The dwarf Smith finally finished Craiku's equipment the following day and he was admiring himself in the mirror. He was wearing a deep skin tight yet flexible under suit and he had a silver chest plate with elbow and knee guards to protect his joints. And he had a belt with a holder for his wand which Shakti had requested for him since Adree let her know about his wand. And the buckle was shaped like an elephant. And his gloves and boots are white. "Tokun you look so cute in that outfit" Adree said with hearts practically floating above his head.
Craiku pouts, "I don't look cute at all, I'm not supposed to be cute"! He said, stomping his feet.
But Clover simply pats his head, "I think you look battle ready. That armor totally suits you" he claimed.
Craiku puffed out his chest, "Why thank you," he said, feeling his new armor, it was light enough for him, but would still take some getting used to.
"Why so much armor, I'm a martial artist and a mage not a knight"?
"Just yesterday you were hit by a poisonous knife that nearly killed you, I'm not even sure how you managed to fend them off in your state," Tsubaki comments as she handed him his new weapon.
His eyes lit up as soon as he saw it, "So cool, I've never seen such an amazing weapon before,"
The handle was blue and the sharp edge of the spear was blue and the other end was a golden color. But it had a blue gem in the center for some reason.
"What's the blue gem for"? He pondered.
"Makes magical spells used against you weaker, but I wouldn't go charging towards an incoming spell."
He bows his head, "Thank you so much Ms Tsubaki, I promise to take very good care of Sapphire" he said.
"Sapphire"? Clover said in confusion.
"That's the name I gave this one, papa said if a weapon is special to you then it deserves a name"
The three of them left her workshop after paying for everything which left them with almost nothing.
"We're almost flat broke now" Adree said in a concerned tone.
"If you ask me it was totally worth every copper coin, isn't that right my little Sapphire, ready for your daily dose of the blood of our enemies. Yes you are" he said talking to it as if it's a pet cat.
"Uh, I think he likes his spear a little too much" Adree said nervously.
"Let's make sure he doesn't break it" Clover responded nervously.
Today Craiku and Clover were heading to the dungeon under the conditions that they form a party of six people. Adree agreed to go with them to make it a little easier, plus her healing magic could be essential for surviving the dungeon.
Clover was sporting a new chest plate with a belt with numerous items. Such as throwing knives and a short sword.
"Clover, why are you wielding a sword now, I thought swords weren't your thing," Adree asked out of curiosity.
"I know I know, but recently I thought that my arrows were a little ineffective for consistent combat, I'm still not like a sword person like you or that Ryu girl but I think I can make it work." He said confidently
"Now we just need 3 more people to join our party…you think it we ask Alise and Leon they'd join us in the dungeon today"? Asked Craiku.
"The Astrea Familia are constantly patrolling the city to combat the Evils. Even if they're not the strongest ones around they're the only ones willing to consistently look out for the civilians. We'd be lowering their numbers." Adree points out.
"Too bad, that Alise is super strong, she may be a little annoying but she did save me yesterday from an enemy I was dumb enough not to notice" he was as he started trembling thinking about the experience.
"Don't say that, sure you probably shouldn't have run off by yourself but you were trying to do something good. That's why we're going to clear the dungeon. To get stronger so something like this doesn't happen again. Let's sit for a bit and brainstorm some people we could recruit"
The trio sit on the fountain in front of the dungeon entrance and try to think of some people who might be willing to join them.
"I don't know many people in Orairo outside of the girls and you guys, the only other person I can think of is that Aiz Wallenstein girl. She's young like me but she's super strong and has crazy monster slayer talents according to my dad, I just wonder if Lady Riveria is willing to let her join our party," he ponders.
Craiku then looked around and saw a green haired elven women in a outfit that could be made for royalty with a little blonde girl who had a doll like face.
"Oh hi there Aiz, Lady Riveria good morning to both of you" he said enthusiastically as he ran over to them.
Aiz's eyes widened as soon as he approached her, "Craiku, you're still up here, but I thought you'd be in the dungeon by now" Riviera said with a curious look.
"Well usually I am but today is different, Shakti wants me to get a party of six in order to continue exploring the Dungeon. Which is strange because Clover and I were doing just fine, I think we got more than enough with Adree finally tagging along but I know she knows what's best for me. Speaking of which"
He stares at Aiz with a goofy grin, "No, absolutely not" Riveria said coldly.
"But I didn't even say anything yet"
"It doesn't take a genius to figure out that you're planning on recruiting Aiz into your party but I won't allow it,"
He slumped over, "But why not, she'd be perfect, she's a kid just like me and her monster slayer talents could be useful in the dungeon. We wouldn't let anything happen to her" he said pleading with her.
"It's not you that I don't trust, it's her, half the time she rarely listens to me and I will not have her put another party in danger in case she gets out of control" Riveria said firmly.
"I'm sorry, I wish you could include her but she's not in a good place right now. Perhaps another time, besides I know you don't want me hovering over you as you try to get through the dungeon without me micromanaging you" he sighed.
"I suppose you're right, guess we'll look elsewhere for a party of six, but I really hope we can explore the dungeon together one day Aiz, I think we'd make a unstoppable team" he said with a friendly smile.
