Chapter 34

I'm quite used to spatial transfer. First because I possess the Space attribute. Second because I do blink quite a lot when fighting, or training. That earned me a pretty ugly name though: 'Blinking Fox'. I hate it.

Who the heck thought it was a good idea?!

Of course my whole team laughed out loud when they learned of it. Even Claire's shoulders were slightly shaking, betraying her laugh.

Betrayal. Betrayal everywhere I say!

Anyway, since I'm used to that, a long distance transfer isn't too bad. Just a little disorientation that passed fast. I can't say the same for the rest of them. They are currently strewn all around me, laying down face up while breathing heavily.

I crouch next to them.

"Are you okay? Breathe slowly girls."

Anna glared at me from where she was sprawled, her breath shallow.

"Easy... Easy for you to say... Dammit how do you get used to that?"

A shrug shook my shoulders.

"Blink everyday and this won't be much of a problem. And be able to manipulate the space element too."

They all rolled their eyes at that.

Nice synchro, did they practice this?

Thankfully no monsters are around us. Even if there were I would take care of it since I'm the only one capable of moving for now.

Half an hour later, they were ready to go. We didn't have much to walk until we see the portal for the Dungeon. This time there is no signs explaining what we'll find in there.

"Okay. According to Virina, and general understanding, this Dungeon is a vast forest. The trees are said to be very tall." Eliza list the information we got.

One finger on my lips and tail swishing behind me, I look at the portal.

"Enemies?"

"Every animal you can think of in the forest. But more."

Right. Virina did warn us about that. Apparently this Dungeon decided animals can't be dangerous. So it evolved them. It's almost always changing so there's not real list of the evolutions. Or we should say the mutations actually. I guess.

"Let's see what that mysterious person behind those tablet has to say."

Before entering we check everything we need to have. For the tents, we have two of those. They are big enough for three people each. So Anna, Eliza and me in one. Altina, Claire and Luna in the other. Of course blankets and sleeping mats are included.

Since the Dungeon isn't known for being a time one or anything we didn't take any gear to help with that. Only the watch to tell us the time. No electronics, like phones, works inside any Dungeons. Only mechanical items. It let us bring more food.

I did snuck some spices and condiments though.

No way I'm eating something that has almost no taste. It's my Space anyway, I put whatever I want in it!

I take a look at each member of our team with a smile.

"Well, we should have everything we need. Let's get to it. What do we need to collect already?"

Eliza took out a notebook from her own bag. Because of course she took notes in that brief with Virina.

I nodded to myself while I observed her with a smile.

She's amazing like that.

"Virina said anything that looks useful on the monsters bodies. Mostly the mutated parts. Apparently some alchemists can extract whatever made it possible for them to mutate. I have absolutely no idea what they do with it. And, if it really works, those will be very expensive pretty fast."

Anna immediately perks up, her small wings fluttering.

"Oh! Let me handle this then. I'll make sure we get the right prices for it!"

This make us all laugh. The past few weeks showed us Anna's love for money. And her amazing capabilities to handle it. She's not vain, far from it, but she likes having enough to be comfortable. For all of us to be comfortable actually. As long as any of us don't go over the budget she's perfectly happy to give us the money we need.

She has always been like that as far as I remember.

I remember the time when she negotiated with the PC parts' supplier and managed to get everything half the price. She radiated pride and smugness.

"Alright, we'll leave it to you. I think nobody here will refuse. Let's go now!"

They all nodded to me before we entered the portal in front of us.

After a few disorienting seconds- that no amount of space training will help getting used to- and we appear in a small clearing that could be considered dark if there weren't some sort of weird berries on the trees, glowing with a soft light. It wasn't enough to totally get rid of the obscurity. But at least enough to avoid taking a branch in the face. The floor isn't that lucky though. It's still a little hard to see if any root would compromise our balance at any time.

Then the now familiar rumble of the earth rang out. In the few weeks of training we entered the Academy's Dungeons but the tablet never showed itself. So it's a little weird to think this is already familiar after only seeing it two times.

On the now fully revealed tablet are greeting words.

HELLO JANE!

AND HELLO ANNA, ELIZA, ALTINA, LUNA AND CLAIRE!

I sigh heavily as we read it.

"Must you say our names one-by-one each time?"

WHY YES!

FIRST OF ALL BECAUSE IT'S YOU.

SECOND BECAUSE IT'S THEM!

"That... Doesn't make any senses..."

I KNOW!

BUT THAT'S THE ANSWER YOU'LL GET.

Anna giggled behind me and I pointed at her without turning my head.

"Don't encourage this! Well. Hello mysterious person behind an equally mysterious tablet."

PLEASE DON'T CALL ME THAT!

THAT'S DREADFUL!

"Well, you haven't really provided a name or title we could call you with. So it's a little hard to identify who we're talking to."

AHEM.

WELL.

YES.

WHAT ABOUT THAT?

CALL ME...

MISS YABI.

Claire makes a small startled sound behind me, making me turn toward her.

"What's wrong Claire?"

She hesitates slightly, her tail swaying thoughtfully behind her.

