<div>


    To say Frederick''s party was in trouble was an understatement.


    Frederick stroked the shiny side of his lightning-enchanted sword. He admired his own baby blue eyes in the reflection, at least happy to know that, despite everything, nothing had lost its shine. Lauren was already on her second cup of Salamander Wine, glaring at...something. A bit disheveled, a bit grouchy, lost in her thoughts. Sunni was playing with her food. It was the cheapest on the menu, and her wooden fork prodded at the shriveled piece of tomato. Beside her, a tome of arcane knowledge was laid wide open but forgotten.


    Things were all sunshine and rainbows in Risadel, even better when the Halos Alliance approved funding for the rising number of goblin quests. Frederick leapt at the chance to refill his wallet after that mishap with the White Mage. Thankfully, the girls were perfectly okay with him dragging them here and there.


    Lauren especially. The Archer''s shame would not go away until she killed a thousand goblins and reached the second rank of the [Goblin Slayer] title. As for Sunni, well, Frederick doubted she would leave the Archer''s side anytime soon. He had no idea when or how it had happened, but the two seemed to have gotten close this past week.


    Things could still turn around then. He would make things right. He ran the numbers, counted the dates. He would speed through all the elimination quests, continue to cultivate his appeal, and make it through this dark period. He would come out on top as the guy the girls could fawn all over and depend on—and forget all about how he got knocked out by a rock!


    But the Wild Hunt ruined everything.


    "This sucks!" Lauren folded like she was a dirty piece of laundry. Completely unladylike, with how she propped up her chest on the tabletop, but Frederick wasn''t going to complain. "Are there really no other jobs? I don''t care if it''s more goblins; I''m sick and tired of gathering herbs for that creepy granny at the Alchemist''s shop!"


    Frederick had not thought much of it when the news broke out. They were busy with another goblin quest. But when they got back, many elimination quests had been canceled. Too dangerous and unknown, the receptionists had said. They''re slated to be reevaluated, maybe rising up to Silver and even Gold.


    The urgent quests remained on the board. Some of the pay was decent, but only for those whose skills and experience were good enough to make it work. Frederick''s party would waste more on time and potions than the reward was worth. The best-paying ones required a party of four and over. And, well...


    Nobody wanted to party with the group that was carried by a healer.


    They were left with no choice but to sit in the guildhall and rot until it was their turn with a supporter from the Support Corps or things got better.


    Frederick gave his most placating smile. "Hang in there, Lauren. They''ll bring those quests back up any day now. That [Goblin Slayer] title won''t be running anywhere."


    "...You''re lucky you have a pretty face, or I would''ve thrown this at you," Lauren said behind her cup.


    "H-Huh? What did I do?"


    "I dunno, what didn''t you do?" Lauren laid her elbows on the table, leaning. "You couldn''t tell the difference between a Healing Bellflower and a Prickle Pot, and you made the rookie mistake of putting them in the same basket. My poor hands got rashes trying to sort the damn things. I could barely pull a bowstring!"


    "Ah..." Frederick chuckled sheepishly. "At least the Alchemist''s itchy cream made it all better?"


    "Yeah. And, like, what was that last goblin quest? You were so deep into the thick of it that Sunni couldn''t fire off a [Fireball]. I had to help her wack away the goblins! With my bow! Then you got in the way of my last shot against the hobgoblin, and because you took too long to kill it, the goblins nearby came along, and we had to book it because there were too many!"


    Wait, that was what happened? Frederick hadn''t even noticed, thinking that if he just assaulted the entire camp with his superior weapons and armor, he could prove to the girls that everything was business as usual. All they had to do was sit back and relax. The last thing he recalled was how Lauren dragged him by the collar, telling him to run.


    "I had it all under control," he replied. "We would''ve made it through. I think."


    "Not to mention that big tip you gave to the Merchant when we got back. It was such an obvious suck-up move! I still can''t believe you paid fifty gald!"


    "Have a little more faith in me. If we build a positive relationship with a local driver, we could get discounts to and from Risadel." That, and the Merchant just screamed ''desperate'' when he saw her. Recruiting the White Mage may have been an abject failure, but his roguish charm could still capture another heart or two. Fifty gald was nothing if it meant getting rides for free one day.


    Especially since the Merchant was a cute wolf girl and not some middle-aged man.


    "Whatever you say, handsome. But don''t forget that that''s our money you''re managing. The next time we ride her caravan, tipping is out of the question—Oh Goddess." Lauren suddenly clutched her head. The party leader watched as her face morphed from shock to disgust...to horrified. "I sounded like the White Mage just now..."


    Then, whatever else had disappeared behind the beyond-the-horizon stare into the void.


    This was bad. It seemed that quest had affected her more than he thought. Lauren was beginning to question his command. At least he still had the party''s wallflower to fall back on.


    "What about you, Sunni? Were you able to get your staff checked?"


    The tomato slipped under Sunni''s fork and landed on the arcane tome. Somehow, the skin had split, spilling its juices. The Fire Mage''s lips shuddered as she stared at the stain on the pages.


