“Wait do we really have to leave so soon???”
“Yes, Screech. We have places to be.”
“Like where!?”
“Literally every dungeon that isn’t this place? Things to do, places to be, levels to grind. Come on, you should know this.”
“But…”
Did-did she just hit me with a mumble?
Uuuuuuugh, I don’t wanna be the bad guy here, but I can’t just sit in one place all day long! There wasn’t a point in me staying in Underflow any longer, there wasn’t anything left for me there. Or well, nothing at that moment. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were more quests to be had in that general area once I’ve progressed some more, but that’s besides the point…
“...Alright, Screech?”
“Yes?”
Her voice instantly brightens up at my own, her eyes practically sparkling in the light of her own flame. It’s almost cute really, you know scratch the almost out of that, it just is. I get what she’s doing, or well, I’m not sure if it’s intentionally manipulative or not, but she is very good at… getting your hopes up, yeah?
How best to describe it… Whenever you do something in a way she doesn’t like it, she never really argue argues about it? But she does speak her mind in very plain terms. And the second you entertain a thought that would align with what she wants, suddenly she’s a bright little beacon of positivity. Given how literally she takes everything, I don’t even think she’s trying to do what she’s doing… she has just has… literally no filter, which just makes it cuter really.
Unfortunately for her, I shan’t be swayed.
“Here.”
“Huh?”
And by that I mean shan’t be swayed to stay. I can, however, be swayed to a compromise.
“Is that?”
“You’ve been a good girl, you’ve listened to everything I’ve said… technically, and I won’t hold talking against you, that’s just who you are. So, I’m upholding my end of the deal.”
The fire lighting the way nearly flickers out and dies as I hold a Mana Truffle up to Screech’s beak. She blinks a few times, slowly at first, but faster and faster as comprehension dawns.
“I can have it?”
“Yup.”
This upcoming investment into dexterity becomes even more important, as Screech’s head moves so fast that all I notice is a blur of brown, the truffle disappearing from my hand as it passes. And as it does, this time the fire goes out for real. Which is fine, with the squeal simply emanating from Screech it feels like she could use the privacy.
Technically don’t need the light, as it is just a straight shot from here to out of the cave, but like, I don’t need to? It’s not like Jasper’s out and about, she’s just chilling in the pocket dimension right now, so me and Screech are the only two faffing about in the dark. Ergo, no need to hurry it along.
Following one last shudder, Screech’s guiding flame bursts into existence once more.
“Can I have another?”
“Not yet, no,” I scoff. “There’s only one left you know?”
“We can always find more.”
“...You’re not… technically wrong. But I don’t even know where we’d start looking so… That endeavors gonna be a work in progress.”
“Oh, that’s alright! I know a spot!”
“Hm.”
If they know a spot, why’d they try to steal some to begin with?
…
“Would that spot happen to be the road that you ‘found’ the one you just ate on?”
“Yup!”
Ah, thievery, the realest way to do it clearly.
“We won’t be doing that.”
“Why not!?”
“Because it’s a huge detour to take and I don’t want my karma to get dumped off a cliff without knowing what that’d mean for me on a wider scope.”
“But-”
Continuing on with a smile, Screech does her best to reason out a plan her what she wants, and in fairness it’s not a bad one, she’s not wrong in that her growing stronger via these truffles is a good thing, but if we’re being real the actual limiter that we all have as an issue is stamina, as opposed to MP. We have boatloads of MP to throw around, we’d only run out if we dumped it all out on some exorbitant waste. But stamina? We don’t actually have that much of it, and Screech can’t recover it on her own, so I effectively need to recover for two people. Without Jasper, we’d be quite the er, unbalanced party so to say.
I, of course, don’t say this to her, because I have no doubt she’d do her best to reason her way around that as well, and I have no desire to point her thoughts in any other direction. After all, she’s not mentioning that we’re still walking away from the Wild Hunt and all the magical shenanigans that come with their place.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Mu, ha, ha, ha, ha. Wait, I just had an even more devilishly appropriate idea!
“You know… it’s pretty likely that we could find something similar to a truffle in one of these dungeons we’re gonna go explore. Some unique monsters as well, and they’d probably taste pretty alright…”
“...”
“Jasper? Jerry?”
“Mm?”
“...?”
“Doesn’t that sound good? Jasper I know you don’t eat, but… Jerry, you like food, right?”
“Y-yes?”
“Then we’re in agreement here, no? Two fourths majority want to go to these dungeons,”
“Wait, I didn’t-”
“Jasper’s neutral, and I don’t think she’ll change her vote-”
“Mm.”
“Scratch that, three fourths majority! Come on Screech, won’t you make it unanimous?”
“They’d taste alright?”
“...Good, even.”
“...Okay!”
“That’s the spirit! Alright then everybody, can you see the light? Cause I sure can,” I jam a thumb forward, pointing out the faint light coming from the early morning sun.
…Good lord I’ve been on for almost twenty four hours straight now, only broken up by like, a quick thirty minute break. Am I cooked? I might be cooked. I could probably do with a quick break…
“Alrighty everybody, I’m gonna dip for a moment.”
“Mm?”
“It means I’ll be leaving for… give or take thirty minutes? I figure now’s the time, since I can let Screech stick around and finish up any observations she’s wanting to make before we head out. So Jasper, keep an eye on her alright?”
“Mm-”
[Summon]
“And Jerry… do you want to be out and about? Or do you just want to sit and wait?”
“I’ll wait…”
“Okay!”
“M-”
“G’day everybody, setting a timer now, be back in thirty minutes!”
Llllllllllllog out!
—
“I’m back!”
“...What? I thought you’d be gone-” Jerry mumbles in his general mumbly voice, but I don’t give him any time to speak, given I’d rather not leave my other two summons alone for longer than need be? I only did to begin with because this a relatively safe area, no monsters around besides Huntsmen
“DId anything go wrong? You didn’t both spontaneously combust while I was gone or anything, right?”
“MMM.”
“¿Qué?”
“MMM!”
“How many? Where are you?”
“MMm-mMm, Mm!”
“Got it.”
[Recall!!]
Sprinting forward as fast as I can, I break for the exit of the cave as I place four points into dexterity and one into agility, grabbing onto the lip of the wall and throwing myself out and to the left.
“The entire village? Is that just an exaggeration in the heat of the moment, or do you literally mean-”
“Yes they mean the entire village,” Screech fills in for her in short order.
“You’ve gotta be kidding me. IN THIRTY MINUTES? How did they even find you two, Screech surely felt them coming, right?”
“Well…”
If they were summoned, they’d be getting the side eye of doom right now, but given they very clearly aren’t, I’ll just have to settle for the inner eye of doom.
“Speak!”
“Mm.”
“Okay, you explain then.”
“Mmm-”