About a minute had passed since the strange foxkin had made her escape and I was still trying to make sense of it. Marisa and Aspen, seeing my confusion, checked the barred room themselves, trying to make out what had caught my attention, but the girl was long gone by now. There was nothing to be seen other than a thick cloud that slowly hovered towards the passage, apparently trying to block our view of the room. It took me a moment to notice it was filled with mana, and quite densely at that, meaning that was at least magical in origin, if not a monster unknown to me.

Whatever it was, it did not make a single further move after finishing its task of hiding the neighboring room from our prying eyes. Marisa, the foxkin champion, could only react with a sigh upon seeing this happening, indicating that she very well knew what had just happened. And, quite honestly, it had caught my curiosity as well, so I soon found myself walking over to her, and asking what it was all about.

“It is the Steam Fox,” she explained. “He is a little bit overprotective because of his mate. But he won’t attack us as long as we stay away.”

“Mate?” I couldn’t help but ask, knowing for a fact that dungeon monsters did not bond – ever.

“She is pregnant,” Marisa added to my confusion.

Hearing this, I could only stare at her in disbelief. Monsters born outside of dungeons could breed easily, turning them into quite the menace when not kept under control by regularly culling their numbers, but the same could not be said about dungeon monsters, who were entirely magical in origin and thus lacked the capabilities of increasing their numbers by themselves. Only the dungeon core itself could summon more of them. This meant that these two monsters alone, if Marisa really told the truth, overturned universally accepted truths and discoveries that had been proven over and over again for centuries and even millennia!

I shook the thought of this really being the case out of my head. She must be mistaken. It was very likely its supposed mate was just a slightly fatter variant of an existing monster, as sizes and shapes could indeed vary for most types of monsters. This was even more likely for those with malleable shapes like the cloud monster itself, meaning even if it behaved strangely and seemed to have formed a couple, there should be a far more reasonable explanation for why that was.

With that out of the way, I decided to take a look at the other monsters the dungeon had to offer, especially since I had heard of them being fox–shaped rather than living clouds. There wouldn’t be many of them, as the dungeon was very young, but things could still be worthwhile to explore, I guessed.

“I want to take a look at the dungeon,” I explained to the two. “Do you want to accompany me?”

Aspen was the first to answer. He shook his head, before denying my request.

“The foxes don’t exactly like me,” he explained. “And contrary to you, I can’t even get a blessing, so I would rather do my duty in the camp for now. Until I get back on my feet, at least.”

“You can’t get a blessing?”

“Our current theory is that receiving the blessing requires a certain level of strength, as some of the workers didn’t receive it even once.”

“You are talking about God’s Breath?” I asked him.

“Yes,” he confirmed. “It seems to have sapped most of mine when it activated.”

This sounded threatening to say the least. A blessing that actually made you weaker? Who would want that?! I could easily spend years trying to increase my strength even by a little bit and risk my life over and over again while doing so, so giving any of it away just for a temporary boon sounded ludicrous. I couldn’t think of anything that would make this trade worthwhile.

“Still better than being dead,” he continued. “Although it took a while to get used to… this.”

With ‘this’ he meant the ears and the tail he was now pointing at, the latter of the two hanging out of a, now that I looked at it, rather makeshift-looking hole in his armor.

My confusion must have been very obvious, as Marisa now came to my rescue, trying to explain just what had happened to the guy. Her words, however, couldn’t possibly sound more outlandish.

“The blessing itself does nothing. You don’t even notice it most of the time. But should you die within the dungeon, it will transport you back to the shrine and revive you.”

I couldn’t believe my ears. “It revives you?”

“At the cost of most of your strength and your humanity,” Aspen added, looking rather uncomfortable to admit so. “Or… elvenity in your case? Is that the right word?” He shook his head. “I wouldn’t recommend trying it out.”

“You… were human?”

Aspen sighed deeply. “I challenged one of the foxes to a duel and paid the price.”

This… absolutely made no sense. A dungeon reviving you was an idea usually found in stories, which often involved a corrupted dungeon avatar being too overconfident and malicious, thus trying to humiliate the hero of the tale by seeping all of his strength before tossing them out, only to end up having their cores destroyed when he eventually returns after spending years on regaining his strength and confidence.

