VI.

The cage's thick branches came apart in Madoka's fists easily like bread loaves. She cared not for the mess she caused to fall upon the dirty captives. Arudite sputtered, while Ilalune stood tall and dusted herself off quietly. Soon, a girl and her slave stood in debt to a Royal and her maid. Madoka eyed the Truth Guild girl with a cautious glare.

"So?" Madoka sighed. She could sense Audrey peering from behind her at the odd pair before them. "Now what?"

"A level 2 researcher?" Audrey muttered. "That's a little plain..."

The so-called level 2 researcher's eyes were bright enough to reflect the green mossy giant trees above and below, with a foggy haze glossing over them like hot breath staining a window. She was studying them, with a bit of discomfort, as if they were predators. Madoka was not one to be the face of a show, so she glared back at the woman. Arudite quickly rubbed her eyes, and the maid watched her pull at something shiny beneath her robe. A small jade broach held her cloak together tightly, but kept her body protected.

Perhaps she was a Noble. The robes and her aura were probably more ornate than their own clothes beneath all the mud and grime. The details, it seemed, would be extracted soon enough, she supposed. Madoka narrowed her focus again.

The researcher fished out simple glasses that were dirty like the rest of her. Their lenses glinted like water sprayed in the twin moonlight. The traces of golden, geometric Knotting strands did not disturb its frames and indicated that it was not some kind of magical device. The circuitry simply returned to their usual patterns in the air after swirling around the researcher. Madoka chastised herself. Of course, people wore glasses all the time.

The slave, Ilalune, cleared her throat impatiently for Arudite to conjure up an answer.

"Huh? Oh, yes! Right!" The Truth Guild member pushed up her glasses with a muddy hand. "Those trolls left me in quite the state. My dear friend here, she is a powerful warrior on her own but we were caught by surprise."

Ilalune shrugged.

"Trolls?" Audrey asked.

"Caught us while we secured this nitwit and stole the Bureau device I was planning to use on it," She stomped a tough boot on the goblin's head. "Now, we're up one nitwit and down one magic pendant."

Pain.

Survive.

Must tell the others.

Surface too dangerous!

Disturbance, evil!

It wants our eyes.

Thoughts from the goblin surged through Madoka, but it remained still and quiet. The mental image of a massive dark crater flashed in her mind. That must be the disturbance. She decided to leave the creature be. It knew to stay silent, much like her.

"Wait a minute," Arudite inspected them closer. "I know you two! The unusual copper rank heroes from the reports! Ah, it must be fate that I got my hands on those things, and now I get to meet you! It's much more exhilarating to see you both, my heroes!"

"Heroes? Eheh, no," Audrey told her. "We simply were investigating the rumbling and got lucky."

"Lucky?" The researcher laughed heartily. "It takes a party of Gold rank adventurers to handle a single troll and yet, you managed to slay all three effortlessly!"

Her head tilted and her voice lilted, causing her hood to fall down and reveal long purple hair. An exquisite and unique hair color, Madoka recalled only two of her fellow commoner maids had such a color. This woman was not a Sovos nor a Cherish woman. No scales, no tail. Perhaps she was a Narm like they were, Madoka thought.

Audrey looked at the massive corpses. They were tall and silent as forgotten ruins now, their stench filled the covered woods like rotten food in a scullery. Not like it fazed the maid. Madoka guessed they were different in some regards. Ogres had nasty greenish skin and three eyes, while these monsters had thick and burlap brown hides with two eyes. They had one giant horn instead of multiple ones like the ogres as well.

"You mentioned a magical device, a Boo--Bee? Row?" Madoka tumbled over the word. "Bureau device."

"Yes, that's it!" Arudite cheered for the maid. Despite the ensuing encouragement, Madoka felt embarrassed for trying to pronounce the word. There was no pity in her tone, though suddenly the researcher became glum. "I've lost it. The damn thing is probably crushed to bits underneath the bastards somewhere."

Madoka glanced to Audrey, but she knew the girl did not want to reveal they had it in their storage portal.

"Oh, I suppose you want to know what it was for," she kicked up twigs.

"We should be regrouping with the Guild Master," Ilalune interrupted but Arudite sighed loudly. The Cherish woman settled into silence. Dust settled on wood in the light, and mud colored guts painted rivers on grass in the momentary silence. The monster's chunky and tubular insides were as tall as Madoka.

"I got the time, okay?" Arudite wanted to vent. "A Bureau item is enchanted by the Gods. Which god? No one knows! It links with a chosen individual and those who are close to them. The device will only allow them to use it. I theorized this pendant would grant the monster intelligence. Perfect for my studies! What? Please don't look at me like that! I'm a researcher, nearly completed my studies! Not a fighter!"

