Chapter 26: Ch.23: Haste

Cyclops rise from the floor and fire out beams of energy from their singular eye down the hallway. Miler rushes down the hall with Ivar behind him as they decapitate two of the Cyclops. More emerge and rush forward towards the group as Faye and Fiona rush in, knocking them back into a group of Cyclops.

Mila rushes in from the back as flames dance around her tail. She pushes past the others and lets out a blast of flames from her hands, incinerating the Cyclops. The Cyclops is reduced to ashes as Mila stands with a smile on her face as Miller rushes to her side.

            “Mila calm down.”

Mila shakes her head and stops staring up at Miller. “I’m fine.”

            “You're losing control of yourself again.”

            “Come on, boss, she’s only worried about her man, give her a break,” Faye says.

Fiona nods. “If you keep coddling her, she’ll never gain control over these powers of hers.”

            “You're right, but we can’t afford for her to lose control now.”

Ivar stares down the hall. “Whatever is happening, the monster attacks are increasing. This is the third floor, but we’re still seeing first-floor monsters, too.”

            “Right. We should be careful. This place is not normal.” Faye sniffs at the air. “And it smells like crap.”

            “How’re the pieces?” Fiona asks.

Mila holds out her hand and her Queen piece comes out of her chest. Light comes from the piece pointing deeper into the depths of the Dungeon. “It’s not this floor.”

            “Great, another level deep. I swear he’s on the last floor.” Faye says.

Fiona smirks. “For him to be alive for this long on his own when he can’t fight. I have to respect that, at the very least.”

            “Okay everyone, let’s rest for a moment and then make our way to the next floor,” Miller says.

            “Rest? We don’t have time to rest?” Mila asks.

            “Well, we’re running ourselves ragged at this point. We have to rest or we’ll be the ones overrun by monsters.”

Mila looks at the group and pauses before lowering her head. “Alright.”

            “We’ve cleared this floor, so it should be safe for a moment.” Miller reaches into his bag. “I have buns if you’re hungry. I don’t have drinks, sorry.”

Ivar reaches into his bag. “I have water on me. It’s some of my extras.”

            “You sure you need to stay hydrated?” Fiona asks.

            “I brought plenty to spare. I figured we were going to have something weird come, so I wanted to be prepared.”

Faye sighs. “Come on. Both of you make me feel under-prepped.”

            “You didn’t bring anything, so you kind of are,” Ivar says.

            “Well, what about Fiona? She brought nothing!” Faye yells out.

Fiona reaches into her bag and pulls out a whetstone. “I brought some tools for weapon maintenance.”

            “Come on!”

Mila laughs.

            “What’s up?” Faye asks.

            “Sorry. But it was so funny how casual you are, all things considered.”

            “Well, at least I’m not the only one who didn’t bring crap with me?” Faye asks.

Mila lowers her head. “Well, it’s not anything too helpful, but I brought something with me that Glyn told me to bring.”

            “Oh, what is it?”

Mila pulls out a small ring and holds it up for the group to see. “He said it’s a small magic tool. It only works once, but it’ll refuel my Mana should I run low. But it only works once per day.”

            “Well, it’s a good item to have on hand in a case like this,” Miller says, grinding his teeth. “He says the Queen's position means nothing, but he hands her a ring, anyway. Just what is this idiot playing at?” He whispers.

            “Oh, dear. The boss is going into big brother mode again.” Faye says.

The group makes a makeshift camp, with Miller watching the group. Mila sits in the corner alone before Faye plops herself down next to her, chewing on the remains of her bun.

            “What is this stuff?” Faye asks Mila.

            “Oh, it’s a meat veggie mix. Grandmother says it’s the right amount of flavor and nutrition.”

            “Well, I like the meatier ones better. If the boss makes buns again, have him remember that.”

Mila lowers her head. “I made them.”

            “No shitting?”

            “Um no. Brother isn’t the best at cooking, so I have to cook for him when he attempts. He’s learning here and there, but for some reason, it always comes out wrong even if he follows the recipe.”

