{Original Tsukima, a little earlier}

“Well, that’s one hindrance out of my way,” I said before using [Clean] on my body, wiping the remains of Cyec’s corpse on me, “I shouldn’t dawdle too much. If Ani—if Jinma and his group are somewhere in the third cell, I need to reach them and reconnect with my [Clone] before anything and get the gist of the situation—”

Just as I was talking, I felt a powerful force suddenly weighing on my shoulders. A force of great bloodlust and malice unlike any I’ve ever felt before. It was greater than even Father’s power from when I last saw him in action, and I doubt that was his full power at the time. It’s a wonder how I haven’t even got a read of their presence until now.

I quickly turned to the source and got into a battle stance, but got confused about who I saw.

A Human woman with a black leather bodysuit, an enchanted chain whip wrapped across her waist and shoulder, and a peculiar red helmet that covered her whole head. It was hard not to forget this one, who goes by Kisaki, even when I only got a hold of her image after reconnecting with my [Clone] the other night. The equipment she wore was unlike any I’ve seen or read about, and I couldn’t even see her status or location with my skills, which brought me to the immediate theory that Kisaki may be a Champion from Jinma’s world. My [Clone] disguised as an Arch Imp only spoke with her briefly the first time they met—though ‘spoke’ might be a bit much since my [Clone] was the only one talking—and she didn’t seem to pose much of a threat.

This is the first time I’ve met Kisaki as my true self, not having met her in the castle, yet this malice that emanated from her was through degrees Vask couldn’t ever hope to match. If I was struggling to stand under her pressure while at only 70% of my full power, then he would have no doubt crumbled in her presence. So what does she have against me who she’s never met before?

“Your hostility towards me is strong, yet this is our first meeting,” I said calmly with a royal air, pretending to have met her for the first time, “Do you not know who I am? I would rather not fight without cause, much less one that is not of my own kin, yet this intent to kill is enough to count as treason towards one of my position. State your name and business, and choose your words wisely.”

“Kisaki, and I just wanted to take a good look at who I’m dealing with, since I know who you are and what you’ve done, Your Majesty.”

My heart rate jumped briefly, but my poker face was still calm. This was the first I’ve ever heard Kisaki spoke without her Slave’s assistance—who incidentally is not present right now. Kisaki’s voice had that familiar distortion to it that Devils have when their [Devil Eyes] are activated. To have that addressed to me with such malice, something about it all made my back break into cold sweat. Is she actually a D-Human?

“... So you do know who I am,” I said, maintaining my calm facade, “And what, pray tell, have I done to deserve such ire, Kisaki?”

“For deceiving Jinma to the point of drawing his blood and messing with his and his lovers’ memories through your [Clone], of course.”

“How did you—?!”

Before I had a chance to fully retort in shock, Kisaki moved from a couple meters away to in front of my face within an instant. I instinctively react by bracing myself to take her uppercut to my gut, yet the pain I felt from such power was beyond what I’ve dealt with in my cruel training.

“GUHACK?!”

Through that force, I spat saliva while being sent flying straight up in the air. I wasn’t given enough time to correct myself as Kisaki caught up with me, whether by [Portal] or something else, I couldn’t tell. It was so fast that I had to resort to activating my [Devil Eyes] for the sake of better defending myself against her next attack. She delivered a spinning ax kick to my back, my spine underneath got smashed and cracked as it went out of place. My body then plummeted back down to the ground like a meteor making a crash landing, creating a small crater underneath and slightly shaking the surrounding area. As if that wasn’t painful enough, Kisaki followed up with a heavy drop kick on my back yet again, distorting it further out of place. The fact that the boots she was wearing had heels made the strike all the more excruciating, having it all focused into one place.

I haven’t felt this much pain since I was training my [Devil Eyes], and at this moment, it was difficult for me to speak, especially with the taste of iron filling my mouth. To think there are still people out there with this much power …

“It seems your parents haven’t disciplined you enough, so I’ll have to have a talk with them later,” Kisaki said before stomping on my injured back again, “You’ll have to make do with my discipline this time.”

“What … are you talking about?” I strained, my [Devil Eyes] activated, “I don’t talk to my so-called ‘mother’ anymore, and my father’s been dead for 4 years.”