    "Um, there weren''t many experts besides the Alchemist shops trying to escape Rosarium''s potion taxes and sweatshops. The scary old lady said there''s a fracture in the mana orb, b-but it''s still usable! Just... I just need to be gentler with my spells and..." Sunni used her sleeve to wipe the pages, but, in her panic, she was rubbing too hard and was spreading the damage instead. She whimpered. "Unless I have the money, I might have to use my staff like a mace soon..."


    "...Huh?" Frederick felt goosebumps, a premonition so ominous that he looked between Lauren and Sunni in stone-cold disbelief. Because there was just no way.


    ...Could it?


    The doors of the guildhall swung open.


    Almost no light passed through, and what little that did could only draw the silhouette of a massive, muscular frame and the very tips of ox horns as thick as a grown man''s arms sprouting from the head. The man squeezed through the opening, having to step in sideways for his broad shoulders to pass.


    Frederick''s jaw dropped when he saw the state of him: the man''s entire right half was covered in blood. Everything from the knuckles of his fist to everything below his shoulder was drenched, like he had punched through an ogre. His jaw dropped even further when he saw the thing he was lugging over his back.


    It was a gargantuan tentacle from a lake monster. All the purplish scales and pale suckers were all plain to see, the severed stump having been drained of blood a while ago, and so big was the entire thing that, if it weren''t for the slick skin, it would''ve gotten stuck on the frame.


    Frederick and his party gawked as the man marched up to a female receptionist, who had barely looked up at all as if it was just the most common occurrence in town.


    "Found this bastard crawling along the beachside." The ox-horned man''s voice boomed throughout the guildhall. "Tell the cooks we''re having kraken stew on the menu and that there''s more waiting in the dismantling house. This oughta keep us fed for the week."


    "Yes, sir," the receptionist droned. She began writing a note. "I''ll inform Secretary Layla—"


    "Please. Don''t. She''s probably busy."


    "Then bring it into the kitchen. They''ll cut it up to be stored in the freezer."


    Frederick felt himself sweating as the man easily dragged the carcass toward the kitchen. The way the massive tentacle looped around had blocked the entire view of the mess hall. Did he say the rest was in the dismantling house? He could only imagine how ginormous the whole monster must be.


    Lauren''s eyes followed the trail of slime the tentacle left in its wake, lips twisting into an ick. "I hope the guild cleans this up because I am not stepping on that. Who even was that?"


    "First time, kids?"


    The party turned.


    Sitting alone at the table neighboring theirs was a man, holding a tankard of mead and looking at them in amusement. He seemed geared and ready for a hunt, wrapped in armor plates and a furred mantle. "You''d get used to it. Might even learn to love it, if you have an appetite like the rest of us. There''s nothing quite like a feast after a long, tiring hunt."


    "Yeah, no thanks." Lauren squinted. "Hey. Weren''t you that guy who lost a fistfight to a newcomer a few days back?"


    "...You can call me Jenson." The veteran adventurer sipped from his drink, acting all cool and mysterious if one ignored his receding hairline. "It''s about time you got acquainted with the Master of Risadel. Gerald: former Sailor, a Platinum-ranked adventurer in the flesh. You might know him as the Devil Horns of the Evil Lake."


    Frederick glanced back at where the man himself disappeared to. By now, the entire tentacle had gone through. "Him...? Out here in the boonies?"


    He had heard Bard tales of the Devil Horns; about a man whose fists blasted the waves and whose horns could sever the sins of the abyss, waxing poetry of his vainglorious facial hair. That was the man?


    "Wait, then, isn''t that great?" Lauren lit up. "With him on our side, the Wild Hunt won''t stand a chance! We could go back to having regular old quests again!"


    Jenson shook his head. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but it don''t work like that here in the lakeside. Any guild branch Master of a fort like a Risadel can only take on jobs related to the Evil Lake. If our Master was away while a Monster Wave was happening, well..."


    The words hung in the air. The picture they all had was not pretty.


    "...Still," Frederick began, "he''s the boss, right?"


    "Boss?" Jenson chewed the inside of his mouth. "Sure, he''s the boss. But he''s not exactly the boss."


    Before he could ask what that meant, Frederick heard a thud from where the carcass was dropped off and then blanched as the footsteps returned to the tables of the mess hall. He and the party kept their heads down. Even the veteran adventurer had turned away.


    Master or not, they didn''t want to catch the attention of a man that could fold them like breadsticks. There were plenty of seats around. If they were lucky, the man would choose a far away corner to sit at and...


    It happened in only three steps. The man''s awesome strides cleared the distance without anyone realizing before it was too late.


    Master Gerald took the seat right beside Frederick''s. He rested an elbow on the table—the bloodied one—and there was a creak so loud that Frederick was sure something was about to snap. The man was looking right at him.


    "New guys, right?" His voice rumbled them to the bones. "Doin'' me a huge favor if ya help me get a drink."


    Frederick looked toward the girls for help. Sunni was already curled into a ball when the man sat down, hiding under her hooded cloak like a turtle. Lauren, meanwhile, had her hand covering her face, wanting no part of this.


    "U-Uh..." Frederick gulped. "Why us? Couldn''t you just...?"