Only one dungeon I had visited had actually handed out such a blessing out of goodwill, which was the Emerald Grove, Zaleria’s chosen dungeon, and the place where she had decided to make me her champion. But even this blessing could not be compared, as you had to delve all the way down to floor eight and defeat a rare corrupted dryad to gain its quickly decomposing fruit. Only after eating the whole thing before it spoiled would you receive a temporary blessing that would shield you with a cocoon of vines upon receiving a fatal wound while also rapidly healing you, allowing other delvers to come to your aid in the meantime. This blessing, too, seeped away your strength, but it didn’t come at the cost of changing your whole existence!

A shiver ran down my back as I had this thought. Did this mean… all of these foxkin had died in this dungeon?! Was that the reason why they were so much weaker than in the texts?! No, had all of them started as… humans?

“Those… foxkin,” I heard myself ask.

Aspen’s expression almost immediately changed to a wry smile, which was more than enough of an answer. Still, he went to confirm it, although he looked rather unwilling to do so.

“I led an exploration raid a few days ago,” he explained. “We didn’t make it far and most of us,” he sighed. “Well… you have seen the results.”

“They used to be human,” Marisa helped him out. “I did too, in fact.”

Even with them standing in front of my eyes, living, breathing foxkin, it was hard to believe this.

“Cilia turns humans into foxkin?”

“I am sure it would work on you as well,” Marisa offered. “You received the blessing just fine.”

A shiver ran down my back upon hearing this. How could I ever show my face to my family should that happen? They weren’t exactly happy about my dangerous line of work, but I could always show them my scarless body and tell them I was fine. They did not have to know about all the healing I had to go through to get it back that way, nor about the pain that had caused the wounds in the first place. If they saw my whole body change like that, they would cry themselves to their sleep for sure!

Naturally, I would make sure this would not happen. And a dungeon barely a few weeks old could not force this onto me. It had to defeat me first!

Having regained my determination, I invited the two again to join me, which Aspen once again denied. Only Marisa accepted with a shrug, seemingly not fearing the dungeon in the slightest despite her far lower level of strength and experience. Her nonchalant answer made me feel like a fool.

Luckily, Marisa did not allow for this feeling to linger for much longer, as she, after saying her goodbye to Aspen, readily led me towards a nearby tunnel which likely led deeper into the dungeon. I waved at the man myself, before following her into the darkness, which was soon fought back by her magic, a ball of fire now hovering above her hand.

The path to the next room was once again perfectly smooth–walled as if carved into the mountain by a golem with way too much time on its hand. And once again, it lacked any natural lighting or concernable features that allowed you to see you were actually progressing, which, in combination, made traversing this tunnel feel slightly claustrophobic to me.

Luckily, it only lasted for a few more minutes as we soon reached a lit-up section again. This time, I could make out a lake or wide river, with a long, wooden bridge leading over it. On the other shore, a sparse forest awaited us. The most breathtaking sight, however, was a genuine volcano that was waiting at the left side of the room. Rivers of molten rock could be seen flowing down its side, and plumes of smoke rose into the stormy sky.

“She calls it the ‘Volcano Room',” Marisa explained. “But we still have to decide on a proper name.”

I nodded. It wasn’t the most imaginative name, but it certainly worked.

“Does the dungeon have a name already?” I asked her.

“Cilia has named it Dungeon of Foxes, so that will probably stay as its name.”

“The Sister of the Forest named it?”

“That is what Kiomi said, yes.”

“Kiomi?”

“That is the name of the dungeon avatar,” Marisa explained. “She used to be human as well, but… well, things happened.”

“I see,” I heard myself answer. “So that was the girl I saw before.”

“Red hair, smaller than me, and a black and white dress with red laces? Where did you see her?”

“When we were at the statues. But she ran away before I could call out to her.”

“I see,” Marisa answered with a sigh. “She isn’t exactly good with strangers. And she feels uncomfortable whenever someone enters her dungeon.”

I nodded, knowing that at least the latter part was just a natural part of being a dungeon avatar. It was mainly because her core was more vulnerable due to the dungeon being too young and small that she felt that way, meaning things would become better once she started digging deeper into the mountain and put more monsters between herself and most of the delvers. There would be outliers still, such as when a particularly strong adventurer came to her dungeon, which could quite possibly make her feel the entire threat of an exploration raid, only coming from a single person. I could only imagine how my presence made her feel, and it certainly wasn’t comfortable.

Still, I had my reason to be here and questions to ask, so despite being a hassle for her to have around, I would make my way to her core room to find her. Hopefully, the fruits I had brought with me would turn this whole ordeal into a good thing for her when she thought back to it.

