Rise and Shine

***Date Finished***: thN/A----

***Setting:*** In The Guild hall

***Characters Involved***:
* Aikaterini
* Leonardo Elio

## Fallen Champion

The day opens as Leonardo could be seen laying on a medical bed, unconscious and wrapped up in bandages. Sitting to his side were six independent mages with their hands raised above Leo, with a green aura of magic raised above his body. They were releasing healing magic on his body to keep him from going back into shock. It had officially been three days since his encounter against Tanya that left him in such a condition.

"I'm glad we got here before he went under." Said one of the mages. She looked like she was about twenty years old and had dark brown hair and eyes. "He's one of the champions this guild believes in. To think they'd hire twelve of us just to keep him alive. It makes me wonder, who it is they're are going to hire. None of us even working together can fix all of his injuries."

The other mages nodded along with the healer before looking at each other with worry painted on their faces .

Also in the room, Blip was seen looking solemnly on the floor as the other three girls sat next to her.

"I don't get it..." Blip thought outloud, "he copied my self regeneration ability, he should've healed by now...why...why isn't he....master...."

Dip looked over, "captain blip, it's not your fault." She said before hugging her. "Master is the strongest, even if he got beaten, he won't die." She said trying to motivate the blue haired slime girl. "But master needs help." Dip said as she placed her hand on Blip's shoulder. "Help we can't get for him."

Zip joined along and looked over at the two, "Master Leo, he won't die, I know he won't." She added, "he's not the type to die in such a way."

"Zip is right," Yip chimed in, "Leonardo is our master, there's no reason to doubt now."

Blip looked up at the girls and smiled, "thank you three."

"Don't mention it." Zip replied happily.

Yip smiled and nodded.

"So how long will he be in that state?" Dip asked.

"From what I heard, they are bringing a mage that is regularly hired by different royal families in this continent. Supposedly They are able to complete seemingly miracles of healing and medicine. From what I hear They were even able to cure previously incurable disease that the princess and the kingdom nearby had. So we can only hope and pray that They will be able to treat and fix master." Blip explained.

"We're worried for Master, too." Yip added. "Well we're in luck. If there are mages like that out there, then surely we can find a better solution than just hoping that he gets better."

"I agree." Dip agreed.

"Master, Master!" Yip said cheerfully with a smile, "wake up! Come on! Please wake up!"

Blip smiled and waved her hand back and forth, "it's okay, master, you'll be fine! Just relax and let them do their job."

"It's okay, master," Yip repeated as she patted his hand. "We trust them. Trust them to do what they do best."

The four slime girls then left the medical room and went outside to get some fresh air, with the hope that it helps them calm down and clear their mind. Though, Blip, saw someone all too familiar and walked over.

"Hey lady!" Blip ran up to her in her human-like form and hugged the small blonde girl from before. "It's been a few days huh lady? I'm glad to see you're still alive. All too often adventurers pass away on their first missions if they aren't prepared."

Aika's eyes widened as she stumbled back a bit then hugged Blip back smiling as she let out a lighthearted chuckled. "It's nice to see you again too Blip," Aika smiled politely, "how have your travels been with you and Leo?"

"M-master..." Blip responded looking down and fidgeting with her fingers. "He uh, we were ambushed by a lady, she, she best all of us, she killed Inu, almost killed me and the girls, but master, he's in critical condition."

"Where is he currently," Aika asked in a worrying tone as her expression changed from joy to fret.

"He's in the medical bay, currently the got twelve mages working around the clock to keep him alive. No one we've hired has been able to fully heal him or fix his injuries." Blip replied.

"There has to be someone who can help him," Aika stated placing her hand under her head in a thinking posing, "we'll have to ask around to see if there are any known healers."

"From what I heard, the heads of the guild hired someone from the kingdom capital to heal him. I guess they wanna make sure their champion is taken care of." Dip added walking over. "They say she's on it the what healers money can buy."

"I see," Aika wondered to herself, "curious who this healer is."

"Um h-hello," a voice asked in a shy mousy tone. She was a young woman with blonde hair and gentle blue eyes with garbs of blue and white carrying her staff.

Hm?" The purple haired Zip walked over to the young woman, "hello there blonde person."

"I-I'm Gratia...I was sent here to help someone who is critically injured," Gratia spoke in a shy tone.

"You must be the healer Dip mentioned earlier," Aika commented.

"Y-you're here to save master?" Blip asked, running over and knocking Zip to the floor.

"I am," Gratia nodded, "would you lead me to them please?"

Blip quickly took and led her hand toward the inside of the guild hall. "Here's the way to the master. I really hope you can help him. None of our mages have made any progress with healing him, we've only been barely managing to keep him alive."

Gratia hurriedly followed behind Blip with wide eye. "H-hey, wait up," Gratia whined a bit with Aika following behind.

