Chapter FourteenThe rest of Sir Maxwell’s information aligned with rince Adric had provided, though maybe not as plete sihe prince had both evolved in the capital and cleared the dungeon several times. Breaking down the information on what to expe Nae’s Garden did take time away from using the ring to train or exercise, which was both an annoyand a relief as she felt eyes upon their little group.

  “If I go over the first floor one more time my head will explode. The only way to know if I’m ready is to face the floor. Hyath, it’s time to head to the guild entrance.”

  The shadow toad materialized at the edge of the forest through the shadows, his hunger heightened by all the teasing he did in the woods, without being able to hunt to kill. The group waited for him to hop over before heading out.

  Nae’s Garden, the tallest tower iy of towers, all others are imitations of the dungeon's grandeur. Entrances shot out as tunnels like spokes, eatrance long since built over and trolled by the guild.

  Hugs goodbye all around, except for Sir Maxwell, who tried to sneak one in but was stopped by Harmony’s gre. You earhat privilege.

  Straight to the booth marked ‘dungeorance’. A crystal in front of the attendant glowed brightly, in respohe back of Harmony’s hand tingled slightly underh her glove.

  “Wele Eternal, you honor me with your presence.”

  What was he calling her? An honorific for the lifetime membership? Never mind.

  “I’m here to ehe dungeon.”

  “By yourself?”

  “Grrupt,” Hyath pi being ignored.

  “Of course, Eternal. You know best. “ The man in the booth reached below the desks and pulled out a small pouch, handing it over. “Your plimentary supplies for your run.”

  Inside, were several restoration potions of much greater quality than the ohat sat in her small bag. Golds worth. The maid in her wao humbly say thank you. plimentary meant this was standard for divers of her status. “Acceptable.” She squeezed out, keepio.

  The attendant nodded proudly.

  That was enough of a dismissal that Harmony tinued into the entrance, a long tunnel lit by glow stohat simple entrance had been a relief, no guild master showing up, no one questioning who she was or if she should do this. The smoothest social iion she’d had in a while. The tunnel ended in a rge open area, presenting five paths of stairs leading up, eaed of roots, well worn, and wide enough to allow for a five-person adventurio walk up side by side.

  “Gak.” Hyath pined.

  “I know you hate stairs, but in Naewauld’s Garden we climb the levels of the dungeon.”

  Flipping the marker on the oldest path, like they'd do if they dived into Old Bohe pair asded that route.

  Together they emerged into a lush jungle, only a narrow game trail ahead. A real forest with this much traffic would have had a road pounded into it by the armored feet of five-man teams. In the dungeon growth quickly overtook any man-made disturbances.

  Hyath disappeared into the shady undergrowth. Bait, always, bait, but with a trusty pair of eyes on her. [Stride Before The Fall] could give her ara set of eyes, but it only sted so long before wearing out. No reason to waste the on. Harmony pulled out a bone knife. {Manipute Dead] lengthened, hardened, and sharpehe bde.

  Woozes would be ining. Uhe dungeon had surprises it would start with ohen slowly increase the number in the pabsp; Teeth and cws tacked onto a ball of excessive fur.

  Hyath heard it first, huffing and rustling through the jungle. [Familiar Bond] Let him send the general dire and the time the wooze should arrive to his partner. He was fident she could handle one.

  So, much fur gave her a way to track it with her css senses when bined with her Familiar’s warning. Even as the hair muffled the sound, it was dead, and outside of deposing bits of pnt life on the ground the biggest sour this life-filled jungle she could detebsp; Sideways out of the bushes slid the first wooze.

  [Beauti] got to work, with a healthy synergy with [Manipute Dead]. At this point, molding hair into fantastic shapes was sed nature. Wild hairstyles on Ambrosia had been more than g into the fan’s wants; it ractibsp; White fur moved like tentacles ing around the closest bits of shrubbery, tying the beast in pbsp;

  The furry monstrosity snapped furiously, creating a stant rattle, helpless as it was tied up a little more than two paces away.

  In preparation for this trip there had been theories, pnning, and training, but now that the wooze was here it was time to experiment.