“What kind of monsters does she have?” I asked as we made our way over the bridge, its planks creaking under our feet.

“She only has elemental foxes. A few small critters as well, but those are no danger if you watch your step.”

“I see…”

Soon after making our way over the bridge, I saw the first few of them waiting in the lush grass. Foxes that had seemingly been crafted out of fertile soil, every single one of them ready to block our way, growling and barking as they did so. A much more solid-looking fox was leading them, likely a variant made out of stone instead, as it shared its color with that of the volcano.

The sight of these clearly combat–ready monsters made Marisa look visibly uncomfortable, as even her tail had grown to twice its thickness, as a single glance of mine confirmed.

“They– they're different today!" she said. "Usually, they're very friendly, enjoying being fed fruits and scratched!”

I couldn’t help but sigh. “That would be my fault,” I answered. “The girl feels threatened by me, and all of these monsters know it.”

It wouldn’t be an issue. With the lush grass and the colorful flowers and especially those healthy-looking trees, there was no way for me to lose the fight. Even if I had never seen any of these plants ever before, they, too, would listen to my demands without fail. So, without hesitation, I walked towards them, already sending down my mana to my feet, where I gathered it and sent it into the ground. It was a neat trick that I had learned, one that surprised most foes, monsters included, and these foxes, too, were caught off guard, as roots soon shot out of the ground, ready to entangle them all.

Not even five seconds had passed before they all had been caught, despite their best attempts to run away. And roots as thick as an arm were now holding them in place. I could crush them easily using these same roots, but choose to not do so. Instead, I walked towards the stone elemental and, like you would let a cat or a dog, let it sniff my hand, as to show I was not meaning them any ill will.

It took me a few moments to win the fox over, but I could soon scratch it like Marisa had told me, my fingernails threatening to break against its rough body. A minute or two into doing this, I slowly released the shackles I had on the monsters, forcing the roots back into the soil. The foxes now kept their distance, watching me warily, but no longer threatening to attack. If anything, they were waiting for their leader’s decision, which was unlikely to be a hostile one, as it was already purring and wagging its tails like a weird mixture between a cat and a dog. The texts had been right about this part of their behavior.

Once the fox was satisfied, it ran off, yelping and laughing as it made its way back to wherever its home was. The earth monsters surrounding us slowly trotted away as well, seeing no reason to be here any longer. They soon disappeared into burrows they had dug nearby, their dusty tails the last thing I saw of them.

It was only now that I turned around to face Marisa, who had apparently watched all of this happen open–mouthed. With her level of strength, this much surely was surprising, but if what I was feeling was indeed the truth, she had the potential to reach even higher than me. This was especially true since she was not limited to specific types of dungeons, as I felt several types of mana inside of her body, all of them strong and stable, rather than trying to overwhelm each other.

Magic simply did not work like that. It always strove for supremacy, trying to change the whole body to suit its needs while keeping all other elements out. Only the hands of a deity, Zaleria in my case, could keep this from happening. So while I had been born with an affinity to water magic, and had worked many hard years to hone it into a proper weapon, I didn’t simply lose all of this effort when the goddess decided to select me as her champion. Instead, she gave me control over nature magic as well, which, rather than overwhelming my former magic, deeply harmonized with it, as if they were always meant to be a single thing.

But Zaleria was only known for her control over nature, just like the Sister of the Forest was known for light and life. Why would her champion gain this many schools of magic instead of just those two?

“Why does your magic feel so weird?” I couldn’t help but ask.

Marisa didn’t seem surprised to hear this question. If anything, she, as a magician, knew best that she felt different compared to others. So, after thinking about it for a moment, she gave me an honest answer.

“I can use any magic the foxes can use,” she revealed. “But only those!”

To prove her point, she summoned a snake made from water that rushed towards me and bit into my leg. But after the barely noticeable hint of pain, I recognized the spell was meant to have healing properties instead. Sure, there were no wounds to be found on my body, but I knew exactly what water magic was capable of. And her magic spell, while seeming crude, was very efficient at what it did, as the snake shape and its ability to bite its target helped bypass the natural barriers every living being had, allowing it to heal fast and, presumably, with little mana lost to the surroundings instead. It was a weak spell, comparatively, but one that would take experienced mages months and even years to come up with and perfect. Even in all my years of exploring and destroying dungeons, I had yet to have the free time required to master my weaker spells. I went with brute force instead, which did the job quite well. Still, I was quite intrigued by her magic, to say the least.

“Just how many spells do those foxes have?”