"I'm sorry it's just, he needs you, he...he needs to be okay alright?" Blip said holding back her tears. "He's been hurt badly, he needs you, he just..." she then stopped in front of the medical room. "I can't lose him, we can't lose him. So please, please help."

"Alright, I'll help him," Gratia nodded as her expression changed on her face to more serious then proceeded over to Leo seeing the condition he was in, she teared up a bit as she gently placed her hand on his face. "You've been through great danger haven't you, it won't be long, I promise."

Gratia took a step back as she took a deep breath then waved her arms in a slow circular motion.

"**Unique Skill: Heal Bell!**" Gratia spoke as a luminous light appeared in the shape of a beautiful bell above Leo. As the bell rang, the healing rays shined down on him healing his injuries as the soothing rings echoed throughout the medical bay.

The other mages were left in complete disbelief. The speed her unique skill worked was dwarfing the speed their magic they were using.

"She's the one they must've hired." One of the girls spoke, "She's truly a master at this."

The color of Leo's body began to return to normal, the huge bruise on his chest began to shift back to normal, his bones were quickly healing, and his bloodflow started to regulate immediately.

"It's done," Gratia replied with a soft smiled, "he'll make a full recovery in no time."

"So this is the power of a healer," Aika thought in wonder.

Leonardo's hand subconsciously moved and gripped Gratia's hand. Despite him being knocked out, he refused to let go. Quickly his injuries were fading away and the pain on his face slowly faded away.

"Hm," Gratia looked down at her hand that was wrapped in Leo's hand curiously looking over to him.

"Who..." Leo mumbled out as his eyes slowly opened and looked into her eyes. "Who...are you?" He struggled to speak but had finally gained conscious.

"I'm Gratia," Gratia answered with a soft smile looking down at him with gentle blue eyes.

"I'm forever in your debt, Lady Gratia." Leo replied with a soft and weak smile filled with gentle warmth.

"Of course," Gratia softly smiled as she politely bowed.

"I'm glad he'll be okay," Aika replied with a relieved sigh.

Blip and the other slime girls eyes filled with tears couldn't help but snuggle and look down.

"Hm? Girls, come on, the doc said I'm gonna be better. Don't need to cry so much. I'm gonna be o-"

Before Leo could finish all four of them immediately hugged him tightly, neither spoke, simply letting down their tears freely with their heads down.

"I'm sorry I worried you four." Softly and warmly smiles as he places his hand on Blips head. "I give you permission to bring her out."

"R-really?" Blip asked with widened eyes and sprung to her feet. All four girls held each other's hands and smiles happily as their bodies began to ooze and fuse together form into one.

A small petite young woman who had the appearance of one in her early twenties stood where the four slimes gathered. She had four arms, long beautiful silky blue hair, along with an almost Cosmo cobolt shade of blue. She walked over and crawled into bed with Leonardo, smiling and hugging him.

"It's been a while hasn't it, Unique?" Leo said as he tested his forehead on hers. "Old friend."

"It truly has, my lord." Unique softly replied.

"This is really touching to see," Gratia softly smiled.

"It is," Aika replied smiling warmly, "so what will you do now?"

"Probably head back where I'm needed," Gratia answered.

Lady Gratia?" Leo called out for the healer.

"Yes Lord Leo," Gratia asked as she turned her head towards him.

"I like to think that I have an eye for talent. And honestly if it wasn't for you I wouldn't be able to talk or anything. So, how about you join me some time soon. I could always use a healer on raids." He gently rubbed the top of her hand with his thumb.

"O-oh, this is a tempting offer," Gratia stammered a bit in a shy tone then quickly bowed, "I-I'd be honored to join you!"

Leo softly smiles and brightly shows his teeth brightening the room. "I'm glad to have ya, Gratia."

Gratia slightly blushed as a warm smile graced her face. "The honor is all mine, Leo."

"Now," Leo clenched his teeth and pulled himself up. "Damn it," he groaned as he forced himself to his feet. "I feel like my body is healing even as we speak. So, I'll keep moving and let the magic do it's job."

Unique looked over at Leo with worry in her eyes then got up, "Sir you should really let the magic do it's job instead of getting up."

"No way," Leo replied as he started to stretch, dramatically cracking his body each time he did. "I got beaten down, you all got hurt, and most importantly..." Leo paused as his eyes got darker for a split second. "She killed Inu..." He paused and clenched his fists, "if she's working for someone stronger and has soldiers and other allies of that strength... Then I need to get stronger." He then looked over at gratia, "alright I'll get dressed and we'll all head out." Without noticing his gown fell off.

Gratia screamed as her face turned beat red covering her eyes! Aika's eyes widen as she glanced at Leo's naked her expression of shock and bewilderment.

"F-for shame!" Gratia shrieked.

"I-I never!" Aika stuttered turning around blushing.

