Slowly… Steadily… I don’t want us walking into an ambush as we pushed through the fog.

  We had a quick encounter with some monsters, but the sound of fighting didn’t end. The creatures of the Forest, Fairies, aren’t supposed to attack each other. So what’s this noise?

  “It’s just up ahead. Keep your guard up.”

  My guess is that it’s a trap. There’s actually nothing going on, and it’s just like whispers from before trying to mess with us. The mist thinned as we reached the end of the street, and the path opened up into a big plaza.

  “What’s going on? They’re fighting!”

  “Didn’t I say so?” We should have just believed her… Now Sarasa’s grinning smugly…

  A big brawl was taking place in the middle of the plaza. Pigmen like the ones we fought were fighting each other, divided into two sides. One of the sides moved more sluggishly than the other, but either side could potentially come out on top. They were locked in endless combat, swinging weapons at each other and chipping away at body armor or sturdy flesh.

  But that was only until a destabilizing factor was introduced. The side with a little more vigor had a werewolf on their side who was able to tear through and rip individual soldiers in half. But it wouldn’t be that easy…

  The other side also had a trick up their sleeve. A handful of tall, human-shaped figures were also capable of eliminating some pigmen. Every time the werewolf lost himself in his rampage, they would be there to push him back. The sluggish side was weaker in combat, but their endurance was crazy. Even when one of them got injured, they would get up right away. Unless they got torn to pieces.

  Such a big fight left its marks on the plaza, which had blood covering the ground and the rubble spread throughout. There was a fountain in the middle that was completely ruined, and the buildings nearby were falling to pieces.

  We were lucky enough to find a knocked-over stone pillar and used it as cover to watch the action unfold.

  “What’s going on, Flanne? I thought fairies weren’t supposed to fight each other.”

  Poor Flanne didn’t know what to say. “I don’t know…” Her eyes were locked on the fighting. Unbelievable… “There can be some conflicts, but nothing on this scale…”

  It was an all-out battle. The mist made it impossible to know how big this town was, but outside the Forest of Illusion, this was a scale only seen in wars.

  “Wait… There’s something different about that side!” Abby adjusted her hat so it wouldn’t get caught on the rubble and pointed at the sluggish side. “They almost don’t feel like Fairies…”

  “Really?” Sarasa squinted. “Gahh! Iroha! Those are undead! Are you seeing this?!” Woah! What a crazy girl… She smacked my shoulder while pointing like she had just found a treasure.

  “Shhh… You’re too loud…” I brushed off her hand. “I can’t say for sure, but you might be right.”

  “I can definitely see the resemblance…” Hecate said.

  “They’re undead…? That explains a lot…” Flanne was feeling much better now and let out a sigh. “Still… What are undead doing here…? How did they make it this far? I guess the how doesn’t matter.”

  Probably by following us… “Which way were we going again? Are they in our path?”

  “Unfortunately.”

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  “Hmph… So what? We’ll just have to cut a path through them. Simple enough.”

  Carol stood up, then Sarasa did the same. “Looks like we have no other choice, huh? I’m not sure I was paid enough for this, but whatever. Time to have some fun!”

  Damn idiots! Why are they so in sync now?! Even Flanne and Galene were getting their weapons out because of them. “Stop right there!” I grabbed their shoulders and pulled them back down.

  “Why? What’s the problem!?” Sarasa struggled.

  “Why are you two so eager to rush in headfirst? Are you stupid?” Have they not considered any other options? “If they’re fighting each other, why would we interfere? Let’s just sneak around them.”

  There were plenty of hiding spots with all the rubble and ruined buildings.

  “Sure, but why would we do that when we can just cut through them? Are you scared?” Carol smirked.

  “I mean… I’m scared someone might get hurt… There’s no prize for doing this the hard way…” Except for some levels, potentially. “Why would we put ourselves in danger for nothing?”

  “We’d be safer if they were all dead, but sure, you got a point.”

  “Glad you understand. Do we have a plan then? Stay behind cover and out of their sight. Let them tear each other up while we move on.” This is the safest option…

  “I think it’s important to know when not to fight. Sounds good.” Galene nodded.

  Finally, I got everyone on board. We moved from cover to cover, slowly getting closer to the fight. There are a lot of them… They couldn’t have known through the mist, but it’d be crazy to fight so many monsters…

  I could maybe do it if I had time to build up some stacks, but the monsters here were strangely difficult to cut last time. Who knows what would happen while I’m busy building stacks?

  We sneaked up to a house with one of the corners completely destroyed. One of the windows was missing, which served as our entry point.