She nods, "Me too, but I don't think exploring the Dungeon is something you should take lightly."
"You hardly have room to talk young lady," said the high elf annoyed with her hypocrisy.
"Well good luck with your monster slaying today, knock em dead…literally" he said with a slight chuckle.
Before they left Aiz turned around, "I like your new armor, I think it looks cool on you" she said before leaving causing his face to light up as he started jumping up and down.
"Yippee she said that I looked cool, finally, not cute but cool" he went back to the fountain with a gleeful expression on his face.
"Unsuccessful huh" Clover said already knowing that they failed to recruit Aiz.
"No, but Aiz said I looked cool. I say that's a victory for me." Both of them shrug their shoulders as he was in nirvana with his complement from Aiz.
"Any other Loki Familia members you're friends with" asked Clover.
"Other than Aiz, no"
They were on the verge of giving up.
"Uh, good morning to you Mr Tojo, Adree and Clover"
Their heads turned in the same direction and they saw a young bashful looking elf girl. "Oh Leon good morning, what brings you here, I already forgiven you like 10 times already. You don't need to keep apologizing" Craiku said.
"I do, I really would have died the other day if not for you, but that's not why I'm here…I humbly request for you to add me to your party, at least for today" she requested.
The three of them were elated by her request and Craiku took her hand and shook it, "Welcome to our party, glad to have you along" she was once again thrown off by how he so casually shook her hand.
"Great that's four people, but we still need two more people" Craiku said before Adree stopped him.
"Wait, Leon, as much as I enjoy having you around, what about the others and your mission to protect the civilians. Wouldn't joining our party lessen the numbers in your group" Adree asked uncharacteristically.
"Protect who, because as far as I'm concerned I can't even protect myself at this point. I've had to be saved at least 10 times already. I'm not like my friends who are skilled and experienced at this stuff. I'm not even like Mr Tojo, I'm greatly envious of his skill and strength and I think working with him and the rest of you in the dungeon getting stronger will be more beneficial than being a burden to Alise and always getting defeated and nearly killed"
They nod over and over, but Craiku blushed when she admitted to being jealous of his strength. "You're jealous of me? Leon, I'm really not that strong at all, I was paralyzed and I fell into a trap yesterday and almost got killed. I still have a lot to learn. If not for your captain, I probably wouldn't be here right now" he said.
"Don't sell yourself short Mr Tojo, I've seen you in action, Adree and I both tried fighting…oh I guess I shouldn't bring that up, my apologies" she said remembering how traumatic of an experience it was.
"Don't worry about it Leon, but she was still stronger than me as much as I hate to admit it, I only won because I outclassed her in magical power. It took everything I had just to knock her out"
"True but it was more than I could have done. Even Kaguya said how unbelievable it was that you won. And she rarely compliments anyone." She said with a bitter look on her face.
"Well I guess you can join us, besides I want to become friends with you as well" she said touching her shoulder before she was smacked in the face by Ryuu on reflex.
"Oh no I'm so sorry, but please don't touch me like that, I'm ashamed to admit that I…tend to look down on people who aren't my race" she explained.
"But you were just touching Tokun not too long ago and you didn't hit him"
She looked at him, "Please, I didn't mean to hurt you, I beg for your forgiveness" Adree simply smiles,
"That's okay Leon, I already forgave you, see just a little love tap, I'm a lot tougher than I look" she said pounding her chest.
"Yeah she totally destroyed Clover this morning, I never seen anything like it" Craiku said laughing uncontrollably.
"Why's me being able to beat him so funny"? Adree asked with a pout.
"That's not the funny part, the funny part is that you say you applaud violence but you beat him up in such a violent way." She pouts and pounded him lightly.
"Tokun I will come after you next"
"Hahaha I'm sorry, but you just sent him flying with a single strike. Hahaha not violent huh, could have fooled me hahaha"
Ryuu was surprised seeing him act his age when he's usually so serious and mature for his age.
"Ok ok I'll stop, I'm sorry I laughed at you, I give you permission to hug me for two minutes"
"3 and a half, deal" she said scooping him up into her arms.
Massive massive boobies, I'm a bad boy.
Adree chuckled as she hugged him.
I know why you feel awkward, but this is your punishment for laughing at me. She thought as she purposely pressed her breasts on his back.
After he was released he was trembling nervously with a red face, "You did that on purpose" he said shivering in Clover's arms.
"You realize if the roles were reversed he'd be in jail" Adree groans.
Uh excuse me silly boy," Craiku stopped in his tracks and looked down and saw a girl slightly shorter than me. About 100 clench tall.
"Do I know-" she wrapped her arms around me for an unexpected hug.
Craiku saw her pointy ears, "Hey let go of him, you can't just go around hugging people without their permission" Adree said earning her Clover's side eye.
"Uh, hehe I love hugs as much as the next kid but mind if you tell me why you're hugging me" he asked.
"Wait you really don't remember me, I'll give you a hint, you saved my from drowning in a river last year" Craiku's eyes light up.
"Violet"!? He yelled, "In the flesh" he hugged her back.