  The plicated bination of skills tying up the fur in knots around branches was a bit energy-inteo use the ey of this floor, let alone once she got to the brood-mother. [Cold Touch] was useless as the fur ihem. Manipute Dead in its destructive base form would explode a fist-sized patch of hair and the fur wasn’t dense enough to cause damage, abs most of it, and fog on things like the beast's teeth or cws, could do more damage, but took extra attention and focus to merely partially disarmed them.

  There had been some horror stories about naive adventurers using fire skills on them, if a wooze caught fire, it would eventually kill them, but you had twenty minutes of angry balls of fire with teeth and cws attag you. It also destroyed what dungeons farmers liked to colled sell. That fine white fur. The capital's main export. Easy to dye, weave, and as soft as silk. You might as well be melting s to light woozes on fire.

  [High Kick]. Harmohe skill take over and kicked the trapped beast's side. It let out a squeal of pain and she could feel one rib break. The force of the kick ripped several bra had beeoo off, enough that the monster could now partially move enough to try to lu her again.

  She activated the maid-neancer bination again on the hair, this time straightening it. A pilr of hair, lohan the wooze’s legs grew out and stabbed into the ground anch the beast in the air as it peddled furiously to no avail. Too much padding. [High Kick] was out. All the guides said the fur was resistant to sshing. Two steps forward and she pierced the mohrough the eye and into its skull. As sharp as the bone knife was, none of her skills provided any ability with bdes, so sughtering the immobile target the same way she’d kill a was best. There’d been more things to test, but Hyath was already warning two more were on the way.

  It was a methodical sughter. A grind like any chore from Coodly Manor, where pest trol had often been assigo the maid. Most energy effit was matting and knotting the Wwoze’s up in self-made cos. Hyath got involved out of boredom.

  “Grrrak- Hck -hkkk-” The wet hairball of mashed-up wooze sptted out nearby. The Shadow toad groaned unfortably. The beasts were more of a choking hazard than ahreat to the oversized familiar.

  “I told you not to try to eat one.”

  Hungry, He pihrough their bond.

  Manipute dead artfully sheared a corpse nearby. Revealing it was a skinny thing with thin skin and a pile of dense wiry muscles trolling the body.

  Not Fun. The predator pined but ate it anyway.

  That did spark a new idea. [Manipute dead] Poofed the charging Wooze, blowing off every bit of hair, as though she’d just blown on dandelion fluff. ed onto that skill a fra of a sed ter [Cold Touch] hit. Woozes hat fur to maintaiimal body temperature, one of the reasons lighting them on fire merely inveniehem is that it was near a furnaderh that extremely long and thick yer of fur. Cold hit with a vengeance. Shutting down ans, and log up joints, the shock alone might have killed the beast eventually, but she settled on quiife work owitg body.

  Even using two different skills was the most effit way yet to kill, as only a low-effort amount of mana and authority was o kill them. Perhaps if she maintained an area of cold arouhen poof, strip them naked, and have them drop dead would be most effit. [Cold Touch] wao seep out of her and freeze everything these days.

  That was the thirtieth wooze, so that experiment would have to wait for the run of this floor. Even Hyath couldn’t sense any more prey nearby.

  With a push of willpower, she pulled back all the loose fur and tied it into a package. Hyath lumbered out of the shadows, He’d been dozing off his earlier disaster of an attempt at lunch. Twenty-nine bundles of fur sat strapped to his back, almost creating a cloak of white on his bck body. No point in leaving money behind when you’re already down to selling your body for a pce to live.

  “Let’s go kill this Brood mother. I’m sure everyone is nervous about my first dive into this dungeon.”

  “Rrrupt.” Hyath croaked with i clear through their bond.

  “Yes, and I have a dio get back to. “

  Perpetual social dinners at Ma Bell. It almost made her want to spend the night in the dungeon, totally against reendations. Max promised to get her the information on who would be at this oh enough time for preparation. That did require finishing this floor in a timely fashion.

  Uhe undead dungeon, Nae’s Garden had a predictable lineup for what to expect. Oion had been to ighe boss on the first trip and head back to the entra had been what Adric pushed for. Everyone else agreed it would be best to tour the dungeon floor and plete it tomorrow. But thirty dead woozes and still no level of her css, if she had to defeat the champion of the first floor she would do it. The description of the brood mother in the guides is Extra Large Wooze who stood guarding the clearing before the stairs allowing you to go to the level or out. Too big to fortably fit in the ju was resistant te attacks trying to s from the edge of the woods.

