Coerced Into Altruism In The Dungeon

Ryuu was supposed to be standing watch, just like the others.

It was an important duty that definitely needed a hundred percent of her attention, yet she continued to steal glances at the girl next to her, the one who had just recently returned to them. She was sure Noin noticed, but just chose not to say anything. That was her own way of being considerate, even when she didn't need to be. Ryuu had certainly seen it enough times to know.

Eventually tearing her gaze away from her friend, she looked back to the area that required her gaze, the darkness and fog-filled woods, wrapping their location in a complete circle.

Technically, there wasn't any way to keep an eye out for every entry and exit point that could be used by the two targets they waited for, but that was why they all joined in on the search—only as a precaution, however. Ryuu already had an inkling, just as the others likely did, where they would spot movement, if any. It was impossible not to. After all, when they were still working out the kinks in their plan, and even when the waiting period began, the sounds did not once cease.

Of course, she was referring to the sounds coming from the forest.

Deep roars and banshee-like shrieks rumbled up and over the canopies, launching into awaiting ears, only growing louder and even more enraged as time passed. It was why Ryuu didn't have a doubt in her mind of the intense battle occurring deep within that greenery.

And as if on cue, evidence presented itself in the form of yet another tree way in the distance disappearing from sight, with a deep quake bellowing immediately after. And for the umpteenth time, she couldn't refrain from tightening her grip around her blade's leatherbound handle. It wasn't so much the monster that was giving her cause to fret, though.

Yes, that beast in all its demented glory did indeed terrify her—it nearly killed Noin after all—but what truly frayed her nerves was the thought of the person that was supposedly opposing it at this current moment. The very same man who, after coming out of nowhere, seemed to be helping them in their plight.

That person had already managed to save Noin, a girl who despite her Level 4 status had been put on the ropes by that monstrosity in an instant.

So, in being able to compete with that monster for this long, going on four minutes, just how powerful did that make him? In Ryuu's mind, he had to be an upper tier adventurer—a five, or even a six. Right? But, if he was indeed that strong...

Ryuu swallowed.

What does it mean for me, being the person who had mistakenly attacked him...?

Her rapidly pounding heart was the answer to that. Yet, she shook her head, dispelling the phantom question. Come what may, she would have to deal with it at a later date. As of this moment, there were more important things to worry about.

Ryuu declared her resolve, and as long as she had a say, it would remain unshaken.

She had been too naive.

"So... that guy made it sound like you stabbed him."

"Hbwauh?!"

Now, Ryuu thought of herself as a proud elf. It might not be as pervasive as when she first arrived in Orario, but some of her homeland's noble haughtiness still yet remained, something Kaguya continuously liked to remind her of; the "Elven bitch-blood," as she not so affectionately called it. Ryuu still had the face of poor Celty in her mind when she first heard the term.

In any case, it referred to their kin's pride, plain and simple. And despite that being what she found herself despising to the point where she fled those forests in the first place, it hadn't been removed, not entirely. She still considered herself an elf possessing poise and grace befitting her people.

Thus, Ryuu found it unacceptable to behave in a way that brought those ideals—ones she couldn't manage to completely let go of—into question.

Yet Noin's innocuous comment regressed her back into a blubbering child ignorant of all things dignified. Her face burned, and she knew that to be so, because not even Ryana's much acclaimed fire magic had ever felt hotter.

"Yeah, I thought so..." Noin's swirl of both a chuckle and a sigh seeped into Ryuu's ears, and she found her embarrassment teetering in place.

What?

Such a comment was not only vague, but it also implied that Noin needn't have even asked in the first place, the answer being just that obvious. What was obvious? Ryuu going around stabbing people? She certainly hoped she didn't have that kind of reputation amongst those she was close to. She wouldn't know what to do if she did.

And what kind of face was Noin even making right now? Disappointment? Anger? It was impossible to tell just from what she had been given.

Thus, and she felt pins and needles pricking at her neck, tentatively, she pushed forward. "A-And, are you mad... about that?"

"Huh?"

In her periphery, Noin looked her way, and any unspoken pretense of them staring steadfastly into the forest was abandoned as they locked eyes. This continued for a little while, until her black-haired companion finally broke it, with a laugh and a wave of her hand.

"Oh, I'm not mad. Sure, you don't want to hear a friend stabbed the person who saved you..." This been said with some degree of emphasis from the girl, and Noin even trailed off at the end, but she abruptly switched gears and started tripping over her words.

Ryuu realized her face must have revealed how much that had torn into her.

"B-But it's not anger! I swear it's not, or anything close to it. I know you, Ryuu. You wouldn't have done something like that if you knew all the facts. You're just not that type of person."

Ryuu felt budding relief.

"...You're not, right?"

"Noin...!"

The indignant retort came out before she could stop herself.

"Haha. Sorry, sorry—that was me joking. My bad."

Ryuu wilted, feeling utterly spent even though she had little reason to be. Silence soon enveloped and that looked to be the end of it, something she was more than content with. Seconds passed. Yet, she found herself frowning. Why did she still feel so unsatisfied? Like, there was still a lingering something or other that she was missing. Was she content with that being the end of it?

Against her better judgement, the words spilled out before she had a chance to give them any serious thought.