"Hm? Oh shit!" Leo panicky picked up his gown and covered himself. "Shit," he then ran behind the curtains. "I uh I'm sorry!"

"W-why would he show me that thing," Gratia whimpered, "now I'm going to have nightmares for the rest of my life!"

"You're telling me!" Aika softly cried looking down, "I didn't ask for this!"

"It was an accident!" Leo yelled apologetically, "I didn't mean to, I didn't even feel it fall off!" He replied waking out fully dressed.

Gratia looked up at Leo blushing still shaking a bit. "I-It's okay."

"H-how did you not feel your gown falling off?!" Aika exclaimed in confusion.

"Well for one in not the brightest bulb in a room." Leo replied ring frank about it. "I I hope this doesn't affect your choice if working with me."

A pair of loud and heavy strikes knocked against the door of the medical room before an abrupt kick knocked the door off it's hinges and sent flying! A small figure walked over, fixing the collar of their shirt and cracking their knuckles. They had long blonde hair that was tied back with a red hair tie, green eyes, and razor sharp teeth. The young woman walked over and looked over at the group and locked their eyes on Leonardo.

"Oh, shit!" Leo said realizing the too familiar figure before feeling a heavy strike against his chest! "Not her!" Leonardo groaned as he was sent flying back into a bed.

"Oi, dumbass," the woman questioned Leonardo before appearing on top of him with her foot on his chest. "What's this I hear ya almost died?" She questioned looking down into Leonardo's eyes.

"Heh, take it easy there, song bird." Leo said as he pushed the wants foot off of his chest. "What brings you to these parts? Figured you'd be out terrorizing some goblins or trolls, huh, Aria?"

Aria jumped off the bed and landed on the floor, "I just came to confirm the body for myself when I heard you almost died. Here I was hoping for something interesting, but sadly you seem to be fine." Aria complained.

"You're welcome." Leo chuckled.

"Hmph, whatever," Aria huffed crossing her arms, "you aren't as strong as you used to be, and here I was thinking you could stand up to me. But if some random person shooting arrows at you almost killed ya, I doubt you could do much."

"Hey, that wasn't me," Leo denied, "but I can handle her."

"Sure." Aria made a sarcastic sound as she walked towards the door, "good luck." With that Aria walked toward the exit of the medical room, "I'll come find ya after you check out." She said before leaving Leonardo alone with Gratia and the rest.

"W-who was that," Gratia asked shaking a bit.

"Leo mentioned her name was Aria, though she does give off some kind of competitive aura," Aika commented with a confused yet shocked expression.

"Yeah, she's an adventurer, a C-Rank one to be exact. We both joined the guild around the same time, with her being a rival of sorts. She's a little rough around the edges but in her core....well in her core she's a bitch but as you can tell she still cares. Came to see me when she heard I was beaten pretty bad."

"I-I see," Gratia replied still a bit shaken.

"Aren't you the same rank as her or above from her," Aika queried.

"I'm at rank B, so I'm a rank above her, but even so, she doesn't take losing too easily." Leo replied and looked over at gratia holding her hand. "Take it easy, breathe slowly and steadily.

Gratia slowly took some steady breaths as she looked up at him shyly. "Thank you," Gratia softly smiled.

"How about you and I go get some lunch, we can talk about you joining my party." Leo said as he placed his hand gently on her cheek and looked down at her, "I promise there won't be any more surprises, okay?"

Gratia looked up at Leo with bright blue eyes as a small blush appeared on her face. "S-sure," Gratia nodded.

## Rebuild and Grow

Leonardo and Gratia were walking down the allies in the city of Albion, one of the largest cities within the Human Realm. It has been a few days after the two had formed their party, already having gotten to know one another fairy well. Despite walking through an alley, the surrounding was fairly clean, especially in a city so large, and was filled with sunlight from above. The couple was talking and laughing about various topics, mostly centered around Gratia joining their party, and they stopped at a corner.

"You see, the main reason why I "barely formed" a party, is because the laws of humans and especially within the guild, is that they don't recognize anything outside of a human or a human centric being as an individual. So all the beasts and monsters I've tamed are seen purely as monsters or summonings." Leonardo explained as he looked around. "But if you join me, I can have my own party which makes it easier on for me in missions."

"I...I see," Gratia replied then nodded with a small blush, "I-I'd be honored to join."

"Good!" Leonardo happily replied before petting her head. "Though I will say this much, what we're doing today, isn't quite on the up and up." He replied looking down into her eyes "see, after my loss to that woman, I realized I need more power and more allies. So today, I'd like to buy and begin training a slave."

Gratia's eyes widened from hearing what Leo said to her as she looked back into his eyes in shock. "A-a slave," Gratia asked in a shaky tone.