  “Corpse-strewn luck.” Harmony nearly turned back to the entrance. Legs had to be the size of tree trunks. fortably uo fit was an uatement, the beast's size would prevent it from entering the trees it towered over. Time backtrag held a ce of beio dinner and being blindsided again by the guests.

  [Stride Before the Fall] Too close! With a face full of fur, [Manipute Dead] ripped a healthy-sized k away shearing as close as she could get. The leg revealed was bigger than the size of tree trunks in the dense dungeon jungle.

  How do those solo evolved…? [Small Armor] caught the twitch before Harmony’s brain clicked onto it, so she was already rolling her armored shin toward the point of impact. Even armored, getting kicked by the brood mother wooze hurt. Almost enough for her to give up that strided version of herself. A shave like that shouldn't have alerted the beast. A wave of her hand had Adric -shaven every m without a hint of tugging. Yet here… Harmony charged [Mana Rotation] feeling it supercharge her ability as she tumbled away. If she was going out she would take as much hair as possible and this time it would hurt. Harmony’s Skill gripped tight as she let the momentum she’d gained from being punted py into the force to rip the hair out.

  The fluardians' painful yelp shook the trees. Not that it slowed its poun the offending neaumbling on the ground.

  While one of her couldn't tell up from down, Harmony watched from the trees and decided that the shaken and shocked version of her was done. [Stride] ended and the brood mother was left unsatisfyingly empty of revenge as its ded on nothing.

  Echos of the pain lingered in the maids' memory. Outside of removing one k of hair along the rear leg and a greater bloody bare pat the beast's underside, there wasn't any real damage. No way will there be tying that wooze into a tle package. Even now it searched and she air in frustration.

  [Manipute Dead] and [Dust] pulsed around her and Hyath, catg what she could. The teique didn’t eliminate sts but restricted what she could of the pos the skills affected. Would [Stride] have a st trail to the new location leading back to her? There hadn’t been aing, hunts with Adrid Bowe, or other experiments. Not enough time.

  The guides all talked about tactics to defeat the boss as a team. The most survivable one or two members got the brood mry at them while the rest took the monster down. Ohe brood mother targeted someo wouldn’t stop and ignored all others until the target was eliminated. It was an unfavorable position to be in. Many teams hired professionals rather than risk friends in that role. Defensive-minded folk who could take the brunt of the attacks, or those quiough to lead the beast on a chase for however long it took the others to win. Going into the woods only had the giant furball switch targets.

  It was the same trait that caused the little woozes to doggedly attack those who ehe first floor.

  The brood mother s the spot where Harmony nded, its mass of wicked teeth wide and snarling. That would be a problem.

  [Stride Before the Fall] could have been an option. One of her to distrad ao work on killing the best. Doubt that she could do enough damage before the target failed, and if they were both her, would it really distract the brood mother from either target? The two “hers” didn’t smell different. While not the only source of trag the brood mothers primarily used st. It was all a problem. She'd also have to wait until she felt she could use the skill again.

  “Grrupt,” Hyath pined softly beside her sending his feelings to her. The fur on his back was hot, and he was hungry again. It had been bad enough to eat the one she’d killed first, the woozsicles were a big no as he didn’t like his food cold.

  “Too bad you nearly choked on the damn hairballs or you could have had your fill.” The neancer hissed babsp;

  Hyath was weighed down by the massive pile of white fur she’d bundled onto him. The pile was bigger than she was.

  “Ackpt.” Why are you looking at me that way? Her familiar asked through their [Bond].

  It took some work and enough time that Harmony worried about Ma Bell's dionight. Exhaustion prepped to settle in. A life-sized doll made of hair. Scraped of any old Wooze funk. The hard part was then making it smell like herself. More than a little bit raw and tender from exfoliating as much of herself over to it, even trimming her hair some. [Renew Spirit] and her es stat to give the doll an aura of her life force was either inspired or a massive waste of time.

  “Grabsp; Hyath pined about his role in this scheme.

  “That big beastie will totally ignore you and go after Hair-mony White over there. You just o hop out as attention.”

  Her familiar had he plete ck of shadows in the clearing. He'd even hihat she should [Stride] in and haul The fur on her back rather than have him hop about with it attached to a long stick strapped to his babsp; The doll was rger thahat was a no-go.