"What do I do if he doesn't feel the same?"

A pregnant pause filled the air, right before her heart very loudly missed a beat in her chest. That was what Ryuu felt at the moment she realized the deathly embarrassing thing that had just been uttered in her own quiet voice, and it had not only been in the midst of a battlefield, but also to the very open ears of someone who was now staring at her with wide eyes.

"Ah, wait..." She wanted to take it back, but it was too late, and Noin's stunned silence told her in about a million different ways that such a thing should have remained within the confines of her head.

The prickling sensation upon Ryuu's now flushed skin returned a hundred-fold, and she just stood there in what felt like—despite the chilly dungeon air—a sun-beaten desert.

Her face at the moment had to be a sight to see.

What was wrong with her? Why did something like that slip from her mouth? Was she... trying to justify herself? Her actions?

It was hardly the time or place to go about couriering favor with someone she had wronged, someone who now likely bore a grudge against her. And especially not when it was for no other reason than to assuage her own guilty conscience.

Given the situation was what it was: lying in wait for a very powerful monster to come barreling out the trees, and with their mysterious benefactor—is that what he was to them?—hopefully in tow, her question was beyond the bounds of inappropriate. It was downright horrid.

Ryuu wanted to slap herself for her complete lack of faculties. What must Noin think of what she just said? Surely, that she was some kind of vain, heartless, empty-headed—

"Pffft! Heh! Heeheeheeheeheehee!"

But that all seemed to become muted as Noin's giggling slapped her across the face.

Eh?

The black-haired girl keeled over somewhat, her form shaking, and it seemed it was all she could do to stay standing firmly in place. Incidentally, Ryuu completely forgot about the stretch of forest in front of her. She just stared at the laughing girl, who looked like it was a struggle to even breathe. It would have been concerning if she wasn't so utterly confused.

"I... I'm...! I-I'm sorry! Heehee!"

Her stare was caught, and Noin waved her hands apologetically, even as they continued to quiver in amusement.

"I-It's just... our famous Miss Ryuu, who doesn't even give men the time of day, is worried about what one might think of her? I just couldn't help but laugh! It really is something else! Haha...!"

Ryuu said nothing. She could only say nothing. Every attempt at doing the opposite was met with the thrashing and drowning of the words and phrases she thought she knew. She again wondered what kind of expression she had upon her face, frozen stiff as she was, and she grew even more self-conscious now that some of the others started peering at them curiously from their own spots.

"I... um..." She opened her mouth to speak, only now realizing that her saliva had disappeared—

"Hehe. But I'm only just teasing."

—Only for it to click shut.

Just like that, Noin looked away from her, traces of giggles still rocking her form, that, and the perpetual smile that seemed all but sewn onto her face. Apparently, the girl had had her fun. Ryuu supposed she should be glad. If that had gone on any longer, she might have made an even greater fool of herself. Although, that certainly didn't stop her friend from expressing amusement at her expense.

If it were any other occasion, Ryuu might have glared at Noin for the remainder of the day, maybe even sulk in her room and ignore everybody. She frowned a bit at that self-acknowledgement. But... none of that happened now.

This was hardly like any of those occasions, after all, so she didn't.

No. In fact... she couldn't.

Because no matter how hard Ryuu tried, she couldn't stop staring.

Noin's cheeks were rosy and full, so full that not even her side profile, nor the gloomy atmosphere of the dungeon, was able to dim the insurmountable cheer of the sight in front of her. Ryuu's previous embarrassment was nonexistent. She didn't even recall what that had felt like.

Actually, she would welcome it again, if only that meant Noin could keep making an expression just like this. That's how much happiness it brought Ryuu.

It's also how much terror she felt when it had been her actions that had nearly been the cause of shattering it to pieces. That was why she could admit with certainty that she had never known such a bittersweet feeling of relief, a feeling only attainable to those who found something they thought had surely been lost.

And, for allowing such a beautiful thing to happen, Ryuu breathed a silent thank you to the gods.

This prayer flowed out of her mouth, yet, for some briefly unascertainable reason, it fell straight back down, and her breath hitched. That was because a deep wrongness enveloped her. Noin's smile in this moment...

The gods had nothing to do with it.

Try as they might, the gods had no jurisdiction over the dungeon, whether it was the most sickening of horrors, or the grandest of miracles. Ouranos was said to keep the fearsome entity in check, but that did not extend to each individual life of the wayward souls that pioneered through its caverns.

From the moment those stairs were descended, each person was liable for every decision they made, just as the results were of direct correlation.

And it was his decision that brought this smile into being.

And I... A part of Ryuu's stomach twisted. I stabbed him for it.

"Oh, and that other thing you asked."

Ryuu almost didn't hear the girl, too distracted by the deep unease welling within her, but she nudged the discontent aside as best she could and focused on Noin's face, who was scratching her cheek with a wry smile. "I'd uh, watch yourself around that guy, just in case."

A brief pause followed.

Ryuu smiled.

"C-Come again?"

It had been such an instinctual response, and it was one she only used when hearing something that just didn't click with her brain. This was definitely one of those times. Thus, she desperately sought the clarification she was so lacking in.

But the black-haired girl just shrugged and said nothing, as if to say it couldn't be helped. 