"I... No, nothing... I thought I heard this name somewhere but I must be mistaken."

Her voice is quiet, but less than usual. It's a great progress since the start, when she's with only us she's less timid and shy.

"That's fine, it's not that important. It may be a bit weird but Anna, Eliza and me believe this... 'Miss Yabi' isn't looking to hurt us."

I'M NOT!

I WOULD NEVER!

Somehow this sounded offended. Even if it was simply some sentences written on a slab of stone. I smiled slightly as I turn my attention to the tablet again.

"Alright, since Miss Yabi contacted us I get you know everyone is aware of the situation. What can you tell us about that Dungeon?"

WHAT?

NO 'HOW ARE YOU?' OR ANYTHING?

We all stared at the tablet, deadpan.

Is she seriously asking that? Is she lonely?

I don't have time to ask before the sentences changed again.

YES I'M LONELY.

IT'S BORING HERE.

AND I MISS HER.

I lift an eyebrow in wonder. Who is she talking about? Someone dear to her I guess. I highly doubt she'll tell us anyway.

"Well, I don't know what I can do more for you Miss Yabi."

For a few second she seems to hesitate, the tablet's words not changing at all. Then new ones appeared slowly, one at a time as if she wasn't sure she should say something.

IT... IT WOULD BE GREAT...

IF YOU GIRLS...

WELL.

CAME SOMETIMES IN A DUNGEON TO...

TO TALK A BIT?

WHEN YOU HAVE TIME OF COURSE!

Altina made a small strangled noise behind me, when I turned around I see her rushing to the tablet to hug it tightly. I stared at her, dumbfounded.

"Altina?"

"She's so pitiful!"

"You are hugging a piece of stone."

"I'm sending warmth!"

"That's not how warmth works" Eliza chimed from the side.

"Mine does!"

"Uh. Warmth" Luna's voice drifted from somewhere on the edge of the clearing.

I don't doubt a single moment she didn't pay attention to the current situation while scouting around us to be sure we're safe.

IT'S FINE GIRLS.

LET HER BE.

IT'S A NICE SENTIMENT.

Altina squeezed the tablet tighter as she looks at us radiating smugness.

"See? Miss Yabi is on my side!"

"Of course she is! You are 'sending warmth' to whatever she's using to communicate with us!"

HAHA!

I SEE YOU GIRLS ARE GETTING ALONG NICELY.

WELL, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE DUNGEON SHALL WE?

VIRINA MUST HAVE TOLD YOU

ANIMALS INHABIT THIS DUNGEON

BUT THEY ARE ALL MUTATED

YOUR TASK IS TO KILL AT LEAST TWENTY OF EACH

THEN KILL THE LAST 'BOSS'.

Eliza nodded besides me, taking note of the task in her notebook.

"Seems simple enough. Is there a lot of species?"

ONLY TEN.

SO TWO HUNDRED 'ANIMALS' TO KILL.

I'LL BE GOING THEN.

GOOD LUCK GIRLS.

""""""Thanks!"""""

With the same rumble as before, the tablet shrunk back under the ground. Altina didn't really expect that and would have fallen if I didn't catch her arm before.

"Right, forgot to tell you. Sorry Altina."

"It's fine! I should have expected that!"

The wingkin got up while brushing inexistant dust or dirt on her sleeves and clothes.

Luna reappeared near us at that moment. Her usual playful expression is nowhere to see, the contrast between now and her usually is quite impressive but I've always had the impression she would be serious when it matters.

"For now there's no sign of anything near us. There is no real track but the trees are spaced enough to travel. I still noticed some claw marks on the trees though."

Eliza hummed softly.

"Claw marks could be anything, but at least we know one of their way to hurt us I guess. Please continue scouting further, if you feel like you are in danger come back immediately."

Luna nodded sharply then smiled mischievously for a second.

"Don't worry, I don't plan to die before I can eat Jane."

I snorted at the same time as Anna, a smile on our faces.

There is the unserious girl we know. Glad she isn't too stiff even in that environment.

She winked at me before her body shimmered and vanished in front of our eyes. I can still see her, but she's blurry and after a few steps away I can't anymore.

After exchanging a look between us all, I start to walk ahead. Our formation is quite simple: me in front as the only melee fighter besides Luna, then right behind me is Anna and Eliza side-by-side. Then Altina right behind them. Claire is closing the march. We already have our weapons out, ready to react in case anything decides to ambush us. Anything Luna hasn't detected ahead of course.

Sadly we can't make use of Altina's flying abilities in that forest. When I looked up earlier I saw the branches getting more and more dense further above. But even if she just want to hover low she wouldn't be able to. Her wingspan is too wide for that, and we haven't been able to train in such a small area.

For the first few minutes of walking nothing happened. Then Luna reappeared next to me.

"Twenty meters ahead, three... Tigers? At least they look like tigers. Sleeping though."

I threw my arms above my head with a mock exasperated sound. My tail lashing behind me as if it was supporting my dramatic reaction.

"Of course it can't be like in games, one enemy so we learn a bit about it!"

Anna bonked me softly between my ears with her staff, making me turn my head toward her with a hurt expression.

"Behave dear!"

