"There it is…" I mutter quietly as I see the dungeon wormhole thing. I already got the key from the Grimm that attacked us, so at least one objective is finished already.

I turn my head to see an excited Ruby right behind me, her scythe in its storage mode strapped on her hips and a big backpack on her back. We spend around three hours looking for a dungeon, so I'm glad to see her never losing her enthusiasm.

"Sorry, it took us so long to find one," I say, patting her head. "Must've been tiring."

"Are you kidding? This is fun!" She responds, her smile widening. "I like exploring new places!"

"We're not there yet, though."

"Yeah, and?"

I blink and shrug. Fair enough I guess.

Well, she's been pretty excited from the moment she woke up, barely even slept, even with how tired she was after our regular nightly session. Of course, I didn't sleep, or couldn't, to be more accurate. What happened the night before kept me awake, so after Ruby slept, I returned to the store where my magic stuff is, grabbed most of the things I need, then got back to work on a few things.

I created way more Golems, like, a lot more, higher leveled ones to ensure that no hunter-level infiltrators can enter, and created a new type of Golems too. Tiny spheres that act like cameras in every corner of my estate. Once it sees an unknown entity, it'll alert every Golem as well as me. Hell, I increased the security in my store and factory.

I was complacent before, not expecting my enemies to act so early, but not anymore. If I want to fortify Vale and make it a powerful Kingdom, I have to start with something smaller first, and that would be my mansion and factory, two of the most important places in the Kingdom.

As for Ruby, she was unaware of this happening and woke up only thinking about this otherworldly date of ours. Even then, I expected her to be a little more impatient. Granted, she did ask if we were there yet more than once, but I thought she'd get bored from looking around rather quickly

I explained to her the basic concept of these dungeons, like how we need to find the 'portal' before we go to this other world, and that there are specific 'danger levels' to them. She understood it all pretty easily. Ruby is pretty smart after all.

We drove through Vale's region, and while we could've probably traveled faster on top of Gwyn or even on foot after chugging speed potions, driving a bike is pretty damn freeing. We stopped by a forest I never visited before, cleared it out of Grimm, and now here we are.

A blue dungeon, meaning rare. Thankfully isn't high level, and isn't low enough that the rewards from it are worthless. Hell, I'm pretty sure Ruby can clear it on her own, especially considering she has Senketsu. Bust that out and she's pretty close to me statwise.

Of course, I have the perks and versatility, but I'm basically cheating.

"Well, you don't have to wait any longer," I tell her. "We're here."

Ruby gasps and rushes past me, getting pretty close to the wormhole, but she doesn't notice it or its presence at all, as if she can't see it. She looks around then back to me, tilting her head adorably.

"There isn't anything here?"

I gesture for her to come closer and she obeys. "Because you can't see it."

"Huh?" She blinks in confusion. "Why?"

"Dunno, I have a special power I guess." I shrug. "Don't worry though, I can share this special power with others."

If I remember correctly, while the Party System doesn't give them the ability to increase stats or levels as I do, it does give them the ability to see dungeons. So the system is there in case I needed help with dungeons is my guess.

So, unfortunately, Ruby won't be able to get significantly stronger if I throw her in dungeons as I or Gwyn can do, but she can get stronger in other ways. Like finding artifacts that she can use for herself.

I should probably give her a window to prepare before suddenly adding her to a party. I don't think she'd react well to a swirly blue wormhole suddenly appearing into existence, even if I find it very tempting for my own amusement.

"Oooh…"

"First off, close your eyes," I say, and she quickly listens. "Then count to five."

"One, two, three-"

Ruby Rose added to Party.

"-four, five. Now?"

Huh, she can't feel the system either. Neat.

"Now you can see it."

Ruby opens her eyes and looks behind her, gasping as she sees the otherworldly anomaly in front of her. The shock leaves her frozen for a few seconds, but then she eventually reacts, pointing at it as she turns to look at me.

"What is THAT?!"

"That's the portal."

"Really? We have to go through that thing?" Ruby looks conflicted. I don't blame her, it is pretty intimidating.

"No," I shake my head and pull out the blue sphere from my inventory. "This is why we have this."

"That's… the thing you got from killing that Alpha Beowulf." Ruby blinks, inspecting the dungeon key. "What do we do with it?"

"This."

I throw it at the wormhole, and in a brilliant light, it transforms into a blue door. Ruby's jaw drops as the whole process unfolds before her eyes, however, I can feel the bubbling joy and excitement from her.

"So cool…" She mutters in amazement.

"Before we go in, keep in mind that even I don't know where it's taking us," I say, taking her hand. "Could be in the middle of a town, or a dungeon, or maybe a dragon's lair. You ready?"

Her anxiety spikes at that, but so does her anticipation. Ruby nods and tightly grips my hand. "I'm ready."

"Then let's go."

With that, we enter the dungeon together, the blinding light dissipating quickly. Once I'm able to open my eyes, I notice that we're surrounded by lush trees and bushes, with a mossy, ancient-looking building made of stone in front of us.

This forest is incredibly dense. Even the sun is barely visible, its light by the giant trees in every direction.

A jungle-themed dungeon? I'll take it. Jungles mean a lot of plants and ingredients I can use for my potions, so that's always useful. At least it's not another damned desert, even if the bugs from that temple could be used for a lot of powerful poisons.

[Temple of the Darksun]

Objective: Find the Darksun Ring

Bonus Objective: Clear out the Temple

Rewards: Moderate EXP, 2 Gacha Tokens, Darksun Ring

Bonus Rewards: Moderate EXP, 1 Gacha Token, Eclipse Blade

Simple enough. Could always go for more rings.

Depending on its stats, I might give it to Ruby. Chances are she's gonna benefit more from it.