"It's so good to see you, I got worried about you when we had to leave the village while you were still sick" he said as he hugged her back.
Adree started puffing her cheeks, "Tokun, you know this girl"?
They turned around, "Oh yeah, I made a few friends while dad and I were traveling the world. I met her in a forest while I was practicing my silent spells one day. She was swinging from tree to tree but fell into the river and the current was carrying her away so I dove in the water to try to save her. We probably would have drowned if I didn't blast us out of the river" he explained.
"And I've been thinking about you every single day since you saved my life. My hero" she said snuggling up with him.
"Hold on, not that it's not good to see you again but what are you doing here in the first place Violet? Why aren't you back home with your family,"? She made a somber expression.
"Oh yeah, that, you see our village has fallen into hard times and almost everyone has gone into poverty including my parents. We had to sell a lot of our stuff including my drawings"
Craiku covered his mouth, "I'm so sorry to hear that, I didn't know that, what happened to you, was it Evilus's forces again did they come back after we drove them out" he asked.
"It wasn't them, we just got caught up in a very bad storm which lead to our knights getting injured from trying to protect everyone then a bunch of monsters attacked at the worst possible time…it was basically a series of unfortunate events playing out one after another" she said twiddling her thumbs.
"So where are they now"?
"Don't know, they just packed a bag for me and told me to start over somewhere else because they couldn't take care of me anymore. But I'm determined to not give up. I recently joined a clan and I'm gonna work on rebuilding my village. And when I heard you were in Orairo I thought I'd be able to join you in the dungeon. That's all you talked about last year" he held her hand.
"You're I-" Clover covered his mouth and dragged him away with Adree following.
"Uh Tokun, can we discuss this matter before making a major decision like this?" Adree said hesitantly.
"Major decision, but this is my long time quill pal Violet," he said.
"Right, but you haven't seen her for a year now, who knows if she can even fight," Clover said.
"What she can fight, she has a sword" he said.
"Tokun I mean have you ever seen her fight before and I mean really fight like you and I" Craiku grew sheepish.
"I understand you wanna help your friend but we have to be professional about this, we'll ask her a couple of questions and see if she qualifies"
The group goes back over to Violet and Clover being the best person in the group decides he should do the talking.
"Ok I'll ask you a few questions, what Familia and you in, and what's your skill set" he asked
"Demeter Familiar but I'm good with a sword somewhat but I'm more of a supporter than a front line fighter I've been taking Jobs as a falna less supporter during my trip here and only recently received my falna from Lady Demeter, she was really understanding of my situation and welcomed me with open arms"
Craiku stroked his chin, "Wait, you mean the goddess who gives tasty food to the poor," she nodded.
"Hmph that would explain why I never seen you before despite us basically being partners" Adree said.
"I was in really poor health when I got here so she didn't let me do anything stressful until I got better, she said 'young lady for the sake of those skin and bones can you please take care of yourself and eat something' and their captain placed me under house arrest until I got better".
Craiku chuckles at this info, "Go ahead and laugh and get it out your system" she said hanging her head in shame.
"I'm sorry, but I'm sure you couldn't have been that bad" she reached into her backpack and pulled out a notepad with a picture of a severely skinny elf girl and all of their faces turned pale.
"Oh, ok I think she did the right thing now" Ryuu said as she spoke up for the first time.
"So you've worked as a supporter before you ever received your falna, isn't that a bit dangerous, and I thought there was only one dungeon in the entire world which we're currently standing in front of" Clover comments.
"Tokun fought monsters before he got his falna, besides the monsters outside of Orairo aren't as powerful as the ones in the dungeon. The adventurers actually did a good job protecting me. Admittedly my status is so low it's concerning. So I'll be counting on you to keep me safe, assuming you accept me of course" she said.
Adree started inspecting her large backpack, "And what's up with the sword"
"An adventurer gave it to me in case I needed to protect myself in an emergency. So what do you say"?
Craiku looked at his friends giving them the puppy dog eyes. Ryuu looked at Adree who was basically in charge of the party as the most experienced in the group.
"Well if Tokun knows you personally and you want to help your village that badly I guess we can give it a try" she clapped her hands together and leaped towards Craiku hugging him.
"Yes thank you thank you very much I promise I won't let you down, I'll be the greatest supporter you've ever had"!
"Uh well that won't be hard since you're the only one we ever had" Craiku responded.
"That's still only 5 people we need one more"
"Yo Leon, I think you forgot something"!
Said a distant voice from afar.
A red headed girl and a pink haired prum approached her with a bag of items. "Alise Lyra"!
"Scatterbrained elf, you declare that you'd got to the dungeon like a professional and forget practically everything you need to make it out alive" she teased.
"Oh yeah, thank you" she accepted the bag and bows.
"So what are you all still doing out here, the dungeon ain't gonna explore itself you know." Lyra asked.
"Well sis said after the incident with yesterday and the way Tokun is already close to reaching floor 8 we need a party of six people to for him to continue exploring the Dungeon in case he gets ambushed which happens to him a lot" she explained.
"Oh I see, I'd love to go with you but I can't leave the city without its red headed beauty protecting it. Otherwise I'd go in a heartbeat, hell I'd bring all the girls"
"I think that'd be overkill," Ryuu responded.