    "I''m not allowed to ask for myself."


    This was the Master of the guild branch itself. Who would believe such a lie?


    Frederick had heard high-ranking adventurers would abuse their status to put others under their thumb, and if they refused, they would be beaten black and blue in an ''accident.'' Was this what he had been warned about?


    This was bad. Frederic couldn''t just let someone walk over him and make him look weak in front of the girls. But look at those arms! They could crush bears in one go! If he said no, there''s no doubt in Frederick''s mind that he might not live to—!


    "I''ll pay." The Master slapped some silver coins on the table. "Hell, I''ll buy anything on the menu for the whole party."


    Frederick instantly rang the waiter bell. "Of course, sir! I''ll get whatever you want! Rubble Rum, Red Grass, Salamander Wine—whatever wets your whistle! You, too, girls! Me and our new friend here will order a feast for everyone!"


    Sunni peeked out of her hood. "But, it''s not our...?"


    "What are you saying, Sunni? We totally earned this."


    The Fire Mage made a face.


    Frederick didn''t care. If he could win points in his own party without spending a single coin, then he would do it in a heartbeat, and—why was Jenson back there wincing?


    "Gahahahaha!" Master Gerald slapped his knee, and the air cracked from the force. "Good! Good! Can''t survive out here without at least a little shamelessness! You just might make it one day, kid! Don''t give me the weak shit; I want the strongest drink we got. And then I''ll—!"


    A manicured hand rested on his shoulder.


    "And then you''ll do what, Gerald? Drop dead drunk?"


    Never before had Frederick seen someone so big and imposing look so constipated. He could practically hear the creaking of his neck as the man named Gerald looked over his shoulder with a side-eye stiffer than a statue.


    "...Secretary Layla. Isn''t business too slow for you to be on waitress duty?"


    "It is. There was just something I found out today, so I finished early and worked down here in the hopes of catching you when you came back. Now..."


    The Secretary''s smile did not reach her eyes.


    "Care to explain how three whole barrels of Salamander Wine are missing from our inventory?"


    <hr>


    Willow wondered a lot of things. From all of her past life to most of her current one, she thought the most excitement she could get up to were the inane politics of her workplace and the novels that caught her eye at the time.


    Then she enrolled in the Collegium. It was all downhill from there.


    Getting carried like a sack of potatoes while chased by a jumping Giant Slime along the Second Wall was a step up from the usual shenanigans. She could at least appreciate the novelty. The same couldn''t be said for her neighbor Anne, who screamed out of her mind every time the slime''s attacks got too close for comfort.


    "I-Is it a King Slime?! A Calamity?! How could a slime be so big?!"


    "I see no crown, so no. Must''ve wandered in from the Evil Lake and chose this place to have a nap and a snack."


    "Why aren''t you freaking out, Miss White Mage?!"


    "It is validating to watch someone else freak out for a change. Very therapeutic. By the way, glad you are normal again, Miss Anne."


    A crash. Another part of the Second Wall was defaced. Anne screamed again, and Aire held their waists extra tight and picked up the pace, her boots digging into the stair steps.


    "Unfortunately, we must tease Little Anne another time! Do you perhaps know a spell that would save us from this predicament?!"


    "I would love to say yes, but..."


    Slimes tended to be the favorite subject of academic Wizards and Alchemists alike, partly because of their bizarre biology—two water slimes could have entirely different properties—and partly because they tend to eat everyone''s homework. No magic core. No weak point. It''s held up entirely by surface tension and magical shenanigans. The intelligent solution would be to analyze the opposing slime and then neutralize the damnable things unto the ether.


    Especially the lava ones. Everybody hated the lava ones.


    Too bad she wasn''t built like the mages of the Collegium with their fifty-some Skills casually grinded over the summer break. Unless she was desperate enough to drink her second mana potion, there''s just no silver bullet left in the barrel.


    ...But things were not as desperate as they looked, were they? Even after a horde of kobolds, Aire hardly seemed winded enough to slow down. Her constitution and dexterity stats must be high. Anne, too: despite everything, she still clung firmly to her wooden staff, with mana to spare.


    Willow squinted. "...Can I trust you two?"


    "But of course, friend!" Aire reached the very top of the Second Wall. No more stairs, just a straight sprint. "With every fiber of my being!"


    "If you have a plan, I''ll follow your lead!" Anne yelled.


    "Maybe that''s the wrong question. Can you trust me?"


    "What are you...?" Anne hitched a breath. "Aire! Behind!"


    Somehow, despite its massive body, the Giant Slime had heaved itself up from the stair steps they came from. The Second Wall was not wide enough for it, the parts that failed to fit slumping down the sides, spreading its viscous fluid to get a sticky grip. And it began rolling, rolling, and rolling—sweeping the entire top of the Second Wall, like it was all dust on a shelf, too fast to outrun and too big to avoid. They were about to be trampled.


    Aire, however, grinned.


    "I understand now! Everyone, hang on!" she warned, and right before the Giant Slime ran them over, she jumped.


    Not up, but down.


    Down where the river waited.


    Anne shrieked. "Aire, you dummyyy!"