"N..." Ryuu actually heard a quiver in her own voice. "Noin...?"

"Anyway, lets focus on our duties, Miss Ryuu."

"Noin?!" Where did this emotional distance come from!?

She didn't have a clue as to what caused the complete one-eighty in the girl's personality, but she didn't even have the leeway to inquire further, not when a myriad of shouts abruptly stole every aspect of her attention.

It was because at that precise moment, the time for playing had ended.

"WE HAVE MOVEMENT!"

With a powerful commanding voice she so rarely made use of, Alise's shout towered over them all. The previous lightheartedness disappeared from Ryuu's body, cold battle-hardened tension rising in its stead.

It was right in time for her to witness the speeding blur that suddenly shot out from the forest.

Her sword instantly raised with intent.

However?

She recognized the figure speeding out of the green thicket, and it was most definitely not the towering dark monstrosity with legs that amounted to more than two. Instead, it was a sight that while Ryuu had only seen once, was still just as distinctive.

From beside her, Noin's reaction, the way her voice tried to convey surprise, but it came out as a gasp instead, she felt was certainly justified.

The dark of the person's clothes and blond hair were indeed glaring, yet the porcelain-covering obscuring its owner's identity couldn't as easily be ignored, nor could the approach of his entrance.

Primarily, its audacity.

He did not come running out of the forest—he flew.

From right near the tops of the canopies just barely visible because of the deep absconding fog, knees bent and arms flung backwards, it made for the strangest sight. For the briefest of moments, her gaze was stuck in a stupefied loop, but when his form began to lose height, and it was obvious he was falling, she actually questioned his sanity.

The tops of the trees on the 30th floor approached well over fifty meders. It wasn't a height someone—even adventurers like them—could just shrug off as nothing.

But that was when his arm shot out, as if stabbing the air.

A brief flash of light accompanied something nearly invisible blurring to the side, and his entire body was savagely flung along with it. The movement was so fast and came as such a surprise that the weak sound that escaped Ryuu's mouth wasn't something she could have stopped if she tried.

She found herself losing sight of him, and her eyes squinted amidst the dreary surroundings. Those dark clothes almost made him completely indistinguishable, especially against the dark trees and their looming shadows. It was only the pale white of his mask that drew her right back to him.

Only—

Ryuu blinked.

Rapid and erratically, he swerved, flipped, swung, and vaulted off of every solid surface he could get his hands on, and sometimes it didn't even look like he was directly touching anything. In the oddest way possible, he just seemed to smoothly glide his way down in the various places that somehow allowed it.

Distracted, Ryuu almost missed when he suddenly slowed, hanging off a branch and teetering there for a bit before finally dropping to the ground.

But just then, something that was not quite a rope nor a thread whipped towards him, almost violently, almost as if it had a mind of its own. But it came and went. There was absolutely no sign of it on his person when he abruptly turned towards them. It was to the point where she even thought she imagined it.

That was when he began to walk towards them, almost in a stroll-like fashion.

Ryuu couldn't say she was too pleased by the instinctual urge she had to take a step back, nor the slight increase in the tempo of her heart. As a result, she shifted her weight from foot to foot.

"That's him, right?" Ryana said this from her position next to Neze, and while Ryuu couldn't see what kind of face she made as she did it, the beastkin girl grunted in the affirmative.

The man continued his approach, and a hand disappeared into the confines of his outfit, pulling something out that was completely foreign. It was a small slim rectangle, and as he walked through the diminishing troves of greenery, he seemed to eye it carefully, his gloved thumb falling down on the object with systematic cadence.

But he soon stashed the thing back where it came from, and with his other hand— Ryuu abruptly closed her eyes, just so that she could open them again.

However, the sight in front of her hadn't changed.

Long, compact, and metallic.

With his other hand, the masked man gently tossed this suddenly appearing construct into the air, catching it by a hanging strap off to its side, unceremoniously slinging behind his shoulder.

There was a brief tremble of his body, but that was gone from her mind when the stowed item rose past his head a bit, and she realized what she was looking at.

It was the peculiar weapon he had used previously, the one that had provided cover fire for Noin's escape. But its strangeness wasn't important right now.

How had it seemingly appeared out of thin air like that?

Ryuu was certain it hadn't been on his person before. It couldn't have been. If it had, those acrobatics would have been impossible. Was it some kind of magic then, maybe a skill? She didn't see how there could be any other explanation. She had been watching him walk; she would have noticed him grabbing for something, even if it did lie hidden.

Her questions would have to wait.

Nearly upon them, it allowed her to see what she hadn't during those frantic moments when she spotted him in that tree. Then, he had only been focused on Noin, and not even getting stabbed had been enough to deter him from that. That pleased Ryuu immeasurably, yet stabbed into her just the same.

But as for his outfit, it looked like she hadn't been mistaken in her first impression.

Primarily black with hints of gold, he possessed the kind of smart wear the guild employees usually sported, except with just a touch more personal casualness. It was definitely unique, to say the least. 

Of course, after that, there was his wavy blond hair, but that only seemed to compliment the most glaring thing about him, and the main reason Ryuu couldn't force herself to relax.

She tried to meet that face.