"Oh yeah, Lyra, how about you accompany Leon in the dungeon today. Just to make sure our elven rookie stays out of trouble" Alise suggested.
"Eh, ain't that Celty's job"? She asked skeptical.
"Well yeah but I think she was a little overwhelmed, it was careless of me to ask her to do that when she's so young and not much more experienced than her but you've had your falna longer than I have. I think I can depend on you. Besides we owe him for the other day"
Lyra shrugged, "Fine, but I intend on getting a fair amount of the money we make today" she said as she drew her Carnivore.
"Are you sure Alise isn't Lyra like one of your best members" Craiku asked.
"I ain't that tough kid, my strength is all up here" she said pointing at her forehead.
"Have a good trip in the dungeon, take care of yourselves and more importantly take care of Leon. If you don't, I'll send Kaguya to hunt you down" Alise said cheerfully.
Craiku shrugged it off, "I'm sure I could take her at this point"
Lyra shook her head, "She's just as strong as Alise, some say she is probably a little stronger than her" his face turned pale.
"Oh, I see. Okay let's go,"
Each section of the dungeon was a different world entirely. Everything changed on the fifth level.
Dungeon
The walls turned a slimy green and the layout got more complicated, but that wasn't all.
More unpleasant monsters, like the seventh level's killer ant, appeared in larger numbers. Plus, the birthing interval of monster was much shorter on the seventh than the fourth. The moment an adventurer ventured into a dead end, they could be swarmed from all sides by monsters pouring out of the dungeon walls. It was their first major obstacle to overcome. They couldn't just go lower when they got bored on the upper levels. Adventurers needed to build a strong foundation before going deeper. Not just a strong "status," they needed experience, good
equipment, fast reflexes, and general adventurer knowledge—among other things—to survive. Newbie adventurers needed to spend time learning and growing on the upper floors first. This was even truer for solo adventurers. "Hiyah" Thankfully Craiku met all of those requirements, with a swing of his new spear, he slashed the Killer Ant in the abdomen and spun around and kicked its head and sent it flying into the wall. "Woah you took care of the Killer Ant like it was nothing" said, "Eh it was nothing special," a purple moth came down from above, and he raised his hand ready to shoot it down with his magic. "Oh no you don't" a boomerang like blade flew through the air and cut down the purple moth and it crashed into the ground and the blade flew back into the hand of the prum.
"Nice shot Lyra," Craiku said.
"You claim to be weak but I couldn't even see it coming in time to take it out" Ryu said.
"Thanks but we're only getting started, stay close to me and don't fight any monsters unless I tell you to," Lyra said, mentoring her.
"Another one up there, I think you can take it out just jump on the wall with those long legs of yours and strike the wings the moment you're halfway through the air"
Ryuu nods and followed her instructions
Leaps into the air cutting the moth's wing and caused it to crash into the wall and then she stabbed it in the magic crystal finishing it off. "Woah, that was cool, I thought only Clover could do something like that, you sure you're new to this" Craiku asked in amazement. "Yes, however despite being a rookie adventurer, I spent years training with the sword in my home village. So I already know how to fight, but I'm still the weakest of my Familia and I'm hoping to catch up very soon" Weak, she just took out a Purple moth and they're calling her weak!?
"!?" A needle rabbit came out trying to stab him with it's horn but it got shot by an arrow that pierced it sending it off course and killing it. "Quit admiring her moves, we're all awesome but we'll be more awesome if we don't die" he said turning his head towards the horde of monsters approaching them. "He's right Tokun, if you keep getting distracted it could get you killed, and you wonder why I worry all the time," she lectures. "Hehe sorry, I'm just not used to fighting with so many people at once, it's a lot more fun this way"
"Giii" a Killer Ant raises it's claws as it snuck up behind him but he turned around and did a spinning hook kick that cracked its shell. He grabs it's arm stopping its assault, flips it over and he stabs it square in the magic crystal. Adree was attacked by another Killer Ant angry at the death of its brother and it brought down its sharp claws, but Adree was ready for it as she blocked it with her Sacred Oath.
"It's not the first time I've dealt with your kind, I know all your weaknesses" she said as the claws slid harmlessly off her Sacred Oath. She cuts off it's left arm and attacks from it's blind spot, "Ha" even with the creature's strength it was no match for Adree who is required to know everything about each monster in the dungeon. She knows their attack patterns and she understands them perfectly. Ignoring the strain of blocking the Killer Ant's strikes she drove her sword into its chest and found a weak spot in between its well armored spectrum.
Ok I'm probably going to need to exercise more often. She jokes in her own mind, Sacred Oath was covered in purple blood. Ryuu was mainly taking care of the Purple Moths since she was unable to combat the Killer Ants at this point since she was still in the beginning phases of her time as an adventurer.
They're doing their best to slay these monsters to support their Familia, so I have to do my part and avoid being a burden. She raced towards another moth, but it ended up blowing purple dust in her face, sending her off course before she fell flat on her face. "Giii" she had the rotten luck of landing in front of a Killer Ant, oh no I don't stand a chance. Paralyzed with shock, she was unable to move, "Fireball"! But the Killer Ant was engulfed in fire in a mere second before it collapsed on the ground in front of her. Standing behind it was Craiku who slowly lowered his hand and he extended it to her.