“There seem to be two for each tail they have,” she answered after a moment of thinking. “But I haven’t found out every single spell yet, as I didn’t see all of the foxes fight.” She pointed at a nearby burrow. “The Earth Foxes dig through the earth using magic and also harden their bodies. As for the stone one, I have no idea. It is new.”

I nodded, accepting her answer for now. If she could indeed use this ‘fox magic’, for lack of a better word, that would easily explain how she got that weird feeling to her, as there could be several types of monsters to be found even in a new dungeon. And this one seemed rather special.

With that out of the way, we soon made our way through the room, following the path the dungeon avatar had set up. It led us by the volcano slope, where more of the foxes were already waiting for us. There were about two dozen of them, this time made of fire and molten rock. These monsters, too, were threatening us with growls and barks, but they didn’t dare to attack yet, likely because Marisa was with me. Still, they came closer, at least the five lava monsters were, with the others watching us from a distance instead, their fiery bodies seemingly burning with rage.

Marisa was more than uncomfortable about this situation we had found ourselves in. She didn’t straight up hide behind my back, but she looked as if she was at least considering doing exactly that.

With a sigh, I decided that showing them what they were up against was the best course of action, as I still wanted the dungeon’s avatar to talk to me. It was highly unlikely she would be willing to listen after I went through a killing spree in what she very likely considers her home. So, with that in mind, I lifted my hand above my head, and created a large sphere of calm water, easily the size of the earthen huts I had seen outside.

The foxes were naturally taken aback by this. They knew they had no chance to defend themselves against an attack like this. So, after a moment of considering their next move, the Fire Foxes suddenly ran off, leaving the five made of lava to fend for themselves. Not liking their chances one bit, they soon escaped as well, not wanting to be turned into a smoking pile of stone just yet.

Seeing them run off, I released the magic. It shot into the sky, higher and higher, to then explode, showering the whole island with fine droplets of water. The foxes, having heard the noise and seeing the rock surrounding them turn wet in almost an instant, ran even faster now, yelping in panic. And soon, they had disappeared from my sight, most of them already hidden in their burrows where I couldn’t reach them. They were unlikely to try again.

The rest of the journey through the room was relatively peaceful. Marisa, who looked somewhat humbled by me showing off like that, now was showing me butterflies, bees, flowers, and trees instead, describing how they differed from those found just outside of the dungeon. She explained that every single plant and animal that was thriving here had been changed by the Sister of the Forest, most notably the grass with its white tips and the butterflies with their fox head marking, before revealing to me that the cherries and berries you could find here, although looking unfamiliar as well, were to die for.

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She happily pointed to one of the trees nearby, which, yes, looked like a cherry tree at first glance, but was practically loaded with white fruits instead, all of them bigger than any cherry that I knew of. One of the foxes was currently busy harvesting the plant, a white, half–translucent little thing with small wings on its back and a long, thick tail it seemed to use to better control its body. The fox in question didn’t even notice us approaching, as it was way too busy stuffing itself with fruit. Curiously its wings flapped faster and faster with each bite it took, the weird creature now visibly having trouble keeping itself in the air. But the fox did not care about this little detail, as it instead took another bite, this time as big as he could, seemingly in a final attempt to make itself bloat into a ball–shape instead. As soon as it had plucked the fruits free, a whole handful of them, the fox already dropped to the ground, its rapid flapping no longer able to carry its own weight. It didn’t exactly make a crash landing, but it still needed a moment to orientate itself.

It was only now that the weird fox noticed us. It looked at us, its black eyes darting from me to Marisa and back, but it soon opened its mouth and, within a fraction of a second, shot a ball of condensed wind magic straight at me. Despite my surprise, I somehow managed to dodge to the side, the fox, however, didn’t have as much luck. It was thrown back by the recoil of its own attack and rolled and bounced over the meadow, into the shadows of the trees where it then struggled to get back on its feet.

I looked at Marisa, trying to get an explanation out of her, but the foxkin looked like she was ready to bury herself into the ground right here and now, seemingly ashamed of the poor performance of the monster. While the monster was still fighting against itself and the forces of gravity, she explained that it was very new to the dungeon and did not have any experience yet. That only left one question.

“What would happen if you did that?”

“That… we might never find out.”