Masks weren't exactly uncommon in Orario, whether that was to sate the odd adventurer's childish sense of mystique, or even to those humble enough to desire anonymity. They were even used as familial icons for some. She could certainly think of a particular goddess who chose to outfit her Familia with such apparel.

So, it wasn't the mask in general that bothered her.

Rather, it was the expression.

The smile, that deep red smile, was painted wide enough to come across as a look of boredom, yes, but it could just as easily be recognized as a gleeful smirk. Combined with those slanted black eyes, it was enough. It was more than enough for somewhere deep within Ryuu to be intensely bothered by it.

And...

And it was likely why it wasn't at all difficult to mistake him as one of them.

He might still be, an inner voice told her.

The thought had been sudden, so sudden, it rocked her entire body. Immediately afterwards though, she bit the back of her teeth in admonishment.

He had saved one of their own, and if that wasn't enough, he bought them time to come up with a solid strategy. Noin even vouched for him. From the moment he appeared, he had only continued to be of assistance to them. What more could she ask for? He was the one who had every right to distrust them, not the other way around.

Unaware of Ryuu's struggles, he stopped a few steps away from them, and she did her best to snap out of whatever daze she had been put under.

Determined to make a good impression than she had made previously, she took a step toward his black-cut figure. An apology. Yes, that's what she would start with, something sincere that would allow her to finally put to rest the shadows hanging over her.

"E... Excuse me, if I may, I would like to—"

His right arm shifted, and his clothes rustled slightly as he looked her way. It was a simple action. And yet when he did this, Ryuu's mind came to a screeching halt, and she irrefutably froze.

She had worked up the courage, and the words she wanted to say were on the cusp of escaping her throat.

That was what should have happened.

She found herself swallowing them instead, and the gulp that resounded in the next moment was far too loud to be anyone but her. She wasn't aware just when she started staring, only that it took her too long to notice.

Not at his mask, not his curious and curiouser objects. No—Ryuu stared at his clothes, the part that had been almost obscured by his right arm.

Along his right side, there was a tattered mess of fabric that just barely covered skin, if skin was even an appropriate word to use. His flesh was ripped, and jutting out were several small spikes. No, shards would be a more accurate description.

Most of them were slick with blood, but that just made the ones that weren't so, stand out. Some of them, colored a steely brown, remained untouched by his insides, and while she initially thought weapons—man made weapons—were inside his body, she realized she had it wrong. The answer lay behind him, in the forest, full of trees that held that same steely brown shade.

The Floor 30 gargantuan freaks of nature that possessed bark with the consistency of iron.

Those splinters reminiscent of glass shards were stabbed into his body.

And it was saying something that despite Ryuu dimly noticing the other wound on his shoulder, the one that was pierced in an all too familiar way, her body didn't quiver in self-loathing this time. It was because she was already doing all that and more.

It was perhaps in part due to this that she didn't notice when the others had closed their ranks a bit, all staring with various degrees of horror at the man that was literally bleeding out.

"Wh-What happened to you!?"

Noin, bless her heart, was the first and only one among them who rushed forward, closing the distance between them in an instant. Her hands acted with similar speeds, making to touch the red-stained protrusions the man was sporting. But as if remembering at the last moment, they jerked away just shy of contact. And Ryuu was fairly certain it wasn't getting blood on her hands she was worried about.

That was confirmed promptly, when the black-haired girl, face anxious, suddenly looked up at him.

"Well?!"

There was no immediate reaction from the man. Of course, if his face had been looking in any other direction, she might have been convinced he hadn't heard her. Except, a gloved hand suddenly rose to meet Noin's unsuspecting face.

Ryuu's hackles immediately rose. Surely, he wasn't going to hurt her. Still, pulse quickening, and even in spite of what she decided earlier, Ryuu took an instinctual step forward.

But.

Her worries were entirely unfounded.

It was because he had already performed the motion with his hand, however, not to maim the girl in front of him, not in any technically combative way of doing so anyway. No, instead, he promptly made a fist. To which he then flicked her right in the forehead.

And the sound that followed was far sharper than it had any right to be.

Mouths on either side of her fell open. 

No, Ryuu's fell open as well.

"Ow!"

Noin yelped like a child, retreating a few steps back. The sight alone wasn't enough to ascertain whether it actually hurt or not, but in what looked to be a reflexive action, the girl's hands raised to cover, or perhaps, protect the top of her head from any further harm. Ryuu would have found it ridiculous if it didn't fill her with such ineffable confusion, even more so with the comment that then left that masked confine.

"Oh, she actually cried out."

"W-What did you think I was going to do?! What is wrong with you?! Why did you do that?!"

"Well... I clearly must have been thinking about how flickable a forehead you had," the man said, as if pondering it all the same as them. He shrugged. "But really, it's not even my fault. Basically, if you don't want someone touching something all willy-nilly, then you put it away. Do you not even have that much common sense?"

"P-Put it away..." Noin froze—seemingly in disbelief—before wilting. "Why, why did I forget you were like this?"

Ryuu wasn't sure how to take the sudden byplay that seemed to be exclusive to only them, that being the peeved black-haired girl, and the already animatedly emoting masked man. No, wait. Wasn't that odd considering his injuries? Shouldn't he be in more pain?

"No, forget that! You're wounds! You are seriously wounded!" 