    The monster refused to let them leave like that. Cracks spread throughout the Second Wall as it forced itself to a stop. Then, multiple slime arms shot out to catch them.


    "[Gale Cutter]!"


    Wind blades severed the slime arm into viscous threads that flew right past and peppered the river below. Then the arm after that. And then the arm after that. Anne kept casting, shredding everything that came after them like a blender, but there were too many threads for them to avoid, trapping them like a cage.


    Willow felt a thread of slime graze her thigh, the corrosive fluid cutting into her clothes. She gritted her teeth. It was now or never. If there was anything she could depend on now, then it was the universal bullshit of this world''s main characters.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    "If you trust me with your life, then stick your foot out!"


    "Like this?!" Aire cried.


    With what little mana Willow had left, she created a tiny barrier right under Aire''s foot. The landing stuck, the foothold rippling like water, and Aire pushed off—right when an entire arm regenerated and consumed where they were before.


    Aire understood the assignment. She stuck her other foot, jumped, then rotated with the next. While Anne''s wind intercepted and delayed the slime''s attacks, the Magic Fencer danced around the split threads with the faith that, wherever she stepped, Willow was there to catch her.


    Willow held her breath the entire time. Calculate the spell. Predict the direction of Aire''s footsteps. Compensate for the delay by casting it ahead of time. A single lapse in attention, a single mistake, could send them plummeting into the river, all the while betting that Aire''s fortitude would carry them through.


    The Giant Slime still on the Second Wall did the unthinkable: with a mighty squelch, it jumped. It rolled and fought through the sky like the fattest bird alive, tracking them, and sailed right over. The slime spread itself like a net, about to catch them on the way down.


    "[Gale Cutter]!"


    Anne carved an opening into the thinnest parts of the membrane. Before it could regenerate, Aire made a mad dash in mid-air to go through the opening, and Willow had to quickly adjust her spellcasting to keep up: One. Two. Three.


    Cleared.


    The cool draft they felt as the Giant Slime fell past them was one of the biggest reliefs. But then it cannonballed into the river—and the massive geyser that formed swatted water up their noses. Everyone sputtered; it was a miracle Aire and Willow managed to correct themselves in time to keep their footing. It was just as they passed through the water that they felt the sudden change in the wind pressure.


    They almost missed it, the gelatinous mass to the side. A dirty right hook.


    Thinking fast, Anne screamed, "[Wind Wall]—!"


    The viscous liquid struck the wind barrier like a hammer. Anne''s spell broke before it could fully form, shattering into a blast of wind—and it was exactly what saved them.


    They were all blown aside, flipped up and down and around, away from the river, and toward solid ground.


    "U-Um, [Wind Wall]!"


    Anne took a page out of Willow''s and cast the spell right before they hit a building. Instead of a platform, it was a cushion. They scraped the rooftops of the facilities. Old roof tiles that once survived an entire Monster Wave had fallen to pieces, but like pillows to the face, they managed to land unharmed.


    Anne had propped herself up on her staff with a groan, unsteady but alive, with tufts of blond hair pointed in all directions. "A-Aire?" She huffed. "Please. Never do that again. I..." She puffed. "I think the maid uniform has another few tears."


    Aire was already back on her feet. She spat out a piece of a roof tile. "A thousand apologies, but when the White Mage spoke of trust, I knew a leap of faith was the most appropriate solution! And it worked! A brilliant bond between companions in life and death! We were in perfect sync, weren''t we, friend?"


    ...


    "...Friend?" When Aire heard no snide remark like she had come to expect from the White Mage, she turned. And found nothing.


    "H-Huh?" Anne''s eyes widened. "Where did she go...?"


    They frantically looked around, trying to find hide or hair of their missing companion. Not on the roofs, not around the streets, not under their feet—gone. Just gone.


    "Were we separated?" Anne whimpered. "Oh, goodness gracious. She could be hurt! We have to find her before—!"


    The river erupted.


    The girls turned, and it was a sight they have already seen many times today. A slime: climbing out of the river, following its instincts to consume. It was slow and hulking. The sheer weight of itself held it down, but with its size it simply rolled over the river cliff. Just because they had left the domain of the river, it did not mean the Giant Slime would let them go.


    "...Would the usual method work?" Aire asked.


    "Unfortunately, I do not believe I''ve ever dueled a slime so big before."


    The Giant Slime rolled closer. Every building in its path began to dissolve, stripping them of their weakest parts and leaving them bare and hissing. Now that it was out of the water, they had a real gauge of its actual size, and they realized it would take more than their tiny weapons to rid themselves of the humongous blob.


    "We run?"


    "Yes, Aire. We should run."


    Aire scooped Anne off her feet, leapt down to the alleys, and bolted. The Giant Slime was faster than it had any right to be. Although it ate away at the buildings, it wasn''t instantaneous, so it stretched and squeezed through the gaps to keep up with the little humans.


    "Can you slow it down, Anne?!"


    "I-I''ll try! [Gale Cutter]!"


    The assault cut through the fluids, and they dispersed, splattered on the walls, but it was instantly replaced by more. Anne didn''t give up, shooting as many Gale Cutters as her mana pool would allow. When even that didn''t work?