"You okay Leon" he asked with a cheeky smile. "Uh yeah I'm fine, I'm sorry I messed up like that, I acted a fool and got poisonous powder blown in my face" a vile was tossed in her direction by Violet.
"The effects of the poison aren't immediate but you really should drink that antidote. The effects can happen over time."
"Behind you" A Killer Ant emerges from the wall, "I'm not going down without a fight" she tried to strike it but its shell was too much for her. And she barely dodged its claws and even blocking it caused her arms to feel strained and she was knocked down. Most rookies in her position would have been killed, "I got it" he tried to fire but his arrow had been jammed. "Darn it I hate it when that happens"
"I got it" Craiku sprang into the air and pointed out his foot. "Shooting star attack"! Echoes exploded on the kick's impact. Crack! The ant's neck shattered. Its lifeless body fell on the ground, "Don't hurt Leon or you'll have to answer to me" he said as he scowled at the deceased monster. "What are you" asked Leon, "I'm a rising star, and your welcome, didn't Adree tell you not to fight the Killer Ants" he said.
"And you wonder why Alise picked me to go with you" Lyra comments.
"You? I'm the one who killed it,"
"Well who here is fast enough to kill a Killer Ant as fast as you. More importantly how did you not break your foot, that was a hard Killer Ant's shell you just kicked"!? Lyra asked.
"Tokun, you are growing more and more every day, it took me forever just to get strong enough to fight a Killer Ant" Adree said with a pout,
"That's because Craiku's incredible, you should have been there last year, he was fighting criminals like it was nothing, of course his dad handled the big bads but I've never seen a kid as strong as him before, it's no surprise that he's gotten even stronger" Violet said praising him.
"Compared to Dianna these things are nothing, ugh you made me say something positive about her, now I'll make sure you pay for that" he said rushing at the next monster.
He delivered a finishing blow to the remaining monsters before rushing up to the giant ant
attempting to emerge from the crack in the wall.
After sprinting ten meters across the room, Craiku leaped skyward, extending his foot for a flying sidekick and drove his left boot into the beast.
"One, two…!!!"
"Huawei?!" Echoes exploded on the kick's impact. Crack! Another ant's neck shattered. Its lifeless body hung from the side of the wall.
"Ohh, Craiku, what should we do? That killer ant is stuck up there?"
"Hmm, what can we do?"
A bead of sweat ran down Craiku's face as he tried to figure out how to get the ant's body, which
looked like it was too big for a small hole, out of the wall. It was well out of Violet's reach, but when
she looked up and saw the confused look in Craiku's eyes, she couldn't help but giggle.
"Craiku, I thought you were strong but geez, but you're a major weirdo. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"
"…Don't laugh!"
Realizing how dismal he looked, he cracked a small smile, too. With the floor almost conquered and the room fully cleared, the two of them set to work on
retrieving magic stones.
But now it was Violet's time to shine. All the others could really do was keep an eye out for any monsters that might try to sneak up on them.
"You know Craiku, you could have saved some monsters for us to kill, you're being a total excela hog" Lyra complained.
"Well you're the ones who are always talking about not messing around so I didn't," he said crossing his arms defensely.
"Lyra is correct, we're supposed to be a team, but if you just kill them by yourself the rest of us might as well not be here" Adree said.
"Well I'm sorry but these monsters are too weak now. Anyone could beat these things" Ryuu rubbed her arm awkwardly.
"I can't kill a single ant and I barely survived the War Shadow I was fighting the other day"
"We could go to floor 8 and-"
"Absolutely not" everyone else said in sync, cutting him off as he sat down pouting.
"You love combat as much as you did when I met you don't you" Violet asked.
"I love it even more than I did back then, like a year ago I was wondering if I made me a violent monster that enjoys beating people up but I realized after I defeated my evil sister Dianna that I'm not violent at all, I just like to fight". He said as everyone else scanned the area full of dead monsters and had a skeptical look as they stared at him.
"Oh yeah I remember you telling me about her, she made me so mad just from what you told me, I was ready to put on a pair of boxing gloves and squaring up with her myself" she said flexing her arm.
"It was the only time I've ever seen you get mad, I still can't believe that you said a swear word out loud, you made your mother's face as pale as a ghost, ha-ha-ha" he chuckled reminiscing about it.
"Meanie, you promised me that you wouldn't bring it up"
"Sorry but I couldn't help myself" the two of them started chatting up a storm as Violet was dragging the bodies out of the way. Adree started puffing her cheeks as she stared at them.
"Hmph that girl seems to have a lot of chemistry with him, I've never seen him so relaxed when he's not caving in someone's skull" Lyra comments.
"Oh yeah those two got along well with each other, she's actually the first friend Craiku befriended after he and his father left the village" Clover explained.
"Hold on, you knew about her, and didn't say anything about it" Adree asked
"Well you didn't need to know who she was, I didn't know it was her until she said her name. Besides, why should it bother you if there's someone who gets along with him? He doesn't have any other friends his age so this is a good opportunity" he asked suspiciously.