Audrey finally pierced the silence by laughing. She choked for a moment, and Madoka helped her recover. The girl's perfect blue eyes glanced at the researcher's glasses, then to her purple hair, and proceeded to burst into a fit again.

"You're saying you're a graduate student doing a senior project?" Audrey wheezed. "Those are a thing in this world? Ho, that's rich!"

"It's important! I had to learn how to read and write to get into the Truth Guild!" Arudite protested. That information impressed Madoka more than the things she rambled about. She hated learning how to do either, so she refused to be taught. "S-Still! My research is important on learning about these creatures and their gods! The Head Researcher sent me here by request! I can't refuse such a valuable offer!"

Audrey composed herself.

"And?" Madoka wanted to get going. They have dawdled in dangerous territory for too long now, but her thoughts could only sense the goblin pretending to be unconscious.

"You, my lovely red haired hero," Arudite pointed at her. "Have a peculiar talent, don't you? You can hear the meanings in the caterwauling of beasts, and the shifting shadows to shadows of monsters' consciences. You spoke to those trolls, did you not?"

"She didn't—" Audrey moved to cover up the secret like a child hastily tucking away a stolen treat unsuccessfully.

"I did," Madoka let the weight of her words match the swing of an axe. "Now what would you have of it?"

"I have these, guesses, predictions of what those might be," Arudite continued. "Since we are beyond the Truth Guild's reach and can keep secrets, I want to offer my knowledge and experience in exchange for yours."

"Why?" The maid pondered aloud. The researcher drew closer and smiled.

"You two are dazzling and mysterious!" She cheered. "I seek partnership, I give you my insight and you will have a big future when I make it in the Guild!"

"You stink," Madoka warned the girl from getting too close. Arudite awkwardly pulled away but gave Audrey a hopeful look.

"Why do we need to keep it a secret?" Audrey asked. The researcher looked around and spoke quietly.

"The heresy I will talk about begins with the monsters: As we worship the kind gods above. Sovos, who worship their Adventurer God. Buthos who worship their Goddess of Life. Narms, who worship the Nameless One and many others who worship their own kind gods in the Celestial. I theorize that the monsters worship kind gods below our very feet."

Madoka did not have much knowledge in the kind gods she worshipped, but she shrugged in response. Gods existed everywhere, though it never occured to her that they could exist right below her. As she made the connection, the researcher smiled.

"What a better way of asking one of these things for a mere glimpse of their kind gods?" The girl took her glasses off and tucked them away. She chuckled. "It's simply a proposal of sorts. You don't have to accept my offer of being allies so soon, but I want to repay you both..."

"I accept it," Audrey declared suddenly.

Madoka turned to her, caught in a snag of disbelief and something uglier. Jealousy? What did that girl have that made Audrey drop her guard so easily? A gasp escaped out of Ilalune. It was evident that she was also surprised at this turn of events. Her princess's eyes held a light in them with interest, though Madoka hoped it was merely her imagination.

"Pardon?" Arudite was shocked and then became happy. The two jumped close to each other and acted like friends suddenly. A spark snatched a moment between the two, and Madoka did not like it at all. "Oh! Yes! To our friendship, then."

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Madoka pulled them a part, and to her surprise Ilalune helped. She glared at the maid, but still remained silent.

"I have to admit something," Audrey wriggled free from Madoka's grip. "I don't have much I could give you, though."

A lie. Madoka was at least at ease that the girl retained a level of caution even if the interest seemed more than just mere information sharing. The researcher's cloak swished as she returned to her slave.

"Ah, details, details. I owe you two a lot," Arudite waved her off. "More research is required anyways. Our findings will be left for tomorrow, but for now we must get to Guild Master Luxgor."

"You go ahead," Audrey spoke. "We have to collect the horns off these guys."

Madoka guessed that the princess meant secretly they were going to pull away again.

"We can wait for you," Arudite offered, but was stopped by Audrey removing her hood and revealing her Noble status. "Very well, then."

After a brief exchange of the town's location, the maid and her princess were suddenly alone with the dead trolls again.

"Now then," Audrey's eyes flashed from the glow of their own Bureau item, the storage portal. "Time to suck these guys up!"

Madoka's head swam with the current inventory they had within that portal— the bits and huge things that she could remember, anyways. A load of weaponry, dead goblins, an ogre's hut sized head, and an expanse of coinage that could set her free hundreds of times over were inside that thing. How could she fit three trolls that dwarfed all of those things put together?

And yet, the hexagonal white strands beamed into existence over the leaf choked undergrowth. First, the hexagon was small, and then it expanded in a bloom of light. Madoka shielded her eyes, but caught a small glimpse of the troll corpses sinking into the portal. At her shocked face, Audrey gave a shrug.

"To paraphrase that one Greek guy, Socrates," she sighed as the portal closed noiselessly and swiftly as a hind. "I am the wisest, and all I know is that I know nothing at all. Such is the folly of the Truth Guild, the paradox, if you will."