    "[Wind Wall]!"


    The spell plugged the alley. It held the Giant Slime off for about two seconds before it just overwhelmed the wind with its weight. But two seconds was better than what a [Gale Cutter] could accomplish. Anne kept at it, delaying the monster wherever she could.


    For the next few minutes, Aire skidded through the winding paths of the Second Wall fortress. They went up and down stairs, took sharp turns, and dove through the broken walls of what were once barracks, storage houses, and bathhouses. The Giant Slime was always close behind.


    "Oooh...! Where is she, where is she?!" Aire leapt over a hole in the road. "Please don''t be dead! We hadn''t even properly exchanged names yet!"


    "Focus, Aire! I think the Giant Slime is getting faster!"


    "What manner of devil would allow such tomfoolery?! What next, they teleport?!"


    "D-Don''t jinx it!"


    They dove into another alley, and the Giant Slime rolled right past. It couldn''t stop itself in time and crashed into one of the barracks. The entire building collapsed onto the giant in a thunderous cascade of brick and cracks, burying the monsters for however long it mattered.


    The gurgling of the giant slime hadn''t stopped. It''s chewing through the rubble, and it was angry.


    But they used the reprieve to catch their bearings, to find the White Mage, or to remember where they were. And it was in those few seconds that they finally noticed a sound that had been ringing all this time.


    "...A church bell?" Anne muttered.


    It rang throughout the air, throughout the fortress of the Second Wall, so faintly and distantly that they would''ve thought it was a mirage from all the stress and running had they not felt it to their bones. The Second Wall was abandoned. There should be no one to ring the bells. No one alive to host a communion with the Goddess.


    Except maybe for a certain someone.


    <hr>


    "Never thought I would ring one of these again..."


    Before Rosarium industrialized potion-making in a bid to curb their overreliance on the Clerics and Priests of the Holy Garden Kingdom, each fortress of each great Wall sponsored a church to heal the flesh and spirit. Soldiers, hardened and tested by the cruelty of the Evil Lake, would only come here if they needed the miracles of the Goddess to grow back an arm or a leg—or to pray for safe tidings to the family back home.


    Willow remembered in this life''s childhood where she used to sit atop the church''s bell tower, watching the other orphans play in a courtyard just like this one. She never could connect with them, being an adult in a child''s body. May as well quickly learn the language, stay out of everybody''s way, and just read this world''s version of fantasy novels to pass the time. Priorities.


    Sometimes she wondered if she freaked everyone out with that kind of behavior. At least she grew up peacefully. The world just left her be, and that was the best she could ask for—unlike now.


    "...Unbelievable." She sniffled. Blood still dripped down from her nose. From her head, too. "Are things so bad now that I actually miss those times?"


    Soon enough, they arrived: Aire and Anne, the girls she was supposed to protect.


    "Miss White Mage~!" Aire cried. "You''re alive!"


    "Yeah. And I trusted you." Willow scowled and pointed at herself. "Only for a wall to come and kiss me in the face!"


    Willow had been tempted to just abandon the plan while waiting for them. To jump down there, take her second potion, and personally solve all of their problems. She should''ve been right there with them, making absolutely sure they''ll be safe...


    But they proved themselves, hadn''t they? Capable enough to lure the Giant Slime right where she wanted it.


    She hopped down, landing beside some barrels she had set up in front of the church entrance, and rested a hand on one of them. Each barrel was about as tall as she was, built to quench the thirst of many men for many days. They had been found in the basement along with all the others.


    "Oh, Master Gerald... Three barrels of Salamander Wine this time? Layla is going to be so mad when she finds out about this."


    Secretary Layla would occasionally ask her to track down some "suspiciously missing inventory" while out on a job in the area. They were surprisingly easy to find. Most had a unique signature picked up under a mana pulse. Others... She just had to follow the scent.


    Willow didn''t need magic enhancements for this next part. Her eighteen points of strength was more than enough as she pushed the barrels onto their sides and kicked them, where they rolled down the courtyard, easily sidestepped by the Magic Fencer, and into the oblivious maw of the Giant Slime. The barrels disintegrated within the monster''s bowels, but the Salamander Wine?


    The Giant Slime lurched.


    The Rusties reached the church entrance. Anne was let back down to her feet, and Aire drew her sword, watching in puzzlement as the monster had suddenly stopped. It was writhing, churning within itself. The surface of the liquid broke and splashed, unable to pull itself together. It tried to reach them but rolled the other way by some unseen force.


    "What was in those barrels?" Anne asked. "Some...alchemic concoction? D-Did you discern the slime''s weakness? Had you synthesized a solution in the short time we were separated?!"


    ...When they get back, the first thing Willow was going to teach this maid was to manage her expectations.


    "That would be the intelligent solution," Willow said slowly. "But this? This is the Sailor''s solution."


    It was the most Sailor thing they could do, and that was to use copious amounts of alcohol to solve all their problems.