"As unfortunate as it is, people kidnap and use either other humans, magical beasts, or monsters and tend to enslave and sell them." Leo replied, "while I don't condone it, I can't eliminate such a system. So instead, I plan to buy some, and try to get some strength from them." Leo looked down at her, "please trust me, I don't plan to abuse them, it's just, I need allies, I need strength. Most adventurers only work for the money or the fame. So I figured finding a slave to take in and train was the ideal solution."

Gratia shyly looked away for a bit then looked back up at Leo as she gave him a single nod. "Alright...I-I trust you," Gratia answered trying to remain calm.

Leonardo smiled and gave her a light hug. "Thank you, I appreciate it."

Gratia blushed as the embrace lingered for a moment longer. She then took a deep breath as she spoke again. Gratia gently hugged him back, "Of course Lord Leo," Gratia softly smiled.

The slave market was filled with many different races of slaves, ranging from elves, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, goblins, orcs, trolls, and even dragonewts! What surprised Leo was the fact that every race had its own section, making the place look like a zoo.

"Man this place is despicable," Leo comments looking around at all the people buying slaves. "You can tell only criminals and those who have protection against the law would be coming here." He then looked over, "I know royals over there are buying slaves to use them as mules, soldiers or the worst, to torment them physically or mentally."

"This place feels depressing...," Gratia remarked in a shaky tone looking around.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you're safe while we're here." Leo reassured her before looking at the guards blocking the exit and entrances to the slave market. Slowly he brought his hand down and intertwined his fingers with hers. "I won't let anyone touch you."

Gratia intertwined her fingers with his blushing a bit looking up at him as she slowly started to calm down. "L-Leo," Gratia spoke in a timid tone but was starting to become calmer.

"Yes?" He replied looking down at the young lady, "what's up?"

"U-um..." Gratia began before clearing her throat and taking a deep breath, "Are you sure about this? If anything happens, I can escape right?" She asked looking up nervously, "I mean, I'm no slave, but still."

"I'll make sure no matter what, you'll get out of her nice and safe, okay?" Leo replied. "I won't let any harm come to you, okay?"

Gratia looked up at him and nodded shyly, "Y-yes...thank you." She answered in a soft voice

Leo, while holding Gratia's hand, led the way deeper into the market, looking at all the individuals that were shackled, locked within cages, whether they be Magical Beasts or Monsters, even the likes of majin were seen bound. Yet everyone around him viewed this as the norm, it's a booming industry, constantly growing with less and less focus on them by both royalty and officials all over. As slowly more and more people began to buy and trade such beings, seeing them as nothing more but tools for power.

At the end of the market, the slaves were lined up against the wall, waiting to be bought. Each slave was wearing a collar around their neck and each of them wore a necklace with the symbol of the Human Realm on it. This was done to prostate and break the will of those who had already been captured.

"How much for this one?" A man dressed in black leather armor, asked one of the female slaves.

The female slave looked up at the man with a sad expression before answering. "Fifty gold coins."

Leonardo looked around and took a moment to pause, taking a breath and relaxing. Slowly his aura, the manifestation of his willpower, grew all the more sensitive. This was the result of his extra skill that, "Minds Eye: Strength". He picked it up from one of his tamed monsters,the Kitsune, Kon. Of the variations of Mind's Eye, this was one focused on analyzing strength in many of its forms, physical power, magicule capacity, and raw potential. He used this skill to find the most suitable slave for his means of obtaining strength. He could see red hues coming off of those around him, with the aura being not too bright on most of the slaves. Some did gain his attention, such as a handful of lycanthropes and dwarves.

After looking over the slaves for a few minutes, Leo quickly found the perfect one, a young female elf, who was by herself in a cage. Her hair was a dark shade of brown and yet still retained beautiful blonde to it, she was wearing a simple gown with a belt on her waist. She has emerald green eyes that has the light beaten out of them, with her looking down and defeated. After looking at her for a little while longer, Leo silently approached her and tapped the bars of her cage.

"What do you want?" The elf asked in a quiet tone. Looking up at Leonardo, her head moving slowly and weakly.

"I'd like you to come with me." Leo replied as he reached into his cloak and pulled out a small leather satchel. "To join my party." He smiled warmly and kneeled down. "I am Leonardo Elio, and I'm gonna shake this world."

Gratia watched Leo approach the elf in silence, a small smile on her lips. After watching him kneel down next to her, the elf looked down at the bag in his hand.

"Why are you picking me then? I am just a simple, weak bodied elf. Someone like an orc or lycanthropes will suit your needs best." The elf retorted to Leonardo's claim.

"I can tell you're strong within yourself, otherwise you wouldn't be able to survive down here." Leonardo replied as he took out the sack of gold coins and put it on the floor. "I plan to train you, and if you succeed, I promise to give you everything you need to live a full life." He softly smiles. "If you decide to join, you'll be paid in full, and when you're done, I'll be bringing you back home with me and my friend Gratia there.
The elf looked down at the gold coins on the ground, glancing at the riches someone as young as him had.