"Well yeah I know, it doesn't bother me that he gets along with her, but he seems much more relaxed with her," she said as he took notice of her envy.
Violet puts more and more crystals into her backpack.
"Oh yeah I've been meaning to ask you, everyone except that girl over there calls you by your name, but she just calls you Tokun, now that I think about it, I remember your dad was calling you by that name, what's up with that" Violet asked.
"Well…I'm actually not sure, Adree only calls me that because she thought it was my real name, but she never started calling me Craiku because in her own words it sounded cute" he said.
"So it's like a nickname for you, so would you be willing to let me call you that" she asked.
"Sure thing, but we should keep it even so I'll call you Viola, because it's short for Violet"
She had a bright smile on her face.
"Thanks I love it, Viola, like an ancient hero name. Viola the dark elf, Viola the conqueror" he laughs at her poses.
Craiku's POV
We spent quite a while picking up the stones from the ground and extracting them from the monsters' corpses before they disappeared in a puff of smoke, completely disintegrating. That still puzzled me, but I didn't attach much importance to it.
As we were collecting, I started to hear footsteps growing louder and louder and I stood up with my body growing more tense, and my eyes scanned our surroundings attentively. Did the dungeon want to act against us again? Or was it something else? I didn't know, but it was better to be on guard. Everyone else must hear it too because Lyra has her Carnivore at the ready Adree has Sacred Oath up and Clover is loading his crossbow. Although Leon seemed confused but she eventually got her weapons ready.
"Eh? Craiku. Is something wrong?" Viola stopped when she noticed something was amiss with me. I walked a few paces forward, tilting my head, and concentrating on what was about to come down that corridor.
"Viola, you should draw your sword" I said as I held up my spear.
"Huh but I don't think I'd be strong enough to fight" she claimed.
"This way," a male voice called out, and then several people (all of them men) emerged from the corridor we were observing. This took all of us by surprise.
Before we knew what was happening, the men passed us. One of them pushed me, and as they moved farther away from us, we noticed a large number of monsters following them.
"They've just thrown us a parade pass," Lyra exclaimed.
My eyes widened in surprise and indignation. I briefly looked back and noticed the man staring at me with an evil grin. I recognized him, and anger coursed through me. He was the same man who tried to harm Sora.
"That absolute bastard"! Clover cursed
I didn't have a chance to chase after him because a War Shadow lunged at me, trying to impale me with its body. I didn't notice it until my instincts kicked in, causing me to reflexively dodge.
My eyes turned to my companion Viola, who was being cornered by a killer ant, and momentarily turned my attention towards her and shot a stone cannon ball at the ant which killed it in an instant saving her, but she was covered in blood in the process.
"Look out" she said pointing at me, I turned back to my opponent and I was struck forcefully, making my eyes widen in surprise and forcing me to step back a great distance.
What?
But although I have been hit in the abdominal area, I wasn't hurt, my armor wasn't even damaged more than a little bit.
"Hey I didn't get hurt, this Armor is actually pretty good, but I shouldn't rely too heavily on it, my turn"
I started to get the hang of it's movements and I did a straight punch in it's face then returned the favor by slashing it across the chest and slew it.
I turned around and saw three frog shooter tongues rushing towards me.
Oh shoot oh shoot, I thought.
But right before they connected with me a circular weapon flew through the air cutting the tongues off and the severed tongues fell on the ground.
And Leon and Clover came rushing in and cut them down with their blades.
"What's with these monsters they seem so much stronger than the other ones"!?
"Agh!" Lyra cried out in pain as one of the ants impaled her abdomen. I could see her trying to defend herself, but she was quickly overwhelmed by the ants.
There were too many monsters to keep up with. I now understand why everyone's been telling me that floor 8 was too much for us at the moment.
"Everyone on your guard"! Adree yelled, drawing her Sacred Oath.
"Tokun grab Lyra and use your Light Heal on her immediately, I'll protect Violet" she said as she switched positions with me.
I didn't understand why she didn't just grab her since she had healing magic that's way stronger than mines but she's been at this longer than I have so I think it's best not to question her.
"On it, you can count on me, hang on Lyra"
I leaped into the air, jumping over numerous monsters and I landed in front of her and blocked it's claws from striking her a second time.
"Not on my watch", I swung my spear down and cut off it's arm then I used a blast to push it away from us with a blast of wind before I drove my spear into its chest while it was pinned to the wall.
Eep," she cried out and then grimaced in pain from the way I grabbed her.
My knees buckled as I landed on the ground, with Maris in my arms bridal-style.
"Are you okay? How bad is your injury?" I asked with concern.
Lyra's cheeks turned pink before she nodded with relief. "I'm fine. One of the ants injured my abdomen, but it wasn't too serious. With a healing potion, I can recover."
I chuckled, "Healing potions? Who needs those when you have me," I rested her on the ground and placed my hand on her abdomen.
"Hey hey at least take me to dinner first" she said in a joking manner, although I don't exactly get the joke.