“Oh, I know he’s alive, and you can’t use whatever you and this ‘Sammy’ used in ‘The Blink’ to ever convince me, otherwise,” Kisaki said before I could feel her approaching my ear, “You will tell me where Yoma is, one way or another, and when I do, I’ll make sure your whole family and Sammy will get what they deserve, Tsukima Kurokichi.”

My body ran cold and my heart raced even further. The Blink, our true names, how?!

“How … do you know all that? What’s … your goal?” I asked, “Are you working for Vask? Whose side are you on?”

“My source of intel and motivations are none of your concern, but don’t even think about lumping me with that bastard, Vask,” Kisaki said as she stepped off my back, got in front of me, and squatted before jabbing a finger in my head, “Just make sure you keep this in your stupid little head. You will not tell your brother of this little ‘spat’ of ours, but if you do, and if you ever harm him like you did the other night, your next discipline will be far more severe. Understood?”

I wanted to ask what relationship Kisaki has with Jinma, much less how she knows he’s my (half) brother, but the words couldn’t leave my mouth. The power she exuded after asking that question produced a pressure that far surpassed anything I felt before, including moments ago on her arrival. It showed that what she did to me within these last few minutes wasn't even her full strength. She could very well follow through that promise of hers, and I don’t know if that will be my last ‘discipline’ she’ll deliver.

I could only nod meekly in response.

“Good,” Kisaki said before pulling her power back. She then lightly smacked my cheek, stood up, and turned around, “I got some cleaning up to do to make Jinma’s quest less of a hassle. If you apply yourself, be a real good little sister and help him out, I might just see you in a better light, Tsukima. Now put yourself back together, clean this shit up, and get going, and remember this: I’m always watching.”

With that, Kisaki quietly chanted [Portal] and left in an instant. Alone again, I put on my Arch Imp persona with [Disguise] once more and used [Heal] to get myself back into shape, snapping my disjointed spine back into place before standing back up.

“Who is … that woman?” I muttered before realizing I felt something damp between my legs. With shame and embarrassment, I cast [Clean] on myself and the mess I made before making my way to the dungeon, reaching out to my [Clone] with [Telepathy] all the while to get the status of the situation.

~~

{Umeiyon, present}

“So in short, you’ve overheard how there’s going to be an all-out ambush on an adventurer’s party led by a lone Human among Demons, thought of Jin, and decided to follow us to watch out for him. Does that sum it all nicely?” the disguised Dragoness, Umeiyon, asked the newcomer, the Werebear Rizz, as she and her group walked through the dungeon. A ball of light from her [Holy Magic] spell, [Create Light], lit up the way of their dim path.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Hanging her head in shame, Rizz nodded, “I didn’t want to believe it, but knowing how he and his Familiars escaped that weird Monster Outbreak yesterday, I just had a feeling there would be another problem like that happening to him, and I was worried. I didn’t want to interrupt your quest, however, which was why I tried to keep my distance. I’m sorry again if it looked suspicious to you.”

“Well, if I’ve been aware of your presence for a while, then it’s likely Jin was the same,” Umeiyon said, “If he suspected you of anything, he would have brought you to our attention. Unless you’re spying for those very people targeting us, then I don’t see you as much of a threat as Jin does.”

Rizz shook her head and beastly bear paws frantically, “No! Absolutely not! I’m not good with sneaky stuff like that, and there’s no way I could harm a fellow adventurer with ill intent, especially someone like Koto—Jin—uh, what’s his real name?”

“His full name is Jinma Kotori,” Umeiyon answered, “Jinma is his given name, but it seems he only gave you his surname out of precaution. I call him ‘Jin’ out of respect from my own cultural background.”

Rizz nodded in understanding, “Right, and after overhearing how he’s being targeted, speaking as a fellow adventurer, I can understand why he’s being careful with personal information, so I’m not planning on holding that against him. That last battle I saw was the first I’ve seen him fight, and I can already see that he’s quite capable, so now I’m worried about where he’s ended up after falling through that Trap Hole.”

“Hmm. What do you think, Ren?” Umeiyon asked.

“She seems earnest, as I didn’t catch any hints of lying from her,” Ren said, “I’m more curious to know what your own party members think of you acting on your own.”