"Are you an Adventurer?" The elf asked Leo.

"Yeah, I am." Leo replied smiling, "And I'm willing to pay fifty gold coins for you."

The elf glanced at Gratia for a moment before looking back at Leo. "Is this all of it?" She questioned, "I've been kidnapped, sold, and treated like a piece of meat, so I doubt that's all of it."

"It's all I have," Leo responded as he stared into her emerald green eyes. "All I have to my name is my loyalty and my truth. So if you're up for it, join me." He continued kneeling down, until he was eye level with the elf. "If not, then I wish you luck and good day."

The elf looked up at Leonardo with a sigh and a long exhale, calming herself and smiling, "yes please, Lord Leonardo." She whispered as her eyes turned back to his.

Leo smiled as he stood up and looked at her, "great." He then grabbed her arm and helped her stand up, before pulling her out of the cage and towards the exit. "Oh, before I forget!" He then tossed the bag of coins to the young elf's handler. "This should cover your costs and we can go from here."

The handler looked at the coins in awe before looking up at Leonardo. "You're generous." The handler commented as he looked back at Leo once more, watching him walk away with both gratia and the newly bought elf.

Just before he did, Leo's eyes widened and a chilly blow of air slammed down his back and sent a deep shiver vibrating his spine, cold sweat ran down the side of his face. A large weight piled onto his shoulders and began to force his knees to shake.

"*This Bloodlust, what the hell, I haven't felt something like this in so long. It's like something, a ravenous beast is sinking it fangs into my very being!*" Leonardo thought to himself and took loud and heavy breaths. "Who the hell is releasing this kind of bloodlust in a place like this." He mumbled as he continued walking with Gratia in tow while Gratia held her hands on Leo's waist as she looked up at him with a worried look in her eyes.

"It's okay, no need to worry so much." Leonardo comments, "I think there's still someone here that I should buy." He then began to look around, examining the many auras filling the room before finding two bright red colored auras standing side by side. "Here I was only aiming to recruit just one person, but if someone can cast this kind of aura and control it to the point that it not only reaches me but only affects me, they're someone I at least want to meet."

Leonard spoke aloud, causing Gratia to take notice of his strange behavior and asked him about it.

"What?" She inquired with curiosity as she stared at him.

"Nothing," Leo answered as he looked back up, continuing through the market until he found the sources of the aura. One belongs to a tall woman, she has brilliant scarlet red eyes, easily her most captivating feature which paired with her uniquely colored hair which was a blend of soft green and teal, wearing a ragged robe, she was looking directly at Leo, her focus completely fixated on him.

Standing next to her was a red haired girl, she has fair unblemished skin, her wondrous red-pink eyes tied extremely well with it. Her very presence alone felt completely different from the other slave next to her in the cage.

"*I feel like her own aura is devouring me, as if I was falling down an abyss and consumed.*" Leo thought to himself. He began to slowly walk towards the two women who were looking straight ahead, watching them closely without any hesitation. It wasn't long before Leo stood in front of the two girls, staring right at their faces.

"Oi, what's someone like you doing here?" The red haired girl asked, looking back at Leonardo, looking directly into his orange amber eyes. "I can already sense you're stronger than any guard here and probably stronger than any other customer that has walked through here since I've been for sale."

"How do you know that? You can only see a person's strength within a short range of your sight." Leonardo replied with a smirk on his lips.

"Yes I'm aware of how my abilities work, however, there are more ways to use my skills besides just seeing. You were able to see auras as well, meaning you're easily above a C-Rank in terms of adventurers." She confidently looked over at Leo, looking at him up and down, sizing him up. "You are human, I don't see much magicules in you. But you're awfully strong, physique alone, you're above most humans."

"Heh, so you can read a person that well huh? Interesting, it seems like you know the way humanity works very well, so tell me." Leo paused looking back at her with a serious gaze, "So tell me why your very being from the way your aura feels and your own smell, it all points to you feeling like a demon." He continued to stare deeply into her eyes and kept staring until he felt something warm running down his spine and she returned his gaze.

"Well I'll answer to it to get out of this cage now wouldn't I?" She replied with an evil grin and in a sinister tone.

Leonardo took one step closer towards the cage infront of him. "What's your name?" Leonardo asks her in an intimidating tone, "Why did someone like yourself end up in such an awful situation?"

The tall woman gazed at Leo with sharp eyes as she snarled at him cautiously backing away. "Better question is, who are you," the woman demanded. Her voice was low and cold as ice, as if her words had been steeped in frost.

"My name is Leonardo Elio, I'm here on business." Leonardo replied with a smirk on his face, putting his hand inside his cloak before removing his hood to reveal his face. "You both have incredible auras, I felt like I had fangs digging into me. Seriously, that was a hell of a feat." Leo then grinned back at the two women who were still looking at him. "I would love for you two to be my slave too."

