off this floor as soon as possible.

"But if everyone gets too tired from fighting, how will we deal with Udeaus?" asked Bell.

He wanted to try and talk about anything to get his attention off of where he was. If he wasn't careful, he knew he was liable to have another episode. The only reason that he wasn't totally breaking down was that Ryuu stood at his side. The elf smirked.

"I think the plan is too sick, Ais on the beast again," said Ryuu. "And then rotate her out so that she can rest."

"That's a lot to do alone," commented Bell, with a frown. "She might need some kind of help."

"Yes, I agree."

In the Throne Room, the top fighters all gathered. They would take care of the monsters that Udeaus would spawn. Then, the second-stringers and supporters waited outside. They would use magic swords and spells to take care of the other monsters. Overall, it was a good plan, but not one that would hold up under pressure. They needed to be out of here quick.

"Nothing flashy, Ais," said Finn. "Just kill the damn monster, and then we can all be on our way."

Ais nodded, focused on where the Monster Rex would crack out of the ground. As if on cue, a roar shook the room. Everyone turned towards the source to find the black skeleton crawling out of its hole.

"You're up, Ais!" shouted Finn.

The Sword Princess dashed forward, blade at the ready. As she began to commit to her first strike, though, a flash of green darted by. It cracked against one of the monster's ribs, a deafening reverb filling the cavern for a moment. Where the crack formed stood an elf.

"Well, try to keep up," taunted Ryuu.

Ais frowned in annoyance. This was her monster! She wanted to kill it on her own to look good in front of Bell! She sped up to start fighting at the elf's side. She noticed that Ryuu's original wooden blade was no longer in her grasp when she got closer. Instead, the magic swordswoman wielded a black longsword. It only had an edge on one side. The blade was slightly longer than desperate, but Ais could tell from a glance that the quality of the elf's blade was much higher. This was a tier-one weapon, on the same level as anything that Loki Familia used. The most interesting part was the lines of silver running through the middle. They looked like the ancient runes of the Gods.

"It's mithril," commented Ryuu. "To help channel my magic."

She gave the blade a few more test swings, seemingly happy with how it felt in her hands. With that completed, she jumped back into battle. Ais followed, and the two of them soon started beating down on the Monster Rex. It went unspoken, but a challenge hung in the air.

"Woah," said Tiona at one point. "That elf girl is keeping up with Ais!"

Gareth snorted. "Of course, she is. I mean, you do know who she is, right?"

"No, should we?" asked Aki.

"I mean, she looks familiar for sure," said Raul.

Gareth laughed. "We call her the Faerie Princess now, but she had a very different name once upon a time. She was the Gale Wind."

"…no way," replied Tiona. "You mean, the adventurer that…."

Gareth nodded, casually dissecting a spartoi as he did so.

"There's no telling where she would have ended up if Astraea Familia hadn't perished," said Gareth. "I only recognize her because of how she used to hang off their Captain. But make no mistake, that elf is the real deal."

As if answering Gareth's words, a green glow started to fill the cavern. It emanated from Ryuu's body. Despite performing concurrent chanting in the middle of a two versus one duel, though, her steps did not falter. Each move was poised and balanced as if it was a long-lost dance.

"That's insane," said Tione. "I don't even think Riveria is that good at concurrent casting."

"I'm not," said the high elf. "Which means that the girl is one of the truly talented."

"Luminous Wind!"

An explosion of leaf green rocked the room for a second. The mighty boss Udeaus staggered for a second, which allowed Ais to start hacking away. The two warriors traded time to deal blows, seemingly intent on one-upping the other. Around them, the Alliance strengthened their resolve and continued moving forward.

When the Monster Rex was finally defeated, the two Princesses were connected on stretchers and taken to Amid; they were exhausted from the fight and heavily injured. The whole time they were getting treated, the two bickered about who had gotten the last hit on the monster.

"To think that Ais would finally find herself a proper rival," commented Riveria. "I'm happy for her. She needs someone outside the Familia who she can test herself against."

"What about Bell?" asked Tiona.

Riveria snorted. "Please, Ais would never see him as a rival. He's the finish line."

With the Fighter:

After that was another break. The expedition's progress continued to slow, but Finn was not letting anyone rush. They were going to take their time and do this correctly or not at all. So, the first week passed in the Dungeon, and they finally made it to floor fifty. The large safe zone stretched out in front of them, the other side barely visible.

"We'll be making camp nearby!" declared Finn. "Everyone needs to get moving now!"

They all set out, happy to finally be so close to their destination. But there was also a sense of dread because Sun Seekers were close to. The actual battles of this war were going to begin.

Camp went up, and the different squads went about their usual routines. At one point, though, Bell walked off to the entrance to the fifty-first floor. The great dark hole stretched in front of him, and he had no idea where it went. He was scared of what would come. This Typhon did not feel like an enemy that would go down quickly, and something about his return to the thirty-seventh had set off all the warning bells in his head.

"Ah, I meant to find you," came a melodic voice.

Bell turned to find Otohime approaching. She held her weapon casually, but her stance betrayed just how alert she really was.

"Is everything ok?" asked Bell. "Did something happen?"

Otohime shook her head. "No, nothing happened. I just wanted to make sure that you weren't getting cold feet, is all."

Bell chuckled. "No, I think I'm ok. Actually, I wanted to make sure you were ok." He looked away. "I heard that you've been a bit off lately."

Otohime gave a dark chuckle. "Well, being back in a war space is definitely not good for my head, but it will have to do. Not like I have many choices in the matter." She glanced over in Bell's direction. "Have I ever really told you my life story? Why I am the way I am?"

Bell shook his head.

"Well, let's sit down then. I want to be comfortable if I'm telling this tale." She settled on the grass and looked around sadly. "Aw, but my comfort Ura isn't here right now."

Bell joined her, a little confused about what was happening.

Otohime noticed this and started plucking at the grass. "I just feel that you deserve to know. After everything we gave you for not telling us your secrets, I would feel bad if you didn't know mine. Besides, there are some I want to tell you that no one else knows, not even Ura."

That last sentence caught Bell's attention. He sat there eagerly awaiting the story of someone he admired and cared for so much.

"Well, let's start at the beginning then…."

It is a Wednesday and this is Wandering! Welcome to a Wandering Wednesday friends! I hope you enjoy!