"Woah…" Ruby lets go of my hand as she looks around. "This place is awesome!"

"It's just a jungle, Ruby."

"Yeah, but it's a different world's jungle!" She responds. "And look! There's something over there!"

She points at the dungeon.

"Let's check it out!" She says, rushing towards it.

"Careful," I warn her, keeping up in case she sets off a trap or something. "Never rush in like that. It's dangerous."

Ruby slows her pace as she stares at the stairs leading deep down. Without wasting more time, Ruby cups her hands in front of her, and a small ball of light forms inside. She lets it go and it floats beside her, lighting up the way for us.

She looks at me with a grin, almost looking proud that she's able to cast such a simple spell. I find it amusing of course, knowing that she's capable of doing so much more, and pat her head affectionately.

"Good job," I say. "Stick close to me and get ready for any trouble. I'm sure you can handle yourself easily, but it's always better to be safe."

"Sir, yes sir!"

With that, we walk down the stone stairs, getting my new gauntlets on as I keep sharp. I know for certain that places like this are filled with traps of all types. I have everything I could possibly need, like HP pots and whatnot, so it shouldn't be that difficult. It's her first time going through a dungeon though.

The little ball is a decent light source for the two of us because holy hell this place is dark as fuck. Now I can see far and my eyesight is incredible, but I don't have night vision like Faunus do, so fighting in the dark isn't quite ideal.

Yes, I have my sense of hearing, smell, and Haki, but I'd rather see what my opponent looks like, and the former two can't help me detect traps. Ruby herself doesn't have any of these abilities, so she's at a bigger disadvantage.

I freeze as I get a glimpse of the future, quickly putting a hand on Ruby's shoulder to stop her. I blink a few times as I process the vision, glancing down to see a barely noticeable pressure plate. Dart trap, if we pressed that, something in front would've shot us with probably poisonous darts.

…This is what seeing the future feels like, then. That was weird.

"What is it?" Ruby whispers, prompting me to point down. She squints her eyes as the ball of light approaches the pressure plate, floating right above it. "Oh…"

"Let's go around it," I say quietly, making her nod in agreement.

"How'd you notice it, though?" Ruby questions as we go around the trap..

"Super senses."

"Oh right."

We continue on our way, finding a few torches hanging on the walls, which prompts me to light them up with the tip of my finger. The deeper we go, the more… dangerous the place felt, as we see statues, multiple rooms, and many damned traps. We avoid all of them of course, thanks to my Haki.

And finally, after what felt like twenty minutes, we come across the first living thing in the dungeon as an arrow flies straight at my face. I casually catch it inches away from my face, snapping it in half before throwing it away.

Ruby quickly draws Crescent Rose in its sniper form, aiming at the darkness in front of us. We hear a quiet hiss as more arrows soar towards us. I snap my fingers and a wall of intense flames defends us from the incoming volley of arrows, burning them to ashes in less than a second, which did surprise me a little.

My fire magic is insanely powerful. Jesus.

As Ruby is about to shoot, I put a hand over her weapon to stop her, then call out.

"If you can understand me, then come out," I say, trying to see if I can disarm the situation. "We're not looking for a fight."

I know the quest says to clear the dungeon out of 'monsters', but I want to make sure that whatever is inside is sapient. I don't want to kill anything that can think and communicate unless I absolutely have to.

I will never make the same mistake ever again.

I can sense bloodlust from the shadows, and after a few seconds of waiting, a dozen of humanoid snake people approach us, holding all kinds of weapons, from spears to swords to sickles. Ruby flinches and takes a step back, looking understandably shocked at their appearances.

"W-what are they…?"

I use Observe on one of them, my eyes narrowing at the strange titles they hold.

The race is called Akhsha, and all of them share a title. "Lunatic Worshipper of the Darksun" Now, I'm not a racist to snake people, - I am a lizard person technically - but I don't think being called a 'lunatic' of anything is a good thing, so understand that I'm a little apprehensive right now. I'll try to at least ask about that.

If they bother answering me. I'm 90% sure this is gonna break out in a fight. The intense bloodlust I feel from them is unforgiving. They want to kill us.

As I was about to try to deescalate the situation, a dart much faster than the arrows flies toward Ruby, prompting me to extend my arm to block it. It bounces off my gauntlet, not even making a scratch, but I gotta admit, the mere act might've pissed me off a lot more than I'd like to admit, even if I know Ruby could've easily evaded it.

"I'm going to rip you in half," I growl, making them shiver in fear as I let out a burst of conquerors.

I expected said burst to make them run away in terror, but this only prompted them to rush at us. As soon as one of them got close, its head suddenly exploded as a bullet pierced it, courtesy of Ruby not wasting time.

I vanish from sight in a burst of speed, my fist going through one of the Snakemen's abdomen. I pull my hand out as it falls to the ground, kicking another one and smashing its head against the wall.

A light beam from Ruby ends the life of one who tried to strike me in the back, and I begin mercilessly slaughtering the rest as I'm now absolutely sure that they can't be reasoned with. I'm surprised they even hold a semblance of sapience with bloodlust this intense.

In the span of five seconds, all the snakemen lie dead. I exhale and turn around to see Ruby, who looks pretty shocked from what just happened, silently staring at the corpses with a slight tremble.

I wash the blood off the gauntlets with my water magic, approaching Ruby and putting my hands on her shoulder, prompting her to look at me with an upset look.

"Are you okay, Ruby?"

"I-I-" She takes a deep breath, calming herself down. "Y-yeah. I just… didn't expect this to turn out the way it did."

She glances at the corpses. "A-and… I'm not used to seeing so much blood..."

"Right, Grimm don't bleed," I mutter, hugging her closely. "It's alright, Ruby. We did what had to be done. I tried to reason with them, but they didn't listen."