Ryuu found herself nodding.

"What, this?"

The very odd man—Ryuu was definitely convinced of that now—looked himself over, specifically at the shards of tree in his side. On another note, thankfully, that was all he decided to look at. She wasn't quite sure how she would have reacted if he commented on his shoulder. She was snapped out of her musings however upon hearing the latter half of the man's response.

"—not even that bad?"

She focused in with a start.

What wasn't that bad?

His injuries?

Was he sane?

No, he clearly wasn't.

That had already been established, and she needed to get with the times. Admittedly, she might have believed him if she was just going off of the soft timbre of his voice that had delivered that deceptively calm statement. However, what with the multiple foreign objects sticking out of his body, that was impossible to do.

It was like accepting at face value that a dwarf and elf were soon to wed, in the sanctious Elven forests no less.

It just wasn't done.

She couldn't have been the only one who thought so, right?

Gauging her companions, Ryuu found a strange amount of relief in them looking just as floored as her. Kaguya was the exception though, as well as two others, Alise and Lyra. The first two being appraising, and the last one, well, Lyra was sending an amused smile the man's way. That... actually shouldn't have been so much of a surprise now that she thought about it.

However, someone completely different from them ended up breaking Noin and the man's indistinguishable stalemate.

Ryana pointed her finger downward.

"There is a pool of blood at your feet."

Contrarily, he didn't move an inch.

"I don't believe y—gaahfebgefh?!"

"Eiiiiiiiiiiii! Y-You're actually coughing up blood! Ryuu, Maryuu, hurry! Super hurry! Cast a healing spell!"

Before she even knew it, and in a sort of out of body experience, Ryuu found herself numbly being pushed by a frantic Noin, only half aware of Maryuu being dealt with in the same way, the blue haired young woman's girlishly yelping as she nearly bowled into their supposed patient.

Ryuu was fortunately able to maintain a bit more grace, and she just silently positioned herself at the man's side, outstretching her hand. Thankfully, that left Maryuu with his left shoulder, and no one questioned the arrangement. Ryuu didn't think she would be able to heal a wound she had caused, not if she wanted to be able to concentrate.

"The song of a now distance forest..."

Muttering words she's had to have said close to a thousand times, magical power began to build in her palm, and her [ Noah Heal ] began to locate and envelop the opposing marred flesh.

"Hey, nurse... is this healing magic?"

She looked at him only briefly, taking note of the way trickles of blood stuck to his ivory white mask. And what had he called her? Anyway, she was quick to look away, catching Noin watching them with a surprising amount of concern beheld in her stare. Of course, this was the man who had saved her friend's life, a fact that had all too easily been blurred with his jester-like behavior.

With this sudden bout of awareness, as well as even more prickling shame following it, she resolved herself anew in her healing, while also taking care to answer the man.

"Yes, it is," she said, satisfied that her voice didn't convey the way her heart was beating out of her chest. She couldn't even decide the reason anymore. Guilt, fear... awkwardness. Perhaps all three were blending together.

"I see. I see. And, what would you say is the most extreme wound you can heal with this spell?"

Ryuu quirked a brow. 

He wasn't looking at her, or any of them for that matter. His gaze, or what made for his gaze, was off into the distance. Nevertheless, it was an odd question. Why ask when he knew the answer? He was an adventurer, wasn't he? She still responded.

"...All healing spells are usually for wounds that pierce the body in some way. Although at a certain point, there isn't hope for recovery. And as you probably already know, replacing lost limbs is also out of the question. ...Why do you ask?"

He chuckled, finally looking at her, and there was the slightest hint of humor to the dark edge that suddenly coated his voice. "So, that means its potent enough to push something small out of my body, right? Like, say, numerous sharp objects?"

The air around Ryuu seemed to freeze.

Then, her eyes painfully slid downwards to the wound she was pouring energy into. And there, as if her staring had prompted it, the blood-soaked flesh began to stir. Words left her, and a breathless exhale slipped out instead.

She had made a mistake.

She was so out of it, worrying about this person, her unresolved feelings regarding him, that she had made the most basic of mistakes when it came to healing. Promptly, blood began to gush out from his body at an even faster rate than before.

"I-I'm...!"

The hand doing the healing shook, right before flesh ripped and squelched hideously into the awaiting air.

…

…

…

Less than a minute had passed.

Several times through Ryuu thought about quitting, that is, she was referring to each passing moment where the splinters were far too slowly being pushed out of dark colored insides, where she could see just how much pain it was causing her patient.

Of course, his face didn't reveal this.

The signs, while subtle, lay elsewhere.

The way he was all but murdering that strap over his shoulder, how, halfway through, he gave up on standing and sunk to one knee, and then of course, the strangled grunts that came from the back of his throat.

But as time continued to tick away, and as Ryuu worked on healing the last of the tears and gashes in his skin, she realized with a cold sweat that his reaction to what he was experiencing didn't match up in the slightest. He should be in more pain than this... no, even putting that aside... this much blood... still remaining conscious is...

She did not say what she was thinking, however, nor did she try to stop the healing process in favor of a new method.

"I... I think I'm finished over here."

It looked like Maryuu had concluded early, the girl stepping away. The masked man actually said something in response, but Ryuu had trouble understanding the words he used.