  Meanwhile, the undead managed to take down the werewolf. The body on the floor was possessed by some weird energy, and the monster rose up from the dead. Should be over, no?

  The undead werewolf tore the residents of this town and decimated their frontline. What overwhelming strength… Or it would have been, if not for…

  “Stop…”

  Three new werewolves. They charged into battle side by side from a different angle and tore their undead friend apart. We almost got caught by them…

  Who had the advantage changed in an instant, and the undead numbers got decimated by the three rampaging werewolves. They made for the perfect distraction, allowing us to jump out of the building and sneak up to the next one. It was a cowboy-style bar with swinging doors. What’s this doing here?

  The undead tried to pull back and reorganize, which gave the werewolves time to slow down.

  “This might be over soon… We gotta hurry.” We’re almost on the other side… Just a little more and we can make a run for it… No… That would still be dangerous.

  Two of the wolves stomped and tore through the running undead, but the last one was hanging out near our exit. Dammit… Why did it have to be there?

  “The usurper…” The monster’s ears perked up. “She’s there!” “Destroy!” “Expose!” “Kill!” “Kill her!” “Kill!”

  We were hidden behind the counter when our worst nightmare came to pass.

  “Dammit! It’s that whispering again!” What now? Should we run? What if I hold them back?

  It took less than a second for the bar to start shaking. The werewolf charged the wall and punched through the windows. He’s not tall enough that he wouldn’t fit inside, so that’s probably what’s coming next…

  “What now?” Abby looked at Galene, then at me. “We can’t stay in here!”

  “This piece of junk is going to fall on us if we don’t move!” Sarasa moved her head, looking for the best way out.

  “Grrr… We have to fight… There’s no other choice.”

  “Now you want us to fight? We’re surrounded, Iroha!”

  “I know… I know… But… What else can we do?!”

  “We should have fought them from the get-go like I said.” Dammit… Damn it all! She’s right… Why was I trying to be clever? If only that damn monster hadn’t stopped in the middle of our path…

  “I’ll go out first. I’ll grab their attention and give you some space. Try to escape and don’t fight more than you have to.” I can handle that much, and it means no one else will be in danger. “Go!”

  I drew my sword and threw out the swinging doors. They probably objected to me acting as bait, so I didn’t give them time to respond. Follow the plan and everyone will be fine. Slash Flurry!

  The first pigman I saw was cut into pieces, and I got attention of every monster. Impact Round! The werewolf got a hole in his left leg, which was enough for him to leave the bar alone and come after me. We exchanged blows, but just like before, my sword wasn’t hurting him as much as it should.

  Or maybe it’s just because I don’t have any Violence stacks right now… The pig monsters aren’t that hard to kill… If I can just get to a few of them, I might be able to get us out of here all on my own!

  I jumped away from the werewolf. I have a plan… All that’s left is to put it into practice… Too bad I forgot to consider potential threats…

  Before I reached my second stack, the werewolves chasing the undead turned around. Why now? They swung their claws in unison while chasing me… Change of plans… Dodge! Bending the body let me squeeze between their swipes and get behind them. No point in attacking, though… I gotta find a softer target first- “Huh?”

  The pointy head of a spear stabbed into my back. With a thrust that sluggish, there was no chance of it making it through my dress, but it stopped my retreat. Why are these targeting me too? The undead pigmen charged at me with their spears. “What happened to your retreat?” Agility Burst! They’re so stupid… I got out of there before the werewolves turned once again and tore that group of zombies to shreds…

  I really need my stacks… I can’t do anything like this…

  “Iroha! Come back!” Carol cut through the mist with her voice for me. That’s right… Our goal is just to get away…

  After I drew the werewolf away, they were able to get out of the salon and create some space. Carol was with Galene covering their rear, while Sarasa helped Flanne open a path out of this town.

  “I’m going!” I was, but… I’m just luring the werewolves over. They’re handling the pigmen just fine… Here I am making things hard for them.

  *Bang!* A shot from Hecate’s sniper hit a claw as it was swiping at me. The swipe missed.

  “Don’t worry about a thing. We’ll cover you.” A calm smile in the middle of a frantic battle. Always nice to see.

  “Sorry…” For being late. “It’s only going to get harder now.”

  “Don’t worry about it.” Carol gave a quick shrug. “Things always go wrong. That’s just how it is. We should have done this from the start.”

  “*Sigh…*” I couldn’t help but chuckle. Mostly at myself. “It’s our only option now. That’s for sure.”

  Throw whatever you want at us… We’re making it out of here!