"Y-yeah, I saw that." She lets out a shaky breath. "Sorry, I'm okay now."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I told you I was ready, didn't I?" She smiles, her confidence quickly returning, though I also sense that she's still a bit disturbed. "I'm a huntress, this is part of the profession after all."

"Killing snake people?" I joke morbidly.

"Killing people in general." Her smile turns grim, whispering the next sentence. "Bad people at least."

She's not lying. It was just a shock.

I hate to be doing this, I didn't want this to be her first time experiencing a dungeon, but perhaps she needs it. She needs to get used to killing actual living beings and not just magically constructed entities like Grimm.

"You really are a strong girl." I praise and pat her head. "If you're sure, then let's keep going. The treasure isn't gonna find itself."

We walk past the bleeding corpses, with Ruby trying not to pay them any mind, however, my Haki warns me of something, but I was too late to stop it. One of the Snakemen we supposedly killed woke up and lunged past us, but I quickly manage to take care of it with a fire bullet before it does anything.

Unfortunately, because of that, I wasn't able to stop Ruby from stepping on a pressure plate, likely not noticing it because of the littered corpses around her.

The floor underneath us opens, and I quickly react by grabbing Ruby and throwing her to the other side before she falls down. She screams my name as I fall, but I'm not worried. Not at all.

With my fire magic, I propel myself upwards.

Only for the opening to instantly close right before I go through it, prompting me to headbutt the now ceiling of whatever room I'm in. My eyes widen as I keep afloat with my fire magic, blinking a few times as I vaguely hear my girlfriend calling out my name in worry.

Oh.

"Fuck me sideways…" I mutter. "Ah well, I can just break it."

I deactivate my Rocket Boot spell to let myself fall for a moment before activating it again, launching myself towards the ceiling, thrusting my fist at it.

Only for it to not budge a tall, my knuckles flaring in pain. I hiss as I try to punch it over and over, but that doesn't work either. I have no fucking idea what's going on right now, but it's starting to piss me off.

"What the hell is this thing made of?" I growl. "Is it enchanted?"

Turns out yes, it is. No matter how hard I hit this thing, it doesn't even show a crack. None of my fire, light, water, or earth spells did a thing to it. I felt the power of magic the moment I focused on my senses, weird magic I never felt before. What the hell is this?

Whatever it is, I don't think I can break it. But how? My magic, fire and water especially, are incredibly powerful. They should at least affect whatever enchantment this is. Unless there's a specific rule that prevents me from doing that?

It's something I've read in one of the books on rituals. If there are specific rules on enchantments, seals, or rituals, there's a possibility that it could either strengthen or weaken the thing in question.

Perhaps this is why I can't destroy it.

"Ruby, can you hear me?" I raise my voice, hoping she could hear me from behind the wall.

"Reid, are you okay?!" She asks in worry. "Please tell me you're okay."

"Yeah, I'm fine. This thing is insanely tough. Can't be broken." I respond. "Okay, try activating the trap again. Press the pressure plate and see if it opens up."

A moment passes and nothing happens.

"I-it's not doing anything."

"Of course, it's not." I groan in frustration.

"Are you gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I went through this already." I assure her. "Listen, you'll be on your own for a bit, but I'll find a way to you eventually. Keep moving forward, and be careful. You saw how littered with traps this place is."

"O-okay."

"Don't worry, Rubes," I assure her with a smile. "I know it's a little scary, but you're way stronger than anything this place can throw at you. You'll be alright."

And I'm not just saying that to make her feel better, I would never lie about something as serious as this. The only thing that might even worry me is the traps, but I gave her that backpack for a reason. After all, she doesn't share my inventory, and I anticipated that something like this could possibly happen, so I made sure she'd be okay by giving her all the potions she might need.

If this was an Epic dungeon, I might've been worried, but this is nothing to someone as good as Ruby. If anything, this is a good experience for her. She'll be fine, I'm sure of it.

"Alright." She responds, more confidently this time. "I'll see you on the other side."

"That's my girl." My smile widens. "I'll see what's down there now, okay? Be careful."

With that, I float down until I hit the ground, where a giant room greets me. I scan the room, spotting a huge statue of a strange-looking creature at the end of it. I inspect it up close, noting that it looks manmade, some form of a machine rather than a living being.

It looks oddly similar to my Golems. Suspiciously articulated.

Welp, I guess I know where that's going. I surprisingly don't fight Golems all that much, so that should be fun.

Of course, I didn't fail to notice the dozens and dozens of these snakemen in the same room, who point their weapons at me as they hiss. I turn around, streaks of harmless blue flames dancing around my body as I prepare for another slaughter.

I'm kinda glad Ruby isn't here, because she wouldn't like what I'll do to them.

– Ruby –

"Okay Ruby, you got this." She talked to herself, going deeper into the dungeon/temple place. "It's a little creepy, but you've gone through worse."

Ruby regripped her rifle, knowing that using her giant scythe in a tight place like this might not be so optimal. She hated that drawback of her awesome baby, but all weapons have weaknesses, right? Yes, there was nothing wrong with a flaw or two. Besides, she was better off fighting in a field, not creepy dungeons filled with traps and evil snake people.

Excuses! Ruby shook her head. Stop making excuses for yourself. How do you expect to grow if you don't learn?

Yes, Ruby would always have an area control advantage in open fields with her Semblance, giant weapon, and tiny body, but that doesn't mean she shouldn't try to minimize her weaknesses. What if one of her missions required her to go to a cave or something? What is she gonna do?

She did have light magic, which was an insane advantage over everyone, Grimm especially, according to Reid, but that's not enough. That's why she'd been learning how to fight with her hands like her boyfriend and her sister. To eliminate every big weakness she might have.

