The upper floor of the dungeon still exuded an eerie atmosphere, with dark mana seeping from the walls, stretching endlessly upward.
Oliver looked around at the foreboding surroundings and voiced his uncertainty,
"It might be an illusion, right?"
Eli gave Oliver a thoughtful, yet sowhat intense, stare before responding, "I have an idea to find out whether it's an illusion or not...Mind helping ?"
"There's no need for that" Oliver smiled and replied. He took a step back, seemingly having an idea of what Eli was planning.
'Tsk' Eli clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"Oliver" he called.
"Yes?" Oliver responded, maintaining his smile.
"What did you feel when you were poisoned?"
"...."
"If you feel uncon---"
Oliver hesitated for a mont before attempting to explain, "No, no, it's just, well... how can I say it... hmm..."
He scratched his head awkwardly, glancing between his sister and the Princesses who accompanied them, then continued,
"I wanted to... you know, engage in...inter-course"
Silence fell upon the group as they absorbed Oliver's unexpected revelation.
"Hmmm" Eli responded calmly, not minding the silence, "Male or female?"
"P-Pardon?" Oliver stamred, taken aback.
"I an, during that ti, you were fine with anyone, right?" Eli clarified his question.
"ha-hah..." Oliver chuckled nervously, sensing the tension and also glancing at Simon, who seed on the verge of bursting with anger, 'Don't you dare to utter anything' written all over Simon's face.
"...hahaha...it is a hell of a question, Asher" Oliver finally managed to say, trying to brush it off.
Eli, who had noticed the awkward dynamics within the group, comnted,
"I see, fine with anyone, then"
"..." Oliver suddenly stopped and looked at Eli with a wry face.
Eli ignored their weird expression and instead asked sothing important,
"So, what did you feel when you saw those monsters?"
"....." Seeing Eli's firm look, Oliver sighed, "Sigh, irresistible"
"....What?" Arlyne shouted as a look of disbelief crossed Arlyne's face.
"Thought so" Eli nodded knowingly and then shifted his attention back to their surroundings.
"Y-You an..." Kira began, her voice trembling with anxiety.
"Yes" Eli confird, acknowledging Kira's thoughts.
Curiosity piqued, and the group turned their attention to Kira.
"What is it, Kira?" Arlyne asked anxiously.
"Well, you see..." Kira muttered as she grabbed Kyra's hand, intertwining their fingers. Then Kyra got a quick nod from Oliver and just about began,
Eli interrupted,
"Short and simple,
Firstly, the Scorpion's poison was not ant to kill anyone; it was an aphrodisiac.
Secondly, those black humanoid monsters were once humans or mbers of another race, similar to us.
Lastly, it's just a hypothesis....that these monsters search for the affected person and....well, mate with them, eventually transforming them into Monsters".
"...N-No Way" Arlyne's face turned deadly pale upon hearing this revelation.
"...." Theo, too, was in complete shock.
"....." Simon had a shocked expression but inwardly grumbled, 'Tsk, If I had known all this, I would have sent him to his doom earlier...tsk,tsk...'
'Wait a minute, If I collect those poison then...' An idea popped into his head.
"Arlyne, it's fine, Look" Oliver consoled his sister, gently cupping her face as she teared up,
"I'm pretty sure if it weren't for your help, I would have been in serious trouble, and.....you know what could have happened to , right? It would have been much worse"
"...'sob', 'sob'" Arlyne, with tears in her eyes, couldn't help but cry silently as she thought,
'I-I know brother, our father will disown you and sisters-in-law will be sold out b-b-but what would I tell them if sothing happened to you?' she scread inwardly. She didn't want to ntion her family circumstances in front of strangers.
The others assud that Arlyne's tears were due to the burden of her undeserved recognition when she had adamantly refused to eliminate her own brother.
They could never have known the complex web of other families.
Listening to Oliver's words, Eli pondered, 'Well, every family has their own drama' as he shrugged it off and moved closer to the wall,
"Ouch"
Eli suddenly grabbed his head, a grimace crossing his face as an unknown pain surged when he attempted to use his Arts.
"What happened?" Kira asked when she heard the pain in Eli's voice.
"N-Nothing," Eli said, trying to quell the burning sensation in his brain.
He couldn't help but wonder, 'It seems like the quality of mana around here is mostly Dark Elents with only a limited amount of other Elents...' Eli wondered, his thoughts muddled by the oppressive magical aura in the dungeon.
"You know dicine, Right?" Kira inquired, Her blindfolded gaze turned toward Eli's eyes.
Eli, contemplating whether she was truly blind or not, replied, "I cannot say I know everything about dicine, but I've learned enough to survive in the forest".
"Hmmm" Kira stared? at Eli.
"You said you are Farr, right?" Suddenly Kyra chid in leaving the brother and sister alone for so ti.
"Yes"
"So, nowadays, farrs are becoming doctors?" A sarcastic voice chid in.
Eli glanced at the speaker and responded with a smirk,
"Our lives are always on the line, especially in remote areas where healers aren't readily available. We have to learn how to tend to our own needs and safety.
Snakes, scorpions, bats, and more....we have to protect ourselves by learning the properties of plants, their leaves, and their roots. We sow by understanding the climate and clouds, and we harvest by gauging the maturity of the plants we've sown. We even burn the remnants to determine the quality of the land..."
