As the morning light started to brighten the woods around her, Mara awoke not to the sweet scent of morning dew and forest life, but to the foreign smells of what seemed like butter cream and cinnamon. As perplexing as it was, Mara didn't think the change was necessarily unwelcome at first, but just as she began to stir from her grassy bedding, Mara heard what could have been the source of such a disparate aroma. A shuffling of sorts with a side of soft clinking, as if someone was just across from her.

Hesitating at first, hoping whatever it was hadn't noticed she'd begun to stir yet, Mara slowly cracked an eye open, straining not to budge as she did so. However her stealth rolls must be in the negatives, because she had barely started to squint into the morning light before a deep but soft voice rumbled past her ears.

"Oh– you're awake. Hi, uh, I'm Celeste– Please don't freak out, but, um… I was passing by and I saw you were sleeping out here without any sort of supplies or campfire, and, well… Are you okay? Do you need some help?"

Blinking at this point, all attempts at subtlety lost, Mara sat up to find a fire-red haired amazonian of a woman crouched next to the tree opposite her dressed in what could only be combat leathers painted a muddy mixture of dark blues and dirty greens. At her waist was a blade that could have either been one or two handed for all Mara knew about swords, and on her back was a long bow that stretched from above her head to past her waist.

Words like rogue, ranger, and ravishing came to mind, but Mara was more preoccupied with things like 'holy shit a talking, breathing person' and 'wait, is that english', along with the physical struggle of trying to figure out how to do words good.

"U-h, wh-at? Um. Hi. Yes, help, Mara me is– wait, um, fuck–" Struggling to find the right words, much less put them in the right order, Mara was freaking out. There was a woman, not just any woman, but a mountain of a woman, and she just happened to be strolling by. The odds were astronomical considering how deserted everything had seemed so far. Realizing she probably looked like she was missing a few brain cells, Mara held up a finger in the universal 'please give me a second' gesture and tried to negotiate visitation rights with her tongue. "Hi. Um. Sorry, I'm Mara. And to say I could use some help would be an understatement."

Mara paused as she gave the woman a proper look over, if there was some sort of 'Wayfarer's Guide To The Isekai', it'd probably say something like 'check for red flags' somewhere in big bold letters that was really hard to miss. Celeste looked to be in her late thirties with a heavy tan and some wrinkles sprinkled around the edges, she had a kind but tough face, like a big sister that knew when to let you take a punch, but still stepped in when she needed to. Or, well, at least she doesn't -look- like she'd sell me into slavery for a quick buck. Fuck it, 'don't kick a gift horse in the mouth', or… however that saying goes.

Taking a gamble on the wandering amazon, Mara tried to judge the woman's reaction. "I sort of ended up in this dungeon, and I'm not sure how, or even where this is. I've survived a few nights by sleeping in trees, but I've got no idea what I'm doing– You wouldn't happen to be willing to let me tag along to wherever you're going would you?"

Celeste's hazel eyes narrowed, as if she were scrutinizing Mara in turn, and there was a high likelihood that's exactly what she was doing. Maybe she doesn't believe me– but it's not like I lied about anything, I just didn't say how I got here. Not that I really know for sure, but… the less others know about me right now the better, probably.

After a moment, Celeste's overly stern gaze seemed to vanish as if her face wasn't even capable of such contortions. "Hm. Alright. Sure, why not. Mara was it? That's a nice name– I take it you're a mage?"

Taken a bit aback by how easy going the red haired woman was, Mara almost failed to register her follow up question. Wait, did she just– Uh– "Mage? What? Why would you think that?" Oh god damnit Mara, that is literally the worst way to respond to that question.

"Ha! Hahahaha– I'll take that as a yes, it's okay hun, I won't tell, but you should really have some sort of cover story-" Celeste just about lost it as Mara more than flopped her bluff check, her hearty laughter bringing a sense of levity to the situation. "-and equipment too if you want the advice. Because a frail thing like you? Alone, in a dungeon without a single bit of visible equipment? Yeah, that just screams some sort of mage class– Healer of some descript if I had to guess by the torn sleeve and an arm with bare skin as smooth as that."

Glancing down at her completely healed arm, Mara had to admit the stark pale contrast to her black skeleton hoodie really stood out in a rather noticeable way. And she's not wrong about the whole equipment thing, but, like, what the hell am I supposed to do? I didn't exactly pass a sword smith on the way here.

"Heh, yeah– Didn't mean to be so obvious about it, but yeah, I guess I sort of check the 'mage' box." Shuffling up to her feet, Mara noticed Celeste uncrouch in time as well, her hand still resting on the pommel of her blade as she rose to what had to be over two meters in height. Holy hell, she's like three times my size– Is she half-giant? Jeez that's a big sword. Would it be rude to ask if she is? Maybe Debug could check without her noticing? Err, maybe there's skills that would notice… Uhh, yeah, nix that idea, that sword could fell a tree.

