Slimantha’s black shoes tapped against the steel floor as she entered yet another room, Samuel, Mimi, and Black entering after her. The light taps of her footfalls and the footfalls of her companions came to a stop. She stood in an expansive steel room. Caws cut through the air.

Slimantha’s beautiful brown eyes fell upon Latril, who sat upon a steel throne. Latril the Crow glanced at the slime summoner and promptly facepalmed. Crows were gathered at both sides of the throne. One particularly large crow, the swird, stood at Latril’s right. Latril lowered her right hand from her face. She blinked, and the lights flickered. More caws cut through the air, coming from the gathered crows. The swird, though, stood silently at her side, its black sword eyes on Slimantha’s group.

“I see that you are not dead,” Latril said, her golden eyes on Slimantha’s group. “How fortuitous?” Her words dripped with sarcasm. “Welcome to my throne room.” She propped her right elbow up on the right armrest of her throne. Like the rest of the throne, the right armrest was of a steel build. She rested her head on her right hand, leaning on the right armrest. Her golden eyes were still on Slimantha’s group. Yet more caws came from the gathered crows, and she frowned. She shifted her weight and glanced at the crows. “Will you guys shut up? You’re giving me a headache.” She crows grew silent. Latril’s expression shifted to that of a cocky smirk. Her golden eyes went back to Slimantha’s group.

The lights flickered again, and Latril rose up from her steel throne. Beside her, the swird cawed and then stretched its wings. Silvery sword blades jutted out from between its feathers before vanishing back into its body. The swird glanced at Latril, and Latril glanced at the swird. For a moment, Latril’s golden eyes met the black sword eyes of the swird. Then the pair turned their attention back to Slimantha’s group.

“Behold the fruit of my research,” Latril said, gesturing at the swird. “Behold my success. He is not a mere crow anymore. He has ascended beyond mere crow. He is now—“

“A swird!” Slimantha blurted out, interrupting Latril.

Latril blinked. The black-winged bird woman glanced at the swird. “A swird?” she said. “Well, I guess I do see it. I mean sword plus bird equals swird.” Her golden eyes then went to Slimantha. “Swird it is then.”

“How could you possibly know that she wasn’t saying sword as in the weapon?” Samuel said. His blue eyes were on Latril.

Latril’s golden eyes went to Samuel. “Wasn’t it obvious?” she said. The swird cawed beside her, drawing her attention. Her eyes then went back to Samuel. “He agrees that it was obvious. Maybe you just need to listen better.”

“I-I see,” Samuel said, a drop of sweat rolling down his right cheek. He gave a bit of a nervous laugh and then hung his head down. He sighed.

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Latril’s golden eyes went back to Slimantha. Once more, she wore that cocky smirk of hers. She crossed her arms and gave her black feathery wings a stretch. Beside her, the swird stretched its wings as well.

“Well, this is somewhat earlier than I would have liked,” Latril said. She lowered her arms, her expression still cocky. “Would have been nice if I had a bit more time, but no, you had to not die and come to my throne room. What’s a girl to do?” She bent over and started laughing. The crows at both her sides started cackling along with her laughs. Then she straightened up, and the throne room fell silent. “Sometimes, a girl just has to expedite her plans.” She glanced at her crows, and then her golden eyes went to the swird. A cocky smirk showed upon her lips. “Do it.”

The swird cawed and then rushed forward. Silvery sword blades extended out from between the feathers of its wings as it soared forward. The gap between Slimantha’s group and it rapidly closed.

“Stay back!” Samuel said, stepping in front of Slimantha, Mimi, and Black. “I will handle this!” The hero from another world went for his sword. Well, he tried to, but there was a bit of a problem. He groped at empty air. His sword sheath was empty. He had no sword. He froze, his face going pale. The swird closed in upon him, its silvery sword blades glistening. Then a tan-skinned hand shoved him aside. More specifically, Slimantha shoved him to the right with her right hand.

“Everyone, get behind me!” Slimantha said. She thrust both her hands upward, and a wall of viscous blue formed in front of her. She smiled, her beautiful brown eyes watching the approaching swird from behind the translucent blue barrier. The monster neared, and then it veered up, never impacting the barrier. She blinked. “What’s it doing?” Then the throne room shook as the swird crashed through the ceiling. Slimantha looked up at the throne room’s new skylight, her slime wall dissolving. A drop of sweat rolled down her right cheek.

“What’s wrong?” Latril said, a sparkle in her golden eyes. “Did you think we were going to fight here?” She spread her arms, a smirk on her face. “Did you think we were going to fight in my throne room?” She lowered her arms, and a little laugh slipped out from between her lips. Then she glanced up to the skylight created by the swird. She pointed at said skylight, and the crows began rushing in mass through it. “You see.” Her golden eyes went to Slimantha’s group. Her smirk held a distinct edge of maliciousness to it. “Now begins the day of the birds.” She went airborne and soared through the skylight herself now, leaving Slimantha’s group alone in the steel throne room.

Mimi blinked, her golden eyes on the ominous skylight overhead. “Please tell me Bleakfyre did not just get overrun by a bunch of crows,” she said.

Slimantha’s beautiful brown eyes went to Mimi. The eyes of the two women met. “Don’t worry,” Slimantha said. “I’m sure it’s fine. They probably just went up to grab some cheese sandwiches or something.” She blinked and then patted her left pocket. She pouted. “Speaking of cheese sandwiches, I’m all out of cheese sandwich. You guys mind stopping for a cheese sandwich.”

Mimi sighed and then hung her head. She looked up, her golden eyes going to Slimantha. “Fine,” Mimi said. “We’ll get you a cheese sandwich.”

“Can I get a milkshake?” Black said, her black cat tail swishing behind her.

Mimi glared at Black. Then her gaze softened. “So that is a cheese sandwich for Slimantha and a milkshake for Black. Anything else?” Silence flooded the steel throne room. “So let’s get back to the surface then. We’ll figure out what to do about the food afterwards.”