Heck, she had even considered making a backup weapon once, perhaps a sword like Reid's. A katana that can turn into a handgun, or better yet, enchanted so it could shoot energy blades. That would be so awesome.

"Yup, definitely not the worst," Ruby assured herself, avoiding a pressure plate. "Not like the time Yang locked me in the warehouse with that rat. The jerk."

Ruby spotted a door to the side, looking at her surroundings before trying to open it. The doorknob made a strange clicking sound, but the door thankfully wasn't locked. It creaked open as she carefully entered the room, making another light ball to see if there was anything inside.

A dining room, from the looks of it, with a giant dining table in the middle, a fireplace at the far end, and a giant statue of… a Golem(?) at the other side. There was nothing on the table, not even plates or anything, but Ruby did notice the horrible smell wafting in the air, though the stench of something rotten.

Ruby pinched her nose in disgust as she continued to investigate the place. Aside from the door she came from, there was only one more, and she decided to go through that one after making sure that there was nothing of value in the dining room.

As Ruby approached the door, she heard a screech, but she was almost unable to react quickly enough as a snakeman attacked her. She yelped in surprise, using her Semblance to escape. Ruby rolled and landed on her feet, glaring at her enemy who hissed in anger.

"Where did you come from?!" She questioned, not really expecting an answer.

Another snakeman appeared, landing on the dining table from above. Ruby blinked as a third one fell from the ceiling, prompting her to look up. Her light ball showed something that froze her; dozens and dozens of these snake people, all glued to the ceiling as they hissed and screeched at her.

"Oh boy…" Ruby muttered as they began to fall one by one.

Looking around one more time, Ruby concluded that this was a place she could use her scythe, unlike the long hallway she was just in. She transformed her weapon and narrowed her eyes once they charged, taking a deep breath before using her Semblance to meet them head-on.

If there was one thing she didn't expect, it was how utterly soft their flesh was as she cut them into pieces one by one. Crescent Rose easily went through them like a hot knife through butter, and Ruby had to remind herself that, unlike her usual living opponents, they didn't have Aura to protect them.

And they bled. A lot.

Ruby was doing her absolute best to ignore their screeches of horror and agony, to ignore the blood splatters that painted the walls and floor, as well as her face and outfit. It was… a lot easier than she thought it would be, but that did not mean she liked seeing organs pilled and limbs falling. Perhaps because she prepared herself for this that it did not affect her as much.

Ruby stood atop the destroyed table as the corpses of these snakemen littered the ground. Her hands were shaking, but she quickly managed to gather her bearings as she tried to not look at the bodies. She exhaled and once again tried to approach the door, only for it to not even budge.

Ruby frowned and was about to break the door down, but a strange humming sound stopped her. She turned around, noticing a fireball coming towards her, prompting her to evade at the very last second.

Ruby's eyes were wide as she saw the statue come to life, its eyes glowing yellow as it stared at her. The Golem was pretty big, almost thrice her height, a fiery glow emanating from its chest, and it looked like it wanted to kill her if its burning eyes were any indication.

Ruby got into position, holding her scythe tightly before rushing forward to slice its head off. Stone isn't hard to cut through, especially after the recent training she'd had with Reid and Yang.

Though, this Golem didn't seem to be made of stone even if it looked like it, because her scythe didn't even make a scratch.

Ruby's eyes widened and she was hit in the stomach as its fist slammed into her. She was sent sprawling across the ground, her face lying on a pool of the snake people's blood before she got up with a gasp, evading another hit as it shot its fist towards her.

Ruby leaped to the side, gasping for air as that hit knocked the wind out of her. She recovered quickly, trying to use her sniper as well as her light magic, but nothing worked.

Ruby concluded that she might not be strong enough, and in a burst of light, her outfit suddenly changed on its own, showing more skin than she would've liked. Ruby growled as felt her cheeks turn hot, but who cares? Not like there was anybody here.

As the Golem tried to attack her again, she noted that it was significantly slower than before, but knew that it was her who had her reflexes boosted. Ruby easily evaded its fists and fireballs, aiming to try to attack its head once again.

"Don't." A voice in her head said, interrupting her attack. "It won't work."

Ruby blinked and jumped back, trying to find whoever stopped her.

"The core." The voice said. "Attack the core in its chest. The rest of the body is impervious to any kind of attack."

She didn't quite know who was talking to her- it definitely wasn't Reid, but seeing that there wasn't much she could do anyway, Ruby did what the voice said, jumping over the incoming fist as she aimed her sniper rifle at the core.

Pulling the trigger, the bullet easily went through the 'core', and the Golem froze. Seconds later, it fell and crumbled, the glow in its eyes disappearing right after. Ruby blinked, not really expecting this to work, but sighed in relief after a second.

"Thank you, you…?" Ruby frowned. "Voice in my head?"

"I am behind you." The voice said, prompting her to turn around. "Greetings."

"Oh, hello- AYIEE?!' Ruby let out a high-pitched startled scream as she saw a skeleton with glowing green dots in its eye sockets standing exactly behind her.

Reacting quickly, Ruby slapped the skeleton and sent the skull off its spine, which only made her scream louder as it merely stood there, unaffected. As if it didn't realize it until immediately, the skeleton began to panic, running after its skull before popping it back in.

Ruby watched the whole thing in fear and awe before a chuckle pulled her attention away from the living skeleton that stared at her.

Ruby took the appearance of the man with a bit of a shock. The man was a bit old, a few wrinkles on his face and with mostly blond hair with a few gray strands. He wore green and black robes and held a glowing green staff. However, his most striking features were his eyes - green pupils and black scleras.

She also noticed the long ears of the man. I-is this a real elf?!

"My apologies, but I've always found it too amusing to not startle others." The man apologized. "Worry not, however, this skeleton is harmless."