    Out in the Evil Lake against the horrors spawned from the depths, there were two things a Sailor could rely on: their spear on one hand and a bottle of booze on the other. Giant Slimes were chief among the most common killers out there, floating under the water''s surface and chewing through every ship unfortunate enough to wander over its maw. They would latch on, refusing to let go. But the Sailors would dump their alcohol overboard to feed to the Giant Slimes. It confused them, weakened them, unable to tell which was itself and which was not. They made the slimes drunk, leaving them perfectly vulnerable to their attacks.


    Normally, three barrels shouldn''t have been enough, but there''s no body of water to dilute and clean itself of the effect, now was there?


    "Should''ve stayed in the damn river, pal. Well..." Feeling woozy, Willow leaned on the church''s doorway. "The floor''s yours. Go wild."


    Anne and Aire looked at her, eyes wide. The White Mage didn''t realize it then, but that was the first time she had explicitly trusted them to do as they pleased. They looked at each other, nodded, and marched forth, glowing like the sun.


    Anne puffed her cheeks. "I''ll give it my all!"


    "Indeed!" With a swish of her blade, Aire started running. "With pleasure!"


    As Aire charged in, the wind picked up. Anne braced her staff on the ground and let it all loose with a soft, breathy kind of battle cry. It was one of the most harmless things Willow had ever heard. But the [Gale Cutter] she had cast was certainly not.


    The Slime Giant mindlessly struck out with its tendrils, but Anne''s Gale Cutters sliced right through them. Each wind blade wailed like a banshee, mercilessly shredding into the gelatinous body. Again and again and again, seemingly pushing the monster back, its fluids splattered all throughout the courtyard to be soaked in by the grass and earth.


    This time none regenerated.


    The volley stopped in time for Aire to follow up. She launched a rapid series of slashes with her rapier. Each attack that should have corroded her blade was protected by a resplendent orange aura, brilliant as the dawn. Convulsing, the Giant Slime used its size to envelop her in a deadly hug, but its speed and force just weren''t there anymore. The Magic Fencer dashed aside and left a thick gash on its body. Twice! Then Thrice!


    One more time the Giant tried to catch her. Instead of committing, Aire leapt back because the Wind Mage was ready for another volley of [Gale Cutters].


    They were in their element. Each switch was timed to leave no gaps. Every bit of ground they had lost to the Giant Slime, they took back with each of Anne''s volleys, while Aire''s speed and finesse rendered it unable to retaliate. Like this, they whittled it down bit by bit.


    Again, Aire leapt back. The Giant Slime had been reduced to almost half its size, and the field had turned muddy and sticky from all the chunks they had sliced off. They could reduce it to an ordinary slime with time.


    But somewhere along the line, something had changed.


    The Demontide that swirled inside the monster stabilized even amid the assault. It began to take on a shape, a pitch-black ring like a draconian eye. Something came out. Bubbles formed inside the Giant Slime as it ate whatever the Demontide was feeding it.


    It began regenerating.


    "We shan''t waste any more time, it seems." Aire licked her lips, calm and firm. "This is more than enough... To settle it all in one final bout..."


    She took on a stance. Knees bent. Feet spread. Sword raised, parallel to the ground. The air began to heat up, her figure surrounded by a flickering haze. Then, the orange aura around her blade turned red.


    Willow blinked. That flow again...


    The Giant Slime sensed it, too. Its internals spun like it was winding up, and the air snapped as a thick tendril lashed out!


    Anne had been ready for it. "[Wind Wall]!"


    The tendril smashed against the wind so hard that the whole thing was torn into a thousand little pieces. Some had landed on the church wall beside Willow, but the magic that gave their corrosive properties was already gone; they slid down about as harmless as raindrops.


    Aire had not even flinched. The aura intensified. Smoke began to rise as the tips of the grass blades around her spontaneously combusted. And if one could see past the light...her braid trailed behind her head, the tail of a flame.


    "Burn bright! [Galloping Gawain]!"


    She leapt like cannon fire.


    The "eye" of the Giant Slime shrunk into pinpricks. It bent back, trying to run away, but it was too little, too late. The instant the blade touched the watery surface, everything evaporated. Everything.


    Fire blasted out of the sword tip and filled the monster inside out. Vapor and fire ballooned it to its original size. And in a last gasp—it exploded.


    Willow''s hair and clothes blasted back. She felt her eyes sting as she raised her cloak overhead, but Anne got them covered, summoning yet another [Wind Wall] to ward off the worst of the heat. They watched as a tower of fire enveloped the Giant Slime, the Magic Fencer, and everything.


    A thought struck the White Mage, or, rather, she remembered. Wine didn''t have enough alcohol concentration to ignite, especially while mixed with another liquid. But like many things in this big, wild world, Salamander Wine was an exception. Alcoholic paramours had bragged how it made them dream of fire-breathing dragons, and how, in the absence of magic users, the desperate used the inherent ingredients of the wine to burn down entire monster nests.


    And here, it was still burning.


    "...Anne?"


    "J-Just wait a few seconds!"


    To Willow''s relief, they did not wait long. The crackling of fire was silenced by the swishing of a sword. All the flames winked. The air was still hot but was at least livable again. The only evidence of the annihilation was the charred remains of the impact zone, and at its center, slowly sheathing her sword, was the noble lady herself.