"What?" Madoka asked in English.

"Exactly. Your Knotting magic, for example, the sublimination of unreal to real, the kind gods," Audrey's voice trailed off. Her eyes lowered towards the goblin. "Now won't you get up, get up? We spared you. Git up! Now, wakey, wakey!"

The goblin stirred and immediately plunged its head in prostration before the princess. A fitting pose for all, no doubt, Madoka's head bouyed to the surface of her own thoughts from Audrey's strange rant as she glanced at the creature. She was happy that the source of her jealousy was away from her princess.

"You knew it was awake?" Madoka was tempted to squash the creature like a bug, but knew Audrey probably had an outlandish plan for it. She shook her head. Of course, her friend had a plan. "Speak."

"S-Spare me, you and you, Lord and Lord!" It begged in broken Commoner. "I a-am not a threat."

Madoka looked at Audrey, who gave her a nod. She knew not what the nod was for, but decided to take control of the situation.

"You spoke of something on the surface that is dangerous," Madoka questioned it. She lifted her cloak's folds just enough to reveal her deadly axe beneath it. "Would you show us the way?"

The goblin hesitated, but it knew it had no other choice. The question was not for a favor, but instead a simple and dangerous demand that it could not refuse.

"Me, show you and you, Lord and Lord!" It declared but pleaded with its eyes. "Let me free, you!"

Madoka crossed her arms, much to the goblin's infinite dismay, and then she felt a finger poke her side.

"What is it saying?" Audrey asked her. "What are YOU saying?"

"What? We're speaking in Commoner..." Madoka realized that the talent Arudite spoke of was happening to her right before her eyes, so she straightened her posture and explained. "It knows what caused the rumbling and will lead us to it. Won't you?"

"M-Mercy, Great Lord!" It begged. Madoka stepped over it and rose to her full height as she did. Her shadow looked over it like an avalanche. With a quick motion, she undid its ropes. Its arms were slimy and slick like oil! The goblin scrambled up to its feet, but surprisingly, it did not run. "I will show you! But you let me free after!"

"Very well," Madoka agreed, trying to shake off the residual grossness of its oily arms left on her hands.

"G-Grob," the goblin uttered a strange word. "Grob will show you and you! Disturbance, not far. Quickly follow Grob!"

"It says its name is Grob, now let's go," Madoka began to follow the goblin through the woods. "But be careful! The danger is near."

"Wha?" Audrey chased after her. "What kind of name is Grob? I could come up with a better name. Henry! You could be Henry!"

The goblin hissed at the suggestion, but remained alert.

"Grob doesn't like that name," Madoka reported. Audrey clicked her tongue at the rejection. She followed the goblin silently, monitoring its thoughts. It was thinking of meat, its home, and the disturbance from something below the surface.

It ducked and weaved through roots and leaves while Madoka simply stepped over them. It was staying true to its word, at least. There were thoughts of beasts around them, but she knew that they posed no challenge and dared not to approach them. This forest was a similar beast when they first arrived from the mountains, with breezes to blustery bursts of wind pushing through the treetops. The sky was green here, not blue.

"What do you make of the scholar?" Madoka asked. She was unable to contain her suspicions about the woman. What did that girl have that she did not?

"Huh?" Audrey asked, but realized who Madoka was referring to. She felt ashamed, perhaps she was thinking of Arudite more than her princess. "Starters, that nerd is using an obvious alias. It's, ah, a fake name. Second, can't you tell what's so special about her?"

"She's attractive, but I promise I'm—" Madoka blurted.

"What? No, not that! Well, besides that!" Audrey sighed. Her cheeks went red, but she cleared her throat. "The girl is a... You know what? If you can't detect what she is then she's probably safe to go to the Guild."

"What?" Madoka asked, but the air was changing again. Several flying creatures above were disturbed by rustling in the woods. The goblin screeched, but she realized something was targeting them. She swatted the creature out the way, right as an arrow landed before their feet.

Enemies were in the treetops and beyond the root before them.

"Not another step forward!" A voice warned them. "Lest you want more from where that came from."

Audrey's breath sharpened. Madoka could sense the killing intent within her brewing. Were they to fight to the death now?

"Show yourself," Madoka calmly spoke. She knew that three were poorly concealed in the branches, and two were inspecting what the goblin led them to. The goblin escaped, but that was no longer her concern. It had served its purpose.

"An adventurer, eh?" The man's voice laughed. A tall Sovos's brown tail flicked out from the trees as he landed before them. The other two were moving behind them. They were surrounded, Madoka cursed herself for being reckless. The Sovos had a powerful sword strapped to his waist and held another thick blade in his hands. His face was more dragon than like Eraziror's, with his green eyes bloodshot and cracked side to side with a battle hardened look. "Well, we got here first!"