"Oh? Quite forward!" The red haired girl replied, "So forward, it's as if you were asking us to be your partners. You realize you're buying slaves right? Not asking girls to go out with you."

"Oi, old man, I'll be picking these two as well." Leonardo yelled out as he threw two more bags of gold coins."

"Master," Blip appeared on Leo's shoulder and looked up at him. "Master, that's the last of our funds. I don't think it's such a good idea to spend it so Willy nilly."

"I already got a few jobs lined up, the first of which is an extermination job, which we both know pays a boat load." He smiled and gave the slime a thumbs up, "Trust me, I wouldn't put everyone in a position where we'd struggle financially. But at the same time, I feel like these three will help us out a lot down the line."

"Well fine master, but please let me do something about their slave collars before you take them home though. Their condition isn't bad enough to warrant purchasing another slave collar." Blip said with concern written all over his face.

"I see, very well, go handle that in your human form and return with all three girls. I'll prepare dinner for everyone in the meantime." Leo looked down at Gratia. "Are you ready to go home?"

Gratia nodded blushing a bit looking back up at him, "Yes, I'm ready to go home now."

Leo nods in response, smiling gently at her before walking back towards the exit of the market area of the dungeon. The two head back to their original compound.

## Growth

The scene opens with a large group of charging beasts. These Magical Beasts looked like muscular gorillas while maintaining a Panda-like color scheme. Their forearms were large and heavy yet these monsters were easily charging through, covering large amounts of ground as they rampaged and ravaged the forest. Their arms swinging around and demolishing the wildlife as tens to hundreds of trees began to fall and fly.

"These seem to be the last ones sir." The red haired girl that Leo has previously met at the slave market declared as she looked through a clearing. Her eyes began to glow as she began to use her Extra Skill, Minds Eye: Strength. "Hm," she paused as her eyes began to dart around observing the quickly approaching auras. "I've counted about twenty of them so far."

"I have the one leading the charge in my sights, just over a pair of kilometres away from your position Rosa." The blonde hair elf comments as her eye has a brilliant rainbow color to it, being her Intrinsic Skills, "Gaze".

"Yeah? Make sure to leave the biggest one alone, I wanna take it out myself Abi." The newly revealed Rosa replied as she prepared herself and magical circles appear around her arms.

"You're such a masochist you red headed perv." The elf Abigail replied as she adjusted the draw of her bow and fixed her aim.

"Easy the both of you." Leonardo spoke telepathically to the arguing girls. "This will be simple, Waku, Rosa, the both of you approach them directly. Abigail, give them support from behind." He then sighed in frustration, "and let the big one alone for Rosa, no point in fighting between each other."

As the beasts approached a large clearing, the red haired Rosa stood in the center alongside the green haired from earlier now revealed to be Wakumi. The two looked on, awaiting the attack beasts, able to feel the vibration from the stampede.

"Ready, Rosa," Wakumi replied as she drew her sword.

Just as Wakumi replied the first of the wave reached them as it leapt into the air and fell down at them! Letting out a hellish roar, the Panda Ape gathered it's magicules to it's fist creating a light blue energy, swinging down at Wakumi and Rosa.

"Aaaaaand your dead." Abigail cockily said before releasing her grip over the arrow sending it flying, singing it's way through the forest. She shot through hundreds of trees. The arrow gaining a golden and pink aura to itself as it flew.

The arrow flew down, piercing through the skull of beast and exited out the back of his head! With the monster killed by the impact and force of the arrow being released, it left Rosa and Leo fairly impressed.

"Oh wow!" Rosa exclaimed in surprise. "That was a solid shot Blondie." Rosa commented as the rest of the beasts finally reached them. Without an hesitation she charged on and slammed a right hook in the face of one of Panda Apes, causing an explosion to erupt from her first and sent it flying.

"Not bad, will admit," Wakumi shrugged retaining her calm demeanor then she proceeded to slash down one of the Panda Apes slicing them in half.

"Nice job guys," Leo replied. "Wakumi, Rosa, make your way through and push through them. After we finish this mission we'll have enough money to buy a new place that can actually fit all of us."

"Awww but master I don't mind our sleeping arrangements the way they are." Rosa commented as enhanced her speed with wind magic, slamming a kick into the face of another Panda Ape, exploding, sending it's severed head flying. "Don't tell me you won't miss my night time visits to your tent." She teased telepathically and continued to press on fighting more of the beasts.

"I, uh I mean," Leonardo paused as his face became flushed red. "come on, can we not. We're working right now." He nervously and shyly replied.

"Lord Leo, focus," Wakumi barked as she sliced down another Panda Ape, decapitating it, "can flirt later!"she yelled before a large group of Beasts charged at them, cutting off their conversation. The two quickly regrouped back together after each killing another monster. They moved forward continuing to slaughter them in mass numbers while moving through the forest at great speeds.