They really do exist! This is amazing! She thought, her fear completely evaporating as she saw an actual mythical being in front of her.

"Oh, um, okay." Ruby didn't quite know how to react outwardly. However, he merely smiled in amusement as a response. "H-hi?"

"Before we introduce ourselves, perhaps you'd like a moment to cover up?"

Ruby's face burned as her clothes turned back into a regular sailor uniform. She didn't quite know what to say- he saw her already, but to her luck, the stranger didn't quite care about her previous state of near-undress.

"Fascinating." He noted with a curious glint in his eyes. "I've never seen an outfit that can do something quite like this. What is the purpose of that change?"

"H-huh?" Ruby blinked but answered anyway. "I-it makes me stronger."

"How so?" The man quickly noticed how uncomfortable she looked as he asked that. "Ah, I've gotten ahead of myself, haven't I? Forgive me."

"It's fine." Ruby shook her head, getting a bit more comfortable as she extended her hand. "I'm Ruby Rose."

"You may call me Sheekh." He took her hand and shook it gently. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Follow me, Ms. Ruby, we should converse somewhere else."

Ruby didn't quite trust the man just yet, and he seemed to have noticed. His smile widened a little, however for the life of her, Ruby could not feel any ill intent from him. She didn't know who this man was, why he helped her, and what he was doing here, but elf or not, she's not gonna trust random strangers.

She should find Reid as soon as possible. She can't waste any more time, he could be in trouble.

"I-I'm really sorry, but I'm kinda in a hurry." She apologized. "My partner and I got separated. I have to find him."

"I see. I understand." He nods. "But before you leave, does your partner have white hair by any chance?"

Ruby froze, her eyes narrowing as she quickly took a few steps back, holding her weapon tightly.

"How do you know this?" Ruby questioned. "What did you do to Reid?!"

"Rest assured, I have not done anything to him, nor have I seen him." He replied. "I merely sensed the essence of a Leviathan within you and assumed as such, and you just confirmed my suspicions. After all, I've yet to see one without white hair."

She relaxed a little but was still on guard.

"And by Reid, you mean Reid Astera, no?" He continued, making her frown deepen. "I've met him once."

"Y-you have?" Ruby's frown fell as she tilted her head curiously.

"Indeed, he saved me from imprisonment not long ago." He said. "I owe him too much for me to harm his loved ones.

"I would understand if you still don't trust me." Sheekh continued. "However, I'd be willing to help you find him. After all, I haven't quite thanked him properly since last we met."

Ruby wasn't quite sure what to do- he didn't seem to be lying, and if he really had met Reid before, then he could be a friend. Then again, he also could be saying this to make her drop her guard. If he was telling the truth, though, then she'd find her boyfriend faster.

And honestly, even if Reid told her that she's more powerful than whatever this place could throw at her, she was still nervous. She could still be taken by surprise, like how that snakeman jumped at her from the ceiling, or how that Golem woke up suddenly and began attacking her.

…Perhaps sticking close to another sane person is the safer bet.

"Okay." Ruby relented. "But don't think I trust you yet."

"Of course." He nodded in understanding. "Follow me."

With that, he took the lead and walked straight into the wall, phasing through it without any resistance.

"Wha-" Ruby's eyes widened. "How did you do that?!"

"That was not my doing," Sheekh responded. "This temple is filled with these illusionary walls. Come, you can walk through it as well."

So that's how he appeared out of nowhere. Ruby thought with interest as she did the same. That's so cool…

Wait till Reid knows about this. His mind will be blown away.

– Reid –

Right, done with this, now I can actually start looking for Ruby. Or the ring so we can fuck off back home.

I throw the charred arm of a snakeman to the ground as I explore the room I'm in, trying to sense Ruby's magic or spirit, only to find that it's impossible, prompting me to frown in annoyance. Am I not able to sense through it either? This entire temple is built with this magic stone, which would've pissed me off if I'm not interested in it.

I have to get my hands on it or find a way to replicate it. Imagine Golems made of stone that even I am not able to break. Ultimate defense force, as well as a great private army. With my Golemcrafting skill, I'd make insanely strong Golems with this stuff.

The more I explore this room, the more I see those Golem statues, and let me tell you, this place is massive. Twice as big as a football field, and it makes me wonder what it's used for. However, my questions were answered the moment I see the gigantic magic circle in the middle of the room.

A ritual room? This big?

I crouch to inspect the magic circle, noticing that it was drawn with gold dust. I know there are a lot of substitutes for chalk, even better alternatives like gem dust and blood, but gold dust? That's new.

I approach the middle of the circle, where a little pedestal stands tall. On top of it is a black with a yellow gem, and Observe confirmed that it was the Darksun Ring I needed to look for. Damn, those are good stats for a ring like this, though, too specific for my liking.

-Darksun Ring

A ring blessed with the intense energy of the Darksun. This ring's true power will be unleashed under a solar eclipse

When under sunlight, it increases all stats by 10%

When there's a solar eclipse taking place, all stats increase by 50%, and all forms of regeneration are tripled

This isn't bad at all. Too specific, but I can reverse engineer it via disenchanting it and making something similar without the limitation.

I was about to take the ring, but stop as I get hit by another vision. All the Golems will wake up once I touch the ring from the looks of it. I stare at it for a second before shrugging and snatching it. Oh well, nothing I can't handle. In fact, I welcome the challenge.

The place begins to shake as the tens of Golems of all shapes begin to wake up, their eyes and chests glowing yellow as they all approach me slowly. I casually roll my neck as one throws a fist, prompting me to meet its punch with my own.

The clash shakes the place even more, the shockwave traveling across the room was strong enough to send it back. Grinning confidently, I rush forward with another punch as soon as I'm done analyzing it with my Sharingan, hitting it square in what I assume is the core. The force of the punch shatters it to pieces.

