The men dashed out onto either side of the chamber to let the monster have some room, as though it was their Abyss-cursed guest. Rieren’s initial frustration at the duo quickly evaporated as she frowned at the onrushing monster. It was… a little different from the regular Blightmanes she had faced so far.

The spikes that formed the eponymous mane were more expansive now, growing outward with the tip of each barb glinting like gemstones. Its claws were large enough to scythe Rieren in half, and its wolflike snout could easily take a big bite out of her now-pet boulder.

Ah. It was a little stronger. This wasn’t a D-Grade monster anymore. In fact, it had to be progressing well through C-Grade to reach B-Grade before long.

“Why won’t that thing stop following us?” the man on the left cried.

“Maybe if you stopped screeching like a baby getting spanked,” his companion said.

That made the first man puff up angrily. He was thickset already, so now he positively ballooned as his mustache ruffled and his skin turned an angry reddish-purple tinge.

“Well, this baby can’t be expected to kill it, now can it?” He pointed at the monster with a thin rapier. “Go on and kill that thing, Mercion.”

“Oh, are you now ordering me around, Kerolast?” the man called Mercion asked.

“I am only reminding you to do what is expected of you.”

Rieren did her best to focus on the threat presented by the Blightmane. The only reason the monster hadn’t attacked yet was because of the inadvertent, three-pronged battle it might face. With both men on either side and Rieren right in the middle, it hadn’t decided who to focus on just yet. It wasn’t sure who might be the greatest source of danger.

At another point in time, Rieren might have hesitated. She would have baulked at displaying her true prowess in the presence of those she didn’t know and couldn’t trust.

Truth be told, she felt that recalcitrance even now. Her mind was throwing up a dozen reasons why her best option was turning back, leaving the chamber, and finding a different route to her goal. Monkey’s balls, for all she knew, these men were here solely to discover her exact location.

It took a force of mental will to shove the thoughts aside and raise her sword in a battle-ready stance. Then her Domain came into play, stormy water rising in waves for several paces around her.

Both men had gone silent as Rieren had acted. Even the Blightmane had narrowed its concentration squarely upon her. Not exactly a great thing, but she could deal with it. Ideally, it would have been better if either of the newcomers could have provided some kind of distraction, but that didn’t look likely. It was all up to Rieren.

And, it would seem, Batcat. The little kitten growled as menacingly as it could, which just made it sound adorable, then took a few padding steps towards the Abyssal.

For its part, the Blightmane had now fully decided that Rieren and Batcat were going to be its next target. It roared at them, lowering itself as though preparing to charge. Just before it launched itself at them, Rieren stomped on the water and turned her whole Domain to steam. As with the Anachron, her presence disappeared into the essence carried by the water vapour.

The Blightmane burst through the burning mist to attack her, but she had already moved. Batcat had followed too. The Abyssal twisted its head this way and that, trying to find her or the kitten, but it had no luck.

Until Batcat announced its presence with loud, insistent meows. Rieren wondered if the cat was trying to distract the monster for her benefit. Either way, she was thankful for it. Now she could execute her next move without needing to worry about defending herself.

She crept up closer to where the Blightmane was blindly slashing its claws and chomping its jaws in an effort to get to Batcat. The kitten was smartly weaving in and out of the steam to keep the monster on its toes but not let it too close to be any real danger. Easy as it turned out to be to manipulate the Blightmane, its rampaging was still going to make it a difficult target.

Once Rieren was close enough, she whistled loud and clear. “Batcat! Over here.”

The kitten heeded her call with incredible speed. It zipped past the Blightmane in her direction, making the monster twist around to face her.

Rieren gave it no chance to attack. Instead, she launched Gale Blade, aiming right for its lower belly. The monster’s weakest point. With all her levelling up and raising her skills, she was now even faster than before. The world flashed by in an instant. One blink, and she was past the Blightmane, its innards spilling out through the deep gash she had left on its midsection.

She wasn’t done just then, of course. As the monster crumpled around the fatal wound to its guts, she twisted as the second slash of Gale Blade took effect. This one crashed against the Abyssal’s limbs, sending it sprawling onto the wet floor. The next slash crushed into its head.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Neither of the last two blows were able to pierce its incredibly hard fur, but that was all right. Rieren had landed the true blow that would kill the monster.

One last slash of Gale Blade did manage to tear through the monster’s jaw, sending a gout of blood spraying into the air in her wake. With a last, mournful howl, the Blightmane Lykan finally settled down and died.

Hmm. No achievements. That meant this wasn’t a proper B-Grade Abyssal yet. A powerful C-Grade one at best. Considering how easily she had killed it, that tracked.

“That,” said one of the men loudly, accompanying his words with claps. What was his name? Kerolast? “Was. Brilliant. Did you see what this young lady just did, Mercion?”

Mercion was staring at the dead Abyssal at Rieren’s feet with something between fear and awe. “Oh, believe me, Kerolast, I certainly did.”

Kerolast was observing Rieren critically. Now that the battle was over and she could let her attention wander, Rieren finally allowed herself to observe the strange newcomers.