Her answer caused me to chuckle, which she answered by walking ahead, probably trying to hide her face. She soon reached out for one of the low–hanging branches of the cherry tree, plucked a few fruits from it and, after popping one of them into her mouth, handed me the others. Not seeing any reason to deny her gift, I tried the fruits myself. And indeed, while they had a pure white appearance and flesh, making them look weird and foreign, they were actually really tasteful and maybe even the best cherries I ever had.

The Air Fox, as she named it, made another attempt at hitting me, but it missed its attack as it could not keep up with us. And after making just another unceremonious exit, it finally gave up, leaving us to make our way back to the graveled path. A few more of the monsters shot at me, but now that I knew what to expect, I countered their magic with my own, sending water balls to intercept the blasts of wind, which worked surprisingly well. It drenched us in water though, which not only dropped quite a few of the uniquely marked butterflies right out of the air but also made Marisa look rather pitiful, especially since her tail lost most of its fluffiness in the process.

I helped her out by absorbing the moisture in the air surrounding us, but it didn’t quite do the trick, especially since we were now closing in on a bridge that was, once again, guarded by a single monster, making me question just how many of them this room could hold.

Contrary to the monsters we had already seen, this one was made out of water, completing the set of basic elements. Although I could not see its entire body, as only its head was reaching out of the water, I knew that it, too, was once again a fox, although it was carrying some kind of eyepatch on its snout, far away from its actual eyes. Instead of growling and barking, this monster seemed to be curious instead, that was until I could hear barking from the distance.

I looked to the right, towards the source of incoming trouble, only to question anything that I knew about dungeons soon thereafter. A boat was making its way towards us, carrying three more foxes. A pale blue one was steering the vessel with its two long tails, barking orders as the surrounding foxes. And there were many of them to be found following in the wake of the boat, all of them wearing those weird accessories on one part of their heads.

“Pirates?”

Marisa didn’t get to explain this weird scene to me, as the foxes were already about to reach us. Within seconds, the boat stopped, and when it did, all of the foxes were staring at us, their gazes about as threatening as that of a puppy. Only their leader, the two-tailed fox and the only one that wore its eye patch almost properly, looked stern rather than curious. It barked at me, seemingly demanding something, but I didn’t understand a single thing, obviously. So, before long, there was another bark, and the whole horde of foxes attacked at once, spraying us with water.

I could barely grab Marisa and guard us with a water shield as the first of the attacks reached us. They all impacted the hastily erected barrier with a wet splash before raining down on our immediate surroundings casting a rainbow as they did so. But the makeshift layer of protection held steady, refusing to budge one bit. Only when the leader of the foxes attacked itself did I get to prove myself, as it assaulted us with sharp blades of water instead, the first of which caught me by surprise as it easily sliced through the barrier I had created. The magic had lost most of its strength doing just that, but it still impacted my hip, leaving me stumbling for a bit.

The foxes had just waited for this. Using my lapse of judgment, they ran onto the shore, forcing me to create a better shield, this one surely capable of defending us. But the monsters surprised me once again. Half of them were keeping us busy with their now no longer threatening magic, the others, however, ran towards us, only to stop halfway before meeting us in melee. One of the weird creatures yipped in glee, before picking something up from in between the grass. It was my belt, dagger, and potions still attached. The leader’s attack had apparently cut it loose, allowing his followers to do exactly what they had come here for: steal my stuff.

A sigh could be heard coming from my side as they ran off. Making their hasty escape by diving deep into the water, which quickly turned calm again. Even the foxes on the boat had halfway escaped, yipping and seemingly laughing at my misfortune.

I was about to shoot some magic after them, trying to get my items back, at least the dagger, but thought better of it. My water magic would probably do little to nothing to them other than maybe sinking their boat, while my plant magic was too slow to work. I couldn’t find a single trace of algae, reed, or any other plant life in the shallow water anyway, meaning I was totally out of my element.

Defeated, I followed Marisa over a bridge, towards a tunnel that would lead us to the next room. It was a shorter one compared to those we had traversed before, but still dark enough for Marisa to once again use flame magic, this time summoning a blue flame of all things, one I immediately recognized for what it was. Only the dwarves would use this kind of flame, the few ones strong enough to wield it, anyway, and even these would treat it as a holy thing, celebrating its existence as a gift sent by their god. For it to be used to light up a mere tunnel – the mountainfolk would surely cry tears of envy.

Still, this must mean there was a monster here using the very same magic, which, quite honestly, sounded like a threat even to me with my water magic, as I could very well boil myself alive should I decide to extinguish such kind of flames. As for my nature magic? It was totally useless in such a fight. Just like with any plant of a plant, I could adapt vines and roots to suit my needs, such as making them far more fire resistant, but there obviously was a limit to that, and this dungeon was reaching it way too fast.