“We’re supposed to be on time-off for a while and I’d normally be sleeping in right now, but I could hardly sleep last night after what I heard,” Rizz answered before shrugging, “The rest of my party usually does their own thing. When I asked the inn where we stayed this morning, though, they said they didn’t know where my party went. Weird, since they’d usually let me know that much.”

Umeiyon, Ren, and Kenaka looked at each other incredulously until a large pillar suddenly erected from the ground to the dark, unseeable cavern ceiling just a couple meters away from the group. The suddenness of it all surprised them, but just as fast as that pillar appeared, it vanished into nothingness, as well.

“Ah, looks like someone from above has also triggered a Dungeon Hole, and are now falling through to the lower floors as we speak. That’s what the sudden appearance and disappearance of that pillar indicated,” Rizz explained.

“Huh, so this is what Jin and Tyvera’s groups falling through the floors looked like a while ago? This is the first time I've seen something like this,” Umeiyon said.

Rizz nodded, “Yep, that’s right. Anyway, I had no idea the Duke of Demon’s Disciples are the ones targeting Jinma, and that your quest actually involved escorting a noble. He must be a more experienced adventurer than I gave him credit for. I feel a little bad underestimating him.”

“He’s experienced in fights, yes, but he actually hasn’t been registered as an adventurer for very long,” Umeiyon corrected, “Let’s say that due to some unique circumstances, he’s starting off at a higher rank than normal. I’m on the same boat as I registered at the same time as him.”

“Wooow, and after watching your magic earlier, you and Jinma must be super strong,” Rizz said in amazement.

Umeiyon smiled smugly and puffed her gifted chest out in pride, “Riiight? It’s to be expected since Jin is my husband, after all.”

“Ehhhh? You’re married?” Rizz asked in surprise.

“Yes, and the majority of us in Master’s party are also his lovers, myself included,” Ren said, puffing out her not-so-gifted chest with the same vigor.

“We’re all quite capable of looking after Jin in our own way, and he’s got talented Familiars by his side, too,” Umeiyon added, “It may look bleak right now, but we’re able to handle this problem ourselves. If you’d like, I can use [Portal] to open a way for you back outside the dungeon so you can catch up with your sleep.”

“Hmmmmmmm …” Rizz hummed for a while as she crossed her arms with her eyes closed, heaving the heavy weights of her bosom—the biggest of all in their group, even—up from underneath, and thought hard to make her decision.

Just when Ren was thinking the Werebear should hurry up so they can get back to reuniting with her master, she noticed a faint scent of an incoming enemy. She quickly checked her immediate surroundings until looking up at last, noticing a larger-than-normal Dire Bat just hurtling itself straight down onto the oblivious Rizz at a shockingly fast pace.

“Rizz, stay still and don’t—” Ren started to say calmly, reaching for one of her throwing knives to intercept the Monster.

Before she could finish, though, Rizz nonchalantly reached up and caught the falling Dire Bat in one of her beastly bear hands at a speed Ren couldn’t comprehend. Umeiyon and Kenaka were also surprised to see how easily she was able to stop that Monster, who’s now struggling to break free from the Werebear’s grip.

“Hmmm … going back to sleep does sound nice, and I do see Jinma’s party being capable, but I just can’t shake this uneasy feeling in my chest,” Rizz thought aloud as she brought the bat down to both of her hands before she started tightening her grip.

Almost immediately, sounds of crushing bone and pained Dire Bat screeches can be heard echoing through the dungeon floor. It was both so uncomfortably wet and crunchy that Ren couldn’t help but flinch as it paired with the Monster’s struggles for freedom. The fact that Rizz was the one making this without even a hint of remorse and effort in her strength was pretty disturbing to her. It’s been well-known that Werebears are one of the strongest tribes of Werebeasts amongst the Demon-Kin, but this was clearly the first time Ren has witnessed such strength before her. Umeiyon and Kenaka only watched the gruesome, yet unique use of said strength with intrigue.

Bones started to poke out of the Dire Bat’s body with its eyes popping out and crying tears of blood as Rizz continued to easily crush it in her hands further, bending and breaking the Bat Monster’s appendages in ways they shouldn’t. Its figure warped and became smaller and smaller, with more and more blood leaking out between her fingers and dripping onto the ground.