Both were no doubt affluent. It was evident in the rich embroidery of their robes, in the way their buckles were polished to a sheen and their buttons glinted even in the low light. Considering the Essence Rieren had sensed earlier, they had to be cultivators.

On a more individual level, Kerolast didn’t give off the sense that he was a fighter. He wasn’t simply thickset. The man clearly had no intention of keeping himself in perfect fighting shape. Not that he didn’t take care of himself. His mustache was carefully curled, his dark hair shone, and his nails were all perfectly trimmed and coloured a bright blue.

Meanwhile, Mercion certainly appeared to be the more warriorlike of the two. Long and lithe, dressed in scaled armour—albeit one that looked more ceremonial than functional—and he bore a variety of weapons strapped at his waist.

Despite his more warlike appearance, he wasn’t any less well-groomed than his companion. His long brown hair fell silkily down his back, and the faint hint of red on his cheeks wasn’t exertion… it was rouge. But still. Of the two, Mercion looked the most prepared to face whatever the dungeon might throw at them.

“Dear lady,” Kerolast said. “Judging by the cut of your clothes—”

“Who are you?” Rieren asked. She frowned at Mercion’s armour. “Your insignia… it is from the Ordorian clan.”

Mercion raised his head a little haughtily at the surprise in Rieren’s tone. She couldn’t help it. Someone from an Archnoble clan was in the dungeon with her. Judging by his bearing and the way he looked groomed and imperious, she was starting to think he was someone important in the Ordorian ranks.

“I am the third scion of the great Ordorian clan,” he said, standing straight with his chest puffed up and with a look that would supposedly make all shrivel before him. “Tell me what brings you here, disciple of…?”

Kerolast cleared his throat, his mustache bristling. “Mercion, is it wise to reveal our identities to this unknown hooligan?”

“You were just calling her dear lady.”

Rieren blinked from one to the other as they continued their bickering. A vein in her temple throbbed. She couldn’t decide why exactly she was trying to be civil here. A part of her knew that manipulating them would be to her proper advantage.

At the same time, they were certainly testing the very limits of her patience.

Mercion finally turned back to her, once again looking demanding. “Yes, do go on. You were about to tell me what you were doing here, and where you’re from.”

“With all due respect, my lord, I was about to do no such thing,” Rieren said. “But allow me to introduce myself. I am…” For a second, she considered using Arianaele. But no. Outside of the sect, Rieren was an unknown. Arianaele, however, had garnered a powerful reputation. Something she could use later, but not just yet. “Rieren Vallorne. A Crimson Leaf disciple.”

“Rieren…” Mercion rubbed a hand under his chin. “A middle region name, but you said Crimson Leafe Sect. Strange. The Crimson Leaf Sect is in the north, right Kerolast?”

“You hesitated,” Kerolast said, eyeing Rieren up and down. “I heard that minute pause. You—”

“Kerolast, I asked you a question. Is that Sect in the north?”

“I am in the middle of something here.”

“North, or not? Must I spell it out for you? N-O-R—”

“Do you seek the treasure at the end of the dungeon, my lords?” Rieren asked. They both turned to look at her, slightly annoyed that she had the temerity to interrupt their little argument. “I can guide you to it.”

“You said you are a disciple of… the Crimson Leaf?” Kerolast said. “That is quite far from here.”

“I am in the Enlightened realm, my lord.”

“Ah, I see.”

There was a reason that the highest realm most disciples in Sects attained was Enlightened. Those who wished to progress in the Enlightened realm needed to acquire various enlightenments, and travelling to specific locations where these enlightenments could be obtained meant leaving the Sect.

For most disciples, this was often seen as the ideal time to leave the Sect and seek proper employment in the Elderlands. As such, when disciples began the journey to enlightenment, most disciples decided to leave their Sect permanently. By that point in time, they usually had acquired most of the knowledge a Sect could pass down anyway.

As such, it was quite natural for Rieren to have left her Sect, if she was intending to advance through the Enlightened realm.

“But how would you know where the centre of this dungeon is?” Kerolast asked.

“One of the Elders at my Sect, dear Elder Molgin, has been through this place before.” She paused. Sometimes, Rieren thought she might have done well in theatre if she could have applied herself there. “He told me a great deal so I believe I should be able to find my way through to the end.”

Kerolast and Mercion both regarded her with hooded expressions, not quite ready to believe everything she had said just yet but failing to find any holes in her story as well.

“What do you think, Mercion?” Kerolast finally asked.

“Well, she did kill that dastardly beast,” Mercion said, considering. “So I suppose she isn’t entirely useless.”

“She hasn’t grovelled as much as I would have liked, though.”

“One can’t have everything in this world, sadly, Kerolast.”

Rieren did her best not to let her face show any expressions. Grovelling? At least that implied Kerolast was from a powerful clan as well, or held some other kind of authority he obviously enjoyed wielding like a bludgeon. Something Rieren could use to her own benefit.

Both men turned to her with a quick snap of their head, as though they had come to the same decision at the exact same time.

“Very well,” Kerolast said. “Lead on, Rieren Vallorne. Let us conquer the rest of this dungeon together.”