The next room was still manageable. It awaited us with a thick, warm mist that barely allowed one to look a few dozen meters ahead, but that much was enough to notice the dark silhouettes hovering above our heads. Marisa explained them to be floating stones, some kind of trial that would task you to jump over and over again until you reached the end. The ending of the obstacle course was visible from where we were standing. It was much higher up in the wall, but still within the realms of possibility for my magic.

Boiling hot bursts of water could be seen exploding here and there, making the intended route quite hazardous to traverse. And as if that wasn’t enough, I could feel monsters nearby, the guardians of this room. At first, I only felt their magic as faint traces in the air, but I soon noticed the mist surrounding us was thickening and, before I realized it, pale blue eyes were watching us.

It was a group of Steam Foxes, as Marisa was quick to explain, monsters that used their magic to turn themselves invulnerable to physical attacks and assault foes with the heat of their bodies while also keeping each other alive using hot bursts of steam. This was threatening to say the least, as all of my magic was mostly based on using sharp blades of water or roots and vines growing from the ground, nothing of which would do much against monsters that could turn themselves into literal clouds.

Luckily, I did not have to actually fight these things, even if I could likely fend them off by just spraying enough water at them. There was a much easier solution here, one that would be quite fun to use, actually.

First, I shielded us with a bubble of water, thick enough to block the attacks of the supposed foxes, then I grabbed Marisa’s hand and led her towards the end of the obstacle course, past a metal door and two fox statues much like those found in the prayer room. They would likely open to those killing these monsters, allowing them to skip the hassle with the stones, or lead to a hidden part of the dungeon instead.

It didn’t matter. Once upon reaching a good position, I checked the soil with my magic, finding it acidic but fertile. It would do well enough.

I pulled my backpack from my shoulders, opened it, and withdrew a small linen sack. I had colored it in a bright turquoise to ensure I wouldn't mistake it. Inside was the seed of an Aquaflare Vine, a rare but highly durable plant that thrived on the magical essence of both water and air, using these energies to take hold in even the most hostile surroundings. While its blossoms had a niche use in alchemy, I valued the plant for its ability to turn water-attributed mana into rapid growth instead, which could then be controlled using nature magic. It went without question that this combination made it the strongest weapon I had, capable of rendering even young dragons unable to move if used correctly. And with how small its seeds were, barely as large as a bean, I could carry dozens of them with me without them taking any noticeable space.

I pulled forth a single one of the seeds, almost perfectly round and colored in blue, turquoise, and silver, much like the blossom that had once produced them. After advising Marisa to hold me tight, I dropped it to the ground, stepped on it, and forced both water mana and nature mana into it, forcing the rapidly growing vine to wind itself around my leg and lift me up, together with the screaming foxkin. With my magic both fueling and controlling the plant with the strength and perfection I had gained over decades, we reached the platform at the end of the parcours in a matter of seconds. I immediately stopped feeding the vine, instead causing it to gently place us down on the rocky protrusion. Only now, that she had both of her feet on solid ground again, did Marisa stop screaming. She looked at me, accusing and judging me with her eyes alone, but I laughed it off. Another few times and she would have gotten used to it.

With the obstacles being skipped and the steam monsters unable to do anything about it, we soon found ourselves in another room, one that featured a large, steep slope with a large number of hurdles in the shape of pools of lava and scattered around rocks, each of them taller and wider than a person. A big lake of liquid stone was waiting at the bottom of the slope, another one was barely hidden behind two large rocks on our left side.

It took me a moment to make out any actual monster living in the room, other than small lizards with white–tipped tails and fire slimes that had both a tail and fox ears for some reason, that was. In the lakes, several Lava Foxes could be seen, all of them waiting for me to make a mistake, not that I would make any.

With my shield of water still strong and untouched by any attack, I walked down the slope, keeping Marisa right at my side. She explained to me that the foxes would use the slope to create avalanches of molten rock that would be unstoppable for basically anything a normal delver could toss at them. Only the rocks gave you some cover, that was, if there was such an avalanche coming in the first place.