With this, it kickstarts the real fight as every Golem attacks me at the same time. Fists and fireballs fly through the room as I effortlessly evade every single attack, exploding their cores with fire magic or crushing them with my fists.

I might not be able to destroy the actual constructs, but the cores are incredibly fragile, or I'm just too damn strong. Regardless, horrible design flaw. At least protect the damned core. Whoever made the Golems should be ashamed of themselves for letting such a huge weakness slide through.

Seriously, what the hell is this? A video game? They didn't bother being subtle either.

As I dance around the attacks, I quickly dispatch of the Golems one by one, vanishing from one place to another, killing one or two every time I appear. Not even a minute passes and I'm done with them all.

Once the last enemy crumbles, I hear a loud clicking noise in the distance, prompting me to turn around. At the far end of the room, I see a doorway open in the wall leading to a stairway. I was about to leave but then get an idea as I look at the remains of the Golems.

What if I store the remains to use for Golemcrafting later- ah, they're just normal stones now. Fuck. Oh well. Would've sucked if I took them and only realized that they're useless later. Thank god for Observe.

The place shakes again, this time with a much greater force, even causing me to crouch so I don't fall on my ass. What the hell is going on? An earthquake? Maybe taking the ring activated some mechanism? I narrow my eyes as the shaking stops, sensing imminent danger.

That's probably it. I have to find Ruby and get out of here as fast as we can.

Making sure I have nothing else to do here, I go up the stairs, still not being able to sense Ruby or anything for that matter. It's annoying, though now I know that there's something charging the walls of the temple if the Golems are anything to go by. The stone turned normal once I destroyed the cores, so there must be a bigger core around the temple somewhere.

As I finally reach the final step, I notice that I'm back in the hallway Ruby and I was in. The wall behind me closes up the moment I step in, prompting me to continue my search for my girl.

Something pokes me on the shoulder, and as soon as I see who it is, I reflexively throw a punch that seds its skull flying from its body.

"Jesus Christ…" I mutter, genuinely startled. I didn't feel it approaching me at all. "First snake people and golems. Now undead?"

Surprisingly, the skeleton doesn't just keel over and die. Instead, it begins to panic, amusingly enough, running back to get its skull before doing random gestures. I can't really sense its feelings, but I can tell that it wants me to follow it.

"Alright, harmless undead." I rub my neck, a bit amused. "Lead the way."

It gives me a thumbs up and points in the direction I sent its skull flying earlier. I follow it wherever it wants to take me, still keeping my guard up because as interesting as this is, I don't like it when something I don't expect happens. I certainly never expected to meet a friendly skeleton when I entered the dungeon.

A few snake people attack us on the way, and I quickly realize that the skeleton is next to useless when it comes to combat prowess. It is extremely tough for some reason though, although I should've realized that when its skull didn't just shatter when I punched it. If we're being realistic, a punch from me can easily make someone's head explode.

So it surviving that punch must count for something. The snake people cut it to pieces and it simply just rebuilds itself. The skeleton doesn't really help me fight though, it simply stays back and throws rude gestures toward the enemy, which I honestly find incredibly entertaining.

Once I clean up several hallways and rooms, I notice the lack of snake people after a bit. Well, living ones anyway. I see the corpses of some, either sliced to pieces, half their bodies blown off, or rotting for some reason.

I crouch and investigate the rotten corpse, and while the smell is killing my nostrils, I find the distinct feel of dark magic in it interesting. Necrotic power? Gotta be. The walking skeleton in front of me was already a bit of a clue that necromancy was afoot.

My suspicions are confirmed when a door to the side gets blown off its hinges by a flying snake man, rings of green necrotic energy collaring its neck. It struggles, clawing at the magic keeping it attached to the wall before its body deteriorates at a rapid pace.

Out of the broken door walks an elf I immediately recognize, pointing his green staff at the snake man until it turns into a husk, going limp. The lich turns to look at me and smiles, giving a respectful bow as I get up on my feet.

"Never thought I'd actually see you again," I say, noticing how young he looks compared to last time. He looks like someone in his fifties compared to the decrepit old man he was. "Here of all places."

"Fate and destiny work in mysterious ways, my friend." He responds.

Right after he says that, Ruby, who is absolutely caked in blood, follows suit. Her eyes widen in surprise and relief as she sees me, rushing to tackle me with her semblance. She almost takes me down with that, but I manage to stay on my feet as I return her embrace.

"There you are." I pat her head. "See? Told you everything will be fine. Gonna need a long shower though, even if the red suits you."

"I heard that, and it's not funny." She responds, her annoyance spiking. "It feels gross, it smells gross, and it tastes gross. I hate blood."

"Trust me, you'll get used to it."

"I already am getting used to it," Ruby says, and while I can tell she's not lying, her shaking legs are telling another story. "Doesn't make it any better."

"As much as I hate to interrupt-" Sheekh interrupts as the temple shakes even more violently. "I believe we should be leaving. The temple is starting to collapse."

And he's not wrong. The walls start to crack and break, and the ceiling opens up as pieces of bricks and stone fall around us, and as I see this, I get an idea.

"You know where the exit is?" I ask.

"Unfortunately not." He shakes his head. "I've already sent a few of my undead to look around for it."

"No need." I grin, clenching my fists. "Let's just make our own."

"Pardon?" He raises a brow.

I answer by punching the wall next to me, completely shattering and confirming my theory. The ring probably charged the walls of the dungeon, so the moment I took it, the walls lost their enchantments.

I look at my two companions and they nod in understanding.

Once we left the dungeon, it collapsed on itself mere minutes, and that was a sight to behold. Sheekh voiced his displeasure at this though, muttering about how much of a shame it is to lose a great monument of the Cult of the Darksun.