Her lips are curving slightly up, my dear twin trying to restrain her laugh from spilling. I stuck out my tongue before turning back toward the front. Of course we weren't talking loudly as to not wake up those animals.

Exactly twenty meters later we see the tigers Luna warned us about. They look exactly like Tigers, but those ones have two tails. Impossibly thick tails.

Uh. It will hurt getting hit by those. Wait, what are tigers doing in that kind of forest?

I'm not an expert in forest habitats. But seeing tigers here is weird for some reason.

As we approached them, their eyes snapped open and they got up immediately. A low growl spread through their chest, a warning to not come closer. I'm surprised they didn't pounce instantly.

A smile spread on my lips as I answer their growl with one of mine, teeth and fangs barred toward them. I settled into my usual stance, my Katana in diagonal in front of me with my dagger in a reverse grip behind me.

Claire's bowstring getting drawn reached me with the familiar twang we all learned while training sounding a brief moment later. The instant her arrow left her bow I lunged forward. It reached the front paw of one tiger, nailing it in place. The animal roared in pain.

The other two burst forward, one toward me and the other circling me to reach behind. This one lifted a paw to bring his claw across Anna's body. A blue shimmering barrier stopped it as Luna materialised on the side, dagger already speeding toward its ribs where it found its mark, earning another roar of pain.

Meanwhile I'm blocking another paw pressing down on me. A sensation of air being forcibly moved reached me and I disengaged, jumping backward. The tiger's tails smashed into the earth were I was standing a second before, sending fragment of dirt, rock and other things buried beneath the ground.

"Well, those will be a problem, kind of."

Anna snorted behind me as she worked to freeze the mobility of the tiger they are facing while Luna is making sure the animal has enough wounds to be confused for a rag. Anna didn't let the openings go and made sure to cook the tiger from the inside with her lightning. She didn't use more elements, it's not that she doesn't want to but more that it's too taxing on her mental. It should get better with time though.

The first tiger that got pinned by Claire's arrow got a few additional ones sticking out of his body. He feels less like a fierce tiger and more like a porcupine with identity crisis. A few of those arrows are slightly smoking.

She must have used her element.

She surprised us when training, I didn't expect her to have the fire element. Still pretty useful though.

A heavy impact rang besides my ears, making them flatten against my head. When I look away from Claire's victim I see two tail stopped by a blue barrier. Eliza's voice sounded behind me with sharpness.

"Please focus, Jane."

"I knew you had my back!"

"Not a reason to forget the opponent."

"Right, sorry."

She sighed a little as I settled my eyes on the tiger again. A brief burst of lightning through my legs accelerated me enough to flicker at the animal's rear. My Katana cut down toward the base of its tails. Or at least tried to. It bounced back right when I reached the bone, sending a tremor through my hand and arm. The web between my thumb and index splitting slightly.

What the heck?! It feels like hitting steel!

With a pained growl, the tiger turned toward me with a paw already lifted and claws drawn to try and cut through my throat. I stepped forward instead of backward, stabbing my dagger in its underbelly where it's softer than the rest of its hide and fur. A shower of blood poured out of the wound when I wrenched my weapon out, accompanied by a painful whimper.

Before retreating I took the opportunity to cut his sinew on his front paws. This made it buckle forward in pain and impossibility of standing straight. A faint layer of frost was settling on his fur, remains of the ice Anna is painstakingly trying to cover their tiger with. A little mist escaped my lips thanks to the lowered temperature around us.

I hope Anna can control that better later on, it's freezing! I'm not a snow fox! Wait, I'm the only fox anyway. Whatever.

We all finished our tigers almost at the same time. Mine was beheaded with a last stroke of a Lightning-infused Katana. Claire's got an arrow stuck so deeply in its eye it broke its brain. And lastly Anna and Luna one's got stabbed between its ribs through its heart.

I let a breath I didn't notice I was holding and looked at the battlefield.

"Well. That could have been cleaner."

Eliza surveyed the field too before nodding.

"Yes. Especially if a certain foxgirl didn't get distracted and finished her enemy so slowly."

"Erm. I wonder who you are talking about?"

I avoid her eyes, my tail swishing behind me in embarrassement. Those animals weren't that strong. Especially in a one versus one situation. So she's right, I should have finished it fast and helped for the rest. Instead I took my time looking at their own battles.

Altina pouted indignantly, arm crossed, behind Anna and Eliza.

"Nobody was injured so I was useless!"

We all stared at her.

"What? It's true!"

Luna leaned a little toward her with a mischievous smile.

"Are you a sadist?"

"What?! No! I just wanted to be useful!"

Anna let a heavy sigh escape her lips as she tried to bonk Luna on her head. The blonde dodged the playful blow, her expression still carrying mischievousness.

"It's fine Altina, keep your strength."

"Or you can try and smack them with your book" I whisper with a little smile, earning me a huff from the wingkin.

Eliza looked at me with a tired expression.

"Jane."

"Yes?"

"Not helping."

"Oops?"

She shook her head in a mock exasperation.

"Alright, let's continue. Three tigers, seven to go. We'll collect their tails before going forward."