With Marisa at my side, they didn’t even dare, likely seeing her as their ally and friend instead of an invader. A few of them, those living in the smaller ponds located at the slope itself, tried to block our way, but they didn’t actually attack when I kept Marisa close to my side, allowing us to reach the end of the slope entirely unharmed and without a single spell wasted. Once again there was a door and two fox statues to be seen. These were entrances to tunnels that allowed the dungeon avatar to quickly reach every room, Marisa now explained. The actual exit, the one we would take, was on the left side instead, once again hidden behind rocks that would help survive the aforementioned avalanches.

The tunnel it led us through was once again dark, causing Marisa to use just another ball of flame, white this time. I honestly didn’t know what to think about her capabilities anymore. There were three types of fire magic alone! And if she was anything like the steam foxes, she could even turn into mist and dodge most attacks at ease!

When I pointed this one out, Marisa answered only with a shrug, noting that she had never tried the Steam Fox’s magic out. But she did just that when we reached the next room, turning into a cloud of steam as if it was the most normal thing to do. She did seem to struggle to control the ability, though, as she was blocking my vision and hitting the water bubble, which was likely not a good thing, thus forcing me to cancel the magic prematurely.

Marisa solidified again soon after the water of my magic shield splashed onto the rocky ground. She looked exhausted now, likely due to the clash of our magic spells, but she quickly went to fix this issue by enveloping herself with the white flame I had just seen for the first time. A smile grew on her face even before the fire burnt out, and she already looked a lot more energetic again, indicating this magic had some supportive character despite its appearance.

It was only now that she was ready to proceed that I found the chance to explore the room we had found ourselves in. It was darker than the ones we had passed so far, and entirely carved out of dark rock. Colorful crystals could be seen growing out of the walls and the ground, most of them bigger than we were. All of them had a pure half-transparent white, one that promised a rich bounty should you be strong enough to free them from the blackish rock they had grown out of.

Naturally, doing so required a strength that even I did not have, as dungeons had strong protections against being changed by delvers. Even if I had the capability of harvesting these crystals, it would very likely still come at the price of being cursed by the Sister of the Forest, as all of these belonged to her in the first place. While strong curses were a thing only found in history books that were at least dating back to the War of the Great Forest, even minor ones could make you regret your greed for the rest of your existence.

There was a famous tale about a dwarven king who got too greedy while exploring his god’s chosen dungeon and was thus cursed to have crystals grow out of his own feet. This was still a minor curse in comparison, but more than enough to teach the man a lesson he forever regretted, as he spent the rest of his life trying to avoid stepping into sharp–edged shards of the exact treasures he had once sought.

Knowing this, I could look at the likely very precious crystals as mere decorations only, things better left untouched. And decorative, they were, especially with the holes that were dug in the ceiling, all of which allowed beams of sunlight to fall through them. The openings were solely found above ponds of calm water which were spread around the room, each single one tainted in a beautiful turquoise.

This room, too, was home to foxes, all of which were ready to intercept us, or rather me. The biggest of them was almost entirely formed of what looked like black glass, only the tips of its ears and tail being pure white instead. It was surrounded by a group of Water Foxes, although these didn’t come with any weird accessories found on their bodies.

The black fox had already fanned out its three tails, asserting its authority and strength. Its smaller comrades were a tad slower to mimic, but they gave it their all in imitation. And quite honestly, I was at least taken aback, as I knew the strength of foxes and foxkin could be directly seen when looking at the number of their tails, which meant I was facing the most capable monster I had seen in this dungeon – so far.

Marisa, too, was quick to point out the strength of my opponent. She hid behind one of the bigger crystals, before explaining just who I had found myself placed against.

“This is the one that defeated Aspen,” she explained as soon as she found a somewhat safe spot. “It uses shards of obsidian to attack you. It can even make them explode!”

That sounded bothersome, to say the least, as my shields of water magic had trouble fending off fast projectiles, as my unlucky encounter with the pirates had shown. Sure, I had been unprepared back then, but this fox was sure to be much stronger and would likely experience little trouble penetrating my defenses. Knowing this, I could only use the room’s features to my advantage, namely the crystals that would help me block said projectiles. The rocky ground of the cavern wouldn’t help me in this fight, as I couldn’t imagine any of my seeds being able to grow in this environment. I was limited to my water magic this time around.

The fox didn’t allow me to make any further plans. It sprung into action, rearing up, and stomping the ground with both of its front paws. This caused shards of obsidian to shoot out of the ground between us, which soon rapidly spun around their own axis, forcing me to seek cover myself with a jump to Marisa’s side. And it wasn’t a moment too soon, as a series of explosions could now be heard, with countless projectiles shooting by with high–pitched sounds. They impacted the walls, crystals, and pillars surrounding us, leaving markings and holes wherever they hit.