I asked him about it once we sat down, and he explained that the 'Eclipse God' once approached the kingdom of these snake people and offered them power in return for their servitude. Which doesn't sound all that bad, a fair trade, but of course, this god tricked them instead.

What this Eclipse God wanted were an army and worshippers. Gods aren't allowed to, or can't directly interact with the mortal world, but he wanted to do that. So he made sure that these snake people, the Akhsha race, only answered to him. He twisted their minds and made them intensely loyal to him.

He forced them to build shrines and temples in his name, and made them research and find ways to summon him to this world. For so long, they did everything in their powers to do that so he could actually rule the mortal world, but they always failed.

As for why they failed? Well, by the time they found a method to summon him, The Eclipse God was long gone. He was dead, killed by his fellow gods after they found out about his plans.

Unfortunately, The Akhsha remain ignorant about his demise to this day, forever trying to summon a dead god.

What a tragic fucking end. Jesus Christ.

"But that doesn't explain why they're so hostile."

"True, their hostility is not a direct byproduct of the god's trickery, but it is related," Sheekh confirmed. "After thousands of years trying but failing to summon the Eclipse God, their minds deteriorated to such a degree that only the mission and their barest instincts remained."

"That's so fucked." I say sympathetically.

"Indeed. They were a brilliant race, unmatched in their ability to create complicated magical artifacts and rituals." He nods solemnly. "A shame to see another society destroyed by the hubris of a god."

I'm so glad Ruby decided to go clean herself in a nearby lake instead of hearing this. I would've offered to help with my water magic, but I needed to talk to Sheekh about something that could be related to her, and I don't want her to hear it yet.

"By the way, there is something I need some insight on." I start.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, this." I take out an artifact I got from the Gacha, the Principle of Life and Death, and show it to him. "Do you know what this is?"

His eyes sharpen instantly. "Where did you find this?"

"The tomb you were in." I lie smoothly. "Thought it looked important and took it."

"Wise of you to do so." He nods, relaxing a little. "But very unwise to show this to anyone, especially a necromancer."

"Why?"

"Because if I still had an interest in it, you'd be dead already." He says casually, making me narrow my eyes. "This is an artifact so priceless, even empires would go to war for it."

"Well, what can it do?"

"Many things." He answers a little vaguely. "Revive the dead, give immortality, or even take it away. Those are the least of its capabilities."

My eyes widen at the 'undo immortality' bit. No fucking way it can do that.

"It can." He confirms, making me realize I said that out loud. "This is something even the gods are afraid of. This little orb can destabilize the order of the world and bring about its end. It is not something to be trifled with."

Huh…

Well then. I now have a way to kill Salem.

That was fucking easy.

"However, it seems to be powerless." He notes.

"Can I charge it?" I ask quickly, infinitely more interested in this time.

"Of course, but that is not what you should be asking." He shakes his head, looking at me seriously. "The question is: would you be willing to do that?"

"Huh?"

"To restore it to its former glory, you must sacrifice souls. Trap them inside it as a power source." He explains. "To be forever trapped in this orb is not something I would wish upon even my worst enemy. It is a most harrowing experience, believe me."

"Just tell me how to do it." I shrug. "If it's a sacrifice it needs, then I can always use expendables."

"Expendables?" His eyes narrow a little.

"Rapists, bandits, and so on." I clarify. "Trust me, I've been going around killing slavers recently, and with this? Well, if the orb doesn't care about the soul it eats, then there might be a use to them after all."

He looks at me a little surprised, seemingly not expecting this answer at all for some reason. What did he think I meant?

"Well, I suppose you can be trusted with the knowledge." He clears his throat. "You'll need to build a soul ritual. This is what you must do for it to be successful."

Sheekh starts to explain how the ritual works and how to make it, what you need for it, and what kind of shape the magic circle needs to be. I have all the ingredients I need for it, so thankfully I can easily make it once I go back home without any difficulty.

After getting everything ready, I need to speak a specific string of sentences in a language I'm not really familiar with, and the sacrifice needs to be in the middle of the circle, around a silver pillar where the orb needs to be on top of.

Sheekh writes down the magic words transliterated into English and hands it to me, getting up from the log a second later.

"I suppose I should be going now." He says. "It's been a pleasure to see you again, my friend."

"Already?" I raise a brow. "It's kinda late, though. You sure you don't want to wait for daylight?"

"A necromancer such as myself prefers the night, but I appreciate the concern." He waves it off. "I hope we cross paths once again. Send Ms. Ruby my regards."

With a polite bow, Sheekh treks through the forest, and once he was out of sight, I frown as I see Ruby still in the lake. What's taking her so long? She should've been here ages ago.

I really hope she didn't get in any trouble.

– Ruby –

Ruby wouldn't call herself 'slow' when it comes to processing new things or information, but she'll admit that this 'different world' business might be the longest she spent still not realizing what it meant.

Going through a real portal? Didn't realize it yet. Exploring a dungeon? Nope. Seeing actual snake people? Getting there. A necromancer? Almost.

Ruby was frozen, she couldn't tear her gaze away from the night sky, no matter how cold the breeze was on her naked wet body. Her breath was taken away by what she was seeing right now.

A full moon.

There was a full moon up there. Not Remnant's shattered moon, but a real, full one, untouched by whatever destroyed her world's own.

And it was beautiful.

She didn't know how long she stood in the lake, staring at the glory of an actual full moon, but at the moment, she couldn't even bring herself to care about how cold it was. Yes, there were full moons in comic books, photoshop, and drawings, but to see the real thing was completely different.

This was a different planet, the same place her boyfriend came from.

A nearby bush rustled, shocking the girl out of her trance as she turned to look at wherever the noise came from. She quickly relaxed when she saw Reid approach her, unbothered that he can see every inch of her body.