Something about Mor-feen?

Putting that aside, Ryuu was once again thankful for their positioning. She couldn't see the shoulder wound, nor the way it had likely been healed. She didn't think she wanted to see it, not up close at least.

Seeing her sin washed away like that, even though she hadn't been the one to do anything to rectify it, she wasn't sure how she would react. It was like she was told to wait in her room while the adults spoke, but her cowardly mind welcomed the chance to run away.

It was strange. No matter what she seemed to do, she couldn't find a way to get it right with this person, this stranger. While realizing such a thing, she stared at him from the side. His mask dipped and bobbed under the lingering strain of his injuries, but his breathing was becoming more relaxed. It confused her to no end about the relief she got from observing that much.

Guilt was certainly a new emotion for her, and that's what it was, guilt, right? I know it's unlike me, but... I don't want to cause this person any more problems. Declaring such a thing, however, it might just be for her own satisfaction. But she decided to accept that too.

The last of her healing finally finished up, and the proof was the jagged iron-like splinters that seemed to swim in the puddles of blood at their feet. It made her sick to watch, but not for a reason she might have had previously.

"Hm. I hate to admit, but I find myself disappointed. I thought for sure you'd be a screamer. The one's hiding behind enigmatic walls usually are."

That nonchalant voice suddenly cut into the air, one that sounded both cruel and amused, and in that brief moment, she was unable to associate it to any she knew, but that was only because of how jarringly audacious it was, her mind being all but forced to jumble it into incoherence.

When her eyes eventually landed on the source however, and she saw the black-haired girl in the kimono, who was gazing at their male addition with such perpetually sifting eyes, as if she was appraising a noteworthy creature for all it was worth, she understood.

"Hm. That's funny."

With an odd warble-like sound that she realized was a chuckle, the darkly dressed man pushed himself to his feet, and even though he staggered a bit, "Because... you know... if all you wanted me to do was whine and bitch... you just needed to ask. I've been told... I can be quite accommodating like that. ...Oh, but what's this?"

His tone suddenly changed from one that was strained with slight exhaustion, into one with tingling glee instead. Also, those black narrowed eyes that had been staring off elsewhere finally seemed to settle on Kaguya. "Since we're on the subject of walls, does the Lord and Lady know you've left yours?"

The air seemed to prickle.

Ryuu looked between the two, now very uncertain. It wasn't just her. Noin had also frozen a bit, as did Celty, Maryuu, Ryana, and Asta. Ryuu also caught sight of Neze and Iska exchanging their own looks.

Ryuu didn't know the man's basis for making such a jab, yet it made her even more curious given that it was a fairly accurate one. While it wasn't hard to make a guess at Kaguya's all too unique personality, only a select few knew of the past she experienced before coming to Orario's walls, or rather, to be in the know of who she had been running from.

They all knew family was sore subject girl.

Even if it was a mere guess, it wasn't such a simple statement that he could just make and be let off the hook for. No, not with someone as vindicative as Kaguya.

"Oh? What an amusing remark. Do you mind elaborating on that?" The black-haired beauty smiled, as if to praise her opponent for landing such a solid blow. But Ryuu knew better. That smile was as devious as it was flattering.

"Kaguya."

A sudden warning voice, yet hardly threatening, floated through the air, and the girl's expression faltered.

Alise stepped in between the two, usual chipper confidence on full display, but not forced. Never forced. Ryuu was glad to see it. It was a part of Alise Lovell that she had long endeared, even before her hands were grasped that day. In any case, the red haired girl acted as a saving grace, defusing the issue before something unnecessary could occur.

The last thing they all needed was to be exchanging barbs and at each other's throats.

Right...

Of course, she was aware of how much of a hypocrite that made her.

Ryuu felt incredibly small as she watched Alise begin to lightly scold Kaguya.

"I'm sure you have questions for our ally here—I do as well. But I think we have more important things to worry about, yeah? So for right now, let's try to forgive and forget, kay?" The crimson beauty winked at Kaguya.

It was testament to how much trust the kimono-wearing ravenette had in Alise, that when faced with such a suggestion, the girl only huffed with an expression close to amusement. Then, sardonically, she offered, "as you command, Captain," before completely looking away from the masked man.

To those that knew her, that was as tame of a reaction as they were going to get regarding her loss of interest, again, something only their Familia captain could properly pull off.

"Do I get a scolding too?"

An energetically raised hand brought Ryuu's attention back to reality.

Alise turned towards him with her lips quirked upward.

"If I did, I wouldn't know where to start, not after what we've had to rely on you for." She had completely brushed aside his purposely teasing remark. "And right now, while it's not even close to enough, I'll say it anyway because it needs to be said. Thank you. For saving Noin, for lending us aid, and even now for standing on this battlefield with us, I thank you, truly. I... I don't want to imagine how things would have turned out in those first few moments... had you not intervened."

That had quieted things a bit.

If it wasn't for the fact that Alise's eyes were narrowed so very softly, or that her voice conveyed such heartfelt sincerity, Ryuu would have been truly caught off guard when witnessing the sight of their captain bowing to someone else, one they did not even know the identity of, and to a man no less.