After about fifteen minutes or so had passed the girls were getting tired from the constant battle, the girls began to slow down until finally stopping in front of the last beast in the group.

"Phew! These oversized bastards really did give us a workout." Rosa comments wiping the sweat off her forehead with her sleeve.

"Hey Rosa, take this one for me." Wakumi says holding out her sword and pointing her fingers towards one of the Panda Apes who was charging at them like an avalanche. "I'm not really in the mood to finish it off. This really was just a slaughter for them."

Rosa smirked then swung her hand up gripping onto the blade as she charges ahead then she slashes downward stabbing the beast right in its chest. With that she let go of her grip on the weapon as she stumbled backwards, falling flat on her ass.

"And now!" She then snapped her fingers, causing an explosion to be released from the top of the blade, blowing the beast up from the inside out! Rosa then whistled and admired her work, "not bad." She chuckled before standing back up and collecting herself again. "Wakumi you do yours?"

The blonde elf looked around and shook her head before jumping high into the air, using her wind magic to create a tornado. The tornado began to manifest and picked up the remains of the monsters and sent their corpses flying back to the clearing to serve as proof of the kills. Wakumi then made her way down to where Leo stood watching them fight all by himself, he noticed how much time they spent fighting alone without him, it felt odd to watch them fighting so easily with each other.

"Is it weird to see me like this Leo?" Abigail asked telepathically.

"No, no not at all. I love it, it's actually a lot of fun to watch. Plus this was the perfect opportunity to let's you guys train up. I couldn't step in." Leo says before letting out a playful and charming smile. "Besides, we don't have enough money to hire a maid or a cook right now." He said making a point. "So this extermination job fit both the need of cash and an opportunity for you all to train."

"Rosa!" Wakumi yelled at the two as she made her way over to them. "Seems like these were the last of the beasts." She tells them.

"Hahaha, I was expecting that to happen soon, it seemed like that was the case though," Leonardo replied as he put his hands together clapping, "I'll admit that I'm impressed."

"Sir!" Abigail yelled in the telepathic network. "there's another one, but it's, it's bigger, it's uglier! It looks like a giant beast, with a huge mouth and horns! Plus it's fur is both red and white! I think it's Akakuma! The evolved version of the Panda Apes!" She fixed herself and noticed it was moving almost four times the speed of the other apes. "Sir, I need to,"

Leonardo looked over and pointed his hand before beginning "heh, alright, maybe it's time for me to get some exercise." He then smirked as he activated his Tamer skill, swapping his location with the young elf's, sending her back to the other girls.

"Oi! Ugly!" Leo yelled gaining the attention of the Akakuma, "yeah you, come on over give me something to do other than watch." He challenged the creature as he stood waiting. His arms crossed while a cocky grin adorned his face.

The Akakuma stopped in its tracks looking at him and sneering, tilting it's head slightly before it charged forward in an instant and leapt towards him, jaws open wide

"Too slow!" Leo yelled with foil disappointment and anger as he slammed his fist into the face of the beast, crashing it face first to the floor! "Here I thought with all that speed and strength you would be more of a threat." Leo taunted as he began to walk up to it, watching it struggling to lift it's heavy body up from the ground.

"Master just punched the Akakuma to the floor." Abigail commented as her vision was able to reach and catch all of what was going down in the bout.

"What?" Rosa asked telepathically.

"You heard her." Wakumi commented, "we have better get ready, it won't take master much longer if he already slammed that thing to the floor." She says before rushing over to where they left their bags off by themselves near the tent, quickly picking them up.

"Now that I think about it," Leo replies speaking aloud again as he approached the Akakuma. "I guess we can leave, this guy really wasn-" before he could finish his sentence the bear like beast slammed it's claws down by Leo's side, with the adventure dodged the attack! "Oh? So the might Akukuma got up huh?" Leonardo sarcastically comments with a chuckle. "Don't worry, you'll still feel my wrath!" He said with confidence as he threw his fist right into the face of the giant bear-like creature once more sending a bloody mess of flesh and blood flying everywhere. "Here, let me end this." Leonardo then opened his mouth as a small orb of purple flames manifested itself before him.

'*Activate: Intrinsic Skill: Beast Breath, Flame*"

Then Leo slightly opened his jaw before firing off a large blast of fire! Burning the beast, turning it to a charred corpse.

"Much better." Leo said look over at the direction of the rest. "The rest of you three, make sure to pack up." With that, Leo ran away from the area towards the trees nearby.

"He's running towards us," Abigail tells the other two girls who had been busy gathering up their stuffs and preparing for when they are reunited with their master.