Eli continued to speak, his words reflecting the wisdom of a life closely intertwined with the natural world.
Or perhaps he had prepared this dialogue to show off....Who knows?
"..." Simon was left flabbergasted by the unexpected turn of events.
Kira and Kyra, however, had absorbed the wisdom in Eli's words as they listened intently.
Eli, after seeing Arlyne and Oliver resolve their issues, decided it was ti to conclude his lengthy monologue.
".....We farrs connect with nature, ensuring you nobles enjoy the gifts of nature, both the bounty and the shit it has to offer"
Eli remarked with a wink towards Simon before moving away.
"....." Simon's face turned beet red upon hearing Eli's parting statent.
'YOU BASTARD!!' he scread inwardly.
After consoling Arlyne, Oliver pledged to be more cautious.
As they were about to continue their journey,
Simon suddenly exclaid, "Shit, I forgot my bracelet!" in surprise.
"What?" Oliver asked, his brow furrowed as he noticed Simon's empty hand. He was about to inquire further when,
"You guys can go ahead, I'll catch up with you" Simon said hastily as he jogged away, not waiting for any discussion.
"W-Wait what are you doing, Simon?" Oliver shouted.
"I will be fine" Simon's voice echoed before he disappeared from their site.
"What in the...?" Veins began to pop on Oliver's forehead as he was about to follow Simon when,
"ggrrrr"
"hhehehee"
Everyone turned to look at the few new visitors.
A small group of black humanoid monsters with bloody red eyes stood before them.
The Faunmais' gazes fell upon Eli and Oliver's team, but unlike their earlier encounters, they didn't exhibit any signs of lust or irrational behaviour.
Just about to Eli took his weapon when,
/Cleanse/
/Cleanse/
"Co on, you fuck heads"
'Thud'
'Thud'
'Thud'
'Thud'
Both Kira and Kyra unleashed their spells, and following that, Arlyne sliced through the monsters' heads like a knife through butter.
"...Let them have their fun" Eli muttered.
Oliver nodded in agreent.
After defeating those monsters, they waited for Simon for so ti, but he didn't seem to return. Thinking he might be lost, Oliver refused to help when Kyra asked for assistance.
Theo sided with Oliver, sharing his annoyance at Simon's behaviour.
As they delved deeper into the dungeon, they encountered fewer and fewer monsters. They only ca across one or two at most. The signs of blood splattered around indicated that another group had already entered this area.
"It's getting darker" Arlyne muttered as she carefully walked alongside Kira and Kyra.
'Flash'
"Oh?" Arlyne exclaid cutely when she suddenly saw a bright flashlight.
Turning around she saw Eli holding a small compact-size flashlight in his hands.
"You're well-prepared" Oliver said, patting Eli on the back.
"Well, it's always good to be prepared" Eli replied.
"Hahahaha...damn, man, I feel like we could be brothers" Oliver said, a heartfelt grin on his face.
However,
"No need, I have enough brothers that I wanted kill" Eli flatly refused as he joked....right?
Hearing that,
"----Hahahahahahaha" Oliver laughed even more.
Eli covered his ears, annoyed by the laughter, 'Well, if monsters hear him, they might co' he thought.
Observing this exchange, Arlyne looked at her brother with a strange expression and was about to say sothing when...
'crunch, crunch'
Everyone imdiately froze as they heard a munching sound.
"..." They were entirely in a dark place....too dark.
Kyra tightens her grip around Kira.
Theo saw an opportunity to play the hero and protect the princesses, but...
"Your Highnesses!!" Arlyne grabbed their hands and pulled them behind her, like a mother hen protecting her chicks.
'CRUNCH, CRUNCH'
'Flash'
The sound of sothing munching grew louder. Eli tried to focus on the sound, but before he could see anything, a black figure darted away, leaving behind.....half-eaten black Faunmia.
The grueso scene revealed chunks of flesh missing, exposing bone and viscera. The sight was horrifying, with black blood and gore splattered around the area, creating a nightmarish tableau of violence and brutality.
Disgust filled everyone's faces as they wrinkled their noses in response to the unpleasant sight and sll.
Oliver unsheathed his thin sword.
'gulp, gulp'
The sound of gulping followed.
'gulp'
'gulp'
'gulp'
Hearing this, Arlyne, Kira, and Kyra swallowed hard, their throats dry with fear.
'Flash'
"KYAAAA!!!
The scream pierced through the air, filling the darkness with terror.
Arlyne, unable to contain her fear, let out a shrill cry. She clung to Kyra and Kira for support, her body trembling.
Eli frowned as a silhouette passed in front of them and then glanced at Arlyne who was now being comforted by Kira and Kyra.
"She is bad with these kinds of stuff" Oliver interjected when he saw Eli focusing on Arlyne.
"...." Eli nodded not saying a word but inwardly, 'At least Saintess seems doing well' When he saw Kira and Kyra appeared to be more curious than terrified.
"Asher, THERE!!" Suddenly, Oliver's shout caught their attention, and they turned to look.
Eli followed his point and,
'Flash'
At that mont, Arlyne caught a glimpse of a dark purple-haired figure.
"KYAAAA! G-G-GHOST!!!" She scread in sheer terror.
"Sigh"
Eli couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, realizing that the source of her fear was not a supernatural entity but soone else.
He recognized whose beautiful silky dark purple hair belonged to.
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