But she saw all that and more, so it was why she could only just silently watch, her heart pounding in some misplaced sense of awe.

If there was an immediate reaction, it didn't come from the man. In fact, there was no way to tell what he was thinking under there, that perpetually unchanging expression that stayed glued to his face.

But apparently, that wasn't the end of things.

"T-Then, me too. It would be weird if I didn't say anything, right?" Noin suddenly shuffled forward, though her eyes were anywhere but on his. She still did her best to convey the words causing a tremble on her bottom lip though. "T-Thank you for saving—"

"Whoops. Hand slipped."

A superficial impact was heard, a very familiar one.

Ryuu tried to offer a warning, but she had been too late. Noin was already clutching her forehead, which had just received another flick. "A-Again! Y-You did it again!"

"But this time just felt right, you know?"

"W-What does that mean!?" Noin's voice broke a bit at the end, as if she was a step away from crying.

The man shrugged, as if to say it wasn't his problem, before sticking his hand into his clothes. Ryuu was quick to realize what he pulled out. It was a small black object, sleek and rectangular around its edges, and all too similar to the item he had been utilizing from afar when he broke away from the treeline.

Actually, now that she gave it thought... If he had been injured to that degree, how had he managed such an impressive display of agility at that time?

Oblivious to her scrutiny, the man continued to tap away at the object. However, unlike last time, something different happened.

What?

It suddenly lit up with a bright glow.

It definitely hadn't done that before, not from where she could see.

Ryuu was barely even conscious of the fact that her mouth parted a bit, well displaying her unmitigated surprise. Of course, she wasn't unique in that regard. With their brows stretched upward and focused gazes, the others seemed to express their interest as well.

For it to be capable of glowing in such an abstract way, combined with its odd form, that narrowed down what kind of item it was significantly, did it not? It was not Ryuu's first time seeing such a thing then, not when she was a part of one of the leading Familias. Of course. It was a magical artifact. Was this person just like that woman, then?

Astraea Familia had something of a friendship with the Hermes Familia, or at the very least, just one of their members, the recently dubbed Perseus. Naturally, they were more than aware of her fantastical collection.

What that meant here, Ryuu did not know.

Did it mean that this man possessed a skill much like Asfi Andromeda, or did he know someone who did? For all she knew, he could be a member of Hermes' Familia as well. So many questions. The inquiries she had as to their enigmatic ally's true identity just continued to pile up.

"That thing, what is it?" Neze suddenly asked, and while she may have appeared calm, the twitching of her ears gave her away.

He responded promptly.

"This, my cosplay wearing friend, is what is called a phone. You can interact with various interfaces, use it to escape your empty fucking life, or if you want to do both at once, engage in cyber-terrorism. Ah, that last thing is a famous past-time for us humans, basically demonstrating their repressed emotions in a way that sows chaos and anarchy in modern society."

A beat passed.

Ryuu stared at him in confusion, as if continuing to do so would make her grasp a seemingly missing piece of a puzzle. It was like there was a language barrier... except there wasn't. So many foreign words were thrown around just now that it made the 'human slang' Kaguya had been teaching her incredibly tame in comparison.

Though, she was starting to understand Noin's reaction when she asked if this guy would be mad at her or not.

With him, it just wasn't as simple as the answer being yes or no, mad or not-mad. Instead, the answer would range from misanthropic, unintelligible, and/or borderline sociopathic—she was sure she could just keep plugging them wherever she pleased in any situation, and it would make just as much sense. Any emotion under the sky seemed like fair game.

At least, that's the impression she got, staring at him now.

"Kaaz-play?" Neze muttered to herself with a furrowed brow.

"Um," Asta raised a hand, her armor shuffling as she did so, and her hesitance was painfully clear on her face. "I'm still a little confused. What are you going to do with that thing?"

"Rather than what I'm going to do, it's more like, what haven't I been doing. Use your brain ladies. Don't you find it odd that no one with sharp teeth and an inclination for human flesh has attacked us yet?"

Ryuu was sure they all felt the invisible prick, as if something had been needling them this entire but just now found how to make itself known. And with that, its sudden weight washed over them like a damp blanket.

She considered his point, no, she did more than that.

She looked around, as if expecting an all too familiar horrid shape to abruptly jump out of the shadows at a moment's notice.

Where was it, if not here, where they were?

Where was the Juggernaut?

Alise, in a sort of half attempt at crossing her arms, looked deep in thought.

"You mean to say... you're keeping it occupied... from here...?" she asked, staring at what was in his hands, unable to keep the incredulity out of her voice.

"Occupied, giving it a perpetual trail to try and hunt down, same thing. It's, uh, kinda dumb. Anyway, assuming those steel strap-ons aren't for show," he turned to Ryuu abruptly, "and I know they're not because that woman penetrated me already—"

Her face suddenly felt like it was doused with fire.

"—Then we can fight it on our terms."

She shook away the mental cobwebs that had formed upon his sly jab at her, and focused on the situation, the silence that followed his statement. It also had to be a testament to the gears turning in everyone else's head as well, she thought. After all, she couldn't be the only one struggling with his words.

Provided that what he just said was true—no. She had no reason to doubt him; it wouldn't be fair of her. She owed him a little faith, if nothing else. Noin's breathing presence beside her was all the proof she needed for that.