Seeing that Celeste still seemed quite wary of her, even if her tone seemed pleasant enough, Mara tried to diffuse the situation. "Um, thanks for the tip about the equipment… I doubt there's any chance you're actually on your way to some sort of town nearby is there? I don't really want you to go out of your way for me, so if you're happier just giving me directions I'd take those…"

Attempting to head off Mara's almost pitiful negotiating, Celeste interrupted her with a- "Oh, nonsense" -before striding over and bopping her on the head. "Look, I'm headed back to Elsa Myr anyways and I'd be more than happy for the company– Plus, if Gerald knew I just sent a newbie I found in the dungeon off with just directions I'd never hear the end of it."

Hearing the name of the town, something about it jumped out at Mara causing her to just blurt out the first thing that came to her mind. "Elsa Myr? Is that elven? –Er, 'Aelven'?"

Celeste's eyes seemed to widen for a moment at the adjunct question. "Huh. Yeah, it probably is– Though I doubt there's anyone still living there now that was around when they named it, so it's not like it matters that much. Anyways, do you need a minute to relieve yourself, or do you just want to hit the trail? It's still early, so if we make good time Thelma should have a warm bed and a hot meal for us tonight– That's is, if you don't mind a bit of running."

"Pfft–" Mara flippantly joked in response, "You had me at 'warm bed', the better question is, which of us is the better runner? You might have me on the sprint, but the long haul's my game." Flipping her hair back to twist up in a rough knot, Mara spotted Celeste's eager grin out of the corner of her eye. Heh, well that's a far sight better than a hand on a hilt, I'll take it.

"Ha, I take it you're a get up and go-er, huh? That's good– the early bird doesn't get eaten. Let's hoof it." Celeste gave her a big thumbs up and a smile, tugged on her bow to make sure it was tight, then set off with a stride so large it caught Mara off guard.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Ohshit, she's quick. Realizing she was going to be left in the dust unless she got her own shit in gear, Mara double checked that her flip flops were still in her hoodie pocket then shifted her 'phone' back to its usual home in her back-right pocket, and took one last glance towards the previous night's aftermath, and about swallowed her tongue. The whole clearing was still strewn with copious streaks of blood and gore, all spreading out from a singular scorch mark in the center of it all. As horrifying as it was just to look at, the worst part for Mara was the fact that Celeste had -completely- failed to mention it. But noticing it now, Mara could certainly see why Celeste had been so tense at first. Yeah I'd be tweaking out too if I were in her shoes– Someone like me, making a mess like that? Yeah, that's not just red flags, that might as well be billboards and klaxons.

"Hey! Come on slowpoke, I thought we were racing!" Celeste's impatient chiding echoed back to Mara, snapping her attention back to the fact that she was totally getting left behind.

"Sorry, coming!" Yelling back, Mara snatched one more glance at what was likely going to be another one many, many, bloody messes she was liable to end up making in some way or another, and set off after the behemoth of a woman, already adopting something between a jog and a run in the vain hopes that it might be enough to make up for the massive stride Celeste imposed.

It took her a few minutes, but Mara eventually caught up to the bouncing bundle of red hair jogging lazily through a forest of trees that made even her look small. Jogging just to the back left of her, it was easy to see that Celeste was quite at home with endurance running. She'd already adopted a healthy pace and a mesmerizing spring in her step that caused her shoulders to cycle in a way that was really, really distracting.

Shaking her head, Mara tried to find anywhere else to look, but between Celeste and the never ending monotony of trees, Mara found herself staring up at the crystal blue sky dotted with countless specs drifting lazily across it. Letting her mind do the same as she found her own rhythm, Mara wondered if this world used flying beasts like jumbo jets, or if the specs were wild dragons, lording over their domains. Such thoughts drifted down tangents like drakes vs dragons, the lengthy safety procedures involved with commercial wyvern-based flight, and possible fuel rating calculations using sheep per kilometer along with potential alternatives.

So caught up Mara was in her own thoughts, Celeste's booming voice practically scared her into a stop as her running companion finally decided to break their hour-long silence. "So Mara– What'd you kill for your silver rank?"

The question hit her like a concrete barrier on a highway, from the left and at high speed. Stumbling a bit, Mara caught herself as she fully processed the question. Silver rank? A guild ranking? Do I lie, or… I mean, she's assuming I've already got the credentials, so… Ah fuck it, omitting the truth is one thing but outright lying is another, I don't think I want Celeste on my bad side… Unless she'd be mad at me for not having the rank? No– She doesn't really seem that type. Whatever–

Figuring that being upfront about her inexperience couldn't really be a bad thing, it was Mara's turn to catch Celeste off guard. "Uh, actually I don't have… a rank. As-as I said, I-uh, sort of, ended up here… Magically."