    Aire spun around with a sign of victory, a grin, and a wink. "Now how about it, friend? Was I dashing or was I dashing?"


    Oh, what a dork...


    Willow rolled her eyes. "Very dashing, Aire. You really did it. Both of you."


    "We...did it?" Anne smiled wide and brightly, and her staff dropped to the ground, canceling the last of the [Wind Wall] Skill, as she began hopping in place with giddiness. "Oh! We did it! The Divine Glass has sent me notification! My stats went up!"


    "Absolutely splendid, Little Anne! Give me a hooray~!"


    "O-Oh, um, hooray~!"


    As the two clasped hands and raised them high to the sky, Willow noticed Aire''s equipment was a wreck. The heat had warped the metal pieces, which chafed the burnt cloth underneath, and the cloth itself was all ripped and unusable, exposing skin that had somehow remained immaculate from the fire. The White Mage winced thinking of how much it would cost to replace, well, everything. An accident was just waiting to happen.


    "Very good, very good!" Aire nodded proudly, hardly bothered by her state of dress. "You as well, Miss White Mage!"


    "Hm? What are you—?" Willow found herself grabbed by the arms, held on tight with no way to escape. "Hey! Personal space!"


    "Now, now. From henceforth, we are now companions. So say it with us! Hip hip... hooray—!"


    Something snapped. It was the thread holding her breastplate and the last shreds of clothing that maintained her dignity. And they...had fallen off. The breastplate hit the ground with a thud.


    Aire''s face stilled. "Ah."


    The maid was covering her face in horror.


    And Willow... Willow looked down in a deadpan stare. Up. Down. And up again. With a slow, tired sigh, she reached over her shoulders and untied the threads of her own cloak, then she threw it around the noblewoman.


    "O-Oh..." Blushing, Aire allowed the White Mage to just secure the cloak. Thankfully, it was just big enough to cover everything that would''ve drawn eyes. ''''Thank you..."


    If Willow had ever wondered about the laws of fanservice of this world, then she had found her answer.


    ...This better not be a regular occurrence.


    <hr>


    The job was not quite done yet. They still had the leftover Demontide to purify.


    It was the perfect excuse to walk away from the topic of Aire''s wardrobe malfunction, so without further ado, they all invoked the Divine Glass and had spent the better part of the ritual in awkward silence, holding the crystalized forms of the [Karma] window as they partook in the holy work of the Goddess.


    The riding birds had found them at some point. Quartz and Ruby must''ve figured the danger was all gone, and, well, attracted by the light, they couldn''t help but plop themselves beside their respective owners and push their beaks against the [Karma] crystals, only to chirp with alarm when they just phased through.


    Giggles broke out. The girls found them adorable.


    Although...


    [Karma]


    1394


    [Karma]


    1113


    [Karma]


    892


    The numbers were still displayed above them.


    Willow really wished the System would let her hide hers during the [Purification Ritual]. The mystified gazes she was getting from Aire and Anne for having the highest karma of them all were a bit uncomfortable. Thankfully, whatever questions they had were all left unsaid in lieu of what came next.


    [Purification Ritual] Complete!


    Gained 200 Karma.


    [Karma]


    1394 + 200


    [Karma]


    1113 + 200


    [Karma]


    892 + 200


    Now initializing [Karmic Resonance].


    Allocating the Divine Essence to the appropriate users.


    Please stand by.


    As if blessing the church grounds, the air became full of Kyaeris''s divine majesty. The colors of the world seemingly blended together as they began to converge into their [Karma] crystals.


    Anne''s eyes shimmered as she stared at her own. To her, it was a faraway city, the hearth of home. Ruby, ever the needy bird, hugged close to her arm, gazing into the light alongside her. "It''s... so warm."


    "Indeed. The boundless benevolence of the Goddess never ceases to amaze," Aire spoke softly, clutching Willow''s cloak. Hers held a spark of hope, the rays of a new day. "Was this... Was this what mother and father felt...?"


    The faces they made as they had their first [Karmic Resonance] were nothing short of religious.


    Divine Essence was the ultimate reward for loyalty and devotion to Kyaeris.


    The motes of light appearing from the purification of the Demontide was divinity itself. When touched, it was like a warm hug from a maternal figure, a fireplace in the cold night.


    Legends were made from the Divine Essence. It could be spent on any skill or any stat sans luck, elevating the foundation of one''s being or attaining the enlightenment of the gods. Any bottleneck one faced could be solved with a [Karmic Resonance].


    Or so Willow had heard.


    Error: Skills are set to read-only. Repository synchronization failed.


    Error: Status is set to read-only. System stat modification inapplicable.


    Error: Luck factor unreadable. User is unanchored from causality.


    [Karmic Resonance] has been canceled. Divine Essence may still be allocated or donated at a later date.


    No glory for her, she supposed. Couldn''t even be damned to at least fix her garbage mana stat.


    "Eh?" Anne looked at her. "Miss White Mage, why did yours suddenly dim?"


    "Just spent everything where I already wanted them," Willow lied. "Don''t worry about it."