He reached under his armor and pulled out an iron tag.

"And?" Audrey asked. Madoka noticed the stress in her voice. It was much more tense than usual, her eyes shifted to something unseen in the air. "What does that matter?"

"A Noble adventurer?" The Sovos laughed. "What a joke. Sorry, I don't do honorifics."

"I don't mind," Audrey sighed. "What is this place?"

"That's for us to find out, little girl," the Sovos adventurer smirked. "Stay out, or you'll have a problem on your hands."

Two other Sovos adventurers emerged from behind the trees. Madoka stood at the ready in case they attacked.

"Can we see it?" Audrey suddenly switched her tone completely. "I don't think we're strong enough to go in anyways!"

She laughed sheepishly, but revealed her copper tag. The Sovos looked at her tag and then howled with laughter. The quick deception was working, at least. Madoka noticed Audrey's magic, but the adventurers had no idea that their lives hung in the balance of her palms.

"You are copper rank?" He laughed. "Fools! You are lost, right? Stick close to the entrance. We can surely guide you back to a town, for a price."

Madoka did not like the sound of his insinuation, but knew it was best to remain quiet and act innocently.

"Show us please, sir," Madoka begged, though her voice was deadpan and uninterested.

"Come quickly," The Sovos raised his hand and made a calling motion with it. "Boys, we're moving out!"

"Yay!" Audrey kept her childlike act up. It would be adorable, had Madoka not notice her glowing palms tucked quickly within her bag.

"As your seniors, little girl, you will have a lot to learn from us if you stick with us," the Sovos boasted. "We've been through the lands."

The others made gestures in agreement. The Sovos adventurer slashed through thickets and small branches as he continued to brag about his useless exploits. As they rounded the corner, Madoka's heart nearly sank from the horror that followed.

A massive pit dugged into a steep incline, with nothing but darkness within. The pit was a wound in the earth, similar to the tunnel in the town with the disturbed remains of trees shattered and splintered in its formation's wake. She noticed that her Knotting magic seemed to avoid the pit and instead redirect back towards the sky.

"Whoa!" Audrey's voice wavered. The tone of innocence completely dropped, like a heavy rock in a lake. Only the warning rippled in her shaking breath. The Sovos turned to her after he tucked away the blade and pulled out his big sword. "That seems dangerous! Are you sure you want to go down there?"

"Lady, we are adventurers," He puffed out his chest. They are doomed, Madoka pitied them. "A lousy pit full of treasures is not going to scare us!"

He swished his sword while the other adventurers psyched themselves up. A female Sovos took out a talisman and began to hum loudly. Substance magic? The green helical strands formed weak nets and coated their skin and scales. Madoka guessed that they were some kind of strengthening spells, but they paled in comparison to Audrey's own. She shook her head.

"You guys still will go down there?" She asked. The Sovos adventurer ceased his hollering and laughed at her.

"Shut it, slave!" He pointed his sword towards the dark entrance. They all roared and marched into the pit.

"Well, then," Audrey stared down the hole. "They are screwed."

"What do you see down there?"

"I see," Audrey's voice faltered. "Dark manas."

"Dark... Kind gods," Madoka breathed. Something rustled within the branches near them. She pulled her axe out and growled. Audrey also got into a fighting stance.

"No! No hurt me, Great Lord and you!" Grob emerged from the branches. The creature followed them?

"What are you doing here?" Madoka asked it. She felt a pang of pity for the lone creature. It was if the look in its eyes was of sorrow.

"My home," Grob's voice quivered. It could sense the disturbance in the air, but perhaps not the manas like Audrey could. "My home."

It pointed towards the hole.

"What is it saying?" Audrey's voice was a whisper.

"Its home is down there," Madoka pointed at the hole. The goblin suddenly ran down into the pit. "Wait!"

It was too late!

"What should we do, Audrey?" Madoka knew what the answer was, but she would rather leave.

"We get the heck out of here!" Audrey surprised her by the order of retreat. "Ain't no way we could—"

Sudden rumbling shook the ground beneath them like a heavy, aching breath. Branches toppled as Madoka shielded Audrey with a strong pull on the Knotting strands above her head, creating a golden shield. Though she could move while holding onto the strands with great effort, she found that it rooting her in place while she used them helped her stand steady while the earth trembled beneath them.

Something bellowed out from the maw of the pit, followed by chaos. Madoka hated to admit it, but she was more worried for the little goblin that ran inside. She knew deep down inside of her that the creature would not be alive if they found it in there. The ground threatened to tear apart and more of the towering trees began their sundering.

"What do we do?" Madoka looked around frantically. Her magic could stop the debris falling upon them, but not them from falling into a fissure. Audrey could not hear her, but she knew what must be done. They would have to face the dark pit head on!