I quickly sprang into action, wanting to use the downtime between the fox’s magic and its next one, which would hopefully wait for a while. Preparing my water magic, I sprang out of the cover and shot blades of water at the fox, hoping that it would at least do some kind of damage to its hard body. But the monster in question didn’t even care to dodge my attack, it simply took it head-on. And indeed, the blades simply splashed against its body without it even stumbling.

My opponent didn’t wait for me to make a second attempt. It fanned out its tails and opened its maw for what I could only assume was some kind of breath attack, forcing me to once again seek shelter behind a nearby pillar. Soon, a series of seemingly never–ending impacts could be heard as dozens and hundreds of projectiles impacted the pillar I was hiding behind. Luckily, it held steady, at least for now. Still, this fight wasn’t in my favor. And if I didn’t start playing my cards soon, it was only a matter of time before I was hit by one of the shards that were being flung through the room at unimaginable speeds.

Knowing this, I decided to go all–out, summoning my strongest water magic by reaching my hand out and spreading out water-attributed mana. I gathered it in one place, shaping it into a slightly curved, one–edged sword out of pure, calm water. It was this magic that had caught Zaleria’s attention back then, as it had proven its worth even against the strongest of opponents I had faced.

Reaching out for the handle of the blade, its waters almost immediately turned rapid and white, being fueled by the mana still inside of my body. It could easily cut deep into most materials at this stage, even stone, but with the fox keeping me at a distance, I could only rely on its second ability.

Nodding to myself, I left the safety of my hiding spot, noting that the stone it was made of had clearly seen better days, once again showing the pure strength of the monster’s magic. Still, I didn’t let myself be beaten by something like that. Instead, I slashed at the fox from a distance, causing white blades of water to pelt the fox.

This, at least, did something, as shards of shiny black, volcanic glass chipped from the fox’s body with each since impact. One of the blades even cut off half of the monster’s left ear, making it yelp in pain for the first time. Sadly, this was exactly what the smaller foxes were here for, it seemed, as they quickly sent out their healing magic. This, luckily, did not cause the wounds to close, but it still allowed my opponent to gain the advantage again. Soon, it came running at me, each of its stomps causing shards of black volcanic glass to shoot out of the ground. It was attempting to run me down!

I slashed my sword again and again, trying to stop the monster in its tracks, but my water magic did little to nothing. If anything, it made it even more determined in its goal of defeating me.

The next moment, I already found myself fleeing from the fox, trying to get crystals or pillars between us whenever possible. But this ‘tactic’ was quickly proven flawed, as one of the many shards filling the air impacted my side, digging deep into my flesh and stealing my breath. I saved myself by jumping behind another giant crystal, before screaming against the pain, forcing the shard out of my body using my magic. The wound quickly closed, once again without leaving a scar. But I now knew that I had run out of options. I had to play dirty this time.

Knowing that I could do little else to solve this situation, I forced most of my remaining water-attributed mana into my hand, compressing it further and further for my next attack. It was little more than a ball the size of my fist at this point, but it would do perfectly. Satisfied, I stepped out of my cover, facing the fox one last time.

My opponent stopped right in its tracks, visibly surprised by my sudden appearance. But it was too late, I had already forced the magic out of my hand, aiming it at the fox’s nose. Within a second or two, it reached its target, where it remained, seemingly glued to the black monster’s body.

It took the fox a moment to realize just what had happened, then it was already fighting against the ball of rapidly flowing water, which was assaulting its likely sensitive nose with a myriad of tiny cuts every single second. With the amount of magic I had given the thing, it would likely last for minutes, if not longer, giving me plenty of time to make my escape.

The spell worked wonders. The fox was soon seen rolling on the ground, scratching itself and even driving its nose against the ground. Even the Water Foxes were now jumping around it, trying to find some way to save it from its agony.

I didn’t wait for them to find a solution. Instead, I ran over to where Marisa had hidden before, finding her cowering between the same crystal chunk. I took her by the hand, lifting her back to her feet, and hastily led her away, towards a second tunnel in the distance. The fox was still fighting against my, honestly, quite dishonorable abuse of magic as we made our escape, leaving only the Water Foxes to assault us with spouts of water. But soon we were safe, though drenched to the bone. I could only hope the next rooms would suit my magic more…

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Updated Map as of Chapter 49:

image [https://i.imgur.com/x6WqsFO.png]