"O great spirits give and bestow strength to those who have fallen and give them the strength to rise again-Light Heal"
A healing light washed over her belly and her wounds faded away and she got back on her feet in no time looking surprised that I was able to do that.
"You have healing magic too"? She asked with a surprised look on her face.
"Yeah, you're welcome by the way" I said in response.
"You know what kid, you're alright in my book, but those guys who pass paraded us, I'm gonna tear their world a sunder when we get outta here"! She said as she clenches her fists.
That's when a thought occurred to me,
"Hold on for a sec, I think I have a way to end this quickly, but you guys have to trust me on this" I said.
"Let me guess you have a spell that can save our butts" Lyra asked.
"Yeah, I'm gonna use the same one I did against Dianna, but I need you all to fall back so I don't accidentally freeze anyone" I informed them.
"And let you fight these things alone, I don't think so Tokun I'm the oldest and most experienced so I should fight the party of monsters alone" she said in a commanding voice.
"But none of your spells are offensive and you'll be able to attack them once I finish the incantation. Let me use my magic to save us all, I won't fail a second time in a row" I said as I drew my wand putting my spear away.
"Tokun you better stay right where you are" she said, but this was the best way to win.
"I think he's got this, go ahead and freeze these suckers so we can finish them off" Clover said with an encouraging thumbs up.
I ran towards the horde of ants which were joined by a bunch of other monsters and started chanting.
"Arctic spirits that envelop our forests with frost, here my name. Respond to the contract, let snow rain!"
"Siiiiii" two killer ants corner me ss I build up magical power but I leaped over them using a Kobold's head as a platform.
"Follow my order and provide divine protection. Let's put them into an eternal winter slumber with no chance of resurrection–Kuros Anemos"!!
I pointed my wand forward as everyone else got behind me and I unleashed a large burst of icy wind freezing every monster within range. It might not be as powerful as acquired magic but I've worked hard to improve my spell casting and have been practicing this one for years now.
"Woah you froze all the them, like a winter wonderland" Viola said.
I toppled over as I felt a little strained using two spells back to back, plus I poured more mind energy into that one that I usually do.
"Take five, it's our turn now, payback time" Clover said as everyone wasted no time in slaying the frozen monsters that not to long ago threatened us.
Leon had unloaded slash after slash on the ants specifically. Clover cut them up even Lyra and Adree who are not fighters tore through them.
I looked at Viola and she seemed hesitant to participate. There was a frozen Kobold right near us, "Uh you wanna, it has your name on it" her face lights up and she took her sword out and slashed at it.
"Hahaha that's what you get for trying to kill me and my new friends and tell the rest that I'm not afraid of your kind" she said as she snapped at it.
"Uh, I think I created a monster," I muttered to myself.
Everyone painted from exhaustion when they finished killing the entire monster party that jerkface had thrown at us in an attempt to kill us. It didn't work since now all the monsters were dead by our hand.
"We won, they tried to pass parade us and we actually won" Clover said as he along with everyone else drank their potions.
I had a few scrapes myself but nothing too serious, "Welp time to self heal" I was just about to cast light heal on myself when a potion was dumped on my head.
"Hey Viola what are you doing" I said,
"No more spells for you mister, you used way too much mind energy freezing that entire party and if you cast anymore spells you'll end up passing out. Don't think I forgot about last time" she said nagging me.
"Light Heal doesn't take a lot of energy,"
"Doesn't matter, if you end up passing out we'll be doomed in case we need you Kuros Anemos spell again."
She's right, but she looked apologetic when she was done, "I'm sorry, that was out of line"
I touched her shoulder, "No you're absolutely right, thanks for saving me energy. Ever since I beat Dianna I've been trying to embrace my magic a lot more. So I could potentially cast a silent version of Kuros Anemos and Light Heal".
"But you did look pretty 'cool' out there when you were dodging attacks while casting your spell." I snorted out a small laugh.
"It's 'ice' to see you still enjoy a good pun every once in a while" I quipped.
"Ugh no no no not two of them, I knew I had a bad feeling about her" Clover complained.
"Anyone have any rotten tomatoes for me to throw at them?" Lyra asked.
"Oh come on now I'm funny" I declared.
"With all due respect, your combat abilities are what impress me, not your sense of humor" I slumped over.
"Um Viola, could you start collecting the crystals now, I think it's best we leave as soon as possible" Adree asked politely.
"Oh sure thing my apologies" she said scrabbling around to pick them up
Adree gave me the, 'I'm mad at you look' and I knew she was upset with me.
"You did well out there, you really saved us all just now" Adree said surprising me.
"You're just saying that, I can tell you're mad"
"I mean I don't like it when you do risky stuff like that but I can't deny that it got the best outcome for us. Look I know I'm acting strange today and I'm sorry for being so cold." She said,
"Don't worry about it, with all the ice around I think we're a little bit cold right now" she covered her mouth and I heard a small laugh come out.
"Was that a laugh" she shook her head trying to deny it.
"Yes it was I definitely heard a laugh just now Adree likes my so called terrible puns"
But two arms wrapped around me when my back was turned, "This is for worrying me" she said.
Not again
"So, you were friends with this girl already, you two seem close" she said in a worried tone.