"What's taken you so long?" He asked. "You had me worried there."

"Sorry, it's just-" Ruby glanced at the moon. "Well-"

"Ah, yeah, I get it now." He chuckled, understanding immediately, taking his shoes off. "Must've been a shock to see that, huh?"

"Yeah, I never thought a full moon would look that big."

"It isn't supposed to." He shrugged as he walked through the lake. "I think this world's moon is just a lot bigger."

Ruby felt warmth when Reid pulled her close to him with a hand over her shoulder.

"We should bring Yang here next time," Ruby said, surprising him. "Maybe Velvet too."

"Next time?" He parroted. "I thought you didn't like this place."

"Huh?" She blinked and tilted her head. "Why?"

"Well, you know…"

"Oh, that." She sighed. "I didn't like killing them, yeah, but I guess they attacked us first, and you tried to reason with them. So it had to be done. I'm not that idealistic.

"But I still liked going here with you." Ruby smiled. "It felt like a real fantasy adventure. Sure, the temple was a bit creepy, but that's part of the fun, right? Exploring the creepy dungeons is something I always wanted to do."

"Okay, good." He rubbed his neck, looking a bit relieved. "I thought you hated it."

"A little blood isn't gonna scare me away, mister." She scoffed playfully. "I've had worse."

"I'm sure."

"Too bad we didn't find the treasure, though." She noted. "Kinda bummed out about that."

"About that…" Reid grinned, and Ruby quickly recognized that look.

"No way did you find it?!"

"Yup." He flicked his hand and a black ring appeared between his fingers. "I'm pretty sure this is it. The temple started collapsing after I took it."

"A ring?" Ruby couldn't hide her disappointment.

"An enchanted ring." He corrected. "I've also decided that it'll be the one for our wedding."

Ruby took a minute to process that, having to do a double take.

"What."

"I said It'll be the ring for our wedding." He raised a brow, and Ruby felt the blush creeping up to her face. "I just need to copy it so we can have matching rings."

"W-wait, wait hold on, this is going too fast-" She shook her head, heart pounding intensely. "I can't- I don't understand-"

"What's there to not understand?" He said. "Your dad said you wanted to marry me, and I want to marry you too."

Ruby didn't know how to respond to the casual and weird proposal. The situation was one she wouldn't expect in a million years - she was naked in a lake under a full moon in a different universe, and her boyfriend was using an enchanted ring to propose.

What the fuck was going on?

Her face was beet red as she stammered and stuttered. She was on the verge of passing out from how much blood was rushing to her head. Reid was there to catch her of course, and she managed to stay conscious enough to not ruin the moment for herself.

Because as strange as the situation was, once she comprehended it, Ruby was over the moon. Was this really happening? She didn't expect it to be so soon- she only dreamt of it happening. It's too early, but she couldn't bring herself to care about that.

She was blessed.

"W-what- I- I mean, I-I don't mind," Ruby said, trying her hardest to keep her composure. "B-but I'm not old enough to get married yet. Not- not like I was gonna say no."

"Ruby, I'm teasing you." He chuckled, dashing all her hopes away in an instant. "Come on, that one should've been obvious."

Oh.

Oh, this motherfucker…

"You play with my heartstrings like this then act as if it was a funny joke?!" Ruby grabbed him by the collar as he started to laugh hard. "Do you know how annoying this could be, you… you ass!"

"You looked so enthusiastic about it too!" He wheezed, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. "Holy fuck, you are a gift that keeps on giving."

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up." Ruby scowled deeply. "Fucking jerk…"

"Tut-tut, did you just say a filthy word?" He wagged a finger. "I'm gonna tell your dad about it."

"Y-you do it all the time!" She threw her hands up, looking at him in a mixture of annoyance and exasperation. "Why can't I say filthy words?"

"Because you're still not of a marriageable age." He responded smugly before pausing. "What is the age of marriage anyway?"

Ruby narrowed her eyes and pouted, answering through gritted teeth. "Seventeen."

"Hah!" He smirked, patting her head. "Still a long way off."

Ruby turns her head away with a 'harrumph', refusing to meet his eyes out of annoyance and a little disappointment. She should've known he was just teasing her, but was it wrong to hope? Well, he better not think it's over yet. She's gonna get back to him eventually.

Reid suddenly took her head and slid her ring finger through the artifact, prompting her heart to pound once again. "D-don't think this will make me forget about it!"

"Wasn't what I was thinking of." He chuckled in amusement. "Just thinking maybe they should lower it to sixteen. Sounds more reasonable in my opinion."

"Uh…" Ruby didn't know how to respond.

"So keep that ring on until then, yeah? I'm sure it'll be useful to you." He patted her head. "By the way, your birthday is in six months or so, right?"

"Y-yeah. Why are you asking that?" Ruby questioned quietly.

"Eh, no reason." He said. "Just thought of the perfect gift for you."

If he didn't play coy like he always did, Ruby might've not understood what he meant, but she'd gotten so used to his antics already, and her hope blossomed once again. She was fully sure she knew what he meant, and all her previous annoyance evaporated into nothing in an instant.

"Come on now, get dressed so we can leave." He said, walking past her as she kept staring at the ring around her finger with a red-faced smile. "I miss Remnant already, weirdly enough."

Ruby giggled and rushed to her clothes, quickly getting dressed before using her Semblance to catch up to Reid, holding his arm as she hugged it tightly.

She truly was blessed…

I didn't like this chapter much, even if it felt easy to write, but I'm out of imagination juice for the week and can't be bothered to rewrite it.

also, snake people in a temple jungle that can't be destroyed and is related to solar eclipses. wonder where I heard that from...

Yes, I've been playing Terraria recently. Sue me.

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