    Maybe it was just her words or her attitude, but the maid cast her a concerned look. "Is...that really true?"


    Willow met her gaze. Quite sharp, this one, but she had been an adult long enough to learn how to keep a straight face. "It''s not my first Monster Raid, Miss Anne. Sorry if I''m not as enamored as I should be. But I will congratulate you for a job well done, so..." She bowed slightly. "Congratulations."


    "O-Oh, um... Thank you?"


    Eventually, the [Karmic Resonance] was complete. It was subtle, but there was now a different air about the two. They stood stronger, taller, prouder... Like they took one more step toward the heavens.


    Willow felt a little awkward, being left out in the ascension party.


    Frankly, the fact that a twenty-man raid was cleared by only three adventurers and a prayer through what''s basically a suicidal offensive was absurd. And absurd feats deserved absurd rewards.


    It was all theirs for the taking. Anne and Aire should have grown leaps and bounds, maybe even reaching the tail end of what a Silver-ranked adventurer was capable of, and, give or take a month or two, rank up. Willow could not spend her own Divine Essence, but...at least she''ll try to be happy for them.


    It was all she could do at this point.


    "Well." Willow stretched with a groan. "May as well heal up and get ready to move. We''ve stayed here long enough. Anne? Here."


    Anne turned to find Willow dangling something under her grip. It was a potion belt. "Huh?" When she patted around, she found that her potion belt had been gone this whole time. She took it from Willow''s hands, feeling over the leather. "Since when...?"


    "I...was trying to grab onto something when we got separated." Willow wiped under her nose. The blood had crusted and easily flaked off. "I already used some. Sorry."


    "No, no. It''s okay. You are okay." Anne held up a half-drunk health potion. She smiled. "Potions are meant to be used after all."


    "...I think I know a certain class of people who would disagree."


    "Was that a joke? There is no way such people would exist. Aire? Come here and drink the rest."


    "Understood. Down it goes~!"


    Willow blanked out as Aire drank that same half-drunken potion without hesitation. She had not bothered to wipe the rim where the White Mage had drank. The indirect kiss? That much was obvious. If that was all, she would have just said nothing and pretended it had never happened, but no. Because that...


    "That...was a high-grade potion."


    "Hm?" Aire stopped drinking to look at her. There was still some at the bottom. "Oh, this?" She swirled the glass, treating it like an everyday beverage. "Due to some...circumstances, we rarely possess any coins lower than platinum to buy the lower-tier potions."


    "I''m sorry—platinum?"


    "Fear not! Our coffers are robust enough to bear these strange economic times. It may seem like a waste to you, but we must endeavor to be in good health at all bright hours. Besides, it''s not like we have a healer with us to nurse the littlest of our injuries." And then the noblewoman drank the rest of the potion, ending it off with a satisfied sigh. "Oh, but I must say... It has that pleasant fizz on the tongue..."


    Willow stared. Really, really hard.


    Aire blinked innocently. She seemed clueless at first, but as Willow burned a hole through her forehead, there was a second blink, this time within an inkling of critical thinking. It slowly began to dawn on her. She, and the maid, turned beet red.


    "Despite always calling me by my class," Willow said, her eyes accusing, "you completely forgot I was a White Mage, didn''t you."


    "...How about we start returning to Risadel proper?" Aire said. "Agreed?"


    Anne nodded rapidly. "Agreed!"


    The shameless silver spoons turned their backs and got their bird mounts ready. They even began huddling together in hushed whispers, constantly glancing over their shoulders at Willow with nervous smiles. They didn''t bother to hide the fact. Did they realize how ridiculous they looked?


    "Okay, Ruby. Just like before, please carry Miss White Mage on your back. It should be no problem this time, yes?"


    But there was a problem. A big problem.


    Ruby had one look at Willow, at her blood-drenched staff and the psychotic blood splatters on her clothes—and took a long step back. The Cherub shook her head. No. Many times. Absolutely not. Willow''s mayhem with the kobolds had evaporated every bit of goodwill she had.


    "Ruby, please..."


    "Oh, in that case, maybe Quartz here would—whoa!" Aire was just about to mount Quartz when she suddenly had to arrest the reins. The bird had begun writhing around, chirping in protest. "Easy there, boy! Easy! It''ll be okay! I promise!"


    "Your brother doesn''t like it either. Come on, Ruby," Anne pleaded to her feathered friend. Slowly, she tugged so that they and the White Mage were closer together. "You are the big sister here. I''m sure with enough time you''ll look past appearances and see in her a heart of—Ruby? Ruby, that''s the wrong way. Ruby?!"


    Quartz accidentally smacked Ruby, and that was the start of utter mayhem.


    The Cherubs fed into each other''s anxieties, screaming and running, forcing their owners to dig their heels in and prevent them from running off to the nearest haven they could find. Kicking up mud. Shedding their feathers. Chirping so loud that their ears rang. For all their intelligence, they were still animals.


    All the while, Willow just stood there, lips in a straight line, wondering how much more bullshit she could take today.


    Then mud slapped her face.


    "...I''ll just walk."