"Yup she's super cool, she's easy to talk to and I think I like her about the same way as Clover, I just feel so comfortable with her you know"
She puffs her cheeks, "You never feel that comfortable with me," she said as she looked rejected.
"What no no no I feel comfortable with you, it's just that you're more of an authority figure and mentor for me. Like a wise older sister. With Viola it's kinda like we experience the same stuff, you know minus the combat. I just don't have that same connection with you, not that I value you any less it's just-" a hand was placed on my shoulder and I saw Clover staring at me.
"Why don't you give Viola a hand, those monsters you froze up are giving her frostbite" I nodded and went ahead. Although I feel kinda guilty about what I said to Adree, I hope I didn't hurt her feelings too much. It's not that I don't want to be friends with her, she even got me this wand.
Adree's just, I can't help but look at her as a girl, whenever she hugs me I feel those massive boobies on my face or back and I have thoughts I suspect are inappropriate.
One minute she's like my sweet big sister that I never had. The next minute I have my face shoved into the two pillows of happiness and I am imagining her in a wedding dress. And my chest hurts from the inside, which I assume is fear but I never felt this way around Dianna.
What's wrong with me- Puff a ball of snow hit me in the face. I turned around and saw Lyra, "Hey I saved you"
"I'll return the favor another day, but for now I'm snapping you out of your daydream. And see you okay, because it seems like you red in the face,"
I touched my forehead. "Oh, I hope I don't have a fever, I can't have a fever. If I get sick I'll have to stay home and can't go to the dungeon" I panicked.
"I'd tell you to chill out but I'd be walking into a bad pun, let's just cash in our earnings and start again tomorrow morning" Clover explained.
They returned to the surface and they agreed to split the earnings evenly. "I have to hunt down those guys who pass paraded us" Craiku declared angerly.
"Eh leave them alone, they're not worth it" Clover said.
Viola received her share in a small sack, "Thanks for allowing me to work with you, I really had fun, even if we almost died today, let's do it again tomorrow, see you later" Viola said waving at us as she ran home.
"Wait you shouldn't travel alone, don't you want one of us to walk with you"
"I'll be fine, I know a shortcut home" she said nonchalantly.
They turned around and started to head back to the home but Craiku had stopped walking midway through.
"Huh, you okay, I'm tired too but we all gotta walk home" Lyra said.
"I'm sorry, but I gotta make sure she gets home safely, but I know I can't go alone, Clover will you come with me"? He asked.
"Eh, I'm pretty worn out, but I think our leader will go with you if you give her a hug" he said elbowing him playfully.
He looked at Adree and he was about to reluctantly hug her before she refused it.
"You don't have to force yourself to hug me, if you want to help a friend then who am I not to support you, but she can't know about it, follow me" she ran towards an ally way and jumped from wall to wall to get on top of the building and he was mesmerized.
"Woah, I didn't know she had those moves" he said amazed.
"Ok, now you try" he rushed into the ally way and tried jumping from wall to wall but he slipped and fell flat on his face.
"Ow ow ow"
Adree sighed, "Just give me a moment, I'm still new to this" he said as he groans in pain.
-Ice Queen
Viola was walking through the streets of Orairo where everyone was on edge and had weapons at the ready. The dark age is a time where you could die at any moment inside or outside the dungeon.
"I'm glad I reached out to him, he's even better than I remember" she said with a small smile on her face.
The dark elf's face turned red as she thought about their adventures on floor 7 and how he defended her from the monsters.
She arrived in the shopping district and walked into an alleyway, "My my, so you've finally arrived. I was wondering when you'd get here, your master is very worried about you, and weather you lived or got yourself killed" she said.
"Hey I just got my blessing and I'm perfectly capable of handling myself. Let's just make this quick Lady Fuyumi, I don't exactly enjoy giving you my hard earned money" she said taking her sack of money out of her backpack.
At the same time, a feminine figure stepped out of the shadows. A Far East girl with long black hair tied up in a ponytail. She wore a light blue kimono, a robe with a snowflake pattern over it, and she had a fan in her hand and wore a mask covering her nose and mouth, and had a calm but condescending look on her face.
"You can quit anytime you want, but just remember that you won't get another chance to get them back, so I'd suck it up and fork over the money if I was you".
Viola sighed as she handed her the sack of money and she calmly took it.
"This is a lot more than you usually make, but sadly it'll barely cover the cost he asked for. What makes you try so hard for a goal you'll never achieve? If I was you I'd cut my losses and move on, not everyone is fortunate enough to have a second chance, especially in times like this" she claimed.
"I don't care how many times I have to go to bed hungry, it'll starve myself to death to get them back, the way they were taken away…that's the last thing they deserved" she said angerly.
"I see, quite a shame, I know this means nothing coming from me but I truly do pity you Viola" she said as the dark elf grit her teeth.
"Only he can call me that, I will let you only call me Viola" she said defensively.
She smirks and grabs her arm, "I think you're forgetting who you're dealing with, and I'd watch my tongue if I was you, elves may be of a higher social status but a dark elf like yourself stands no chance, I could beat the tar out of you and no one would care"
"Yes, my lady, just make sure master gets this,"