"To think, not too long ago, this guy bought us. Not just that, but he even named us." Abigail thought while smiling, folding up clothes with such grace and ease. "It makes me so happy to have a home like this. I mean we don't have a place to call our own yet, but, I mean, so long as I'm with master, it feels so nice. I, I mean," she then paused and face became flushed, "I mean, with you all, not just h-him..."

"Him?" Rosa asked curiously as she began to get flustered by Abigail's sudden confession.

Abigail sighed before letting out another nervous laugh before explaining her situation, "You know what I mean." She then finished her packing and got set, awaiting for Leonardo's return.

"Yeah, I get what she means." Rosa commented as she finished up her packing. "Unlike you two I didn't want to settle for a weak master, so when he named me and almost died, he proved that he was a cut above the rest." She then giggles into her hand, "To think such a charming and troubling man would walk up to buy us, yet he's making me happier than I have ever been." The young red haired girl smiles widely. "What about you Wakumi?"

"I am proud to serve him. Though sometimes my body does feel strange being near him, it still is something pleasant though."

"Haha!" Rosa snickered back at the Vampires comment just now, giving an awkward smile of hers. Then it hit them, it seems that they had not noticed until just this moment that they were sharing their feelings with each other.

Rosa realized that and smiled bashfully while holding herself. "So anyway, how did things go with Leo?"

"Looks like he should be here any minute now, he's just at the bottom of the hill, approaching us pretty quickly." Abigail explains as she looked over, seeing their young master approaching their current location.

"Let's get ready then," Rosa says before running over and joining up with the rest. "Oh! We forgot one thing, Master! He has a bag! What if he needs our help?"

"I just finished backing up my lords clothes and tent. So we should be fine anyways, no point in making my lord work so much after taking on such a monster just now." Abigail chimes in smiling.

"Ah, okay then." Rosa pouts slightly, "It's good that you took care of his things, it's not like I wanted to or anything."

The three girls stood side by side, waiting for their master to arrive. Waiting for him to come down and join the rest of the group before going off to the next.

"Oiiii!" Leonardo called out as he quickly approached the rest of the girls. "Sorry it took me a while too long, phew! had to slow down a little bit about half way through or else i would have blown through a lot more steam then i'd prefer." He said before wipe and flicking the sweat off of his forehead. "Alrighty now." Leonardo sighs feeling relieved with himself at least. "Shall we head back?" He asks them with an exhausted look and body language.

"Oh yes please!" Wakumi yells at him with glee.

"Alright then," Leo said as he lifted his hand up to the air and began to pull in his magical energy to the palm as it began to shine. "Switch," he chanted as he suddenly vanished, leaving behind a small purple slime, a fraction of one of his main slimes, Zip.

Leo had swapped locations with Zip, turning his three day trek back to the guild hall into only a split second. The young chestnut adventurer emerged in the guild hall, right in the center actually as that was where zip was. "Alright and now," He paused as he point his hand forward. "I summon you four!" He yelled as he manifest four magic circle, invoking the girls who were left behind in the forest clearing.

"God damn, that took a wee bit more out of me than i expected." He comments before taking a sea down to catch his breath. "Though i probably couldn't do that if it wasn't for the necklace from you Rosa." He looks down at the golden necklace he wore. "Thank you for lending it to me."

Rosa felt her cheeks turn red hearing how Leo spoke about her gift towards him. "It's nothing much really." She stuttered nervously.

Abigail simply watched on silently before turning her back to them. "I will take zip with me to deliver proof about our victory on the last mission. Then i'll go sell the corpses for extra money." She said in a slightly cold yet polite tone before walking away, holding the small purple slime in her hands. "Then i shall meet back with the rest of you after." Abigail says, giving a nod to Leo and Wakumi as she walks past them.

"That is a good idea, maybe I should think about doing the same," Leo tells the two as they two remaining women looked back at him.

"Well, don't forget master," Wakumi adds, walking up to Leonardo, "Your visitor the other night told you about the location of that dungeon you have been trying to locate for some time. What's so important about it anyway?" The girl asks, a curious look in her eyes as if she already knows the answer.

"Heh, well you probably remember i'm building up my forces in order to build strength to take on the demon lords right?"

"Your foolish dream that will probably end up with you and the rest of us killed? Yes i do recall that." Rosa chimed in.

"Exactly, well see, there is a power in this world i want to harness but they're locked away by a certain dungeon. Now that i know where that dungeon is, i'm a step closer of obtaining it." He responds to their questioning while crossing his arms over his chest. "Though I still need your help for now to defeat those demon lords as well. This will just help expedite things and be of great help." He states before looking back towards Wakumi. "Good enough on an answer?"

"Yes sir, but tell me, what exactly is the purpose of doing this? What is the power you seek to obtain?"

"The elemental spirits, who are being kept behind a prevention spell, meaning i can't summon them. So we're going straight to the heart of the issue, we're going to deal with the spirit queen herself." He cockily replied with a devilish smirk on his face.