Besides, could her conscience afford to doubt him? She didn't think she could handle it if the swirl of guilt within her got any deeper. She did not know if that was just her own emotions telling her that, or the fact that she was an Elf with an ingrained sense of integrity.

Either way, she needed to make up her mind, and it needed to be because of something she decided for herself this time, instead of getting swept along by the situation.

"So," Spontaneously spinning the rectangular object in one hand, the blonde man gave off the impression he was smiling. "You girls got a way of taking that thing down, or do I have to pull something out of my ass? Believe it or not, I actually don't have any more heavy-grade ordinance hidden in these stylish duds of mine."

"That won't be necessary."

Ryuu blinked.

It was because she had surprised herself by speaking. Yes, she had meant to from the start, but she couldn't say she was prepared for the undivided attention it garnered, his attention. She tried not to let the sudden spike of nervousness, his stare being the cause, appear on her face as she continued.

"What I mean to say... is you've already done more than enough. It would not be right to let you shed any more blood for our sake."

Ryuu maintained eye contact.

Even if every ounce of her wanted to run away, to retreat from the silent presence of that gaze, which just like him, was ridiculous, strange, and terrifying, she stood her ground, not looking away. No, more than that, she didn't want to look away.

And It wasn't only her pride responsible.

On a much more tender level, she didn't want to give this person any reason to believe they couldn't protect him the same way he had protected them, how he had protected Noin.

Eventually though, she had his response with the subtlest of inclines to his mask. Though the words came out softly, as if he didn't even mean for it to reach anyone's ears but his own. "(...Then that's that. But... what's with the ear accessories? Are they not embarrassed?)"

Ear-what?

Ryuu was about to ask what that meant, but something chose that moment to slam into her from behind, demolishing her bout of confusion. "Well said, you uptight Elf!" Nearly falling on her face or succumbing to a heart attack, Ryuu had to decide which would happen first as she rounded to find Lyra's loon of a grin beaming back at her.

She had choice words for the Prum girl, but just like always, Lyra marched to the beat of her own drum.

She strutted right in front of the man, and even though she was about a head or two smaller than him, she unabashedly struck a pose that could almost be considered flirtatious.

"Ryuu there more or less has the right of it, mister. I don't think you'll be disappointed by the splash we have planned."

The mask stared.

"...Yep, I have no idea what I'm looking at. And? What would that be?"

"Tell me, how do you feel about controlled demolition?"

"I almost just fell in love with you."

"Hehe, that so? Take that thing off and we'll see."

"Lyra!"

There was no hesitation in either of their replies, which likely caused Noin's chaste disapproval, stepping between the two as she did. Also, Noin was quick to jab a finger in the man's chest. "And you! Don't encourage Lyra like that. You have no idea what tree you're... ah, um..."

Her face grew rather stiff.

The mask tittered. "Thank you. I will remember that brilliant display of awkwardness for the rest of my life."

Ryuu couldn't see Noin's face, but she did see the tips of her ears redden.

With one last chuckle, the man flipped the artifact into his awaiting palm, thumb hovering over the glossy bright surface.

Ryuu took a steady breath.

Would their plan hold?

Would it be enough?

With trembling fingers, she searched for the existence of her heartbeat. She didn't quite know why. It was only speculation, but perhaps she wanted proof that she was alive, then and there. She found that in the energized tempo resounding from her chest.

"Oh, one more thing before we start."

Curiously drawn in by the tone, she looked up and—

Her body stilled.

There was no other way to describe it.

In that moment, it was like everything else had slowed down and dimmed, only the sight in front of her existing. If she had been expecting it, it might not have resonated so, but now, as that man—no—as that boy slid his porcelain disguise to the side, teasing the wild tendrils of his flaxen yellow hair away from his face, both the curve of his lips and the twinkling of golden irises were on full display.

"Don't die, yeah?"

She didn't know what those un-muffled words meant.

She didn't know what kind of thoughts were supposed to exist behind them.

But.

At that moment, the paradoxical, conniving jokester that she had been forced to know dimmed considerably, and now it was like she was made to look at a completely different person. That jarring contrast... that caricature of a normally already caricaturized self... was that why she was still staring, even now, and couldn't look away?

Ryuu had wanted proof of her existence, that she was alive. But by that logic, she was more alive now. She need only listen to the dull echoes of her rapidly beating heart.

It had been a devastating attack.

And, in the next moment, his gloved finger stabbed downward.

Ryuu blocked everything else out. The very last thing she allowed in was the strangely alluring sight of that mask once again concealing a surprisingly boyish face. The feeling of her blade's hilt brushing against her side became her new sense of touch, the stretch of forest in front of her—her sight. And, for her ears...

They waited.

They waited a long enough time to cause doubt, but even so, Ryuu waited, not moving so much as a muscle out of place, in fear that the moment she did was when she would be punished for losing her patience.

And then, approximately 35 seconds later, she was rewarded.

Ah, or maybe it was a punishment.

It started as a low sound. But as time passed, it progressively began to change. A barely coherent ringing that lightly kissed the ears, morphed into a slow, ever so slow echo of something much more real. Closer and closer it got, until finally—

It intensified all at once.

"RYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

The Juggernaut had found them.