“Also, what that Cyec said before leaving has me bothered for a while, much less annoyed me,” Rizz said to no one in particular while easily crushing the Dire Bat in her hands further, “If what she said was true, then the whole Duke of Demon’s Disciples party is plotting against the downfall of Jinma and his own party, which sounds like they were just formed recently. This goes beyond veteran adventurers gaslighting the rookies … and those are the kinds of adventurers I could never tolerate.

“Yeah, that’s right. So what if Jinma’s a Human? He’s an adventurer like me and them, why can’t they respect him like I do? Why can’t they just leave him to his own business and worry about their own matters? If this is how members of the disciples treat other adventurers, then they’re no different than bullies … and bullies need to get straightened out,” Rizz said, the last bit sounding calm yet so unbelievably threatening that her bloodlust became palpable right then and there.

At this point, Umeiyon’s group can see what’s going on now. Despite how lackadaisical she looks on the surface, Rizz seems to have an incredible amount of control of her emotions to where they can be used proactively into different tasks. That Dire Bat just became an unfortunate target for the Werebear to vent her emotions on in that moment, and it’s been quite effective. The only thing on their minds is if this is how she is when ‘frustrated’, they wondered what happens when she’s more than that. Ren, despite how strong she’s become now, was the only one among them who didn’t want to find out. Umeiyon and Kenaka, on the other hand, just became more curious about this aspect.

Finally finished with her thoughts, Rizz looked down into her bloodied beastly hands, finding only a misshapen ball of flesh and bones. One wouldn’t even believe that ball used to be a Dire Bat moments ago. Despite the uncanny and disturbing transformation, the Werebear only sighed before she merely tossed the Monster ball over her shoulder. Clearly, this wasn’t the first time she’s ‘vented her frustrations’ like this.

“I’m sorry, Umeiyon,” Rizz apologized as she used her own clothes to wipe off her blood-soaked hands, “I really meant to follow you guys up to a certain point until I knew for sure things would be safe, but I just can’t go back and leave things like this, not when I know a new friend I’ve made might be in trouble. I can assist you however I can with my strength. I won’t get in the way of your quest, nor take any of the credit for helping you with it, either. I just want to make sure Jinma’s okay and gets through this quest safely, so may I tag along with you guys for a while?” Despite how threatening she may look with her hands and gear covered with dried blood, the concern she had in her eyes as she made that request showed that her feelings for Jinma’s well-being were genuine.

Umeiyon’s group quickly exchanged looks between each other and immediately came to a unanimous decision.

“If you don’t mind, then we’ll gladly bring you along, Rizz,” Umeiyon spoke for all of them, “And I’m sure Jin will be happy to have someone like you going out of their way to help him.”

“Just as I said to Lady Mei a while ago, though, I’m going to confront my brother and former tribe when we get to the end of this cell. I ask that you please leave that to me alone, Rizz,” Ren pointed out.

Rizz sighed a breath of relief, “Of course, I understand. Still, I’m so glad to come along with you guys. I think more than anything, though, now that I know how much of a big deal Jinma is, I want to get to know him more once we regroup with him and the others.”

Umeiyon smirked, “You really like him, do you? Even though you only met him a few times?”

“Oh, yeah!” Rizz exclaimed without hesitation, “The moment I saw him in line for this dungeon yesterday morning, trying to work so hard on his own, I just wanted to comfort and put him at ease a little. You just can’t seem to leave him alone for a moment.”

I totally get you, Umeiyon and Ren thought while nodding at the same time.

If Milord’s other lovers think like this, then I fear he’ll be doomed of being spoiled rotten. I can’t say whether that’s a good or bad thing in his case, though, Kenaka thought.

Just as they stood there thinking, however, another large pillar erected near them, staying there briefly before disappearing like the previous one.

“Man, there are a lot of people going down these holes today, huh?” Rizz asked in surprise.

Umeiyon’s eyes furrowed, “Knowing our party split up in the same fashion, I don’t like the looks of this. We should get moving to the end of the cell, as soon as possible.”

The others in her group nodded in agreement before continuing their dive at a jogger’s pace with a new ally following them, none the wiser of others who had just gone on ahead.