Celeste practically tumbled to a stop, skidding to a halt as she pivoted to double check she just heard what she thought she heard. "You don't have a rank? Like, you're still in qualifiers, or… are you not even registered!? Zezues Mara, how in the nine rings did you– You know what, no. Never mind. I don't wanna know, you've clearly not said why, so I'm not gonna pry. If you want, I'll give you a proper introduction to Gerald and if he's got a problem with you keeping secrets, you and him can hash it out. Personally, I think we're all entitled to a bit of our own privacy, just don't go eating my brains or something."

Wait– Did she just make a zombie joke? Is she referring to my title?! Fuck! Debug! I didn't know I was wearing a 'Hello, I'm An Undead' tag, I feel like you should have mentioned this! Starting to panic a bit, Mara let out a quiet sigh of relief as Celeste turned back around and set off again. Starting to jog in turn, Mara wondered how much the woman might already know about her. Debug could discern a lot, and basically every single skill-based piece of fiction she'd read had some sort of 'inspect' skill. Celeste having her own didn't seem that out of the question, but it was a lot to deal with, so Mara did what she would normally do with complicated thoughts when she was too busy to deal with them, she boxed 'em up and shoved it all to the back of her mind, choosing instead to focus on the bronze beacon of toned muscle jogging away just up ahead.

Regardless of what the muscle bound woman thought of her, Mara was just thankful she'd found someone, and that she speaks English– Or I speak whatever common seems to be, still not sure on that one. But the fact that Celeste was being friendly enough to escort her back to town, and that she didn't seem unfriendly? Well that was all just icing on the cake. I wonder how much that Fate stat has to do with things like chance encounters… That's a crazy thought. The whole idea of something like that even functioning boggles my mind.

Each finding a comfortable middle ground for a pace, Mara running a little faster than usual, Celeste a little slower, the pair made excellent time. The first time they stopped was Celeste's call, roughly two hours in. She claimed it was for a water break, amidst which she vigorously advocated the benefits of staying hydrated, to the point of even offering to share her waterskin, but it was clear Celeste was checking on the 'twig' she'd picked up in the forest.

Mara, a little annoyed by the soft patronizing, took the lead after they set off once more, keeping their run going for a good three hours before she found herself in need of a bathroom break. Sadly, lacking alien toiletries, she had to make do with what she could while making silent prayers to nameless gods that the fantasy town they were going to had some semblance of a toilet system.

The last two pit stops were made for similar reasons, this time both at Celeste's insistence, but overall they were making excellent time. In fact, there were still a few hours in the day by Mara's estimate when she first began to notice the gargantuan trees thinning out, and it only took another half an hour after that before Celeste broke their mutual silence. "And that– That is 'Elsa Myr', also known as the Redonian Dungeon Frontier Outpost Zeta… But not even the local guard calls it that, it's just Elsa Myr from ear to 'ere, or whatever Thelma's always ramblin'."

Following the direction of Celeste's outstretched arm, not that it was hard to miss, Mara could immediately make out the massive black-brick walls that surrounded what could only be Elsa Myr and just couldn't help but wonder how big they really were if they looked that big at what must have been a good kilometer into the distance. Taking it in stride, and leaning heavily on her fantasy and fiction knowledge, Mara tried to gauge how dangerous of a world she was actually in, hopefully without sounding like a completely transparent alien. "Oh– Wow, those are some -very- beefy walls… How common are monster attacks around here Celeste?"

"Monsters? Ha–" Much to Mara's horror, her question was once again met with the laughter of incredulous disbelief. "As if Mr. King-of-Redonia-Himself gave a shit about monster attacks. No, the walls are for war. This dungeon's more profitable than you might think, and even though it's in the heart of the country, keeping it has always been a point of contention amongst foreign nobles– Come on, it's a shit topic, there's warm food and a stiff mug waiting for the both of us not far off now, we can digress into politics when I'm less sober if you really must."

Not even waiting for Mara to reply, Celeste set off again, so Mara followed suit. If nothing else, a month of nonstop daily running as a magical hermit in the forest had done wonders to her physique. She'd never gotten fat per se, but there was no way the Mara from two months ago would have done anywhere near the kind of non-stop marathon she'd just done over the last two days, but now it was nearly over. She'd finally made it. Sweet, sweet, civilization– And a fantasy civilization at that.

Thank. You. Celeste. To think civilization was only a day out… I would have probably wandered for weeks without her. Nodding a silent thank you, Mara set off after her savior of sorts, now more than just a little bit excited for the aforementioned amenities. She was so excited in fact, she could swear the air itself seemed to be filled with sweet and succulent flavors of someone's home baked cooking. And it was then, for the first time since Debug had adopted the one-panel-policy, that a new prompt appeared in front of her– albeit still silently. Pausing to read it, Mara smiled, and dismissed the prompt. She knew why Debug had shared it, and that alone was enough to bring a smile to her face, not that the message itself wasn't a welcome sight by its own merits.

> < You have left the Lost Wilds Dungeon! >