            “So that means every time the boss would come with snacks or a quick meal for patrol…”

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            “I made that. I wanted to support the unit in my way since I couldn’t control my magic. But Brother said that no one would eat them if they knew I made it.” Mila’s tail twists around as she looks around nervously. “If you find it distasteful then…...”

Faye sighs, stands up, and bows her head. “I’m sorry.”

            “Huh? What’re you apologizing for?”

            “For treating you like crap this whole time.” Faye sits next to Mila. “Growing up, we were told to stay away from you since you were an outsider. You were some dangerous being and when we were in the defense force together, that kind of stuck. I know it’s wrong to ignore and bully someone, but…. I just kind of went along with it.”

Mila lowers her head. “It’s fine. I was dead weight as it were and I wasn’t very useful in a fight or in training or….”

            “Stop that!” Faye yells out. “From here on, I’m not letting you say that crap. Understood!?”

            “Yes.”

            “How we treated you before was crap, and you still wanted to support people like us. Hell, you still wanted to help the village that pushed you out of it. That’s….”

Fiona approaches the pair. “More than a little messed up. But it’s not like you had much of a choice, given everything else.”

            “It’s fine. I wanted to help people, not for any reason, but just because I wanted to.”

            “I’ve had some minor misgivings about you. You’re strong, yet you’re afraid of that strength. I felt that natural power was wasted on one who would never use it.”

            “I’m sorry.”

            “But I was mistaken.”

            “Huh?”

            “Before, I saw only the benefits of that natural power. But seeing you up close, I can tell it’s a struggle. If you let loose and lose control, you’ll hurt not only yourself but everyone around you. And you’ve been dealing with that with barely any help all this time.”

            “It was difficult. But I had Brother and the rest of my family with me, so it isn’t so bad.”

Faye leans on Mila. “Well, we’re with you from here on.”

            “What?”

            “What she means to say is we’re your friends. While it's late to say this, we look forward to working with your form here on Mila.” Fiona says, reaching out her hand.

Mila’s eyes water as she grabs Fiona’s hand. “Huh?”

            “Are you okay?”

            “I don’t know what’s happening?”

Faye smirks. “Oh geez. Are you one of those teary types?”

Miller watches the three with a smile on his face as Ivar sits next to him.

            “If this War Game mess has done any good, it’s done good for Mila, hasn’t it, captain?”

Miller nods. “For the first time in her life, Mila can say she has friends. There’s nothing that makes me happier.”

            “For the record, captain. I consider myself Mila’s friend as well, but I don’t think you’d like another guy getting too close to her.”

            “Does everyone see me like that?”

            “You don’t dissuade the idea. When you caught people speaking of how cute Mila was, you almost cut them down then and there.”

Miller blushes. “They were talking about making her their mistress. What kind of brother would I be if I didn’t defend my sister’s honor?”

            “True. But hopefully, you’ll learn to cool your head. Who knows, maybe one day our king might make a certain request of his queen over there.”

Miller grabs his sword. “If that day comes, I’ll decide then and there how I’ll act.”

            “Speaking of our king, we should get to saving him, shouldn’t we?”

            “Right.” Miller stands. “Everyone, let’s clean up and head out. We’ve still got to get to the next floor.”

 

After cleaning up their camp, the group travels until finding a large black hole in the air in the back of a room. Miller steps towards the hole and holds out his hand, with Mila rushing to his side. He nods and Mila signals the group as they enter the hole and are enveloped in thick darkness.

As they open their eyes, they find a hallway dyed red as rocky outcroppings emerge from the ceiling. The group steps forward as a large monster emerges from the depths of the hall. A large four-limbed creature lacking a head stops forward before revealing an enormous mouth across its chest. It lets out a loud cry with Miller pulling out his sword.

            “Looks like we’re on the fourth floor officially now.” He says.

Everyone readies themselves for battle as Mila pulls out her sword. “Let’s hurry. I feel something odd is happening.”

            “Right,” Faye says.

            “Let’s get back to smashing our way through!” Fiona yells out.

Ivar smirks. “I’ll try my best to keep up.”

            “Everyone, give it your all!” Miller yells out, rushing ahead as everyone follows behind him.

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