  “Get! Before the magis out.”

  The disgruoad took off pting this idiocy. Maybe he should have found a nice frog to partner up with to have tea and cats with. Possibly exge letters. Harmony worried too much. A streak of pain from the burden of their binds fshed as if to correct him there.

  The inky bck toad on the sunny field of green stood out, g with the vibrancy, the white hair-doll attached, not so much.

  Hyath hopped forward and the brood mother's attention ss attention towards him. “Aaaaaaaak!” He screamed and darted sideways.

  I’m not prey! I’m not prey! He projected through their bond.

  Stay in my area! Harmony projected bad headed in the dire he took off along the edge of the tree line.

  The brood mother was faster than both of them. Harmony flinched as it pouhankfully at the giant white blur. ostasis kicked in slowing her perception of everything. The neancer delved into the e she had with [High Kick] and [Small Armor], watg the angle, and momentum of the strike. A trickle of relief as she saw it would nd just short of her panig familiar and on target.

  Flexing her kick to push off a tree at the edge of the clearing, she flung herself into the fray as the brood mother’s mouth surrouhe life-sized hair doll.

  Choke on this! If she hadn’t spent so much of her maid service w on hair, Harmony doubted she could have mahe tactic. While not a thing of beauty, [Beati] w in jun with [Manipute Dead] reached out to knot the thing in the fluardian’s throat. [Mend] helped gum things up even further.

  Still attached to the doll, Hyath found himself lifted up as the giant woozie started to buck. He kicked mid-air detag himself from the trap, tumbling to the ground.

  The wooze retched, trying to dislodge the hair-person while Harmony fought to keep it in. She could feel the tipping point as she sealed it away from breathing. Not that it was giving up as it wheezed i bit of air it could. Acceptance of death and rage. All things must die and sometimes you go peacefully and other times…

  It's life over, the brood mother shed out. Expeg it to go at her, Harmony readied [Small Armor]. It didn't go after Her.

  The enraged fluardian streaked toward the toad hopping away even as it processed its final breath. Hyath wasn’t stupid in that he'd assumed he was safe. her was he quiough. Leaping away st sed, three sharp cws raked his armored back, slig it easily.

  Those boo familiars weren’t supposed to feel their partner’s pain. Her unlocked stat of es threw that expectation out the window. A fire burned down her back, heat buffeted by Hyath's rage.

  I am not prey!

  Harmony activated [High Kick] as its purest form, aiming for the back of the unpadded leg she'd shaved earlier

  Hyath unched his attao fleeing here. His version of that same attack. Familiars didn't get their bonded skills, but they got something. That had always been clear as Harmony grew.

  The maid's armored foot colpsed the leg forward at the Joint, crag the bone where the femur and tibia met. Hyath’s strike took advantage of the flinch that caused, his armored bleeding back ramming into where the wooze’s throat should be as he plunged into the fur.

  Both maid and familiar had seen enough of the beasts stripped bald to get a sense of where the vulnerable parts were.

  The brood mother jerked back, Harmony expected Hyath to nd groundward after his strike. The gia twitched and Hyath remained enveloped in its furry white mass. Fog her senses on the hair she could detect vigorous pulling and yanking, corresponding with the twitg movements of the already distressed and choking wooze.

  Harmony hopped back a few feet, still trating on making sure its airways were blocked. Its rage didn’t help it trol its body this far into its iable death. The twitches and fails tinued until it colpsed into a white lump.

  Help. Hair! Hyath sent through his bond.

  Harmony cleared the patch her familiar was in. The toad fell out a ball of fluff, the extra-long individual strands ed around his body and limbs. The maid tio cut the strands and tangles off him with her skill. “You didn’t pn to get stuck up in there did you?”

  “Grupt.” He responded saltily.

  [Mend] with [Renew Spirit] sealed up the wounds on his back as best she could. She wasn’t a healer, so forced him to drink one of the healing potions, despite grumbling that he was “Fine and predators don’t need help.”

  Brood mother dead, she’d o harvest it , harvesting and packaging the hair, cws, ah had some value too. It was dead. The two of them had ma alone. A… her css had not leveled. Inside, where her skills, css, and professioed it twisted unfortably uhe weight of authority rampaging about.